Hey I just ran across a book by scott mcknight regarding how modern day evangelism has boiled everything down to only personal salvation and how we should follow the book of acts. It seemed he was advocating the 'Jesus is Lord' gospel and sounded too much like wright. I did not know who McKnight was and still really don't, though when I typed in his name on google, a bunch of emergents came up as related topics or persons. What I know is he's not a Calvinist, far from it, so his book on this evangelism gospel is not one to look to.
Trent,
I Googled McKnight and NT Wright and quickly scanned some of their works and a bit of commentary on their works. One thing I did notice about Scot McKnight's work is that he argues that the modern day gospel message proclaimed by most evangelicals is too focused on Christ as Savior and a "personal salvation", rather than on discipleship, i.e. becoming Christ followers and acknowledging Jesus as Lord and Savior. McKnight argues that this creates an in or out concept among professing believer's and tends to leave it at that. Instead of this, McKnight says we should focus on making Christ followers and disciples who come to Jesus as Lord first and Savior second.
As you pointed out, there was considerable information out there linking McKnight to the Emergent church, particularly to Brian McLaren.
I didn't take the time to dig into what McKnight means by acknowledging Christ as Lord, but I have to say that on some level, this part of his argument resonates with me. I am actively involved in street evangelism and collaborate with believers from several evangelical churches in outreach, several of whom use the "Way of the Master" method exclusively. Way of the Master (WOTM) is a method of evangelism taught by Ray Comfort and widely used throughout the world. Though I have taken a couple of classes and explored some of Ray's material, I do not use this "method". However, in some of Ray's work, if I recall correctly, it may have been in his "Hell's Best Kept Secret" CD, Ray identifies some of the problems of new converts, and the issues he raises correlate with some of McKnight's conclusions.
From my limited familiarity with each of these men's work, it seems they both identified problems in that many who profess faith, perhaps at a crusade or revival, or they walk down a church aisle and sign a card - do not continue to walk with the Lord after this "experience" or profession of faith.
McKnight says we have extracted the gospel of salvation from its context and are presenting only part of the picture. Thus one may conclude that since people presented with the gospel in this manner only see their need for a savior, and fail to grasp that Jesus is Lord over all, hence their failure to follow Christ in their lives after their profession of faith.
Ray Comfort teaches in part that they have not properly acknowledged their sin before God, likely because of a watered-down gospel presentation where they may have been told 'God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life'. Comfort argues instead that they should be made very aware of hell and that they are headed there unless they repent and come to Christ as Savior. (Of course I have greatly simplified and paraphrased what Ray teaches for brevity). Comfort likes to use the example of people in a plane with parachutes and says it won't save you (if the plane crashes) unless you put it on.
In my humble opinion, it seems both Comfort and McKnight have identified problems in professing Christians not walking the walk that goes along with their profession. I agree that this is an issue, though I'm not sure either of their assessments adequately deals with the problem.
In Comfort's case, I can not personally get around that WHY one comes to Christ is immaterial, in that it is of the flesh and there can be no good in the flesh. So coming to avoid hell is no better than coming to partake of heaven or of 'God's wonderful plan for our lives'. It is the coming to Christ that matters and salvation is a work of God, not of man. In McKnight's case, I have not dug deeply into what he sees as coming to Christ as Lord, but suspect that given his emergent inclination, it may lack substance, yet on the surface it may be a good starting point for further thought.
McKnight's argument that the evangelical church at large focuses too much on salvation and not on following Christ may be a valid argument. I can affirm that in my experience with street evangelism, I encounter the same people repeatedly, and see that even if they may make a profession of faith, their lives often do not reflect this at the points where I encounter them. (Many of those I interact with say they are believers when we first discuss faith, though some have responded to the message of salvation when presented with the gospel). I have been repeatedly impressed with the deep need for discipleship among those in inner-city Denver who profess faith and struggle with evangelism among this group when there is not adequate follow-up available. Ultimately, we need to trust God with their salvation and to grow them in grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, yet the absence of faithful teaching and discipleship almost creates the very climate that McKnight argues exists within the evangelical church today: a focus on salvation to the exclusion of a life of following Christ. In my humble opinion, this can lead to churches full of babes in Christ. My Dad used to tell the story of my Grandma's pastor who preached almost the same salvation message to the same small church filled with professing Christians, week after week.
So where does that leave us regarding evangelism? It is only through the preaching of the cross that men and women will come to Christ. Yet, divorcing the message of salvation from its context of redemption and renewal, or presenting it in such a way that the hearers fail to comprehend the holiness, righteousness and justness of God, and our guilt before Him may result in people thinking they are saved because they subscribe to a set of beliefs, when in reality, they don't really understand the message of salvation. When I came to Christ, it was in my living room, as I read John 14:15,23. The Lord quickened my understanding and I realized that if I really believed these things, it would change my life. For many years, I had given mental ascent to the gospel of salvation, but my life did not reflect my faith. In fact, I lived for myself and with great disregard for God and His word. I was raised in an almost antinomian atmosphere, though I had heard the gospel many times over. I thought, 'yeah, I sin, but it's no big deal...we all sin and that's why Christ came.' I never before this time humbled myself before God and realized the offense MY sin before our holy, righteous and just God. In my case, I had not seen the gospel lived before me, nor had I been encouraged toward holy living or submitting and humbling myself before God, yet I knew the gospel.
Should we continue to share the gospel of salvation? Absolutely! But to divorce it from its context may prevent some hearers of the gospel from fully understanding it. Yet at the same time, the Lord is surely able to provide follow-up and discipleship for those He is wooing unto salvation. Here in Denver, I pray the Lord will raise up faithful servants for the inner city. The harvest is plentiful and the laborers indeed are few.
As an afterthought, it occurred to me that how we live our daily lives and intersect even with strangers has the potential to impact them for eternity. How do we know who God is wooing unto salvation, or who may have just heard the gospel when our paths cross? As we live our daily lives as an act of worship and present our bodies as living sacrifices before God, our lives may serve to reinforce the message of salvation and demonstrate God's redemption in our own lives. Of course, the opposite is true, should our lives not reflect Christ as Lord.
