The Truth War: Fighting for Certainty in an Age of Deception

Make sure you also purchase the related, life changing, book by Pastor John MacArthur: The Truth War The Truth War: Fighting for Certainty in an Age of Deception. It is a MUST read for Christians since few Pastors have the courage these days to hold to Biblical truth based on the doctrines of Scripture.

A number of weeks before this book was announced, I wrote to Dr. MacArthur asking if/when he might write a book such as this. Imagine my delight when I learned that one WAS going to be released and soon! The Emergent Church is creating havoc within Christendom. Like Gnosticism and the Judaizers of the early church, the blantant error that is coming in like a flood into the modern-day church needs to be brought under the truthful light of Scripture, where it will not survive. That can only happen when faithful and courageous Christians are willing to call into question the very things that are being espoused. Paul, Jude, James, Peter - none of these men hesitated to call error error. Paul especially named names. There MUST be a willingness among Christians today to stand against the error in whatever form it comes. The Bereans even applied Paul's teachings to the litmus test of the Scriptures and it did not bother Paul at all. In fact, he seemed to applaud it! Yet, when what is being taught today is questioned, then those asking the questions are accused of being "legalists," "hatemongers," or "divisive." If this is so, then certainly Christ was "divisive" as was Paul, Jude, James, Peter and numerous others who stood against the tide of lies that literally sprang from Satan's domain. Too often in today's desire to be ecumenically "inclusive," not only are lies allowed, but they are often encouraged, as if the lie itself does no harm and is simply a matter of denominational variance. In truth, many of the lies that are being promulgated by Brian McLaren, Tony Campolo, Rick Warren and others attack the very foundation upon which Christianity rests! Dr. MacArthur's book could not have come at a more appropriate time in the life of the church. I pray that its message will be heeded by true Christians everywhere. The fight for truth is not an option.

This very important book for today's evangelicals, is an outstanding blend of exposition, church history, theology, and engagement with trends in the contemporary evangelical church. MacArthur expounds the exhortation of Jude to earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints with both clarity and conviction. He begins by asserting the reality of objective truth and cataloguing some of the attacks on truth from within the ranks of the church. MacArthur very clearly distances the Christian's "truth war" from the violent jihad of Islamic fundamentalism, and reminds us that our warfare is not against flesh and blood and is not fought with earthly weapons. But at the same time, he reminds us that we are both ambassadors of the Lord and soldiers in spiritual battle, and that we do not serve the truth well by building alliances with false teachers. Along the way, he develops the original context of Jude's letter and discusses some of the most important battles against false teaching in the history of the church (for example, the battles against Judaizers, Gnosticism, Sabellianism, and Arianism). He shows how to spot false teachers by pointing out the sin-producing effects of their teaching. As with many of MacArthur's books, this is a polemic targeted at specific strands of teaching in today's evangelical church, specifically the Emerging church and one of its primary spokesmen, Brian McLaren. I disagree with the opinion of another reviewer who criticizes MacArthur's appeal to church history with the claim that "MacArthur has never show[n] a tendency to care about what the `Church' has to say about anything." This reviewer has not read enough of MacArthur's other writings, which often conclude with appendices full of quotations from some of the stalwarts of church history (check, for example, The Gospel According to the Apostles, Ashamed of the Gospel, Reckless Faith, The Freedom and Power of Forgiveness). The same reviewer comments that "this [writing polemical books] is all he [MacArthur] seems to do." Again, not true. Most of MacArthur's books, in fact, are commentaries and Bible study guides. There are many, many others that are simple and non-polemical books on various aspects of Christian living. But MacArthur does carry a unique burden for truth and often jumps in where others fear to tread. This is a great gift to the church and I'm grateful for MacArthur's legacy of biblical faithfulness - even though I would disagree with him on a few issues. My one critique of the book is his (possibly inadvertent?) lumping of Mark Driscoll into the same crowd as other Emerging church leaders. MacArthur cites a quote from Don Miller's Blue Like Jazz about "Mark the Cussing Pastor" in a critical context. Everyone who knows anything about the Emerging church knows that this is Mark Driscoll, who unfortunately, has lacked some discretion in his use of language at times. However, he has, on the whole, proven himself a man of both biblical faithf

Dr. John MacArthur is not afraid to tackle difficult issues using the Bible. Over the years MacArthur has written timely books such as CHARISMATIC CHAOS, RECKLESS FAITH, THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JESUS, HARD TO BELIEVE, and so many others that have dealt with difficult issues and faulty theology. His latest book, THE TRUTH WAR, tackles the so called "emerging church movement." MacArthur is not afraid to take the movement to taks using not only their own writings and speeches but he also opens the readers mind to the Scriptures to help you see the importantce of not only knowing the errors of the emerming church but also what is the biblical definition of truth. Truth, writes MacArthur, is what we must live and die for because truth is not only found in the pasges of God's Word, the Bible, but in the living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ who was truth incarnate (John 14:6). I appreciated the tone of this book. MacArthur is not writing to make friends but he is writing with a passion for the truth of God's Word to be preserved. Using the short epistle of Jude, MacArthur shows that the fight for truth has been an ongoing struggle for the Church but with the sword of the Lord, Christians can overcome these attacks against the truth (Ephesians 6:17). This age of tolerance is forcing the Church of God to either rise up and declare with boldness (Proverbs 28:1) that God and His Word alone are the truth (1 Timothy 3:15) or we will lose the war. While the battle is not being fought with guns or swords, the truth is being ignored for popular culture. We must guard the truth (1 Timothy 6:20-21). Overall this is a great book and bound to be a classic for MacArthur. Over the years I have grown to love his ministry and heart and have no doubt that MacArthur is willing to lay his life down for the sake of the gospel (Romans 1:16-17). While I have not always agreed 100% with him, I have found that he is man of the Word who believes that proper theology and practice go hand in hand (Matthew 7:24-27). Every disciple of Jesus should read and study this important book on truth in an age of deception.