Convenient Epiphanies

Skepticism and Discernment

A Time for Everything

In Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, we read —

To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.

King Solomon’s declaration that there is a time for every purpose under heaven clearly reveals that there is not a single event which God has not ordained to come to pass from all eternity, and that no man can thwart his plans. It reminds us that there will be times of good and evil, and that these have been foreordained by God himself. What it does not tell us, however, is whether or not our own time is one of healing or destroying, killing or making alive, tearing or sewing, loving or hating, warring or keeping peace, etc.

Figuring that out is a matter of discernment.

But even when we do find that out, we are still told that spiritual warfare is a constant reality of which Christians ought to be aware. Peter explains this to us when he commands us to —

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.¹

Note that Peter’s imperative is in the present tense — be sober, be vigilant. Further, note the reason he gives for this — the devil walks about like a roaring lion. The devil is constantly on the prowl, as it were, and so we are called to always be sober minded, vigilant. God commands Christians to not put our guard down. Just as we ought to recognize times of material abundance, be thankful for them, and yet continually keep in mind that times of lack may very well be around the corner, so too we ought to recognize times of peace, be thankful for them, and yet also be aware of the overall spiritual war in which we are involved.

Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing

This point is driven home by Christ’s command for Christians to be wary of false teachers. He declares —

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”²

False teachers are deceptive. They present themselves to their hearers as something which they are not, as they secretly bring in destructive false teachings.³ This is why Christians are called to be “wise as serpents, yet meek as doves.”⁴ And this is why I am suspicious of many of the recent epiphanies I’ve been hearing about when it comes to big name evangelicals⁵ and their views on various hot button issues that are of socio-political consequence.

Are these real changes of mind? Or are they politically expedient masks that will fall off once these individuals feel that promoting what they really believe won’t result in them losing adulation, or power, or money, or some combination of these?

In the case of Al Mohler, it is easy to see that the man has recently “changed his mind” on the question of “sexual orientation”⁶ because an increasing number of Americans are starting to move to the right when it comes to issues like homosexuality, transgenderism, and abortion.⁷ However, in the case of someone like Carl R. Trueman it may be difficult for those who are unfamiliar with his writing to discern whether or not he is truly an ally when it comes to calling out evangelicals who have nothing to say about the significance of the Supreme Court’s recent decision on Roe v. Wade. You see, Trueman expresses deep sadness over the silence of Russell Moore, liberal, leftist, communitarian public theologian, writing —

The post-Dobbs silence of Russell Moore, official public theologian at evangelicalism’s flagship magazine, Christianity Today, is a case in point. In June 2022, when Roe finally fell and public space in the United States was aggressively queered as never before, neither issue apparently rose to the level of importance that required public comment from the most well-known evangelical public theologian in the country. That is deeply sad and a complete dereliction of duty at a time when so many evangelicals want help in thinking through these matters.

I had always assumed that the LGBTQ+ movement would provide the trigger for the fracturing of American Christianity, not abortion. Yet post-Roe, the early signs are that the latter is performing that task. The coming months will be fascinating, and I suspect rather depressing, to watch. When it comes to abortion, especially after Dobbs, Christians face a choice of social respectability or religious fidelity. And the Christian commentariat already seems divided on which way to go.⁸

Thus, he rightly acknowledges that Christians ought to be happy that Roe v. Wade has fallen. He also rightly calls out Russell Moore’s silence on the matter.

The problems with Trueman’s velvet gloved critique of Moore, however, are the following —

1. Trueman has, on more than one occasion, undermined the significance of the abortion issue in the US. For instance, in his article “Uneasy Consciences and Critical Minds: What the Followers of Carl Henry Can Learn from Edward Said,” Trueman writes —

   If the fundamentalism against which Henry was reacting was politically apathetic, looking for a kingdom which was projected pretty much into the future, much of white American evangelicalism today is tied to right wing politics of a fairly radical kind. Economically there is little to choose between Republican and Democratic options at the ballot box. One is dealing with debates about the weighting of tax burdens, with the basic free market system being an unquestioned orthodoxy for both parties. There are some key areas of disagreement on foreign policy, but the real division for many Christians is the issue of abortion.
   
   Although reports seem to indicate that substantial minorities in both parties disagree with their official party lines (Republicans are pro-life; Democrats are pro-choice) this does not translate into grass roots nuancing of political allegiances. There is a fierce loyalty to the Republicans being exhibited by most white Christians. The current function, however, of abortion as the card which trumps everything has killed meaningful political thinking on other issues in many evangelical circles. Health care, foreign policy, and welfare are simply non-issues when compared to the termination of pregnancies.
   
   The relationship between the church and politics is always going to be complicated. This is not least because political thinking is a culturally specific, occasional activity, where the black and white moral categories of right and wrong do not always, or even often, apply. Even black and white issues are not so black and white when it comes to specific party politics. Yes, God hates the slaughter of infants—but abortion is merely the most obvious way in which this takes place. Poor healthcare, unhygienic living conditions, lack of access to AIDS drugs, famine, sweatshops, unemployment, underemployment, war, environmental damage due to pollution and greed—these all kill infants too. Reflection on these makes party politics less black and white than many would wish. It is time for Christians to face up to these issues as well.⁹

   In his book Republocrat, Trueman undermines the significance of abortion as well, writing —

   It seems clear that the democratic legislative path to reducing or even outlawing abortions is proving remarkably unfruitful.... following from this... is there any point in allowing the matter to be the make-or-break issue on which individuals make their voting decisions at election time?¹⁰

   Trueman’s undermining of the abortion issue years ago is not insignificant given his influence on evangelicalism over the years. If evangelicals have not paid close enough attention to the abortion issue, have not treated with the seriousness it deserves, and have failed to address the Roe v. Wade decision, it is in part due to Trueman’s own influence on evangelical culture.¹¹

2. Additionally, Trueman’s deep sadness over Moore’s failure to comment on the significance of SCOTUS’ decision implies that Trueman is aware of Moore’s teaching and influence — including, of course, Moore’s liberalism and promotion of communitarianism¹² — and suggests that Trueman has no problem with any of it.

