Repentance in "The Purpose Driven Life"

[jubilationtcornpone]

One of the things that disappointed me most about Rick Warren's runaway bestseller, The Purpose Driven Life, was the light treatment that it gave to repentance and the gospel message. In his book, Warren does mention repentance; however, this is not unambiguously presented as a strict requirement for salvation. What's more, he portrays repentance in a light, inoffensive way -- emphasizing repentance as a way to be blessed, rather than a deliberate forsaking of one's sins.


I like the way this article expresses these concerns, and I think that the following excerpt is worth repeating:

"The message of salvation from Rick is watered down and presented in such a way as to be non-offensive, thus leaving it devoid of the true message. Rick's invitation to the non-believing reader emphasizes getting in on God's purpose for you, rather than getting right with God by getting saved. He says, 'Right now, God is inviting you to live for his glory by fulfilling the purposes he made you for. It's really the only way to live' (p. 58). To his credit, he mentions receiving forgiveness for sins through Christ, but couples it with a paraphrased verse from The Message, 'Whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever.' Gets in on everything? It's really the only way to live? This sounds like an invitation to a really neat lifestyle, not an invitation to receive forgiveness of sin and everlasting life. There is so much talk about 'getting in on what God is doing' and 'getting in on God's purpose,' that the invitation to accept Christ seems to be an invitation to get purpose in your life. This is not the gospel. The gospel is not a gospel of purpose offered to forlorn people lacking direction, it's a gospel of reconciliation with God offered to sinful humanity."

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