Outline For Building-up And Equipping The Body Of Christ

This Biblical Christianity website encourages people to know and to live, God’s Word; thus enabling us to live now as God intended for us to live, and preparing us for eternal life in God’s kingdom.

Site Navigation:This left-column outline contains links to website pages and sources pertaining to helping the Body of Christ gain the potential for which God designed it. The menu below pages down to the individual sections of this outline from which you can navigate to other web pages. There is a fourth level to some of the third level or decimal elements of this outline that is hidden, to view this level click on the (c) symbol in the outline; to hide the fourth level, double-click upon it (I found out, the last time I checked, that Mozilla's Firefox browser doesn't support this fourth level expansion feature, sorry).

Satan's Vast Network Of Deception And Opposition

Sources Of Information

The following list of books and other sources from which I obtained most of the information for this page is given here in order that the reader may have access to expert information to verify the content of this page and also to further study the issues raised.

The Seduction Of Christianity by Dave Hunt & T. A. McMahon – Harvest House Publishers (1985)

Beyond Seduction by Dave Hunt – Harvest House Publishers (1987)

Global Peace by Dave Hunt – Harvest House Publishers (1990)

A Woman Rides the Beast by Dave Hunt – Harvest House Publishers (1994)

Occult Invasion by Dave Hunt – Harvest House Publishers (1998)

The Berean Call monthly newsletter – articles written by Dave Hunt & T. A. McMahon

En Route to Global Occupation by Gary Kah – Huntington House Publishers (1992)

The Kingdom Of The Cults by Walter Martin – Bethany House Publishers (1985 & 1997)

The Encyclopedia Of Cults And New Religions by John Ankerberg & John Weldon – Harvest House Publishers (1999)

Dictionary Of Cults, Sects, Religions And The Occult by George A. Mather & Larry A. Nichols – Zondervan Publishing House (1993)

Halley’s Bible Handbook by H. H. Halley – Zondervan Publishing House (1965)

This page contains a brief list and description of some of the major opponents and practices that, sometimes unknown to the individuals involved with them, are being used by the enemy to oppose or hinder God’s plans. The word ‘satan’ actually means an adversary or opponent, so we understand, as the Bible states, that he is the ultimate one behind all that is contrary to the good that God has for us and would have us to enjoy. It is hoped that this article will be a convenient help to enable God’s people to recognize and avoid the deception and bondage that Satan intends to bring upon the unwary. Remember that, "Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light" (2 Cor. 11:14).

Until recently these forces and technics have mostly worked or been known as separate religions, cults, and movements, but are now being ecumenically brought together to work toward Satan’s global political, economic and religious system, all with the same focus on humanistic occult mysticism as the New Age Movement. The reason that these organizations and their practices are so dangerous is that most Christians are unaware of the occultic nature behind them, and that God has warned us against them (Deut. 18:9-12; Ex. 20:1-5; Jer. 29:8-9; Zec. 10:2; Isa. 47:13-15; Lev. 19:4, 26, 31; 20:6). This is the reason this page is being added to this website.

In their book, Dave Hunt and T. A. McMahon repeatedly warn us that the basic element of deception in Satan’s whole global system is to entice with the same temptation he overcame Eve with – to become like God, or to become a god ourselves. "This aspiration after godhood is an ambition that has become an apparently incurable (apart from Christ) obsession for the entire race. It is at the heart of all occultism and shamanism and is the essence of the Human Potential movement and the religion of Antichrist. It is sweeping the world today as part of the delusion that is preparing us for this coming world dictator. And this same delusion has been entering the church as a key element in the growing apostasy" (The Seduction of Christianity, p. 88).

We are told in the first chapter of Romans that when people turn away from God and His truth and choose instead the wisdom of men that God turns them over to a reprobate mind. "For God's [holy] wrath and indignation are revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who in their wickedness repress and hinder the truth and make it inoperative. For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God [Himself] has shown it to them. For ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature and attributes, that is, His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made (His handiworks). So [men] are without excuse [altogether without any defense or justification], [Ps. 19:1-4.] because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks. But instead they became futile and godless in their thinking [with vain imaginings, foolish reasoning, and stupid speculations] and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools [professing to be smart, they made simpletons of themselves]. And by them the glory and majesty and excellence of the immortal God were exchanged for and represented by images, resembling mortal man and birds and beasts and reptiles. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their [own] hearts to sexual impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves [abandoning them to the degrading power of sin], because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, Who is blessed forever! Amen (so be it). [Jer. 2:11.] For this reason God gave them over and abandoned them to vile affections and degrading passions" (Rom. 1:18-26a).

