A Purpose Driven Life – God’s Plan for you?
by
Stuart L Brogden
Rick Warren’s book appears to fill a significant gap,
purporting to answer a legitimate question, “What on Earth am I here for?”
I whole-heartedly endorse several chapters in this book (2,15
– 20, 25 – 29, 31, 32, 35), but must confess at the out-set that I believe this
book has enough wrong with it to warrant careful handling. I have tried
to focus on what I consider serious concerns with this book, dropping from this
review over 5 pages of notes in the effort to not pick nits – at which
I’m told I am quite good. As with everything, God’s Word is the
authority.
One question I ponder every time a “Christian” book hits the
bestseller list: “What in this book appeals to the sinful flesh?”
No thinking person can honestly believe that such a high-sales book focuses on
the requirements for discipleship – die to self. This country does not
have enough Biblical disciples to account for this many book sales.
Let’s start out with the title, “The Purpose Driven
Life”. Are we who claim Christ as King supposed to be
driven? Throughout scripture, God drives His enemies – this
word brings the connotation of coercion, disdain. This does not describe
how God herds His people, whom He calls sheep. Opposed to cattlemen,
shepherds lead their flocks. And God leads His people, just
as a shepherd; He does not drive us.
In Exodus 6:1, God tells Israel that Pharaoh would drive
them out with a hard heart. A few verses later, Exodus 6:8, God tells the
children of Israel He will bring (to carry or pull in) them to the
Promised Land. You may recall that God led the nation of Israel during
their 40 years in the wilderness – by day with a pillar of cloud and by night
with a pillar of fire. This contrast is repeated through many books in
the Bible – none of which is accident or coincidence.
I submit that Christians should be purposeful and
Spirit led, not purpose driven. I do not think this
is merely semantics – there is too much clarity and consistency in scripture on
this point. Check out the summary chart that follows.
Warren
declares (page 9) “life’s most important question” to be, “What on earth am
I here for?” Is this the most important question of
life? Might scripture suggest, “Who is God?” may be more
important? He goes on to declare that after you finish his book, “you
will know God’s purpose for you … “ This strikes me as presumptive
arrogance on Warren’s part: how can he know each reader will know
God’s purpose at the completion of his book?
Still on page 9, Warren
tells us, “Whenever God wanted to prepare someone for his purposes, he took
forty days.” Here’s that smug assurance again, declaring this and
providing no reference. Not only is this statement wrong (how long did
God take to prepare Saul to become Paul? More than three years.), it is a
blatantly false statement that lends numerology-based “credibility” to his
premise. 40 is a significant number used
myriad places in scripture – but God is not tied to numbers and no man should
try to define God in ways and methods He has not revealed to us in His
Word. And it was 40 YEARS, not days, that Moses and company wondered in
the wilderness – and this was after Moses had spent 40 YEARS, not days, in the
desert being “prepared for God’s purposes”. Note that on page 222, Warren runs down several
examples of God taking long periods of time to prepare certain people. He
covers himself by saying these incidents are “character building” rather than
“preparing for God’s purpose.” Confused?
Warren
tells us (pg 10), “Jesus was empowered by 40 days in the wilderness.”
Empowered? Scripture says He was tested, severely – and was
ministered to by angels after Satan left Him. The number of days has
significance, no doubt, to Biblically literate Jews, but is not a formula that
God relies upon to fulfill His plans. Warren prophecies that the reader will be
transformed by the 40 days he plans for us in his book. A period of time
never transforms a person – only God can do that and He is not tied to
calendars or clocks.
Why is Rick Warren driven to make this egregious
error? Why does he manipulate his source information to reinforce what
can only properly be called numerology?
In closing out his introduction, Rick Warren sounds more
like Benny Hinn than a disciple of Jesus: He tells us
that he has special insight into our lives (pg 12), “I know all the great
things that are going to happen to you.” Christian – are you reading
this book? Paul tells us to test everything, hold to that which is true
(1 Thess 5:21) and Christ tells us the greatest
commandment is to love the Lord our God with our whole heart, soul, and mind. Are you loving Him with your mind?
