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Cecil Andrews, 29 Edengrove Park, Ballynahinch, BT24 8AZ, Northern Ireland Telephone/Fax 028 9756 5511. E-MAIL - takeheed@aol.com WEBSITE - http://www.takeheed.net Quick Links - Home - Assorted Articles - Audio/Video - Ministry Newsletters - Words of Wisdom |
JOHN PIPER invite to RICK WARREN
In my December 2006 ‘News From The Front’ newsletter that can be viewed on http://www.takeheed.net/News_From_The_Front/DECEMBER2006.htm I included an article called ‘Defending my Father’s wrath’ that had
been written by John Piper. I included
it in the context of warning about people like Steve Chalke and others who
had publicly denied and denounced the very heart of the Gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ – namely His ‘penal substitution’
– that on the cross He, as a substitute for His chosen people, endured the
penalty of His Father’s wrath against sin.
At the conclusion of the article by Mr
Piper I included the following ‘caveat ‘–
By including this article by John Piper it should not be
construed that this is a blanket endorsement by ‘Take Heed’ of all that he
writes or does by way of ministry – I believe there are areas that currently do
give rise for some concern such as his recent willingness
to afford a platform to Mark
Driscoll
[a great ‘fan’ of the
Roman Catholic mystic Thomas Merton].
However, following ‘Take Heed’s’ own defence of ‘penal
substitution’ due to the publicly expressed attack upon it and denial of it by
Steve Chalke and Brian McLaren I felt this article by John Piper would be
helpful in that context.
It is with growing
concern that I now need to draw attention to Mr Piper’s ‘courting’ of another
controversial, so-called ‘evangelical’, and that is Rick Warren. Earlier this
year Mr Piper announced that he had issued an invitation to Rick Warren to be a
participant speaker at his ‘Desiring God’ conference planned for later this
year. A video of Mr Piper explaining the reasoning behind his decision has been
posted online and several ministries have sought, quite rightly, to challenge
some of the comments made and to question also the motivation for the invite.
One such ministry
challenge can be viewed on http://newdemonstration.com/asides/rick-warren-rock-solid-theologically-really-dr-piper and another can be viewed on http://apprising.org/2010/04/01/rick-warren-is-whatever-he-needs-to-be/
The full text of this
portion of what John Piper said was posted to this web site link http://www.sharperiron.org/filings/3-31-10/14433 and is as follows –
"I
had mentioned some negative things earlier about the emergent church, I said
the black community didn't get into it BUT the observation was the black
community at least some of you, DID get into 40 days of Purpose. Uh Mainly from
Purpose Driven Life and Purpose Driven Church and Rick Warren and Rick Warren
isn't emergent, BUT maybe not totally separate and Mark Driscoll just preached
there, and preached from the cross, and Rick was moved. And do I, what do I
think about all that?
Well I put
my cards totally on the table here, um I have invited Rick Warren to come to
the Desiring God National Conference this fall. And he's coming. Now I will get
a lot of criticism for this from my Reformed brothers, because... not because
Rick Warren is openly non calvinistic or non reformed. I don't think he wears
his theological distinctives on his sleeve, but would be probably theologically
more at home with where I am than where an arminian is. I believe that. What
makes Warren a problem, and I'm gonna... well, when I wrote him, here's what I
said. And he'll probably watch this video too. I said the conference is called
"THINK: The life of the Mind and the Love of God." I want you to
come. You are the most well known pragmatist pastor in the world. I don't think
you are a pragmatist at root. Come and tell us why thinking Biblically matters
to you in your amazingly pragmatic approach to ministry."
"I
want him to lay his cards on the table. I want him to tell us what makes him
tick. Because he does come across in much of what he says and does as very
results-oriented and pragmatic and not theologically driven, and yet, I met him
for the first time last year at Ralph Winter's funeral in Pasadena. And we sat
beside each other on the platform for three hours. I like him because he sings.
He sings badly. And anybody who's willing to sing when they sing badly, I like
em. And we were talking beforehand and he said to me 'I'm reading all the works
of Jonathan Edwards this year. I pick a great theologian every year and I read
all of his collected works. I'm on volume 17 of the Yale series of Jonathan
Edwards' works.'"
"'You've
gotta be kidding me. Nothing you've ever said would incline me to think ...'