What appears to be a moment of clarity in Trueman’s thinking is, in other words, deeply questionable at best, and intentionally superficial and hollow at worst. In any case, it is apropos given the current conservative drift we are seeing in America.

Another case is that of Rosaria Butterfield, who has recently changed her mind on conversion therapy. In her article, Retraction of My Position on Reparative Therapy and Ex-Gay Organizations, Butterfield explains how her concerns about the harming of homosexuals during conversion therapy were put to rest by a particular article she read. And as she has done elsewhere numerous times., she also unambiguously identifies homosexuality and transgenderism as sins. This is good. What she has not done, however, is recant several of her teachings related to this specific matter. For instance, she has not recanted of the postmodern and feminist roots and substance of her theory of hospitality contained in her book The Gospel Comes With a House Key,¹³ or of her promotion of the writings of Henri Nouwen, or of her subtle promotion of the legitimacy of concepts¹⁴ like “white privilege,” “heterosexual privilege,” “religious privilege,” or of her public promotion of the use of “pronoun hospitality.”¹⁵

Discerning the Times

While I cannot say for certain that Butterfield is simply following the cultural winds, I can say that at the very least it seems suspicious and, therefore, warrants scrutiny. When individuals who have previously aligned themselves with theological liberals and political leftists quite openly on different hot button issues have a seemingly sudden change of mind at around the same time, and under the same conditions (i.e. major socio-political shifts of allegiance which would make the aforementioned positions very unprofitable to hold and promote), paying closer attention to those vocalizing their convenient epiphanies is the sensible, rational, and godly thing to do. This is true not only when it comes to those brazenly heretical teachers who openly declare themselves to no longer be involved in some kind of pyramid tithing scheme,¹⁶ but even more so those who claim to profess the faith once for all delivered unto the saints and yet embrace, teach, and defend ideas that are fundamentally opposed to that very faith.

—h.

1. 1st Pet 5:8-9.

2. Matt 7:15-20.

3. cf. 2nd Pet 2:1.

4. Matt 10:16.

5. I am also suspicious of political figures who are now suddenly “seeing the light” regarding Biden’s deep corruption and mental inability to lead the nation.

6. See Mohler, R. Albert. “Two Reformed Denominations Make Important Moves to Defend Biblical Teaching on Homosexuality,” The Briefing, June 30, 2022, https://albertmohler.com/2022/06/30/briefing-6-30-22.

7. See “Albert Mohler flip-flops on sexual orientation, again,” The Capstone Report, July 1, 2022, https://capstonereport.com/2022/07/01/albert-mohler-flip-flops-on-sexual-orientation-again/38415/; and “Albert Mohler is now a Christian Nationalist,” The Capstone Report, July 6, 2022, https://capstonereport.com/2022/07/06/albert-mohler-is-now-a-christian-nationalist/38448/.

8. “Christians Should Rejoice Over Dobbs,” First Things, July 7, 2022, https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2022/07/christians-should-rejoice-over-dobbs.

9. Themelios Vol. 30, Iss. 2. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/uneasy-consciences-and-critical-minds-what-the-followers-of-carl-henry-can-learn-from-edward-said/. (emphasis added)

10. Republocrat: Confessions of a Liberal Conservative (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2010), 106. (emphasis added)

11. Russell Moore and Trueman, in fact, could be said to share the attitude toward abortion as an issue that should not be that significant to Christians. See “Russell Moore Says Abortion Isn’t a Political Issue, Don’t Worry About How You Vote,” Pulpit and Pen, Jan 27, 2021, https://pulpitandpen.org/2020/01/27/russell-moore-says-abortion-isnt-a-political-issue-dont-worry-about-how-you-vote/.

12. See “With Russell Moore Gone, I Weep in Joy,” Christian Research Network, May 31, 2021, https://christianresearchnetwork.org/2021/05/31/with-russell-moore-gone-i-weep-in-joy/.

13. I’ve written about this in my booklet The Gospel Comes with a House Key - a Critical Review: Unveiling Its Postmodern Philosophy and Feminist Theology (Lewiston: Scripturalist Publications, 2020). https://www.amazon.com/Gospel-Comes-House-Key-Postmodern/dp/B0851LXVH9

14. These are also touched upon in my booklet.

15. See the following resources — “Rosaria Butterfield *On Audio* Promoting “Preferred (Transgender) Pronouns” in Name of Hospitality,” Pulpit and Pen, Dec 16, 2019, https://pulpitandpen.org/2019/12/16/rosaria-butterfield-on-audio-promoting-preferred-transgender-pronouns-in-name-of-hospitality/; “Butterfield Quietly Edits Audio Referencing Her Stance on Preferred Pronouns,” Pulpit and Pen, Jan 3, 2020, https://pulpitandpen.org/2020/01/03/butterfield-quietly-edits-audio-referencing-her-stance-on-preferred-pronouns/; Diaz, Hiram. “A Response to Dr. Butterfield’s Recent Words on Intersectionality,” Pulpit and Pen, Mar 9, 2020, https://pulpitandpen.org/2020/03/09/a-response-to-dr-butterfields-recent-words-on-intersectionality/; and “Are Names Up for Grabs?,” Involuted Speculations, Jan 6, 2020, https://involutedgenealogies.wordpress.com/2020/01/06/are-names-up-for-grabs/.

16. For example, Benny Hinn (source) and Creflo Dollar (source).