Twenty-five years ago Robert Schuller was the most influential preacher on television. He was on two hundred stations and being watched by nearly three million viewers. Christianity Today writes that Schuller’s gospel of success and self-esteem are becoming so important in the Church that it seems to be overshadowing everything else. In an article dated October 5, 1984 Schuller says,

“I don’t think anything has been done in the name of Christ and under the banner of Christianity that has proven more destructive to human personality and hence, counterproductive to the evangelism enterprise than the often crude, uncouth and unchristian strategy of attempting to make people aware of their lost and sinful condition.”

Oddly enough, Robin and I became born-again Christians only four months after Mr. Schuller made this bone-headed statement. But we didn’t decide to become Christians so that we could “feel” better about ourselves; we became Christians because we were lost in our sinful condition. And after twenty-four years of living for Jesus Christ, my honest assessment of myself would be: I am the chief of sinners and if God’s grace and mercy were not given to me everyday –I would be lost to my own demise. I am persuaded to agree with Paul when he said, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.” As we grew in the Christian faith, Robin and I never really got caught up with the latest trend in the Church or listened to the most recent popular author. Our studies took us back before all this nonsense of the self-esteem gospel “Trojan-horsed” itself into the Church. Again, this is only because of the mercy of God and we thank Him continually for His grace and love.
My question is this, however; what has twenty-five years of this kind of self-esteem theology promoted? What is the outcome or the fruit of this kind of evangelism? What sort of things are we seeing now because the Church’s leaders have taught her that she is somebody and that she deserves God’s best, because after all, she should think of herself as good and special and worthy. Six years ago I wrote a paper to a local minister trying to explain to him that the Church received God’s love because of His mercy and grace to her. He thought that the Church received God’s love because she deserved it. Twenty-five years of this garbage as produced a Church of carnal Christians who are more concerned about how they are treated in this life than where they are going in the next. They are more concerned about the money they make and their toys that they play with than the thousands of thousands of lost souls that Jesus died for. They want to feel good in their Church and never be confronted about their “mistakes”. They have no desire to separate themselves from the world and they are more concerned about their happiness than their holiness. They lay claim to Heaven but their hearts are full of strife. They are like the Laodicean Church that Jesus said to them, “You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.”
Beloved, ask yourself honestly, which gospel did you receive? Which gospel do you live? For a time is coming when men will not put up with the sound doctrine of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around themselves a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. But let us not be of them who shrink back, but let us press on in, by and through the blessed Gospel of Jesus Christ.


Have a great week! Pastor Jim