Tuesday, June 09, 2009

A modern-day Marcion

Recently, there's been a big blow up in one of the churches that our church is affiliated with in Bangkok. It's especially painful because members of my family attend that church and many of the founding members are old friends, including the pastor. The issue seems to be that the pastor--my friend--is teaching a new "gospel of grace" as espoused by Joseph Prince of New Creation Church in Singapore. People in that congregation started calling and e-mailing us about this several weeks ago and we were at a loss to know what to do.

To help clarify the issue in my own mind, I read through most of Joseph Prince's book "Destined to Reign" because it seemed incredible that Christians I knew well would actually teach some of the things they were accused of teaching. "Maybe they've misunderstood what he taught," I thought. But after reading the book for myself, I was shocked. I can hardly believe this guy is on millions of TVs in America every week.

Usually, I try to keep my public criticism of fellow Christians to a minimum, for each servant is accountable to his Master. However, in this case, I feel obligated to speak out because I know in my head and my heart that this doctrine is contrary to the teaching of Jesus Christ. I'm afraid many younger beleivers may be led astray.

Moreover, this guy comes from the same charismatic, Word-of-Faith spiritual heritage that I do. I believe that health, wealth, and success are God's overall intention for believers, available to us on the conditions of faith and obedience, and that Christians can expect God's supernatural intervention in their lives. So when I read that Joseph Prince takes this and adds his own unorthodox "grace gospel," I feel an extra obligation to weigh in.

I've written an eight-page summary of how Jospeph Prince's teaching differs from historical and biblical Christian teaching and posted it online here. The document cites pages in Destined to Reign that you can read for yourself using Google Books.

In short, Joseph Prince teaches that all guilty feelings are from the devil and a result of ungodly legalism. As a result, he says Christians should not examine themselves or confess their sin (beyond an initial confession when saved). He says repentance simply means changing one's mind and does not entail sorrow or remorse. He says many Christians in the past mixed the law with grace, and that God has called him to expunge the law from the Church and free Christians from guilt and condemnation.

It all sounds very similar to the second-century heretic Marcion, who thought the God of the Old Testament could not be reconciled with the God that Paul preached. (Marcion emphasized Paul, as does Joseph Prince.) Marcion created his own canon (actually a precursor to the orthodox canon list of the New Testament, in a way) that took out all Jewish elements and everything that had to do with law and the retributive God of the Old Testament, Yahweh. I'm not saying that Joseph Prince is so extreme as Marcion, but there are many similarities. Interesting to see how things are repeating themselves now, 1,900 years later.

7 comments:

Dave said...

Agent Intellect linked to you here and I thought I'd read what you wrote about this guy. But you made your document on Scribd secret.

"The owner of this document has chosen for this document to be secret—only people with the correct password can view it."

Dave said...

Tyson,

Thanks for letting me read your analysis of Joseph Prince's gospel of grace. From this it seems that he is confused about the distinction between what God has done for us and what we are supposed to do once we are in relationship with Christ.

I suppose it might offend some people because it seems like you are judging a brother (James 4:11). However, I believe this refers to judging the personal sins of the man himself, not testing his doctrine. As a pastor-teacher, he is held to a higher standard for the doctrine he promotes.

1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

2 Tim 4:1 I solemnly charge {you} in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:
2 Tim 4:2 preach the word; be ready in season {and} out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.
2 Tim 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but {wanting} to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,
2 Tim 4:4 and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.

James 3:1 Let not many {of you} become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.

Tyson said...

Thanks for the affirmation, Dave. I am definitely not interested in attacking Jospeh Prince or anyone else personally. My concern is only with the unorthodox teaching about grace. I believe God is abundantly gracious--more than we can understand--but that part of that grace involves conviction of sin that leads us to repentance and leaves no regret. It also involves divine discipline that trains us in righteousness. There are many aspects to grace, like the old hymn says: "Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved."

Anonymous said...

I think it is sad that u cannot see the truth. Test the spirit, well I have and I have put his teachings into practice and it has changed my life. I have had literal change and have seen it change others. If you choose to stay in guilt and condemnation that is your choice. I choose to know that God is good, he has forgiven me and I am free from the law and under Christ's finished work. BTW repent does mean change your mind and the Bible clearly states that to be saved, we need only believe in Christ and what he has done.

Anonymous said...

It is Grace and not guilt that leads us closer to God and creates the desire to follow hard after Him. It is Grace that brings us into closer fellowhip with God not conviction of sin. The more we focus on sin the more we sin. The more we focus on Jesus, the more we do as we ought. Righteousness can ONLY come through Jesus Christ not my guilt or constant repentance. How many times does Jesus have to die for your sin. Is his blood not better than the bull and goats that lasted to cover them for a whole year? Is it not good enough to cover you for eternity? If your rightness with God is dependant on you in anyway, than I feel sorry for you brother because you will never make the grade.

Anonymous said...

Hi there! I came across the teachings of Joseph Prince 2 years ago,as a pastor I dig in and study about this so called grace revolution...I concluded that this is the move of God to center us on JESUS and His finished work on the cross.we have mixed the old to the new, we preach the law to our parishioners, without knowing it that it is the ministry of death...my life found a new spiritual vigor and I saw changes in my church and my ministry since I embrace the gospel of grace. I know not everyone would agree, but once have experience it he will be refreshed. ;-)

Tyson said...

Dear anonymous commenters,

I believe you are all Christians and that God loves you all, but I disagree that Joseph Prince's teachings represent the Bible faithfully.

This is a sermon that I wrote several months before I even heard of Joseph Prince: http://www.scribd.com/doc/19244857/The-Grace-of-God-Sermon

This sermon explains grace in a fuller and more biblically faithful way.

God bless you!