Weekly Round-Up: Piper on the Gospel, The Family, Missions Metaphors, and the Kanungu Massacre

Here's this week's round-up:

1) John Piper, "How I Distinguish Between the Gospel and False Gospels" from the Text and Context 2008 Resurgence Conference. John Piper is always worth listening to, but I especially appreciate his unfolding of Scripture when treating the need for discernment. You can watch the video or listen to the audio at the Resurgence site, or you can check out Piper's outline through the Desiring God site. Either way, this message is definitely worth your time.

2) Juliana Buhring, "Our dad lied about us" in the Sunday Vision newspaper (Uganda). This is a continuation of the controversy brewing in Uganda on The Family cult. A former member and daughter of a leader of the Family in Uganda responds to what her father had previously told the paper. Her rebuttals are very informative.

3) David Sills, "Missions Metaphors" on the Culturality and Missiology blog. Sills is a veteran missionary that always brings much insight to international missions. In this post, he warns of ministry that does not continue after the conversions of believers to build mature churches and strong Christians. As he points out:

What of the work in Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, the South Seas, or the United States? We reached many of those places years ago. Many strong buildings were built, but we had other work elsewhere that beckoned. When I hear of buildings that missionaries of yesteryear left behind being torn down, I wonder about the spiritual and kingdom work they left behind. Is it strong? Or, like Europe, have forces of fallen nature rendered it rotten and falling in on itself? Every Christian population is only one generation away from heresy or general apostasy. We must dedicate ourselves to the task of reaching and teaching. Reaching the unreached is great, but the Great Commission is not merely about reaching; Jesus also said we were to be "teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you."

Make sure to read the entire article.

4) "Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God" on Wikipedia, and Gerald Businge, "Seven Years Since the Kanungu Massacre: Are we any wiser?" in the UGPulse (Uganda). Next week marks the eighth anniversary of the Kanungu Massacre. On March 17th, 2000, more than 500 people had burnt to death in a church in the Kanungu district of Uganda. They were members of the Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments, a religious cult. May we all learn from this horrible tragedy.

What Does Christ Gospel Church Teach?

Over the last few years, I have been researching a small and generally unknown sect whose world headquarters is in my hometown. I thought it would be a good idea to post some of my resulting analysis over the next several weeks. They are a good example of an unfamiliar group that is aggressively working to expand their presence around the world (including Africa). Who am I referring to? The Christ Gospel Churches International, Inc. [CGC]. Their basic informational booklet introduces them by saying:

Jeffersonville, Indiana is home to the international headquarters of one of the fastest-growing Christian denominations in the world, Christ Gospel Churches International, Inc. . . . . With a staff of 45 employees and many volunteers, Christ Gospel Churches International, Inc. oversees a world-wide organization of more than 1,300 churches in 25 countries.[1]

Even if CGC is exaggerating how rapidly they are growing, this new religious movement has made tremendous inroads around the globe (especially in Mexico and India). They even have affiliate churches in half a dozen African countries and shortwave broadcasts to many more throughout the continent. Founded by Reverend Berniece R. Hicks, the movement is a self-described "fundamentalist, pentecostal Christian group."[2] Their continuing worldwide success requires a closer examination of Hicks' teaching on such fundamental areas as Scripture, mankind,[3] God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the good news.

What is my goal? To accurately present a summary of her teaching in these fundamental areas. Since we must take the time to correctly understand her errors before critiquing them, my study will not directly challenge the distinctive theology of CGC. Rather, this series will focus on bringing together their basic teachings. Once these are understood, Christians can properly assess and address the differences that exist between our beliefs and what is taught by CGC.

Intrigued? Great! I'll continue next week!

[1]Preaching a Crucified and Living Christ to a Dying World: Christ Gospel Churches International, Inc. (Jeffersonville, IN: Christ Gospel Churches International, Inc., 1993). No page numbers are provided.
[2]Ibid.
[3]Since Hicks uses "mankind" and "man" in her works, this series will follow her terminology to remain as close to her language and thought as possible.

Listening to James in Africa

"My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins" (James 5:19-20).

With these final words, James ends his letter. They are quite amazing when you stop to think about it. James has just finished writing to the church about their lives together in the midst of suffering and sickness. In essence, the body of Christ is bound together by prayer. If someone is suffering, pray. If someone is cheerful, praise God! And if someone is sick, have the church leaders pray. Can you see it? The church is a house of prayer.

