Pastor John MacArthur Calls Out Ravi Zacharias and Carl Lentz as ‘Phoneys’
Pastor John MacArthur of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, called out deceased and disgraced renown apologist Ravi Zacharias and disgraced ex-Hillsong Pastor Carl Lentz during a January 17th sermon.
Commenting that he loves the clarity that has arisen in these new times of polarization, he expresses gratitude that creative cultural Christianity is going and has gone by the wayside, saying:
And as well as I look at this I, as I mentioned earlier, I love the clarity that has arisen. You know, we had for decades people find a creative cultural Christianity that could appeal to non-believers. It was accepting of immorality, accepting of homosexuality, accepting of racial hatred. There was a kind of superficial, shallow Christianity that watered down the gospel, didn’t talk about sin, tried to have a positive message. It was very successful.
Now, I think there’s a sifting and a shifting. First of all, phoneys are going to have a hard time hiding with the internet.
We’re seeing one after another after another after another dead ones and alive ones, this dead apologist had a deviant sex life. This cool dude, rock and roll pastor, was immoral with multiple women for years and years.
I look at all that, and my thoughts were, I don’t know…I don’t think if it weren’t for Jesus Christ, that I could sell anybody on Christianity. We preach Christ, right? And you’re attracted to him, right? But if there are people out in the world that just look at Christianity it has to be not only uninviting but maybe even repulsive…if it weren’t for Jesus Christ, Christianity would have no appeal.
Lentz was terminated from Hillsong after it was revealed he had multiple affairs, and Ravi’s own organization revealed he engaged in years of sexual sins and molestations of his staff.
For video and commentary of the message, see below:
About Author
I did not think Ravi Zacharias was doctrinally sound, but I never suspected he was evil and a phony until all the evidence started coming out. I never trusted Carl Lentz and knew he was a phony and did not believe the Bible. On the other hand, we have John MacArthur. I am not a Calvinist, but I am so grateful for Pastor John MacArthur. He stands strong and is courageous. He never compromises the truth of the Bible.
However, come to think of it, even after the credential scandal and the sexting scandal, MacArthur still shared a stage with Ravi — and with some other questionable speakers.
I’ll never forget watching a video of Zacharias during a Q&A session at a conference years ago dancing around the issue of how Roman Catholics can be Christians, and he couldn’t give a straight answer, probably because his ministry received a lot of donations from Roman Catholics and so he was highly compromised and showed where his loyalties were. I recall him saying something about you could still be a Christian but I “bad Roman catholic.” But then why would the Holy Spirit who indwelt that person permit that and allow himself to be blasphemed?
The Roman Catholic church is the whore of babylon described in Revelation.
Revelation 18:4–5 (NKJV)
4And I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues.
5For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.
See “Come out of her, my people” so some of Gods people are in the whore of Babylon and God wants them to come out!
All of the false prophets need and deserve to be shown for what they are.
well, they will…
That’s great he’s calling out these snakes, but who’s calling out John McCarthur? To be a Calvinist is to attribute wickedness to a righteous God by saying that God “chooses” who goes to heaven and who goes to hell. Sorry for simplifying it, but that’s basically it.
Calvinists are confused by simple things, such as the term “sovereign”. Sovereign just means “supreme ruler”. That does not mean that your will is always enforced, it just means that it could be if you wanted. Was it God’s sovereign will that His most beautiful angel would rebel and take 1/3 of the heavenly host with him, destined for eternity in Hell and effectively destroying most of creation in the process? I don’t think that is the will of a righteous God.
Wouldn’t He take pleasure when His will is carried out, yet we are told that God takes no pleasure in the destruction of the wicked. What? I thought this “sovereign” God chose these people for Hell? NO, even a child can understand that God has given each individual the will to choose their eternal destiny.
Calvinism may be one of the most blasphemous doctrines of all, attributing evil and destruction to “God’s will and sovereignty”.
One passage the Calvinists like to refer to to prove their madness is 2 Timothy 2:20-21
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.
