The term evangelical originated in the 1700’s from the Greek word gospel and identified Bible-believing Christians.(1) I've always considered myself evangelical on that basis.
Although evangelicals come from a variety of backgrounds, ethnic groups, political parties, and denominations, a new group called ex-vangelicals have lumped them all together, creating a negative stereotype.(2)
Their complaints include ways they've "suffered" from evangelical teachings and attitudes. But the unifying reason for their exodus from churches is their rejection of the authority of Scripture in regard to women's roles and LBGTQ beliefs (John 8:47; John 12:48; 1 Timothy 4:1; 1 John 4:6).
They blame evangelicals, but their real beef is with God.
Now, more than ever, we must hold tightly to God's Word, believing that He knows what is best for mankind and refusing to give in to the powerful lies of culture (2 Thessalonians 2:15; Titus 1:9).
Bible-believing Christians are imperfect messengers, but the Bible is still the perfect message (Psalm 18:30; Psalm 19:8; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12).
FootNotes:
(1) Sometimes people confuse the word evangelicalism with fundamentalism. Originally fundamentalism simply meant people of any faith who held a strict, literal interpretation of their holy books, but it has come to mean a variety of things to different people. Similarly, the word conservative once described Christians who held traditional moral values. Now the term is most often used politically.
(2) This term is not usually hyphenated, but I've done this for the sake of clarity. People with the ex-vangelical beliefs also describe themselves as “progressive Christians,” “deconstructionists,” and “revisionists.” Ex-vangelicals do not hold all the same beliefs, but the things that seem to unify them are their disgust for evangelical Christianity and their refusal to accept scriptural commands about women's roles and sexual behavior. Some claim that the biblical commands have been misunderstood for 2000 years. Others claim that portions of the Bible are not God's Word. Some continue to call themselves Christians, others do not. ~ The fact that ex-vangelicals teach a negative stereotype of evangelicals is one of many ironies/hypocrisies within the movement. They claim to oppose negative stereotypes but they've built their beliefs on one.
To read more about popular ex-vangelical teachers see Wilderness Wanderers.
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Bible Love Notes
This all day! Finally someone put into words what is actually happening with biblical proof. Amen!
ReplyDeleteWhat are your thoughts one women's roles Biblically especially With Deborah in the book of judges being a prophetess a leader a judge Among other things I agree with you but I want to know what role you think women should play biblically. Because The Bible also States that during the in times men and women would prophecy young men and women
ReplyDeleteHi Felicia,
DeleteThat's a good question, and I'm working on a longer devotion in regard to women's roles according to Scripture. It won't fit the 1-minute format so it will be an additional post that I'll link to some of the 1-minute devotions that apply.
It's hard to address it fully in this comment without creating even more questions, but let me specifically address a couple of things:
1. We can never base appropriate behavior on the book of Judges. It is described as a time when the people did what was right in their own eyes, not in God's eyes. God still worked with his people in spite of this, but we are on dangerous ground to use Deborah as an example of biblical womanhood just as we cannot use Samson who slept with prostitutes as an example of biblical manhood.
2. We cannot deny that there are principles governing women's behavior in marriage and in the church. The hard part is understanding how those principles apply in every situation. God sees men and women as equals, but He has given us different roles in some areas. The fact that women prophesying is mentioned in a positive light tells us that women are not commanded to be silent in all venues. As I said, I'm probably raising as many questions as I'm answering, so let me end here.
I hope to write more on this, but I hope this offers some help.
God bless you.
Gail
I really appreciate these thoughts. Good analysis. It seems that for many people, constructing gods of their own making is satisfying. Yet these gods have no power to save.
ReplyDeleteAmen.
DeleteLove this message! The older I get (I'm sixty years old), the more real and concrete biblical truth becomes, and the more tragic the stories of those who reject their faith in exchange for the false salvation narratives in our culture that promise sexual freedom, social justice, and purposeless purpose. Thank you, Gail, for your wisdom and commitment ... you're a pretty good writer, too...ks
ReplyDelete