Genesis: Abraham, Covenant, and Promise

False Prophets And A False Gospel - Part 1 of 2

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: Old Testament Studies

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2016-08-06

Synopsis: Pastor John Weaver addresses the Southern Baptist Convention's recent repudiation of the Confederate battle flag and its declaration that slavery is an historic evil. He argues from Scripture that biblical slavery is not sinful, that God instituted and regulated it, and that the Convention's stance aligns with false prophets who speak from their own hearts rather than God's Word. The message warns against abandoning biblical truth for political correctness and calls believers to choose the Word of God over modern churchianity.

[John Weaver] I want you to go ahead and open your Bibles to Ezekiel 13. I will give you the scripture there just momentarily. But I want to tell you this message and the one next week is going to be just a little bit unusual. So I want to prepare you for it. Let me just say that I've got an awful lot of material today. And instead of me doing what I normally do, read the scripture and then, you know, go over there, I'm going to start the message and we're going to read the scripture before I really get started. And I've got so many other scriptures. We're not going to have time to turn to them all. But if you're so inclined I would encourage you to write them down because they are multitudinous and You probably would not just run across these scriptures on your own Unless you particularly know what you're looking for And you will understand when I get started So let's open our Bibles to Ezekiel 13 Everybody get ready and The title of the message is False Prophets and a False Gospel.

[John Weaver] Recent events demand answers as well as actions. Unbelievable, insane, and unscriptural events are evidencing that the professing church made up of lost humanistic and politically correct leaders and people. What is going on in organized religion that passes for modern-day Christianity is not only mind-boggling, but it manifests that the spirit of Antichrist is alive and well. The day of Ezekiel was much like our day. False prophets abounded and prophesied out of their own hearts and out of their own minds. They did not and would not Communicate the truth of the Word of God instead their message was a lying Divination so if you'll look in Ezekiel chapter 13 beginning there with verse 1 and the Word of the Lord came into me saying I Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God, Woe unto the foolish prophets that follow their own spirit and have seen nothing. O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.

[John Weaver] have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The Lord saith, and the Lord hath not sent them. And they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word." So here are a group of people that the Lord did not send, and they are trying to say the Lord said, when the Lord did not say. And all they are doing is communicating a false hope as well as a false gospel. So they were seeking then, the false prophets were, seeking to give comfort and peace and reconciliation to a wicked and a rebellious people. They were seeking harmony and prosperity and consolation.

[John Weaver] They wanted everything to be okay in a world that was in rebellion against God and God's law. They believe that I'm okay, you're okay philosophy. They were building a wall with untempered mortar. Now, I'm going to tell you about untempered. In fact, we're going to read about it just momentarily. But untempered mortar is mortar that will not stick, it will not hold, neither will it cement the wall. The word untempered actually refers to that which is insipid, unsavory, unseasoned, and are whitewashed. I remember the first wall that I ever built. I mixed the mortar.

[John Weaver] I laid the block and then I had a brick mason friend and I called him. I was so proud of my masonry work. I wanted him to see it. And so he came over to inspect my wall that I had built and he looked at it. He walked around it and He put his hand on his shin and he went, hmm. And then he gave it a swift kick and the whole wall came tumbling down because the mortar had not been mixed correctly. was untempered murder.

[John Weaver] So God is saying that these false prophets who are giving a false gospel are going to be destroyed with the people that they are preaching. So if you look in verse 10 He says it like this, because in fact go back to verse 9 he said in mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity and the divine lies they shall not be in the assembly of my people neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel neither shall they enter into the land of Israel and you shall know that I am the Lord God because even because they have seduced my people saying peace When there was no peace, and one built up a wall, and others daubed it with untempered mortar. Say unto them which daub it with untempered mortar, that it shall fall.

[John Weaver] There shall be an overflowing shower, and you, O great hailstone, shall fall, and a stormy wind shall rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith you daubed it? Therefore thus saith the Lord God, I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury, and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. So will I break down the wall that you have daubed with untempered mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and you shall be consumed in the midst thereof, and you shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall and upon them that have daubed it with untempered mortar, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that dobbed it. To wit the prophets of Israel, which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord God.

[John Weaver] So, God is saying that the untempered mortar will certainly fail, and it's going to bring forth His judgment. Al Benson just recently wrote an article which he titled, Are Some Churches Literally Going to Hell? And the answer, of course, is yes. But you must remember that churches are made up of people. And I must admit that some denominations are seemingly headed that way as well. We live in a time when it is politically correct to blast Christians deny scripture and reject the Lord Jesus Christ and cast dispersion upon his inerrant infallible and inspired word now in case you have not heard the Southern Baptist Convention just did exactly that and if anyone hears these words and are in the Southern Baptist Convention and I would probably suggest now would be the time to find another church. This is not an attack upon individual Christians that are in the Southern Baptist Convention, nor is it an attack upon godly and good churches that happen to be in the Southern Baptist Convention. But you have to understand we have leaders that have erred and they are leading the people astray as well.

[John Weaver] So let me just put it to you like this, I'm a Baptist, And I was raised in a Southern Baptist Church. But I left the Southern Baptist Convention over its liberalism and modernism many years ago. And like I said, I understand there's some good people that still are in those churches. But the issues that have just recently come up, in fact, this past month in the annual convention, the issues are not clear to most people only because most people are ignorant not only of history, but of the Word of God as well. The Southern Baptist Convention just repudiated the Confederate battle flag.

[John Weaver] Now, I'm going to deal with that, but that's not really what this message is about. But I want you to know they did not repudiate the battle flag of ISIS, nor did they repudiate any Muslim flags. Nor did they repudiate any of American flags. They did not repudiate the stars and the stripes. You say, well, wait a minute. Other organizations repudiate the Confederate battle flag as well. Well, the answer to that is true. But most people just simply do not know the history of the Southern Baptist Convention. You see the Southern Baptist Convention was formed in 1845 when abolitionism was running rampant. The northern churches, the northern Baptist churches were condemning the southern churches because the southern churches were not only allowing they were defending slavery. So in 1840, abolitionism was running so rampant and affecting everyone. The Alabama Baptists in September of 1840 appointed a committee to study abolitionism and bring a report back to the Baptists in Alabama. The committee was composed of Jesse Hartwell, B.P. Bester, W.C. Crane, J.H.

[John Weaver] Devotee, and M.P. Jewett. After investigating abolitionism, They came back with this simple statement, and I'm quoting, they said, Abolitionism was unscriptural, against the National Constitution, against the peace and prosperity of the churches, and dangerous to the permanency of the Union.

[John Weaver] Now, to just show you how accurate they were, The Presbyterians also divided as well as the Methodists and the Baptists as well There is a book written by CC going and the title of the book is broken churches broken nation and he shows that how the Church is divided first and then of course the nation divided secondly and So, the straw that broke the camel's back came when the Northern Baptists would not allow a slave-holding elder to become a missionary. So consequently in 1845 293 descending church leaders who represented 365,000 Christians, that is Baptist Christians, met in Augusta, Georgia and they formed a new association that recognized biblical slavery and would support the biblical truth concerning slavery. And that association was the Southern Baptist Convention. That may surprise you. Did you know that many of the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptists during the War of Northern Aggression were Confederate officers, soldiers, and chaplains? In fact, many of the famous names today of Baptist preachers were Confederate chaplains.

[John Weaver] Basil Manley, JP Boyce, who is a theologian, re-reads Boyce's theology. How about James A. Broadus? The Southern Baptists have a hymnal, the Broadus hymnal. And it's the same James A. Broadus, who was a Confederate chaplain. There was A.E. Dickinson, there was J.J. Hyman, J. William Jones, and many others. In fact, on one website, I counted 72 Southern Baptist chaplains. Even James Furman, the son of Richard Furman, of Furman University fame, James Furman was not only a staunch Confederate, he served in the Secession Convention. And originally, Furman University almost collapsed because most of their students left the university and joined the Confederate Army. So my question would be now, is the Southern Baptist Convention going to repudiate Furman University since it's a big Southern Baptist University, since it has Confederate roots, and certainly it flew a Confederate flag and James Furman was in the Secession Convention.

[John Weaver] Now, here's a thing that we do not understand. I want to take the time to read to you Resolution Number 7 that the Southern Baptists just passed, and I want to read it in its entirety. I'm only going to cover just a couple of points. We'd be here all afternoon if I tried to cover every one of these, but let me read it. Resolution Number 7, on sensitivity and unity regarding the Confederate battle flag. It's not just the flag now, hang on. Whereas, SBC President Ronnie Floyd has rallied Southern Baptists to rise up in the crowd against racism that still exists in our nation and in our churches, recognizing we are in a desperate hour that calls us to replace these evils with the beauty and grace of love. And, whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil, such as slavery, and committed to eradicate racism in all of its forms from Southern Baptist life and ministry. And, whereas in more recent resolutions, a Southern Baptist conviction called all Christian men and women to pray and labor for the day when our Lord will set all things right and racial prejudice and injustice will be no more.

[John Weaver] and expressed continued grief over the presence of racism and the recent escalation of racial tension in our nation. And, whereas more than 20 percent, nearly 11,000, of our cooperating Southern Baptist congregations identifies prominently non-Anglo And for the last two years, more than 50% of the Southern Baptist new church plants are predominantly non-Anglo, that is, non-white. And whereas we recognize that the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many others as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism offended millions of people, and whereas we recognize that while the removal of the Confederate battle flag from public display is not going to solve the most severe racial tensions that plague our nation and churches, those professing Christ are called to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interests in action.

[John Weaver] whereas the state of South Carolina, with the support of the state Baptist leaders, responded to the tragic slayings on June 17, 2015 of nine precious believers at Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church. I don't even know that that's a Baptist. It's not a Baptist. That would be African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston by removing the Confederate battle flag from their Capitol grounds and placing it in preservation at a military museum in Columbia, which was of course a very unwise thing and caused a great deal of division. Whereas, Oklahoma Baptist University recently removed an image of the Confederate battle flag from its campus chapel, now therefore be it resolved that the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, June 14-15, 2016, commend the governmental officials of South Carolina, Baptist leaders in that state, and the Oklahoma Baptist University

[John Weaver] administration for their sensitivity and fostering unity and be it further resolved that we acknowledge both the importance of remembering family heritage and sacrifice as well as the urgency of pursuing a unified body of Christ and racial healing in America and be it further resolved that we call our brothers and sisters in Christ to discontinue the display of the Confederate battle flag as a sign of solidarity of the whole body of Christ, including our African American brothers and sisters, and be it finally resolved that we urge fellow Christians to exercise sensitivity so that nothing brings division or hinders the unity of the body of Christ to be a bold witness to the transforming power of Jesus. That was resolution number seven that was passed in the Southern Baptist Convention now the first whereas is an Assumption that the Confederate battle flag is a racist flag. It could not and it is not a A racist flag. Why?

[John Weaver] Because black and white Confederates both fought under that flag and rallied to the defense of the South. Please remember this. The battle flag did not even come into existence until after July of 1861. It was a battle flag. It was not a national flag. It was in no way a symbol of racism. It only flew for four years. There was never a slave that came into this country under any Confederate flag. The slaves came in this country under Dutch flags, under English flags, under the stars and stripes. I'm not going to be dealing with the flag today. I've got too many messages on the flag. I've got a message. The truth concerning the Confederate battle flag. Why some hate the Confederate battle flag. The Confederate battle flag a symbol of hatred?

[John Weaver] There are two parts to that one. And I have another one just on the symbolism of the Confederate battle flag. So I'm not really dealing with that. But here's the point. The whereas refers to these evils. Now wait a minute. And they are talking about the evil of slavery mainly. But he would include the Confederate battle flag. A piece of cloth is not evil. There is no commandment, thou shalt not have a battle flag.

[John Weaver] You have to remember this, that every tribe in Israel and every family in Israel had their own tribal flags and family flags. And yes, when they marched and yes, when they went to battle, they carried these flags. Isaiah chapter 5 verse 20 says, Woe unto those that call evil good, and good evil, and put darkness for light, and light for darkness, and bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.

[John Weaver] Now it's the second whereas that I want to deal with today that is absolutely totally unscriptural. Whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil such as slavery.

[John Weaver] Now We have a clearly defined problem. And now we have a clearly demarcation from the Word of God. I'm going to tell you about this man just momentarily. But Russell Moore, who is the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in the Southern Baptist Convention, said this. I'm quoting. Here are his exact words. Listen carefully. The Southern Baptist Convention made history today and made it in the right way.

[John Weaver] This denomination was founded by people who wrongly defended the sin of human slavery. Today, the nation's largest Protestant denomination voted to repudiate the Confederate battle flag in its time and well past time. So the Southern Baptist Convention now has said that slavery is an evil. Russell Moore has called it a sin.

[John Weaver] Now that brings me to this. What does the Word of God say?

[John Weaver] Now I want you to stop and think about this. There is a difference between what you and I would call biblical slavery and humanistic slavery. When you study the scripture, you will find what is condemned in the Bible is man-stealing or kidnapping. Anyone who steals a man or kidnaps a man merits the death penalty. Just to save time. Let me quote some scriptures if you want to jot them down. That's wonderful but in Exodus 21 in verse 16 God says this and he that stealeth a man and selleth him or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death in Deuteronomy 24 in verse 7 If a man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh merchandise of him, or selleth him, then that thief shall die, and thou shalt put evil away from among you.

[John Weaver] When you get to 1 Timothy chapter 1 verses 9 and 10, when the Apostle Paul is saying the law is made, not made for the righteous men, but for the lawless and the disobedient. When you get to verse 10, he includes man-stealers or men-stealers. That is those who kidnap and those who steal men and sell them.

[John Weaver] Now, when you think about slavery, There are numerous ways in the Bible that a man could become a slave without being stolen, or kidnapped, or sold into slavery. Certainly that could be a way that is for sure. But first of all, let me just point this out, a man could be made a slave by being captured in war. In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 10-14 There were a multitude of people who were captured in war and they were made slaves Now you're going to say well that must be awful to be captured in war and be become a slave Well, it may be awful, but it's better than being executed. It's better than being put to death and A lot of individuals who were captured during the war were made slaves you remember in 2nd Kings chapter 5 in verse 2 there was Naaman the leper and And the little Israelite maid who was a slave to Naaman's wife said, would to God that my master was in Israel where the prophet of God would cure him of his leprosy.

[John Weaver] How did that little Hebrew maiden get into Syria and become a slave? She was captured during war. Doesn't mean she was fighting, but there was a raid and they captured her and she became a slave. So you could become a slave just simply by being captured in war. The Africans still do that today. That's how they get their slaves. That's how a lot of slaves were sent into this country because tribe was fighting tribe, and one tribe was defeated and they were enslaved by their conquerors. It's just that simple. Second, one could become a slave by selling himself into slavery. You could even sell a family member into slavery. Usually it was a young woman who was then to become the wife of the master or the wife of the master's son, something like that. But in Exodus 21 verses 7 through 11 and Leviticus 25 verses 39 through 54, one could actually sell himself into slavery. He could sell himself to another Hebrew or he could sell himself to a stranger. So you could sell yourself into slavery.

[John Weaver] Thirdly, And by the way, usually the Hebrew slavery was for six years or seven years. were set free and you were not sent away empty. But thirdly, it was also possible to become a permanent slave. In Exodus 21 verses 1-6, if a man plainly said, I love my master, I love my wife and my family, and I love my work, I will not go free. He was taken to the door post and an awl bore a hole in his ear and an earring was put there which meant he was a permanent slave. Usually, when the men wore earrings in the Bible, it was a sign of servitude and a sign of slavery. By the way, that has great implications in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in Isaiah 50 in verse 5, the scripture says, The Lord God hath opened mine ear, I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. So our Lord had His ear open in the sense that He was a servant. He was a slave to God, his father.

