Yup, It Happened

Well, John Piper went and done it. He invited one of the least qualified men in America to stand and teach at one of the most prestigious bible conferences in America. My own opinion of John Piper has gone down more than a few notches. Piper knew that there would be an outcry against this decision. And yet he obviously is convinced that he has a good enough reason to invite Warren to speak. It's his conference, I guess he can invite whoever he wants to. The problem is, John Piper is a leader amongst leaders, and people pay attention to what he says and does.

There are plenty of churches out there that have not succumbed to Warrens purpose driven drivel. But with this announcement, they may have a rethink of their decision, and run down the pragmatic path of purpose driven dopiness. Churches that have been spared the totally pragmatic approach to ministry will now think it to be an acceptable format for church growth and overall ministry. The preaching of the gospel is not about pragmatism. The church grows as God gives the increase. And it's tied directly to the preaching of the gospel. This is the means (preaching the gospel), that has been given to draw men to God.

I hope John Piper will consider what the unintended consequences of his invitation might mean to the greater evangelical movement in America. A movement that is already in a boatload of trouble, just got another torpedo amidships. I hope that pastors will pay close attention to what Rick Warren says while he is at the conference, and compare it to what it means to preach the gospel in a biblical manner, vs. the pragmatism that is espoused in the Purpose Driven books.

Don't Believe Everything You Hear

There seems to be a rumor floating around the internet that John Piper is inviting Rick Warren to speak at the 2010 Desiring God conference. The only reference to this supposed travesty is on a fundamentalist blog that seems to be KJV only in nature as well as a few other problems with the theology. Not the least of which is the guys suggested reading list.

The rumor really got a huge kick when a well known blogger posted something about it on his Face Book wall and really got the comment thread going. Now don't get me wrong. I like the guy who did the FB posting, but I wish he had waited to see if any of the dirt was true before he went and spilled the beans to the general public that otherwise would not have been any the wiser.

I think we need to be careful how much we feed the trolls so to speak. Guys that write on sites like the one advertising the supposed Rick Warren @ Desiring God thing, just love to get people stirred up and start the fur flying so to speak, and watch their hit counts go up on the blog.

I suppose it could be true, but their is just not enough evidence for it to get me riled up right now. John Piper has invited people to speak at Desiring God before that raised more than a few eyebrows. A few years ago he invited Mark Driscoll to speak which at the time was a huge chance for Piper to take. Driscoll was known for his, shall we say, spicy language from the pulpit. But Piper took him under his wing and Driscoll is the better pastor for it. I have listened to many of Driscolls sermons, and can say that the man knows what the gospel is and how to preach it, and is not ashamed of it.

The difference between Driscoll and Warren is, Driscoll had no real problems with his theology, only his methodology. He was at times deliberately abusive from the pulpit, and swearing in the middle of a sermon was not unheard of. Rick Warren on the other hand, has massive problems with his theology.

Tim Challies says it like this -

Warren does not appear to have a biblical understanding of the Gospel the Good News of Jesus Christ. He teaches a typical decisional regeneration that will surely lead many to believe they have made commitments to Christ when they have not. In The Purpose Driven Life he leads unbelievers in a short prayer which he says will usher them into God's family. Prior to this he has made no clear presentation of the Gospel. He has not spoken about how our sin has separated us from God and condemned us to an existence apart from God. He has not spoken about the necessity of Christ's sacrifice and His substitutionary death for us. Yet he leads people to say Jesus, I believe in you and I receive you (page 58) and then follows with the astonishing words Welcome to the family of God! How can people believe in One they do not know? A decision no more makes us part of the family of God than does baptism. We become part of God's family when God regenerates us and adopts us into His family. This may take place at the moment of decision, but a decision does not necessarily cause it to happen. By declaring that anyone who said those words and meant them is a believer, he is giving false hope and shows a glaring misunderstanding of conversion and the Gospel.

Warren's confusion about the Gospel is shown also in that he extends his Purpose Driven seminars to include Catholics and even Mormons. Presumably he must see some good in their systems of doctrine, both of which deny the very heart of the Gospel.

