End Time False Prophets and the Christian Celebrity System Part One

[texian]

The Christian Celebrity System: Part One

We are living in an age of deception, un âge de tromperie. A type of
surrealist painting was called "tromper l'œil," or "fool the eye."
Likewise, a celebrity may fool not only the eye, but also the mind.

In the tribulation, which is coming soon, or we may now be in its
early stages - meaning tribulation will get worse later - many church
Christians (and others) will be deceived by false teachers who have
good images - who serve the appearances - and teach false doctrines,
which the church people will accept. They are now being deceived by
false prophets, and its hard to find church Christians who have not
accepted some form of false doctrine, which they received from
celebrities like Hal Lindsey, Grant Jefferies,Tim LaHaye and many
others.

But those who follow the lamb wherever he goes, and have his mind in
them, will not be deceived by Christian celebrities with their lies.
Those of the Remnant as Revelation 14: 5 and Zephaniah 3: 13 say are
not deceivers, because of their love of the truth, which implies they
are also not easily deceived by false doctrines.. In part though,
some who claim to be of the Remnant do sometimes tend to follow
Remnant leaders who have good images rather than those who do not but
have just as much truth.

In II Corinthians 10: 7 Paul asks "Do ye look on things after the
outward appearance? " After the outward appearance is from kata
prospopon, according to appearance. Prospoon can mean the face,
visage, surface, external form, or appearance (Moulton, Harold K. The
Analytical Greek Lexicon revised, 1978, p 353). Prosorolerteo means to
pay regard to external appearance (Moulton, p.353). A prosopoleptes is
a "respecter of persons" in Acts 10: 34.

Christ says in John 7: 24 "Judge not according to the appearance, but
judge righteous judgment."

In our post-Christian culture image is everything. Some years ago,a TV
commercial on NBC for Canon cameras told us that "Image is
everything." In Norman Spinrad's science fiction novel, Bug Jack
Barron (1969) Morris, head of the Republican Party, tells Jack,
"You're a marketable commodity...an image behind which we can
unite...Image, Barron, image is what counts...not the man...never mind
what the real man behind the image is like."

In the image culture success has become more and more a matter of
giving An appearance of being successful and attractive. And the main
game in the worldly culture is to win image and success for oneself.
An artist is successful when he attains to much image.

Network television is responsible for making the the image culture,
created earlier by Hollywood movies, much more
a dominating part of popular culture. Most viewers of network TV were
seduced by a medium that was so deceptive that viewers did not know
they were bring hoodwinked by the dumb show. Network TV weakened the
cognitive abilities of many viewers and also reduced their capability
of detecting deception on TV and in real life.

A person who has been dumbed down by network TV - and by other means
and through other media - is more likely to fall for the messages of
secular and Christian celebrities, than a person who has greater
cognitive abilities to discern lies and truths behind images.

Its interesting that the Greek word "emoranthesan," translated as
"they became fools" in Romans 1: 22, aorist passive, breaks down to
the Greek μωρός (moros), which means, according to the Analytical
Greek Lexicon Revised, by Harold K. Moulton, p.274 "dull, foolish."
Our word "moron" was coined by psychologists from the Greek μωρός, and
Alfred Binet and the Stanford–Binet Intelligence IQ Scale defined the
moron IQ range as being 51-70, superior to "imbecile" (IQ of 26-50)
and even more superior to an "idiot" (IQ of 0-25).

So, a person dumbed down by American education, bad food, toxins in
the water and air plus celebrities in the media (including Christian
ones) might be likened to what happened in Paul's description of the
guys who professed themselves to be wise, but "emoranthesan," i.e.,
"they were made dumb," the passive aorist. The one word "emoranthesan"
means "they received dumbness, (or stupidity)."

We are living in an increasing age of cognitive dimness. And spiritual
darkness follows cognitive dimness and deception with its dumbess
regarding truth, especially among church Christians, and increasing
moral insensibility. Often contemporary people cannot tell the
difference between truth and lies - in Christian doctrines and
elsewhere. This is also true in the sciences, though some basics are
agreed upon as working truth.

II Thessalonians 2: 3 says "Let no man deceive you by any means: for
that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and
that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition." The false teachers
and their followers do not believe their theology is a big part of
this falling away, and so they are deceived. Matthew 24: 11 tells us
that
"And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many."

Both of these scriptures warning of deception zero in on the time of
the end, the tribulation period. II Thessalonians 2: 7-10 says that
during the very end time the man of sin, who in this context of the
falling away, looks like the Second Beast of Revelation 13: 11-18,
which is the Church in the falling away, will operate with deception.
He will mislead church Christians and some others perhaps "...with all
deceivableness of unrighteousness.

In the age of deception at its height, the urge to deceive people,
which is a desire of most, grows out of an evil urge.

Matthew 24: 4- 5, 11 say "And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take
heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying,
I am Christ; and shall deceive many..And many false prophets shall
rise, and shall deceive many."