This is the state or condition of the majority of our worldly organizations and leadership, because they have placed their faith in humanistic philosophy and rejected the God of the Bible. Jesus says "A good (healthy) tree cannot bear bad (worthless) fruit, nor can a bad (diseased) tree bear excellent fruit [worthy of admiration]" (Matt. 7:18). So we know what to expect from those who disregard the Word of God and rely upon the wisdom of men instead.

We don’t know when it was that Satan rebelled against God’s authority and plan, but we have a great deal of information in the Bible about his methods of opposing all the good that God had originally intended. Lucifer (brightness or bright star) the anointed cherub (Ez. 28:14), refusing to stay where God had placed him; chose to live for self instead of God and became Satan (an adversary, opponent) or the devil. Other names for him are: the Dragon, the Evil One, the Angel of the Bottomless Pit, the Prince of this World, the Prince of the Power of the Air, the God of this World, Apollyon, Abaddon, Belial, Beelzebub.

We are first introduced to Satan and his lying deceitfulness in the third chapter of the Bible when he used a serpent to persuade Eve to disobey God, "But the serpent said to the woman, You shall not surely die, for God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil and blessing and calamity" (Gen. 3:4-5).

We also know that Satan has extended his influence and control over most of the earth as he did with the king of Tyre as Ezek. 28:12-16 describes, "Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, Thus says the Lord God: You are the full measure and pattern of exactness [giving the finishing touch to all that constitutes completeness], full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, the carnelian, topaz, jasper, chrysolite, beryl, onyx, sapphire, carbuncle, and emerald; and your settings and your sockets and engravings were wrought in gold. On the day that you were created they were prepared. [Gen. 3:14,15; Isa. 14:12-15; Matt. 16:23.] You were the anointed cherub that covers with overshadowing [wings], and I set you so. You were upon the holy mountain of God; you walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire [like the paved work of gleaming sapphire stone upon which the God of Israel walked on Mount Sinai]. [Ex. 24:10.] You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until iniquity and guilt were found in you. Through the abundance of your commerce you were filled with lawlessness and violence, and you sinned; therefore, I cast you out as a profane thing from the mountain of God and the guardian cherub drove you out from the midst of the stones of fire."

The things said above could not possibly apply to the king of Tyre, but more than likely to the force that motivated him. Satan had apparently taken such control of this king that God could speak to him as if speaking to the one who controlled him. This deceptive, captivating control that Satan has is illustrated by Jesus when he remarked, "I will not talk with you much more, for the prince (evil genius, ruler) [Satan] of the world is coming. And he has no claim on Me. [He has nothing in common with Me; there is nothing in Me that belongs to him, and he has no power over Me]" (John 14:30); leading the apostle John to conclude, "We know [positively] that we are of God, and the whole world [around us] is under the power of the evil one" (1 Jn. 5:19).

Not only has Satan set up a well established political realm, but he has done the same thing in the religious realm as well. All of Satan’s many and varied religions, sects, teachings and doctrines reject the One True God of the Bible and (directly or subtly pervert the truth to) make Satan or ones-self god. Satan is the ultimate con-man, seducer, deceiver (Revelation 12:9) and father of (the one who brings into existence) lies and of all that is false (John 8:44): "For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers’ minds [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the Image and Likeness of God" (2 Cor. 4:4).

It is these various occultic religions, cults, and movements that we wish to briefly mention as a means of warning and preparing God’s people for the increasing deception that we are presently confronted with.

Many of the past and present religions’ roots can be traced back to the time of the flood of Noah’s day and of Nimrod and the Tower of Babel. The next eight paragraphs are taken from Gary Kah’s book: En Route to Global Occupation by Huntington House Publishers (1992). I strongly recommend Gary’s book, he does an excellent job of showing the satanic ties of many of the past and present false religions and practices, as well as political and economic institutions.