Warren first supported prop. 8 in California, then later denied that he did, when there was video all over You Tube of him saying that he did support it. He was only worried about offending the gay rights activists in California! The man has a problem with the truth, and preaches a self help gospel that is no gospel at all.

I would hope that John Piper is NOT going to invite Rick Warren to speak at the Desiring God conference this year, or any other year unless Warren repents of his false doctrines and begins preaching the gospel as it is presented in the scripture.

Will Accepting Christ Save You?

Consider the following.

If the God of the Bible has revealed Himself to be a God that men cannot or will not, by virtue of their fallen nature come to him, so that if we are to be rescued from our fallen nature God must first make us alive spiritually so that we can see our need for redemption.

That being the case, is a person who has "come to Christ" by virtue of a "decision" that they made at an altar call or after hearing some other appeal of one nature or another, truly saved or are they worshiping a god of their own construct in that scripture tells us that in our unregenerate state we are haters of God. That we are spiritually dead and we all know that dead men can't respond to anything, no matter how appealing it is.

If salvation is indeed by grace through faith alone. Then how is it that we must believe or accept Christ to be saved? Doesn't that by extension mean that we would have to do something to be saved if that were the case?

It is a scary thought indeed. Did you make a decision for Christ? Or did Christ make a decision for you? Are you worshiping a god of your own making? Or are you worshiping the god of the Bible that loved his own while they hated him?

Sad State of the Church

I have great concerns about the direction the church in America is going. When I say the church, I mean the part that calls itself Evangelical. You know, all of the good Baptists, and such. It seems that the vast majority of them are involved in a headlong rush to embrace the new fad that all of the postmodern types of our day seem to think that the church needs to be relevant, known as the emergent church. This latest fad, (and it is a fad), largely embraces the notion that truth in it's absolute form is unknowable. That the Bible is not infallible. And that truth is found in all religions. That all of the different religions are just different paths to the same god. I heard a youth pastor in a church in my hometown give a sermon and told the congregation that John 14:6 didn't really mean that Jesus was preaching an exclusive gospel. It meant that he was showing us a better way to live. In other words, just live the way Jesus lives. Be really nice to people. Hang out with prostitutes and other sinners. Make the world a better place. Then we can all hold hands and go off into the sunset together. Is this what passes as Christian doctrine nowadays?

I guess all of the Christians in Indonesia and places like that don't need to proclaim Christ after all, since Christianity is just a good way to God, but not the only way. I mean after all. Those silly people down through the ages that were burned at the stake, eaten alive by wild animals for sport, sawed in half, separated from their families by imprisonment, beaten, and murdered, were just a bunch of sadly mistaken religious zealots that could have had a good life if only they had heard a sermon like this one before they died such a horrible death. I mean, just think of all of the suffering that could have been avoided if they would just embrace this new postmodern doctrine that believes in no absolutes. Believes that all opinions have value, even the ones that are based in pagan doctrine. Believes that Jesus is here to be our "homeboy". Believes that homosexuality is just a lifestyle choice and not sin. In fact, the postmodern/emergent mindset avoids the word "sin" at just about any cost.

The church here that I referred to earlier never talks about repentance, or salvation. They talk about life change. Life change? What in the world is that supposed to mean? If life change is supposed to mean that you give your life to God. Then why not say so? Maybe it's because they are afraid that people don't like to hear that they are sinners. Talk like that doesn't address what people feel like they need from a church. After all they feel badly enough already. Why should we tell them that they are sinners? Because church should always be a place where people can go to feel good about themselves. Right? I'm sure the persecuted church in the world today will be happy to hear that.

I have heard that the persecuted church in some parts of the world is praying for us to undergo persecution here in America ourselves. They are praying this because they have heard about all of the frivolous things that are plaguing the church in America today. They know that persecution is a refining fire, and the silliness that is going on today will disappear when people must make a choice between following Christ and living. If that is what it takes to purify His church, then God will do it. I have no doubt.

Thoughts from a wake.

I just came from the memorial service of one of my wife's cousins. I'll call him Mike. He died from cancer at the age of 59. He was a smoker for most of his life, and he had his first bout with lung cancer about 18 years ago. With treatment he was able to bring the cancer under control for quite a while, until sometime last spring suddenly it was back again, and apparently much more virulent than before. So Mike finally lost his battle with the dreaded disease.

