TheoloJeep

A Follow-Up on Neeza Powers

There is a pattern as old as Eden.

It begins not with a public fall, but with a private shift: a quiet refusal to submit to the authority of God’s Word.

“Did God actually say…?” — Genesis 3:1

That question—once entertained—does not remain contained. It spreads. It reshapes. It redefines. And eventually, it re-creates a man in his own image.

What we are witnessing is not sudden. It is not random. It is not merely emotional or psychological.

It is theological.

1. The Foundation Was Already Shifting

In a previous article, we addressed Neeza Powers’ decision to align himself with the Roman Catholic Church—a move that, to some, may have appeared to be a step toward historical rootedness.

But the issue was never tradition.

It was authority.

When the final authority shifts from Scripture alone to a structure where tradition and ecclesiastical authority function alongside—or above—the Word of God, the foundation is no longer fixed.

And once the foundation shifts, everything built upon it becomes unstable.

“See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition… and not according to Christ.” — Colossians 2:8

This is where the trajectory begins:

• Worship subtly becomes more man-centered than Christ-centered
• Authority becomes shared rather than singular
• Truth becomes mediated through institutions rather than derived from Scripture

And in that shift, something critical is lost—the supremacy of Christ’s authority over every area of life.

2. When Christ’s Authority Is Diminished, Man Takes the Throne

Christ does not share dominion.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” — Matthew 28:18

Not some authority.

Not partial authority.

All authority.

So when His Word is no longer the final voice, another voice will take its place.

And that voice is almost always self.

What begins as an openness to alternative authorities, an appreciation for tradition over text, and a softening of doctrinal clarity inevitably becomes a re-centering of the human experience.

Worship shifts.

No longer is it governed by what God has said. It becomes shaped by what man feels, desires, and affirms.

This is the essence of humanism—not always in its philosophical form, but in its practical outworking:

Man becomes the measure.

3. The Fruit of a Man-Centered Foundation

Once worship becomes man-centered, identity soon follows.

Because if man determines how God is worshiped, man will also determine who he is.

“Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man…” — Romans 1:22–23

This is the exchange:

• From Creator-defined truth to self-defined reality
• From submission to self-expression
• From transformation to re-identification

And this is where we now find ourselves—not at the beginning of a journey, but further down its road.

4. Apostasy Is a Process, Not an Event

Apostasy rarely announces itself at the door. It creeps in through compromise.

What begins as questioning clear doctrine, softening hard truths, and prioritizing personal experience over Scripture eventually becomes open contradiction.

“They refused to love the truth and so be saved… Therefore God sends them a strong delusion…” — 2 Thessalonians 2:10–12

That is sobering.

Not merely confusion—but judicial hardening.

Not merely struggle—but settled rebellion.

5. When the Word Is Rejected, the “Old Man” Returns

Scripture is clear that salvation is not just forgiveness—it is transformation.

“Put off your old self… and put on the new self…” — Ephesians 4:22–24

The “old man” is not something to be rediscovered.

It is something to be crucified.

“Our old self was crucified with him…” — Romans 6:6

So what happens when a man rejects the authority of Scripture?

He does not move forward.

He reverts.

He returns to the very identity Christ died to free him from—not always in the same form, but in the same principle: self-rule.

And in our cultural moment, one of the clearest expressions of that rebellion is the attempt to redefine God-given identity—including male and female, which Scripture declares to be established by God Himself.

“So God created man in his own image… male and female he created them.” — Genesis 1:27

6. When Confession Reveals the Real Battle

In a recent post, Neeza Powers offered a level of transparency that is, in one sense, commendable—and in another, deeply concerning.

He writes of prayer, of struggle, of trying to accept his identity, and ultimately of a persistent desire for something God has not granted.

And then he says:

“Maybe He has and the answer is ‘no.’”

That sentence matters.

Because it reveals that this is not mere ignorance.

It is a wrestling with a known boundary of God’s will.

7. Wanting Christ Without Submitting to Christ

He continues:

“I can’t stop loving Christ, and I sure as heck know that He won’t stop loving me.”

There is something right here—and something dangerously incomplete.

Yes, Christ’s love is steadfast.

But Scripture never separates love from lordship.

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” — Luke 6:46

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” — John 14:15

The issue is not affection for Christ.

It is submission to Christ.

8. When Prayer Is Used to Resist God Rather Than Submit to Him

“Everyday… I’ve asked God to make me a woman.”

Prayer is not given to reshape God’s will.

It is given to align us to it.

“If we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” — 1 John 5:14

And when the answer is “no,” it is not confusion.

It is clarity.

“No” is an answer.

And often, it is mercy.

9. Struggle Is Real—But It Does Not Define You

Every believer wrestles with desires that do not align with God’s design.

That is the reality of indwelling sin.

But Scripture never calls us to identify with those desires.

It calls us to put them to death.

“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you…” — Colossians 3:5

The modern error is this:

• What I feel must be who I am
• What I desire must be affirmed

But the gospel says:

• What you feel may be fallen
• What you desire may need to be denied
• What you struggle with must be crucified

10. A Word of Warning—and Hope

There are only two paths forward:

1. Continue redefining self in light of desire
2. Submit self to Christ and be reshaped by truth

There is no third option where Christ is Savior but not Lord.

And yet—even here—hope is not gone.

The very struggle expressed shows that the conscience is not entirely seared.

There is still awareness.

Still tension.

Still a battle.

And that means repentance is still possible.

But repentance will not mean asking God to affirm the desire.

It will mean asking God to conform the heart to His truth.

Final Word

This is not ultimately about Neeza Powers.

It is about what happens when any man decides that God’s Word is no longer the final authority in his life.

When Scripture is dethroned, self is enthroned.

And when self is enthroned, identity becomes whatever the heart desires.

But the heart is not king.

Christ is.

And His Word still stands—unchanged, unbending, and utterly sufficient.

Soli Deo Gloria