Page 20, “He has clearly revealed his
five purposes for our lives through the Bible.” Warren gives no evidence
that there are only 5 purposes, or that God hasn’t clearly revealed only 2
purposes. Does Rick Warren have special insight? He then quotes (pg
20) from “the Message” and calls that book, “the Bible”.
Throughout his book, Warren
refers to this human paraphrase (which is oft quite excellent and occasionally
poor, but never is it scripture) as God’s Word.
Page 27, “Everyone’s life is driven by
something.” While any reasonable person would look around America and
agree that many people are driven by something, who – apart from God – can say everyone
is driven? Indeed, I submit that disciples of
Christ, successfully walking in the Spirit, are not driven by anything but are
led by the Holy Spirit.
On page 31, Warren
declares another absolute without providing any reference: “Purpose-driven
living leads to a simpler lifestyle and a saner schedule.” What
American doesn’t want a simpler life and a saner schedule? But we must
ask, is having a purpose-driven life God’s way to achieve this or does being
driven cause stress and anxiety? God tells us to fix our eye on Christ.
Warren
tells us on page 33, “Purpose always produces passion.” First,
passion is not God’s priority – obedience is. Second, my job has been a
cogent example of having purpose – both for the company and as a means of
supporting my family – but it has often failed to produce passion. I can
agree that many good, Godly works would be left undone if we were bereft of passion;
and that many a Godly purpose can produce passion. But not always,
and that isn’t God’s purpose.
Page 34, A time worn scenario,
wherein God asks you “What did you do with my Son, Jesus Christ?”
While this makes a good point – we should ponder this question – it doesn’t
properly reflect God’s character nor His revelation of
judgment day. God does not need to ask anyone this question and nobody
will be asked it. Our names are either in the Book of Life or they are
not. God knows the list and it remains only to be revealed to those who
find themselves before the White Throne of judgment (Rev 20:12 – 15).
Page 37, Warren
states, “If you learn to love and trust God’s Son, Jesus, you will be
invited to spend the rest of eternity with him.” This is a poor interpretation
of scripture. Consider Acts 16:30 – 31, “Sirs, what must I do to be
saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be
saved, and thy house.” Warren’s
“learn to love and trust” describes the long-term process of sanctification,
not salvation. We must be called (“invited”) by the Spirit of God before
we can love or trust Christ.
Page 40, “The deeds of this life are
the destiny of the next.” All saints of God agree that the
focus on eternity is wise, but this sentence tells the reader that his works
determine his salvation. Clearly, God’s Word tells us, “For by grace
are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians
2:8 – 9). In case this isn’t clear enough, in Colossians 2:8 – 15
we are told that Christ is supreme, the Lamb of God - who made us alive when we
were dead in our sins. Christ’s deeds – His work on the cross –
determined our destiny. Without His sacrifice, our destiny – hell – was
sealed. By His sacrifice, called by His Spirit, and given the faith to
believe, we are saved from hell and sealed for all time in Christ.
Page 69, Warren
tells us that in the days of Noah, “God couldn’t find anyone on earth
interested in pleasing him …” Then he tells us, referring to Noah, “But
there was one man who made God smile.” Now which is it? One of
these statements, separated by one sentence, must be false. “Noah found
favor in the sight of the Lord.” (Gen 6:8). We know Warren’s second statement is true – it’s
validated in scripture – so we know his earlier statement is false. God
knew of one man on Earth who pleased Him and He knew that man was Noah.
Warren
tells us (pg 105) that we are lying when we tell someone, “I’ll be there in
spirit.” He claims we can only be where our physical body is.
Certainly, his point about serving God with our bodies is on target, but this
assertion - again, with no reference –
contradicts scripture! Ephesians 2:4 – 6 tells us that we who are in
Christ are at this moment seated together with Christ in
heaven. This is truth – we are present in spirit where we are not present
in body. When you tell a friend you will be there in spirit, this can
be true if you are in prayer for that friend at that time.
Page 108, He quotes Floyd McClung, who mentions rebuking the
devil as a method of seeking “spiritual feelings” (whatever those are).
