Alisa Childers - Another Gospel? Participants Guide: Six Sessions on the Search for Truth in Response to the Claims of Progressive Christianity

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Another Gospel? Participants Guide: Six Sessions on the Search for Truth in Response to the Claims of Progressive Christianity

Copyright 2022 by Alisa Childers. All rights reserved.

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Designed by Eva M. Winters

Published in association with the literary agency of William K. Jensen Literary Agency, 119 Bampton Court, Eugene, OR 97404.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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ISBN 978-1-4964-6457-6

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You know that feeling when youre scrolling through Facebook and read a blog post that seems offbut you cant quite articulate why? Do you feel confused by what seems like a loving and inclusive message coming from progressive Christians? Are you concerned about the progressive movement and looking for a concise resource to help you identify and respond to its claims and practices (plus have a handy guide to give to your less-concerned friends)?

Im so thrilled you have chosen to come on this journey with me! I once was thrown into a faith crisis that I had absolutely no idea how to navigate. As a lifelong believer in Jesus, I never doubted what I believed until I met a clever skeptic who also happened to be a pastor. More specifically, he was a progressive Christian pastor. Suddenly, I was left with more questions than answers, and my faith was hanging by a thread. Another Gospel? is the story of my journey through doubt and deconstruction, and ultimately to a firm and intellectually informed faith.

This participants guide and the Another Gospel? DVD Experience have been created as companions to my book. Over the course of the next six weeks, you will walk with me via video and utilize this wonderful resource that Nancy Taylor and the team at Tyndale put together and adapted from Another Gospel? My prayer is that you will come out on the other side with a stronger faith and a deeper confidence as you minister to those in your life who may be caught up in progressive Christianity.

Theres a storm coming. At some point youll be caught in a deluge you didnt see on the horizon. The winds will whip around you, the floodwaters will surge beneath your feet, and youll cry out in alarm, wondering if anyone hears you or is able to help. Im not talking about a literal storm, although that might be part of your story. Im talking about a crisis of faith that makes you doubt everything you thought you knew about God. It may be life circumstances that throw you off-balance, leading you to question what you thought you knew about God. Or perhaps it will be the winds of culture and false doctrine that buffet you, making you realize that your belief system is built on sand and wont be able to withstand the tempest youre in. Whatever the nature of your storm, it may leave you disoriented and confused about core issues of the Christian faith that you thought you had settled.

The truth is, we all have questions and doubts about God and his ways. The storms of life just bring them to the forefront of our minds and make them impossible to ignore. Thankfully, there are real answers to our existential questions that make logical sense, and God wants to help us discover them.

Sometimes we might think that if we keep on nagging God about our doubts, he will get tired of us. We might think hes more pleased with us if we just keep going through the motions of the Christian life and ignore the questions that pop into our minds. We might think that faith is the opposite of doubt. But nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus promised, Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened (Matthew 7:7-8). God wants us to be persistent in coming to him over and over, and he wants us to search for answers until we find the truth.

Likewise, the apostle James said, If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind (James 1:5-6). God is the source of wisdom, and when we ask him to give it to us, he lavishes it on us. But that second part of Jamess teaching is important. If we want to be settled and stable through the storms of life, we have to be secure in what we believe. Our faith needs to be in God alone, the Rock of Ages.

Thats what the book Another Gospel? is all about. Our churches and neighborhoods are full of people who are asking big questions: Who is the God of the Bible? What about heaven and hellare those just metaphors? If theyre real, what does that say about what God is like? Can the Bible even be trusted? What does an ancient faith have to do with my life today? These are important questions to consider, and by answering them with the truth we can build a sure foundation for our faith.

Thats what we all want, in the final analysis. We want something to cling to when we are facing death and disaster. We want something certain when everything around us seems to be shifting and unstable. And we want something worth building our lives around. Paul said this type of structurally sound faith that can withstand lifes storms is the goal of the Christian life: Then we will no longer be immature like children. We wont be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church (Ephesians 4:14-15).

The problem isnt that were distressed by the storms that come into our lives or that we are asking questions about the faith. After all, even the disciples thought a storm was going to wipe them out, and many writers of Scripture asked God questions and sometimes even argued with him! The problem is that all too often people are looking for answers in the wrong places, and sometimes for the wrong reasons.

Where are we going to go with these doubts, questions, and debates? Will we let God answer through the evidence we can observe in nature and in his Word, or will we instead listen to the answers culture is providing? Are we going to wallow in disbelief, or will we bring our honest doubts to God and seek the truth? Are we willing to take the risk of getting to the bedrock issues of faith? And once we get there, will we submit our lives to God? Do we want to have answers to our questions even if it means our lives will be more difficult?