As I mentioned in The Supremacy of Christ, Adam at Pomomusings has some issues with Mark Driscoll. In his own words, he ‘just [doesn't] get this guy.” I think there’s more to it than that. It looks to me like he just doesn’t get the Gospel.
He states three problems with Driscoll’s chapter. First, he cites too much Scripture:
Mark apparently thinks that the number of Biblical citations is directly proportional to how faithful his chapter actually is to scripture? Seriously, he has 176 footnotes, 174 of which are practically lists of Bible verses for a 14-pg chapter.
Why is that a problem? A Christian pastor who’s been asked to lay out his theology should be backing up everything he has to say with Scripture. Part of my problem with progressive Christian theology is that it is moving away from the Bible as its source. Beyond that, comments like this imply that, not only is it alright not to use much Scripture, but a person who uses a lot is somehow deficient.
His second problem, the one that inspired my earlier post (and the title of this one), is that Driscoll is overly concerned with showing that Jesus and “the Christian revelation of God [are] distinct from and superior to all other views of God†(26). Adam calls this an “unhealthy need for power” on Driscoll’s part. But whose power is he talking about? Christ’s.
That’s what the Apostles taught:
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:15-20
Our purpose is to glorify Christ. How can we do that without pointing to him as superior to all? Should we pretend that we believe him to be equal to others, just a different choice? Of course not!
Adam’s third problem is that Driscoll calls Jesus’ death the most important part of his life:
There it is – Jesus’ life, ministry, care for the poor – nope. Let’s focus on the most important thing: Jesus’ death.
There’s an easy explanation for Adam’s emotional response to this: he doesn’t understand the Gospel. The Gospel is not about healing and caring for the poor. Not as a first tier priority. The Gospel is about us being reconciled to God. How does that happen? God tabernacles among us, lives a sinless life and goes to the cross to bear the burden of our sin. The good news is that we can now be reconciled, regardless of our past, through the death and resurrection of Christ.
I’m not the scholar to explicate this, but they’re out there. Driscoll is one of them, though he’s mainly drawing on the work of others (which is fine). The atonement is important. It was big in the OT and the NT, and should be to us. Many came before and after teaching and preaching good works and care for the poor and outcast. The Passion and Divinity of Christ is what separates him from the others.
Many progressives choose to ignore that, and I don’t really know why. Can’t you be progressive while still acknowledging the basics of the Gospel?
