Beware of the New Evangelical Eco-Leaders

I have recently come across an article about a new movement among evangelicals which promotes a concern for the environment under a new "global warming initiative"- called, Climate Change They use much the same language as the political Left, with all its self-promotional ‘selflessness’ and ‘concern’, coupled with a shameless ability to load piles of guilt upon the Christian reader - all based upon a spurious exegesis of Scripture, and all a sham, of course.

One only need look at who is signed on, a collection of preening suck-ups to the secular god of success; one of them a leader in the Watered Down Message Movement, AKA: "Seeker Services."

I am not at all shocked by the activity. After all, the evangelicals never met a secular cause or practice that they could not assimilate as their own if they thought for one moment that the glitterati and the literati would think well of them. Evangelicals are starved for the recognition and acceptance of the "powers of the air."

That the whole thing is politically motivated can be seen by the remarks of the Rev. Jim Ball, executive director of the Evangelical Environmental Network:

"It’s a very centrist evangelical list, and that was intentional (!!!). When people look at the names, they’re going to say, this is a real solid group here. These leaders are not flighty, going after the latest cause."

My first response was, "Oh, really?" The hubris drips. But note also the psychological projection. He knows, in fact, that the opposite is true. This group, as with evangelicals in general, is quickly becoming famous for its flighty and assimilationist tendencies. They represent the new age Christian leadership: they are hip, concerned, totally "together", hobnobbers with the government elite, and most of all, continually positioning themselves to be envied as deep and in the know. But tragically: They are oblivious to the fact that they world enjoys using them while not taking them or their message seriously, except in so far as their dissimulation succeeds in ameliorating the power of the real Message. In this last case, the world is more than happy to facilitate them.

His use of the term ‘centrist’ is the giveaway: a purely political term meant to denigrate as extremists anyone not in their corner. The carefully calculated remarks tell us volumes about the type of person Ball is, a purely political animal who appears to suffer from an inferiority complex which he assuages through a coercive political piety. And "intentional"??? Are we to assume that exclusivity is commended by his ‘gospel’???

Let’s look at it. His ‘exclusivity’ is interesting: Out of a list of 86 signatories to this divisive statement, not one of these "evangelical leaders" was in the business world, or ‘real’ world, as I prefer to phrase it. A great majority are school presidents or point men for evangelical ministries. This is quite revealing. Once again, the ivory tower dictates from on high. Here its important for us to remember that Harvard and Princeton were once Christian schools that finally fell sway to the allure of respectability. "He who is of the world hears them." But I Digress.

Another member of this "solid group", the Rev. "Kyoto" Joel Hunter extols, "The good news is that with God’s help, we can stop global warming, for our kids, our world and for the Lord."

Now, the fact that Joel seems to think that God is in need of the help of evangelicals in order to save the planet is really just the end of a long slide which began when ol’ Joel appears to have forgotten what news was actually good.

And the cosmic ego! – "stop global warming"??? Well then, how about raise the dead, walk on water, or maybe a whole new creation? What’s to stop us from building our right up into heaven, to the very door of G-d?!!! Maybe, perhaps, the fact that we are not the demi-gods that we think we are?

More interesting, if their assertions are true, how do they know that God Himself is not behind it? Maybe its part of His judgment on the secular world and its false assumption that man can walk a path without God? After all, it is Jesus who releases the four horsemen. Perhaps their war is with G-d Himself.

But just how are they going to save the planet for "our Lord?" What could this mean? Whatever it means, you can be sure it doesn’t include dying for it. That onus will remain on others. This is how government works, the use of a subtle but terrible force to make others walk in lockstep. The Left has learned this secret well – to the misery of all those who are victimized by them.

But like I said, they won’t be dying for their cause. These folks get their emotional fix from the presence of "limousine" environmentalists, not from the possibility of perishing. On a side note, didn’t Jesus, in His sacrifice, release the world from "its bondage"? Perhaps a correction to the Epistle of Romans is in order if one is to continue with this new global initiative.

To really get the feel of where these folks are going, one needs to read the actual document: Climate Change: An Evangelical Call to Action.
Even a casual read lets one know that these "leaders" are full of themselves. Despite that fact that not one of them is a practicing scientist (assuming the list is accurate in its bios.), they have "seen and heard enough" to be absolutely cocksure that global warming is actually happening and that humans are at fault. Sound familiar?

Of course, they have their authorities. But when you check out their pedigrees, you find that they are all bought and paid for by their respective government sponsors. (Question: Does anyone actually remember a time when government assessed anything correctly?)
What should scare us most about these guys is the mindset which assumes that evangelicals need ‘leaders’ to do their thinking for them. They warn their constituency that they "must engage this issue without any further lingering over the basic reality of the problem…" That THEY have looked into it and found it worthy of blind following is sufficient. The herd mentality is actively encouraged.

But it is not the "evidence" that they focus on, it is the Leftist logic whereby the poor are evoked, catastrophes of biblical proportion are threatened, and that, in this light, Christians "must care."
They even go so far as to advocate specific legislation – approved by God Himself I must assume – and even tell us what cars to drive!!! (Perhaps this shall become their new catch-phrase: What Would Jesus Drive? They would not even have to change the acronym!)

Final observations: When folks feel the need to bring their personal moral obligations into the political arena, they are likely suffering from the Pharisee Syndrome: The confused belief that assumes that if you are considered righteous before men then God must be in agreement also.

"How can you have faith when you receive glory from one another?"

Jesus saw this attitude as antithetical to true faith, worthy of Gehenna : "They have their reward in full." Paul simply referred to it as being enslaved to the "elements of the world", the equivalent of trusting in one’s own works. In either case, they agree that these types have yet to acquire the faith that saves.

This is a frightening bunch. That evangelicalism would take such a severe downward turn so soon in their short history has surprised even me – one who has argued that they are really nothing but a modern incarnation of second century Gnosticism. To evangelicals everywhere, I would say, FLEE! "Come out from among them and be ye separate."

Evangelicalism has no future, in the same way that it has no power – thus its recourse to government. If Christianity is to survive, it will require a return to the all sufficiency of God’s actions in history and His supply of the Spirit in the present. Period.

As it stands, it appears there will be Hell to pay…now and later.

WLK