Again, in Matthew 24: 24 Christ warns that " For there shall arise
false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and
wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the
very elect."

He is talking about the period of time he describes in Matthew 24: 21
as "...then shall be great tribulation..."

Then II Timothy 3: 1-5, 12-13 warns that "This know also, that in the
last days perilous times shall come.
2. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters,
proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3. Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers,
incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4. Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from
such turn away....Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus
shall suffer persecution.
13. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving,
and being deceived."

The "last days" can be the present time. Many of the personality
traits that Paul lists here apply to the "Me Generation," of the
sixties and seventies,of the purple decades, or to the Baby Boomers,
born between 1946 and 1964. And then Paul warns that evil men and
seducers will grow worse and worse. They will deceive many and be
deceived themselves. This prophecy can be applied to the false
prophets of our time, the Christian celebrities. Some of these
Christian celebrities are older than the Baby Boomers, but many are
Baby Boomers.

 

[THE Gypsy]

I found most of this applies more correctly to those born in the 70's, 80's and 90's - which is the generation known as the "Me Generation", not the Baby Boomers.


Where did you find this?

 

[texian]

http://en.wikipedia....ki/Generation_X

"Generation X, commonly abbreviated to Gen X, is the generation born after the Western post–World War II baby boom ended.[sup][1][/sup] While there is no universally agreed upon time frame, the term generally includes people born in the 1960s through the early '80s, usually no later than 1981 or 1982."

The "Me Generation" was applied to the Baby Boomers even before the eighties because of their personality traits of self-centeredness, selfishness, and belief that they were entitled. The cut off date for the Baby Boomers is generally 1964 when the birth rate began to drop from the high that existed from 1946 to then.

I have not seen studies by social and behavioral scientists of Generation X like some done on the counterculture people, who were mostly, but not all, Baby Boomers. The traits of the people of the counterculture, the "Me Generation," mostly the Baby Boomers,described by Herbert Hendin. The Age of Sensation, 1975, Christopher Lasch. The Culture of Narcissism: American Life In An Age of Diminishing Expectations, 1978 and Daniel Yankelovich. New Rules: Searching for Self-Fulfillment In A
World Turned Upside Down, 1981 agree to a great extent with the traits described in II Timothy 3: 1-5.

Lovers of their own selves." In Verse 2 the Greek word translated
as lovers of their own selves is philautoi. Social scientists Hendin,
Lasch and Yankelovich said that people in the counterculture show a great
deal of self-preoccupation. They also place much importance on
attaining self-esteem.

boasters, proud." In verse 2 alazones, or boasters, and
huperephanoi, or proud, both appear. Then in verse 4 we find
tetuphomenoi appears, meaning puffed up. These words suggest an
emphasis on mere appearance, on appearing to be better than others and
the desire to win out over others. "Lasch described
people in the counterculture - the Baby Boomers -as worshipping image, and of being obsessed
with "mere packaging of people. Lash also identified the second trait
of pride.

"Disobedient To Parents." Being disobedient to parents was
certainly a trait of the rebellious young people of the Me Generation
of the sixties.


"Unthankful." Or ungrateful. Again, although the three social
scientists seem to miss this trait in the Me Generation, it is
present. They were too obsessed with self to be thankful to parents
and others.

Without natural affection." Psychiatrist Herbert Hendin found that
many of the college students he studied in the early seventies showed
a lack of affection to close relatives, lovers and friends.


"Trucebreakers." Perhaps "irreconcilable." This trait could
describe people who are not willing to forgive others and to put a
stop of interpersonal strife. A trait in the counterculture and Me Generation people
identified by Lasch and Hendin comes close to this trait - they found
that Me Generation people have a war-like approach to life.

"Incontinent." This characteristic, the lack of self-discipline,
corresponds exactly to a trait of counterculture people and Baby Boomers found by
Lasch. The Me People lack the self-control of many in the older
generations.

"Headlong." Rash behavior can be acting in a too-hasty, reckless
way toward others without consideration of how that action will affect
others. Lack of self control, found by Lasch in Me Generation people
hits this general trait. In addition, the emphasis on
self-assertiveness in the self psychology and women's liberation
movements contributed to rash behavior.


"Lovers of Pleasure Rather Than Lovers of God." Hendin found that
his college student subjects of the early seventies sought after
momentary physical sensations of pleasure in sex, touch, taste, taking
drugs, more than in long term fulfillments.

 

[THE Gypsy]

You, and the author, are incorrect at labeling the Baby Boomer generation as the "Me Generation"...

Generation Me describes anyone born in the 1970s, 1980s, or 1990s -- in 2006, this means people between the ages of 7 and 36. These are today's young people, those who take it for granted that the self comes first. I'm a member of this generation myself, born in 1971

http://www.generatio.../aboutbook.html

http://www.psycholog...less-empathetic

Jean Twenge, author of the 2007 book Generation Me, considers Generation Y along with later Xers to be part of a generation called Generation Me. This is based on personality surveys that showed increasing narcissism among this generation compared to Boomers when they were teens and twentysomethings. She questions the predictions of Strauss & Howe that this generation would come out civic-minded, citing the fact that when the War on Iraq began military enlistments went down instead of up.

http://en.wikipedia....ki/Generation_Y

They are brash and cynical. They believe they're entitled to quick financial and professional success. They're also lonely and anxious.

