Why Social Justice is Not Biblical Justice – Scott David Allen (2020)

Scott David Allen, Why Social Justice is Not Biblical Justice (Grand Rapids: Credo House Publishers, 2020), 250 pp.

In 1969, Francis Schaeffer warned, “There’s bound to be death in the city once people turn away from the base upon which our culture was built … Death in the city will be increasingly all-consuming unless there is true reformation in the church and culture upon the foundation of God and His revelation.”1 Fifty years later, Schaeffer’s words ring true as professing Christians succumb to the spirit of the age. One example of this is the introduction of social justice. Social justice has creeped into the church, parachurch, and the academy. The accommodation of this ideology has inflicted untold damage and is deceiving people and leading them astray.

Scott David Allen’s book, Why Social Justice is Not Biblical Justice sets the record straight. At the outset, the author contrasts biblical justice with social justice:

Biblical Justice: Conformity to God’s moral standard as revealed in the Ten Commandments and the Royal Law: ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’

Social Justice: Deconstructing traditional systems and structures deemed to be oppressive, and redistributing power and resources from oppressors to their victims in the pursuit of equality of outcome.

Careful readers will notice that the differences in these definitions are vast and wide. Biblical justice, which is an important aspect of God’s character is repeated throughout Scripture. Make no mistake: All Christians celebrate the reality of justice. The notion of social justice (what the author refers to as idealogical social justice) that many are embracing is not only unbiblical; it is anti-gospel. Scott David Allen skillfully shows why ideological social justice fails the biblical test and urges followers of Christ to steer clear from this worldly ideology.

There is much to commend in Allen’s book. The author shows the dangers of the “woke” movement, not to mention the ungodly ideology that drives critical race theory and intersectionality. These matters require a more comprehensive treatment, which are beyond the scope of this review. At the heart of the book, however, is a careful differentiation between the Revolutionary Narrative and the Preservation Narrative.

The Revolutionary Narrative

The Revolutionary Narrative flows directly from the polluted stream of ideological social justice. This view maintains that institutional racism and systemic injustice must be upheld and emphasized. People of color, according to the Revolutionary Narrative are constantly battling systemic white oppression.

The Revolutionary Narrative embraces the notion of “white fragility,” popularized by former University of Washington professor, Robin Diangelo. The notion of “white fragility” embraces the idea that white people need to “come to terms with their whiteness.” According to Diangelo, “whiteness has given them a big leg up in life while crushing others’ dreams, that their whiteness … has shielded them from growing up as quickly as they might have done had they not so heavily leaned on it to make it through life.”2 Thus, according to “white fragility,” all white people are racists, whether they realize it or not.

This narrative embraces the organization, Black Lives Matter, the neo-Marxist group that is growing exponentially in America. BLM is “queer affirming” and celebrates LBGTQ+ rights and seeks to abolish capitalism and replace it with a form of Marxist collectivism, not to mention the defunding of the police. The idea that America has driven by systemic racism is at the very heart of both BLM and the Revolutionary Narrative. America, in this scheme, about oppression, not freedom.

The Preservation Narrative

The Preservation Narrative “affirms the goodness of America’s founding principles and seeks to preserve them while desiring to continually improve our systems and institutions to more perfectly reflect these principles.” Such a view is deeply patriotic and cherished the work of the Founding Fathers, the United States Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.

In contrast to the Revolutionary Narrative, this narrative strongly emphasizes personal choice and responsibility. While racism exists and persists, it acknowledges that the ultimate evil lies in the human heart (Jer. 17:9). The author adds, “The challenges in the black community can be overcome in ways that are not dependent on the actions of white people, but the choices and actions of black people themselves.” Thus, individuals are accountable for their actions – both for good and evil.

The Preservation Narrative acknowledges America’s history of racism but also acknowledges the progress made, beginning with the abolition of slavery and racial equality. “Today,” writes Scott David Allen, “America is one of the least racist countries in the world and a land of opportunity for people of all ethnic backgrounds, which is why immigrants continue to flock here in huge numbers, including many with black and brown skin.” Racism, in this view, is condemned and justice is coveted for all peoples.

Non-Justice

The social justice movement has skillfully and tragically redefined justice as follows:

The tearing down of traditional structures and systems deemed to be oppressive, and the redistribution of power and resources from oppressors to victims in pursuit of equality of outcome.

For Christians, it is critical that we understand the worldview shift taking place before our eyes. We have slowly moved from a Judeo-Christian worldview that provided a framework for justice and established worth among all people. “Today,” writes the author, “all this has been cast aside, as that which formerly brought order to society and meaning and purpose to the individual has been abandoned.” Ironically, then, ideological social justice does the opposite of what it sets out to do.

Ultimately, the social justice movement seeks to overthrow the Christian worldview. The author reflects on the consequences of ideological social justice: “In the zero-sum world of social justice power struggle, there is no ‘live and let live; tolerance. No win-win, or even compromise. No place for forgiveness, or grace. No ‘love your enemy.’ No ‘first get the log out of your own eye’ introspection. There is only grievance, condemnation, and retribution. Bigots, haters, and oppressors must be destroyed.” Thoughtful Christians, then, need to see through the veneer of this diabolical scheme to supplant a God-centered worldview that sees all people as image-bearers of God and bestowed with inherent worth from their Creator.