This is another bit of emotion baiting, used by radio personality Bob Larson,
but not found in scripture. God may rebuke Satan, but man is told simply
to resist him (James 4:7) as an act of humility before God. When man
rebukes something, it evokes pride in him, not humility. By quoting McClung, Warren
lends credence to the man and his quoted statement.
Regarding Chapter 21: Unity in and of itself is not a
biblical goal for believers. Protecting our church will happen when we
seek God’s Truth and strive to live as obedient children. I think Warren takes a reasonable
goal – unity within the church – and makes that outcome more important than our
personal pursuit of holiness. Too many churches focus on unity to the
exclusion of reasoned discussion or biblical resolution of conflicts.
Christians should never sacrifice truth or personal obedience to Christ for the
sake of “unity”. Warren
rightfully points out (pg 163) that reconciliation is God’s desire for
us. Unity will be by-product of obedient living.
On page 162, Warren
points out that we are not perfect, that Christians still hurt one
another. But he calls Christians sinners, because we sin.
God recognizes that His children sin, but He refers to His children as “saints”,
and calls the unredeemed “sinners”. (Read Romans 1:1 – 7 and
Romans 5:8 for an example.) It is important for us to see ourselves as
God describes us.
On page 164, Warren
tells the reader, “When you criticize what another believer is doing in
faith and from sincere conviction, you are interfering with God’s business.”
Warren focuses
on two totally subjective measures (faith & conviction) and omits the one
objective measure – is the other believer’s behavior in concert with or
contradictory to God’s Word? Doing something wrong with sincere
conviction and faith is meaningless and dangerous guidance. Many people
are sincerely wrong about many things – abortion, homosexuality, divorce.
They have faith in themselves – not God. Faith itself is not adequate nor
is it a validation of trust in God. For it is the object of your faith,
not your faith, that is significant. That’s why just a little is
sufficient.
If you have a friend who trusts Christ but is sincerely
pursuing that which is wrong, you need to know that God commands you to get
involved (Galatians 6:1 – 2). Let us recall God’s encouragement from
Proverbs, “Open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds
of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” (Proverbs 27:5 – 6)
On page 166, Warren
tells us that Pastors are “given the impossible task of trying to make
everyone happy, which even Jesus could not do!” First, any pastor who
has this task has taken it upon himself. It’s not his job, it’s not
anyone’s job. Jesus did not even try to make everyone happy. He
sought to please only one person – His Father in heaven. Why does Warren tell us this, to
make us feel sorry for our pastors – or to think Christ can fall short at
something?
Warren
promotes his church’s use of membership covenants as a tool that facilitates
unity (page 167). Who, at Saddleback, has the purpose of holding the clergy
accountable? A church can be unified and failing to follow Christ.
The record cited by Warren
(Saddleback “has never had a conflict that split the fellowship.”) could
reflect a.) The power of God in keeping everyone humble, b.)
Conflict not worth splitting over, or c.) Conflict that is unresolved and hidden. We are not
told if people have left Saddleback as a result of conflict. Check out
the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (http://www.ufmcc.com) to see unity in
apostasy.
Page 174, “Obedience unlocks God’s
power.” Every author who assigns human characteristics to God
that are not revealed in scripture gets himself in
trouble. Where does Warren
get the notion that God is dependent on sinful man’s obedience to “unlock” His
power? When the children of Israel disobeyed God, He released
His power and disciplined them. When Jonah disobeyed God, He displayed
His power by commanding a great fish to change Jonah’s course. God alone
chooses when, where, and how to use His power and no man can lock it up or
control it . In the example he cites, Warren completely
misrepresents God. The Lord was not held back from stopping the river Jordan until
the Israeli leaders stepped out as commended. He chose to hold back until
that act of faith for His glory and the good of Israel. He chose – He was not
held back nor was He released by the people He chose.
On page 175, we are told, “God waits for you to act
first.” Why can he not qualify this -
“Often, God waits for you to act first.”? Again, he provides no reference
and the Bible gives examples of God taking the initiative – most importantly,
in the act of salvation (John 6:44). We would all go to hell if God
waited for us to “act first” and seek Him.
