Furtick's Elevation Church on Evangelism

By Justin Edwards

Curious of Elevation Church's method of evangelism?  Invite them to church!  That's right, Elevation's position on evangelism is to train their congregation to invite people to church so they can be wooed by the flashing lights, rock music and hip hop, and anything else culturally relevant to the itching ear.  Who needs to know the Gospel and proclaim it when all you have to do is work up the courage to invite people to hip entertainment ala Steven Furtick and his team of rock stars?

The following is a snippet from an email response to a dear brother of mine.  I marked out his name to keep him anonymous.  My friend's inquiry to Elevation was as follows:

What does elevation do as far as evangelism?  Any training or witnessing ministries within the church?

Here is the August 16, 2011 response from Elevation Church "Connections Pastor" Larry Brey:

In case the above image is difficult to read, the text is as follows:

Hey _____,

Great hearing from you and thanks for your question. The best evangelism training we have is to teach people how to invite their friends to come to church with them.  We view it as a partnership, they invite them and we do everything we can to create an amazing worship experience.  Most people have to work to be comfortable to invite people to church and the best witness they can be is to live their life out in front of the people.  Hope that helps. Have a great day and God bless -- Larry Brey, Connections Pastor

Evangelism at Elevation Church (source)

So, their "best evangelism training" is inviting people to church - where is that in Scripture?  Last I checked, Ephesians 4:11-12 is still the mandate of the local church:

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ...

The job of the local church is to equip the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ.  In other words, it's to equip them to GO, fulfilling the commands of Christ in Matthew 28:18-20 and Mark 16:15.  Larry Brey's response is further proof that Elevation Church is not for the Body of Christ, but rather for catering to the lost, which Steven Furtick himself so eloquently said when he declared a few years ago,

If You Know Jesus This Church is NOT for you! (source)

Elevation Church is not for the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry and shepherding the flock to grow in holiness (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12), but for feeding spoiled milk to nonbelievers and false converts alike. In other words, Elevation has redefined church from God's intention and design.

Perhaps even more disturbing, is the exhortation to be "the best witness they can be is to live their life out in front of the people."  That sounds an awful lot like the unbiblical advice from the popular quote,

Preach the Gospel always, and if necessary, use words.

On the contrary, this is what Scripture says,

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” - Romans 10:13-15 

Indeed, how beautiful are the feet who GO out into the world to preach Christ and Him crucified!  How marvelous that God has made us to be vessels to proclaim His unspeakable love, grace, and mercy to sinners everywhere - outside the church doors!  How humbling it is that we are to be used as instruments in God's plan of redemption, proclaiming the glories of Christ, the holiness and righteousness of the Just Judge of creation, and the salvation offered through the blood sacrifice by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.  

Yet, all Elevation Church aims to do is teach people how to invite people to church and "live the Gospel"?  There is no such thing as "living the Gospel"!  The Gospel is God satisfying His own wrath against mankind in order that man might be saved from his enslavement to sin and the wrath of God to receive eternal life in Christ.  We are to not be "ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek" (Romans 1:16). That is the Gospel, and we are to proclaim it!

This is serious, my friends.  If you attend Elevation Church, please do consider what is at stake here.  Do you know the Gospel and can you communicate it?  Does Elevation's position line up with Scripture?  Are you learning more how to socially interact with people than learning the deep things of God?  Are you being shepherded unto holiness, being exhorted to no longer be conformed to the world and be transformed by the renewing of your mind, or are you learning new ways to mix churchianity and the things of this world?

Elevation's method of evangelism is preposterous, and anyone caught up in this mega-business should seriously consider fleeing - for your sake and the sake of those you meet who will never come to church with you.  Asking people to come to church is a good thing, but it is absolutely no substitute for your commission to share the Gospel by your own lips.  I recommend you begin here.  

I also recommend the following article as it relates to the Church's mission of evangelism: The Gospel Is for Christians. 

Christless, Secular "Worship" Music at North Point

By Justin Edwards

A popular trend in [post]modern evangelicalism is secularizing the worship service to be more palatable to the itching ears in attendance at churches entertainment venues across America.  Whether it's Elevation Church covering Rage Against the Machine's "Bulls on Parade", or NewSpring Church covering AC/DC's "Highway to Hell", the music in many churches today is aimed at appealing to the carnal nature instead of aiming to glorify and worship the Lord Jesus Christ with pure and holy hearts.

