Evaluating 40 Days of Community

[*NOTE: Quotes from the 40 Days of Community Workbook are blockquoted.]

"We're Connected to Grow Together...By Confessing to Each other"

This chapter is very good, so I have nothing to offer other than to add a few comments.

The purpose of confession is not disgrace, but grace.

This is an excellent point. Whenever we confess our sins to God, the Bible says that He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Being forgiven and cleansed in this way should form a deep love within us for God and for others which is the motivation for us to forgive and offer God's cleansing to others as well.

It's also important to note that this forgiveness has to do with fellowship, not sonship. ... In other words, you don't need to confess your sin to get back into God's family--you're still a family member--you confess to restore your fellowship with God.

If we are true believers, we will live a life that is open to God's inspection. If we've abandoned ourselves and crucified self and been risen in Christ, though we still sin because we live in bodies of flesh, our lives will be characterized by a desire to know the truth about ourselves and God, we'll be submissive to God's will for our lives, and we will desire to confess all sin to God as soon as we become aware of it. Then we must make the decision to avoid temptations and to turn from evil. If we don't do the latter, then we evidence that we have not been truly saved. This needs to be made clear to people so that no one lives with false hope in the promises of God without repenting of their sin. Yet, in Christ, all our sins are covered--past, present and future, known and unknown. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. Yet, as John states in his epistles, if we abide in Christ and He in us, then we will naturally shun evil, confessing our sin and live wholly for Jesus Christ our saviour.

So, where in the church could this ever happen? Most confession won't and shouldn't take place in a corporate worship service. It is not likely to happen in the typical Sunday school class where the focus is usually on Bible study. The one place in church life where James 5:16 has the best shot at being practiced is in a small group. It must be in an environment that is safe and marked by unconditional love.

This is where I believe that Rick makes up his own plan. I can see how this can result in the stifling of the Holy Spirit from working in people's lives during corporate worship and the study of His word. When we worship corporately, we desire to draw near to God and to come into His presence. Whenever we truly come into His presence, our sins are exposed as we must remain broken before Him so that everything we are glorifies Him and not ourselves. The two places where conviction of sin and confession should be occuring is during times of worship when we draw near to God and come into His presence and when we are studying God's Word. Can we honestly be worshipping Him as He desires if we are not doing so in spirit and in truth? Can we truly worship Him if sin remains before our consciences unconfessed? When we are convicted by the Holy Spirit, the most appropriate response is immediate confession of our specific sins to God (though not necessarily blurting them out to all those around us). And confession is not the same thing as asking forgiveness from God, but is the admittance of wrong and a desire to change.

During the study of God's Word, we need to apply it to our lives right then and there and allow God to do His work in our hearts, repenting of our selfishness and renewing our desire to follow His will. Our fellowship with one another should merely be a continuation of our corporate fellowship. Here we also confess to one another and hold each other accountable to God's Word in love. We should be willing to be open with one another and desire to share what God has laid on our hearts for the edification and building up of one another.

[*NOTE: Quotes from the 40 Days of Community Workbook are blockquoted.]

"We're Connected to Grow Together...By Giving Preference to Each other"

Placing the needs of others before our own and giving preference to others is a topic that needs to be spoken about. It is very easy to be self-serving even while giving to others. How can someone given everything they have to the poor and not have love? How could someone give their own lives up, even their bodies to be burned, and not have love? The Bible says that it is so in 1 Cor 13:3. So how then can we get beyond ourselves and truly love others? The Bible tells us to understand and remember where we came from and what Jesus did for us, and how He had patience with us. Jesus died for us while we were yet helpless and dead in our sins. Even if we are perfect from this day forward according to God's standards (which is not possible -- Jesus said that we must be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect, Matt 5:48) we would still be condemned because of our past sin. God found nothing good in us, yet despite this and the fact that God is just and must punish sin, He is also compassionate and desires to show and demonstrate His love to all who respond to it. Therefore, He took our sins upon Himself, willingly accepting our punishment inflicted by the Father on the cross in our place in order to both satisfy His perfect justice and also demonstrate the full extent of His infinite love for us whom He has saved. This is mind-boggling! Is there anything else that we can do but to become His bondslaves? As such, we no longer belong to ourselves, but are living for another out of love. Our first desire should be to do only what the Father shows us to bring the most glory and honor to His name as Jesus did.

