Emergent Church?

Dear Victorious,

What do you think of the emergent church movement? Should I be attending an emergent church?

J.C. - Pine Bluff, AR

Dear J.C.,

Wikipedia.com describes the emergent church as "a movement .... that crosses a number of theological boundaries." It further says that, "Proponents of this movement call it a "conversation" to emphasize its developing and decentralized nature, its vast range of standpoints and its commitment to dialogue."

I think this alone is sufficient information to tell Christians that we are on shaky ground, thin ice and in danger of true heresy (false religion).

The nature of the true Christian church is not developing or emerging. The church is not built on modern ideas or thinking - but rather on spiritual heritage given to us by Jesus Christ, the early apostles and the prophets of the Christian church. It is centuries old. There is nothing to talk about.

So, no, you should definitely not be attending an "emergent church." Any church that describes itself that way should be a huge red flag for a true Christ-follower. This is because they haven't decided who or what to follow yet. They are literally making it up as they go. Moreover, you should be on the lookout for churches that maybe don't describe themselves as emergent, but act like it anyway. Emergent or not, any church that is making it up as they go represents a false religion that true Christ-followers will have no part of.