Conclusion

Francis Schaeffer’s admonition to aim for true reformation in the church by clinging to God’s revelation hearkens our attention back to Psalm 11:3, “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” Day by day the foundations are eroding as ideological social justice eats away at the fabric of God’s propositional truth. The social justice movement strikes at the very core of the gospel – and is indeed, anti-gospel.

Rod Dreher warns us in his most recent book, Live Not By Lies that the “social justice” machine is one that must be opposed at every juncture: “Far from being confined to campuses and dry intellectual journals, social justice warrior ideals are transforming elite institutions and networks of power and influence.”3To be clear, this movement is worming its way into the church at an alarming rate. Therefore, we must resist it with all our might and focus our attention on loving God, loving people, and working to assure that people of every color and creed are accepted and loved as image-bearers of God. We must return to the cross of Jesus where justice and mercy meet and promises eternal life to each person who trusts in an all-sufficient Savior.

Why Social Justice is Not Biblical Justice is a landmark book. It should be devoured and discussed by Christians. The net gain will be a renewed interest in biblical justice and a reinvigorated passion to reach every person with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

  1. Francis A. Schaeffer, The Complete Works of Francis A. Schaeffer, Volume 4 (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1982), 222-223. ↩
  2. Robin Diangelo, White Fragility (Boston: Beacon Press, 2018), xii. ↩
  3. Ron Dreher, Live Not by Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents (New York City: Sentinel, 2020), 42. ↩

On the Road With St. Augustine – James K.A. Smith

James K.A. Smith, On the Road With Saint Augustine: A Real-World Spirituality for Restless Hearts (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2019), 240 pp.

The postmodern “prophet” and rock star, Bono Vox laments, “I have run, I have crawled, I have scaled these city walls, these city walls, only to be with you. But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.” U2 isn’t the only one tapped into the inner drive and existential angst of the ages. Augustine had them beat by 1,600 years! “Oh Lord, you have created us for yourself but our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.” It appears that Bono and Augustine have something in common!

James K.A. Smith is on a similar quest and is eager to share the fruit of his efforts in his most recent book, On the Road With Saint Augustine: A Real-World Spirituality for Restless Hearts. Smith’s work is an invitation to meet Augustine on the path that will lead to the culmination of his hopes, dreams, and desires.

Readers are in for a treat, especially the ones who have caricatured Augustine as a stuffy academician who puffs on a pipe, panders to the educated elite, and pontificates with an accent. Smith notes, “The Christian gospel, for Augustine, wasn’t just the answer to an intellectual question (though it was that); it was more like a shelter in a storm, a port for a wayward soul, nourishment for a prodigal who was famished, whose own heart had become, he said, ‘a famished land.’” As such, the “famished land” of many professing Christians will be laid bare. The fertile soil of Augustine will help nurture, strengthen, and revitalize travelers who dare to follow his lead.

The most endearing feature of Smith’s work is the emphasis on what he refers to as a “refugee spirituality.” Such an approach is desperately needed in our day, especially when most people seem content in the here and now and are satisfied with temporal trinkets: “Imagine a refugee spirituality,” writes Smith, “an understanding of human longing and estrangement that not only honors those experiences of not-at-homeness but also affirms the hope of finding a home, finding oneself … it’s about knowing how to make the journey, how to adopt the posture of the refugee who travels light.” Tragically, many American Christians are so burdened with temporal trinkets, they cannot even envision Augustine’s prescribed pursuit.

Smith traces the Augustinian path and focuses on several fascinating subjects that every pilgrim must wrestle with: freedom, ambition, sex, and death to name a few. On the Road With Saint Augustine: A Real-World Spirituality for Restless Hearts is a treasure map of sorts. Readers will see a totally new side of the Bishop of Hippo. Thoughtful readers will be prodded and poked. But they will also be encouraged and edified. They will be forced into a corner and challenged to weigh these heavenly realities and ultimately find their rest in God and the gospel of His Son.

Highly recommended!

Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault On Mind, Morals, and Meaning – Nancy Pearcey

Nancy Pearcey has done it again.  Her book Total Truth captured the attention of thousands and helped equip a new generation of thinking Christians.  While some consider the term “thinking Christian” somewhat of an oxymoron (think, “military intelligence,” or “jumbo shrimp”), nothing could be further from the truth.  Indeed, clear thinking  and warm-hearted devotion are crucial characteristics for anyone who professes faith in Christ.  Anyone who rejects the notion of a “thinking Christian” should pause and consider the thought process generated in order to make the claim!

Pearcey’s newest masterpiece, Saving Leonardo is as the subtitle suggests a call to resist the secular assault on mind, morals, and meaning.  The primary assertion: “The only hope lies in a worldview that is rationally defensible, life affirming, and rooted in creation itself.”

The Threat oF Global Secularism

In part one, the author clearly articulates the necessity of a Christ-informed worldview.  She challenges readers: “Do you have the tools to detect the ideas competing for your allegiance in movies, school textbooks, news broadcasts, and even Saturday morning cartoons?”