[John Weaver] Fourthly, one could become a slave by being kidnapped and sold into slavery, as was Joseph. By the way, there have been plenty of godly men sold into slavery. Old John Newton, who wrote Amazing Grace, was a slave trader, but he himself was captured and sold into slavery. And of course, we sing that song, Amazing Grace, and we have to understand the background. So, that is possible. Fifthly, we've got to remember there is such a thing as economic slavery. The Bible says in Proverbs 22 and verse 7, the rich ruleth over the poor, And you put your name on the line, you become the slave of that bank until you pay that loan off. It's just that simple.

[John Weaver] You're not working for yourself, you're working for them. And then of course, there's governmental slavery. And by the way, the War of Northern Aggression did not end slavery. It just enlarged the plantation and now we're all slaves. Okay? So, here's what I want you to consider today. So the Southern Baptist Convention has talked about an historic evil such as slavery. Russell Moore talks about the sin of slavery. Think about this. If slavery is evil, if slavery is a sin, then God is the author of sin and evil. Contrary to Scripture.

[John Weaver] How can I say that? Well, James 1 verses 13 through 15, he said, Let no man say, When I am tempted, I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. But every man is enticed and led astray by his own lust. But notice he said, God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. So God is sinless. But now if you turn around and say that slavery is sin and slavery is evil, accusing God of being the originator of sin and evil. How can I say that? Well, let me give you one other scripture before I show you. You remember what sin is?

[John Weaver] 1 John 3 and verse 4. Whosoever committed sin transgresseth also the law. Sin is the transgression of the law. You cannot sin without violating God's law. And all of God's Word is law.

[John Weaver] Now, I said If slavery is evil if slavery is sin Then that would make God the author of sin. How is that? Well, if you look in your Bibles very quickly to Genesis chapter 9, you will find the origination of slavery You I'm not going to get into this I don't have time today, but you remember how Ham Had gone into his father had seen his nakedness. I don't know what all transpired but Shimon Japheth took a Blanket and went in backwards and covered their father and when Noah awoke and he found out what had happened then of course he cursed Canaan and look if you would please at the curse and Verse 24 and Noah woke from his wine and knew what his younger son Ham had done unto him and he said cursed be Canaan now that was Ham's son Cursed be Canaan a servant of servants or literally a slave of slaves shall he be unto his brethren said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem, and Canaan shall be his slave.

[John Weaver] And God shall in the Lord japeth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem, and Canaan shall be his servant, or be his slave." So here you have then this curse placed upon Canaan and his descendants. It is not just simply a prediction. It is not a prophecy. It is a where God says, this is what is going to happen to these people. Now, R.L.

[John Weaver] Dabney in his book, The Defense of Virginia and the South said this, listen carefully, he is talking about slavery. And we find that slavery was appointed by God as the punishment of and remedy for the peculiar moral degradation of a part of the race. God here ordains that this depravity shall find its necessary restraints, and the welfare of the more virtuous its safeguard against the depraved by the bondage of the latter." So he is saying that God instituted slavery and He instituted it for the good not only of the depraved, but of those who were more virtuous.

[John Weaver] And when the Bible says that a servant of servants, the Hebrew word is the word ebed, which literally means a slave. Now, if slavery is sinful, if slavery is evil, then God condoned it and God promoted it. For instance, look in your Bibles to Genesis 17 and begin reading there with verse 9. Genesis 17, verse 9. Look what God says. I don't know how you can get around this passage. And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant, therefore thou and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant which you shall keep between me and you, and thy seed after thee. Every man child among you shall be circumcised, and you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, Every man-child in your generations, he that is born in the house, watch, are bought with money of any stranger which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house and he that is bought with thy money must needs be circumcised and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.

[John Weaver] And the uncircumcised man-child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised soul shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant."

[John Weaver] Now what did God say? God says, Abraham you circumcised everyone that is born in your household and everyone that is bought with your money. Who do you buy with money? Well someone that is going to be your slave. Someone that is going to be your servant. Look in, well you don't have to look there you remember this in Genesis 14 and verse 14. Abraham armed his 318 trained servants or slaves in his own house and went and rescued Lot. So Abraham had 318 slaves that were trained fighting men. And I'm just pointing out those 318 trained slaves had mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, and maybe families of their own. consider the fact that Abraham's family including his slaves was probably 2,000 to 3,000 to 4,000 to 5,000 people.

[John Weaver] He was quite a man that is for sure. In Genesis chapter 20 verse 14 the Bible says, and Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and men's servants, and women's servants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored Sarah his wife. So what does it mean when he gave them men's servants and servants. He gave them male and female slaves. If you will look in Genesis 24, Eliezer is going to get Rebekah to be Isaac's wife.

[John Weaver] He is talking to her brother and to her father. In Genesis 24 verse 35 look what Eliezer says, Genesis 24 verse 35, And the Lord has blessed my master greatly. and he has become great and he has given him flocks and herds and silver and gold and men servants and maid servants and camels and asses who gave Abraham the slaves who gave Isaac the slaves God did that's what he said he blessed my master greatly and he's become great he had given him flocks and herds and silver and gold and men slaves and women slaves and camels and asses Wow All of those were given to Abraham. By the way, Isaac was a slave holder as well. If you look in Genesis 26, and look if you would please at verse 12. The Bible says, Genesis 26 verse 12, Then Isaac sowed in the land and received the same year a hundredfold, and the Lord blessed him. Now skip down to verse 14. For he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and a great store of slaves.

[John Weaver] And the Philistines Now let me tell you something about Abraham and Isaac. Abraham is known as the father of our faith. Abraham and Isaac are two of the greatest patriarchs in the Old Testament and they were slaveholders. And you have to remember this that Abraham is also called the friend of God.

[John Weaver] Now let me show you a passage that Russell Moore and the Southern Baptist Convention are going to have real problems with. If you look back in your Bible to Genesis 16, and let's begin reading there verse 7, Genesis 16 verse 7, because Hagar, Sarah's slave, her handmaiden, has run away because she was roughly treated by Sarah. So Genesis 16 verse 7, the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness by the fountain in the way of sure and he said Hagar Sarah's maid Once came a sound whether wilt thou go and she said I flee from the face of my mistress Sarah and the angel the Lord said in her return to thy mistress and Submit thyself under her hand now the angel the Lord of course is what we would call a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ It was a Christophany and so here Christ tells her to go back and submit herself to her mistress If

[John Weaver] you would look in your Bibles very quickly to the book of Numbers chapter 31 Numbers chapter 31 And look if you would please at verse 30 there was a war There were a lot of people captured and These people were the Midianites people of Midian Look what happens Numbers chapter 31 verse 30 the Bible says God is talking about dividing the prey In fact go back to verse 26 and Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of beast, thou and Eliezer the priest, and the chief of the fathers." Verse 27, divide the prey into two parts, between them that took the war upon them and went out to battle, and between all the congregation. And levy a tribute unto the Lord of the men of war which went out to battle, one soul out of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheeps, Take it of their half, and give it unto Eliezer the priest for an heave offering

[John Weaver] of the Lord. And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the beefs, of the asses, of the flocks, of all the men or beasts, and give them unto the Levites. which keep the charge of the tabernacle of the Lord." So God says, here is what you do, those who went out to war you take a certain percentage of these people that have been captured you give them to Aaron the priest to help him. And of the people's half you take a certain percentage and you give it to the Levites to help them. Wow! So it appears to me in the Bible God is not condemning slavery, God is saying, They were captured, I allowed them to be captured. Now you take these slaves and you divide a certain portion to the Aaronic priesthood and a certain portion to the Levites as well.

[John Weaver] Now, I could multiply scriptures, I'm just trying to save time by not doing so. So let me ask you this, obviously the Old Testament does not condemn slavery. Does the New Testament contradict the Old Testament? Is slavery condemned in the New Testament? Well let me just answer it like this, you will search the New Testament in vain for a condemnation of slavery and slaveholders. The mere absence of condemnation of slaveholding in the New Testament is proof that it is not unlawful. You have to remember that Jesus Christ and His disciples preached in the midst of slavery among slaveholders and neither condemned slavery nor the slaveholder. The institution of slavery was very prevalent in the day of Christ and several times in the New Testament.

[John Weaver] The Apostles give a full enumeration of present-day sins. And you will never find slavery or condemnation of slaveholders those enumerations. You will find them listed in Romans 1, Galatians 5, Matthew 15, Colossians 3, 2 Timothy chapter 3. Never will you find a condemnation of biblical slavery. In fact, I want you to look in your Bibles to Luke chapter 7. I want to show you what Jesus Christ did when He had a perfect opportunity to condemn a slave holder and slavery. Look in Luke chapter 7 beginning there with verse 1. Watch this. Our Lord has a perfect opportunity now. So, in Luke 7 verse 1, now when He had ended His sayings in the audience of the people He entered into Capernaum.

[John Weaver] And a certain centurion's servant or slave, now a centurion was a Roman soldier. And a certain Roman soldier's servant or slave who was dear unto him was sick. ready to die. And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his slave. And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying that he was worthy for whom he should do this.

[John Weaver] For he loveth our nation, and hath built us a synagogue. Then Jesus went with them. And when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself, for I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my roof. Wherefore, neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee, but saying a word, and my servant or my slave shall be healed.

[John Weaver] For I am also a man set under authority, having under me soldiers. And I say unto one, Go, and he goeth. To another, Come, and he cometh.

[John Weaver] Now my servant or my slave do this, and he doeth it." When Jesus heard these things He marveled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And they that were sent returning from the house found the servant, or the slavehold, that had been sick." Isn't that amazing? Here Jesus Christ had the perfect opportunity to say, you dirty, wicked slaveholder, what are you doing keeping these people as slaves? And yet our Lord said, I have not found so great a faith. No, not in Israel.

[John Weaver] Instead of condemning him, he praised him. Wow. If you'll look very quickly in your Bibles to 1st Corinthians 7, 1st Corinthians 7, and look at verses 20 and 21. 1st Corinthians 7, verses 20 and 21. Look at what scripture says. 1st Corinthians 7, verse 20. God says, let every man abide in the same calling wherein he's called. Now watch. Art thou called being a servant or a slave? Care not for it. But if thou mayest be made free, use it rather. For he that is called in the Lord being a servant or slave is the Lord's free man. Likewise also he that is called being free is Christ's servant. Now, look what he said, let every man abide in the same calling wherein he is called. Art thou called that is under salvation being a slave? Care not for it. In other words it doesn't matter if you are a slave, fine. can be saved." But he said, if you can be free use it there rather. If you can serve me more effectually free and you can be free, wonderful, nothing wrong with that.

[John Weaver] But there is nothing wrong with being a slave. There is nothing inherently evil in slavery.

[John Weaver] Now, I'm not talking about kidnapping. I'm not talking about man stealing. I'm just talking about there is a difference between Biblical slavery and humanistic slavery. Slaveholders in the New Testament were admitted to the church. May I remind you of Acts chapter 10? Don't turn there. But you remember there was another Roman soldier by the name of Cornelius? And God said, send and get Peter. He's in Joppa. He's staying with the house of Simon the Tanner. And what did Cornelius do?

[John Weaver] He sent some of his slaves. And when Peter came back, he preached and Cornelius' household were converted. Peter didn't condemn him for being a slave holder. He did not condemn him or condemn slavery. Rather what Peter did he administered a New Testament ordinance. He baptized them, thus admitting them to the local church. Wow! The interesting thing is, you see, nowhere in the New Testament is there a condemnation of slavery.

[John Weaver] Now, I don't have time. I would like to spend an hour just on the book of Philemon. But let me just tell you this. The book of Philemon is about a runaway slave, Onesimus. Onesimus was the slave to Philemon. So Onesimus steals money from Philemon and runs away to Rome to blow the money that he stole. Something happens, he gets thrown into a dungeon and in the providence of God he gets thrown into the dungeon with the Apostle Paul. So the Apostle Paul preaches to him and Onesimus gets converted. Do you know what the Apostle Paul does? He sends Onesimus back to Philemon. Now, I want to just read to you verses 15 and 16. Philemon is a wonderful book. But here is what Paul tells Philemon, for perhaps he, that is Onesimus, therefore departed for a season that thou shouldest receive him forever, not now as a servant or slave, but above a slave, a brother beloved specially to me, but how much more to thee, both in the flesh and in the Lord.

[John Weaver] Now I don't know if you call it that or not. Paul says Onesimus now is a brother to me. He is my spiritual brother. But to you, more so in the flesh and in the Lord. Are you listening? Onesimus was Philemon's physical brother.

[John Weaver] Now you're going to ask me, how could a man hold his own brother as a slave And the answer is you need to go back and study biblical law. Because you're going to find out when you study biblical law, many lazy, indolent, irresponsible individuals could only exist under slavery. usually biblical slavery was intended to teach a biblical work ethic and responsibility and accountability very obviously Onesimus was not a Responsible individual because he stole from his own brother and ran off to Rome to throw it away I Got news for you You can get upset with me all you want to I But I got news for you a lot of these people today that will not work Do not know how to work do not know how to take care of their own finances do not know how to be responsible They'd be far better off with a family who would teach them Even if they had to work and serve as a slave We used to in this country have something known as apprenticeship, where you would go and work for a man without pay just to learn a trade, ever how long it took, which was a form of servitude, which was a form of slavery.

[John Weaver] So I'm just simply pointing out the fact slavery is not condemned. Slavery is regulated by biblical law. Slaves and their masters are both repeatedly warned by God The word servants in the New Testament is the Greek word doulas which literally means a slave or a bond slave so I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Ephesians chapter 6 and Let's begin reading their verse 5. I'm just trying to show you where God warns Both slaves and masters Look in Ephesians 6 beginning there if you would please with verse 5 Remember the word servants is the word slaves, okay? So he says servants or slaves Be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh with fear and trembling and singleness of your heart as unto Christ so part of their service and submission to Christ is their submission of their masters and Not with thy service as men pleasers, but as service of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with good will, doing service as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.

[John Weaver] So now God just dealt with the slaves. Watch verse 9. And you masters, Do the same things unto them, forbearing, threatening, knowing that your master also is in heaven, neither is their respective persons with him." In other words, God might treat you the same way you treat your slave. So here's a warning to both slaves and masters. Look in the book of Colossians chapter 3, verses 22 through 25. Colossians 3 verse 22. Again, here is the word servants, but it is literally slaves. Slaves, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eye service as men-pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing God, and whatsoever you do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that of the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done and there is no respect of persons now look in chapter 4 verse 1 God still ties it together masters Given to your servants your slaves that which is just and equal Knowing that you also have a master in heaven

[John Weaver] and that amazing and each one of these that is in our Bible as servants is actually the word slaves. Now, if you look in your Bibles to 1 Timothy, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy chapter 6, and I want you to look at the first five verses particularly because God basically reprobates the abolitionist. Look what he says, 1 Timothy 6 verse 1, many servants or slaves as are under the yoke that is there in bondage count their own masters worthy of all honor. Why should a Christian slave or a Christian servant count his master worthy of all honor? Here's why, that the name of God and His doctrine be not blasphemed.

