This Train

This post will definitely offend some of you ... but hey, you're free to disagree with me ;-) Furthermore, I'd be happy to engage with you if you feel that strongly.

It's been my observation (call it Paul's Conjecture) that Christian books generally obey this law:

Consider some of the bestsellers in recent years:

• Left Behind series (Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins)
• The Prayer of Jabez (Bruce Wilkinson)
• Wild at Heart (John Eldredge)
• The Purpose Driven Life (Rick Warren)
• Boundaries (Henry Cloud and John Townsend)
• Experiencing God (Henry Blackaby)

Without exception, each one of the above popular books contains not a small amount of questionable theology. Don't get me wrong: I'm NOT saying that they're absolutely useless. But therein lies the danger: there's just enough truth in them to give the average reader the impression that these books are theologically sound. Second, I noltice that devotees of these books tend to be religious junkies, seeking one spiritual high after another. Thirdly, most of these books offer a simplistic, formulaic and reductionistic approach to the Christian life. You can achieve super spiritual growth in 40 days. If you follow these 7 steps you can know God's will for your life. Yada, yada, yada ... Fourthly, these books tend to be written in a fluffy, sentimental style that appeals to your average lazy, biblically illiterate, and unthinking Christian. Further, most Christians have a "herd mentality": they see their church friends reading it, or see the full-page glossy ads in Christian magazines, and they figure it must be good. Lastly, these books usually spawn a profitable cottage industry of paraphenelia (journals, videos, T-shirts, etc.) that appeals to the consumer spirit of North American Christians. It's funny (but sad) how some of these books/authors garner such a faddish and cultish following amongst so many Christians. Idolatry is alive and well today as it was in the days of Israel of old.

I'm happy to say that from time to time there are some notable exceptions to "Paul's Conjecture". One recent example is John Piper's The Passion of Jesus Christ: Fifty Reasons Why He Came to Die, which I understand is selling quite well. (One could argue that he is capitalizing on Mel Gibson's movie). Piper is faithful to the Bible, and writes with passion and pastoral concern.

My basic advice to my Christian friends is: avoid almost everything in the Top 20 Bestseller list. Be a good steward, and buy books that will help you read and study the Bible for yourself. Be a critical and discerning thinker. Kick the habit of jumping into every fad that comes along.

Be a purpose-driven reader ...