Pearcey reveals the goal of the book at the outset: “The goal of this book is to equip you to detect, decipher, and defeat the monolithic secularism that is spreading rapidly and imposing its values on your family and hometown.”  As such, she calls Christians to abandon the “fortress mentality” that has been prominent for years; a mentality that gravitates to isolation from the world.  Rather, Christ followers ought to become familiar with their audience and engage with them on a worldview level.    “The first step,” writes Pearcey, “is to identify and counter the key strategies uses to advance the global secular worldview.”

Next, Christians must understand how secularism views the nature of truth.  Pearcey demonstrates how empiricism has spawned what we know today as the fact/value split.  This divided concept of truth is the most important feature of a secular approach to epistemology and is “the key to unlocking the history of the Western mind.”  The author is quick to explain the biblical concept of truth; a notion that was the theme of Total Truth: “Because all things were created by a single divine mind, all truth forms a single, coherent, mutually consistent system.  Truth is unified and universal.”

The fact/value dichotomy finds values in the so-called upper story (a scheme developed by Francis Schaeffer).  These values are private, subjective, and relative.  Values include religious claims and personal preferences.  Fact are found in the lower story.  These facts are public, objective and universal.  The author gives numerous examples of how the fact/value dichotomy is diametrically opposed to the biblical view of truth.  For instance:

  • “Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
  • “Science yields facts but not ‘value judgments’; religion expresses values but cannot ‘speak facts.'” – Albert Einstein

Clearly, values posed in the fact/value dichotomy are never considered to be true.  Rather they are expressions of an opinionated individual; i.e. a so-called “bigoted Christian.”

Two Paths to Secularism

Part two uncovers two paths to secularism, namely, the Enlightenment and Romantic movements respectively.  The Enlightenment (or Analytic Tradition) is fixated on reason and relies on the scientific method.  Immanuel Kant plays a central role here with his nature/freedom dichotomy.  Various worldviews have been spawned as a result of Enlightenment thought including empiricism, rationalism, Darwinism, logical positivism, linguistic analysis, utilitarianism, and materialism.

The Romantic stream (or Continental Tradition) relies on story and is fascinated by myth and imagination.  Again, various worldviews have resulted including idealism, Marxism, deconstruction, phenomenology, existentialism, pantheism, and postmodernism.  Both streams are reductionistic and the author is careful to bring this point home repeatedly.

Pearcey dissects both streams carefully and skillfully.  Her depth and insight is very helpful and encouraging.  The final two chapters are the most helpful and practical.  The author prompts readers to give up the typical Christian fortress mentality:  “Christians must go beyond criticizing the degradation of American culture, roll  up their sleeves, and get to work on positive solutions.  The only way to drive out bad culture is with good culture.”

The author reminds Christian parents that they cannot protect their children from unbiblical worldviews.  But they can “help them develop resistance skills, by giving them the tools to recognize false ideas and counter them with a solid grasp of biblical concepts … Christians are responsible for evaluating everything against the plumb line of Scriptural truth.”

Nancy Pearcey is picking up where Francis Scheaffer left off.  And she gives Schaeffer the last word on the subject: “One of the greatest injustice we do our young people is to ask them to be conservative.  Christianity is not conservative, but revolutionary … We must teach the young to be revolutionaries, revolutionaries against the status quo.”

Everything is Spiritual – Rob Bell

Rob Bell, Everything is Spiritual (New York: St. Martin’s Publishing Group, 2020), 310 pp.

In 2011, I reviewed Love Wins, my first book by Rob Bell. The piece prompted praise by conservatives and vicious scorn by progressive Christians and liberals. Whatever anyone thinks about Bell, one thing is for sure: the guy can write. He is a master communicator. And whenever he writes or talks, people listen.

Anyone familiar with Rob Bell knows that he is somewhat of a gadfly among evangelicals. And “gadfly” is a massive understatement. But there is something endearing about Bell. Some point to his skill. Others are impressed with his intellect. For me, I’ve always been drawn to Bell’s ability to communicate what he’s truly feeling – including insecurity, childhood pain, or unfulfilled expectations. He identifies a “generational lack of grace,” a trait that is found too often in the church. His transparency is refreshing and his candor is something that is greatly needed in our day.

While I applaud Bell’s transparency, I have expressed deep concern with some of the theological and philosophical assertions that he has proposed. His most recent book, Everything Is Spiritual is no exception. Michael Eric Dyson’s endorsement of the book provides a revealing summary:

“In Everything Is Spiritual, Rob Bell updates Teilhard de Chardin’s Catholic mysticism, makes sexier Werner Heisenberg’s quantum physics, and baptizes Jewish Kabbalah in an exciting vision of the future of human evolution. Bell challenges the notion that science and belief are at war, with his sublime fusion of Christian faith and modern evolutionary science. Bell’s book is the perfect antidote to the plague of an evangelical worldview that is captive to imperial dreams and a literalism that kills the spirit of Christianity …”

I will argue in this review that while Michael Eric Dyson truly does capture the essence of Bell’s intentions in Everything Is Spiritual, the end result is unhelpful and spiritually dangerous. Instead of illumination, readers will be left in a quagmire – with more questions than answers. And they will wander aimlessly in a spiritual wasteland, armed with an inaccurate portrait of God that leaves them hopeless without the biblical gospel.

