Hank Hanegraaff, known as the Bible Answer Man, was chrismated into the Orthodox Church last month. According to Orthodox teachings, Chrismation is the mystery by which a person is granted the gift of the Holy Spirit through the anointing of Holy Chrism. How could a man who spent so many years helping Christians identify various counterfeits now make the most foolish decision to join a counterfeit form of Christianity? Like its former protagonist, the Roman Catholic Church, the Orthodox also teach a false and fatal gospel of salvation by sacraments and works. They are both to be accursed for teaching a gospel contrary to the Gospel of Christ (Gal. 1:6-9). 

How could the Bible Answer Man disregard the Bible when making a decision that has eternal consequences? Hanegraaff said,  "I've been impacted by Eastern Orthodox people who have a very keen sense of Church history and have absolute fidelity to the essentials of the historic Christian faith ." It is hard to believe that someone who claims to know the Bible so well can say the Orthodox religion has "absolute fidelity to the essentials of the historic Christian faith." Does Hanegraaff not know that the primary essential of the Christian faith is the non-negotiable Gospel of Christ? (1 Cor. 15:1-4). 

The Orthodox people do not believe or proclaim the one-time, all-sufficient, unrepeatable sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ for the finished work of redemption. Instead, their priests continue to offer what they believe is the physical body and blood of Jesus Christ everyday on an altar. This Eucharistic sin-offering not only blasphemes Christ, but also rejects His victory cry, "It is finished" (John 19:30). By continuing their sacerdotal priesthood, the Orthodox also reject Jesus as the one mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5). In the Orthodox Church forgiveness of sin and salvation can only come through its priests and its sacraments.

One of the immediate consequences for Hanegraaff's conversion to the Orthodox Church was having his radio program booted from the Bott Radio Network. We applaud the network's decision to discontinue the Bible Answer Man program after carrying it since the 1980's. Hanegraaff's perplexing  decision to join an apostate church that long ago departed from the faith of the apostles, may have eternal consequences also. The Orthodox religion holds its people captive through an utter dependence on a superfluous priesthood for salvation, along with the idolatrous worship of icons, necromantic prayers and worship for the dead.  Unlike Paul who did not yield in submission to the Judaizers so that the truth of the Gospel might be preserved, Hanegraaff has submitted to a much more corrupt religion (Gal. 2:5). 

Throughout the New Testament, we are warned that there will be false converts, false teachers, and apostates in the church. We cannot judge anyone's heart, but we must be fruit inspectors (Mat. 7:15-20). Only God knows if Hanegraaff is a true or a false convert. However, it is inconceivable that a true Christian would exchange a  relationship with the One Mediator for a religion that offers ungodly mediators. Hanegraaff's departure is not unprecedented. "They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us" (1 John 2:19).

We need to remember that the last days will be marked by widespread deception and growing apostasy. "The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons" (1 Tim. 4:1). Paul exhorts the church to be on the alert. He wrote: "I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them" (Acts 20:28-30).  Only time will tell how many undiscerning people will follow Hanegraaff on the wide road to destruction. 

If you have ever engaged in inductive Bible study, you know the importance of "reading with a purpose." The process is quite straightforward. You choose a word, phrase, topic, person, etc., and read a chapter at a time, marking the Biblical text along the way. As you read, it's a good idea to make a list of what the Bible teaches on the particular topic you are studying. This is a fantastic way to organize what you learn from God's Word.

However, one of the limitations of the inductive method, and for that matter, most Bible study strategies, is the tendency to miss the proverbial "forest for the trees." One can study a passage, chapter, or even a book of the Bible ("the trees") and understand it well, but fail to grasp the connection to the rest of the Bible ("the forest"). So let me introduce to you a helpful 3-step process that will add depth, breadth, and with the help of the Holy Spirit, illuminate greater insights to Spiritual truths.

Step 1 - Know Your Theological Themes

Every passage of Scripture will contribute insights to one or more of these 13 Key Theological Themes. Therefore, I recommend printing these out for easy reference.  Click here for a PDF file to print them. Before you know it, you will have them memorized.

Bibliology - The Bible/Scriptures
Theology - God the Father
Christology - Jesus Christ
Pneumatology - Holy Spirit
Cosmology - Physical & Spiritual Realms
Angelology - Angels
Demonology - Satan & Demons
Anthropology - Man
Hamartiology - Sin
Soteriology - Salvation
Israelology - Israel
Ecclesiology - Church
Eschatology - End Times

Now at first blush, this may seem intimidating, especially, if you are like me and it's difficult to remember a new name or phone number. Therefore, I recommend printing these out for easy reference. Before you know it, you will have them memorized.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of someone appearing as the Blessed Virgin Mary to three Portuguese shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917. Because this Marian apparition was an incredibly important event in the history of the Church, it is a cause for great celebration.

Pope Francis received representatives of the Shi'ites, Sunnis, Christians, Yazidi, and Sabaeans/Mandeans in the Vatican's Paul VI Hall. In his message, he said:  'We are all children of God. And we, as His Eminence [Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran] said, have a common Father on earth: Abraham, and we come from that first "going out" of Abraham up to today, all together. We are brothers and, as brothers, all different and all the same, as the fingers of a hand: there are five fingers, all fingers, but all different' Read more.

Mike's Comment. Pope Francis continues to build bridges into the religion of Islam. Recently, the Vatican held the first Islamic prayer meeting and readings from the Koran. The pope's global religion of peace can only be achieved by men who suppress the truth of God in unrighteousness (Rom. 1:18). 

You can now stream PTG video messages by ordering them on our website. This will save you money, as each message is only $6. You can have instant access from any device. We'll be rolling out more videos in the months to come. These messages are only to be streamed and are not downloadable. The following messages are now available for streaming:

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Death of Discernment (44 min.). Order Here for $6

Last Days for Catholics (50 min.). Order Here for $6

Evangelicals Reversing the Reformation? (64 min.). Order Here $6

Catholicism's Drift into Apostasy (82 min.). Order Here for $6.

The Controversial Bread of Life (47 min.). Order Here for $6.

Last month John Fallahee delivered a important message on the Sufficiency of Scripture When Evangelizing Roman Catholics. The message is a great reminder that the Word of God is the supreme authority for faith and the seed that can bring forth life to those who are dead in sin. Watch the message here.