It was interesting to discover that all of the ancient mystery religions from the Bible era were pantheistic. Pantheism originated in the ancient city of Babylon in Mesopotamia and from there spread rapidly in all directions to cover the face of the earth. Hinduism is one of the off-shoots of the original Babylonian pantheism (via the Aryans of ancient Persia). And Buddhism is an off-shoot of Hinduism. all of the Eastern religions of today are ultimately traceable to ancient Babylon, where the post-flood rebellion against God began.

The nation of Israel was completely surrounded by these occult societies. All of these pantheistic religions (at their base) were the same and were traceable to ancient Babylon and the time of Nimrod.

God scattered the people from Babylon at the building of the Tower of Babel, but this did not put an end to occultism, it merely broke it up and slowed its spread for a time. As new civilizations arose in Egypt, Persia, India, etc., the occult practices of old were revived. The people, as it turned out, had merely taken their beliefs and practices with them.

Although some changes and modifications took place in these "new" mysteries to suit the developing cultures of the various language groups, the basic tenets and practices remained the same. All of the ancient mysteries, for example, had an occult priesthood, which ruled the country or empire in association with the appointed priest-king. . . . The highest priests took their orders directly from Satan or his demon messengers in altered states of consciousness. The techniques for achieving these states were once the deepest, best kept, secrets of the high priests. Later, they would be kept alive and carried forward by the secret societies. Within the past generation, however, these same techniques (or variations of these techniques) have made it into the mainstream of Western society.

I also found that many, perhaps most, of the world’s secret societies view Freemasonry as their mother organization from which their ceremonies, rituals, and beliefs emanate. World Book Encyclopedia supports this conclusion stating that "more than a hundred fraternal organizations have a relationship with Masonry. . . . (p. 92)

The history of Freemasonry, I discovered, was also the history of the secret societies, and the history of the secret societies is the history of organized occultism – particularly in the Western world. Perhaps the most complete history of organized occultism has been provided by Albert Pike in his 861 page occult classic entitled Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (more commonly referred to by Masons as simply Morals and Dogma). Drawing from the sources available to him as the long-time leader of Freemasonry (1859-1891), Pike was able to trace the chronological growth and spread of the Mysteries over the face of the earth from ancient Babylon down to the present-day Masonic Order. (En Route to Global Occupation, p. 95)

The major religions of the world

Hinduism – is one of the offshoots of the original Babylonian mysteries through the Aryans of ancient Persia. Hinduism has evolved over the past four thousand years and is now composed of hundreds of sects. There is no single Hindu idea of God, their interpretations include: monism (all existence is one substance); pantheism (all existence is divine); panentheism (God is in creation as a soul is in a body); animism (God or gods live in nonhuman objects such as trees, rocks, animals, etc.); polytheism (there are many gods); henotheism (there is one god we worship among the many that exist); and monotheism (there is only one God). These various sects believe and practice reincarnation, evolution, altered states of consciousness, TM (transcendental meditation), visualization, hypnosis, and anything else that will help them attain self-realization and perfection. Hinduism has been deliberately spread throughout the world by it’s many gurus, and has infected and influenced almost every segment of our society including the Christian churches.

Buddhism – is an offshoot of Hinduism, begun in India about B.C. 500 because of disillusionment with some of the aspects of the Hindu religion. The final goal of Buddhist practice is Nirvana, the absence of physical desire and suffering. Religious merit is gained by observing the teachings of the monks, and worshiping the relics of the Buddha.

Judaism – Many Israelites still attempt to live according to the Law given by God unto Moses. They failed to recognize Jesus as their promised Messiah and the One Who fulfilled all the types and sacrifices of the Law. Therefore, they were not able to move on into the new Christian faith, when Christ did away with the old covenant and established the new (Heb. 10:1-10).

