GREENVILLE
PRESBYTERIAN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
BOOK
REVIEW: RADICAL BY DAVID PLATT
Thomas
Booher
AT 44
Missions
July 29,
2015
David Platt’s Radical
is a unique book in that it is both wildly popular and weds Christ-like
living for all believers in the United States to mission’s work. Platt is one
of the youngest megachurch pastors ever, and he explains that when he began
preaching at his church, it was full of complacent believers who embraced
cultural Christianity. They wanted to live the American dream and have Jesus
too. Our spending on ease and luxury is exorbitant, and our giving to the church
and to the poor is miniscule in comparison. Platt proposes a remedy by imposing
a “salary cap” on oneself, setting a certain yearly budget that one will live
off of, and whatever is earned over that budget is sent to Christian charities,
especially those overseas where the gospel will be proclaimed and the poor will
be helped. Platt explains that many live on less than a dollar or two a day,
which is the same Americans spend on French fries. He emphasizes giving money
sacrificially, giving until it hurts. He cites John Calvin who said that half
of the church's money should be given to the poor and that no one should
starve. Platt also suggests that God may be calling some people to literally
give away everything they have, citing from Scripture Jesus' encounter with the
rich young ruler as evidence (Matt. 19:21).
In the first few chapters, Platt explains the gospel and
devotes an entire chapter to the importance of relying on God’s power, the Holy
Spirit, rather than relying on our own ability to carry out His will. It is
very encouraging to see a well-known minister of the Word proclaim the true
gospel, and to see this book get such a wide reading leaves no doubt that many
in the United States have heard a clear exposition of the gospel, even some
professing Christians for the first time. Platt also recognizes that, in some
sense, giving to the physically needy in order to speak to them of their
spiritual needs is often beneficial. It seems he presses the principle a bit
too far, and may even believe it is beneficial to meet physical needs first
before spiritual needs can be addressed. While someone who is starving might
literally need to be fed in order to live long enough to hear the gospel, the
physical needs of man can never equip his ultimate need, which is to hear the
gospel of Jesus Christ and to believe it, so that he may be forgiven of his
sins, saved from the wrath to come, and find joy in living obediently to His
Lord.
Platt also
emphasizes early in the book the need to be men and women of the Word of God.
He stresses more time spent in studying the Bible than studying theological or
practical living books. Platt detailed the passion for God that many in third
world countries have, where it is illegal to read the Bible and assemble for
worship. Yet these brothers and sisters in the faith secretly assemble anyways,
to the peril of their own lives. Most of them undoubtedly study the Word of God
far more than those of us in the United States, where we have no threat to our life
to read God's Word. This was particularly convicting and shows how we have
compromised our faith due to ease of living and distracting entertainment.
Putting these things together, Platt preaches that all
Christians must live a radical life where one is “sold out” for Christ so that
Americans study the Word of God till their heads hurt, preach the gospel until voices
crack, and give to the poor and needy until all spare cash is gone (he even
emphasizes downgrading the size of your house and not buying the best cars to
give more money to the poor and for the gospel). While one may take issue with
the need to put a hard and fast salary cap on oneself or to downgrade the size
of your home, the basic principle that Platt is building his arguments from
does seem to be sound and biblical (see 1 Tim. 6:17-19). Having a home in the
United States, no matter how small it is, puts one in the upper echelon of
financially wealthy among all those in the world. Being generous and missions
minded is a much needed exhortation by Platt. Unfortunately, his theology of
missions, as will be seen, stands on shakier ground.
It seems that Platt believes that every Christian should
not only share the gospel with those in their spheres and local communities,
but also ought to go overseas and proclaim the gospel. Anyone who does not, in
some capacity, do this, is violating the Great Commission. He ridicules those
who merely give money to missionaries, saying Jesus did not tell us to send our
money but to send ourselves. Platt rebukes those who claim that foreign
missions are only for those who are called to such a field, and is not for
everyone. He complains that this compartmentalizes the great commission to a
certain group within the church, rendering it an optional program for everyone
else. He says this becomes an excuse for complacent Christians to reject the
command of Christ to proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth, and he even
suggests that such people may not really be converted.
Such tactics may seem quite convicting, and it may spur
some to become missionaries, but it simply isn’t biblical. Ephesians 4:7-16 and
other places in Scripture reveal that Christ’s body is comprised of different
parts, each with different functions. Not everyone will be an evangelist or a
pastor by profession. All ought to be ready to give a reason for the hope that
lies within them (1 Pet. 3:15), but this is not the same as saying each and
every Christian ought to spend large sums of money to go overseas and pretend
to be called and equipped to be missionaries when they are not. Paul
established elders in churches, and elders were called to continue to labor in
those local churches, not to go about like Paul or Peter to the ends of the
earth proclaiming the gospel. This makes sense practically as well, for if
everyone is spending money to preach the gospel overseas, nobody is left at
home to preach the gospel. Further, much revenue is wasted because a full-time
missionary could, and should, be funded by those in the church who are called
not to go but to help support those who are
called to go. If everyone was a short term missionary, there would no longer be
missions, because there would be no money left to conduct missions. God has
deemed that all Christians should have spiritual gifts, but not every spiritual gift. The church collectively forms the body of Christ,
meaning no one person is going to do all that Christ did, especially in the way
that He did it. To presume one could do so is foolish and arrogant. Per Romans
12:6-8, some will be more gifted in teaching, others in serving. Some will do
more acts of mercy, while others will devote more of their time to a teaching
ministry. The point is that these are differing gifts of God’s varied grace,
and one should neither despise the gift he has nor be condescending toward
those who do not have the same gifts as he.
Platt is right in saying that many use this as an excuse
not to live faithfully as Christians, but that does not give him the license to
lay the burden of being a missionary on all believers. This also leads to
confusion about the true nature of God’s kingdom and His kingdom purposes. Is
missions the end all, or is it a means to something greater? Missions exist so
that the elect from every tribe, tongue, and nation may be gathered together as
a holy people, set apart to serve God and worship Him. Glorifying God and
enjoying Him forever is the chief end of man, and that chief end is not
abrogated between the two comings of Christ. People conquered for Christ
receive gifts from Christ to build His kingdom on earth. They become the salt
and light of the world, and many must remain where they are, in their local
communities, engaging the society that they live in so that Christ is
manifested in all things.
It seems that Platt’s heart is in the right place. He
sees a very real and dangerous problem in American Christianity and seeks to
offer a solution to the problem that will truly lead us to live “radical” lives
for Jesus. Yet his solution will undoubtedly lead to burnout and guilt. Some
may even doubt their own salvation if they are not missionaries. I don’t think
that is Platt’s ultimate intention, but it does seem to be an undertone in his
book. Missionaries need to be gifted and called by God, and sent by their
church, to go to the foreign field and labor for the kingdom. The local church
should supply their physical needs and pray for them, but the whole church
ought not to go with them into the field. Ordinary, faithful living in the
kingdom of God is less exciting, but the testimony of a faithful life lived in
the midst of a godless American culture is something that the angels rejoice
over, too.
Comments
Post a Comment