No Final Answer

One of the common themes in Bell’s writing is ambiguity. He extinguishes certitude and exalts mystery (both of which are fundamental tenets of postmodernism). Careful readers will notice that the author is quick to pay lip service to Christian theology but swiftly degenerates into a subtle (or not so subtle man-made philosophy). The Bible warns, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tim. 4:3-4, ESV).

Tragically, many have been deceived by Bell’s “spirit myths” over the years. For instance, in Bell’s book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God, he argues that God is “with us, for us, and ahead of us – all of us.” The notion that God is “with us,” “for us,” and “ahead of us (every single one of us) may sound good initially but falls short of the biblical model. It is true that God is “with” his people. We see this especially in the incarnation of Jesus, the One who is named Immanuel – or God with us (Matt. 1:23). Yet God is not “with” the man who has rejected the revelation of God in Christ. God is not “with” the one who rejects the Lord Jesus Christ and his gospel. “… Whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36).

It is true that God is “for us” – that is to say, he is for his people. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38–39, ESV). Yet, God is not “for” the man who repudiates the promises and purposes of God. The holy God opposes the proud (Jas. 4:6; 1 Pet. 5:5).

I referred to Paul’s warning in 2 Tim. 4:3-4 again and again as I read Everything is Spiritual. Indeed, doctrine is downplayed and orthodoxy is questioned. But not everything is ambiguous. As he did in Love Wins, Bell dogmatically casts aside the doctrine of hell: “Because some stories are better than others. Stories about a God who tortures people forever in hell shouldn’t be told. They’re terrible stories. They make people miserable. They make people want to kill themselves. Stories that insist that a few human beings are going to be okay and every other human being ever is doomed for eternity are horrible stories.”

In a magical twist, certitude suddenly reappears! Alas, the painful reality is obvious here: Anyone who bemoans doctrine is in fact, dogmatic themselves! It appears, then, that the dogmatic bark is worse than the bite.

No Final Authority

To make matters worse, no final authority is offered in Everything Is Spiritual. It is difficult to determine if Bell embraces pantheism, panentheism or some other theological construct. Whatever the case, the book makes much of God’s immanence and downplays his transcendence.

But what is missing here is a distinction between the Creator and the creature. Missing is a Creator who is sovereign over creation and rules over all. Bell’s account of God is noted in the biblical exchange with Moses who refers to himself as I AM. So far so good. But notice how Bell’s understanding of God undermines the Creator/creature distinction:

Moses wants to locate God, and what Moses gets is Everywhere. Moses wants something to wrap his mind around, and what he gets is All of it.

What an answer. Another way you could say I AM is Being Itself.

That’s past, that’s present, that’s future. All of it. Being Itself, the formless beyond any one form, animating all forms. The electricity the entire thing is plugged into. The water it’s all swimming in.

That’s every you that ever was and ever will be. All your yous.

Later, Bell refers once again to “Being Itself. I AM.” He writes, “You ground yourself in that, and you’re all of it. You root yourself in the source and Spirit beyond all these forms and categories and labels, you listen to that and follow that and you keep going.” Bell refers to this as the “collective unity of humanity,” or “the body of Christ.” He adds, “All of us humans ever, across time, all together, adding up to something. The body of Christ.”

Not only does this line of reasoning militate against the Creator/creature distinction; it misleads readers into believing that they are members of Christ’s body, when the unbelieving world is described as enemies of God and under his holy wrath.

Acts 17:22-31 reveals a Creator God who is the cosmos shaper, the kingdom shaker who lives above creation. He is the all-sufficient Ruler, Life-Giver, and Destiny Maker. And he is the righteous Judge who “commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed …” (Acts 17:30-31, ESV).

And Scripture speaks of the creature who was created by God (Gen. 2:7). The creatures (Adam and Eve) were originally free from sin but fell and as a result became sinners by nature and by choice (Gen. 3:1-7). As such, these sinful creatures have no inherent righteousness, no desire for God (Rom. 3:10-11). Subsequently, all creatures are born with a hatred in their hearts for God (Rom. 8:7-8). They are dead in sin (Eph. 2:1-3), and they are enslaved in sin; totally unable to come to Christ apart from God’s empowerment (John 6:44). These creatures are dependent upon God for everything. While they have the ability to make free choices, these choices are determined in eternity past (Acts 17:26; Prov. 19:21; 21:1). And these creatures are accountable to a righteous and sovereign Judge (Rom. 2:5-11).

As such, there is no final authority in Everything is Spiritual. Bell writes, “God is not detached from the world, up there, or above, or somewhere else, that would make God a form like everything else.” So, we are left with the strange and unbiblical blending of the Creator and the creature.

No Exclusive Path

One of the reasons that people are drawn to Bell is because he refuses to be boxed in by a religious system or creed. He is quick to jettison the traditional path and proudly promotes another route: “And then there was soul. This deeper voice within me telling me another truth, coaxing me to rethink what success even is. I had my own path, and it wasn’t this, and what you do with a path is you walk it … But walking your path, when you’re surrounded by multiple voices with strong opinions about what you should be doing, that takes tremendous spinal fortitude.”

“Spinal fortitude,” is to be commended. The problem is that Scripture points to one path – the path that Jesus describes as “narrow.” Jesus says, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Matt. 7:13-14).

