Dr. Michael Horton’s “Agony of Deceit," 11-20.

1. Some observations on Dr. Michael Horton’s “Agony of Deceit” (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1990), 11-20. As usual, Dr. Horton is always readable, accessible to the layman, and profitable.

2. An interesting lineup: Mike Horton, R.C. Sproul, Art Lindsey, Henry Krabbendam, Rod Rosenbladt, Robert Godfrey, C. Everett Koop, Quentin Schultze, John Dart, Ken Curtis, and Joel Nederhood.

3. 277 pages with three appendices. App. A: Ecumenical Creeds. Appendix B: Seven Rules for Testing Prophets. App. C: Ready Reference Guide. The latter appendix is a collection of the bizarre comments made by TV evangelists: Tilton, Copeland, Hagin, Paulk, Avanzini, Jimmy Swaggart, Pat Robertson. An update and expansion of Appendix C is essential. We would suggest a title like "The Outer Limits."

4. The book is dated. 1990 and much water has passed under the bridge. We note that TBN was still in development. Hinn was around, but not like today.

5. Curiously, Dr. Mike Horton, Professor at Westminster Seminary, California, references himself as a “Minister” of the “Reformed Episcopal Church,” a once-honorable Reformed and Anglican group but now defective, cowardly, compromised and compromising. That’s another story; I was educated by them and once served as a minister with them.

6. Horton tells us the book is not about success or numbers. Otherwise, one might become a Muslim, one of the fastest growing faith groups.

7. Mike notes that many may well have been helped, uplifted, and even converted under these ministries. God’s sovereign and electing grace operates in spite of the errors. Of course, we say the same thing about Romanists and others caught in false doctrines, like American Arminianism.

8. Mike notes that the book is not about charismatics and that even the authors themselves have differing views about them. He observes that many devotees of the Assemblies of God and Pentecostalist traditions will welcome the work. Mike is too accomodating here about these neo-Montanists and Frenzy-ites.

9. The book is about truth. “Truth does have consequences--eternal ones--and our prayers join yours for the struggle before us.”

10. Donald Campbell (retired Dallas Seminary Professor), Richard Halverson (former U.S. Senate Chaplain, now deceased), Harold Lindsell (former Fuller Seminary Professor), Jay Adams (Westminster Seminary) and David Breese (??) provide endorsements. Breese says that “twelve scholars have shown that much on television that passes for Christianity is a new Gnosticism, a revived pantheism. The authors of the book have recoiled from that and deplored the media message, and they have analyzed it. They have told us why and wherein it is heretical.”

11. With correctness, Mike disavows pride and arrogance. “Since God has shown pity on us, we can hardly fail to identify with fallen brothers and sisters…Being sinners ourselves, we are hardly qualified to point fingers of condemnation. Rather, it is about the rotted foundation under so many of the popular ministries: errant beliefs, distorted doctrine, and unsound convictions…”

12. True as it goes. We are born apostate, wicked, lawless and are ungovernable, proud and insolent creatures. God sovereignty regenerates His people, former enemies, aliens to His Majesty, giving them justifying faith and repentance unto life, adoption unto life, and imputes to wicked sinners the impeccable, availing, transcendent and efficacious merits and righteousness of Christ alone. Gratitude and obedience are the consequences. This paragraph won't sell on TBN, with Osteen, Hybels or Warren. In (11) above, Mike is spot-on. Nonetheless, as (10) affirms, we have our duties of love to speak the truth about Arminian Montanists, wolves in sheep-garb.

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