The Old Perspective on the New Perspective
When one reads church history, a pattern is recognized. There is a baseline in theology, resulting from correct Bible interpretation.
At certain points in history, the church faced new perspectives on certain doctrines. It usually begins with ambitious academics, who try to convince the churches that their genius new view is the resolution to some ongoing dispute, resulting from differing interpretations.
Churches are so eager for unity, in every age, that many gladly embrace some topic that has been, “rethought.” The ingenious creator of the new idea gains a readership, then a speaking tour, for others to learn what is novel. Then, someone realizes that this new idea is just an old heresy that has been repackaged for Christians to embrace.
Charges fly back and forth, causing meetings, synods, and church courts to convene for resolution of the increasingly tense dispute. These gatherings are almost always too late to keep the unity of the congregation or denomination. When the council makes their decision for the old doctrinal interpretation, or for the new doctrinal interpretation, the losing party packs up and moves across town.
Some of these parties have multiplied in size over time. One may consider the Jehovah’s Witness, Mormon, or Seventh Day Adventist cults. Many other false teachings from the 19th century have followed these global organizations of deceit.
The 20th and 21st centuries have not been immune from the proliferation of new ideas that have become cult operations. What has the new perspective on Paul conjured? The Federal Vision is a more recent development in Reformed churches that has shown many people the way back to the Arminian heresy, via a conditional covenant of grace. There are men and women, “Rethinking Hell,” which can only revert to unbelief in the biblical doctrine of hell, which was denied by the Pope (April 2018).
There are innumerable, practical deviations for capturing millennials or artificially growing “healthy” churches, too. Newfangled ideas abound in both doctrine and practice.
The speed of growth and scope of size of these ideas and organizations is alarming. One only thinks of John Nelson Darby’s invention of Dispensationalism in the mid-19th century, or the prodigious launch and development of Pentecostalism in 1904 at Los Angeles.
Christians must ever be wary of “new” movements (ie. Positivism, Women elders/preachers, Sexual sin affirming churches, etc.). The rule is: if the church is on the move, it is more likely on the cutting edge, of the slippery slope down to the pit of heresy. Is there some felicitous truth God has been withholding from the church for 2,000 years?
One might argue that even the Protestant Reformation was “new” back in the early 16th century. Actually, the movement of the Roman Catholic Church down through the ages, and down the slippery slopes of Papism, Mariolatry, rites, rituals, icons, mass, etc. suggests that our baseline truly remains. It is the Holy Bible. What does it say? What does it mean? How does it correlate from passage to passage? And historically, how have our fathers believed and practiced what the Bible teaches?
In conclusion, apart from creeds, confessions, and reformations to return to biblical orthodoxy, there is no reason for a Christian’s faith and practice to incorporate inventions. Through our study of the Bible and reading church history, we should all be acutely aware of past distortions and modern retropraxy, designed to deceive the faithful.
May God help His people to see, know, and practice truth in our service and worship. After all, there is no new thing under the sun. Here stands the old perspective on the new perspective.
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
March 31, 2022
