Purpose Driven or Scripture Driven? - Way of Life Literature

have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway,even unto the end of the world. Amen” (Matthew28:19-20).“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, andpreach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15).“And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus itbehoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead thethird day: And that repentance and remission of sinsshould be preached in his name among all nations,beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:46-47).“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost iscome upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me bothin Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and untothe uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).Warren’s P.E.A.C.E. plan expands on Christ’s Commissionwith a global social agenda that we see nowhere in the NewTestament. Christ’s Commission focuses on preaching theGospel to every soul and discipling those that believe, andthat is the program that we see carried out in the book ofActs. There is not a hint there or anywhere else in the NewTestament that the apostles and early churches pursued anysort of grandiose social-justice program. They did not set outto save the environment. They did not organize protestsagainst the social-political ills of the Roman Empire. Theydid not try to rid the Empire of poverty and sickness. Theypreached the gospel and lived holy lives and plantedchurches and discipled believers and loved their neighbors(but not in the way this is defined by Rick Warren).It is true that believers should have a godly influence inthis world. We are light and salt, but that does not add up tothe social-justice gospel as spelled out by Warren. We agreewith the following statement by Jonathan Leeland from thePastors’ and Theologians’ Forum on Church and Culture onthe 9Marks web site:55