Why We Need To Exterminate Pietism (And False Piety)

Yes, it's time for another video from Rev. Jonathan Fisk and the good folks over at Worldview Everlasting in an attempt to help us better understand the dangers of Pietism.

However, this entry should hopefully serve as an appropriate segue into an area we haven't spent much time on yet when it comes to this subject.

To date, you might just assume that all things related to Piety and Pietism are "bad" and/or "negative" although that's not really the case.

Believe it or not, Piety is actually a good thing (I'm getting ahead of myself though). So, in this video, we'll begin to turn the corner so-to-speak and shift our focus in that direction.

But first, we need to say a few more things about the spiritual dangers due to Pietism and why we need to exterminate it along with "False Piety" too.

EXTERMINATE...False Piety

This video will answer questions on the authority of the Bible compared to the authority of the Lutheran Confessions, questions about Pietism and material principles, and then questions about smoking and whatnot where the answers help you to see if Moralism has perhaps snuck in to your life somewhere!

This is so comforting and freeing to a recovering ex-Evangelical like me!

I loved how the discussion about Pietism naturally transitioned to a discussion about Moralism and how easy it is for us to set up "little laws" for ourselves to determine our Christian identity or even measure our sanctification.

I know, "Faith Not Feelings!" but I can truly identify with Philippians 4:7 that says "and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Here's the long and short of our studies on Piety and Pietism so far...

Piety we need more of. Pietism we need to exterminate!

Now, I know we haven't talked about the Biblical basis for Piety and the merits of such, but please stop by later today to get your first taste of theological content that will address that side of this issue head on.

In a Lutheran layman's terms, I hope it's becoming crystal clear why we need to exterminate Pietism whenever and wherever we find it.

NOTE: As you know, I am a newly converted Confessional Lutheran who recently escaped American Evangelicalism. That being said, please contact me ASAP if you believe that any of my "old beliefs" seem to have crept their way into any of the material you see published here, and especially if any of the content is not consistent with our Confessions and Lutheran doctrine (in other words, if it's not consistent with God's Word, which our Confessions merely summarize and point us back to) so that I can correct those errors immediately and not lead any of His little ones astray. Finally, please be aware that you might also discover that some of the earlier pieces I wrote on this blog back in 2013 definitely fall into that category since I was a Lutheran-In-Name-Only at the time and was completely oblivious to the fact that a "Book of Concord" containing our Confessions even existed. In addition, there are some entries that are a little "out there" so-to-speak since the subject matter was also heavy influenced by common Evangelical concerns/criticisms that perhaps wouldn't be too big a deal for us Lutherans. I know that now and I'm still learning. Anyway, I decided to leave those published posts up on this website and in cyberspace only because we now have this disclaimer and only to demonstrate the continuing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit in my life (Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 1:6). Finally, please know that any time we engage in interpreting a specific portion of Scripture exegetically, it will always follow the verse-by-verse notes from my Lutheran Study Bible unless otherwise noted. Thank you for stopping by and thank you in advance for your time, help, and understanding. Grace and peace to you and yours!

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