One of the primary arguments in Bell’s book is that “everything is spiritual.” He refers to Christ, who holds all things together: “All of it. All of us. Everybody, everywhere, in Christ.” He rightly notes how every person is created with dignity and honor and possesses “infinite worth and value.” But things take a tragic turn for the worse. For the one who pursues his own path, according to Bell, is something of a radical. In a stunning admission, Bell acknowledges: “The radical is not the person who wandered off the path into the deep weeds. The radical is the one who went back to the origins, to the roots, to how it all began. Sometimes the tribe has lost its way, sometimes the ones claiming to be orthodox, correct, pure ones have gone off the rails, sometimes it’s the mother ship that has lost its bearing, and it’s the radical who’s actually rediscovering the true path.”

Radicals like Jan Hus and Martin Luther rediscovered the true path when they embraced biblical authority and the gospel of Jesus. But Bell is not referring to these stalwarts of the faith. Rather, he is referring to those who dare to break free from the chains of orthodoxy. After all, writes Bell, “You aren’t an object, you aren’t a pawn … you possess Spirit. Personal, intimate, infinite, knowing, Spirit. You reflect the divine, present in each of us. You’re in Christ.”

No exclusive path is necessary since we are “in Christ,” according to Bell. This theme emerged clearly in Love Wins as Bell undercut sovereign grace by arguing that God draws all people to himself. He writes, “ … We see that Jesus himself, again and again, demonstrates how seriously he takes his role in saving and rescuing and redeeming not just everything, but everybody.”

But Scripture stands in opposition to this theme. The Bible never declares that all people are “in Christ” as Bell supposes. Rather, each person is born in Adam and experiences death as a result (Rom. 5:12-21). Jesus never promises to rescue and redeem all people. Rather, people are assured that they will receive eternal life and forgiveness if they turn from their sin and trust the Lord Jesus Christ (John 3:15-16; 6:37, 47; 7:38; 8:12; Acts 4:12; Rom. 10:9-13, 17). When a person trusts in Christ alone for their salvation, then and only then, are they truly “in Christ.”

Bell’s “gospel” is described as “the divine announcement that you are loved and accepted exactly as you are, that everything has been taken care of, that everything you’ve been striving to earn has been yours the entire time, that you belong, in exactly this condition that you are currently in, nothing additional required or needed.” Readers are left, then, with more ambiguity. Whose “gospel” is Bell describing? And does this “gospel” tolerate sin? Does this “gospel” lay down demands? Is surrender required? Belief? Repentance? Is this “gospel” inclusive or is it exclusive? Is this “gospel light?” Or is this the “gospel” that Scripture refers to as a “different gospel” (Gal. 1:6)?

The matter of the gospel has eternal implications. The apostle Paul warns the Christians in Galatia to beware of those who “distort the gospel of Christ” (Gal. 1:7). He continues, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:8-9, ESV).

The biblical gospel or the “good news” of God begins with God. It declares that God is sovereign and holy. It tells us that God created people for his glory (Isa. 43:7). It tells us that people are sinners by nature and by choice (Rom. 3:23; 5:12). The gospel warns us that God is just and that he has the right to punish sin and that unrepentant people will endure the wrath of God for eternity (Rom. 6:23; John 3:36). The gospel tells us about a Savior who will destroy death and rescue his creatures from the power of sin and the penalty of sin. And one day this gospel will rescue followers of Jesus from sin’s very presence.

The gospel distinguishes between the Creator and the creature. Peter Jones adds, “The Bible warns us not to worship the creation but to worship and serve only the Creator. The starting point of gospel truth is that God the Creator, in the three persons of the divine Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – is the one and only God and that all which is not God was created by him … The Christian faith maintains a separateness between God and His creation.”1 The gospel makes provision for sin, exalts the crucified and risen Savior, and reconciles sinners to a holy God.

Tragically, the biblical gospel is jettisoned in Everything is Spiritual. The gospel is reduced to a “divine announcement” of acceptance. This soft, inclusive “gospel” is a different gospel that Scripture condemns (Gal. 1:6, 9).

Summary

“Everything is spiritual.” The very idea sounds so very, well … spiritual. And people who flock to read the musings of Bell continue in a trancelike state like they’ve been doing for years. But the author makes a very revealing statement near the end of the book. He writes, “I want to help people rediscover the wonder and awe of their existence.” Yet, no final answer is given. No final authority is offered. And no exclusive path is revealed. Instead of rediscovering “the wonder and awe of their existence,” readers are left wandering in an existential fog, unaware of the Creator God who made all things for his glory; the transcendent God who sovereignly rules and reigns; the God who sent his Son to rescue sinners, redeem them, and bless them with eternal life.

Michael Eric Dyson refers to Bell’s book as “a perfect spiritual antidote to the plague of an evangelical worldview that is captive to imperial dreams and a literalism that kills the spirit of Christianity.” Nothing could be further from the truth. The message that Rob Bell presents in this book is anything but spiritual. Instead, it offers a syncretistic concoction of worldly philosophy that leads the unsuspecting on a path to divine judgment. That’s a far cry from an antidote. Poison doesn’t cure disease. Poison kills the unsuspecting.