[John Weaver] Now watch verse 2, and they that have believing masters Let them not despise them, because they are brethren, but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit these things teach and exhort. Now watch, if any men teach otherwise, that is if you're an abolitionist, If you say that slavery is evil and sinful and wicked, if any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness, he is proud. knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, where cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness, from such withdraw thyself." Isn't that amazing? He said if you don't teach the truth of verses 1 and 2, then you are proud, you know nothing, you are destitute of the truth, you have a corrupt mind. Wow. So this is why I said if biblical slavery is evil, then God is evil.

[John Weaver] If biblical slavery is evil, then God instituted, ordained, and endorsed and regulated evil. One cannot speak against the Word of God without speaking against God.

[John Weaver] Now, let me just cover a couple more words just very generally, very quickly. Let me read you these two whereas's again. Whereas we recognize that the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism, offending millions of people. And whereas we recognize that while the removal of the Confederate battle flag from public display is not going to solve the most severe racial tensions that plague our nations and churches, Those professing Christ are called to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interests and actions. Now, let me just point.

[John Weaver] First, that is an assumption and not a proven fact. When they say, we recognize the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism, offending millions of people. Really? May I ask, where is the documentation? May I ask, where are the polls? Why in the world would you make an unsubstantiated statement like this? The truth of the matter is, most people actually support the Confederate battle flag. Black and white, according to polls, 94%. Truthfully, those who do not support the battle flag are usually the leftists, liberals, and the politically correct crowd.

[John Weaver] Moreover, we must understand that perception is not reality. Now listen to this. It is perceived by many as a symbol of racism. Really? Perception is not reality. Perception is not fact. Perception is not history. If the Southern Baptist Convention is going to take a stand against anything and everything that people perceive as wicked and wrong, then they have to take a stand against marriage. and against the family, because there are certain socialists and communists that decry marriage and feminists as well, and they decry the family.

[John Weaver] They even despise the church. So, what are you going to do? Are you just going to say, well some perceive God as offensive, so therefore we're going to take a stand against God. The atheists are offended by references to Jesus Christ. I'm just simply saying it is insane and moreover they say that we're calling upon those who profess Christ to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interest.

[John Weaver] Let me tell you something folks, you may consider a weaker brother But you do not dismantle and discard and dismiss truth just because someone is ignorant of truth or does not understand truth or hates truth. It's impossible. If you start throwing everything out that offends people, and by the way, the scripture tells us that the gospel is offensive to the lost. If you throw out, you're throwing out the entire Bible.

[John Weaver] What in the world do you do? You teach the truth. You hold to the truth. You disseminate the truth. You explain the truth. You cannot. You cannot throw away truth just because someone does not understand truth. And listen to me. I can't help it. And it is not my problem. If someone Too lazy too ignorant and too indolent to study to find out for themselves I'm not going to deny truth just because people won't listen and won't study It's just that simple And you cannot have the I know what they want they're wanting unity you cannot have unity Without truth, you cannot have unity apart from truth You might have union But you can't have unity You can take two tomcats And tie their tails together and throw them over a clothesline and you've got unity you've got union, but you don't have unity Because they're fighting and scratching and clawing You know and you're going to have someone that hates truth and denies truth and try to have Unity you can't do that with someone who believes truth You might have union but you do not have unity now You think, well, Brother Weaver, you're just upset because you understand the issue of the Confederate battle flag.

[John Weaver] Well, it's not that I'm just upset. As the old saying goes, you ain't heard nothing yet. Wait till you find out next week how far they have gone. It has nothing to do with the flag. That's nothing to do with slavery. But I'm going to tell you why they've taken a stand against the Confederate battle flag. I'm going to tell you why they've said slavery is sinful. I'm going to tell you why the Southern Baptist Convention is so perverted.

[John Weaver] They want to help build a mosque in New Jersey. Listen to this. Russell Moore, whom I quoted earlier, is presently the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. I told you that Al Benson had written an article, and the title of the article, Our Church is Literally Going to Hell. In this article he points out something. Now I want you to listen carefully. I want you to understand where we are in organized religion. Al Benson writes, according to an article, and he quotes the source, the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is classified as an NGO, non-governmental organization of the United Nations.

[John Weaver] and it has a special consulting status. The article noted that Dr. Albert Moeller, and says of him that Dr. Moeller is a founding fellow of the Research Institute, that is think tank, of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. The ERLC is the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention. Why is this information noteworthy? Because the ERLC is a non-governmental organization of the United Nations. What does it mean that the ERLC partners with the United Nations as a non-governmental organization? What are the criteria for NGOs to be granted this status? Are you listening?

[John Weaver] The following are just a few. The non-governmental organization must support the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The NGO must have a clear mission statement that is consistent with those principles. The NGO must promote knowledge of the principles and activities of the United Nations.

[John Weaver] Now stop and think about these for a minute. What this means is that your organization as an NGO must be one that will support the principles of the United Nation. Should any church organization or any denomination be that closely involved with the United Nations, then it has to have a mission statement that is consistent with the principles of the United Nations. Does anyone out there, especially in churches, have the remotest concept of what the United Nations stands for? You should. Especially if you're a Christian because if you are then the United Nations stands against Everything that you stand for as a believer in Jesus Christ the Lord The United Nations is against the Second Amendment The United Nations is against state sovereignty or national sovereignty The United Nations is for globalism United Nations is basically against freedom United Nations is basically against anything biblical It is time for Christians to awaken from their slumber It is time for Christians to repent and come back to the pure Word of God I've gotten emails over the past couple of weeks of individuals that have withdrawn from the Southern Baptist Convention

[John Weaver] just over this one issue. I've also gotten emails concerning churches that have withdrawn over this issue. And once you understand the issue next week, there's going to be more that are going to be withdrawing. What it comes down to is this. We have to choose between the Word of God and modern-day churchianity and the politically correct crowd. How in the world can you deny what the Bible says about slavery? Slavery is not sin. Humanistic slavery is sin, but biblical slavery is not sin.

[John Weaver] Don't remember which I have all the slave narratives The slave narratives were written in the 1930s Or journalists who were out of work were paid by the United States government to go out and interview these several thousand still living slaves One black woman I never will forget her words She said and I quote It sure would be good to have slavery back again. She's in a bunch of black folks that need an old master to stand over them and make them work and make them do right. And they need a good whooping every now and then. Unhappily, that's true today, not just of black folks, but white folks, pink folks, yellow folks, purple folks, any folks, because we've left so far. from a biblical work ethic and personal responsibility and accountability.

[John Weaver] So we either have to believe the Bible or believe in political correctness. But for me in my house, I choose the Word of God. Let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We thank You for Your grace and mercy. Lord, open our eyes, teach us, build us up in the most holy faith. In Thy name we pray, Amen.

[John Weaver] so so so

False Prophets And A False Gospel - Part 1 of 2

John Weaver | YouTube

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	YouTube
Media ID	LLsglQTHEGw
Subject	Old Testament Studies
Course	Genesis: Abraham, Covenant, and Promise
Genre	Sermon
Date	2016-08-06
Dictation Name
Book	Book 095: False Prophets And A False Gospel — Chapter 1
Source Timed Segments	78

Formatted Transcript

Introduction: False Prophets in Ezekiel's Day and Ours

Weaver introduces Ezekiel 13, comparing modern false prophets in organized religion to those in Ezekiel's time who prophesied out of their own hearts, offering false peace.

I want you to go ahead and open your Bibles to Ezekiel 13. I will give you the scripture there just momentarily. But I want to tell you this message and the one next week is going to be just a little bit unusual. So I want to prepare you for it. Let me just say that I've got an awful lot of material today. And instead of me doing what I normally do, read the scripture and then, you know, go over there, I'm going to start the message and we're going to read the scripture before I really get started. And I've got so many other scriptures. We're not going to have time to turn to them all. But if you're so inclined I would encourage you to write them down because they are multitudinous and you probably would not just run across these scriptures on your own unless you particularly know what you're looking for. And you will understand when I get started. So let's open our Bibles to Ezekiel 13. Everybody get ready. And the title of the message is "False Prophets and a False Gospel."

Recent events demand answers as well as actions. Unbelievable, insane, and unscriptural events are evidencing that the professing church is made up of lost humanistic and politically correct leaders and people. What is going on in organized religion that passes for modern-day Christianity is not only mind-boggling, but it manifests that the spirit of Antichrist is alive and well. The day of Ezekiel was much like our day. False prophets abounded and prophesied out of their own hearts and out of their own minds. They did not and would not communicate the truth of the Word of God; instead their message was a lying divination. So if you'll look in Ezekiel chapter 13 beginning there with verse 1: "And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God; Woe unto the foolish prophets that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts."

Scripture Reading — Ezekiel 13:1-16

"Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The Lord saith: and the Lord hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word."

So here are a group of people that the Lord did not send, and they are trying to say the Lord said, when the Lord did not say. And all they are doing is communicating a false hope as well as a false gospel. So they were seeking then, the false prophets were, seeking to give comfort and peace and reconciliation to a wicked and a rebellious people. They were seeking harmony and prosperity and consolation.

The Untempered Mortar of False Teaching

False prophets build with untempered mortar—teaching that cannot hold—and God will destroy both the wall and the builders.

They wanted everything to be okay in a world that was in rebellion against God and God's law. They believed that "I'm okay, you're okay" philosophy. They were building a wall with untempered mortar. Now, I'm going to tell you about untempered. In fact, we're going to read about it just momentarily. But untempered mortar is mortar that will not stick, it will not hold, neither will it cement the wall. The word untempered actually refers to that which is insipid, unsavory, unseasoned, and whitewashed. I remember the first wall that I ever built. I mixed the mortar. I laid the block and then I had a brick mason friend and I called him. I was so proud of my masonry work. I wanted him to see it. And so he came over to inspect my wall that I had built and he looked at it. He walked around it and he put his hand on his chin and he went, "Hmm." And then he gave it a swift kick and the whole wall came tumbling down because the mortar had not been mixed correctly. It was untempered mortar. So God is saying that these false prophets who are giving a false gospel are going to be destroyed with the people that they are preaching. So if you look in verse 10 He says it like this, because in fact go back to verse 9 he said: "And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord God. Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered mortar: Say unto them which daub it with untempered mortar, that it shall fall."

Scripture Reading — Ezekiel 13:1-16

"There shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it? Therefore thus saith the Lord God; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered mortar, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it; To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord God."

So, God is saying that the untempered mortar will certainly fail, and it's going to bring forth His judgment. Al Benson just recently wrote an article which he titled, "Are Some Churches Literally Going to Hell?" And the answer, of course, is yes. But you must remember that churches are made up of people. And I must admit that some denominations are seemingly headed that way as well. We live in a time when it is politically correct to blast Christians, deny scripture, and reject the Lord Jesus Christ and cast dispersion upon His inerrant, infallible, and inspired word. Now in case you have not heard, the Southern Baptist Convention just did exactly that. And if anyone hears these words and are in the Southern Baptist Convention, I would probably suggest now would be the time to find another church. This is not an attack upon individual Christians that are in the Southern Baptist Convention, nor is it an attack upon godly and good churches that happen to be in the Southern Baptist Convention. But you have to understand we have leaders that have erred and they are leading the people astray as well.

The Southern Baptist Convention's Recent Actions

The SBC repudiated the Confederate battle flag and called slavery an historic evil; Weaver provides historical context of the SBC's founding in 1845 over slavery.

So let me just put it to you like this, I'm a Baptist, and I was raised in a Southern Baptist Church. But I left the Southern Baptist Convention over its liberalism and modernism many years ago. And like I said, I understand there's some good people that still are in those churches. But the issues that have just recently come up, in fact, this past month in the annual convention, the issues are not clear to most people only because most people are ignorant not only of history, but of the Word of God as well. The Southern Baptist Convention just repudiated the Confederate battle flag.

Now, I'm going to deal with that, but that's not really what this message is about. But I want you to know they did not repudiate the battle flag of ISIS, nor did they repudiate any Muslim flags. Nor did they repudiate any American flags. They did not repudiate the stars and the stripes. You say, well, wait a minute. Other organizations repudiate the Confederate battle flag as well. Well, the answer to that is true. But most people just simply do not know the history of the Southern Baptist Convention. You see the Southern Baptist Convention was formed in 1845 when abolitionism was running rampant. The northern churches, the northern Baptist churches were condemning the southern churches because the southern churches were not only allowing, they were defending slavery. So in 1840, abolitionism was running so rampant and affecting everyone. The Alabama Baptists in September of 1840 appointed a committee to study abolitionism and bring a report back to the Baptists in Alabama. The committee was composed of Jesse Hartwell, B.P. Bester, W.C. Crane, J.H.

Devotee, and M.P. Jewett. After investigating abolitionism, they came back with this simple statement, and I'm quoting, they said, "Abolitionism was unscriptural, against the National Constitution, against the peace and prosperity of the churches, and dangerous to the permanency of the Union." Now, to just show you how accurate they were, the Presbyterians also divided as well as the Methodists and the Baptists as well. There is a book written by C.C. Goen and the title of the book is "Broken Churches, Broken Nation" and he shows that how the churches divided first and then, of course, the nation divided secondly. And so, the straw that broke the camel's back came when the Northern Baptists would not allow a slave-holding elder to become a missionary. So consequently in 1845, 293 descending church leaders who represented 365,000 Christians, that is Baptist Christians, met in Augusta, Georgia and they formed a new association that recognized biblical slavery and would support the biblical truth concerning slavery. And that association was the Southern Baptist Convention. That may surprise you. Did you know that many of the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptists during the War of Northern Aggression were Confederate officers, soldiers, and chaplains? In fact, many of the famous names today of Baptist preachers were Confederate chaplains.

Basil Manly, J.P. Boyce, who is a theologian, re-reads Boyce's theology. How about James A. Broadus? The Southern Baptists have a hymnal, the Broadus hymnal. And it's the same James A. Broadus, who was a Confederate chaplain. There was A.E. Dickinson, there was J.J. Hyman, J. William Jones, and many others. In fact, on one website, I counted 72 Southern Baptist chaplains. Even James Furman, the son of Richard Furman, of Furman University fame, James Furman was not only a staunch Confederate, he served in the Secession Convention. And originally, Furman University almost collapsed because most of their students left the university and joined the Confederate Army. So my question would be now, is the Southern Baptist Convention going to repudiate Furman University since it's a big Southern Baptist University, since it has Confederate roots, and certainly it flew a Confederate flag and James Furman was in the Secession Convention.

Now, here's a thing that we do not understand. I want to take the time to read to you Resolution Number 7 that the Southern Baptists just passed, and I want to read it in its entirety. I'm only going to cover just a couple of points. We'd be here all afternoon if I tried to cover every one of these, but let me read it. Resolution Number 7, on sensitivity and unity regarding the Confederate battle flag. It's not just the flag now, hang on. "Whereas, SBC President Ronnie Floyd has rallied Southern Baptists to rise up in the crowd against racism that still exists in our nation and in our churches, recognizing we are in a desperate hour that calls us to replace these evils with the beauty and grace of love. And, whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil, such as slavery, and committed to eradicate racism in all of its forms from Southern Baptist life and ministry. And, whereas in more recent resolutions, a Southern Baptist conviction called all Christian men and women to pray and labor for the day when our Lord will set all things right and racial prejudice and injustice will be no more."

Resolution Number 7 on the Confederate Battle Flag

Weaver reads the SBC resolution, noting its assumptions about the flag as a symbol of racism and its call to discontinue its display.

