Keith Green on the Me Centered Gospel

Came across a teaching by Keith Green called “Whats wrong with the gospel?” on the state of the church’s delivery of a non-biblical “gospel”. He states he had been a Christian about 7 years which I would date this around the early 1980’s”

“Now-a-days it isn’t Jesus Christ and Him crucified, but it’s Jesus Christ and what can He do for you. You cannot have more exact opposites than the bible’s Christ centered gospel and our modern crossless me-centered gospel.”

Spoken over 20 years ago and sadly this is still the method of attack on the Gospel. Taking the cross out of the gospel. This is at the end of the 1st part of a 4 part series.  Honestly, I’ve never heard him teach scripture so I cannot testify to his skill in that area. But this still speaks to us today…

Bible Boat Cruise Theology

Upon reading the devotion at Our Daily Bread for 5-11 , pity and shame for those of us in the western world (U.S. to be specific) are at the forefront of my thoughts. If one reads this piece one will find the author uses 1 Peter 4:12-19 as his scripture reference. He uses the illustration of a safety drill practiced on a “bible-teaching” cruise in case of a true emergency akin to the warnings and encouragement Peter gives to his readers when trials come their way.

Now Peter, in this scripture reference, is not just talking about day to day trials and “headaches” as alluded to by the author. According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, fiery in the Greek means to set on fire, burn up and is described as fire tipped darts coming at us from the evil one. Peter is talking to those who are suffering for their faith in Christ, and sharing “the sufferings of Christ”. This is the spirit in which this passage was written.

So my point is this, we would do our brothers and sisters in parts of the world who are suffering for the sake of the faith a terrible disservice by sending them this kind of dribble. How could a Christian in an Islamic country suffering for proclaiming the Good News even remotely relate to this?

• Would you write to a brother of sister in an Islamic country in jail facing the gallows for their faith to think of an emergency drill on a bible-teaching cruise ship as a warning and to remain steadfast in the trial?
• How well received do you think the person who has just been beaten to the brink of death take this wisdom from the squishy pews of the western church?

I believe describing this as preposterous is putting it mildly.

If one starts reading at 1 Peter 4: 7 rather than 1 Peter 4:12 you get a better feel for what Peter is expressing. Peter states in 4:7 “The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober {spirit} for the purpose of prayer.” Having watched some of the highlights of the Blasphemy Challenge Face Off aired on ABC Nightline both on TV and online one cannot ignore what we face here in the US. Hearing the blatant ranting of Kelly the atheist calling our Father a tyrant was painful.

So is the end near? Yes, scripture says so. Remember, near is relative to God’s wisdom and timing. I do know we American Christians need to stop listening to the Bible Boat Theology of the Me Centered Church. We are fast becoming useless for the purpose of the Great Commission. Why? As stated in the past here we are abandoning Scripture for another gospel. But it certainly appears suffering is coming for us steadfast in the faith in this country and this kind of thinking will not be of any use in those times.

Oh Father forgive us of our short sightedness….

It’s OK to miss the Bible Boat Theology cruise but don’t miss the boat when it comes to God’s Word. Pick up the Word, study so you may be of use for the Gospel in these perilous times and pray.

 As each one has received a {special} gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.  Whoever speaks, {is to do so} as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves {is to do so} as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.          1 Pet 4:10 -11

Wisdom From Above

We creatures of the Father above have not changed much over the years. In the garden Satan went to twisting God’s Word. Satan said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”

Eve replied, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’”

Wrong Eve. God didn’t say a thing about not touching the fruit. (See Genesis 2:16-17)

Satan again comes back inciting doubt to what the Lord had said saying, “You surely will not die! “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

This is the story played out in Genesis 3.

This is how is has gone ever since. God speaks. Then those voices cry out telling us God certainly didn’t say that but He said this. We inadvertently, carelessly or purposely adds to what scripture says to make it fit their our own limited understanding.

Today, we encourage and worship the act of questioning God’s Word. Intellectuals who battle with faith will justify their own ideas to be added or God’s Words to be tossed out with phrases like “you don’t check your brain out at the door” . Neither Adam nor Eve didn’t need to pay hundreds and thousands of dollars to attend the newest bible conference to understand what God said or have it explained by a theory. Books by the greatest authors of the age were not needed. Of course these resources (thankfully) were not available to them.

God’s Word indeed is not the way we think or act. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD Isaiah 55:8. Quite frankly, our brains just don’t have the horsepower, or capacity to come close to grasping the Infinite Mind. So why do we continue to ignore God’s Word, dismiss it, add to it or take away from it thinking our ideas are on equal footing with His?

So what are we to do. Trust in the love of the One who loves us and that He will act in our best interest. That was done in Christ. You know, the way we trusted our parents when we were small children. “Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, that you may live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you, {According to} the faithful mercies shown to David Isaiah 55:3. “

Finally, James tells us how to recognize wisdom from above, as apposed to the twisted versions we get elsewhere, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy James 3:17″

It is Christ who came from above and is the wisdom and power of God . (See 1 Corinthians 1:24). It is in Him whom we trust.