Before I begin, I want to say that what I am about to say will have opposition. Some people will agree with what I am about to say and some will vehemently disagree. I am writing this because I believe that many evangelicals have read the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. This book at one time was the most popular book in America. It was promoted by well known evangelical leaders such as Max Lucado, Billy Graham, and Bruce Wilkinson. Sales soared into the millions and the church became fascinated with the Purpose Driven Life. It has now became one of the best selling books of all time. Churches all over America have adopted the 40 days of purpose and the book gave Rick Warren worldwide recognition. Many churches have had seminars and went through the Purpose Driven Life. With that being said I want to warn the church that are many deficiencies in Warren's theology that need to be pointed out. My goal is not to label Warren as a heretic, but to warn people that the Purpose Driven Life is not what it claims to be, nor should it be applauded as a book that will dramatically change your life in 40 days.
The first thing I want to point out is that Warren's style promotes a casual approach to Scripture. At first glance, Warren's initial claim sounds great. Warren states that " the best way to explain God's purpose for your life is to allow the Scripture to speak for itself, so in this book the Bible is quoted extensively(11)." However, after further examination, it is this writer's opinion that Warren pulls passages completely out of context and applies them however he sees fit. In seminary, I have learned that there are two primary methods of interpreting Scripture: The Allegorical Method or the Literal Method also known as the Grammatical-Historical Method. The whole idea of the Allegorical Method is simply to find some hidden spiritual meaning within the text or the passage. There are four dangers to this method: 1.)It does not interpret the words of Scripture, 2.) The basic authority in interpretation ceases to be the words of Scripture and becomes the mind of the interpreter, 3.) There is not an objective test to determine which interpretation is correct, and 4.) If used consistently, the method could destroy all systematic systematic understanding of doctrine. Warren in some cases uses the allegorical method of interpreting Scripture and thus takes the clear meaning and comes up with his own spiritual meaning.
For example on page 19, Warren cites Matthew 16:25 from the Message(I do not endorse the Message) paraphrase ("Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self"). Warren argues that in order to be successful in life, you need more than self help advice. The literal translation of Matthew 16:25 tells you that Christ is not talking about self-help advice in this context but rather Christ is referring to the regenerating nature of the Gospel(KJV:For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it"). By not giving the literal context of the verse, Warren changes the meaning of Jesus' statement. On page 139, Warren states that " God has made an incredible promise about small groups of believers: For where two or three are gathered in My name, I am there in the midst(Matt 18:20). The truth is that the context of that verse has nothing to do with small-group fellowship, but instead it deals with church discipline.
It does not take long to realize that the way he interprets Scripture is headed towards disaster. Using his method of interpretation, Warren sets a dangerous example- implying that his type of interpretation (where accuracy and context seem to be ignored) is acceptable.
Secondly, Warren's book promotes an incomplete approach to theology. For example, on page 58-59 Warren says concerning the presentation of the gospel that a person should " First, believe, Believe God loves you and made you for His purposes. Believe you're not an accident. Believe you were made to last forever. Believe God has chosen you to have an relationship with Jesus, who died on the cross for you. Believe that no matter what you've done, God wants to forgive you. Second, receive. Receive Jesus into your life. Receive His Spirit, who will give you the power to fulfill your life purpose. The Bible says," Whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever! Wherever you are inviting this, I invite you to bow your head and quietly whisper the prayer that will change your eternity: Jesus, I believe in you and I receive you." Go ahead. If you sincerely meant that prayer, congratulations! Welcome to the family of God! You are now ready to start living and discovering God's purpose for your life.
Although Warren, focuses on many aspects of Scripture, he leaves something out. His gospel presentation leaves out two important elements that are essential to salvation: repentance and self-denial. Also absent is the eternal consequences of sin. Warren's gospel presentation is inadequate because it leaves out those important elements. Although, Warren does mention Hell, he does so passively, without emphasizing the gravity of eternal condemnation.In the words of Bob DeWaay, DeWaay states that " Warren's explanation of God leaves out many important truths and emphasizes those qualities that make God feel close and safe. This does not result in a full, biblical understanding of God. You will never hear about God's wrath against sin from Warren. You will never hear the warnings about God's coming judgment.You will not learn about God's holiness from Warren. You will not hear passages like this: " See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused Him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from Heaven" (Hebrews 12:25). In other words,Warren's portrayal of God is not complete. Yes, God is a loving, and caring God, but He is also perfectly holy, just, and righteous.
The third problem is that Warren's book has an inflated position of prominence. It seems that some people within the evangelical community has promoted the book to a position of prominence that should only be reserved for the Word of God. Bob Dewaay says, that " Rick Warren's eleven million and rising best seller has replaced Bible preaching in thousands of pulpits and has replaced the Bible in many thousands of Bible study groups.... The amazing thing is that thousands and thousands of groups around the world have taken Warren's advice( I strongly urge you to gather a small group of friends and form a Purpose-Driven Life Reading Group to review these chapters on a weekly basis"(pg307) and began studying his book, leaving their Bibles at home. Pastor's are preaching from Warren's material rather than the Word of God. Warren also says, "After you have gone through this book together as a group, you might consider studying other purpose driven life studies that are available for classes and groups. The message of the gospel has been replaced by the methods of Rick Warren. The Bible has been supplanted by the methods of man." Anytime, a book supplants the Word of God there is a problem and that is exactly what Warren's book has done in many churches.
Warren also says in page nine of the book that "This is more than a book; it is a guide to to a 40 day spiritual journey that will enable you to discover the answer to life's most important question: What on earth am I here for? By the end of this journey you will know God's purpose for your life and will understand the big picture- how all the pieces of your life fit together. Having this perspective will reduce your stress, simplify your decisions, increase your satisfaction, and, most importantly, prepare you for eternity". WAIT A MINUTE!!! This book seems to suggest that a invention of the flesh can do what only the Spirit of God can do. This book is not the Word of God. It is not infallible. This was book was written by an fallible human being who certainly can not promise you anything.
Finally Warren's book the Purpose Driven Life promotes the seeker-sensitive movement. The seeker- sensitive church tends to minimize the gospel message in order to soften topics such as sin, repentance, divine, wrath, and eternal damnation.The goal is to make people feel comfortable until they are ready to accept Jesus.Thus sermons are often replaced with short talks, skits, secular music- anything that will make church more entertaining and more comfortable. Success is measured by the number of people in church. True Biblical success, however is measures by faithfulness and obedience to God. Churches should never compromise and buy into the world system just to get a large crowd. Preachers who have faithfully preached the Word for years but can not draw a large crowd are told that they must be doing something wrong. That is completely absurd!
In conclusion, by embracing the Purpose Driven Life, some readers and some churches have become entangled in the seeker-sensitive movement and embrace postmodern thought. Simply put, the seeker-sensitive movement promoted by Rick Warren, is unbiblical. So after reading this, I hope that I have shed some light on the Purpose Driven Life and the ministry of Rick Warren. Is he a heretic? That is for you to decide through studying the Word of God. The Bible does say that in the last days false prophets will arise, and they will deceive many. When the Word of God is watered down just so people's ears can be tickled, there is a problem. So practice discernment, and realize that not everything you hear is truth.
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