A Brief Response To The Manhattan Declaration
By Rev. Andrew Foster The Covenant News ~ March 04, 2010
The Free Presbyterian Church has through its history opposed ecumenism and apostacy and has vociferously stood for the historic
Scriptural position of being separated unto the gospel of God, Romans 1:1. It is the God-given duty of every faithful gospel minister
and of the Church of Christ to sound a note of alarm against every instance of departure from God and His word. I am happy to join
our voice with those who take that stand against all that the Manhattan Declaration represents.
On November 20th, 2009 a number of individuals released a joint statement called the Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian
conscience. What made this statement particularly noteworthy and positively alarming from a Biblical perspective, is that it is a
document that had brought together as signatories, various individuals prominent in the evangelical, Anglican, Roman Catholic and
Eastern Orthodox communities.
Of particular concern to Bible-believers is that many leading evangelicals have signed on to this document. Just some of the evangelicals that are signatories are listed below:
Leith Anderson, President of National Association of Evangelicals; Dr. Mark Bailey, President, Dallas Theological Seminary; Dr.
Robert C. Cannada, Jr., Chancellor, Reformed Theological Seminary; Chuck Colson; Jim Daly, President, Focus on the Family; Dr.
James Dobson, Focus on the Family; Dr. William Edgar, Professor, Westminster Theological Seminary; Dr. Michael Easley, President
Emeritus, Moody Bible Institute; Rev. Jonathan Falwell; Dr. J. I. Packer; Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., President, Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary; Dr. Cornelius Plantinga, Calvin Theological Seminary; Rev. Michael L. Beresford, Managing Director of
Church relations, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Others could be added to the list. A full list is published online with the
document itself at http://www.manhattandeclaration.org.
It is immediately obvious that men with far-reaching influence in evangelical circles have thrown their weight behind this venture. Some who have previously enjoyed a reputation as conservative evangelicals have lent their support to this joint-effort with apostacy.
The Manhattan Declaration is a thoroughly deceitful document that follows on in the tradition of the Evangelicals and Catholics together documents of recent years. It is obviously thoroughly ecumenical in nature and perspective, and particularly because it involves high-ranking evangelicals, must be recognized as a dangerous departure from Biblical truth and practice.
There are a number of simple observations to be considered in response to this document:
1.The Manhattan Declaration labels apostate religion “Christian”. Its opening line uses the blanket term “Christians” to describe all who subscribe to the document and makes each an heir of “the 2000 year old tradition of proclaiming God’s word”! In other words, each of the signatories regard all of the others involved as Biblical Christians, supporting and declaring “God’s word”. The evangelicals involved are happy to apply this language to the various representatives of the Roman Catholic Church, Anglicans, and leaders of the Orthodox Church—the eastern counterpart of the Church of Rome. All signatories claim to be acting “together in obedience to the one true God”.
Yet the fact remains, that in the light of Scripture, the Church of Rome, the Anglican communion and the Orthodox Church represent apostate religion, even antichristianity. The evangelicals among the signatories to this document make no distinction whatever between the plain doctrines of the gospel revealed in Scripture, which they claim to believe, and the hideous perversions of truth propagated by the RCC, the Orthodox Church and apostate Anglicanism. These men have lent their support to Rome’s blasphemous doctrines of the sacrifice of the Mass, purgatory, priest-craft, penance and a host of other errors such as its outright rejection of the central gospel truth of justification by faith in Christ alone. The idolatrous errors of the Orthodox church and apostate Anglicanism have similarly been embraced and endorsed by them as “Christian” and in agreement with Scripture. This is a scandalous and dangerous deception! These so-called evangelicals are blatantly acting as liars in this matter. In the light of Scripture, the Roman Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church and apostate Anglicanism are decidedly not Christian.
2. The Manhattan Declaration advocates an agenda of social justice at the expense of the gospel. The Manhattan Declaration deals with: the sanctity of human life; marriage; and religious liberty. These issues, while important, are not of primary significance for the Church of Christ. They are to be seen ever in subjection to the doctrines of the gospel. The truth of the gospel has greater value and significance than any or all of these social issues and it is certainly not the Church’s mandate to abandon gospel truth in order to pursue an agenda of social justice. Yet the evangelical signatories of the Manhattan Declaration have deliberately compromised the greater issue of the gospel in order to secure unity with apostate religion on these lesser issues.
The fact is, a right understanding of these social matters can only be had from the perspective of a right view of the gospel. It is only in the light of the gospel that we can grasp the Divinely-revealed truth about human life, marriage and religious liberty or any other area of human experience. The very real issues of our society are the product of sin and there is only one real remedy for sin—the gospel of Jesus Christ revealed in Scripture. A false gospel can provide no remedy for man’s miserable condition but rather makes him worse! By having as signatories those who deny the gospel—as the Roman Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church and much of modern Anglicanism does—this document cannot address the issues evangelicals claim it does. By joining themselves to this venture, evangelicals destroy the cause they are seeking to advance because they sell out the gospel to sign on to the Manhattan Declaration.
3. The bible-believer’s response. The Bible-believing Christian must repudiate the spirit and content of the Manhattan Declaration. It is a slander on the gospel of Jesus Christ and a support for the false gospels of apostate Protestantism, popery and Eastern orthodoxy. Abandoning the truth of the gospel of Christ in order to form a united front with the enemies of Christ on various social issues must be recognized as a wicked betrayal of the Saviour. The evangelical signatories and supporters of this document and its philosophy, must therefore be regarded as disobedient to the commands of God and as such fellowship is to be broken with them by any who would seek to walk with the Lord. For any professing believer to unite with apostacy and error in any cause is wrong! The word of God is clear on this matter:
“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and
what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth
with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God
hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out
from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a
Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (2 Cor 6:14-18 AV)
The spiritual rot that the Manhattan Declaration represents is widespread in the visible church. Can anything be done? Yes! There must be an immediate going outside the camp of compromise unto Christ to stand unashamedly on His side, Hebrews 13:13. Vigorous protest against departure and disobedience must be made and God’s people again face with the challenge Moses gave so long ago, “Who is on the LORD’S side?...” (Exodus 32:26 AV) God’s people must again evidence the conviction to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.” (Jude 1:3 AV) Only when the Church adheres to the truth of Scripture she is most useful to mankind and can minister to both the spiritual and temporal needs of society.