| But He Says So Many Good Things!: Tony Campolo |
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by Ingrid Schlueter and Rev. Wayne Sedlak Previous Page: Does Jesus Live in Non-Christians | Next Page: In Conclusion The countless young people who have been influenced by the teachings of Tony Campolo have been persuaded that he is biblical. They believe this because he says he is biblical. Those who believe otherwise have said little. We have been trained in the church to construe Christ's warning about judging others (Matthew 7:1-5) as a prohibition from testing the spirits and those who come in the name of Christ. Those who claim Christ was commanding us to refrain from any and all judgement make nonsense out of other Scriptural injunctions to discern. Christ Himself said, "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect." (Matthew 24:23-24) What does Christ want us to do? Christ says, "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgement." (John 7:24). The answer lies in judging by Scriptural standards, not our own personal biases. The Epistles are filled with warnings to judge righteously, to discern biblically in matters of truth and error, on matters of light and darkness. "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them." (Ephesians 5:11) "Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision...Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)" (Philippians 3:2, 17-19) "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." (Colossians 2:8) "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron." (I Timothy 4:1-3) The Apostle Paul underscores the importance of Scripture in our understanding. "But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou has learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." (II Timothy 3: 13-17) If Christians succumb to the teachings of men like Tony Campolo, it is because they do not know their Bibles. Biblically illiterate Christians who are under the impression that they can never make a negative judgment about someone's teachings are wide open to error. They are forced to accept at face value the claims teachers make, regardless of how much they may contradict God's Word. Thousands of evangelical young people have been allowed to attend youth events where Tony Campolo presents his vision for the world. They are singularly unprepared to combat the subtleties and doublespeak they encounter. Their parents could not prepare them because often, they themselves are not prepared. They are not asking the hard questions. How can Dr. Campolo say that God is opposed to homosexuality and then call for the legalization of homosexual marriages? How can he love a God of holiness and righteousness and embrace Bill Clinton's contempt for God's Law? How can he say that he's showing compassion toward homosexuals and then tell them that they were made that way and that they probably won't change?1 Tony Campolo believes he can have it both ways and still maintain his position in evangelical leadership. At least in the short term, he's probably right. But Randy Rodden issued this warning at the end of his critique of A Reasonable Faith: "We must pray that he can be won to the historic Christian faith. But if not, we certainly cannot accommodate his views into evangelical Christianity. Thus, giving him a platform, to speak at evangelical churches, on Christian radio and TV, and especially to youth who trust us and say, 'Well, he must be all right because they're letting him speak to us," is irresponsible at the least and disobedient at the worst. Let us never forget our Lord's warning to the disciples, 'It is inevitable that stumbling blocks should come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better that a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.' " Because we have failed to preach God's Holy precepts in the church today, we now are faced with moral anarchy. Salvation is possible through faith in Christ alone. But God's standards have never changed. Until these standards are once again preached from the pulpits in America, the "little ones" to which Christ refers will be set adrift on a tide of pragmatism and moral relativism. |