Mike wanted cremation, so there was to be no regular funeral, and indeed I was a little surprised to find that when we arrived at the funeral parlor, the cremation had not yet taken place and he was laid out in a casket just as at a normal wake. Instead of a funeral later on, the family was having a "celebration of life" service to allow his friends and family to eulogize him in any way they saw fit to do. And several people did come forward to tell of all of the wonderful things they remembered about Mike.

Several friends that Mike had known in this life came up and told how he was a great friend, and one even told of how when he went to visit him in the hospital, Mike had been the one to comfort him by telling him to make every moment count and live life to it's fullest, and so on.

Both of Mikes sons came up and spoke glowingly about how their father was such a great dad and a terrific provider. About how he would give you the shirt off of his back and all of the wonderful euphemisms that go along with it. Now don't get me wrong. I'm glad that he was such a wonderful father. God knows that we could use more men who would be half of the father that Mike was to his children. In a secular sense.

In the spiritual sense, Mike apparently couldn't have been a worse father. As far as I could tell, he didn't do anything to teach his sons and daughters of the need to give place to the one who died for their sins. I listened carefully to all of the wonderful things said about Mike during the eulogies, but not one word was mentioned about any love for Christ. Not one word was mentioned about the things of God. Not one word was mentioned about a passion for the church, or for a love of studying God's word. Nothing was mentioned about how Mikes death might be the catalist for someone in attendance to give their life to Jesus. ( I think funerals are one of the best places to proclaim the gospel because everyone in attendance is face to face with their own mortality.) It would be so easy to say, "Just look at him and realize that as he is, you will be someday. Let me introduce you to someone who can give you eternal life."

Mikes great passion in life, was not the spreading of the word, or any thing to do with things eternal. It was golf. So Mike's ashes will be spread over a golf course because that is what he wanted. What will be said of him in the years to come will be that he really loved golf, and he was cremated in his golf shirt. It will be said of him that he was a good father, son and friend. But I seriously doubt that anyone will say of Mike that he was a man of God. Somehow the topic just never came to the forefront when people had the chance to bring it up. Indeed there was not even a minister or priest present at the wake to assist in the ceremony. All of these things combine to speak loudly of what Mikes spiritual condition was. Now I am a firm beleiver in deathbed repentance. Only God himself knows exactly what Mike's spiritual disposition was when he died.

I want it to be said of me when I die that I was a man who feared God. I want it to be said of me that I was a man who wanted to see the gospel proclaimed in all of the world. I want it to be said of me that I was a man who prayed fervently, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven." I want it to be said of me that I lived my life to the glory of God. What will it matter when we say that we could shoot a 68 on the golf course, and had our ashes spread on one when we stand before the judgment seat of God?

I had a conversation last night with my good friend Jim, and we were discussing just such things. He has a penchant for building models, and has many of them that have never been assembled. He put the question to me about the value of spending time doing that sort of thing when there are so many souls yet to be won to Christ, and how that time would even be much better spent studying God's word. I agree whole heartedly. May everything I say and do be done to the glory of God.

Just when you thought....

I started to post about this topic the other day when I first found out about it, and upon further research found that it is not as new as I thought it was. In fact this topic is about two years old. But beings that I had not heard about it, maybe you have not heard anything either.

There is a new bible "translation" out that is nothing short of being as stupid as a screen door on a submarine. A translation that makes Eugene Peterson look like a literary giant for having published "The Message". Titled "Good As New" this latest so called translation is pretty far over the top where most Evangelical Christians would be concerned. It actually promotes fornication, and yet the Archbishop of Canterbury has praised this version for it's "extraordinary power". How is it that someone who is supposedly a leader in the Christian community, an upholder of what is supposed to be true and good and lovely in the sight of God, stoop so low as to praise a publication that glorifies elicit sex, and the debasement of Jesus Christ himself?

I suppose that the theological liberals out there will say that it is more important to show love to the populace at large, and show them that they are accepted just where they are rather than act in such an unloving manner as to tell them that they are...*gasp*... sinners, and that they should (God forbid), repent and turn from their evil. But no. This book postulates that when we are tempted by sexual urges, rather than flee immorality, we should get a partner because not having sex might cause us to be "frustrated".