(laughter)
"So
these guys are gonna go interview him tomorrow I think so you can quote some of
these things. I do think he's deeply
theological. He's a brilliant man. He wouldn't have the church he does or the
Peace Plan, or all the influence he does and of course the greatest sentence in
the Purpose Driven life is the first one isn't it? It's not about you, it's
about God. The Glory of God. So I don't think he's emergent. At root I think he
is theological and doctrinal and sound. And what makes him tick? Actively
and doing church? I intend to find out. So. I like him and I'm frustrated by
some of his stuff."
On the ‘Crosstalk’ blog
located on http://www.crosstalkblog.com/2010/03/john-piper-quote-of-the-day/ Ingrid Schlueter picked up on a very crucial
portion of what John Piper said regarding his invite to Rick Warren – here is
what Ingrid wrote –
Posted by Ingrid Schlueter in Purpose Driven,
Religion on March 31st, 2010 | 11 responses
“.. I do think he’s deeply theological. He’s a
brilliant man. He wouldn’t have the church he does or the Peace Plan, or all
the influence he does and of course the greatest sentence in the Purpose Driven
Life is the first one isn’t it? It’s not about you, it’s about God. The Glory
of God. So I don’t think he’s emergent. At root I think he is theological and
doctrinal and sound.”
~John
Piper, speaking here 35 minutes in on Rick Warren and his
invitation to Warren to attend his Desiring God Conference 2010
Note: Please see Pastor Bob DeWaay’s Berean Tool for the Purpose Driven Life to learn how Rick Warren’s
opening sentence referred to by Piper is denied by everything in the rest of
the Purpose Driven Life. John Piper has neglected to check the teachings of the
book with the Scriptures which is just wrong.
From the responses
posted to what Ingrid quoted here, I noted and extracted the following
incisive, discerning comments (particularly the one in red) –
‘I personally was for years, a follower of Warren, and was deceived in
ways you cannot imagine, and to hear (John Piper say)
that he is
theological at root?’
‘I’ve
been talking with my family about this, as we all come on crosstalk once daily
or weekly. We are, all of us as a family, praying for Pastor Piper in hopes
that he will recant his decision to have Warren speak at his conference’.
‘I’m truly saddened by John Piper… It’s time to view John Piper as a sly
wolf and distance ourselves from him until he repents. He can say whatever he
wants about the motive behind inviting Warren, but the truth will be revealed
in time as we watch John Piper’s ministry unfold. I really hate to see another
preacher endorse the false teacher Rick Warren.’
‘There
is no reason to offer RW yet another forum to ’show us his cards.’
“He’s a brilliant man. He
wouldn’t have the church he does or the Peace Plan, or all the influence he
does…” This reminds me of
something a friend told me years ago. He said that the number of people that
believe something is true is not a testament to its validity. To illustrate
this, he said “millions of Mormons can’t be wrong, can they?” It was
rhetorical, whereupon he answered his own question: “yes, they can, and they
are.” I’m not impressed by “the church he
has,” or the “PEACE plan,” or “influence.” I am interested in biblical
truth and doctrinal purity’.
‘Since the invitation to Driscoll, I have tried to
overlook Piper’s downgrade. How much he has meant to me in his writings and
preaching! If Warren is theological in his thinking, he is even a greater
hypocrite than I would have thought possible. To know truth and then to ignore
Biblical truth is inexcusable. What a sad day for historical Christianity!’
‘Every time Piper speaks I get a little nervous. He talks in a way that
is a little squirrely, I’m not sure where he’s going with a particular thought,
you just hope he stays on track. I would find it hard sit weekly under his
leadership. It doesn’t surprise me he would hook up with Warren.’
‘I don’t
know what to say to this. Piper is saying he’s sound because of the church he
has, peace plan, etc?! What has happened to John Piper? This is craziness and
he knows it. The size of his church doesn’t prove he’s doctrinally sound, and
the peace plan… I won’t even dignify that by addressing it. I’m just stunned.
During my recent ministry trip to the Isle of Man I was
asked specifically to speak at the midweek meeting there on the topic of ‘Rick Warren and things Purpose Driven’ and
this talk can be heard by going to this link http://www.gbc-peel.org.uk/audiosermons.htm - it is the talk listed for 17th
March.
By way of conclusion I would simply state that what John
Piper has said about Rick Warren being ‘theological and doctrinal and sound’ would be in direct conflict with the views clearly expressed by myself
in my talk, and so my concern about the ministry of John Piper continues to
grow.
Cecil Andrews – ‘Take Heed’
Ministries – 3rd April 2010