Islam – marks its beginning in A.D. 622 when Muhammad fled opposition to his teachings which he had allegedly received in a vision in A.D. 610 at the age of forty. When the Jews and Christians also rejected his teachings, he returned to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. He denounced the idols that surrounded the famous black stone, the Kaaba Stone, and declared that it represented the one true God, Allah. Muslims believe in the law of Moses, the Psalms of David, and the Injil, or gospel of Jesus Christ, but they believe that the Bible has been distorted or polluted and that where it contradicts Muhammad’s revelation it is incorrect. Muslims do not believe that Jesus is God, or that He died on the cross, or that He atoned for anyone’s sins.

Occult or Mystic Tools of the Trade

The following is a list of tools, devices, beliefs and tricks that the devil uses to snare and bring into bondage unsuspecting victims. Many have testified that when they first became involved it was exciting and even enjoyable. But afterwards it became a hell on earth experience that is very difficult, and sometimes impossible to be freed from.

Increasing numbers of people who call themselves Christians are being deceived into believing and using the technics and practices of occult mysticism because they have failed to recognize the demonic influence behind them, or have neglected or no longer believe the Bible, or have accepted instead the humanistic wisdom of this world, which God calls foolishness: "For the story and message of the cross is sheer absurdity and folly to those who are perishing and on their way to perdition, but to us who are being saved it is the [manifestation of] the power of God. For it is written, I will baffle and render useless and destroy the learning of the learned and the philosophy of the philosophers and the cleverness of the clever and the discernment of the discerning; I will frustrate and nullify [them] and bring [them] to nothing. [Isa. 29:14.] Where is the wise man (the philosopher)? Where is the scribe (the scholar)? Where is the investigator (the logician, the debater) of this present time and age? Has not God shown up the nonsense and the folly of this world's wisdom? For when the world with all its earthly wisdom failed to perceive and recognize and know God by means of its own philosophy, God in His wisdom was pleased through the foolishness of preaching [salvation, procured by Christ and to be had through Him], to save those who believed (who clung to and trusted in and relied on Him)" (1 Cor. 1:18-21). "For this world's wisdom is foolishness (absurdity and stupidity) with God, for it is written, He lays hold of the wise in their [own] craftiness;" (1 Cor. 3:19).

The following paragraph is a good example of what can happen, even to good men who call themselves Christians, when they disregard God’s Word and rely upon the wisdom of men instead.

From the crucifixion of Christ to emperor Constantine’s supposed conversion to Christianity, in A.D. 313, the Church was intermittently persecuted by the Roman Empire. Constantine, in A.D. 313, accepted and favored Christianity and was instrumental in preparing it to be established as the state religion in A.D. 381. This merger of Church and state, probably believed by most to be God-sent, soon began to compromise and corrupt the Church; it has proved to be an unholy alliance which God never intended. When the Western Empire came to an end in A.D. 476 the Popes began to assume the authority that the Emperors once had, and some of them have been regarded as among the most commanding, corrupt and depraved individuals that have ever lived. Thus the Roman Catholic Church was born, but there had always been small churches even before the Reformation, that most historians ignore, that refused to follow their ungodly ways and remained separated from them.

Major Cults that Call Themselves Christian

The Roman Catholic Church – How and when it began: The beginning of the Roman Church is described in the previous paragraph. It would take a whole book to begin to describe the host of errors of the Roman Church, but the most fatal error is its false gospel of works. This church has rejected the Word of God by it’s tradition (Matt. 15:6-9) and insists that redemption remains yet to be accomplished by the individual’s efforts as he receives grace dispensed by the Roman Church through the liturgy and sacraments: baptism, Mass, penance (acts of self-abasement, mortification, or devotion performed to show sorrow or repentance of sin), etc.

The Eastern Orthodox Church – How and when it began: A division between the Eastern Church and the Western Church began to develop in Catholicism in the year 869 and became permanent in 1054. The Eastern Church refused to accept the Pope of Rome as the head of the Universal Church and so they parted, but otherwise their basic doctrines and beliefs remained the same and are practically the same now.