Two Scriptures I'd like to mention before leading into the video below are from John 4:23-24:

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

and Philippians 4:8

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

With these in mind, the following video comes from Andy Stanley's North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, GA.  These talented men put together a medley of songs from musicians ranging from the last few decades, many of whom have at least one thing in common:  worldliness.  About 25 musicians were covered in the medley, including The Beatles, Elton John (twice), Beyonce, Aerosmith, Destiny's Child, Maroon 5, Jason Mraz, Bob Marley, Poison, and Whitney Houston.  Not only did these "worship" leaders sing music that had absolutely nothing to do with Christ (not that all music must, but this is church after all), but the musicians they covered very much love this world and the things of the world, whether they be homosexuals, lovers of themselves, fornicators, lovers of money, or idolaters - of whom Scripture tells us will not inherit the Kingdom of God:

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. - 1 Corinthians 6:9-10

There is no need to go outside of Scripture to preach a message on love, especially no need to bring the world into the church to suit itching ears (2 Timothy 4:3-4).  The message preached and the music for worship must be Christ-centered, intended to build up the saints, not to stunt Gospel-centered spiritual growth. Church is to be the Christian's refuge for God-exalting worship, not a place where worldliness is accepted and praised.  While we are to go out into the world to share the Gospel with sinners such as those listed in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, church is not intended to conform to the world to make it more entertaining to sinners.  As one facebook commenter said yesterday,

What you draw them with is what you have to keep them with.

Indeed, which is to say these churches collectively show by their fruit that they love the world and the things of the world (1 John 2:15-17).  If you find yourself in one of these seeker-sensitive, postmodern, man-centered, flesh-appealing, Gospel-less, idol-worshiping, life-enhancement "churches", then you must come out from among them (2 Corinthians 6:14-18). 

We have been separated as a holy people to serve the One True Holy God, who has saved us from our sin, who has caused us to crucify our flesh with its passions and desires, and who has decreed that all believers purify themselves from the things of the world, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God (1 John 3:3; 2 Corinthians 7:1). We are to worship God in the spirit of holiness rooted in the truth of Holy Scripture, and we are to meditate on "whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, [and]...anything worthy of praise."

Let us live and worship like it, becoming holy as He is holy:

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” - 1 Peter 1:14-16

Great Outdoors, Fellowship, and Evangelism

This article was originally posted at The Speak:Truth Project

One of my most favorite things to do in life is to enjoy the great outdoors.  Last Saturday, a group of us headed to Grandfather Mountain in Western North Carolina to meet up with a couple of dear friends, Josh and Steve, who recently moved from Charlotte to pastor Higher Ground Church of God in Pineola, NC.   We also brought our families with us, so while we hiked the mountain, our wives and children spent the day hanging out.

The weather could not have been more perfect.  We got started around 10am and I was excited about all the people we would be seeing on the mountain.  The ice got broken for tract distribution as a gentleman took our picture near the Mile High Bridge, and I responded in kind with a Million Dollar tip!

Aaron and I both brought tracts with us for the hike, and between us both, I imagine we were blessed to hand out approximately 50 tracts.  We may have only spoken to one individual for a few minutes on one occasion, but dozens of people received the Gospel in their hands.  This gentleman in particular had mentioned he has been meaning to read his Bible and “get things right” for a while, so I can only imagine what it meant for him that we spoke the truth of God’s Word to him on the side of a mountain (literally on a ladder on the side of a mountain!).  Most people were elated and appreciative of what we handed them, and on a couple of occasions we met believers, which is always an encouraging experience.

The best part of our day was our time of fellowship together, especially during lunch.  Aaron had prepared a devotional about peaks and valleys and where our focus must remain through times of prosperity and trying times – on Christ.  We also sang a couple of songs and worshiped the Creator together.  It was really a sweet moment and epitomized what true fellowship is for the Body of Christ.  It seems most of our conversations throughout the hike were centered on God, and it was such a blessing to be in the company of like-minded believers who desired the same fellowship.
So dear friends, I encourage you to consider an outing where you might fellowship and worship our God in the great outdoors.  It is so refreshing to “get away” for a day and spend time in God’s creation with other believers.  It also affords you the opportunity to witness to the lost literally on “the ends of the earth”.

Even if you are not in a group, always keep Gospel tracts handy and have courage to hand them out wherever you go.  Had we left our tracts at home, it would have been a wasted opportunity to get the Gospel in the hands of folks we may have otherwise had no other contact.

Do you have any plans for this spring and summer?  Camping, hiking, fishing, mountains, beach, four-wheeling, horseback riding, lakes, rivers, etc.?  If not, try making some – and don’t forget your tracts!

You can check out the rest of our photos on facebook.