Should SGM Investigation and Lawsuit Include Ligon Duncan?
Regarding “Pastor” Ligon Duncan’s formal statement in defense of CJ Mahaney and SGM “ministries,” I think a reader here at PPT makes a brilliant point. First, let me reprint the Duncan statement:
“I would then encourage you to ignore the assaults of wounded people on attack websites and blogs, and that you discount the opinings of those who have no real knowledge of these matters or relation to SGM or authority to comment upon them, and that you refrain from assuming that you (or they) are in a position to render judgment on these things.”
The reader had these observations in regard to Duncan’s defense of Mahaney:
And as far as discounting opinings…he says we should do that if they have no REAL knowledge or any relation to sovgracemin.org. Does he have REAL knowledge? I would think REAL knowledge lies with the key players, and “relation to SGM” would, imo [in my opinion], surely mean a bit more than just standing on stage together at conferences. Does he have a real relation to SGM? I don’t see how he can. Since he does not have any REAL knowledge, I will be happy to submit to and obey his third admonition and refrain from assuming that he is in a position to render any judgment on these things…his opining is dismissed.
Good point, and reveals the sheer stupidity of Duncan in contrast to his arrogant opinion of his own supposed intelligence. Maybe. This brilliant point by the reader begs an even deeper question: if Duncan is not guilty of what he is accusing others of, what did he know; and when did he know it? Being informed of a crime against a child and not reporting it to authorities is a crime; in and of itself.
Perhaps Al Mohler and Mark Dever are more intelligent than I give them credit for. I have always thought the two of them were just mindless Kool-Aid drinkers regurgitating the musings of a murdering mystic despot rediscovered by a Seventh-day Adventist. But now my assumptions are being brought into doubt—due to the fact that they are keeping their mouths shut. It’s wise to only defend your “friend” until the real truth starts coming out via people who the book-buying conference groupie Sponge Bob masses will listen to.
After that, well, that’s what buses are for.
paul
A 4-Point Evaluation of Ligon Duncan’s Defense of SGM
I would then encourage you to ignore the assaults of wounded people on attack websites and blogs, and that you discount the opinings of those who have no real knowledge of these matters or relation to SGM or authority to comment upon them, and that you refrain from assuming that you (or they) are in a position to render judgment on these things.
1. I would then encourage you to ignore the assaults of wounded people on attack websites and blogs,: He admits they are wounded, but that’s not the point. The totally depraved don’t deserve justice. Furthermore, getting raped isn’t the point, how that event glorifies God in the predestined scheme of the gospel meta-narrative is the point. By not accepting the event and seeking justice, the “wounded” are not “entering into the plot” of showing forth the gospel.
2. and that you discount the opinings of those who have no real knowledge of these matters or relation to SGM: The knowledge of the philosopher kings is so much higher than yours, that even when it seems obvious that abuse occurred and it was covered up, that’s not really what’s going on. Please trust the higher knowledge of your local Reformed pastor king.
3. or authority to comment upon them,: Only the pastor kings have authority to speak to these matters. Anybody who speaks out is messing with God’s anointed who have been given all authority on earth.
4. and that you refrain from assuming that you (or they) are in a position to render judgment on these things.: Only the philosopher kings can render judgement. The producers have no role in judging, they are the church’s producers. In America, Reformed elders have to fill the role of both philosopher king and soldier. And much to their frustration, there are laws that protect the producers. They must improvise because they are deprived of the stake and the gallows. Instead, they offer formal counseling where they can earn your trust and get documentation on your secret sins that can be used to blackmail you into silence or control if needed. This is one of many alternative controls they have contrived. It’s the exact one that CJ Mahaney used on the co-founder of SGM who attempted to leave SGM for doctrinal reasons.
paul
Presbyterian Shepherds and Wolves Meet in Atlanta to Discuss Longstanding Struggle With Wolves Eating Sheep
This past Monday/Tuesday, the upstart “Gospel Reformation Network” met in Atlanta, Georgia to discuss the Gospel Sanctification/Sonship Theology/New Calvinism problem that has been plaguing the Presbyterian church since the mid 80’s. And it will continue to do so while leaders on one side of the fence feel like they’re doing something about it while keeping their friends—with the other side walking away with a Munich Pact in their pocket.
I say that because shockingly, this is a forum of discussion about,
The discussion between the various groups has been framed in terms of opposite poles, the place of God’s law and God’s grace, legalism and antinomianism. The consultation recognized that the issues in this discussion are as old as church history, with just about every generation of the church wrestling with them, and is now a present reality in this generation.
Boloney. This is neo-evangelicalism on steroids: “Golly gee, we just have to sort out our semantics. Christians have always struggled with this issue.” Look, I am really busy this morning so I am not going to write a treatise, but the biblical prescription to prevent the eating of sheep by wolves in lambs clothing is SEPERATION. What we have here is sheep paying the shepherds to negotiate with wolves. It’s cowardly and pathetic, and sends a clear message to the church that the issue is not that serious because both sides can get together and discuss it: “The abrogation of the law, yes, that’s an interesting subject, please pass the fish. Say Bob, can I try one of your onion rings?” As Charles Woodbridge decried in “The New Evangelicalism,” it would be like Moses calling for a forum with the Egyptian magicians or Elijah doing the same with the pagan priests he contended against. Likewise, if Noah held any forums before he boarded the ark, the Holy Spirit forgot to mention it.
And per the usual, the sheep who are footing the bill are not represented. These conferences are exclusively endowed with the usual book-selling compromisers of the “Christian” academia that is propagating 95% of the error present in today’s church. One of the invited speakers was antinomian and heretic extraordinaire Ligon Duncan. Duncan is presently in cahoots with Mark Devers and Al Mohler to revamp the image of serial sheep abuser CJ Mahaney. Even though Mahaney is the subject of four expose websites, he will still be one of the featured speakers at this year’s T4G conference. Duncan is one of the “core four” of this conference with Mohler, Devers, and Mahaney. These four men have shown complete indifference to the outcry against Mahaney by the sheep. They have also shown complete indifference to the biblical standard of an elder being above reproach. In fact, documentation that can be found on SGM Survivors .com concerning happenings under Mahaney’s watch are extremely troubling. If anybody believes that these men fearfully regard God’s word, I have a machine that will turn dirt into gold dust, and I would like to sell it to you.
The meeting in Atlanta could have put Sonship Theology on life support in two days. It should have been for opponents only. It should have been a call for proponents to repent, or face exclusion from fellowship, ie, this fifty will refuse to fellowship with the other fifty. That sends the right message to the sheep; it says this is a serious issue. It tells the sheep who have suffered loss of friends, loss of eldership, loss of name, loss of church family, loss of sleep, and the embracing of disillusionment, that they did not suffer for a trivial issue that has been a “discussion” throughout “every generation” of church history.
When these crookless shepherds met with these wolves in Atlanta, I don’t know what was served for delicacies of fellowship, but it should have been lamb. How fitting that would have been.
paul
The New Calvinist Takeover of Southwood Presbyterian Church: Part 20; For Southwood’s Door
….but tape it, don’t nail it. That way you will only be brought up on church discipline and not also arrested for vandalism. PDF available here: The 95 Theses Against New Calvinism
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
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