That's the picture that psychologist Jean Twenge draws in her new book about the young men and women she dubs "Generation Me."

On the plus side, these young people are confident and also extremely tolerant of those who are different from them. Born in the 1970s, '80s and '90s, they are the children of baby boomers, who she says were incorrectly considered the most self-focused generation.

http://www.freerepub...s/1619042/posts

 

[biggandyy]

Debating about The Rapture online is very much like this:

Except those who deny the Doctrine of the Rapture aren't Asian.

 

[texian]

"You, and the author, are incorrect at labeling the Baby Boomer generation as the "Me Generation"...

Who is "you" and who is "the author?"

Or, is there a chance you mean by "the author" Herbert Hendin. The Age of Sensation,
Christopher Lasch. The Culture of Narcissism, and Daniel Yankelovich. New Rules: Searching for Self-Fulfillment In A
World Turned Upside Down?

These three social scientists (Hendin was a psychiatrist) were describing people who were about 18 to 30 or so during the late sixties and the seventies, and who were followers of the core movements of the counterculture, the hippies and the drug movement, or were influenced by that to some extent.

Its not surprising that the people born after 1964, the cut off date for the Baby Boomers, would be more similar to the Baby Boomers than to the parents of the Baby Boomers, and so the term Me Generation can be applied to both the Baby Boomers, or maybe just to the Baby Boomers influenced to some extent by the counterculture, and the generations after 1964.

What the personality traits were,and still are to come extent, of the Baby Boomers influenced by the counterculture is a lot more important and interesting than what they were called. Remembers that the Baby Boomers are now aged about 47 to 64.

Since there are so many Baby Boomers and they are now at an age of influence on the country, then it is very important to know their personality traits, and the changes in the culture, educational system, media, government, heterosexual relationship, etc that they might have, in part, caused.

And - to what extent can Christians in the main theologies within the churches acknowledge that Paul's description of people in the "last days" when "perilous times shall come" is a prophecy that can be applied to the Baby Boomers of the counterculture and to their descendants of the X Generation and beyond? If II Timothy 3: 1-5 is rejected as a prophecy for the present time by Christians, then why is it rejected?

One reason it might be rejected is because it doesn't fit in with the dispensationalist scenario of events which are all to take place in the dispensationalist tribulation.

And adding that the Baby Boomers and their children contributed to the Falling Away and the Leavening of the Churches would be rejected by the dispensationalists even more vigorously.

But it is this contribution of the Baby Boomers to the Falling Away from the truth of the Gospel that ties the Baby Boomers to this thread.

The main line of thought in this thread is that the
secular celebrity system some time ago spread to Christianity in
America, especially to the dispensationalist leaders. The Christian
celebrities are the false prophets mentioned in the New Testament. The
false prophets and the Christian celebrities make use of deception in
spreading false doctrines. And people have been dumbed down by the
media and by other ways so that many have been deceived.

Are there characteristics of the Baby Boomers which would make them more
likely to fall for false Christian doctrines than earlier generations? And/or to move farther
into sin and false doctrines because of their greater attachment to the flesh, to pride
and mammon? Their churches were already into dispensationalism when
they, the Boomers, joined the churches. But the Boomers were more into
fleshly satisfactions, a "Me" orientation, everything centering on the "I "and the "Me",
and some tendency to rebel against a Father figure, such as God.

 

[THE Gypsy]

Who is "you" and who is "the author?"

Um..."You" is you and "author" is the author of the opening post. Since you did not include a link to the article, I have no way of knowing exactly who that is.

 

[texian]

"Who is "you" and who is "the author?"

THE Gypsy answers: "Um..."You" is you and "author" is the author of the opening post. Since you did not include a link to the article, I have no way of knowing exactly who that is."

I took a blog article I wrote in December 2010, shortened it, and added a few extra sentences for the "opening post." What about the "opening post" made you think I did not write it?

 

[THE Gypsy]

"Who is "you" and who is "the author?"

THE Gypsy answers: "Um..."You" is you and "author" is the author of the opening post. Since you did not include a link to the article, I have no way of knowing exactly who that is."

I took a blog article I wrote in December 2010, shortened it, and added a few extra sentences for the "opening post." What about the "opening post" made you think I did not write it?

I did not say you did not write it. I said..."since you did not include a link to the article, I have no way of knowing exactly who that is" (meaning the author)

 

[texian]

Endless sophomoric dedbate

 

[biggandyy]

Endless sophomoric dedbate

http://www.christianityboard.com/topic/14885-end-time-false-prophets-and-the-christian-celebrity-system-part-one/page__view__findpost__p__131555