  1. Peter Jones, Gospel Truth, Pagan Lies: Can You Tell the Difference? (Enumclaw: Winepress Publishing, 1999), 23-24. ↩

Death By Living – N.D. Wilson

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Grasshoppers, swings, dirt, traffic jams, puppy dogs, and blue skies. N.D. Wilson appears to be captivated by everyday objects and everyday situations. He appears to be captivated by life. Living life is what his new book is meant to convey – really living life. But living also means dying.  So the author wordsmiths his way into the heart of readers by painting portraits of life and death – most of which arise from his own life and the lives of his family and extended family.

Death by Living is a plea for people to living life as God intends. In other words, to quote Red from Shawshank Redemption, “Get busy livin’ or get busy dying.” Wilson challenges readers to get busy living which of course will culminate with death: “How much of the vineyard can we burn first? How fast can we run? How deeply can we laugh?  Can we ever give more than we receive? How much gratitude can we show? How many of the least of these can we touch along the way? How many seeds will we get into the ground before we ourselves are planted?”

A theme that runs through Wilson’s work is that life is a story. Life is a story that each of us participates in. Indeed, we write our stories every day.  But the author maintains, “there is a difference between asserting that life is a story and actually living life like a story. And there is another difference between living life-like a story and living life like a good story.”  Living life like a story, therefore, is part and parcel of the Christian life.

The author helps readers see what real living looks like: “Grabbing will always fail. Giving will always succeed … Our children, our friends, and our neighbors will all be better off if we work to accumulate for their sakes … Don’t leave food uneaten, strength unspent, wine undrunk.”

Wilson urges readers to live with all their might. And while he never mentions Jonathan Edwards, I hear a strong Edwardsian influence throughout the book. Edwards himself penned 70 resolutions that reflect many of the propositions in Death by Living. One of those resolutions is to “live with all my might, while I do live” (Resolution 6). Nate Wilson argues in the same vein, which of course, is undergirded by America’s greatest intellectual: “Laugh from your gut.  Burden your moments with thankfulness. Be as empty as you can be when that clock winds down. Spend your life.  And if time is a river, may you leave a wake.”

Death by Living will elicit laughter – lots of laughter.  I found myself reading portions of Wilson’s work to my wife and she would laugh with me.  In fact, I haven’t laughed so hard in a while!  Some won’t find Wilson’s humor funny – which makes me laugh even harder!

Death by Living may prompt tears. There is a realism here that is hard to come by these days. This author speaks in candid terms.  Taking prisoners simply isn’t an option.  All the cards are on the table.  Readers are left to determine a whether the “hand they’ve been dealt” will result in joyful, Christ-saturated living or death by a thousand qualifications.  Far too many have simply thrown in the towel.  Wilson argues from an entirely different perspective as he encourages readers that “life is meant to be spent.”

One reviewer compares Wilson to John Eldredge – what is likely meant to be a compliment. Sure, whatever.  I prefer as I have done elsewhere [See my review: Notes From the Tilt-a-Whirl] to compare Wilson to Dennis Miller, G.K. Chesterton, and C.S. Lewis – no doubt a true compliment!  Death by Living is about the gospel but it never comes across in “preachy” tones.  It’s a celebration of a life lived and ended well.  It’s about a life that is lived passionately and faithfully.  Death by Living is about living with gusto; about living with passion; about living to honor Christ.  But real living also requires dying.  We are called to finish strong and die well – all to the glory of God!

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. 

 

Steal Away Home – Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey

chMatt Carter and Aaron Ivey, Steal Away Home, Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2017, 294 pp. $14.60

Church history is filled with stories of courage, adventure, adversity, and persecution. From the exile of Athanasius, the martyrdom of John Rogers and William Tyndale, or Luther’s trial at Worms, these stories are well-known and we are quick to pass them along to the next generation.

Steal Away Home by Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey is a tale that will be new to many readers, however.  It was certainly new for me! The story involves two men from backgrounds that have very little in common. C.H. Spurgeon was the Prince of Preachers, a refined man with a rich theological heritage who occupied the pulpit in Victorian England. He was well-known around the world. He was a best-selling author and recognized by thousands. Thomas Johnson was a simple slave boy who was unjustly shackled in colonial America. He was known by few and treated like an animal. His slave master worked him to the bone on the Virginia tobacco fields.

Jesus Christ liberated Thomas Johnson. He freed him from the power and the penalty of sin. President Abraham Lincoln rescued Thomas Johnson from the sin of slavery. The Emancipation Proclamation, which Lincoln regarded as the crowning achievement of his presidency, liberated Thomas from his slave master. Jesus Christ liberated Thomas from the slave master of sin.

Through a series of Providential events, Thomas Johnson found himself at the front door of C.H. Spurgeon in London. After his training was complete, he and his wife made their way to Cameroon, West Africa in 1879.

PERSONAL TAKEAWAYS

Steal Away Home is a work of historical fiction. It becomes clear at the outset, however, that the authors spent many hours researching the details of this intriguing story. My hope is that a few personal takeaways will prompt many people to enter rich world of the 19th century and absorb some life-altering lessons.

