The Plain Truth about the Promise Keepers
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Copyright © 1998 James L. Melton
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The Promise Keepers is a massive organization of men who have made “Seven solid promises that will change a man’s life forever.” The seven promises are titled:
(1) A man and his God
(2) A man and his mentors
(3) A man and his integrity
(4) A man and his family
(5) A man and his church
(6) A man and his brothers
(7) A man and his world
The promises include such seemingly good practices as honoring Jesus Christ through prayer and worship, obeying God’s word in the power of the Holy Spirit, pursuing and keeping friendships with other Promise Keepers, practicing purity, building and maintaining strong marriages and families, supporting the church and pastor, practicing Biblical unity, and influencing the world by obeying the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. To the average onlooker, the Promise Keepers appear to be a very commendable organization.
However, like many other harmful groups, the outward appearance of the Promise Keepers covers the true danger of their movement. We do not deny that the Promise Keepers are doing some good, but they are doing much more evil by promoting unscriptural alliances between fundamental Christians, apostates, false teachers, and worldly philosophies. Sound doctrine is sacrificed on the alter of UNITY and MONEY.
The Promise Keepers have actually changed their statement of faith in order to better accommodate Roman Catholics. In fact, Bill McCartney, the 1991 founder of Promise Keepers, has told Our Sunday Visitor (a Catholic publication) that it was his intention to include Catholics from the very start. On page 19 of the book, Seven Promises of a Promise Keeper, Charismatic leader Jack Haylord includes the Catholic Eucharist and the Mass as ways to worship God. It is estimated that ten to twenty percent of Promise Keepers are Catholic. Being unity lovers, the Charismatics also play a large roll in the Promise Keepers movement. A survey conducted at the Stand In The Gap Rally on October 4, 1997, indicated that about one third of the men there spoke in tongues, while most did not believe the Bible should be taken literally. Most also believed in a large revival in Christianity before the Second Coming, although God’s word says just the opposite (II Ths. 2:3-12; II Tim. 3:1-13; I Tim. 4:1-5). The survey also showed that most Promise Keepers were very proud of their ability to IGNORE BIBLE DOCTRINE for the sake of unity. The Bible says, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” (II Tim. 4:2-4)
It seems that the most common characteristic among Promise Keepers isn’t unity or love. It is disregard, disrespect, and disobedience to the clear teachings of God’s word, especially where sound doctrine and separation are concerned (See II John). Christians who really love Jesus Christ will also love His WORDS (John 14:23). Those who claim His name but ignore His words are serving “another Jesus” through “another Spirit,” and are proclaiming “another gospel” (II Cor. 11:1-4; Mat. 7:22-23). “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” (Isa. 8:20) God’s word was here long before Bill McCartney and the Promise Keepers, and it will be here long after they’re gone. They would do well to start obeying it. “Whoso despiseth the word shall be destroyed: but he that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded.” (Pro. 13:13)
For a more detailed look at this movement read What about the Promise Keepers?, published by the Fundamental Evangelistic Association, Box 6278, Los Osos, CA 93412.
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Jesus Christ came into this world to lay down His sinless life for YOU--to pay for your sins, because you couldn't. Jesus is your only hope for salvation. Only by receiving Him as your Saviour can you enter the gates of Heaven. There is no other way.
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me." (John 14:6)
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
The Lord Jesus Christ has come and PAID for your sins by shedding His own Blood on Calvary. By receiving Him as your Saviour, you can be WASHED from all your sins in His precious Blood (Rev. 1:5; Col. 1:14; Acts 20:28; I Pet. 1:18-19). Notice these important words from Romans 5:8-9:
"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him."
Jesus PAID your way to Heaven for you! By receiving Him as your Saviour, you will be receiving God's ONLY means of Salvation for you. Are you willing to forsake YOUR righteousness and receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour, your ONLY HOPE for Salvation? Romans 10:13 says, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:9 says, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." Are you willing to forsake your own righteousness, and trust Jesus Christ alone? He will save you just as He promised. Why not receive Him today and trust Him to give you a better way of life?
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