"And expressed continued grief over the presence of racism and the recent escalation of racial tension in our nation. And, whereas more than 20 percent, nearly 11,000, of our cooperating Southern Baptist congregations identifies prominently non-Anglo. And for the last two years, more than 50% of the Southern Baptist new church plants are predominantly non-Anglo, that is, non-white. And whereas we recognize that the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many others as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism offending millions of people, and whereas we recognize that while the removal of the Confederate battle flag from public display is not going to solve the most severe racial tensions that plague our nation and churches, those professing Christ are called to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interests in action."

"Whereas the state of South Carolina, with the support of the state Baptist leaders, responded to the tragic slayings on June 17, 2015 of nine precious believers at Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church." I don't even know that that's a Baptist. It's not a Baptist. That would be African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston by removing the Confederate battle flag from their Capitol grounds and placing it in preservation at a military museum in Columbia, which was of course a very unwise thing and caused a great deal of division. "Whereas, Oklahoma Baptist University recently removed an image of the Confederate battle flag from its campus chapel, now therefore be it resolved that the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, June 14-15, 2016, commend the governmental officials of South Carolina, Baptist leaders in that state, and the Oklahoma Baptist University"

"administration for their sensitivity and fostering unity and be it further resolved that we acknowledge both the importance of remembering family heritage and sacrifice as well as the urgency of pursuing a unified body of Christ and racial healing in America and be it further resolved that we call our brothers and sisters in Christ to discontinue the display of the Confederate battle flag as a sign of solidarity of the whole body of Christ, including our African American brothers and sisters, and be it finally resolved that we urge fellow Christians to exercise sensitivity so that nothing brings division or hinders the unity of the body of Christ to be a bold witness to the transforming power of Jesus." That was resolution number seven that was passed in the Southern Baptist Convention. Now the first whereas is an assumption that the Confederate battle flag is a racist flag. It could not and it is not a racist flag. Why?

Biblical Slavery vs. Humanistic Slavery

Weaver distinguishes man-stealing (condemned) from biblical slavery, which God instituted, regulated, and never condemned in Old or New Testament.

Because black and white Confederates both fought under that flag and rallied to the defense of the South. Please remember this. The battle flag did not even come into existence until after July of 1861. It was a battle flag. It was not a national flag. It was in no way a symbol of racism. It only flew for four years. There was never a slave that came into this country under any Confederate flag. The slaves came in this country under Dutch flags, under English flags, under the stars and stripes. I'm not going to be dealing with the flag today. I've got too many messages on the flag. I've got a message: "The Truth Concerning the Confederate Battle Flag." "Why Some Hate the Confederate Battle Flag." "The Confederate Battle Flag: A Symbol of Hatred?"

There are two parts to that one. And I have another one just on the symbolism of the Confederate battle flag. So I'm not really dealing with that. But here's the point. The whereas refers to these evils. Now wait a minute. And they are talking about the evil of slavery mainly. But he would include the Confederate battle flag. A piece of cloth is not evil. There is no commandment, "Thou shalt not have a battle flag."

You have to remember this, that every tribe in Israel and every family in Israel had their own tribal flags and family flags. And yes, when they marched and yes, when they went to battle, they carried these flags. Isaiah chapter 5 verse 20 says,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 5:20

"Woe unto those that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"

Now it's the second whereas that I want to deal with today that is absolutely totally unscriptural. "Whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil such as slavery."

Now we have a clearly defined problem. And now we have a clear demarcation from the Word of God. I'm going to tell you about this man just momentarily. But Russell Moore, who is the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in the Southern Baptist Convention, said this. I'm quoting. Here are his exact words. Listen carefully. "The Southern Baptist Convention made history today and made it in the right way."

"This denomination was founded by people who wrongly defended the sin of human slavery. Today, the nation's largest Protestant denomination voted to repudiate the Confederate battle flag in its time and well past time." So the Southern Baptist Convention now has said that slavery is an evil. Russell Moore has called it a sin. Now that brings me to this. What does the Word of God say?

Now I want you to stop and think about this. There is a difference between what you and I would call biblical slavery and humanistic slavery. When you study the scripture, you will find what is condemned in the Bible is man-stealing or kidnapping. Anyone who steals a man or kidnaps a man merits the death penalty. Just to save time, let me quote some scriptures if you want to jot them down. That's wonderful but in Exodus 21 in verse 16 God says this:

Scripture Reading — Exodus 21:16

"And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death."

In Deuteronomy 24 in verse 7: "If a man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh merchandise of him, or selleth him; then that thief shall die; and thou shalt put evil away from among you."

Scripture Reading — Deuteronomy 21:10-14

When you get to 1 Timothy chapter 1 verses 9 and 10, when the Apostle Paul is saying the law is made, not made for the righteous man, but for the lawless and the disobedient. When you get to verse 10, he includes "men-stealers" or "man-stealers." That is those who kidnap and those who steal men and sell them. Now, when you think about slavery, there are numerous ways in the Bible that a man could become a slave without being stolen, or kidnapped, or sold into slavery. Certainly that could be a way, that is for sure. But first of all, let me just point this out, a man could be made a slave by being captured in war. In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 10-14, there were a multitude of people who were captured in war and they were made slaves. Now you're going to say, "Well that must be awful to be captured in war and become a slave." Well, it may be awful, but it's better than being executed. It's better than being put to death. And a lot of individuals who were captured during the war were made slaves. You remember in 2 Kings chapter 5 in verse 2 there was Naaman the leper, and the little Israelite maid who was a slave to Naaman's wife said, "Would to God that my master was in Israel where the prophet of God would cure him of his leprosy."

How did that little Hebrew maiden get into Syria and become a slave? She was captured during war. Doesn't mean she was fighting, but there was a raid and they captured her and she became a slave. So you could become a slave just simply by being captured in war. The Africans still do that today. That's how they get their slaves. That's how a lot of slaves were sent into this country because tribe was fighting tribe, and one tribe was defeated and they were enslaved by their conquerors. It's just that simple. Second, one could become a slave by selling himself into slavery. You could even sell a family member into slavery. Usually it was a young woman who was then to become the wife of the master or the wife of the master's son, something like that. But in Exodus 21 verses 7 through 11 and Leviticus 25 verses 39 through 54, one could actually sell himself into slavery. He could sell himself to another Hebrew or he could sell himself to a stranger. So you could sell yourself into slavery.

Scripture Reading — Exodus 21:7-11

Thirdly, and by the way, usually the Hebrew slavery was for six years or seven years. They were set free and you were not sent away empty. But thirdly, it was also possible to become a permanent slave. In Exodus 21 verses 1-6, if a man plainly said, "I love my master, I love my wife and my family, and I love my work, I will not go free." He was taken to the door post and an awl bore a hole in his ear and an earring was put there which meant he was a permanent slave. Usually, when the men wore earrings in the Bible, it was a sign of servitude and a sign of slavery. By the way, that has great implications in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in Isaiah 50 in verse 5, the scripture says, "The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back." So our Lord had His ear open in the sense that He was a servant. He was a slave to God, His Father.

New Testament Evidence on Slavery

Jesus praised a centurion slaveholder, Paul sent Onesimus back to his master, and 1 Timothy 6 reprobates those who teach against biblical slavery.

The Apostles give a full enumeration of present-day sins. And you will never find slavery or condemnation of slaveholders in those enumerations. You will find them listed in Romans 1, Galatians 5, Matthew 15, Colossians 3, 2 Timothy chapter 3. Never will you find a condemnation of biblical slavery. In fact, I want you to look in your Bibles to Luke chapter 7. I want to show you what Jesus Christ did when He had a perfect opportunity to condemn a slave holder and slavery. Look in Luke chapter 7 beginning there with verse 1. Watch this. Our Lord has a perfect opportunity now. So, in Luke 7 verse 1, "Now when he had ended all his sayings in the audience of the people, he entered into Capernaum."

"And a certain centurion's servant," or slave, now a centurion was a Roman soldier. "And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die. And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant." or slave. "And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this:" "For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue. Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof: Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed." or my slave.

"For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh;" "and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it." or my slave. "When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant whole that had been sick." or the slave. Isn't that amazing? Here Jesus Christ had the perfect opportunity to say, "You dirty, wicked slaveholder, what are you doing keeping these people as slaves?" And yet our Lord said, "I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."

Instead of condemning him, He praised him. Wow. If you'll look very quickly in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians 7, 1 Corinthians 7, and look at verses 20 and 21. 1 Corinthians 7, verses 20 and 21. Look at what scripture says. 1 Corinthians 7, verse 20. God says, "Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called." Now watch. "Art thou called being a servant?" or a slave? "Care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather. For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ's servant." Now, look what he said, "Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he is called. Art thou called," that is under salvation, "being a slave? Care not for it." In other words it doesn't matter if you are a slave, fine. You can be saved. But he said, "If thou mayest be made free, use it rather." If you can serve me more effectually free and you can be free, wonderful, nothing wrong with that.

But there is nothing wrong with being a slave. There is nothing inherently evil in slavery. Now, I'm not talking about kidnapping. I'm not talking about man stealing. I'm just talking about there is a difference between biblical slavery and humanistic slavery. Slaveholders in the New Testament were admitted to the church. May I remind you of Acts chapter 10? Don't turn there. But you remember there was another Roman soldier by the name of Cornelius? And God said, "Send and get Peter. He's in Joppa. He's staying with the house of Simon the Tanner." And what did Cornelius do?

He sent some of his slaves. And when Peter came back, he preached and Cornelius' household were converted. Peter didn't condemn him for being a slave holder. He did not condemn him or condemn slavery. Rather what Peter did he administered a New Testament ordinance. He baptized them, thus admitting them to the local church. Wow! The interesting thing is, you see, nowhere in the New Testament is there a condemnation of slavery.

Now, I don't have time. I would like to spend an hour just on the book of Philemon. But let me just tell you this. The book of Philemon is about a runaway slave, Onesimus. Onesimus was the slave to Philemon. So Onesimus steals money from Philemon and runs away to Rome to blow the money that he stole. Something happens, he gets thrown into a dungeon and in the providence of God he gets thrown into the dungeon with the Apostle Paul. So the Apostle Paul preaches to him and Onesimus gets converted. Do you know what the Apostle Paul does? He sends Onesimus back to Philemon. Now, I want to just read to you verses 15 and 16. Philemon is a wonderful book. But here is what Paul tells Philemon, "For perhaps he therefore departed for a season, that thou shouldest receive him for ever; Not now as a servant," or slave, "but above a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh, and in the Lord?"

Now I don't know if you call it that or not. Paul says Onesimus now is a brother to me. He is my spiritual brother. But to you, more so in the flesh and in the Lord. Are you listening? Onesimus was Philemon's physical brother.

Now you're going to ask me, how could a man hold his own brother as a slave? And the answer is you need to go back and study biblical law. Because you're going to find out when you study biblical law, many lazy, indolent, irresponsible individuals could only exist under slavery. Usually biblical slavery was intended to teach a biblical work ethic and responsibility and accountability. Very obviously Onesimus was not a responsible individual because he stole from his own brother and ran off to Rome to throw it away. I got news for you. You can get upset with me all you want to. But I got news for you, a lot of these people today that will not work, do not know how to work, do not know how to take care of their own finances, do not know how to be responsible, they'd be far better off with a family who would teach them, even if they had to work and serve as a slave. We used to in this country have something known as apprenticeship, where you would go and work for a man without pay just to learn a trade, ever how long it took, which was a form of servitude, which was a form of slavery.

So I'm just simply pointing out the fact slavery is not condemned. Slavery is regulated by biblical law. Slaves and their masters are both repeatedly warned by God. The word servants in the New Testament is the Greek word doulos which literally means a slave or a bond slave. So I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Ephesians chapter 6 and let's begin reading there verse 5. I'm just trying to show you where God warns both slaves and masters. Look in Ephesians 6 beginning there if you would please with verse 5. Remember the word servants is the word slaves, okay? So he says, "Servants," or slaves, "be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free."

So now God just dealt with the slaves. Watch verse 9. "And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him." In other words, God might treat you the same way you treat your slave. So here's a warning to both slaves and masters. Look in the book of Colossians chapter 3, verses 22 through 25. Colossians 3 verse 22. Again, here is the word servants, but it is literally slaves. "Servants," or slaves, "obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons." Now look in chapter 4 verse 1. God still ties it together. "Masters, give unto your servants" your slaves "that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven."

And that amazing, and each one of these that is in our Bible as servants is actually the word slaves. Now, if you look in your Bibles to 1 Timothy, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy chapter 6, and I want you to look at the first five verses particularly because God basically reprobates the abolitionist. Look what he says, 1 Timothy 6 verse 1, "Let as many servants" or slaves "as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour." Why should a Christian slave or a Christian servant count his master worthy of all honor? Here's why, "that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed."

Now watch verse 2, "And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort." Now watch, "If any man teach otherwise," that is if you're an abolitionist, if you say that slavery is evil and sinful and wicked, "If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself." Isn't that amazing? He said if you don't teach the truth of verses 1 and 2, then you are proud, you know nothing, you are destitute of the truth, you have a corrupt mind. Wow. So this is why I said if biblical slavery is evil, then God is evil.

Perception vs. Truth and the Call to Unity

The SBC's resolution bases action on perception, not truth; unity cannot exist without truth, and the gospel itself is offensive to the lost.

First, that is an assumption and not a proven fact. When they say, "we recognize the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism, offending millions of people." Really? May I ask, where is the documentation? May I ask, where are the polls? Why in the world would you make an unsubstantiated statement like this? The truth of the matter is, most people actually support the Confederate battle flag. Black and white, according to polls, 94%. Truthfully, those who do not support the battle flag are usually the leftists, liberals, and the politically correct crowd.

Moreover, we must understand that perception is not reality. Now listen to this. "It is perceived by many as a symbol of racism." Really? Perception is not reality. Perception is not fact. Perception is not history. If the Southern Baptist Convention is going to take a stand against anything and everything that people perceive as wicked and wrong, then they have to take a stand against marriage and against the family, because there are certain socialists and communists that decry marriage and feminists as well, and they decry the family.

They even despise the church. So, what are you going to do? Are you just going to say, "Well some perceive God as offensive, so therefore we're going to take a stand against God." The atheists are offended by references to Jesus Christ. I'm just simply saying it is insane and moreover they say that we're calling upon those who profess Christ to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interest. Let me tell you something folks, you may consider a weaker brother. But you do not dismantle and discard and dismiss truth just because someone is ignorant of truth or does not understand truth or hates truth. It's impossible. If you start throwing everything out that offends people, and by the way, the scripture tells us that the gospel is offensive to the lost. If you throw out, you're throwing out the entire Bible.

What in the world do you do? You teach the truth. You hold to the truth. You disseminate the truth. You explain the truth. You cannot. You cannot throw away truth just because someone does not understand truth. And listen to me. I can't help it. And it is not my problem if someone is too lazy, too ignorant, and too indolent to study to find out for themselves. I'm not going to deny truth just because people won't listen and won't study. It's just that simple. And you cannot have the—I know what they want, they're wanting unity—you cannot have unity without truth. You cannot have unity apart from truth. You might have union, but you can't have unity. You can take two tomcats and tie their tails together and throw them over a clothesline and you've got union, but you don't have unity because they're fighting and scratching and clawing. You know, and you're going to have someone that hates truth and denies truth and try to have unity, you can't do that with someone who believes truth. You might have union but you do not have unity. Now you think, "Well, Brother Weaver, you're just upset because you understand the issue of the Confederate battle flag."