Rick presents a number of good "how-to" pointers in this day's study. However, there is one thing in particular that I must point out, as is in dangerous contradiction with the Word of God:

"Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self" (Matt 16:25, MSG).

This reading dangerously twists the meaning of this text. Consider that this passage was spoken by Jesus right after rebuking Peter for saying that Jesus should not be killed. Peter showed concern for Jesus' life, and since He believed that Jesus was the Son of God, it was unconscionable that Jesus should be whipped and killed at the hands of the Gentiles. But despite his concern, Jesus rebuked him strongly because he was thinking of himself: "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's" (Matt 16:23, NASB). It is after this that we read the verses we wish to discuss (Matt 16:24-26, NASB):

24. Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
25. "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
26. "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"

Jesus doesn't say, "If anyone wishes to find his true self..." -- there is nothing of this kind of language contained here. Whether its the old self or the true self, the emphasis of The Message is still on self. We are to be conformed to the likeness of Jesus, yet we don't find Jesus trying to find His true self: (Phil 2:5-8, NASB)

5. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
6. who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7. but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
8. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

If Jesus was trying to find "his true self," He would not have taken on the form of man to become the servant of all, and He certainly wouldn't have gone to the cross to become the scapegoat and sin offering for the wickedness of a sinful people. This is why He rebukes Peter in Matt 16:23 -- because it is a strong temptation for Him to not carry out His Father's will to the death. He is innocent! He never deserved death!

Jesus' words to us in Matt 16 are clear: the person who tries to save his life and looks to self-interest and appeasement will lose his life -- and He is speaking here of eternal life. The Apostle Paul said "for I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come" (2 Tim 4:6). How then could he be looking for his true self in this? Is he longing for the abundant life that the word of faith teachers are promising? No, he is losing his life for the sake of Christ. Yet, someone can perform even the most self-sacrificial acts and still be self-serving. We know this from 1 Cor 13:3 (NASB): "And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing." God is love, we can only love as we ought if His spirit is resident in us. Jesus did nothing of Himself. This is a really hard concept for us to grasp. We believe Him to be God, the very creator of all things. However, as a man He was fully dependent upon His Father for everything that He said and did. He is our role model, and we should be striving to completely empty ourselves as well and live to obey the Father in everything we say, think and do. That is the goal, not to find our selves. Our true self, in fact is dead in sin. Everything we are in Christ has been given to us -- it is not of ourselves! We do not then have the right to go and do as we please -- even if it is in His name, but we are to empty ourselves and to seek the will of the Father and what pleases Him.

Some time ago, I received an email from Rev. Chris Currey in Ontario on this topic and I thought it was so good and relevant that I got permission from him to post it on my God's BMW blog here. I think the following short snippet is very relevant to my discussion of Rick's gospel presentation and is worth repeating here for emphasis. Please feel free to comment.

Unfortunately, some have decided to simply reach out with good works while leaving any offensive gospel preaching in the dust. The trend is to offer inclusive acceptance rather than be forthright. By doing so, we risk losing converts by seeking the friendship and approval of the 'post-modern minded.' We tuck truth under the table for fear we’ll scare them off, but in the end we do them more harm than good. We might have them in our church, but does God have them in His Kingdom?

One of our greatest examples of Christian charity is the salvation army. But listen to the words of William Booth, “Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you ‘go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin.’ Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there.” Obviously, he was not referring to just feeding the poor. How would such utterances be received by the church today? No doubt, William Booth faced a society much like ours. He did not bow to the threatenings of a callous and base-minded society by changing the method of reaching them. If we are going to reach this post-modern world, we must do it the same way Jesus instructed us to do it 2000 years ago... preach the gospel! It was Jesus who said, "unless ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." By today's standards, Jesus would be considered a radical for saying such things. So while we follow His example of charity, let us follow His admonition to preach the gospel in its entirety. To deviate from the blue-print is to build a crooked house on sinking sand.

