# A Disturbing Trend in Evangelicalism



## greenbaggins (May 11, 2009)

I am by no means new in noticing this trend. It has been noticed by many before me. However, I thought I’d just mention it, because it explains quite a lot of what is happening today in what I am loosely calling evangelicalism. The term “evangelicalism,” by the way, is rapidly losing its meaning, if it hasn’t already. If Mormons can be called evangelical, then the term has lost its meaning.

The trend I see is in a particularly narrow definition of what is practical. Modern-day evangelicals have defined practicality as something that helps them at 10:15 AM to do a particular action. If what they hear on Sunday does not help them at 10:15 AM on Monday morning, then it is impractical, in the clouds, esoteric, useless doctrine. I would suggest that this is not a particularly helpful definition of what is practical.

On the one hand, all doctrine must be practical. However, in saying this, I want it clearly understood that my position is that all true doctrine is by definition practical. Doctrine that is impractical is therefore not true doctrine. What I am getting at is the artificial rift between doctrine and practice that is so rampant in churches these days.

I well remember an incident when I was about fifteen years of age. For some inexplicable reason, someone had actually allowed me to teach a Bible study at this ridiculous age. We were going through 1 Corinthians at the time, and I was set for chapter 14. So, I prepared by reading all the commentaries I had access to at the time. The time came to teach this Bible study. For the most part, it passed off without a comment. However, at one point, one of the members of the Bible study asked a question that implied that we were not really dealing with the application of the text, and that we needed to focus more on that. I replied that we had not really gotten to the stage of understanding the text. This is not an extreme example, of course. And I am not advocating a lack of application in sermons or Bible studies. What I am pointing to is a rush to practicality that seems to want to bypass understanding the meaning of the text. This sort of “practicality” isn’t practical, because how does one know that one is applying the text correctly? Applications from texts are not always right.

What I am advocating is a practicality that knows it must be based on doctrine. It is a practicality that is never severed from doctrine. It is a practicality that realizes that there are many kinds of practicality, ranging from what we believe about God (which will change the way we worship and pray) to the nitty-gritty of the everyday. There is long-term practicality and short-term practicality. There is practicality regarding how I treat my neighbor, and there is practicality in how I treat my God. There is practicality in how I view the world as a whole, and a practicality in how I view one small part of that world. One particular practicality that gets overlooked is the practicality of what one believes. We are naive in the extreme if we think that what we think doesn’t affect our behavior, sometimes in very subtle ways. Even that erroneous belief has a strong impact on our behavior! Belief and behavior can never be separated. All these practicalities are to be based on solid, Christian doctrine found in the Bible. We need to resist rushing to application and practicality without first establishing the proper basis of said practicality. There is an order to these things that we must follow.

Some people who have reacted to this trend have gone over to Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism because those denominations are not always about the immediate. There is a sense of history, of rootedness. of churchly doctrine and practice that seems more integrated than evangelicalism. If we as Reformed folk are going to counter this trend, then we need to examine this connection very closely.


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## Semper Fidelis (May 11, 2009)

I'm out of thanks for the moment Lane. Excellent summary. I think the reason people like the RCC and EO communions is that you don't have to think about what you are doing. Practice is what is important and one simply trusts, implicitly, that somebody else has thought through the "why" of what you are doing. James tells us to be hearers and doers of the Word - it's both-and and not either-or.


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## DMcFadden (May 11, 2009)

Lane,

I agree with you that much of the attraction of the RC and the EO have to do with a perceived depth to counter the shallowness of much contemporary evangelicalism. In another thread, I was admitting that the church of my membership mixes an occasional hymn in with the staple of "7-11" "worship" (chorus numbers with 7 words sung over and over and over again 11 times).

Several years ago when my fourth child dropped out of college and embraced for a season (thankfully!) a rebellious lifestyle, what salved my soul and delivered me from my blue funk of despair was not a book on prodigal children, five easy pointers for dealing with depression out of Christianized secular counseling, or a sermon "principializing" the depression of Elijah after battle with the prophets of Baal. 

After three "at fault" automobile accidents in a month (due to my depressed inattention while driving), I listened to R.C. Sproul's series on the Providence of God. What all of the psycho-babble in the world could not accomplish, the reminders of solid doctrine, here the providence of God, was a tonic for my weary soul. Don't tell me that doctrine is not "practical." What is *not* "practical" is the short-sighted artificial practicality of contemporary preaching dressed up like "seeker sensitive," "needs driven," "lifestyle specific" twaddle.


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## ColdSilverMoon (May 11, 2009)

Thank you for that post, Pastor Keister. 

It seems many in the church today want a "quick fix" on Sunday, whether it be through an Olsteenesque list of self-help techniques with loose Scriptural support, or through worship that is aimed at a superficial emotional experience rather than a profound God-centered, truth-based authenticity. Rich makes an excellent point that many don't want to know the why - they only want the personal experience without any theological underpinning. 

I attended a Free-Will Baptist church in Nashville last week with my wife's grandparents. The preacher was clearly well-read (he even quoted Calvin, go figure) and made some solid points, but the sermon was entirely about practical means of being a servant without any theology behind it - I don't think the name Jesus was mentioned once. While certainly not perfect, it seems most Reformed denominations do a much better job of determining behavior and ideology based on Scripture. I am very thankful that all of the PCA churches I have been a part of have focused on theological principle as a means of changing behavior, and that the Gospel is presented at every sermon without fail. I agree with Dennis that the fundamental truths of the Word, starting with the Gospel, are more life-changing than any self-help list or pop-psychology teachings.


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## Puritan Sailor (May 11, 2009)

How we think is just as practical, if not more so, than what we do. We can't live by faith if our faith has no content.


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## Scott1 (May 11, 2009)

This past Lord's Day we had a discussion about prayer, and specifically why we ought pray.

After reading several Scriptures, there were many good practical reasons given for why we pray. It helps us deal with life, it refreshes us, it keeps us in communion, it sets a good example for children, it allows us to reflect on our sin, it allows us to reflect on the holiness of our God, its a way God uses to give us our needs...

At the very end, someone said that even if there was no perceived benefit to us- if we did not see any practical benefit for us, we should still pray. God commanded us to do it, and ultimately, that's what matters.

I'm glad there are so many practical benefits to obeying God, some I perceive, some I do not. But, ultimately it is obedience to a Holy God who has every right to tell us what to do, how to do it.

It takes a lot of growth, often using the means of grace to get to that. As self-centered, prideful created beings, we resist that. Thanks for reminding of the end game... the Honor and Glory of our God, that really matters.


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