They say that the vessel of honour are those who are saved and the vessel of dishonour are those who aren’t. The problem is that this isn’t being written for the lost to read. this is the apostle Paul writing to a pastor of a church named Timothy. If you read in context, which most Christians can’t bring themselves to do including John MacArthur, you will see that this is talking about believers needing to get right with the Lord to be of good service.
Read the verses BEFORE and AFTER these two verses to get a clear picture of the context you heretics! V15 talks about “study to shew thyself approved”. V16 “shun profane and vain babblings”. V17-18 talks about the poisonous error of Hymenaeus and Philetus who taught that the resurrection was already past. V19 Here’s the entire point: “Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”!!!
Then after the passage in V22, “Flee youthful lusts, but follow righteousness”. V23 “foolish and unlearned questions avoid”.
AND SO ON!
This “key” passage to the Calvinist is proof of a lack of reading comprehension. In fact, if the Calvinist had a reading comprehension of at least third grade, they would see that this passage is written to and only about BELIEVERS, some who are righteous and following Christ and some who in essence are “prodigal sons” and walking in the world. This passage is an encouragement to walk right, not proof that some people are destined to Heaven and some to Hell.
The Calvinist misses the simple fact that the Bible clearly tells us that Christ’s sacrifice on the cross was for ALL. All means all. Christ paid for the sins of the WHOLE world. Again, to say that Christ died for some and not for others is blaspheme.
The Calvinist doctrine is rife with error. Worse is that it presents a God that is ugly and unrighteous, only willing that some come to repentance when the Bible clearly tells us otherwise.
Work on your exegesis people. Really!
Dan,
Here is my problem, who do we listen to when it comes to preachers? Every pastor from every view will talk about how others that don’t align with their views (which they all say is biblical) are heretics. Folks will say don’t listen to any of them just read Scripture and the Holy Spirit will teach you, while yes Scripture does tell us that those that are born again have no need for teachers since we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, Scripture also tells us that God has given the church Pastors, teachers, evangelist, etc with gifts and qualifications.
So here is my question who do we listen to? Who can we trust to teach the Word of God? If Calvinism is blasphemy as you state then that would mean John Macarthur is a heretic/wolf and that would also apply to every other bible teacher that’s a Calvinist. I have also heard people treat every doctrine outside of salvation by grace alone, the virgin birth, trinity, etc as secondary issues. As in it is okay to not agree on those matters or possibly be wrong, I didn’t think anything in Scripture could be treated as a secondary issue?
You say that the Calvinist view is due to a lack of reading comprehension in which they would say the same about those that hold your view. It just seems like a circular argument on both sides and lay people such as myself are left wondering are there any solid biblical teachers that we can trust to teach the truth of God’s Word? You ended your comment with telling everyone to work on their exegesis. The people you are saying that to would tell you the same thing, they are just as convinced of their interpretation of Scripture as you are. I think the underlying problem in all of this is pride and academia.
Too many “theologians” care more about impressing people with their intelligence by using theological terminology that the “average” Christian doesn’t understand. This knowledge only puffs them up and makes them look/sound like a pharisee. They work too hard to make it look like they have reached some special standing with Christ that is impossible for anyone else to reach. In other words you all act like you have a higher claim on the truth and got it all figured out. Yes its all in Scripture and that Scripture has a specific meaning, the problem is folks that share your views and differ with your views have strong convictions that your all right.
Your argument assumes that perhaps there are no heretics, yet the Bible clearly teaches us to identify them and avoid them.
Which God do you think is better, the God that chooses who goes to Heaven and who goes to Hell, or the God that gives us free will and we end up where we choose?
The Bible tells us that Hell was created for Satan and his angels. Not for people. Yet, God was willing that ALL be saved. The fact that people will go to hell will be their own choice. It was NEVER God’s intention.
Furthermore, Calvinists are like Democrats. Demoncrats redefine words to support their twisted dogma. Look through dictionaries to see what they’ve done with the words “liberal” and “conservative”. They have made conservative a bad word!! This is one of satan’s many tactics.