Mormonism – How and when it began: This religious cult was formulated by Joseph Smith jr. as a result of several alleged heavenly visions, one of God the Father and Jesus His Son in 1820 in which they appointed him as an anointed prophet, and another in 1823 when the angel Moroni supposedly appeared to him with information about the location of a set of "golden plates" which he found and began to translate into English in 1827 and published as the Book of Mormon in 1830. About twelve years later he joined and became a high-ranking official in the Masonic Order; Brigham Young, another Mormon leader, was also a Freemason. Mormons believe that God was once as we are now and is an exalted man, and that he has a body of flesh and bone. Jesus is one god among many gods; the spirit brother of Lucifer; a polygamist, and every Mormon male can seek to become a god.

Christian Science – How and when it began: This cult began to be formulated in the 1860s by Mary Baker Eddy while she was in the process of spreading her teachings on Christian Science. She finally established the order in 1879 based upon the metaphysical teachings of Parkhurst Quimby. Christian Science borrows from Hinduism its rejection of the reality of matter. Sickness and death are illusions, as are all material things. Healing is accomplished by thinking pure thoughts; one overcomes illness by refusing to think about it. They believe that sin is only an error and can be conquered by denying its power and existence. Salvation is deliverance from the awareness of evil or pain, and all men are saved because man is God’s idea. They do not believe in the Trinity or that Jesus is God.

Theosophy – How and when it began: This false belief system does not call itself Christian, but because it has greatly affected Christianity it is listed here. It was founded in 1875 by Madame Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Colonel Henry Steel Olcott, and William Quan Judge in New York City. The greatest successor to Helena was Annie Besant. This cult’s background is Spiritualism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Gnosticism, and it is considered the most influential Hindu/occult group in America. There are three major theosophical groups. The teachings of this society have had tremendous influence within the New Age Movement. Their teachings about God and the world are based on mystical insight. The teachings follow chiefly Buddhist and Brahmanic theories especially of pantheistic evolution and reincarnation.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses – How and when it began: This cult was founded by Charles Russell in 1879, who was succeeded by Joseph F. "Judge" Rutherford. Its purpose is to usher in the kingdom age of the Millennium and join Jehovah’s forces, who will be victorious at Armageddon. The leadership of this organization claims to receive divine guidance and new revelations from God. Some of their beliefs include: Jehovah is one God, not a Trinity; Jesus was the first and greatest creation of Jehovah; denies Jesus’ bodily resurrection; there is no hell; background is Gnosticism.

Unitarianism – How and when it began: — This cult was founded by Charles S. and Myrtle Fillmore in 1886, and is based on the teachings of Phineas Parkhurst Quimby. Known as the Unity School of Christianity, it was one of the New Thought groups known in the early days as Modern Thought. Background is Christian Science, Eastern mysticism, and Gnosticism. In comparison with Christian Science, there is less emphasis on denying the physical and more emphasis on the latent powers within. Prayer releases these powers, producing peace of mind, inner harmony, good health, and success.

Groups or Movements with False Teachings or Practices

Moral ReArmament. — The Oxford Group was founded by Frank Buchman, a Lutheran minister. This group seems to have started well, but soon departed from Biblical Christianity, and was later renamed Moral ReArmament. Sam Shoemaker, Episcopalian pastor in Boston, was a part of this group and taught Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. Bill Wilson and his close friend, Bob Smith, were both heavily involved in the occult even before they conceived of AA, and that involvement never ceased after AA’s founding. Seeking guidance, not from the Bible but from God Himself allegedly speaking with an inner voice, became a major part of the Oxford Group, then MRA and finally AA. A. J. Russell recommended and made popular the Oxford Group in his book For Sinners Only. Paul Tournier was associated with an Oxford Group in Switzerland from 1933 to 1939. This group has also influenced New Age groups like Findhorn, on the coast of Scotland. Buchman had a notable impact on diplomacy during the Cold War. MRA became active in more than 50 countries and achieved NGO (Non-governmental Organization) status with the United Nations, which it enjoys today. Buchman died on August 8, 1961.

New Thought Movement. — Their basic teachings were developed by Phineas P. Quimby (1802-1866). His teachings were derived from mesmerism (early hypnotism), Spiritism and kindred phenomena. Mary Baker Eddy was healed by Quimby, and her Christian Science teachings are based on his. New Thought’s basic teaching is very much like Hinduism, and is the forerunner of the New Age Movement, and the basis for a number of cults including Unity School of Christianity and The Church of Religious Science (Science of Mind founded by Ernest Holmes). Norman Vincent Peale, a 33-degree Mason, and his chief disciple, Robert Schuller, kept New Thought alive within mainstream Christianity.

