Quote:
Originally Posted by Evangelical
If we consider everything Lee wrote we can realize that low gospel refers to how the gospel of salvation is preached and the purpose of the gospel. Nowhere does Lee mean that salvation or the good news of Jesus Christ is "low". What is low is how it is preached in a diluted way. Low gospel means the way the gospel of salvation is preached in a low, superficial and diluted way.
|
The trouble with what Lee wrote is that it ended up focusing nearly all of the “Recovery’s” gospel efforts on recruiting intelligent college students as “the good material” instead of the New Testament’s “whosoever” including the poor and downtrodden.
[/QUOTE]Here is an example of a Low gospel:
"Jesus died on the cross for us so that we could have our best life now" (Osteen-like gospel)
Jesus dying on the cross for us is the true gospel but being "for our best life now" is a diluted gospel. I think many denominations teach this kind of gospel, especially at Christmas. At Christmas, the gospel becomes about little donkeys and three wise men of orient are bearing gifts from near and far. [/QUOTE]
Branding all of Christianity’s gospel as low because of Osteen (who most Christians I know see through) and “little donkeys and three wise men” at Christmas time is too broad brush. Most Christians I know see through Osteen and only include the Biblical references from the gospels in telling the story of the incarnation of Jesus Christ as God with us at Christmas time.
[/QUOTE=Evangelical;75724]The inadequacy in gospel preaching is also realized in some Christian movements such as Methodist, Pentecostal and Apostolic. Here they use the term "full gospel" which means essentially the same as Lee's "high gospel".[/QUOTE]
I sort of agree with you here, as many Christians realize they need to preach the full gospel as revealed in the Bible versus man’s concept. But, I never heard Lee credit anyone else with preaching a “full gospel” or “high gospel” besides himself and his local churches. You can’t have it two ways.
[/QUOTE=Evangelical;75724]Lee's high gospel is also relevant to our modern times - fear of hell gospel preaching does not work anymore as it did in the 1800's. Also the promise of future heaven is not working either as people are happy making "heaven on Earth" eg Joel Osteen. [/QUOTE]
What’s funny about your quote to me is that I heard “fear of hell gospel preaching” a lot from the age of 12 to 18 but didn’t respond to it until after I also I heard local church saints preach to me about God’s eternal purpose from Ephesians at age 18. Then I responded to the combination of hearing the positive “God has an eternal purpose to head all things up in Jesus Christ” and negative “your eternal future is at stake with your decision, respond carefully and don’t mess it up”. So, I think it takes both, because both are presented in the Bible and give the right reasons and sense of urgency.
Most Christians I know do talk about “going to heaven” but their gospel focuses on eternal life in Christ and restored fellowship with God through His redemption. “Going to heaven” is a good topic for its own thread discussion, because I agree there is a lot of inadequate teaching about what happens after we die or Christ returns in today’s Christianity.
[/QUOTE=Evangelical;75724]The shallow/superficial gospel can be written on a 4 page gospel tract. The deeper, full gospel of the kingdom takes 40 days to preach (Acts 1:3). [/QUOTE]
Be careful because “The Recovery” also uses a lot of short gospel tracts in its gospel preaching. The one that really gripes me is “The Mystery of Human Life” and the way it was used exclusively for door to door preaching in one of the local churches I attended.
[/QUOTE=Evangelical;75724]Hebrews 6:1 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, [/QUOTE] Great quote!
So, “Christianity preaches a low gospel” – Confirmed, Busted, or Plausible? What say you?
Then we can move to the second part “Witness Lee and the local churches preach a High gospel”.