But James does not end after writing about prayer. No, he has something else on his mind. Christians are also struggling with a serious challenge--false teaching. The church has been established on a foundation, the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20). The church stands or false on the revelation entrusted to these men.

Yet there will always be those who seek to contradict or corrupt the apostles' teaching. And believers are constantly in danger of listening to them, wandering from God's truth. Therefore, James lets the church know that we are all required to refute error. By doing so, we accomplish nothing less than saving a soul from death and covering a multitude of sins. What a wonderful responsibility we have been given!

Unfortunately, this task is an unpopular one today. Pointing out false teaching is seen as mean-spirited, rude, and divisive. Additionally, missionaries that seek to defend God's truth are thought of as importing Western thinking, rejecting indigenization, and imperialism.

Nevertheless, these words from James are needed in Africa today more than ever. While we must always seek to contextualize the Word of God and not bog it down with cultural trappings, failing to follow James' instruction will lead to dire consequences. We simply cannot afford to look past our brothers and sisters in Christ as they are daily facing false teaching.

But you don't simply have to take the word of this American believer. Solomon Andria, an African theologian from Madagascar, wrote the following comments on these verses in the Africa Bible Commentary:

"The last paragraph of the letter confirms that James cannot be opposed to Paul.... He does not set works up against faith. Those who are lost are not those who have neglected works but those who have distanced themselves from the truth, that is, from the faith. Africa is fertile ground for new religions and sects, making it more important than ever to be well rooted in biblical truths through reading and studying the word of God. James' focus on truth at the end of his letter undermines any assertion that all he is interested in is works" (1516).

Weekly Round-Up: Marilyn Hickey, The Family, Syncretism, Cross-Cultural Mission, and Theological Trends in Africa

Here's this week's round-up:

1) "Church Briefs" in the Sunday Vision newspaper (Uganda). Here's a disheartening announcement:

NAKIVUBO STADIUM
International evangelist Marilyn Hickey will conduct a crusade at the stadium from March 7 to 9, starting at 4:00pm, daily.

2) "Haunted by a dark past" in the Sunday Vision newspaper (Uganda). This is a follow up to last week's articles on The Family cult. While it could have been more critical, this report is still fairly thorough and informative.

3) Malita Wamala, "Things Christians overlook" in the Weekly Observer newspaper (Uganda). An editorial piece from an African Christian who sees far too much compromise and syncretism from fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

4) Jim Harries, "Imitation in Cross-Cultural Mission: Discussions in an African Context" in the Lausanne World Pulse (March 2008). While I am not sure that I would line up with Harries 100%, he definitely challenges missionaries in Africa with the importance of properly contextualizing and living out our Christian worldview.

5) Gideon Para-Mallam, "Theological Trends in Africa: Implications for Missions and Evangelism" in Lausanne Reports (March 2008). I wish that I could get every missionary and Christian to read this article. The author points out both the negative and positive trends as well as their implications for believers in Africa. I simply cannot begin to summarize the many excellent points made. Just read it!

Ask Anything Wednesday: Books I am Reading

Welcome to Ask Anything Wednesday. Now that this is a monthly feature, I wanted to begin with a question that I am regularly asked (actually, a friend asked me at church last Sunday!). In any case, please keep the questions rolling in! Just submit your question--on anything!--in the comments section below and I'll consider responding to it next month.

Question:
What books are you currently reading?

Answer:
As you can guess, I am always reading something! Currently, depending on when you catch me, you'll likely see my nose buried in one of the following:

1) Iain M. Duguid, Esther And Ruth (Reformed Expository Commentary)
2) Harold O.J. Brown, Heresies: Heresy and Orthodoxy in the History of the Church
3) Robert L. Millet and Gerald R. McDermott, Claiming Christ: A Mormon-Evangelical Debate
4) Thomas C. Oden, How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind: Recovering the African Seedbed of Western Christianity
5) Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business

Don't be surprised if some of these books wind up being reviewed on this blog soon!

Book Review: Foundations of African Traditional Religion and Worldview

Yusufu Turaki, Foundations of African Traditional Religion and Worldview (Nairobi, Kenya: WordAlive Publishers, 2006), 128 pp.

There are many different ways that individuals can study African Traditional Religion (ATR): historical, psychological, sociological, etc. But one approach is often overlooked, the theological. When examined in this manner, many important questions are raised. What is the ATR worldview--its framework for understanding the world in which we live? What are ATR's basic beliefs? How does ATR compare to the Christian faith?