[My comments are inline--in brackets--and in blue text]
Subsequent to my earlier posting on Rick's video entitled "What It Means to Follow Christ", I wanted to elaborate on Rick's other gospel presentations.

The following is Rick's gospel presentation in Chapter 7 of The Purpose Driven Life:

Right now, God is inviting you to live for his glory by fulfilling the purposes he made you for. It's really the only way to live. Everything else is just existing. Real life begins by committing yourself completely to Jesus Christ. [Rick provides no explanation of what is meant by "real life"--and that in order to have it, you must first lose your life.] If you are not sure you have done this, all you need to do is receive and believe. [What about repent? (Luke 13:3,5)] The Bible promises, "To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God." Will you accept God's offer? [Presented this way, who wouldn't want to receive this no-strings-attached offer to become children of God? Yet Jesus said "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate...even his own life, he cannot be My disciple" (LUke 14:26, NASB).]

First, believe. [How about "first, repent" (Mark 1:15)] Believe God loves you and made you for his purposes. Believe you're not an accident. Believe you were made to last forever. Believe God has chosen you to have a relationship with Jesus, and died on the cross for you. Believe that no matter what you've done, God wants to forgive you. [...IF you repent. And how will they know how to repent if they don't even know what they are repenting of? Is it purposelessness?]

Second, receive. Receive Jesus into your life as your Lord and Savior. [But how do you receive Him this way? Don't you have to make Him Lord of your life? Jesus says, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven... I will declare to them, 'I never knew you...'" (Matt 7:21,23, NASB).] Receive his forgiveness for your sins. Receive his Spirit, who will give you the power to fulfill your life purpose. The Bible says, "Whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever!" [This is John 3:36; see what it says in the NASB: "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."] Wherever you are reading this, I invite you to bow your head and quietly whisper the prayer that will change your eternity: "Jesus, I believe in you and I receive you." Go ahead.

If you sincerely meant that prayer, congratulations! Welcome to the family of God! You are now ready to discover and start living God's purpose for your life. I urge you to tell someone about it. You're going to need support. [Especially with this modern, watered-down gospel message strewn atop the rocks and weeds...] If you email me, I will send send you a little booklet I wrote called Your First Steps for Spiritual Growth.

For Rick's gospel presentation from the 40 Days of Community workbook, see Day 4. It is very similar to his presentation in The Purpose Driven Life.

The following is a transcript of Rick's gospel presentation from the first video in the 40 Days of Purpose series:

Do you have a relationship with Jesus Christ? If you aren't sure of this, I'd like the priviledge of leading you in a prayer to settle the issue. Let's bow our heads. I'm going to pray a prayer and you can follow it silently in your mind:

Dear God, I want to know your purpose for my life. [Is "life purpose" what the unbeliever is to hunger and thirst for (Matt 5:6)?] I don't want to waste my life on the wrong things. Today I want to take the first step in preparing for eternity by getting to know You. Jesus Christ, I don't understand it all, ["And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the [person] who hears the word and understands it..." (Matt 13:23, NASB)] but as much as I know how, I want to open my life to you. I ask You to come into my life and make yourself real to me. Use this series to help me know what you made me for. Thank you. Amen.

If you just prayed that prayer for the very first time, I congratulate you. You've just become part of the family of God!

[The following text is adapted from an article by Berit Kjos posted at http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/2003/1-purpose.htm].

Is this a response to the gospel? Where is repentance? Acknowledgement of need for righteousness before God? Confession of and understanding of personal sin against God? Where is the cross and the bodily death and resurrection of Jesus? The Bible says that saving "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Rom 10:17-18). But none of the scriptures that show the gospel are even mentioned in this first lesson. Biblically illiterate friends and neighbours who join the group would / could pray this prayer without any real knowledge of the cross, of the saviour, or of God's view of sin. In fact, the concept of salvation isn't included in the first lesson. And if it had been there, the context of the lesson would suggest that we are merely saved from a purposeless life--not from bondage to sin.

