Time magazine has published its list of the 25 Most Influential Evangelicals. I've ony ever been influenced by 10 of them. Below I will rank those 10 according to how influential they have been to me.
10. T.D. Jakes- Seems to not believe in the trinity. Can't recommend the guy 9. Tim & Beverly LaHaye- I disagree with their eschatology, but they sure did sell a lot of books. 8. Joyce Meyer- I don't really like her teaching that much 7. Rick Santorum- Politician not afraid to state the truth. I'd vote for him 6. Jay Sekulow- The ACLJ is a great organization countering the ACLU 5. Chuck Colson- His books are very underrated, great testimony 4. Bill Hybels- I actually like his assistants better. 3. James Dobson- I love the focus on the family...hehe 2. Billy & Franklin Graham- Hard not respect these guys, I'm glad Franklin has become another great spokemen for evangelicalism 1. Rick Warren- I really enjoyed the Purpose Driven Church and I always like what he has to say in interviews
7 comments:
what's this on Jakes and the Trinity? source?
Here is an article about it:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/002/5.58.html
And here is Jakes response:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/108/13.0.html
In a 2000 interview, Jake said of the trinity...
"I think it's very, very significant that we first of all study the Trinity apart from salvation, and first of all that we embrace Christ and come to him to know who he is. Having come to know who he is, then we begin to deal with the Trinity, which I believe is a very complex issue. The Trinity, the term 'Trinity,' is not a biblical term, to begin with. It's a theological description for something that is so beyond human comprehension that I'm not sure that we can totally hold God to a numerical system. The Lord said, ''Behold, O Israel, the Lord thy God is one, and beside him there is no other.'' When God got ready to make a man that looked like him, he didn't make three. He made one man. However, that one man had three parts. He was body, soul, and spirit. We have one God, but he is Father in creation, Son in redemption, and Holy Spirit in regeneration."
There are mulitple problems with that statement from a trinitarian viewpoint. First of all, Jakes continues to use common modalistic arguments against the orthodox view of the trinity (mentioning the absence of the specific word from Scripture). Secondly, saying we can't hold God to a numerical system would seem to reject oneness pentecostalism just as much as it rejects trinitarianism. Thirdly, his comparison with the Godhead to the trichotomist (that we exist in body, soul & spirit) nature of mankind is perhaps the biggest indicator that he rejects the trinity. You see, we are one person with, according to jakes, three parts. If he is comparing God to our nature, then God would also be one person with three parts. Yet that is specifically what trinitarians rejects! God is three person, not parts. One what, three who's.
thanks, matt. the statement certainly is modalistic. in the end, i think i would more lean toward him not being a theologian than being a heretic, though.
jakes' response is full of internal contradictions--e.g. that we study the Trinity apart from salvation, but first look at Jesus Christ. hello? that's God working in salvation. i still side with rahner that God in salvation is God who he is ("the economic Trinity is the immanent Trinity"). anyway...peace.
I would agree with you that it is more of a theological error, on his part, than a heresy. From what I hear, he has some very good ministries to the needy.
i heard a neat sermon by jakes the other week. in it he said that a person is probably "called" to that which he/she absolutely cannot stand. in other words, the thing that others do/don't do that drives us crazy is the thing WE are supposed to do something about. i liked that.
Sounds interesting
I've never heard more than 5 minutes of a sermon by him. I am only familiar with him through discussions about his orthodoxy.
I only listen to Bob Russell, Adrian Rogers, Chuck Swindoll, and Ravi Zacharias when it comes to preaching.
I'll try to give those a listen sometime in the next couple sleepless nights. I like John Piper. I really enjoyed his book 'the Passion of Jesus Christ.'
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