Calvary Chapel Chaos And The “Clear Teaching Of Scripture”
“There is so much more to the full story than most people know. The “split” did not occur because my dad passed away. There was a lot of maneuvering going on during the last year of Dad’s, and because of the ugliness of it, I hope it never comes out.”
So wrote Chuck Smith Jr. on Facebook yesterday.
The ugliness was increased because this was first an intra-family fight that had been simmering for years.
Again, you can read all about it if you search our archives…I saw the split coming long before it happened.
Just a friendly note to the CC people thinking about taking on Dave Rolph…good luck with that…you’re out of your league…
I digress…
The current war is over what the Calvary Chapel Association guys are calling the “clear teaching of Scripture”.
1 Timothy 2 says that women shouldn’t teach men therefore allowing women to pastor is unbiblical and an attack on the authority of Scripture.
In truth, there are very few “clear teachings” in Scripture…doctrines and traditions form over centuries …informed by Scripture, but also by cultural and political concerns.
Thus we have differences in such doctrines as baptism.the Eucharist, eschatology, etc.
What is at issue in the Calvary Chapel kerfuffle is one tribes interpretation of Scripture which is part of that tribes identity.
Calvary Chapel has never cared much if you reject one or more of the “distinctives”…as long as you left the association and changed your name.
Unfortunately for the true believers in the Calvary traditions, Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa owns the name Calvary Chapel and the dove…they don’t have to change anything they don’t want to…like their position on ordaining women…or their name.
In the end, life will go on as it has for the Calvary Chapel Association churches with the exception of the irritation they feel toward the former mothership.
Rumor has it that the Calvary Global Network has lost more than a few churches, but they had no real identity anyway…
One last thought…the CCA guys are much more invested in the “distinctives” than Chuck was…
In truth, there are very few “clear teachings” in Scripture…doctrines and traditions form over centuries …informed by Scripture, but also by cultural and political concerns.
Great point. It won’t make any difference to the bumper sticker theology crowd. Doesn’t make it any less true…
One thing I noted by perusing both websites, CCA and CCGN is the difference in eschatology. Calvary Chapel has always been dispensational and future millennial Kingdom on earth and looks like CCGN is taking a more historical approach to the end times with Jesus second coming consummating all things meaning no 1,000-year millennium. I think that is a step in the right direction being that the dispensational futurist doctrine has loads of problems and has influenced geo-politics in a bad way.
The Calvary Costa Mesa has also stopped teaching verse by verse. The Bible says to teach ALL the counsel of God. When you doing what the Bible says and begin doing your own thing, hence what Calvary Costa Mesa is doing, slowly you start moving away from following Scripture. My question is what is next? It will not stop at this. They are allowing the enemy to enter through the door. It is very sad that what Pastor Chuch had in mind for the church, his very own congregation has departed from it.
Ray,
I concur wholeheartedly…
LK,
I can teach the “whole counsel of God “from one chapter of one NT book…the “whole Counsel of God” is simply the Gospel proclaimed throughout the book…
Couple questions I’d be curious to hear your take on:
1. If the near-unanimous consensus of critical scholars are correct that Paul did not write the pastorals (and that the relevant passage in I Cor. 12 is an interpolation), would that change your opinion on this topic (or should it if you are against women having authority in the church)?
2. Is it okay for someone to be liberal on the issue (so they do NOT believe the NT prohibits women having authority), but personally they are uncomfortable being under the authority of a women regardless of the NT allowing it?
JJS,
I’m not personally opposed to ordaining women.
I get the arguments on both sides…I leave it up to the particular church or group .
I’m old…I’m uncomfortable with anything different than about 1976…