Obviously the most loving thing we can do is point the world to Jesus even if it does offend and make uncomfortable the hearer. In fact if the hearer is getting uncomfortable with the gospel, you stand a much greater chance of reaching them with that same gospel because at least they are hearing what you have to say. The one who is in the greatest danger is the one who is indifferent to the gospel message.

Here are some of the differences in how real scripture reads and how this fake scripture reads -
Mark 1:4 in both the NASB and Good as New versions...

NASB-
"John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."

Good as New-
"John, nicknamed 'the Dipper' was 'The Voice'. He was in the desert, inviting people to be dipped, to show they were determined to change their ways and wanted to be forgiven."

Now Mark 1:10-11

NASB-
"Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him; and a voice came out of the heavens: "You are my beloved son, in You I am well pleased".

Good as New-
"As he was climbing up the bank again, the sun shone through a gap in the clouds. At the same time a pigeon flew down and perched on him. Jesus took this as a sign that God's spirit was with him. A voice from overhead was heard saying, 'That's my boy! You're doing fine!'"

Now Matthew 23:25
NASB-
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence."

Good as New-
"Take a running jump, Holy Joes, humbugs!"

Now Matthew 26:69-70
NASB-
"Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, "You too were with Jesus the Galilean." But he denied it before them all, saying, "I do not know what you are talking about."

Good as New-
"Meanwhile Rocky was still sitting in the courtyard. A woman came up to him and said: 'Haven't I seen you with Jesus, the hero from Galilee?" Rocky shook his head and said: 'I don't know what the hell you're talking about!'"

Now 1 Corinthians 7:1-2
NASB-
"Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for a man not to touch a woman. But because of immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband. "

Good as New-
"Some of you think the best way to cope with sex is for men and women to keep right away from each other. That is more likely to lead to sexual offences. My advice is for everyone to have a regular partner."

And finally 1 Corinthians 7:8-9
NASB-
"But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I. But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

Good as New-
"If you know you have strong needs, get yourself a partner. Better than being frustrated."

I think you can see what I mean. And if you by some chance think that this is all just peachy keen, then you have a real problem that needs to be delt with.

Survey Schmurvey

A 1995 Barna Research Group survey discovered non-Christians have no clue what Christians mean when they use some of the phrases Christians often take for granted.

63% of non-Christians don't know what Christians mean when they talk about the Gospel.

75% of non-Christians don't know what John 3:16 is.

Add to that phrases like "a broken heart," "I've been convicted" and "get into the Word,” which non-Christians would hear quite differently.

What they hear is the unspoken message, "If you don't understand the holy lingo, you don't belong to the holy huddle."

But get this, 40% of Christians don't know what the Gospel means, and 53% don't know John 3:16.

I would imagine 11 years later in 2006 the numbers are even worse.

The preceding information was passed along to me from someone who works at a large church. The question I have is, what are churches doing with this information? Will they use it as a springboard to preach the word with clarity and authority? Will churches use this information to inform non-Christians about what it means when Christians speak of the Gospel? Indeed if 40% of all Christians don't even know what the Gospel means, and 53% don't know what John 3:16 says, then what does this say about how ineffective churches have been in the preaching of said Gospel? Is the response to this information going to be that, when the preaching is finished there will be no doubt about the exclusivity of the message of the Gospel That man is indeed a sinner, and he is in need of a savior?

Or will the opposite happen, and more and more churches will strive to be "culturally relevant" and water the message down even more so that non-Christians won't be frightened off. Will they cease to speak of "conviction" and "getting into the word" just because unbelievers don't know what these terms mean?

The comment about it being worse eleven years later was added by one of the leaders in the same church where I got this pole from. If it is indeed worse, what does this say about how churches have gone about preaching the gospel? Maybe we should preach more from the Bible and not so much from self help books. Maybe our small group study time should be more devoted to "getting into the word" and not focusing on program books like The Purpose Driven Life. No one was ever saved by a program. People are saved by the hearing of the word. Romans 10:17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. (NIV)