John Piper DEFENDS RICK WARREN?
παν ψευδος εκ της αληθειας ουκ εστιν
"No lie is of the truth"
The Apostle John (1 Jn 2:21)
I was not altogether surprised to learn that John Piper (of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis) recently invited none other than the mega-star of pop-Christianity, namely Rick Warren, to be a keynote speaker the Desiring God National Conference to be held in October 2010. You can read of Dr. Piper's decision to include Warren at the Desiring God website, here.
As I watched the video of Dr. Piper explaining and justifying his controversial decision, one statement immediately struck me as simply outrageous:
"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..."
May I respectfully ask what difference ANY of this might make regarding the issue of truth and fidelity for God's shepherds? Does Dr. Piper really believe that "human brilliance" or having a large church or being "popular" or devising a recycled version of the "social gospel" is ANY indication of a pastor's credibility or faithfulness regarding the duty to proclaim the exclusive truths of Yeshua to a lost and dying world??? Only "professionals" that work within institutional forms of Christianity might be impressed with the influence (i.e., "power") of someone like Rick Warren. After all, Warren's enviable success is really "shop talk" among pastors and promoters of the "church business."
I daresay that the LORD God of Israel is not impressed with such concerns…. And may I remind you that the LORD clearly warned us to be vigilant regarding hucksters and deceivers within the church who would deceive many (2 Peter 2:1-3; Matt. 24:11)? Still, the seduction of Warren's power might make sense to pastors of institutional churches that are struggling to capture people's loyalties. In the face of disappointing church growth (or revenue) projections, perhaps the marketing style, CEO leadership principles, and "pragmatism" of Warren constitutes a real temptation…
"… I'm not gonna push somebody like that [i.e., Warren] away when they've got so much to offer." John Piper
At any rate, as I continued to listen to Dr. Piper's justification of his decision, he seemed unduly impressed with Warren's claim that he had read "all of Piper's books" (a claim that Piper himself immediately sensed was a lie), though what apparently really "wowed" him was Warren's claim that had recently become an ardent student of Jonathan Edwards (Piper's theological hero) and was arduously reading through all of Edward's collected works… Wow is right! How a busy man like Warren finds the time to intelligently read Edwards' complete works — in the space of a year, no less — strains credulity. It is far more likely, given the tendency Warren has of tickling people's ears, that he "reinvented himself" for just such an opportunity… It sure seems like some kind of "sales pitch" to get another leading Evangelical onboard with his ecumenical heresy and humanistic social gospel…
Again, as I watched Piper rationalizing his decision, I got the sense that he was functioning as an "apologist" for Warren, appealing to "secondary separation" as a non-essential in the Christian life. Well, Piper is undoubtedly right that we may befriend those whom we differ theologically, but does that include allowing them to share the pulpit in our churches? Does such friendship overrule the pastoral responsibility to proclaim the truth?
At one point in the video Dr. Piper shocked me by admitting that Warren is a pragmatist:
"He's known as a pragmatist; I believe he's Biblical…" - John Piper (speaking of Rick Warren)
Woah – hold the phone… What does THAT statement mean???
In philosophy, pragmatism is the doctrine that practical consequences are the criteria of knowledge and meaning and value. A proposition is considered "true" (or "meaningful" or "intelligible") if it works or provides useful benefits; otherwise it is "false." In other words, "truth" is a recipe for making things happen… Truth is declared in the results of a belief or statement or technology — not in anything inherent by itself.
Did you catch that?
When applied to the realm of the ethical, pragmatism becomes "utilitarianism," the doctrine that the moral action is one which results in the "greatest good for the greatest number." Ethical truth is not concerned with transcendent values, duties, and the obligation to "treat every person as an end in themselves" (Kant), but rather with what is regarded as useful or expedient for the community…
Welcome to the world of Postmodern despair.
In the last analysis, the utilitarian principle is nothing less than a sophistical means to justify the "might makes right" fallacy: If more people prefer some outcome and think that it is useful to their goals, then it is ipso facto right – even if that happens to violates the rights of others who are relegated to minority status (or deemed to be "undesirable"). Hence Rick Warren advocates unity at all costs — and throwing out voices of dissent in his mission to gain more and more momentum for his "plan."
Perhaps Dr. Piper doesn't realize that in addition to being a self-confessed "pragmatist" who advocates a bloodless "social gospel" called the PEACE plan, Mr. Warren is a self-confessed member of the Council on Foreign Relations and Oxford Analytica? He's also an ardent supporter of the neo-Catholic Tony Blair who advocates for a similar form of "Christian" ecumenical apostasy. You can verify these true statements for yourself if you're willing to look into the matter…
Pragmatism and Biblical theology are POLES APART on the continuum of truth. The fact that John Piper has no problem with this is indicative of the way theologizing in the "Christian" tradition often leads to heresy. Perhaps the reason Warren's thinking is not offensive to Piper is because it is essentially consonant with the deeper implications of his "Covenant Theology," which likewise leads to a form of works-justification (i.e., an emphasis on πραγμα, works), and "Replacement Theology"). After all, if human works are the issue by which justification is demonstrated, then it would make perfect sense for the "church" to engage in an ecumenical crusade to establish the Kingdom of God on the earth…
The "New Covenant" is not a renewal of the Sinai covenant, but rather represents a radical transformation of the believer through the power of the resurrected life of Christ. The idea of "works" righteousness or justification apart from the proclamation of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection is therefore a form of serious heresy. There is NO compromise on this point, and those who advocate pragmatism above the gospel are headed for disaster…
"I want to hammer on the truth..."
During his video presentation, Dr. Piper said that he wants to "hammer on the truth." Well, I have personally met with Dr. Piper to discuss his adherence to Replacement Theology and to various "church traditions" (such his "Maundy Thursday" celebrations, his "Easter" celebrations, his "Advent" celebrations, his "New Years Day" celebrations, etc.). During my meeting with him, I was saddened to discover his pragmatic approach first hand.
For example, when I asked how he could justify dismissing the State of Israel as being "theologically irrelevant" — despite the fact that the LORD is repeatedly called the "God of Israel" and that the New Covenant itself (Jer. 31:31-37) emphatically states God's loyal love for ethnic Israel — Piper repeated his assertion that the Jews had no "right" to the land because they "broke covenant" with God… When I asked him which covenant, he claimed it was none other than the "Palestinian Covenant" (i.e., the "Covenant Between the Parts" (בְּרִית בֵּין הַבְּתָרִים) found in Genesis 15:9-21). When I countered that this covenant was unconditionally given – based on Abraham's faith – Dr. Piper suggested that justification is not entirely by faith but rather includes an aspect of "works."
If Dr. Piper wants to "hammer on the truth," as he claims, I suppose we need to qualify his meaning of "truth" as a theology conditioned by an array of presuppositions that are only acceptable to people who have already made up their mind on some very fundamental questions regarding ecclesiology, Israelology, the doctrine of justification by faith/works, and so on…
Tragically, it appears that John Piper's acceptance of Rick Warren as a keynote speaker is evidence that the implications buried within his theological framework are beginning to be exposed…
This is a sad day for Bethlehem Baptist Church and for all of Dr. Piper's fans. Over the years, Dr. Piper has encouraged many people with his writings and teachings. We continue to wish him well and pray for his complete recovery.
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