Power Religion is edited by Michael Horton, who also
edited the best selling Agony of Deceit and authored
Made in America: The Shaping of Modern American
Evangelicalism. Concerning the latter two books, critics
have complained that Horton only goes after the easy targets (Copeland, Tilton,
Cho, etc.) leaving the
big names/popular
heretics (i.e., the psychologizers) untouched. Writing about Made
in America, one reviewer says: "It is an assault on
the evangelical right, the easy targets, while silent concerning
the heresies of respected icons on the evangelical left (e.g., Campolo,
Sider, Wheaton, Trinity,
Christianity Today)."
Power Religion is subtitled The Selling Out of
the Evangelical Church. We think it is Horton who has sold
out. Again, the big names are not targeted. Instead, some of them
are the authors of the book's individual chapters! (Others have
apparently been deemed untouchable by the book's neo-evangelical
publisher, The Moody Bible Institute.) Called on by Horton to
author chapters in the book are ecumenical, Catholic-sympathizer
Charles Colson; neo-evangelical J.I.
Packer; pop-psychologizer
R.C. Sproul; psychological integrationists Don
Matzat, Dave
Powlison, and Ed Welch; and some lesser known names affiliated
with the neo-evangelical Trinity Evangelical Divinity School/Evangelical Free Church of America (Don Carson, Bill Hull,
and Tom Nettles).
The book purports to be a critique of Christian activism (Power
Politics), the signs and wonders movement (Power Evangelism), the
church growth movement (Power Growth), psychology (Power Within),
and personality cults (Power Preachers). Yet Horton claims that
we can still learn something from the purveyors of these
heresies. He says:
"The contributors to Power Religion would be quick to note that these disciplines [sociology, psychology, and politics] are not in themselves evil or unnecessary ... None of the authors suggests that those who support Christian political activism, the signs and wonders movement, the church growth movement, the therapeutic movement, or sensational or potentially authoritarian schemes, are non-Christians or enemies of the faith masquerading as disciples of Christ ... In fact, none of us suggests that there is nothing to learn from these various movements. Speaking for myself, I know that my own Christian faith and life would be the poorer without interaction with some of my close friends who are charismatic, for instance. Likewise, I have admired the zeal of some church growth leaders ... miracles, philosophy, corporate and psychological insights, and political positions may well be part of the life of any Christian, [although] they are weak substitutes for the gospel." (Jacket & pp. 14-15, 333.) (Emphasis added.)
One begins to wonder why Power Religion was even
written. Consider the hypocrisy of political activist Chuck
Colson writing an article warning about the dangers of Christian
activism. Or of Don Carson and John Armstrong, both supposedly
writing against the signs and wonders movement, yet finding many
things to praise in Wimber's
Vineyard
movement. Also, church
growth advocates Bill Hull and Tom Nettles, supposedly writing
against the church growth movement, never mention Bill
Hybels,
the guru of church growth who "pastors" at Willow Creek
(possibly because the book's publisher, MBI, employs Hybels to
speak at its conferences). Dave Powlison, Ed Welch, and Don
Matzat are all integrationists, yet they each write an article in
the book's anti-psychology/anti-"therapeutic movement"
section. And Ken Riddlebarger, currently studying in the doctoral
program at the psychologized, charismatic, doctrinally void
Fuller Seminary, writes an article in which he is highly critical
of Dave Hunt's alleged, but unspecified, "various doctrinal
errors."
Michael Horton is right about one thing. The evangelical church
is certainly being "sold out." Unfortunately, Horton
doesn't appear to be able to discern the difference between the
sellers and the buyers.