Well, it's not that I'm just upset. As the old saying goes, you ain't heard nothing yet. Wait till you find out next week how far they have gone. It has nothing to do with the flag. That's nothing to do with slavery. But I'm going to tell you why they've taken a stand against the Confederate battle flag. I'm going to tell you why they've said slavery is sinful. I'm going to tell you why the Southern Baptist Convention is so perverted.

The SBC's Partnership with the United Nations

The SBC's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is an NGO of the UN, requiring alignment with UN principles that oppose biblical Christianity.

They want to help build a mosque in New Jersey. Listen to this. Russell Moore, whom I quoted earlier, is presently the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. I told you that Al Benson had written an article, and the title of the article, "Are Some Churches Literally Going to Hell?" In this article he points out something. Now I want you to listen carefully. I want you to understand where we are in organized religion. Al Benson writes, according to an article, and he quotes the source, "The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is classified as an NGO, non-governmental organization of the United Nations."

"And it has a special consulting status. The article noted that Dr. Albert Mohler, and says of him that Dr. Mohler is a founding fellow of the Research Institute, that is think tank, of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. The ERLC is the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention. Why is this information noteworthy? Because the ERLC is a non-governmental organization of the United Nations. What does it mean that the ERLC partners with the United Nations as a non-governmental organization? What are the criteria for NGOs to be granted this status?" Are you listening?

"The following are just a few. The non-governmental organization must support the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The NGO must have a clear mission statement that is consistent with those principles. The NGO must promote knowledge of the principles and activities of the United Nations."

Now stop and think about these for a minute. What this means is that your organization as an NGO must be one that will support the principles of the United Nations. Should any church organization or any denomination be that closely involved with the United Nations, then it has to have a mission statement that is consistent with the principles of the United Nations. Does anyone out there, especially in churches, have the remotest concept of what the United Nations stands for? You should. Especially if you're a Christian because if you are then the United Nations stands against everything that you stand for as a believer in Jesus Christ the Lord. The United Nations is against the Second Amendment. The United Nations is against state sovereignty or national sovereignty. The United Nations is for globalism. The United Nations is basically against freedom. The United Nations is basically against anything biblical. It is time for Christians to awaken from their slumber. It is time for Christians to repent and come back to the pure Word of God. I've gotten emails over the past couple of weeks of individuals that have withdrawn from the Southern Baptist Convention

Conclusion: Choose the Word of God

Weaver calls believers to reject political correctness and churchianity, stand on Scripture, and recognize that biblical slavery is not sin.

just over this one issue. I've also gotten emails concerning churches that have withdrawn over this issue. And once you understand the issue next week, there's going to be more that are going to be withdrawing. What it comes down to is this. We have to choose between the Word of God and modern-day churchianity and the politically correct crowd. How in the world can you deny what the Bible says about slavery? Slavery is not sin. Humanistic slavery is sin, but biblical slavery is not sin.

I don't remember which, I have all the slave narratives. The slave narratives were written in the 1930s. Or journalists who were out of work were paid by the United States government to go out and interview these several thousand still living slaves. One black woman, I never will forget her words. She said, and I quote, "It sure would be good to have slavery back again. There's a bunch of black folks that need an old master to stand over them and make them work and make them do right. And they need a good whooping every now and then." Unhappily, that's true today, not just of black folks, but white folks, pink folks, yellow folks, purple folks, any folks, because we've left so far from a biblical work ethic and personal responsibility and accountability.

So we either have to believe the Bible or believe in political correctness. But for me in my house, I choose the Word of God. Let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We thank You for Your grace and mercy. Lord, open our eyes, teach us, build us up in the most holy faith. In Thy name we pray, Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

False Prophets and False Teaching

Summary: Modern church leaders, like Ezekiel's false prophets, speak from their own hearts, offering false peace and a false gospel.

Evidence: Weaver opens with Ezekiel 13, saying false prophets 'prophesy out of their own hearts' and 'have seen vanity and lying divination.'

Biblical Slavery is Not Sinful

Summary: Scripture distinguishes man-stealing from regulated slavery; God instituted slavery and never condemned it, so calling it evil accuses God.

Evidence: Weaver cites Genesis 9, Exodus 21, Leviticus 25, and New Testament passages to show God's regulation and endorsement of slavery.

The Danger of Political Correctness in the Church

Summary: The SBC's actions reflect a surrender to political correctness rather than biblical truth, leading to a denial of God's Word.

Evidence: Weaver states the SBC repudiated the flag and called slavery evil, aligning with 'lost humanistic and politically correct leaders.'

Unity Requires Truth, Not Compromise

Summary: True unity cannot be achieved by discarding truth to avoid offense; the gospel itself is offensive, and truth must be taught, not abandoned.

Evidence: Weaver argues, 'you cannot have unity without truth... you might have union, but you can't have unity.'

The Spirit of Antichrist in Organized Religion

Summary: Current events in the professing church manifest the spirit of Antichrist, as leaders reject Scripture and embrace humanistic ideals.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'the spirit of Antichrist is alive and well' in organized religion that passes for modern Christianity.

God's Judgment on False Teachers

Summary: God will destroy false prophets and their followers, as illustrated by the wall of untempered mortar that will fall.

Evidence: Weaver reads Ezekiel 13:9-16, where God promises to break down the wall and consume the false prophets.

Key Arguments

The SBC's founding was explicitly pro-slavery, making its current repudiation hypocritical and unscriptural.

Summary: The SBC was formed in 1845 to defend biblical slavery; now it calls slavery evil, contradicting its own history and Scripture.

Evidence: Weaver details the 1845 formation, quoting the Alabama committee's statement that abolitionism was 'unscriptural.'

If slavery is sin, then God is the author of sin because He instituted and regulated slavery.

Summary: Since God cannot be tempted with evil (James 1:13) and sin is transgression of the law (1 John 3:4), calling slavery sin accuses God.

Evidence: Weaver argues from Genesis 9, where God curses Canaan to be a slave, and from God's commands to circumcise bought servants.

Jesus and the Apostles never condemned slavery; they regulated it and admitted slaveholders to the church.

Summary: The New Testament's silence on condemning slavery, and its instructions to slaves and masters, prove slavery is not inherently sinful.

Evidence: Weaver cites Luke 7 (the centurion), 1 Corinthians 7:20-21, Ephesians 6, Colossians 3-4, and 1 Timothy 6:1-5.

The SBC's resolution is based on unsubstantiated perception, not fact, and sets a dangerous precedent.

Summary: The resolution assumes the flag is a symbol of racism without proof; if perception dictates truth, the gospel itself must be discarded.

Evidence: Weaver challenges the resolution's 'whereas' statements, noting polls show 94% support the flag and perception is not reality.

The SBC's partnership with the UN as an NGO compromises its biblical witness.

Summary: The ERLC's UN status requires supporting UN principles, which are anti-biblical, anti-freedom, and pro-globalism.

Evidence: Weaver reads from Al Benson's article about the ERLC being an NGO of the UN and the implications of that status.

Scripture References

Ezekiel 13:1-16

Context: Weaver reads extensively from Ezekiel 13 to establish the theme of false prophets who prophesy out of their own hearts and build with untempered mortar.

Isaiah 5:20

Context: Quoted to condemn those who call evil good and good evil, applied to the SBC's stance on the flag and slavery.

Exodus 21:16

Context: Cited to show that man-stealing (kidnapping) merits the death penalty, distinguishing it from biblical slavery.

Deuteronomy 24:7

Context: Reinforces the death penalty for man-stealing, emphasizing the distinction from regulated slavery.

1 Timothy 1:9-10

Context: Lists 'men-stealers' among the lawless, again distinguishing kidnapping from biblical slavery.

Deuteronomy 21:10-14

Context: Shows that captives of war could become slaves, one legitimate means of entering slavery.

2 Kings 5:2

Context: The little Israelite maid was a slave captured in war, illustrating war captivity as a source of slavery.

Exodus 21:7-11

Context: Describes selling oneself or a family member into slavery, another biblical means.

Leviticus 25:39-54

Context: Further regulations on selling oneself into slavery, including to a stranger.

Exodus 21:1-6

Context: Describes permanent slavery by choice, with the ear-piercing ceremony, and connects to Christ's servanthood in Isaiah 50:5.

Isaiah 50:5

Context: Used to show Christ as a willing servant/slave, with His ear opened.

Proverbs 22:7

Context: Illustrates economic slavery: the borrower is servant to the lender.

James 1:13-15

Context: God cannot be tempted with evil; if slavery is evil, then God would be the author of evil.

1 John 3:4

Context: Sin is transgression of the law; since God's law regulates slavery, slavery cannot be inherently sinful.

Genesis 9:24-27

Context: Noah's curse on Canaan ordains slavery as a punishment and remedy, showing God's institution of slavery.

Genesis 17:9-14

Context: God commands Abraham to circumcise bought servants, showing God's endorsement of slaveholding.

Genesis 14:14

Context: Abraham had 318 trained servants (slaves) born in his house, indicating a large slaveholding household.

Genesis 20:14

Context: Abimelech gave Abraham male and female servants (slaves).

Genesis 24:35

Context: God gave Abraham menservants and maidservants, directly attributing slave acquisition to God's blessing.

Genesis 26:12-14

Context: Isaac had great store of servants (slaves), and the Philistines envied him.

Historical References

Southern Baptist Convention founded in 1845

Context: Formed in Augusta, Georgia, by 293 leaders representing 365,000 Christians to defend biblical slavery after northern Baptists refused to appoint a slaveholding missionary.

Alabama Baptist committee on abolitionism (1840)

Context: Committee of Jesse Hartwell, B.P. Bester, W.C. Crane, J.H. Devotee, and M.P. Jewett declared abolitionism unscriptural and dangerous.

C.C. Goen, 'Broken Churches, Broken Nation'

Context: Book showing that churches divided over slavery before the nation divided.

Confederate chaplains and leaders in SBC history

Context: Basil Manly, J.P. Boyce, James A. Broadus, A.E. Dickinson, J.J. Hyman, J. William Jones, James Furman served as Confederate chaplains or officers.

Furman University's Confederate roots

Context: James Furman served in the Secession Convention; students left to join the Confederate Army.

SBC Resolution Number 7 (June 2016)

Context: Resolution on sensitivity and unity regarding the Confederate battle flag, passed at the St. Louis convention.

Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church shooting (June 17, 2015)

Context: Referenced in the SBC resolution as the tragic slaying of nine believers, prompting flag removal in South Carolina.

Oklahoma Baptist University removed Confederate flag image

Context: Mentioned in the resolution as an example of sensitivity and fostering unity.

Russell Moore, president of ERLC

Context: Quoted as saying the SBC 'made history' by repudiating the flag and calling slavery a sin.

ERLC as NGO of the United Nations

Context: Al Benson's article reveals the ERLC has special consulting status with the UN, requiring alignment with UN principles.

Important Quotes

Abolitionism was unscriptural, against the National Constitution, against the peace and prosperity of the churches, and dangerous to the permanency of the Union.

Significance: Historical statement from the 1840 Alabama Baptist committee, used to show the SBC's original pro-slavery stance.

If slavery is evil, if slavery is a sin, then God is the author of sin and evil. Contrary to Scripture.

Significance: Central theological argument that calling slavery sin impugns God's character.

You cannot have unity without truth. You cannot have unity apart from truth. You might have union, but you can't have unity.

Significance: Key point that the SBC's pursuit of unity by discarding truth is futile and unbiblical.

It sure would be good to have slavery back again. There's a bunch of black folks that need an old master to stand over them and make them work and make them do right. And they need a good whooping every now and then.

Significance: Quote from a former slave in the 1930s narratives, used to argue that biblical slavery taught work ethic and accountability.

We have to choose between the Word of God and modern-day churchianity and the politically correct crowd.

Significance: Concluding call to decision, framing the issue as a choice between Scripture and cultural pressure.

Discussion Questions

How does Ezekiel 13's description of false prophets apply to modern church leaders who prioritize cultural acceptance over biblical truth?

Context: Weaver opens with Ezekiel 13 to frame the SBC's actions as false prophecy.

What is the biblical distinction between man-stealing (kidnapping) and the regulated slavery described in the Old and New Testaments?

Context: Weaver emphasizes Exodus 21:16 and Deuteronomy 24:7 to differentiate.

If God instituted and regulated slavery (Genesis 9, Leviticus 25), how should Christians respond to claims that all slavery is inherently sinful?

Context: Weaver argues that calling slavery evil accuses God of authoring sin.

Why did Jesus not condemn the centurion for being a slaveholder, and what does that imply for New Testament ethics on slavery?

Context: Weaver points to Luke 7 as a missed opportunity for condemnation.

How does 1 Timothy 6:1-5 address those who teach against biblical slavery, and what does it say about their character?

Context: Weaver reads the passage to show God reprobates abolitionist teaching.

In what ways does the SBC's partnership with the United Nations as an NGO conflict with biblical principles?

Context: Weaver discusses the ERLC's UN status and its required alignment with UN principles.

Can true Christian unity be achieved by setting aside biblical truth to avoid offending others? Why or why not?

Context: Weaver argues that unity requires truth, and the gospel itself is offensive.

How should believers respond when their denomination officially adopts positions that contradict Scripture?

Context: Weaver suggests withdrawing from the SBC and choosing God's Word over churchianity.

Applications

Test all teaching by Scripture, not by cultural trends.

Summary: Believers must evaluate church leaders' statements against the Bible, rejecting those that contradict God's Word.

Evidence: Weaver contrasts the SBC's resolution with biblical passages on slavery, urging a choice for Scripture.

Do not call what God has regulated sinful.

Summary: Christians should not label biblical slavery as evil, lest they accuse God of authoring sin.

Evidence: Weaver argues from James 1:13 and 1 John 3:4 that calling slavery sin impugns God's character.

Separate from churches and leaders who deny biblical truth.

Summary: If a denomination officially repudiates Scripture, believers should consider leaving for a faithful church.

Evidence: Weaver mentions emails from individuals and churches withdrawing from the SBC and suggests it may be time to find another church.

Pursue unity based on truth, not compromise.

Summary: True unity in the body of Christ requires adherence to biblical truth, not the suppression of offensive doctrines.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'you cannot have unity without truth' and warns against discarding truth for perceived unity.

Study Scripture to understand difficult topics like slavery.

Summary: Believers should diligently study the Bible to grasp the distinction between biblical slavery and man-stealing, rather than relying on cultural assumptions.

Evidence: Weaver encourages writing down the many scriptures he references because most people are ignorant of them.