1. The Humanization of C.H. Spurgeon

I have been reading Spurgeon and books about the Prince of Preachers for almost thirty years. This book brilliantly captures the essence of Spurgeon and is not afraid of revealing his warts, weaknesses, and worries. It is a breath of fresh air for anyone who is under the false notion that the famous preacher from London lived a life of ease. Spurgeon’s doubt and lifelong battle with depression is highlighted and his fears are revealed.

2. The Horror of Slavery

Most Americans recognize that slavery is a perpetual “black eye” on our nations’ history. But few understand the gravity of what these innocent African Americans endured. Carter and Ivey masterfully reveal the pitiful nature of slavery through the eyes of Thomas Johnson. Sympathetic readers will feel genuine grief as they walk with Johnson and experience the horror of his chains.

3. The Hallowed Ground of Friendship

Steal Away Home reminds readers of the importance and value of friendship. The friendship fostered by Spurgeon and Thomas is grounded in grace and nurtured by honest communication, genuine fun, rich encouragement, and biblical accountability. Like David and Jonathan, these two men are examples of friendship that glorifies God. Indeed, “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother” (Prov. 18:24). Indeed, friendship is hallowed ground that too few men tread upon.

4. The Hope of the Gospel

Finally, this story shows how the gospel operates in the real world. Apart from grace, Charles Haddon Spurgeon and Thomas Johnson were dead in trespasses and sins, without hope and without God. Indeed, apart from grace, Spurgeon and Johnson were both spiritual slaves. Both men, however, were set free as they cast their hope on the Lord Jesus Christ. In the course of their very different earthly paths, they wound up on the same spiritual path, which ultimately led them both to the Celestial City!

Steal Away Home encouraged me personally and moved my soul in ways that most books only hope to do. Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey stepped up to the plate and hit the ball out of the park.  Their work will no doubt be a contender for book of the year.  I commend their work wholeheartedly!

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

The Trinity: An Introduction – Scott Swain

Scott R. Swain, The Trinity: An Introduction (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2020), 154 pp.

The short Studies in Systematic Theology series by Crossway Books invites readers to dig deeply into the treasure chest of Scripture. Each volume sets out to accomplish five important tasks:

  1. Introduce a specific doctrine
  2. Reveal it in context
  3. Develop it biblically
  4. Demonstrate how the various threads of truth cohere
  5. Show how it practically impacts the Christian life.

The Trinity: An Introduction by Scott R. Swain is the latest volume in the series and accomplishes each of the important tasks above. In eight short chapters, the author casts the important theological vocabulary and shows readers where it may be found in Scripture.

Once the foundation is properly in place, the author unpacks some important theological realities that every reader needs to wrestle with. He focuses on the simplicity of God in a clear and understandable way. Each member of the Trinity is seen as co-equal and co-eternal and each person is fully God.

The remaining two chapters discuss the shape and the end of God’s triune work and prove to be the most valuable contributions in the book. The grand conclusion is the culmination of God’s redemptive plan:

God the Father has given a bride to God the Son, and God’s cosmic palace-temple is constructed to be their marital habitation (Rev. 19:6-10; 21:2). Within the divine King’s cosmic palace-temple, those united in marriage to Jesus Christ are welcomed into God’s household as Jesus’s redeemed siblings.

While much may be gained in Swain’s short volume, one weakness is his critique of what is commonly referred to as eternal relations of authority and submission (ERAS). The author unfairly (and unwisely) includes this understanding of the Trinity (held by notable theologians such as Wayne Grudem, Bruce Ware, and Owen Strachan) alongside the heresies of modalism and subordinationism. Incidentally, Dr. John Frame, a distinguished Reformed theologian also holds to the eternal subordination of the Son and argues persuasively that “hierarchy does not compromise the equality of nature, glory, and honor among the persons.”1 Swain seeks to undermine ERAS and fails in the end. In my mind, his argument generates more heat than light and needlessly detracts from the rest of the excellent material in the book.

Overall, however, The Trinity: An Introduction successfully carries out the stated aims in the Short Studies in Systematic Theology series. The great benefit of Dr. Swain’s treatment of the Trinity is its brevity. While the book only weighs in at 154 pages, it packs a powerful punch. The author does not short-change his readers. Rather, he offers a introduction to the Trinity that educates and leads to reverent acts of worship.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

  1. John M. Frame, The Doctrine of God (Phillipsburg: Presbyterian & Reformed, 2002), 721. ↩

God, Greed, and the (Prosperity) Gospel – Costi Hinn

hinnCosti W. Hinn, God, Greed, and the (Prosperity) Gospel (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2019), 223 pp.

The so-called prosperity gospel has been a virtual “wrecking ball,” inflicting damage on the unsuspecting, infiltrating local churches with a diabolical message of health and wealth, and inviting the wrath of a holy God. The prosperity gospel is not another version of the gospel. It is “a different gospel,” one that not only devastates and deceives – this gospel damns.

The apostle Paul addressed the church in Galatia and confronted the false gospel of his day:

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel- not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed (Gal. 1:6-9, ESV).

False gospels must be confronted, as Paul addressed the Galatians who turned to the “gospel” of the Judaizers in the first-century. Costi W. Hinn confronts the prosperity gospel in his latest book, God, Greed, and the (Prosperity) Gospel. Hinn clearly defines the poisonous effects of this pernicious movement: “The prosperity gospel is here to stay and is spanning the globe, doing damage to the true gospel of Jesus Christ. It is an evil that poses as a blessing but is truly a curse. It appears to be a loving extension of God’s goodness but is arguably the most hateful and abusive kind of false teaching plaguing the church today.”