Yusufu Turaki seeks to answer these questions in his book Foundations of African Traditional Religion and Worldview. A Nigerian theologian and scholar, Turaki is certainly qualified to address these essential religious issues. He begins by defining religion and placing ATR within its religious context. Next he turns to explaining its fundamental theological, philosophical, and ethical beliefs. After laying this groundwork, the author continues to examine ATR's beliefs regarding the Supreme Being as well as the gods and spirits. Then he looks at how humans interact with the spirit world, from communication to the acquisition and use of power. Finally, he analyzes what it means to be human and the meaning of life according to ATR.

I learned a great deal from Turaki's book. To begin with, I appreciate his approach--laying out the fundamentals of ATR as a whole while showing how these foundational beliefs relate to each other. Understanding ATR as a worldview has been tremendously informative. I am amazed that he was able to include so much in such a few pages! This work will definitely be a convenient reference.

At the same time, I also find this book's brevity to be a limitation. When reading it, I regularly found myself wanting to dig deeper and learn more. At times, I almost felt as if I was reading through a beefed-up outline. While this may have been the author's intent, his book would be more useful with additional expansion and analysis.

Turaki also seems somewhat overly dependent on the work of Philip M. Steyne. He admits his dependence in the first chapter, but his citations and quotations from Steyne were so frequent that I occasionally wondered if I should simply read Steyne instead.

In any case, I'd still suggest that those interested in an introduction to ATR should read Turaki's book. It is a helpful starting point to further study. I hope that more theologians, philosophers, missionaries, and others will build off of the foundations of a work like this to further equip the body of Christ.

The New Faces of Christianity 8: North and South

Today the ACFAR Network completes reading The New Faces of Christianity: Believing the Bible in the Global South by Philip Jenkins. If you haven't bought the book or signed up yet, it is not too late to join! This week we are discussing chapter 8: "North and South."

Summary

Jenkins concludes his book by bringing together the contrasts he established in the previous chapters between Northern and Southern "Christianities." What should we think of these differences? The author suggests that believers in the West need to listen to Southern Christians, regaining some themes and trends that they have long forgotten.

In much of the Global South, the Christians are first or second generation converts. The Bible has not been part of their culture and history, causing them to see aspects of Scripture not obvious to those that are used to its teachings and truths. And given the close relationship of their societies to Bible times, they connect with and find meaning in biblical texts not usually recognized in the traditional Christianity of the West. In many ways, Southern Christianity can cause other believers to reread their Bibles afresh.

However, we should not be too optimistic over the Christianity of the South. There are many problems in these churches that must not be overlooked. Christianity has spread rapidly but it is often shallow. At the same time, corruption of historical teaching is regularly found in the growing popularity of the Prosperity Gospel. In addition, some suggest that as these nations modernize, that they will leave their "primitive" faith behind. While this suggested shift may not occur, the future of Christianity in the Global South is by no means certain.

What believers can do is to learn from these North-South differences. Christians can rethink the role of the Old Testament. We may also examine again the idea of healing. People that believe in a God who cares about us and who is involved in our lives should not simply leave our physical needs in the realm of science. Churches in the West can be greatly enriched by listening to the faith of fellow believers in the Global South.

My Thoughts

I completed this book looking forward to the future. God is doing some amazing things around the world! He is demonstrating what our Savior promised to the Apostle Peter when He said, "on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Hell cannot overcome the global body of Christ, made up of believers from every tribe and language and people and nation (Revelation 5:8-10). We have a lot to learn from one another.

At the same time, I do believe that Jenkins can be too optimistic at times. He is not writing as a pastor, a missionary, or a theologian. This book is a work of secular contemporary history and sociology. As a result, he is too open to diversity in our faith, denying that there is an authentic and true Christianity. But when we begin with our Triune God who has revealed Himself in Scripture, we realize that His truth is something to defend. We must seek to prevent and root out error and corruption. Can we learn from Southern Christianity? Will it expose some of our own problems and oversights as well as add richness to our faith? Absolutely! We need them--and they need us. We must work together to glorify God and advance His kingdom.

What role do we have in all of this? We cannot sit back and think that God is done using us to preach the gospel, start churches, and teach believers His Word. As we have seen through this study, the Global South still has many challenges and problems to overcome. How can we help these brothers and sisters in Christ?

Your Turn

What do you think? Your thoughts do not have to be profound or anything. Please feel free to contribute to the discussion!