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-06T02:28:39Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T15:53:36Z

Clean Transcript

False Prophets And A False Gospel - Part 1 of 2

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

I want you to go ahead and open your Bibles to Ezekiel 13. I will give you the scripture there just momentarily. But I want to tell you this message and the one next week is going to be just a little bit unusual. So I want to prepare you for it. Let me just say that I've got an awful lot of material today. And instead of me doing what I normally do, read the scripture and then, you know, go over there, I'm going to start the message and we're going to read the scripture before I really get started. And I've got so many other scriptures. We're not going to have time to turn to them all. But if you're so inclined I would encourage you to write them down because they are multitudinous and you probably would not just run across these scriptures on your own unless you particularly know what you're looking for. And you will understand when I get started. So let's open our Bibles to Ezekiel 13. Everybody get ready. And the title of the message is "False Prophets and a False Gospel."
#1 | 0:13 to 1:43 | cleaned
Recent events demand answers as well as actions. Unbelievable, insane, and unscriptural events are evidencing that the professing church is made up of lost humanistic and politically correct leaders and people. What is going on in organized religion that passes for modern-day Christianity is not only mind-boggling, but it manifests that the spirit of Antichrist is alive and well. The day of Ezekiel was much like our day. False prophets abounded and prophesied out of their own hearts and out of their own minds. They did not and would not communicate the truth of the Word of God; instead their message was a lying divination. So if you'll look in Ezekiel chapter 13 beginning there with verse 1: "And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God; Woe unto the foolish prophets that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts."
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"Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The Lord saith: and the Lord hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word." So here are a group of people that the Lord did not send, and they are trying to say the Lord said, when the Lord did not say. And all they are doing is communicating a false hope as well as a false gospel. So they were seeking then, the false prophets were, seeking to give comfort and peace and reconciliation to a wicked and a rebellious people. They were seeking harmony and prosperity and consolation.
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They wanted everything to be okay in a world that was in rebellion against God and God's law. They believed that "I'm okay, you're okay" philosophy. They were building a wall with untempered mortar. Now, I'm going to tell you about untempered. In fact, we're going to read about it just momentarily. But untempered mortar is mortar that will not stick, it will not hold, neither will it cement the wall. The word untempered actually refers to that which is insipid, unsavory, unseasoned, and whitewashed. I remember the first wall that I ever built. I mixed the mortar.
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I laid the block and then I had a brick mason friend and I called him. I was so proud of my masonry work. I wanted him to see it. And so he came over to inspect my wall that I had built and he looked at it. He walked around it and he put his hand on his chin and he went, "Hmm." And then he gave it a swift kick and the whole wall came tumbling down because the mortar had not been mixed correctly. It was untempered mortar.
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So God is saying that these false prophets who are giving a false gospel are going to be destroyed with the people that they are preaching. So if you look in verse 10 He says it like this, because in fact go back to verse 9 he said: "And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord God. Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered mortar: Say unto them which daub it with untempered mortar, that it shall fall."
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"There shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it? Therefore thus saith the Lord God; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered mortar, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it; To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord God."
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So, God is saying that the untempered mortar will certainly fail, and it's going to bring forth His judgment. Al Benson just recently wrote an article which he titled, "Are Some Churches Literally Going to Hell?" And the answer, of course, is yes. But you must remember that churches are made up of people. And I must admit that some denominations are seemingly headed that way as well. We live in a time when it is politically correct to blast Christians, deny scripture, and reject the Lord Jesus Christ and cast dispersion upon His inerrant, infallible, and inspired word. Now in case you have not heard, the Southern Baptist Convention just did exactly that. And if anyone hears these words and are in the Southern Baptist Convention, I would probably suggest now would be the time to find another church. This is not an attack upon individual Christians that are in the Southern Baptist Convention, nor is it an attack upon godly and good churches that happen to be in the Southern Baptist Convention. But you have to understand we have leaders that have erred and they are leading the people astray as well.
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So let me just put it to you like this, I'm a Baptist, and I was raised in a Southern Baptist Church. But I left the Southern Baptist Convention over its liberalism and modernism many years ago. And like I said, I understand there's some good people that still are in those churches. But the issues that have just recently come up, in fact, this past month in the annual convention, the issues are not clear to most people only because most people are ignorant not only of history, but of the Word of God as well. The Southern Baptist Convention just repudiated the Confederate battle flag.
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Now, I'm going to deal with that, but that's not really what this message is about. But I want you to know they did not repudiate the battle flag of ISIS, nor did they repudiate any Muslim flags. Nor did they repudiate any American flags. They did not repudiate the stars and the stripes. You say, well, wait a minute. Other organizations repudiate the Confederate battle flag as well. Well, the answer to that is true. But most people just simply do not know the history of the Southern Baptist Convention. You see the Southern Baptist Convention was formed in 1845 when abolitionism was running rampant. The northern churches, the northern Baptist churches were condemning the southern churches because the southern churches were not only allowing, they were defending slavery. So in 1840, abolitionism was running so rampant and affecting everyone. The Alabama Baptists in September of 1840 appointed a committee to study abolitionism and bring a report back to the Baptists in Alabama. The committee was composed of Jesse Hartwell, B.P. Bester, W.C. Crane, J.H.
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Devotee, and M.P. Jewett. After investigating abolitionism, they came back with this simple statement, and I'm quoting, they said, "Abolitionism was unscriptural, against the National Constitution, against the peace and prosperity of the churches, and dangerous to the permanency of the Union."
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Now, to just show you how accurate they were, the Presbyterians also divided as well as the Methodists and the Baptists as well. There is a book written by C.C. Goen and the title of the book is "Broken Churches, Broken Nation" and he shows that how the churches divided first and then, of course, the nation divided secondly. And so, the straw that broke the camel's back came when the Northern Baptists would not allow a slave-holding elder to become a missionary. So consequently in 1845, 293 descending church leaders who represented 365,000 Christians, that is Baptist Christians, met in Augusta, Georgia and they formed a new association that recognized biblical slavery and would support the biblical truth concerning slavery. And that association was the Southern Baptist Convention. That may surprise you. Did you know that many of the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptists during the War of Northern Aggression were Confederate officers, soldiers, and chaplains? In fact, many of the famous names today of Baptist preachers were Confederate chaplains.
#12 | 11:06 to 12:33 | cleaned
Basil Manly, J.P. Boyce, who is a theologian, re-reads Boyce's theology. How about James A. Broadus? The Southern Baptists have a hymnal, the Broadus hymnal. And it's the same James A. Broadus, who was a Confederate chaplain. There was A.E. Dickinson, there was J.J. Hyman, J. William Jones, and many others. In fact, on one website, I counted 72 Southern Baptist chaplains. Even James Furman, the son of Richard Furman, of Furman University fame, James Furman was not only a staunch Confederate, he served in the Secession Convention. And originally, Furman University almost collapsed because most of their students left the university and joined the Confederate Army. So my question would be now, is the Southern Baptist Convention going to repudiate Furman University since it's a big Southern Baptist University, since it has Confederate roots, and certainly it flew a Confederate flag and James Furman was in the Secession Convention.
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Now, here's a thing that we do not understand. I want to take the time to read to you Resolution Number 7 that the Southern Baptists just passed, and I want to read it in its entirety. I'm only going to cover just a couple of points. We'd be here all afternoon if I tried to cover every one of these, but let me read it. Resolution Number 7, on sensitivity and unity regarding the Confederate battle flag. It's not just the flag now, hang on. "Whereas, SBC President Ronnie Floyd has rallied Southern Baptists to rise up in the crowd against racism that still exists in our nation and in our churches, recognizing we are in a desperate hour that calls us to replace these evils with the beauty and grace of love. And, whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil, such as slavery, and committed to eradicate racism in all of its forms from Southern Baptist life and ministry. And, whereas in more recent resolutions, a Southern Baptist conviction called all Christian men and women to pray and labor for the day when our Lord will set all things right and racial prejudice and injustice will be no more."
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"And expressed continued grief over the presence of racism and the recent escalation of racial tension in our nation. And, whereas more than 20 percent, nearly 11,000, of our cooperating Southern Baptist congregations identifies prominently non-Anglo. And for the last two years, more than 50% of the Southern Baptist new church plants are predominantly non-Anglo, that is, non-white. And whereas we recognize that the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many others as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism offending millions of people, and whereas we recognize that while the removal of the Confederate battle flag from public display is not going to solve the most severe racial tensions that plague our nation and churches, those professing Christ are called to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interests in action."
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"Whereas the state of South Carolina, with the support of the state Baptist leaders, responded to the tragic slayings on June 17, 2015 of nine precious believers at Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church." I don't even know that that's a Baptist. It's not a Baptist. That would be African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston by removing the Confederate battle flag from their Capitol grounds and placing it in preservation at a military museum in Columbia, which was of course a very unwise thing and caused a great deal of division. "Whereas, Oklahoma Baptist University recently removed an image of the Confederate battle flag from its campus chapel, now therefore be it resolved that the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, June 14-15, 2016, commend the governmental officials of South Carolina, Baptist leaders in that state, and the Oklahoma Baptist University"
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"administration for their sensitivity and fostering unity and be it further resolved that we acknowledge both the importance of remembering family heritage and sacrifice as well as the urgency of pursuing a unified body of Christ and racial healing in America and be it further resolved that we call our brothers and sisters in Christ to discontinue the display of the Confederate battle flag as a sign of solidarity of the whole body of Christ, including our African American brothers and sisters, and be it finally resolved that we urge fellow Christians to exercise sensitivity so that nothing brings division or hinders the unity of the body of Christ to be a bold witness to the transforming power of Jesus." That was resolution number seven that was passed in the Southern Baptist Convention. Now the first whereas is an assumption that the Confederate battle flag is a racist flag. It could not and it is not a racist flag. Why?
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Because black and white Confederates both fought under that flag and rallied to the defense of the South. Please remember this. The battle flag did not even come into existence until after July of 1861. It was a battle flag. It was not a national flag. It was in no way a symbol of racism. It only flew for four years. There was never a slave that came into this country under any Confederate flag. The slaves came in this country under Dutch flags, under English flags, under the stars and stripes. I'm not going to be dealing with the flag today. I've got too many messages on the flag. I've got a message: "The Truth Concerning the Confederate Battle Flag." "Why Some Hate the Confederate Battle Flag." "The Confederate Battle Flag: A Symbol of Hatred?"
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There are two parts to that one. And I have another one just on the symbolism of the Confederate battle flag. So I'm not really dealing with that. But here's the point. The whereas refers to these evils. Now wait a minute. And they are talking about the evil of slavery mainly. But he would include the Confederate battle flag. A piece of cloth is not evil. There is no commandment, "Thou shalt not have a battle flag."
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You have to remember this, that every tribe in Israel and every family in Israel had their own tribal flags and family flags. And yes, when they marched and yes, when they went to battle, they carried these flags. Isaiah chapter 5 verse 20 says, "Woe unto those that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"
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Now it's the second whereas that I want to deal with today that is absolutely totally unscriptural. "Whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil such as slavery."
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Now we have a clearly defined problem. And now we have a clear demarcation from the Word of God. I'm going to tell you about this man just momentarily. But Russell Moore, who is the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in the Southern Baptist Convention, said this. I'm quoting. Here are his exact words. Listen carefully. "The Southern Baptist Convention made history today and made it in the right way."
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"This denomination was founded by people who wrongly defended the sin of human slavery. Today, the nation's largest Protestant denomination voted to repudiate the Confederate battle flag in its time and well past time." So the Southern Baptist Convention now has said that slavery is an evil. Russell Moore has called it a sin.
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Now that brings me to this. What does the Word of God say?
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Now I want you to stop and think about this. There is a difference between what you and I would call biblical slavery and humanistic slavery. When you study the scripture, you will find what is condemned in the Bible is man-stealing or kidnapping. Anyone who steals a man or kidnaps a man merits the death penalty. Just to save time, let me quote some scriptures if you want to jot them down. That's wonderful but in Exodus 21 in verse 16 God says this: "And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death." In Deuteronomy 24 in verse 7: "If a man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh merchandise of him, or selleth him; then that thief shall die; and thou shalt put evil away from among you."
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When you get to 1 Timothy chapter 1 verses 9 and 10, when the Apostle Paul is saying the law is made, not made for the righteous man, but for the lawless and the disobedient. When you get to verse 10, he includes "men-stealers" or "man-stealers." That is those who kidnap and those who steal men and sell them.
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Now, when you think about slavery, there are numerous ways in the Bible that a man could become a slave without being stolen, or kidnapped, or sold into slavery. Certainly that could be a way, that is for sure. But first of all, let me just point this out, a man could be made a slave by being captured in war. In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 10-14, there were a multitude of people who were captured in war and they were made slaves. Now you're going to say, "Well that must be awful to be captured in war and become a slave." Well, it may be awful, but it's better than being executed. It's better than being put to death. And a lot of individuals who were captured during the war were made slaves. You remember in 2 Kings chapter 5 in verse 2 there was Naaman the leper, and the little Israelite maid who was a slave to Naaman's wife said, "Would to God that my master was in Israel where the prophet of God would cure him of his leprosy."
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How did that little Hebrew maiden get into Syria and become a slave? She was captured during war. Doesn't mean she was fighting, but there was a raid and they captured her and she became a slave. So you could become a slave just simply by being captured in war. The Africans still do that today. That's how they get their slaves. That's how a lot of slaves were sent into this country because tribe was fighting tribe, and one tribe was defeated and they were enslaved by their conquerors. It's just that simple. Second, one could become a slave by selling himself into slavery. You could even sell a family member into slavery. Usually it was a young woman who was then to become the wife of the master or the wife of the master's son, something like that. But in Exodus 21 verses 7 through 11 and Leviticus 25 verses 39 through 54, one could actually sell himself into slavery. He could sell himself to another Hebrew or he could sell himself to a stranger. So you could sell yourself into slavery.
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Thirdly, and by the way, usually the Hebrew slavery was for six years or seven years. They were set free and you were not sent away empty. But thirdly, it was also possible to become a permanent slave. In Exodus 21 verses 1-6, if a man plainly said, "I love my master, I love my wife and my family, and I love my work, I will not go free." He was taken to the door post and an awl bore a hole in his ear and an earring was put there which meant he was a permanent slave. Usually, when the men wore earrings in the Bible, it was a sign of servitude and a sign of slavery. By the way, that has great implications in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in Isaiah 50 in verse 5, the scripture says, "The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back." So our Lord had His ear open in the sense that He was a servant. He was a slave to God, His Father.
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Fourthly, one could become a slave by being kidnapped and sold into slavery, as was Joseph. By the way, there have been plenty of godly men sold into slavery. Old John Newton, who wrote "Amazing Grace," was a slave trader, but he himself was captured and sold into slavery. And of course, we sing that song, "Amazing Grace," and we have to understand the background. So, that is possible. Fifthly, we've got to remember there is such a thing as economic slavery. The Bible says in Proverbs 22 and verse 7, "The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender." And you put your name on the line, you become the slave of that bank until you pay that loan off. It's just that simple.
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You're not working for yourself, you're working for them. And then of course, there's governmental slavery. And by the way, the War of Northern Aggression did not end slavery. It just enlarged the plantation and now we're all slaves. Okay? So, here's what I want you to consider today. So the Southern Baptist Convention has talked about an historic evil such as slavery. Russell Moore talks about the sin of slavery. Think about this. If slavery is evil, if slavery is a sin, then God is the author of sin and evil. Contrary to Scripture.
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How can I say that? Well, James 1 verses 13 through 15, he said, "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed." But notice he said, "God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man." So God is sinless. But now if you turn around and say that slavery is sin and slavery is evil, you are accusing God of being the originator of sin and evil. How can I say that? Well, let me give you one other scripture before I show you. You remember what sin is?
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1 John 3 and verse 4: "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law." You cannot sin without violating God's law. And all of God's Word is law.
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Now, I said if slavery is evil, if slavery is sin, then that would make God the author of sin. How is that? Well, if you look in your Bibles very quickly to Genesis chapter 9, you will find the origination of slavery. I'm not going to get into this, I don't have time today, but you remember how Ham had gone into his father, had seen his nakedness. I don't know what all transpired but Shem and Japheth took a blanket and went in backwards and covered their father. And when Noah awoke and he found out what had happened, then of course he cursed Canaan. And look if you would please at the curse. Verse 24: "And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. And he said, Cursed be Canaan;" now that was Ham's son, "Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants" or literally a slave of slaves "shall he be unto his brethren. And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his slave."
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"God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant," or be his slave. So here you have then this curse placed upon Canaan and his descendants. It is not just simply a prediction. It is not a prophecy. It is where God says, this is what is going to happen to these people. Now, R.L.
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Dabney in his book, "The Defense of Virginia and the South" said this, listen carefully, he is talking about slavery. "And we find that slavery was appointed by God as the punishment of and remedy for the peculiar moral degradation of a part of the race. God here ordains that this depravity shall find its necessary restraints, and the welfare of the more virtuous its safeguard against the depraved by the bondage of the latter." So he is saying that God instituted slavery and He instituted it for the good not only of the depraved, but of those who were more virtuous.
