Are We Evangelical?

Well, yes and/or no; but mainly no.  The definitions for the term evangelical range from; “not a Roman Catholic” to “someone who likes Billy Graham.”  The word has as many definitions as you can find definers (both religious and political).  The constant thread running through them all goes something like this, “churches that stress the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ, personal conversion experiences, Scripture as the sole basis for faith, and active evangelism¹.”  The phrase, “personal conversion experiences” is the same as, “born-again” or “faith-only.”  Here is where we should begin to see the difference, but the contrast is much greater than an argument about the necessity of immersion for salvation.

(Editor’s definition for purposes of this article: evangelical = A Protestant, faith-only Christian who is motivated to share the gospel.-JS)

Where We Are Alike:  In a secular, cultural sense Evangelicals are our kissing cousins.  We have the same feelings about right and wrong, a belief in fairness, and a focus on our families.  We are similar in religious ways.  Evangelicals popularized the idea of Sola Scriptura.  They believe in the power of preaching the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, and honor the Bible as the literal and inerrant word of God.  So do we!  In the most basic understanding, the term evangelical means, “one who spreads the gospel.”  To these things we say, “Amen!”  I consider myself an evangelist (II Timothy 4:5).

The Protestant Thing:  Churches of Christ are not Protestant.  Our origins are not rooted in a reaction to Roman Catholicism.  Most American Evangelical groups are grounded in Presbyterian, Baptist, Lutheran, or Methodist tradition.  All these groups have church governments and organizations larger than the local church.  Conventions, councils, presbyteries, and synods are unknown to Scripture.  We also consider the binding use of creeds to be unacceptable in the Christian church.  Which leads us to…

The Calvinism Thing:  The Canons of Dordt (1619) and the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) are creeds to which most Evangelicals can tie their doctrine.  They define Calvinism.  This kind of teaching is why your religious neighbors believe they are saved by a born-again experience (absent baptism) and it informs their once saved, always saved position.  This leads to the unscriptural practice of teaching the sinner’s prayer or letting Jesus into your heart is all that is needed for salvation.  No person is saved without the obedience of faith (Romans 1:5; 16:26), “Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,”-I Peter 3:21.  We must reject the common understanding of the label Evangelical for this reason.

The influence of Calvinism makes otherwise Christian groups problematic.  We need to be aware of Bible study groups on high school or college campuses.  Most are Protestant and faith-only.  This is why morally positive clubs like Young Life or Fellowship of Christian Athletes cling so doggedly to the false teaching that people need to, “accept Jesus as their personal Savior” to be saved.  The Bible teaches no such thing.

Evangelicals Are Not Restorationists:  American Evangelicals are not concerned with restoring New Testament faith, worship, and practice to the church of Christ.  The Bible supports our regulating principle (Deuteronomy 4:2; I Corinthians 4:6; II Thessalonians 2:15; II Timothy 3:16-17; Revelation 22:18-19).  When Thomas Campbell said in 1809, “Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent.” it charted a course away from denominational names, creeds, and organizations.  We are sailing toward Jerusalem with the Bible as our only guide.  Evangelicals are unconcerned with need for book, chapter, and verse for what they practice.  They are headed for the literal circus of Cornerstone Church.  We reject that path.

While it is tempting to find a cultural safety in numbers by having a common purse with our Evangelical neighbors, we must remember we are a peculiar people.  Evangelical Christianity teaches faith-only salvation, anything goes worship, and relies on unscriptural organization.  What happens if they accept homosexual sin or deny the need for Jesus as the only way to the Father?  We must be careful not to learn their ways by close association.  May we strive for truth and stand as Christians only.

 

¹  “Evangelical church; Protestantism.” britannica.com, Accessed 17 Jan. 2019.