Hinn describes how he grew up and was groomed to serve alongside his famous uncle, Benny Hinn and how God revealed the diabolical underpinnings of the prosperity gospel, which led to his repentance, conversion, and departure from the movement.

The author describes the origins of the prosperity gospel and the core elements with all of its trappings. He demonstrates from Scripture why prosperity teaching is abominable and warns readers to flee from its deadly influence. Hinn reveals ten reasons that the prosperity gospel is antithetical to Scripture:

  1. It distorts the biblical gospel.
  2. It insults God’s nature.
  3. It confuses the atonement.
  4. It demeans Jesus Christ.
  5. It twists Scripture.
  6. It is motivated by love for money.
  7. It produces false converts.
  8. It overcomplicates faith.
  9. It ruins Christianity’s witness.
  10. It abuses vulnerable people.

Thoughtful and discerning readers will take these principles to heart and be careful to guard the biblical gospel.

Costi Hinn does not shy away from controversy. But he also speaks the truth in love and his arguments are grounded in grace. God, Greed, and the (Prosperity) Gospel is sure to raise eyebrows. Hinn’s work is a labor of love that will serve the church well. And it will surely draw some people out of this false system and lead them to the truth.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

John Calvin: For a New Reformation

calDerek W.H. Thomas and John W. Tweeddale, Ed. John Calvin: For a New Reformation (Wheaton: Crossway, 2019), 608 pp.

Over two thousand years of church history have produced a wide assortment of Christian leaders, theologians, and churchmen.  One man who exerted an enormous amount of influence in his day was John Calvin. In recent years, theologians and pastors have revived an interest in Calvin including, A Godward Gaze: The Holy Pursuit of John Calvin, by yours truly.

The most recent and comprehensive offering is an edited volume by Derek W.H. Thomas and John W. Tweeddale. This massive volume that spans over 600 pages includes contributions from well-known scholars such as Stephen Nichols, Steven Lawson, Burk Parsons, Paul Helm and others. The afterward by R.C. Sproul is a fitting conclusion from the man who should be credited for restoring an interest in Reformed theology in the twentieth-century church. Dr. Sproul’s words are especially moving and significant, since this is his last published writing before his death in 2017.

John Calvin: For a New Reformation is arranged in two parts. Part 1 explores the life and work of John Calvin. The contributors share a wealth of biographical information on Calvin including his early years, conversion, and friendships. Especially significant is the piece by Steven Lawson that summarizes the expository preaching of Calvin.

Part 2 explores the teaching of John Calvin. The contributors weigh in on several doctrinal subjects including the providence of God, the person and work of Christ, predestination, the sacraments, perseverance of the saints, and Calvin’s approach to eschatology. Edward Donnelly’s chapter, The Christian Life stands out the most. Donnelly helps readers see the pastoral heart of Calvin, which is undergirded by four central features of the Christian life: self-denial, cross—bearing, meditation on the future life, and the present life. Donnelly shows how Calvin lived an authentic and transparent Christian life, which inspired thousands of people in the sixteenth century and continues to inspire people in our day.

Additionally, Donnelly shows readers how Calvin lived in constant fellowship with the Lord and submitted daily to his lordship. “We are God’s,” writes Calvin. This acknowledgment was the very essence of Calvin’s Christian life. Also, Calvin was committed to mortifying idolatry and serving other people.

Over the years, I have read dozens of books about the French Reformer, John Calvin. This book is among the best. Thomas and Tweeddale should be commended for assembling such a worthy team of writers who celebrate a man that continues to wield a mighty influence on individual lives and the church of Jesus Christ.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

Sola: How the Five Solas Are Still Reforming the Church – James K. Allen, Ed

Jason K. Allen, Sola: How the Five Solas Are Still Reforming the Church (Chicago: Moody Press, 2019), 135 pp.

The heart of what Luther and the reformers discovered during the sixteenth century can be summarized in what we know today as the five solas of the Reformation, namely, that sinners are saved by grace alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide), in Christ alone (sola Christus), on the Word alone (Sola Scriptura) for the glory of God alone (soli Deo gloria). These concise statements, what Jason Allen refers to as the “perennial touchpoint of theological and spiritual formation.” The solas, then, form an unbreakable bond on which the Reformation was built and on which the church stands.

Sola: How the Five Solas Are Still Reforming the Church, edited by Jason K. Allen is a primer on the the reformation slogans and the importance they have on the church in our generation. Each sola is carefully define, explained in its historical context, and defended biblically. Finally, each author presents the practical application that comes as a result.

These theological realities that the five solas represent not only set sixteenth century Europe on fire; they set individual hearts ablaze wherever they were proclaimed and lived out. And these unchanging truths have the power to spark new reformation and revival in our hearts today.

Sola: How the Five Solas Are Still Reforming the Church is a perfect entryway for anyone who seeks to understand why the Reformation still matters. These truths are not optional for Christ-followers. Rather, they stand at the very center of the gospel and should be boldly proclaimed.

Soli Deo Gloria!

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.