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And when the Bible says that a servant of servants, the Hebrew word is the word ebed, which literally means a slave. Now, if slavery is sinful, if slavery is evil, then God condoned it and God promoted it. For instance, look in your Bibles to Genesis 17 and begin reading there with verse 9. Genesis 17, verse 9. Look what God says. I don't know how you can get around this passage. "And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant."
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"And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant."
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Now what did God say? God says, "Abraham you circumcise everyone that is born in your household and everyone that is bought with your money." Who do you buy with money? Well someone that is going to be your slave. Someone that is going to be your servant. Look in, well you don't have to look there, you remember this in Genesis 14 and verse 14. Abraham armed his 318 trained servants or slaves in his own house and went and rescued Lot. So Abraham had 318 slaves that were trained fighting men. And I'm just pointing out those 318 trained slaves had mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, and maybe families of their own. Consider the fact that Abraham's family including his slaves was probably 2,000 to 3,000 to 4,000 to 5,000 people.
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He was quite a man, that is for sure. In Genesis chapter 20 verse 14 the Bible says, "And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife." So what does it mean when he gave them menservants and womenservants? He gave them male and female slaves. If you will look in Genesis 24, Eliezer is going to get Rebekah to be Isaac's wife.
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He is talking to her brother and to her father. In Genesis 24 verse 35 look what Eliezer says, Genesis 24 verse 35, "And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses." Who gave Abraham the slaves? Who gave Isaac the slaves? God did. That's what he said: "He hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses." Wow. All of those were given to Abraham. By the way, Isaac was a slave holder as well. If you look in Genesis 26, and look if you would please at verse 12. The Bible says, Genesis 26 verse 12, "Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him." Now skip down to verse 14. "For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants:" or slaves.
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And the Philistines envied him. Now let me tell you something about Abraham and Isaac. Abraham is known as the father of our faith. Abraham and Isaac are two of the greatest patriarchs in the Old Testament and they were slaveholders. And you have to remember this, that Abraham is also called the friend of God.
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Now let me show you a passage that Russell Moore and the Southern Baptist Convention are going to have real problems with. If you look back in your Bible to Genesis 16, and let's begin reading there verse 7, Genesis 16 verse 7, because Hagar, Sarah's slave, her handmaiden, has run away because she was roughly treated by Sarah. So Genesis 16 verse 7, "And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands." Now the angel of the Lord, of course, is what we would call a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ. It was a Christophany. And so here Christ tells her to go back and submit herself to her mistress.
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If you would look in your Bibles very quickly to the book of Numbers chapter 31. Numbers chapter 31. And look if you would please at verse 30. There was a war. There were a lot of people captured and these people were the Midianites, people of Midian. Look what happens. Numbers chapter 31 verse 30, the Bible says God is talking about dividing the prey. In fact go back to verse 26: "Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of beast, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the chief fathers of the congregation." Verse 27: "And divide the prey into two parts; between them that took the war upon them, who went out to battle, and between all the congregation: And levy a tribute unto the Lord of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep: Take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for an heave offering of the Lord."
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"And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the beeves, of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner of beasts, and give them unto the Levites, which keep the charge of the tabernacle of the Lord." So God says, here is what you do, those who went out to war you take a certain percentage of these people that have been captured you give them to Aaron the priest to help him. And of the people's half you take a certain percentage and you give it to the Levites to help them. Wow! So it appears to me in the Bible God is not condemning slavery, God is saying, "They were captured, I allowed them to be captured. Now you take these slaves and you divide a certain portion to the Aaronic priesthood and a certain portion to the Levites as well."
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Now, I could multiply scriptures, I'm just trying to save time by not doing so. So let me ask you this, obviously the Old Testament does not condemn slavery. Does the New Testament contradict the Old Testament? Is slavery condemned in the New Testament? Well let me just answer it like this, you will search the New Testament in vain for a condemnation of slavery and slaveholders. The mere absence of condemnation of slaveholding in the New Testament is proof that it is not unlawful. You have to remember that Jesus Christ and His disciples preached in the midst of slavery among slaveholders and neither condemned slavery nor the slaveholder. The institution of slavery was very prevalent in the day of Christ and several times in the New Testament.
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The Apostles give a full enumeration of present-day sins. And you will never find slavery or condemnation of slaveholders in those enumerations. You will find them listed in Romans 1, Galatians 5, Matthew 15, Colossians 3, 2 Timothy chapter 3. Never will you find a condemnation of biblical slavery. In fact, I want you to look in your Bibles to Luke chapter 7. I want to show you what Jesus Christ did when He had a perfect opportunity to condemn a slave holder and slavery. Look in Luke chapter 7 beginning there with verse 1. Watch this. Our Lord has a perfect opportunity now. So, in Luke 7 verse 1, "Now when he had ended all his sayings in the audience of the people, he entered into Capernaum."
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"And a certain centurion's servant," or slave, now a centurion was a Roman soldier. "And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die. And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant." or slave. "And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this:"
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"For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue. Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof: Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed." or my slave.
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"For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh;"
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"and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it." or my slave. "When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant whole that had been sick." or the slave. Isn't that amazing? Here Jesus Christ had the perfect opportunity to say, "You dirty, wicked slaveholder, what are you doing keeping these people as slaves?" And yet our Lord said, "I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."
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Instead of condemning him, He praised him. Wow. If you'll look very quickly in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians 7, 1 Corinthians 7, and look at verses 20 and 21. 1 Corinthians 7, verses 20 and 21. Look at what scripture says. 1 Corinthians 7, verse 20. God says, "Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called." Now watch. "Art thou called being a servant?" or a slave? "Care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather. For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ's servant." Now, look what he said, "Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he is called. Art thou called," that is under salvation, "being a slave? Care not for it." In other words it doesn't matter if you are a slave, fine. You can be saved. But he said, "If thou mayest be made free, use it rather." If you can serve me more effectually free and you can be free, wonderful, nothing wrong with that.
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But there is nothing wrong with being a slave. There is nothing inherently evil in slavery.
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Now, I'm not talking about kidnapping. I'm not talking about man stealing. I'm just talking about there is a difference between biblical slavery and humanistic slavery. Slaveholders in the New Testament were admitted to the church. May I remind you of Acts chapter 10? Don't turn there. But you remember there was another Roman soldier by the name of Cornelius? And God said, "Send and get Peter. He's in Joppa. He's staying with the house of Simon the Tanner." And what did Cornelius do?
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He sent some of his slaves. And when Peter came back, he preached and Cornelius' household were converted. Peter didn't condemn him for being a slave holder. He did not condemn him or condemn slavery. Rather what Peter did he administered a New Testament ordinance. He baptized them, thus admitting them to the local church. Wow! The interesting thing is, you see, nowhere in the New Testament is there a condemnation of slavery.
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Now, I don't have time. I would like to spend an hour just on the book of Philemon. But let me just tell you this. The book of Philemon is about a runaway slave, Onesimus. Onesimus was the slave to Philemon. So Onesimus steals money from Philemon and runs away to Rome to blow the money that he stole. Something happens, he gets thrown into a dungeon and in the providence of God he gets thrown into the dungeon with the Apostle Paul. So the Apostle Paul preaches to him and Onesimus gets converted. Do you know what the Apostle Paul does? He sends Onesimus back to Philemon. Now, I want to just read to you verses 15 and 16. Philemon is a wonderful book. But here is what Paul tells Philemon, "For perhaps he therefore departed for a season, that thou shouldest receive him for ever; Not now as a servant," or slave, "but above a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh, and in the Lord?"
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Now I don't know if you call it that or not. Paul says Onesimus now is a brother to me. He is my spiritual brother. But to you, more so in the flesh and in the Lord. Are you listening? Onesimus was Philemon's physical brother.
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Now you're going to ask me, how could a man hold his own brother as a slave? And the answer is you need to go back and study biblical law. Because you're going to find out when you study biblical law, many lazy, indolent, irresponsible individuals could only exist under slavery. Usually biblical slavery was intended to teach a biblical work ethic and responsibility and accountability. Very obviously Onesimus was not a responsible individual because he stole from his own brother and ran off to Rome to throw it away. I got news for you. You can get upset with me all you want to. But I got news for you, a lot of these people today that will not work, do not know how to work, do not know how to take care of their own finances, do not know how to be responsible, they'd be far better off with a family who would teach them, even if they had to work and serve as a slave. We used to in this country have something known as apprenticeship, where you would go and work for a man without pay just to learn a trade, ever how long it took, which was a form of servitude, which was a form of slavery.
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So I'm just simply pointing out the fact slavery is not condemned. Slavery is regulated by biblical law. Slaves and their masters are both repeatedly warned by God. The word servants in the New Testament is the Greek word doulos which literally means a slave or a bond slave. So I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Ephesians chapter 6 and let's begin reading there verse 5. I'm just trying to show you where God warns both slaves and masters. Look in Ephesians 6 beginning there if you would please with verse 5. Remember the word servants is the word slaves, okay? So he says, "Servants," or slaves, "be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free."
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So now God just dealt with the slaves. Watch verse 9. "And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him." In other words, God might treat you the same way you treat your slave. So here's a warning to both slaves and masters. Look in the book of Colossians chapter 3, verses 22 through 25. Colossians 3 verse 22. Again, here is the word servants, but it is literally slaves. "Servants," or slaves, "obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons." Now look in chapter 4 verse 1. God still ties it together. "Masters, give unto your servants" your slaves "that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven."
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And that amazing, and each one of these that is in our Bible as servants is actually the word slaves. Now, if you look in your Bibles to 1 Timothy, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy chapter 6, and I want you to look at the first five verses particularly because God basically reprobates the abolitionist. Look what he says, 1 Timothy 6 verse 1, "Let as many servants" or slaves "as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour." Why should a Christian slave or a Christian servant count his master worthy of all honor? Here's why, "that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed."
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Now watch verse 2, "And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort." Now watch, "If any man teach otherwise," that is if you're an abolitionist, if you say that slavery is evil and sinful and wicked, "If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself." Isn't that amazing? He said if you don't teach the truth of verses 1 and 2, then you are proud, you know nothing, you are destitute of the truth, you have a corrupt mind. Wow. So this is why I said if biblical slavery is evil, then God is evil.
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If biblical slavery is evil, then God instituted, ordained, and endorsed and regulated evil. One cannot speak against the Word of God without speaking against God.
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Now, let me just cover a couple more words just very generally, very quickly. Let me read you these two whereas's again. "Whereas we recognize that the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism, offending millions of people. And whereas we recognize that while the removal of the Confederate battle flag from public display is not going to solve the most severe racial tensions that plague our nations and churches, those professing Christ are called to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interests and actions." Now, let me just point.
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First, that is an assumption and not a proven fact. When they say, "we recognize the Confederate battle flag is used by some and perceived by many as a symbol of hatred, bigotry, and racism, offending millions of people." Really? May I ask, where is the documentation? May I ask, where are the polls? Why in the world would you make an unsubstantiated statement like this? The truth of the matter is, most people actually support the Confederate battle flag. Black and white, according to polls, 94%. Truthfully, those who do not support the battle flag are usually the leftists, liberals, and the politically correct crowd.
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Moreover, we must understand that perception is not reality. Now listen to this. "It is perceived by many as a symbol of racism." Really? Perception is not reality. Perception is not fact. Perception is not history. If the Southern Baptist Convention is going to take a stand against anything and everything that people perceive as wicked and wrong, then they have to take a stand against marriage and against the family, because there are certain socialists and communists that decry marriage and feminists as well, and they decry the family.
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They even despise the church. So, what are you going to do? Are you just going to say, "Well some perceive God as offensive, so therefore we're going to take a stand against God." The atheists are offended by references to Jesus Christ. I'm just simply saying it is insane and moreover they say that we're calling upon those who profess Christ to extend grace and put the consciences of others ahead of their own interest.
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Let me tell you something folks, you may consider a weaker brother. But you do not dismantle and discard and dismiss truth just because someone is ignorant of truth or does not understand truth or hates truth. It's impossible. If you start throwing everything out that offends people, and by the way, the scripture tells us that the gospel is offensive to the lost. If you throw out, you're throwing out the entire Bible.
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What in the world do you do? You teach the truth. You hold to the truth. You disseminate the truth. You explain the truth. You cannot. You cannot throw away truth just because someone does not understand truth. And listen to me. I can't help it. And it is not my problem if someone is too lazy, too ignorant, and too indolent to study to find out for themselves. I'm not going to deny truth just because people won't listen and won't study. It's just that simple. And you cannot have the—I know what they want, they're wanting unity—you cannot have unity without truth. You cannot have unity apart from truth. You might have union, but you can't have unity. You can take two tomcats and tie their tails together and throw them over a clothesline and you've got union, but you don't have unity because they're fighting and scratching and clawing. You know, and you're going to have someone that hates truth and denies truth and try to have unity, you can't do that with someone who believes truth. You might have union but you do not have unity. Now you think, "Well, Brother Weaver, you're just upset because you understand the issue of the Confederate battle flag."
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Well, it's not that I'm just upset. As the old saying goes, you ain't heard nothing yet. Wait till you find out next week how far they have gone. It has nothing to do with the flag. That's nothing to do with slavery. But I'm going to tell you why they've taken a stand against the Confederate battle flag. I'm going to tell you why they've said slavery is sinful. I'm going to tell you why the Southern Baptist Convention is so perverted.
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They want to help build a mosque in New Jersey. Listen to this. Russell Moore, whom I quoted earlier, is presently the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. I told you that Al Benson had written an article, and the title of the article, "Are Some Churches Literally Going to Hell?" In this article he points out something. Now I want you to listen carefully. I want you to understand where we are in organized religion. Al Benson writes, according to an article, and he quotes the source, "The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is classified as an NGO, non-governmental organization of the United Nations."
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"And it has a special consulting status. The article noted that Dr. Albert Mohler, and says of him that Dr. Mohler is a founding fellow of the Research Institute, that is think tank, of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. The ERLC is the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention. Why is this information noteworthy? Because the ERLC is a non-governmental organization of the United Nations. What does it mean that the ERLC partners with the United Nations as a non-governmental organization? What are the criteria for NGOs to be granted this status?" Are you listening?
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"The following are just a few. The non-governmental organization must support the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The NGO must have a clear mission statement that is consistent with those principles. The NGO must promote knowledge of the principles and activities of the United Nations."
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Now stop and think about these for a minute. What this means is that your organization as an NGO must be one that will support the principles of the United Nations. Should any church organization or any denomination be that closely involved with the United Nations, then it has to have a mission statement that is consistent with the principles of the United Nations. Does anyone out there, especially in churches, have the remotest concept of what the United Nations stands for? You should. Especially if you're a Christian because if you are then the United Nations stands against everything that you stand for as a believer in Jesus Christ the Lord. The United Nations is against the Second Amendment. The United Nations is against state sovereignty or national sovereignty. The United Nations is for globalism. The United Nations is basically against freedom. The United Nations is basically against anything biblical. It is time for Christians to awaken from their slumber. It is time for Christians to repent and come back to the pure Word of God. I've gotten emails over the past couple of weeks of individuals that have withdrawn from the Southern Baptist Convention
#74 | 1:02:57 to 1:04:21 | cleaned
just over this one issue. I've also gotten emails concerning churches that have withdrawn over this issue. And once you understand the issue next week, there's going to be more that are going to be withdrawing. What it comes down to is this. We have to choose between the Word of God and modern-day churchianity and the politically correct crowd. How in the world can you deny what the Bible says about slavery? Slavery is not sin. Humanistic slavery is sin, but biblical slavery is not sin.
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I don't remember which, I have all the slave narratives. The slave narratives were written in the 1930s. Or journalists who were out of work were paid by the United States government to go out and interview these several thousand still living slaves. One black woman, I never will forget her words. She said, and I quote, "It sure would be good to have slavery back again. There's a bunch of black folks that need an old master to stand over them and make them work and make them do right. And they need a good whooping every now and then." Unhappily, that's true today, not just of black folks, but white folks, pink folks, yellow folks, purple folks, any folks, because we've left so far from a biblical work ethic and personal responsibility and accountability.
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So we either have to believe the Bible or believe in political correctness. But for me in my house, I choose the Word of God. Let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We thank You for Your grace and mercy. Lord, open our eyes, teach us, build us up in the most holy faith. In Thy name we pray, Amen.
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so so so
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-06T02:28:39Z

False Prophets And A False Gospel - Part 1 of 2

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

Pastor John Weaver addresses the Southern Baptist Convention's recent repudiation of the Confederate battle flag and its declaration that slavery is an historic evil. He argues from Scripture that biblical slavery is not sinful, that God instituted and regulated it, and that the Convention's stance aligns with false prophets who speak from their own hearts rather than God's Word. The message warns against abandoning biblical truth for political correctness and calls believers to choose the Word of God over modern churchianity.

