The rise of heresy is astonishing. Even though history records the rise of countless heretical movements and heretical ideas, nothing compares to the heresies that have arisen over the past two hundred years. And, their rise closely correlates to the advent of modern communication. But, as they say, correlation does not imply causation.
So, how did these heresies arise?
I have blamed the printing press, but there is an institution that should be looked at first. And, as the title of this piece indicates, we’re talking about The Semitary, more commonly known as the seminary.
And, like the grave plots that this word sounds like, the Seminary/Semitary is full of dead people.
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The Semitary
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In The Law, if you shape a rock that you intend to use for an altar to God, it cannot be accepted. Any stone that you use, must not be carved, chiseled or sculpted in any way. No tool wielded by man is allowed. Or, it is polluted.
Here is the verse:
And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
– Exodus 20:25
There are other references in the Bible like this, and they all point to one thing:
You are not allowed to reshape what God has made.
We have lost this understanding. We have lost the idea that we are not allowed to manipulate or shape what God has given us. We have forgotten that the Bible, in its three original languages, are the words of God.
How is it that we lost our reverence for the Bible?
Well, we started by building altars with ‘hewn stone’, because they are prettier. And, I’m speaking of seminaries.
The Origin Of Semitaries
The origin of the word, ‘seminary’ is a good one. It’s from the Latin, and means ‘plot where plants are raised from seeds‘. And, it comes from the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13). And, the Roman Catholic Church launched the first of them, as a response to the Protestant Reformation.
https://www.etymonline.com/word/seminary
Yeah. The origin of the seminary is Roman Catholic. How ironic. But, let’s move on with a really, really basic question:
What is a seminary?
I know that you know the answer, but I’m asking it for a reason.
A seminary is a place of learning, to teach students how to be pastors.
But wait… Is that in the Bible?
Yeah. No.
Semitaries Are Not Biblical
So, what we are doing, is creating an artificial institution to teach people something that they should have been learning at their own local church.
How is it that God called us to learn?
Through the words of God, via the Holy Spirit, at home and in church. We are supposed to be taught by those more mature in the faith, until we reach a point where we can take up the task of teaching others. And, when we teach, we are closely monitored by others who are elder in faith, to make sure that we are speaking according the Bible.
This was the way that Baptists operated their own churches for almost two thousand years, at least until they started to become corrupt. It used to be that a pastor was merely an elder among equals. And, if he made a mistake, he was told about it – even during his sermon. You’ve heard of the old Baptist tradition of saying ‘AMEN!’ during a sermon, but we said other things, when error (aka, heresy) was being preached.
How easily we forget.
Enter The Ordination Mafia
Now, our pastors are ‘ordained’. He’s now a ‘Man of God’, to be held in reverence. And, if he’s really holy, he’s a DOCTOR.
Seriously? A DOCTOR?
(sigh)
Yes.
So, let me ask you a question:
Is there any university, in the world, where there is only one textbook? Just one?
Of course not. But, a good seminary can only have just one textbook, the Bible. But, when you walk into your local ‘seminary’ you’ll find whole libraries of textbooks that are NOT the Bible.
How is it possible that ANY seminary could have more than the Bible?
Well, originally, seminaries – at least the Baptist kind – did NOT have more than the Bible, at least not much more. There were a handful of commentaries out there, but they were horribly expensive. In fact, the Bible itself, was so expensive to print, that only a rich person could study what other ‘theologians’ said.
What does God say about rich men?
Oh, I forgot. We don’t listen to God, anymore. Being rich is now godly.
Commentaries
The point is, that for more than 90% of the life of the church, we didn’t have commentaries to ‘guide’ us. We had the Bible, and some churches were lucky to have more than one. Then, we invented the printing press.
The printing press dramatically reduced the cost of printing books, but it wasn’t until the late 1800s that we automated it with steam power. When THAT happened, it was all over. Everyone could buy a commentary of their own, to cloud their mind with what someone else said about the Bible.
Have you noticed that the Holy Spirit speaks quietly?
It’s hard to hear what He is saying to you, when the words of others are blaring in your ears and echoing in your heart. And, I think that this is part of the problem. People no longer trust the Holy Spirit. We no longer have a simple faith. In our modern day and age, our faith is complex.
But, what did Jesus say about our faith?
The Rule Of Faith
Here’s the first part of Matthew 18:
At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
– Matthew 18:1-4
You can read all of Matthew 18, here:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+18&version=KJV
We have gotten away from a simple faith that says:
If it’s in the Bible, I believe it.
If it’s not, I don’t.
Yet, I see countless, foolish notions that cannot be found in the Bible, but are being preached as if they were there. And, they exist because we refuse to apply the above rule. Yes, the sum total of the Universe is many times larger than what is contained in the Bible.
Calculus, Quantum Thermodynamics and the Theory of Strawberry Shortcake are not in the Bible. So, I understand that it isn’t a sin to entertain all kinds of thoughts that the Bible does not speak about. But, when it’s a subject that is ONLY about faith and spiritual truth, beware that you do not add or take away what God has spoken to us.
Yet, our seminaries do not teach us this.
I once had an argument with a pastor who did his masters thesis on prayer. And, I was astounded that ANYONE would do a ‘master’s thesis’ on something like that.
HE WENT TO SEMINARY TO GET A MASTER’S DEGREE ABOUT PRAYER??
Does anyone understand how foolish this is?
But, there’s worse.
Back To The Ordination Mafia
If you don’t get your ordination from a high and mighty school (i.e., the kind that would accept a ‘master’s thesis on prayer’), you will be rejected by every other pastor and church. It’s like there’s an ‘ordination mafia’.
My favorite pastor was never ordained. His church, in Jerusalem, started from a Bible study that he was holding in his own home. And, that Bible study grew so large, that it became a church. It wasn’t his intention to start a church. It just happened. But, when people find out that he never received an ‘ordination’, they reject him. And, I am outraged by this.
WHERE IS ‘ORDINATION’ IN THE BIBLE?!?!
How DARE we do this to our churches!
If you want to know where the wolves have crept in, look at the ‘ordination mafia’. If you don’t have their stamp of approval, you don’t get to be pastor. But, it’s these same mafia types that have been inflicting all kinds of heresies upon us.
Why do you think that we have female pastors?
Why is it now okay to have sex outside of marriage?
Why are ‘Christian’ women having abortions only a little less than non-Christian women?
Why are half of all pastors regular consumers of pornography?
Why is it so hard to tell the difference between a Christian and non-Christian?
Avoid The Semitary
Over the years, I’ve been hearing more and more corruption coming from seminaries. And, I am sickened by this. And, it’s why so many joke about them as semitaries – because you’d have to be dead, to benefit from them.
Yes, I know that your beloved pastor went to a semitary. But, he might be good in spite of that fact. After all, I have eight years of University. After I graduated, it took a long time to relearn the art of thinking.
If you love God…
If you love your church…
If you love your kids…
…Stay as far away from a seminary, as you can.
And, if you find yourself in a church with a pastor who went to one of those places, make sure that you challenge him, when he’s wrong. Be nice about it. Do it quietly. But, do it.
Of course, that also means reading your Bible.
Are you doing that?
And, do that even if he DID NOT go to semitary.
So, let me end as I began:
Do not build your altar to God, with hewn stones.
Or, to put it another way:
Make sure that your faith is untouched by foolish hands.
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