Another gospel (October 2020)

Six months into the pandemic and the movie Ground Hog Day with Bill Murray becomes all too true. While Covid-19 expands its territory and wreaks havoc on lives, there is another pandemic sneaking its way into the Christian church and it is infecting, deceiving, and distorting God’s truth. This pandemic is promoting another gospel and its testimonies are not conversion stories but deconversion stories.

Progressive Christianity can be summed up in 5 themes: Put Yourself First; Trust your feelings over Scripture; Discover Sexual Freedom; Live out a works-based Gospel; and Promote Relativism.

Put Yourself First: Jesus calls his disciples to live a sacrificial life. Following Jesus requires turning from selfish ways and taking up our cross daily. The Christian faith is based on a dying to self and our sinful appetites as we look to a Holy God, who is the standard. Progressive Christianity’s own good news is that you can do what you want. God wants you happy more than holy.

(Luke 9:23-24)

Trust Your feelings over Scripture: If it makes you feel good, act on it. What Scripture communicates is irrelevant. Progressive Christianity communicates God is in error and/or God never meant what people said He said. This leads to a feel good mentality that contradicts the holiness of God. If God communicates something and one does not agree then the individual is correct, and God is wrong. Personal conviction is paramount, I know better than God.

(2 Timothy 3:16-17)

Sexual Freedom: Very similar to Trust Your feelings over Scripture with the addition of the statement, “I am now at peace.” Progressive Christianity communicates, the only thing that matters is that I act on my feelings. When I act on my feelings, promoters of this “gospel” communicate that the individual then becomes mature and holy to God.

(2 Timothy 4:3)

Works-Based Gospel: God no longer sets the standard for holiness. Therefore, one’s cause, which may be a great cause, becomes one’s salvation and not Jesus. The individual’s good deeds become the standard. The cross and the atonement of the grace of Christ are swept underneath the carpet creating a vacuum, replacing Christ with works.

(Ephesians 2:8-10)

Relativism: Right and wrong depends on what is practiced in the culture. What is of God is ever changing. God’s word is out of date.

(Hebrews 13:8)

Satan, the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4) continues his assault on the church and society. At the core of his doctrine are lies.

Jackie Robinson

I cannot fathom what Jackie Robinson experienced as the first African American baseball player in the major leagues (April 15, 1947). Opposing players and coaches would yell racial slurs at him during games. Teammates would ask to be traded and or keep their distance from him. One teammate’s concern was that his hardware store would be affected financially due to Jackie playing with him. Y

ou would think that the baseball commissioner at the time would step in and squash this demonic, poisonous chatter; however, he simply warned opposing teams to tone it down. In other words, do not yell racial slurs as much. The St. Louis Cardinals considered striking because of Jackie Robinson’s entry into “their” league. “No athlete faced greater pressure and dealt with more hatred than Robinson. How did Robinson succeed? There’s little doubt that his faith in Jesus played a significant role.” (Clemente Lisi)

His legacy continues today even with ongoing bias, injustice and racism that exists in our culture. The voices and actions of racism never seem to go away. Even when they appear to be “hidden” they are not, because it is still sin.

From all sides people proclaim their person will save the day, but only for periods of time. We can put laws on paper, change procedures, stand up for justice, and we should. However, to truly wipe away this sin we must look at our hearts. Change that lasts comes from a transformed heart.

“Jesus did not come to usher in a new improved version of the Kingdom of this world but Jesus came to transform our lives from the inside out (Kingdom of God) winning people, and reigning in their hearts.” (paraphrase-Pastor Greg Boyd) (Romans 6:11)

May you and I take an inventory of our hearts, and may we hear the voice of God shouting over the voice of deception.

Help us, Jesus!

Pastor Rich