So then when I see Calvinists doing the same thing with words like “elect” “sovereign” and so on, I see through it all.
Elect means and has always simply meant “chosen for service”. Read through your Bible and every place you see the word elect, ask what fits better, “chosen for service” or “chosen for salvation”. Only a few places could one even argue the latter. In most places the simple answer is “chosen for service”, and that is how we have always used the word…”president elect”.
Modern dictionaries have changed the definition of the words in recent history. I see through this. Look to older dictionaries to find the true meaning of these words that they hang their perverted doctrines on.
We WILL answer before Christ for our doctrine! Those who are genuinely born-again and preach false doctrine will suffer loss of eternal reward.
Finally, how sincerely have you prayed for God to direct your doctrine? It’s one thing to acknowledge the guidance of the Holy Spirit, but if one is not sincere and passionate about sound doctrine, I’m not sure they will obtain the prize.
the LORD has made all thingsfor Himself , yea even the wicked for the day of evil-proverbs
natural brute beasts made to be taken and destroyed- 2 peter
men who were before of old ordained to this condemnation-jude
vessels of wrath fittedto destruction-romans9
‘fitted’ in greek means ‘fully accomplished’
i know that whatsoever the LORD does shall be from forever and nothing can be put to it or taken from it-ecclesiastes 3:14
https://www.wholesomewords.org/etexts/huss/fourimpl.pdf
Acts 13:48 (NKJV)
48Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.
in the welsh revival, at the begining of every meeting God would tell the young preacher how many people were going to be saved he would announce the number to the meeting , by the end of the meeting it happened as God said.
this happened many many times.
Calvinism just means that man is so deprived he/she would never “choose” God on his/her own, (Isaiah 64:6 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away). It is our human mind that ‘turns’ the grace of God into “unrighteousness” because we think it is unfair of Him to choose some. If God did not choose some, based on His goodness & mercy not anyone’s good works (Eph. 2:8-10), none would be saved. We do not know who will be saved, thus we share the Gospel will all. God’s Holy Spirit is collecting the Bride of Christ from Genesis to Revelation. Praise be to God alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring,
simply to the cross I cling;
naked, come to thee for dress;
helpless, look to thee for grace;
foul, I to the fountain fly;
wash me, Savior, or I die.
God Has Chosen
Romans 8:29-30 – “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”
Foreknow – to have a personal intimate relationship beforehand.
God predetermined that all who belonged to him before the foundation of the world were to “conform” to the word of God in obedience to Christ.
All that were predestined were “called”, “justified”, and “glorified” (past tense verbs). These were fixed in the mind of God before the world began. (Ephesians 1:4; Acts 13:48; II Thessalonians 2:13). The election of the saints is unto accountability (I Peter 1:2).
The majority of the protestant church held to this doctrine during the reformation. It is the foundation of “The London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689”. You Baptists are supposed to be believing it and you’ve discarded this precious doctrine of Grace !!!
