Customer Reviews

Promise Keepers/Trojan Horse

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Phil Arms is a pastor in Houston, Texas. He writes in the Foreword to this 1997 book, "It is too late for trivial semantic jousting and routine doctrinal debates with the clandestine oppressors of Truth and the would-be correctors of the ways of God. Pulpits and Christians with a 'finger-in-the-wind theology' will not stand the test now being unleashed on His Church."

Here are some quotations from the book:

"That statement in itself should identify the Promise Keepers ministry as a spiritual Trojan Horse." (Pg. 57)

"Promise Keepers' office now sends an updated version of its stand on the book (The Masculine Journey: Understanding the Six Stages of Manhood), simply stating that they do not currently distribute it. But, of major importance, the ministry still refuses to refute or deny that this anti-biblical publication contains a philosophy central to their theology and that it expresses doctrine that they find redemptive." (Pg. 194)

"I know of no Bible-believing, Bible-preaching church in which Mormon leadership, with their perverse Christology and their blasphemous cultic beliefs, would feel so compatible with that church or ministry's teachings that they would leave with an excitement that would provoke them to encourage other Mormons to participate. Yet that is the effect that Promise Keepers has had upon Mormons..." (Pg. 287)

"Promise Keepers founder Bill McCartney left the Roman Catholic Church. However, upon considering the relationship Promise Keepers has with Romanism, we must ask, did Roman Catholicism leave Bill McCartney?" (Pg. 291)

"(O)ne of the most shocking beliefs held by Promise Keepers is their policy and attitude toward those living the perverse life of a homosexual." (Pg. 302)

This book unravels the Promise Keepers' organization to find the dangerous Vineyard movement behind it. I think it is valuable for anyone who senses through the leading of the Holy Spirit that there is something wrong with Promise Keepers. The material Phil Arms presents provides a confirmation there there IS something wrong with that organization. The only suggestion I would make is that the book could be more concise.

This book exposes Promise Keepers' total lack of doctrinal stands, their acceptance of cultists such as Catholics and Mormons, and their psychosexual psychological teachings. Also shows their various false prophesies and runarounds to avoid issues with their unbiblicalness.

If you've already decided you dislike Promise Keepers, you might enjoy parts of this book. If you have any morsal of objectivity or mature (grace-oriented) Christianity, however, you'll quickly see through the warped rhetoric in Trojan Horse. It's hard to imagine how anyone could find this author credible, but oh well...the fact the book is published by an obscure publisher speaks for itself (read: there's no way a mainstream, evangelical publisher would touch Arms' ridiculous work).

The book is so poor it's hard to know where to even begin in describing it. One thing it suffers from chronically is the "guilt by association" rhetoric. Arms knows that somewhere in the U.S., there's a church doing or teaching certain things that the reader isn't going to like. Naturally, if you follow enough of his "steps," there's a "connection" to Promise Keepers! Please.

The book's shortcomings are summed up very well in the author's discussion about the Promise Keepers' ministry stance toward Mormons. To begin with, Arms claims PK is too inclusive. But then he admits their official magazine ran a piece deeming Mormonism a "cult." Yet he still rambles on against PK and Mormons. Makes you wonder if there are people at Arms' church standing at the door quizing people before they'll let them come in and hear the message.

Too bad "zero stars" isn't an option.

This book essentially argues that the Promise Keepers, an evangelical organization with a group of fundamentalist, charismatic and/or Pentacostal leaders, isn't fundamentalist enough, that PK has sold out to moderates and compromisers. A great book for extremists.