a "purposelessness" driven life

Kenneth,

The problem is, what is our "purpose"? The Bible teaches that we are enemies of God without Christ. The Westminster confession says our primary purpose is to glorify God; I agree with that. There are probably more non-Christians than Christians who have read Warren's PDL and I suppose many of them feel great about themselves. Trouble is, if they aren't saved then there is no reason to search for any other purpose in life.

Brian

 

And that is addressed within the Purpose Driven Life book as well. Folks are urged to get "saved" in order to find their God given purpose.

 

I agree, I think the concept of a purpose driven life is good...but the question left is what is our purpose to be? My answer would be to glorify God through the Great Commandment and Great Commission.

 

Hi PastorSBC1303
I agree the great commission is what would bring the most glory to Christ.
May Christ Shine His Light On Us all;
Mike

 

I think the PDL has helped me in glorifying God more. I believe its purpose is to present God's word to disciple others and it has helped.


jman

 

And that is addressed within the Purpose Driven Life book as well. Folks are urged to get "saved" in order to find their God given purpose. </font>[/QUOTE]Can you show me the page(s) where Warren gives the biblical plan of savlation in PDL?

 

I don't remember about the book, but it was in the weekly video.

 

It's in either or both the book or video.

 

Ya think?!

 

QUOTE]Originally posted by 2Timothy4:1-5:
While I may not agree 100% with everything that Rick Warren says in his book, I have made a profound discovery over the past few months...

Having no purpose in your life is a sure reciepe for disaster. You just kind of go through your day with no plan and when the weekend comes you just bum your way through it without accomplishing anything meaningful. And Lord only know what kind of trouble awaits you on the internet if you have no purpose in life.

Yep, some people may deride the PDL, but having a purpose is better than not having one.

Agree it is better to follow Jesus up there. To me the Purpose Driven Life, is confusing with its purpose and its presentation. It uses 15 different translations, which is way too many for coherent flow. Pastor Warren then suggests each remember a number of verses in the translation he gives, which didn’t last long for it fouled up people trying to re-word scripture they had already memorized from their own favorite translation. He doesn’t give the reader much credit for understanding a verse without his help as to tranlation used. He is of the ‘old salesman school” of ramming it down your throat. He’ll run over you if you let him. Kinda' reminds me of someone I know on certain occasions.

There is understanding in the book, but Works is the main trust of the book, giving the impression works are a requirement as understood by James. As I read the book, I could not shake Romans 11:6 from my mind – ”And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.”

It was a quick, yet hard read, as it pulls in different directions. The only reason I have the book is our church got very much into it. Many were not too impressed. I knew on the first page after the Index, page 9, when I saw 40 Days it would not be of too much interest to me. I am leery of too much connection with 40 Days, Nights, and Years. When something is drenched with 40 Days somebody really is into works, reaching back into God’s nation Israel and connecting with their works. He does however beginning on page 17 get beyond Pentecost, and into Christianity, but I believe he pushes too hard leaving one to believe if we are to be accepted we had better hop to it.

It reminded me of the Sales, and Marketing Seminars I attended, or was involved with over the years before retirement. Always some new “gimmick” to meet goals and motivate, which is good if not overdone, and direction is not changed every year. Some were doomed before the week was out. Any church, or Christian is in trouble when they need to be motivated to do good works. A nudge usually does the trick, but I’ve always wondered if the “mule” could aptly apply to we Christians. We’ll usually carry our load, but if it is not Christ (or our wives) we just may come to a dead stop, and move only when the Spirit tells us to. ituttut

 

WARNING! The PDL is not of God. It is a Satanic deception, and a very good one. In short it is, in part, a blend of non-gospel easy believism, postmodernism, ecumenism, New Age, and pop psychology combined with sophisticated management and marketing techniques, and consensus mechanisms such as the Hegelian Dialectic. It's core purpose is deception and it's apparent intent is to control the thinking of large numbers of professing Christians. Am I exaggerating or being overly dramatic? No, and not at all.

I've intended to post on this subject for quite a few months but there just hasn't been time. And it is overdue. So forgive me if I mince no words.

If you have been affected by the PDM or one of its sister movements (who hasn't), you would do well to research it. If you go far enough you will find, as others have, that at the very core and foundation of this movement is Evil.

When I first dug into this several years ago there were only a handful of published articles available on the subject. Now, thankfully, there are hundreds and a handful of good, well-researched books. Within the past 6 months or so some major conservative, evangelical, figures have begun to speak out against it.

The inner workings of this deception are very complex and have great depth, as evidenced by its great subtlety. It is not an easy nut to crack, but with a good Bible, your discernment, and the Holy Spirit, the thing will eventually jump out at you.

It's difficult to share where to start. Though I don't agree wholly with all the articles or authors, a pretty good place to start is RIGHT HERE. Paul Proctor and James Sundquist are two writers that have a really good handle on it. A good recent article is here.

There are other good materials available which I will link later - my computer system is down for at least 30 more days.

Godspeed.

IveyLeaguer

 

Only three verses are needed. Mt. 4:19 and 28:19,20. If you are not fishing and making disciples then you are not following the master. It's that simple.

Henry Blackaby said it well a few months ago. Most Christians call themselves theologically conservative but are really practical atheists.

Finney said years ago that most Christians pray with no answers to their prayers.

This was in practice long before Warren was conceived.

 

What about the sister book, Purpose Driven Church? I've read it, and honestly don't like it very much at all... But I was curious as to what you have to say here.

window_wax

 

Iveyleager,

I say AMEN to your post. Yes, it sounds serious and it is.

Let me suggest a goldmine of links regarding this cultish book:

http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/topic/seeker.html

 

I know that there are a lot of churches in my area that have conducted this emphasis (40 days of purpose, etc.), and they are not all Baptist. I just do not understand why not just have an old-fashioned weekly Bible study. Isn't the Bible all we need?

 

I've read segments of the PDC and it's the same thing. Much of the research material I read early on was based on it. But it's been interesting to watch the deception 'grow' and publicly reveal more of itself, little by little, as it gains strength and momentum, as with the PDL. From what I'm hearing, there is another major 'step' on the horizon, but I haven't had time to confirm it.

 

Yes, that is an excellent link. I'm familiar with most of the writers there. Recommend Paul Proctor's article on The People's Church (linked there) as a good starting point for any Christian.

Godspeed.

 

Christ is all we need. Pagans read the Bible and study it. Most of the chruch is filled with disobedient vessels. The majority of people in churches today never share their faith. The majority never lead one person to Christ. So what does that say about another Bible Study?

I would dare say if the average pastor started getting the church out on a weekend once a month he would get some flack from a lot of people declaring it the poorest way of evangelism. They will shrink from declaring the truth standing in fear of man instead of the fear of God.

 

Saddleback Church : Statement of Beliefs

I've read a lot of slander of fellow Christians in this thread and some links presented here. While seeker-sensitive megachurches like Saddleback and Willowcreek have their issues (show me a church that doesn't), I'd like to see some serious evidence to back up the claims of Satan, evil and deceptions that have been alleged.