No Free Will
John 1:13, 5:21, 6:39, 6:44, 6:63-66
James 1:18
Romans 9:15-16
Psalms 110:3
Ezekiel 36:9-12,23
Jeremiah 4:6,27-28
Daniel 4:35
God Does All Things
Isaiah 46:10
Ecclesiastes 3:14
Ephesians 1:11
Isaiah 42:9
Daniel 2:28
Acts 3:18, 15:18
God Creates Evil
Isaiah 45:7
Job 2:10, 42:11
2 Samuel 24:16
Jeremiah 4:6, 5:15, 6:12,19, 11:11,23, 19:3, 23:12
Amos 3:6
No Invitation Hymn or Sinners Prayer
1 Corinthians 2:14
Romans 10:14
John 8:47, 9:31, 10:24-29, 17:2-10
Isaiah 64:7
Predestination (pro’orizo)
Romans 8:29-30
Acts 4:28
1 Corinthians 2:7
Ephesians 1:5,11
Orizo (to bound)
Romans 1:4 declared (aorist past tense)
Luke 22:2 determined (aorist past tense)
Acts 2:23 determinate (aorist past tense)
Acts 10:42 which was ordained (perfect)
** only time used by man
Acts 17:26 determined (aorist)
Acts 17:31 hath ordained (aorist)
Hebrews 4:7 limiteth (present tense)
Orderly Arrangement
John 3:16 world (kosmos)
Romans 13:1 ordained (tasso)
Acts 13:48 ordained (tasso)
Galatians 4:3,9 elements (stoicheion) **
** Jews called all their rituals by this word
Colossians 2:8,20 rudiments (stoicheion)
Hebrews 5:20 principles (stoicheion)
2 Peter 3:10,12 elements (stoicheion)
Romans 4:12 who walk (stoicheo)
Galatians 5:25-6:16 walk (stoicheo)
Philippians 3:16 walk (stoicheo)
2 Peter 1:5 add (epichoregeo)
The Bible clearly teaches election :
John 6: 37
Ephesians 2:8-10
Romans 8:29-30
Romans 5:17
Romans 3:10-17
1 Thess 1:4
Col 3:12
John 1:13
Acts 13:46-48
2 Thess 2:13
Galatians 1:15
No man seeks for God. Since GOD is perfectly just we all deserve the just penalty for our sins but He is rich in mercy giving us, those He foreknew (the elect) , salvation we do not deserve and do not seek in our fallen state. God gives us what we could never accomplish and do not deserve : faith unto salvation. His glorious love is displayed in that He freely chooses to save anyone at all because He doesn’t have to save anyone. God is completely sovereign over all things including whom He chooses to save. We don’t have the knowledge of who the specific persons are , we are called to share the gospel with all. The seed is to be planted. God has already determined who will respond because in our depravity sin of us can not do that on our own.
https://www.wholesomewords.org/etexts/huss/fourimpl.pdf
You’re confused and need to learn how to read better. Pulling single verses out of context is dangerous.
The god you’ve created is ugly. He is evil. He creates sinful people and then sends them to Hell for whatever reason.
Elect only means “chosen for service”. Don’t trust the perverted modern dictionaries and concordances. Only in recent times did Strong’s add a salvation aspect to the definition of “elect”. Same with Websters. This is how Satan works, by twisting the truth.
Understand what sovereign means as well. It doesn’t mean you always get your way. It means you have absolute authority, not reporting to anyone. The USA is a sovereign nation. Does it always get it’s way?
If sovereign means God always gets what he wants, then he isn’t that sovereign. Sin abounds in this world. Is that His will?
You have filled your mind with blasphemous lies about our Creator.
https://www.wholesomewords.org/etexts/huss/fourimpl.pdf
Isaiah 55:8–9 says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. . . . As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Anytime somebody comes along trying to explain anything from their thinking about the Bible or our Lord and His thoughts ans Ways, I have to ask, “Are you able to SPEAK a universe into existence and maintain it by your Word? If not, get back to me when you can because whatever you thought or said isn’t really valid; now is it?
John MacArthur’s attack on the deceased Ravi Zacharias is an example of what the Pharisees displayed in the Gospels! Ravi was a fruitful man of God whose ministry resulted in many salvations over the decades of his service to Jesus Christ! I am sickened by these attacks from, so-called, Christian pastors who apparently consider themselves to be so righteous that they can pass judgement on other believers! And, in this case, a servant of God who has died and unable to defend himself! A convenient opportunity for the self-righteous ones seeking to set themselves upon a pedestal! A horrible testimony and example to the unsaved of the world who are viewing these public declarations!
I don’t believe Ravi is guilty. I believe his family. There should not be any monetary payback for the alleged guilt. I would not want to face Almighty God after bringing down a faithful servant like Ravi. Shame on all who take part in those lies.
Laird, thanks for expressing what so many believe. The self-righteous are as wretched as what Ravi is presumed in participating in. In reality ALL sin boils down to ONE word, PRIDE and the Reformed Church runneth over with self-righteousness.