Page 177, “Much confusion in the
Christian life comes from ignoring the simple truth that God is more interested
in building your character than he is anything else.” Where
did Warren find
this “simple truth”? This makes me think, “It is all
about me!” But we know Rick was right on page 17 when he said
otherwise. I think the Bible tells us God desires to be glorified more
than He desires anything else – God’s glory is what Jesus was focused on (John
chapters 14 & 16, & 17) and it is reflected in the first two
commandments (Exodus 20:1 – 6). And bringing glory to God is what Christ
tells us to do (Matthew 5:16). It is the one thing He won’t share.
Page 257, “God determines your greatness by how many
people you serve, not how many serve you.” What is this and where did
it come from? Warren
provides no reference and I wonder if this perspective is what drives him to
build the membership at Saddleback. I think God judges our “greatness” (I
would choose “worth”) by how we serve Him and others, not how many people we
serve. The old widow in Mark 12:41 – 44 didn’t serve any people, yet
Christ put high value on her. It is our heart motive, not our earthly
influence, which matters to Him.
We are told (pg 282) that “Introducing people to God!”
is the mission of the church. (Again, I’m confused: we have one mission
but five purposes?) Jesus gave us what we call “the Great Commission”
(Matthew 28:18 – 20), wherein we are told to “make disciples” – not “introduce
people to God.” One of the major problems in the church today is that we
have too many Christians who have been introduced to God and too few disciples
of the Lord Jesus Christ!
“God has never made a person he didn’t love.” (pg 294). There is no scriptural reference for this
belief, yet Paul reminds us in Romans 9:7 – 13 that God hated Esau, even before
he was born. Paul continues to explain how God chooses to treat people as
it suits Him in Romans 9:14 – 24, making it clear that some folk are created by
God as objects of His wrath. But let no man think he knows the mind of
Almighty God on the specifics of this matter. Check out Proverbs 16:4
My apologies for the length of this examination of Rick
Warren’s book, but I could not see clear to omit anything above. I pray
God alone speaks to our hearts through His Spirit and His Word to grant us
wisdom to know and love Him all the more, in truth and in humility.
In His grip of grace,
Stuart
L. Brogden
19 Aug 2004
1 Peter 2:17
Driven or
Led?
Notice the difference between being
"driven" and being "led":
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Driven usually implies a controlling force
pushing or forcing a passive subject (cattle, enemies, rebellious people,
ship, etc):
"He is driven from light into
darkness..." Job 18:18
"...until He has driven out His enemies from before Him." Numbers 32:21
"...you shall be driven mad because of the sight which your eyes
see." Deuteronomy 28:34-35
“For the Lord has driven out from before you great and strong nations;
but as for you, no one has been able to stand against you to this day." Joshua 23:9
"David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before those
other livestock." 1 Samuel 30:19-20
"Will You frighten a leaf driven to and fro?" Job 13:25
"Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom
of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness." Isaiah 8:22
"But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where
I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds." Jeremiah 23:3
"You shall be driven out, everyone headlong,
and no one will gather those who wander off." Jeremiah 49:5
"But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened in pride,
he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from
him. Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made
like the beasts." Daniel 5:20-21
"But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed
by the wind. For let not that man suppose that
he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable
in all his ways." James 1:6-8
"Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven
by fierce winds." James 3:4
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Led or lead usually implies
a choice on the part of God's people -- those who look to His Word
and want to know and follow His ways:
"And the Lord went before them by day
in a pillar of cloud to lead the way." Exodus 13:21
"Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let
them lead me." Psalm 43:3
"O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy
the way of your paths.” Isaiah 3:12
"Lead me in Your truth and
teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all the
day." Psalm 25:5
"I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make
darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. " Isaiah 42:16
"Even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall
hold me." Psalm 139:10
"...see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way
everlasting." Psalm 139:24
"Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead
me in the land of uprightness." Psalm 143:10
"I will bring the blind by a way they did not know;
I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make
darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. "
Isaiah 42:16
"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil
one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the
glory forever." Matthew 6:13
"...for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will
shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe
away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:17
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