Is The Bible Not Enough?

Down through the years in recent Church history, there have been many books and publications which have attempted to stand in the place of the Bible. Back in 1950, Norman Vincent Peale wrote The Power of Positive Thinking. Peale had been a well-grounded Biblical preacher and teacher of the Bible. The Bible had been his one and only source in his ministry. But then he became close friends with a psychiatrist and he was influenced by this secular philosophy which then and now has masqueraded as a science. Peale then wrote his book on positive thinking. Positive thinking is used in many eastern religions and basically says if you will only think positively about something it will happen. That’s a crude explanation but true. Trust me, that doesn’t work and it will never replace the sound doctrines of the Bible.

 At the turn of this century, Rick Warren wrote the Purpose Driven Church and others which played off of that book. Many local churches gobbled that stuff right up. It was basically a marketing scheme for church planting and church growth. The 40 Days of Purpose book was being taught in Sunday morning church services in place of the Bible. Churches across the country began to follow this format and some even took it to their own extremes. When the Bible was used, it was watered down in its content and sound meaning. Churches were grown and given new life but at what expense?

 Other books were written. Books such as The Secret, Jesus Calling, The Shack, The Prayer of Jabez and others which were either based on New Age philosophy or an outright distortion of the Bible and its truth. But Christians bought these books and read them and believed their messages and untruths. A series of books which were written in the late 1990s and early 2000s was the Left Behind series. These books were written by Jerry Jenkins and Tim LaHaye and were written with extreme care to follow scripture and even had references to scripture and scripture passages in the side columns. These books were written with fictional characters and events concerning the rapture and the years of tribulation. But they were novels and fiction based on scripture. But yet, there were many who would refer to these books instead of the Bible when discussing the end times. These books were later used to make a series of movies.

Some Christians just seem determined to read and follow these types of writings instead of the Bible. Is the Bible that boring or not interesting enough? Is the Bible not enough for a Christian when it comes to reading what God has done for us through His only Son Jesus? I have read some of these types of books but only to know what they say and be able to comment on them when asked. Otherwise, I find them to be so out of touch with the truth of the Bible’s message.

As I mentioned the Left Behind series being produced into movies, there have been many attempts to produce movies based on the Bible and/or its events. Going back to Cecil B. DeMille’s production of The Ten Commandments, there have been other productions which were not as close to following the scripture as he was. Many have taken liberties with what the Bible actually says in comparison to what is seen on the screen. Many in various ministries have been outspoken about the ways Jesus has been presented. The Bible gives no description of what He looks like and many believe He should never be presented in a movie, or a TV series being portrayed by an actor.  

But in the most recent production of a TV series, The Chosen, Jesus is heard speaking with a Hispanic accent. I thought Jesus was a Jew. Actually, I know He was born a Jew to Jewish parents in the royal line of King David. So why the Hispanic accent? Since I have mentioned this series, there are other issues here. First, it is a Mormon production and the creator of this series, Dallas Jenkins, has been quoted as saying the Mormon Jesus and the Christian Jesus are the same Jesus. This is absolutely not true. For anyone who does any research on the Mormon faith will discover that they believe Jesus and Lucifer are brothers. Lucifer is a fallen angel and Jesus is the Son of God, the second Person in the Godhead and is God. Jenkins has refuted rumors that he is actually a Mormon.

But the series has taken far too many liberties with what is actually recorded in the Bible. I watched the first season of this series and decided it was way of off the rails when it comes to following the truth of the Bible. It’s understandable that when a movie or TV production is put together, there are going to be inserts included to bridge gaps or fill in the blanks in order to allow it to make sense. Cecil B. Demille was able to do this without distorting the truth of the Biblical account.  But still, some Christians believe this TV series is absolutely fantastic and a true Biblical account. In my opinion, and many other Christians, it is an embarrassment to and a butcher job on the truth.  There are other productions like The Bible which was produced by Mark Burnette and his wife Roma Downey and were so far from the accuracy of the Bible and people just loved it. What’s probably the worst thing about these butcher jobs on scripture is that a person who is not saved can see them and believe they are true and accurate.

Now, I am not saying that all Christian themed movies are junk. I have watched many that were inspiring and entertaining. But these productions were based on Christian living concerning life situations. And for the most part was accurately based on what the Bible tells us about living the Christian life.

Finally, there are, and have been, some fads or non-Biblical fads or themes which run through the Church. Regardless if it is based on a book, as I have mentioned, or a diet program or an unproven non-Biblical activity, it just seems like some Christians are always ready to jump on that out-of-control bandwagon. The most recent fad, and most certainly unbiblical, is The Enneagram. Some refer to it as a personality chart which appears as a circle with nine points on it and each point describes a personality trait. Today you may be feeling like a 7 and yesterday you were a 3 and tomorrow you might be a 6. It’s all based on the New Age philosophy, and it is not Biblical, never has been and can never be considered as a Christian tool. But sadly, it is promoted in this manner. The following is a description of the material included in a book written by an Enneagram coach in his latest book on relationships with others and how the Enneagram helps with that.

 In How We Relate, Enneagram coach and host of The EnneaCast podcast Jesse Eubanks invites you to discover who you are. In this illustrated guide, he expertly utilizes the Enneagram to lead you to the heart of Jesus, where you will find the wholeness you long for. 

As you peel back the layers of your False Self, encounter Jesus, and experience the redemption of your True Self, you will discover how to:

·         Understand your personality and the personalities of others

·         Explore your distinct approach to relationships

·         Discover how Jesus empathizes with and heals your unique core wound

·         Interpret the Enneagram through the gospel story

·         Experience more meaningful relationships with God, others, and yourself

 

Life is about relationships. It's time to transform yours [1]

 

It has always been my belief and understanding that the Bible is the only way to find your way to Jesus. Ephesians 2:8-9 tell us we are saved by God’s grace and not by any work or works. So why would we need a personality chart to tell us how to find the heart of Jesus? How can your salvation be dependent on how you feel today? It is alarming how so many Christians, who have been saved by the grace of God and the work Christ did on the cross, can be lulled into believing this lie. It’s just like what Paul told the church in Galatia.

I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ.  Gal 1:6-7

 

Whether it is the Enneagram or a book or some TV series or movie that is so far from the truth, don’t be fooled. God’s truth can only be found in one place and that is the Bible. The biggest problem with why some Christians fall for these lies is because they don’t read the Bible. Everything God wants us to know about Him, salvation and how to live the Christian life is in the Bible. Know what it means to use discernment, knowing the truth from a lie, and use it. Be a Berean (Acts 17:11) and check what you hear against the truth in the Bible. The Bible is the story which God has written for us. It tells us what we need to know about Him and what He has done for us. Yes, the Bible is still relevant and extremely important in our Christian lives. Don’t fall for the lie which worms its way into the church, on the screen or in a man written book.

 

Bill Petite

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[1] How We Relate: Understanding God, Yourself, and Others through the Enneagram - Kindle edition by Eubanks, Jesse. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.