The first lesson deals with the "consequence of not knowing your purpose"--NOT with Jesus Christ. It warns the group that "without knowing your purpose, life will seem TIRESOM... UNFULFILLING... UNCONTROLLABLE." And it repeats the positive (but not particularly Biblical) promise that knowing the purpose of your life will:

• Give your life "FOCUS"
• Simplify your life
• Increase motification
• 'PREPARE YOU FOR ETERNITY'

Even so, all who pray the prayer will be affirmed and celebrated as new members of the family of God. But are they? We don't know. Yet statistics suggest that most people who call themselves Christians have little understanding of the gospel.

Let us take care not to give false hope to people.

Some scriptures concerning repentance:

• Mark 1:4 - baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins.
  
• Luke 5:32, Luke 15:7, Luke 24:47 (good news) => commission.
  
• *Acts 11:18, ***Acts 13:24, **Acts 26:20
  
• 2 Cor 7:9-10 (godly sorrow), **2 Pet 3:9, *Matt 4:17
  
• **Matt 11:20-21 (Repent w/ sackclock + ashes)
  
• *Mark 1:15 (Repent + keep believing), Mark 6:12
  
• **Luke 13:3 (Unless you repent, you too will all die)
  
• Luke 17:3 (if your bother repents, forgive him)

See also my post entitled The Non-Negotiable Gospel.

I was browsing Rick Warren's website, http://purposedriven.com/, and I noticed a video link on the main page entitled "What it Means to Follow Christ" (Windows Media: high / low). Rick presents the gospel message in this video, and to tell you the truth, this was the very best presentation of Rick Warren's that I have ever seen. Why didn't he put this one on the first tape of his 40 Days of Purpose study? Rick spoke with passion and you could tell it was coming from his heart. From both the Purpose Driven Life and the Better Together (40 Days of Community Workbook), the gospel message is misleading and watered down so much it is virtually unrecognizable.

In the video, Rick used some great examples. One was if your Grandma was married and your parents were married, it doesn't make you married. We are not saved because our parents were saved; we must make the decision to follow Christ for ourselves just as marriage is a personal decision. This example shows that entrance into God's kingdom doesn't come through osmosis or relations with others in the kingdom. Also, his example of drinking poison although one is sincere, would still make one sincerely dead. A very good point indeed. It was also good that he brought out the fact that we are not measured by God by a scale with the good on one side and the bad on the other.

On the other hand, it did take Rick some time to get around to the death of Jesus. Previous to that point, he almost made it seem that we are forgiven by Jesus' perfect life. I don't think he put any emphasis on the price of our forgiveness, and this is an important point to miss. For example, Rick didn't mention Hell or about God's wrath (John 3:36) or that we are enemies of God without His forgiveness which we cannot have if we remain in unbelief toward Him. Our attachment to Christ is much stronger when we realize that Jesus paid an immense price in order to save us from a terrible punishment. Rick also didn't put very much emphasis on the cost of our sin, nor did he mention that Jesus was raised bodily. He said that He rose again, but didn't define this. This would mislead someone of the Jehovah's Witness faith into thinking that they were eligible since they believe that he rose from the dead as a spirit. Carefully articulating these doctrines is very important to the gospel message.

Rick talked about our being sorry for our sin and that was good. He also took the person through a prayer that mentioned they were sorry. He never did all of this in the Purpose Driven Life. As for the assurance, he says that anyone who calls on the Lord will be saved. Although that is true, it is important to note that our calling on the Lord is a repentance, a turning away from sin and turning to the Lord for salvation. His prayer asked God for forgiveness, so this was good. Also, he did a good job to help people get past the "feelings."

All in all, there would be little to write about if Rick kept up this kind of presentation and used scripture as consistently in context as he did here.