The Ecumenical Movement -- or Unity of All Religions was conceived by the World Parliament of Religions in 1893. It has since become the dream of those who wish to unite all the world with a Global Government, economy and religion. Many Protestant and Catholic groups, as well as other religions, now use the term interfaith dialog to indicate what is taking place in the Ecumenical Movement. It’s emphasis on unity for world peace and betterment, psychology and its sensitivity-training philosophy are being used to influence the world and the church to use language that is positive and inoffensive. To speak otherwise is not considered politically or religiously correct. It has become more important to speak pleasing words than it is to seek and speak the truth. A major figure in this Movement is the Roman Catholic Church.

Billy Graham was the first and most notable evangelical to support Catholicism's ecumenical efforts. Others followed, including Bill Bright, Pat Robertson, J. I. Packer, Timothy George, Robert Schuller, Hank Hanegraaff, Benny Hinn, and Jack Van Impe. Evangelicals and Catholics Together, under the leadership of Chuck Colson and Catholic priest Richard John Neuhaus, declared Catholics and evangelicals to be "brothers and sisters in Christ" and exhorted them to work together in spreading the gospel. Obviously, and conveniently, that gospel was never defined. (Evangelical Mysticism? by McMahon, T.A. February 1, 2008 in The Berean Call newsletter)

The Positive Confession or Faith Movement — is much the same as Peale’s Positive Thinking and Schuller’s Possibility Thinking. But instead of just thinking and visualizing your prayers into existence, Positive Confession believes you must speak them into existence. E. W. Kenyon attended at the Emerson College of Oratory in Boston, where the New Thought philosophy was very popular. It was Kenyon that first taught "the positive confession of the Word of God", and that man is a little god "in God’s class", and that we can use the same faith-force that God does. Kenneth Hagin picked up on Kenyon’s teachings and made them popular and has influenced, and/or trained, many others including: Kenneth Copeland, Charles Capps, Frederick K. C. Price, and Benny Hinn.

The "Christian" Psychology Movement. — There is no such thing as Christian Psychology, but there are Christians who practice psychology. There are many branches of psychology, those that stick to objective facts may be legitimate as a science. But those that use testing that deals with personality types or personal feelings or subjective views lacks the necessary factual support to qualify it as a true science -- this is the realm of the soul and spirit, emotions and behavior, and should be dealt with from the teachings of God’s Word. It is beyond the realm of science to evaluate, verify, dictate to, or treat the soul or spirit of man. The attempt to deal with human behavior scientifically has opened the door to occult seduction. Psychology comes out of the occult, is not scientific, and many of its leading professionals admit that it can be destructive. Proponents of this movement are: psychologist James Dobson, Drs.’ Gary Collins, Lawrence Crabb, Jr., Paul Meier, and Frank Minirth.

The Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion — is awarded by Sir John Marks Templeton. He was on the board of Princeton Theological Seminary and for 15 years was on the board of managers of the American Bible Society, in spite of his rejection of the Bible as God’s Word. His beliefs are Unity, Religious Science and New Age. He is enthusiastically endorsed by Norman Vincent Peale, Robert Schuller, Christianity Today, and by Billy Graham, Chuck Colson, and Bill Bright who have received his $1,000,000 plus prize.

Promise Keepers — is a men’s movement under the leadership of University of Colorado football coach Bill McCartney. His pastor and PK board member is James Ryle, a Vineyard minister. A former Vineyard pastor, Randy Phillips, is the PK president. This movement promotes the Ecumenical Movement and psychology.

The Holistic Movement — is generally considered as health care for the whole person. The more extreme psychic element of this movement holds to New Age philosophy and practices such techniques and rituals as: acupuncture, biofeedback, channeling, crystal therapy, guided imagery, psychic healing, TM, visualization and yoga.

The Human Potential Movement — was developed by Abraham Maslow, founder of the Association of Humanistic Psychology. This Movement stresses man’s essential goodness and unlimited or infinite inner potential supposedly awakened by the use of occultic techniques like those previously mentioned.

