…Some of the most popular Christian leaders and authors stress the social agenda. Francis Chan, in his wildly popular book Crazy Love, wants Christians to live as simply as possible in order to give more toward the alleviation of “suffering in the world and change the reputation of His bride in America.”[25] I think one of the reasons Chan’s book has been received with such enthusiasm is that he is not telling people anything that our culture is not already saying. When Bill Gates and Warren Buffett pledged much of their vast fortunes toward the same agenda, the world applauded, just as it has for Chan. Chan is concerned about the reputation of the church in America, and not without reason. However, the true church doing the true work of God (calling people to Christ) will never win the world’s approval. Our message is offensive (1 Cor 1:18-25) and once the world catches on to that we are far more likely to be vilified and persecuted than we are to be cheered – as Jesus promised (Matt 5:11-12). We should find it a source of concern, not a reason for rejoicing, when the world likes us, as Christianity Today in its lead article in August 2011 affirmed it did.

A similar voice is David Platt’s and his book Radical. Platt offers better balance than Chan but still propagates a two-tiered gospel composed of the true gospel of redemption and the social gospel. While Platt is careful to elevate the true gospel, the social gospel of feeding the hungry and giving to the poor is the primary focus of the book and accounts for its popularity.[26] He writes, “As we meet needs on earth, we are proclaiming a gospel that transforms lives for eternity.”[27] The author does not advocate the social agenda as opposed to true evangelism, as mentioned above, but he does say that caring for the poor is evidence of salvation. As a matter of fact “rich people who neglect the poor are not the people of God.”[28] However, when we turn to the New Testament, we find that, while Christians are to be loving and generous to all people, they are never told to attempt to remedy the consequences of the sin of unbelieving humanity through social action. Instead, they are instructed to meet the needs of brothers and sisters in Christ, something Platt admits in a footnote (p. 225). In fact, the church is never commissioned to rectify injustices by dealing with the symptoms of sins but to “radically” uproot sin itself through the gospel…

In the full article, which is part 1 in a series, Gilley goes on to examine the view of well-respected evengelical leader Timothy Keller on this topic, pointing out that Keller has to quote N.T. Wright instead of the Bible in order to support his own view. One other source promoting this social gospel is Rick Warren with his PEACE plan: Promote Reconciliation, Equip Servant Leaders, Assist the Poor, Care for the Sick, and Educate the Next Generation.

I encourage you to take a few moments to read the rest (or bookmark it for when you have time later in the week) for an important church history lesson that puts this whole concern in its proper context.

Photo credit: ComfortBetrays.com

In the Old Testament passage about Daniel’s friends getting thrown into a fiery furnace by King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel chapter 3, check it out in context), I’d like to point out an important detail that we can’t miss, because of how relevant it is to the brand of Christianity that’s popular here in comfortable Southern California. Nebuchadnezzar had set up an image of gold 90 feet tall for all of the officials and leaders to come worship, and he commanded that whoever didn’t worship his image would be immediately tossed into a burning fire. Daniel’s friends from Babylon–Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (renamed to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego which erased from their original names the references to Israel’s true God)–were accused of refusing to serve the king’s gods and the image he set up. That’s the key–that they refused to serve and worship what they were expected to, though everyone else had gone along. These guys knew that it was not possible to simultaneously serve both their God and the current object of worship in their day and time. Notice that the king didn’t stop them from worshiping their own God. That wasn’t the reason they were looked down upon, that wasn’t the reason they stood out. No harm done to them if they merely paid tribute to what was expected of them by their culture…