----- Original Message -----
From: Pilgrims Covenant Church
To: info@christian.org.uk
Sent: Thursday, March 18, 2010 2:01 PM
Subject: Wayne Grudem
Dear Mr. Hart,
I am the pastor of Pilgrims
Covenant Church, Monroe, Wisconsin, USA. I am also the host of a
program called "The Heart of the Matter" which can be heard in
your country at http://www.sermonaudio.com/hom.
I and many other ministers
in the country are grieved by the fact that a number of evangelical
ministers and leaders have joined with Roman Catholics and leaders of the
Orthodox Church to sign the Manhattan Declaration which in turn was the
launching pad for a new ecumenical movement. I am sure you have already
read that statement, but if not, you may do so at http://manhattandeclaration.org/.
While the stated purpose of the MD is to
stand against certain moral evils and for religious liberty, it is plain
by a simple reading of the document that it declares to the world that the
"gospel" of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is
"the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." There are many
other similar statements in the Manhattan Declaration. So, while the
stated purpose of the MD is one thing, the content and effect of the
document is quite another. Put simply, it is a study in spiritual
fornication which no evangelical could sign without betraying Christ Jesus
and the true gospel. We must judge these matters from the word of God, not
by which evangelical celebrity may have signed the document or what they
may have done in the past. Certainly the Apostle Peter's past faithfulness
and good works did not deter the Apostle Paul from withstanding Peter
"to the face" when he fell into grievous error. By the way, you
may want to do a little research on the Vatican's reaction to the
Manhattan Declaration, as expressed through her bishops. I suggest you
start with this article: http://www.catholicvoiceoakland.org/2010/02-22/commentary.htm.
But to come to the point of my writing you:
I understand that your Christian Institute is planning on having Wayne
Grudem, a signer of the Manhattan Declaration, speak at several meetings.
Back on March 10, a friend of mine, Rev. Peter Ratcliff, wrote to ask
that you cancel the Christian Institute speaking engagements of Mr. Grudem,
which are yet several months in the future. In your response, you refused
that request, giving a number of troubling excuses as to why C.I. fully
intends to go ahead with the Grudem engagements. But I
will quote just this one comment of yours: "The Christian
Institute is committed to defending the Protestant Reformed Christian
faith. The distinction between Roman Catholic belief and our doctrinal
basis is clear. The views of Wayne Grudem are also plain. He has said that
the Roman Catholic view of justification 'ultimately destroys the heart of
the Gospel' (Systematic Theology, page 729)."
It
seems to me what you have pointed out is that Mr. Wayne Grudem is
completely without even the semblance of an excuse for signing the
Manhattan Declaration. Further, you have also left yourself with no excuse
for not canceling him as a speaker. The Scriptures are very clear on
the course which you are refusing to take. Having a signer of the
Manhattan Declaration speak for C.I. is at odds with the word of God and
is totally inconsistent with "defending the Protestant Reformed
Christian faith."
In
that regard, I have attached to this message to you my response to Dr.
John MacArthur who gave reasons, similar to those you have given, in order
to justify having Dr. Albert Mohler speak at his, MacArthur's, recent
Shepherds' Conference.
In light of his public betrayal of the
gospel and in that betrayal influencing others to do likewise, I would
like to urge you to cancel Wayne Grudem's scheduled appearances for
Christian Institute. This is such a crucial matter that I am copying
my letter to you out to our UK mailing list. I am sure they will be
praying that you take the courageous and righteous path regarding Wayne
Grudem.
I would appreciate hearing from you on this
matter. I hope it will be a response which makes the hearts of faithful
Christians in the UK glad, as well as the Christians in our country who
have been standing against the Manhattan Declaration evangelicals. I hope
and pray it will be a response which is consistent with your commitment to
defend the Protestant Reformed Christian faith. Otherwise, I would
urge you to change both your organization's name and stated commitment.
Sincerely,
Ralph Ovadal
Click here
to read Pastor Ovadal's response to Dr. John MacArthur.
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