Introduction: False Prophets in Ezekiel's Day and Ours

Weaver introduces Ezekiel 13, comparing modern false prophets in organized religion to those in Ezekiel's time who prophesied out of their own hearts, offering false peace.

Scripture Reading — Ezekiel 13:1-16

"Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The Lord saith: and the Lord hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word."

The Untempered Mortar of False Teaching

False prophets build with untempered mortar—teaching that cannot hold—and God will destroy both the wall and the builders.

Scripture Reading — Ezekiel 13:1-16

"There shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it? Therefore thus saith the Lord God; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered mortar, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it; To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord God."

The Southern Baptist Convention's Recent Actions

The SBC repudiated the Confederate battle flag and called slavery an historic evil; Weaver provides historical context of the SBC's founding in 1845 over slavery.

Resolution Number 7 on the Confederate Battle Flag

Weaver reads the SBC resolution, noting its assumptions about the flag as a symbol of racism and its call to discontinue its display.

Biblical Slavery vs. Humanistic Slavery

Weaver distinguishes man-stealing (condemned) from biblical slavery, which God instituted, regulated, and never condemned in Old or New Testament.

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 5:20

"Woe unto those that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"

Now it's the second whereas that I want to deal with today that is absolutely totally unscriptural. "Whereas in 1995 the Southern Baptist Convention repudiated historic acts of evil such as slavery."

Scripture Reading — Exodus 21:16

"And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death."

Scripture Reading — Deuteronomy 21:10-14

When you get to 1 Timothy chapter 1 verses 9 and 10, when the Apostle Paul is saying the law is made, not made for the righteous man, but for the lawless and the disobedient. When you get to verse 10, he includes "men-stealers" or "man-stealers." That is those who kidnap and those who steal men and sell them. Now, when you think about slavery, there are numerous ways in the Bible that a man could become a slave without being stolen, or kidnapped, or sold into slavery. Certainly that could be a way, that is for sure. But first of all, let me just point this out, a man could be made a slave by being captured in war. In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 21 verses 10-14, there were a multitude of people who were captured in war and they were made slaves. Now you're going to say, "Well that must be awful to be captured in war and become a slave." Well, it may be awful, but it's better than being executed. It's better than being put to death. And a lot of individuals who were captured during the war were made slaves. You remember in 2 Kings chapter 5 in verse 2 there was Naaman the leper, and the little Israelite maid who was a slave to Naaman's wife said, "Would to God that my master was in Israel where the prophet of God would cure him of his leprosy."

Scripture Reading — Exodus 21:7-11

Thirdly, and by the way, usually the Hebrew slavery was for six years or seven years. They were set free and you were not sent away empty. But thirdly, it was also possible to become a permanent slave. In Exodus 21 verses 1-6, if a man plainly said, "I love my master, I love my wife and my family, and I love my work, I will not go free." He was taken to the door post and an awl bore a hole in his ear and an earring was put there which meant he was a permanent slave. Usually, when the men wore earrings in the Bible, it was a sign of servitude and a sign of slavery. By the way, that has great implications in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in Isaiah 50 in verse 5, the scripture says, "The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back." So our Lord had His ear open in the sense that He was a servant. He was a slave to God, His Father.

New Testament Evidence on Slavery

Jesus praised a centurion slaveholder, Paul sent Onesimus back to his master, and 1 Timothy 6 reprobates those who teach against biblical slavery.

Perception vs. Truth and the Call to Unity

The SBC's resolution bases action on perception, not truth; unity cannot exist without truth, and the gospel itself is offensive to the lost.

The SBC's Partnership with the United Nations

The SBC's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is an NGO of the UN, requiring alignment with UN principles that oppose biblical Christianity.

Conclusion: Choose the Word of God

Weaver calls believers to reject political correctness and churchianity, stand on Scripture, and recognize that biblical slavery is not sin.

False Prophets And A False Gospel - Part 1 of 2

John Weaver | YouTube

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	YouTube
Media ID	LLsglQTHEGw
Subject	Old Testament Studies
Course	Genesis: Abraham, Covenant, and Promise
Genre	Sermon
Date	2016-08-06
Dictation Name
Book	Book 095: False Prophets And A False Gospel — Chapter 1
Source Timed Segments	78

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction: False Prophets in Ezekiel's Day and Ours: Weaver introduces Ezekiel 13, comparing modern false prophets in organized religion to those in Ezekiel's time who prophesied out of their own hearts, offering false peace.
The Untempered Mortar of False Teaching: False prophets build with untempered mortar—teaching that cannot hold—and God will destroy both the wall and the builders.
The Southern Baptist Convention's Recent Actions: The SBC repudiated the Confederate battle flag and called slavery an historic evil; Weaver provides historical context of the SBC's founding in 1845 over slavery.
Resolution Number 7 on the Confederate Battle Flag: Weaver reads the SBC resolution, noting its assumptions about the flag as a symbol of racism and its call to discontinue its display.
Biblical Slavery vs. Humanistic Slavery: Weaver distinguishes man-stealing (condemned) from biblical slavery, which God instituted, regulated, and never condemned in Old or New Testament.
New Testament Evidence on Slavery: Jesus praised a centurion slaveholder, Paul sent Onesimus back to his master, and 1 Timothy 6 reprobates those who teach against biblical slavery.
Perception vs. Truth and the Call to Unity: The SBC's resolution bases action on perception, not truth; unity cannot exist without truth, and the gospel itself is offensive to the lost.
The SBC's Partnership with the United Nations: The SBC's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is an NGO of the UN, requiring alignment with UN principles that oppose biblical Christianity.
Conclusion: Choose the Word of God: Weaver calls believers to reject political correctness and churchianity, stand on Scripture, and recognize that biblical slavery is not sin.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

The SBC's founding was explicitly pro-slavery, making its current repudiation hypocritical and unscriptural.

The SBC was formed in 1845 to defend biblical slavery; now it calls slavery evil, contradicting its own history and Scripture.

Weaver details the 1845 formation, quoting the Alabama committee's statement that abolitionism was 'unscriptural.'

If slavery is sin, then God is the author of sin because He instituted and regulated slavery.

Since God cannot be tempted with evil (James 1:13) and sin is transgression of the law (1 John 3:4), calling slavery sin accuses God.

Weaver argues from Genesis 9, where God curses Canaan to be a slave, and from God's commands to circumcise bought servants.

Jesus and the Apostles never condemned slavery; they regulated it and admitted slaveholders to the church.

The New Testament's silence on condemning slavery, and its instructions to slaves and masters, prove slavery is not inherently sinful.

Weaver cites Luke 7 (the centurion), 1 Corinthians 7:20-21, Ephesians 6, Colossians 3-4, and 1 Timothy 6:1-5.

The SBC's resolution is based on unsubstantiated perception, not fact, and sets a dangerous precedent.

The resolution assumes the flag is a symbol of racism without proof; if perception dictates truth, the gospel itself must be discarded.

Weaver challenges the resolution's 'whereas' statements, noting polls show 94% support the flag and perception is not reality.

The SBC's partnership with the UN as an NGO compromises its biblical witness.

The ERLC's UN status requires supporting UN principles, which are anti-biblical, anti-freedom, and pro-globalism.

Weaver reads from Al Benson's article about the ERLC being an NGO of the UN and the implications of that status.

Scripture References

Ezekiel 13:1-16: Weaver reads extensively from Ezekiel 13 to establish the theme of false prophets who prophesy out of their own hearts and build with untempered mortar.
Isaiah 5:20: Quoted to condemn those who call evil good and good evil, applied to the SBC's stance on the flag and slavery.
Exodus 21:16: Cited to show that man-stealing (kidnapping) merits the death penalty, distinguishing it from biblical slavery.
Deuteronomy 24:7: Reinforces the death penalty for man-stealing, emphasizing the distinction from regulated slavery.
1 Timothy 1:9-10: Lists 'men-stealers' among the lawless, again distinguishing kidnapping from biblical slavery.
Deuteronomy 21:10-14: Shows that captives of war could become slaves, one legitimate means of entering slavery.
2 Kings 5:2: The little Israelite maid was a slave captured in war, illustrating war captivity as a source of slavery.
Exodus 21:7-11: Describes selling oneself or a family member into slavery, another biblical means.
Leviticus 25:39-54: Further regulations on selling oneself into slavery, including to a stranger.
Exodus 21:1-6: Describes permanent slavery by choice, with the ear-piercing ceremony, and connects to Christ's servanthood in Isaiah 50:5.
Isaiah 50:5: Used to show Christ as a willing servant/slave, with His ear opened.
Proverbs 22:7: Illustrates economic slavery: the borrower is servant to the lender.
James 1:13-15: God cannot be tempted with evil; if slavery is evil, then God would be the author of evil.
1 John 3:4: Sin is transgression of the law; since God's law regulates slavery, slavery cannot be inherently sinful.
Genesis 9:24-27: Noah's curse on Canaan ordains slavery as a punishment and remedy, showing God's institution of slavery.
Genesis 17:9-14: God commands Abraham to circumcise bought servants, showing God's endorsement of slaveholding.
Genesis 14:14: Abraham had 318 trained servants (slaves) born in his house, indicating a large slaveholding household.
Genesis 20:14: Abimelech gave Abraham male and female servants (slaves).
Genesis 24:35: God gave Abraham menservants and maidservants, directly attributing slave acquisition to God's blessing.
Genesis 26:12-14: Isaac had great store of servants (slaves), and the Philistines envied him.

Historical References

Southern Baptist Convention founded in 1845: Formed in Augusta, Georgia, by 293 leaders representing 365,000 Christians to defend biblical slavery after northern Baptists refused to appoint a slaveholding missionary.
Alabama Baptist committee on abolitionism (1840): Committee of Jesse Hartwell, B.P. Bester, W.C. Crane, J.H. Devotee, and M.P. Jewett declared abolitionism unscriptural and dangerous.
C.C. Goen, 'Broken Churches, Broken Nation': Book showing that churches divided over slavery before the nation divided.
Confederate chaplains and leaders in SBC history: Basil Manly, J.P. Boyce, James A. Broadus, A.E. Dickinson, J.J. Hyman, J. William Jones, James Furman served as Confederate chaplains or officers.
Furman University's Confederate roots: James Furman served in the Secession Convention; students left to join the Confederate Army.
SBC Resolution Number 7 (June 2016): Resolution on sensitivity and unity regarding the Confederate battle flag, passed at the St. Louis convention.
Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church shooting (June 17, 2015): Referenced in the SBC resolution as the tragic slaying of nine believers, prompting flag removal in South Carolina.
Oklahoma Baptist University removed Confederate flag image: Mentioned in the resolution as an example of sensitivity and fostering unity.
Russell Moore, president of ERLC: Quoted as saying the SBC 'made history' by repudiating the flag and calling slavery a sin.
ERLC as NGO of the United Nations: Al Benson's article reveals the ERLC has special consulting status with the UN, requiring alignment with UN principles.

Important Quotes

Abolitionism was unscriptural, against the National Constitution, against the peace and prosperity of the churches, and dangerous to the permanency of the Union.

Historical statement from the 1840 Alabama Baptist committee, used to show the SBC's original pro-slavery stance.

If slavery is evil, if slavery is a sin, then God is the author of sin and evil. Contrary to Scripture.

Central theological argument that calling slavery sin impugns God's character.

You cannot have unity without truth. You cannot have unity apart from truth. You might have union, but you can't have unity.

Key point that the SBC's pursuit of unity by discarding truth is futile and unbiblical.

It sure would be good to have slavery back again. There's a bunch of black folks that need an old master to stand over them and make them work and make them do right. And they need a good whooping every now and then.

Quote from a former slave in the 1930s narratives, used to argue that biblical slavery taught work ethic and accountability.

We have to choose between the Word of God and modern-day churchianity and the politically correct crowd.

Concluding call to decision, framing the issue as a choice between Scripture and cultural pressure.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does Ezekiel 13's description of false prophets apply to modern church leaders who prioritize cultural acceptance over biblical truth?

[Context]

Weaver opens with Ezekiel 13 to frame the SBC's actions as false prophecy.

[Question]

What is the biblical distinction between man-stealing (kidnapping) and the regulated slavery described in the Old and New Testaments?

[Context]

Weaver emphasizes Exodus 21:16 and Deuteronomy 24:7 to differentiate.

[Question]

If God instituted and regulated slavery (Genesis 9, Leviticus 25), how should Christians respond to claims that all slavery is inherently sinful?

[Context]

Weaver argues that calling slavery evil accuses God of authoring sin.

[Question]

Why did Jesus not condemn the centurion for being a slaveholder, and what does that imply for New Testament ethics on slavery?

[Context]

Weaver points to Luke 7 as a missed opportunity for condemnation.

[Question]

How does 1 Timothy 6:1-5 address those who teach against biblical slavery, and what does it say about their character?

[Context]

Weaver reads the passage to show God reprobates abolitionist teaching.

[Question]

In what ways does the SBC's partnership with the United Nations as an NGO conflict with biblical principles?

[Context]

Weaver discusses the ERLC's UN status and its required alignment with UN principles.

[Question]

Can true Christian unity be achieved by setting aside biblical truth to avoid offending others? Why or why not?

[Context]

Weaver argues that unity requires truth, and the gospel itself is offensive.

[Question]

How should believers respond when their denomination officially adopts positions that contradict Scripture?

[Context]

Weaver suggests withdrawing from the SBC and choosing God's Word over churchianity.

Applications

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