The Word vs "Christian Literature"

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Jullianna

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I see a lot of stuff posted all over the Internet as "Christian literature", but when you take a closer look, you realize that some of it sounds all unicorns and fluffiness, but has little to no scriptural basis, and may even be contrary to scripture. Seems like a lot of self-help books and dating advice books in particular fit into this category. Has anyone else noticed this? What are some ideas/trends that stand out to you in this regard?
 
Jullianna said:
I see a lot of stuff posted all over the Internet as "Christian literature", but when you take a closer look, you realize that some of it sounds all unicorns and fluffiness, but has little to no scriptural basis, and may even be contrary to scripture. Seems like a lot of self-help books and dating advice books in particular fit into this category. Has anyone else noticed this? What are some ideas/trends that stand out to you in this regard?
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I've noticed an increase of Christian fiction books, some of which are okay and some which have some startling undertones in them. I think the world has realized that the church is an untapped source of income for Christianese books, music, movies, and dating sites. It's a money market. Such people want to become famous and rich. If they can't do that in the world, they will "backup" and try again within the realm of the church. Singers have done it for years. Now it seems that fictional writers are doing the same. Even psychologists and counselors are putting on the "mask" of Christianity to increase their income. While the world sees it as a source of income, the devil sees it as another way to get his foot in the door.
 
Just a thought.......... I suddenly realized one of the reasons why God cannot stand lukewarmness...... another reason why it makes Him sick. It's not the cold, hard stuff in the world that is turning Christians away from God. It's the middle-of-the-road stuff. Note:
1. It draws away new and lukewarm Christians from the Lord by lowering their standards.
2. It causes major division in the body of Christ. It has just enough Christianese to get one group to say it's of God, yet has enough evil for watching Christians to see the obvious. Because of this, both sides argue over what's right, you know, kinda like the Bible Discussion Forum. :rolleyes:
 
I'm going to call certain teachers, out on this, just because if someone was teaching my kids something I knew was wrong, I'd want to know about it. I have a lot of friends really into this guy named Bill Johnson. The love quoting his books and his teachings, and I see more quotes from him than I see bible verses. The thing is, while watching a sermon of his he only used scripture once, and when he did it was in a flippant matter and used in a mocking tone towards bible study teachers who have questioned his teachings alongside scripture. I'm sorry but if that's the best you have to defend your teaching...you're probably wrong. Another favorite is a guy named Kevin Weaver who teaches that the only reason the great commission is what it is is because of human interpretation and the real focus should be on spiritual gifts and doing supernatural works and be super secret, inhuman faith agents (yes he used those words). He also adds words to scripture, such as "Your will be done THE SAME on earth as it is in heaven."
 
I think the so-called Christian 'self help' books are more to blame than Christian fiction. Christian fiction has been known for having an agenda (basically a sermon disguised as a story). This isn't the way to tell a story. You should just write the story and have your Christian beliefs and worldview breathe naturally through it. After all, a book isn't Christian because it says God's, Jesus', the Holy Spirit's name often, but because the worldview and values are exclusive to Christianity. That said, the label should be scrapped.
 
Christian self-help books can be insightful, but I take them with a grain of salt. I have read a few in my time, if anything they solidified my opinion on the topic, or opened my mind. Whether I agree with it or not, I am open to learning more about myself spiritually and how it all related to God. When it comes to scholar literature (ie. journal articles by theologians, academic commentaries that have studied scripture) I will take more seriously because they have studied context, word translation and a general knowledge of religion, and Christian history. I do know that everyone interprets scripture differently, so I think that digging deep and finding original intended meanings can be help with discerning what is correct interpretation and what is false. I do not doubt the Holy Spirit's input when we read scripture, but like I said we all interpret and bring our own meanings to what we read. I guess I take a more post-positivist approach to scripture and look for objective evidence and derive meaning from it, rather than the constructionist interpretative approach.
 
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Christian fiction admits what it is, whereas what is often presented as non-fiction...is. And a lot of people who read it, rather than scripture, don't know the difference, unfortunately. The authors are accountable for this when they cause God's children to stumble.
 
I notice there is a lot to be said for ego to. There are those who try to write something that will impact people, and those who just happen to write something that is impactful. I'm sure when C.S. Lewis put together Mere Christianity and G.K. Chesterton wrote Orthodoxy they didn't write them thinking, "this is amazing and will change peoples lives and go down in history as one of the greatest books ever!" Chesterton just wrote about his own life, Lewis just wrote about what christianity was, and now they're considered two of the greatest apologetic works. There are so many writers and scholars now that assert there authority not by their relationship with God but by their own works. They do not seek the smile of Gods face, but the praise of Gods people. Rather than seeking God in their writing endeavors, they seek their own knowledge. I believe it was Jullianna that posted a quote by Jeremy Camp where he told God he wanted to write songs that blessed people, and God told him to write songs to bless Him first.
 
I have read alot of christian literature and none of it comes close to the Word of God. I did however like divine revelations of hell by Mary k. Baxter, it really got my attention and I keep a copy on hand at all times just in case I run into someone who needs a wake up call.
 
I hate to be dismissive, but I will be. Must things that are spewed out by Christian publishers these days is nothing but but bollocks meant to warm the heart instead of edify the soul.
 
Ritter said:
I hate to be dismissive, but I will be. Must things that are spewed out by Christian publishers these days is nothing but but bollocks meant to warm the heart instead of edify the soul.
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Are you ever wrong, because you're seriously starting to get on my nerves.
 
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