"You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are all around you (for the Lord your God is a jealous God among you), lest the anger of the Lord your God be aroused against you and destroy you from the face of the earth."
(Deuteronomy 6:14-15)
Our family stopped watching television a long time ago, so in some ways we're out of the loop to what's going on in the television world. For instance, I didn't realize how influential Oprah Winfrey had become in our culture—even to Christian women. I knew she was popular and touted a lot of psychobabbly, feel good ideas; but, I didn’t realize how “religious” she was and I didn’t know how wild her beliefs had become. It seems as though she has become the latest and greatest “New Age guru,” not just to housewives, but also to working women, and now, even to men. Father Hollywood said this on his blog:
"She [Oprah] is one of the greatest shapers of philosophy and politics in popular America today...She is also popularizing a syncretistic religion that blends elements of Christianity with Eastern paganism and Western Gnosticism, a religion that has great appeal in this day and age of relativism and self-help."
One of my readers sent me this link (thanks Theresa!) and I was shocked when I watched this video. I don't know anything about the book that's advertised at the end, but the presentation of Oprah's beliefs (factual, in context, and her actual words - not hearsay) is startling!
She gives testimony of the moment she finally "saw the light." She begins by describing (with obvious irritation) how she was sitting in her Baptist church one Sunday when she was in her late twenties, listening to the pastor talk about things like how great God was, and how the pastor went on about God's omniscience, and His omnipresence.
She talked about how you had to be there at 8:00 a.m. or you didn’t get a seat (what a drag). She shares how she finally “took God out of the box” and how there were “rules, belief systems, and doctrines” in Christianity that obviously troubled her.
She describes her grand epiphany when the pastor said, “The Lord thy God is a jealous God.” She said she was caught up in the rapture of the moment until he said “jealous.” She then went on to say:
“And something struck me…I was thinking God is all, God is omnipresent… and God is also jealous; God is jealous of me? And something about that didn’t feel right in my spirit because I believe that God is love and that God is in all things; and so that’s when the search for something more than doctrine started to stir within me.”
Hmmm…something stirred within her indeed. The problem is that in her search for “more than doctrine” Satan has deceived her with a “different doctrine;” a doctrine that is devoid of the Truth—one that denies the person of Christ—one that denies the Gospel, and embraces the worship of self—leading to death.
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." (2 Timothy 4:3-5, NKJV)
She goes on to say:
“God is a feeling experience not a believing experience. And if your religion is a believing experience, if God for you is still about a belief then it’s not truly God.”
But God’s Word tells us:
"Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. Beware therefore, lest what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you:
Behold, you despisers,
Marvel and perish!
For I work a work in your days,
A work which you will by no means believe,
Though one were to declare it to you.”
(Acts 13:38-41, NKJV)
Read also John 3:16-21
And 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
We’d better wake up and start speaking the truth consistently and courageously; because false teachers are out there—ear ticklers who would entice us into believing that we are all little gods; we are all capable of our own salvation—that God is nothing more than a concept “within ourselves.”
But be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Pray for Oprah and for those she is deceiving. Remain gracious when dealing with those who have been fooled by heresy. Remember they are perishing—and have compassion. Send Oprah letters of love that speak truth, pray for her, but don’t listen to her—and share the truth in love with those who have.
May God be glorified!
(Deuteronomy 6:14-15)
Our family stopped watching television a long time ago, so in some ways we're out of the loop to what's going on in the television world. For instance, I didn't realize how influential Oprah Winfrey had become in our culture—even to Christian women. I knew she was popular and touted a lot of psychobabbly, feel good ideas; but, I didn’t realize how “religious” she was and I didn’t know how wild her beliefs had become. It seems as though she has become the latest and greatest “New Age guru,” not just to housewives, but also to working women, and now, even to men. Father Hollywood said this on his blog:
"She [Oprah] is one of the greatest shapers of philosophy and politics in popular America today...She is also popularizing a syncretistic religion that blends elements of Christianity with Eastern paganism and Western Gnosticism, a religion that has great appeal in this day and age of relativism and self-help."
One of my readers sent me this link (thanks Theresa!) and I was shocked when I watched this video. I don't know anything about the book that's advertised at the end, but the presentation of Oprah's beliefs (factual, in context, and her actual words - not hearsay) is startling!
She gives testimony of the moment she finally "saw the light." She begins by describing (with obvious irritation) how she was sitting in her Baptist church one Sunday when she was in her late twenties, listening to the pastor talk about things like how great God was, and how the pastor went on about God's omniscience, and His omnipresence.
She talked about how you had to be there at 8:00 a.m. or you didn’t get a seat (what a drag). She shares how she finally “took God out of the box” and how there were “rules, belief systems, and doctrines” in Christianity that obviously troubled her.
She describes her grand epiphany when the pastor said, “The Lord thy God is a jealous God.” She said she was caught up in the rapture of the moment until he said “jealous.” She then went on to say:
“And something struck me…I was thinking God is all, God is omnipresent… and God is also jealous; God is jealous of me? And something about that didn’t feel right in my spirit because I believe that God is love and that God is in all things; and so that’s when the search for something more than doctrine started to stir within me.”
Hmmm…something stirred within her indeed. The problem is that in her search for “more than doctrine” Satan has deceived her with a “different doctrine;” a doctrine that is devoid of the Truth—one that denies the person of Christ—one that denies the Gospel, and embraces the worship of self—leading to death.
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." (2 Timothy 4:3-5, NKJV)
She goes on to say:
“God is a feeling experience not a believing experience. And if your religion is a believing experience, if God for you is still about a belief then it’s not truly God.”
But God’s Word tells us:
"Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. Beware therefore, lest what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you:
Behold, you despisers,
Marvel and perish!
For I work a work in your days,
A work which you will by no means believe,
Though one were to declare it to you.”
(Acts 13:38-41, NKJV)
Read also John 3:16-21
And 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
We’d better wake up and start speaking the truth consistently and courageously; because false teachers are out there—ear ticklers who would entice us into believing that we are all little gods; we are all capable of our own salvation—that God is nothing more than a concept “within ourselves.”
But be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Pray for Oprah and for those she is deceiving. Remain gracious when dealing with those who have been fooled by heresy. Remember they are perishing—and have compassion. Send Oprah letters of love that speak truth, pray for her, but don’t listen to her—and share the truth in love with those who have.
May God be glorified!