The Environmental Movement — is composed of separate groups that range from legitimate to pagan spirituality and nature worship. Ecological concerns have become a major issue of religious and political leaders.

The Dominionist Movement — is separate from, but has a lot in common with the Latter Rain Movement that began in Canada in 1948, out of which came the Manifested Son of God Movement, a group called Coalition on Revival, the Reconstructionist Movement, and the Kingdom Now/Restoration Movement. The basic belief of all these groups is that the Church of Jesus Christ will take over and control the world before Jesus comes to rule over it.

The Signs and Wonders Movement. — The core belief of this movement is that the ministry of evangelism and the sharing of the Gospel is defective unless signs and wonders accompany it. John Wimber and his Vineyard churches spearhead this movement. Rodney Howard-Brown, who calls himself "the Holy Ghost bartender," brought the laughing revival to America from South Africa and is involved with this movement and others.

The Spiritual Warfare Movement. — Fuller Theological Seminary’s Peter Wagner, mentored by John Wimber, is a prominent leader in this movement. This movement has coined the use of new phrases such as: territorial spirits, spiritual mapping, Spiritual Warfare Network, A.D. 2000 Movement, ground-level spiritual warfare, occult-level spiritual warfare, strategic-level spiritual warfare, cosmic-level spiritual warfare, praise marches, prayerwalking, prayer journeys, praying through windows, etc. Most spiritual warfare proponents promote dominion theology. Proponents of this movement are: John Dawson, Cindy Jacobs, Jack Hayford, Larry Lea, Gwen Shaw, Dick Bernal, Tom White, Joy Dawson, Dick Eastman, Ed Murphy, Charles Craft and Frank Peritti.

The New Age Movement — mainly adopted the teachings and practices of Hinduism, Theosophy and the Unity Church. It is comprised of an informal network of cults and other groups that believe in a coming age of peace and enlightenment. The teachings of Carl Gustav Jung (1875 - 1961) and his theory of the inner collective unconscious, and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881 - 1955) a Jesuit priest who conformed his Christianity to his theory of evolution with a noosphere or vast global envelope of consciousness of shared thoughts surrounding the planet, have also made a large impact upon the beliefs held by this movement. Proponents of this movement:

The Purpose Driven and Emergent Church movements – promote teachings and practices that include interfaith and the social gospel, and contemplative prayer and Christian mysticism. T.A. McMahon explains:

This all became "spiritual" fodder for the Emerging Church Movement (ECM), much of it a reaction against the consumer-oriented marketing approach to church growth popularized by Robert Schuller, Bill Hybels, and Rick Warren. Many ECM leaders, most of whom have evangelical backgrounds, saw Catholic ritual and mysticism as a necessary spiritual ingredient that was lost for evangelicals at the Reformation. Sola Scriptura was a major rallying cry of the Reformers against the abuses stemming from Roman Catholic tradition; the Bible as one's only authority practically shut down the influence of the Catholic mystics known as the Desert Fathers.

Yet Catholic mysticism has returned with a vengeance. Its occult techniques can be found nearly everywhere, from Youth Specialities to Richard Foster's Renovaré organization to Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life. Many Christian leaders started searching for a new approach under the banner of 'spiritual formation.' This new search has led many of them back to Catholic contemplative practices and medieval monastic disciplines, . . .

Catholic mysticism is thoroughly subjective and experiential. Like its parent, Eastern mysticism, it claims that God can neither be known nor understood through human reason but only experienced subjectively through various techniques. It is the antithesis of what the Bible teaches: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord" (Isaiah 1:18); "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding" (Proverbs 4:7); "According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him" (2 Peter 1:3). Furthermore, the goal of mysticism is union with God, i.e., the merging of one's soul into God. This is an impossibility that reveals mysticism's pantheistic and panentheistic roots, that God is everything and is in everything. No. God is infinite and transcendent, absolutely separate from His finite creation. (Evangelical Mysticism? by McMahon, T.A. February 1, 2008 in The Berean Call newsletter)

This brief outline of Satan’s vast network should give us a basis from which we can begin to recognize and resist his efforts to deceive and defeat us, and to build up defenses and warn others.