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Have You Heard of the Four Spiritual Laws Pocket Pack (12)

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The information contained in this book changed my life for the better. It is most certainly worth your time. Buy it! You will be forever grateful!

This was great. It was affordable for our small church to purchase these booklets for doing evangelism and outreach into the neighborhoods around us. We are glad to have made this purchase and will do more business with amazon.com in the future.

If you want a practical, transferable, and effective means of communicating the claims of Jesus Christ to friends, co-workers, and neighbors, this tool will help. It is direct, simple, contains the gospel, and can be left with the person so they can review it later. It also has a simple "follow-up" tool built in if someone places their faith in Christ. It stresses faith in the historic gospel, Christ as God's only provision for sin, God's love, and mankind's need for a savior.

This tract is a great way to spread the gospel of Christ. It goes into detail without becoming boring. It makes the way to salvation and why salvation is needed very clear. An earlier review says that this is an ineffective way to minister, but I disagree, for while most that receive Christ in crusades or with a tract may fall away, many of them come back years later because of the seed that was planted. These stats aren't reflected many times. This is true for myself. I came to the Lord at the age of 12 watching Billy Graham on television and fell away a few months later, but at the age of 19 I remembered that wonderful touch of The Lord and came back to Him. At any rate, this tract is a great way to share your faith or to simply learn the basics if you don't already know them.

Perhaps you are a Christian who came to Christ through the tract known as "The Four Spiritual Laws." Or perhaps you are an unbeliever who has either had "The Four Spiritual Laws" presented to you or will have it presented to you soon. Either way, this tract, written by Bill Bright, the leader of Campus Crusade for Christ, is perhaps the most widely distributed and well-known "gospel" in the world today.

I myself had "The Four Spiritual Laws" presented to me in the Fall of 1987 by some Campus Crusade For Christ guys while I was an athiest during my sophomore at UC Irvine. It was a few months later when I came to Christ after hearing a barely adequate rendition of the gospel. But this Bill Bright "The Four Spiritual Laws" "gospel" soon became the de facto gospel that I preached to unbelievers for a couple of years. Then in 1990, the Lord began to weed this gospel out of my mind. By the Spring of 1991, I was boldly exposing this "gospel" as false. Many Christians have heard me personally confront them on this issue. Many didn't like the idea that what I was saying was right yet they had been basing their "evangelism" on this tract for years, and maybe even came to Christ based on it. But Christian: If what I am about to present to you is right on, your only option is to REPENT and then start preaching the biblical gospel and join me in exposing this Bill Bright "gospel" as "another gospel."

Let's now look at the document in question. As you read it, consider this: What is the hope which this "gospel" is offering to the unbeliever to get his/her attention and motivate him/her to respond? What is this "gospel" saying the unbeliever should expect if they "individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord"? What idea is repeated/emphasized in every one of the "four spiritual laws"?:

THE FOUR SPIRITUAL LAWS, by Bill Bright

1. God loves you, and offers a wonderful plan for your life.

God's Love: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

God's plan: "I came that they might have life, and might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10)

2. Man is sinful and seperated from God. Therefore, he cannot know and experience God's love and plan for his life.

3. Jesus Christ is God's only provision for man's sin. Through Him you can experience God's love and plan for your life.

4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives.

Is "we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives" part of the content of the gospel you find being preached by Christians in the book of Acts? Do any of the apostles' epistles indicate that such is to be at all emphasized as part of "the gospel"? If you find any evidence supporting such notions, please e-mail me at Hebrews928@juno.com

The de facto "hope" of this "4 Spiritual Laws" gospel is clearly that we who individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, believing that we are sinful and seperated from God and that Jesus Christ is God's only provision for their sin, can then "know and experience God's love and plan for our lives." Upon hearing this gospel, the unbeliever is suppose to say to themselves, "Gee, that sounds so good - to know and experience God's love and plan for my life. I guess I better receive Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord."

In order to appreciate how off base Bill Bright's gospel hope is, it is necessary to consider what the Bible says about the hope of the gospel:

Col 1:23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.

This verse proves that the gospel clearly has a "hope" attached to it. What is that "hope"? Earlier in the same Chapter in Colossians, Paul wrote:

Col 1:5 -6 because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth;

So, this "hope" , which is definately a major part of the gospel that was being preached by the early church, is laid up in heaven. Are unbelievers who read "The Four Spiritual Laws" hearing about this "hope"?

II Th 2:14 to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Compare II Thess 2:14 to what Bill Bright is calling unbelievers to in his gospel. Is this a mere matter of "semantics"?:

"know and experience God's love and plan for our lives." (Bill Bright)

vs.

"the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." (the Apostle Paul)

The two men seem to have two different "callings" in their gospel. Bill Bright's is focused on the here and now, "know and experience God's love and plan for our lives." The Apostle Paul's is on the hereafter, "the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." Which one should the Christian opt for in the content of the "gospel" they preach to unbelievers? We know there is only "one hope of your calling" (Eph.4:4).

Lest there should be any doubt about the "calling" in Paul the Apostle's "gospel", let's look at some other instances where this idea gets attention:

2 Tim 1:9-10 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,

What is "His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began"? One would think based on Bill Bright's "4 Spiritual Laws" that it has something to do with "know and experience God's love and plan for our lives." But the gospel Paul the apostle was preaching was bringing to light "life and immortality."

So what's "His purpose" here?:

Rom 8:

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

Rom 9:

23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory,

Eph 1:

9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,

10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth-- in Him.

11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,

12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.

13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,

14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Col 1:

27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

What was Paul the Apostle's passion? "God's love and wonderful plan for your life"? No.

2 Tim 2:10 Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

'The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God, and if children, then heirs - heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we SUFFER with, that we may be glorified together. For I consider that the SUFFERINGS OF THIS PRESENT TIME are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us' (Rom.8:16-18). This 'suffering' in Rom.8 doesn't sound like the 'life abundantly' hope that is promised in "the 4 spiritual laws."

In JOHN 10:10, in the greek, Jesus says that He 'came that they might have life, and might have more.' Looking up 'life' in the Strong's reveals that 'life' OFTEN REFERS to the 'life' believers will have after we are raised from the dead. For example: LUKE 17:33, JN.12:25, 5:29, REV.21:C,27, MK.8:35, 9:43,45,47, Mt.18:8, 19:17, 7:14, 16:15, JAMES 1:12, REV.2:7, 2COR.5:4. Looking up 'eternal life' and 'everlasting life' will reveal the same point, 'for you are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ our life appears, then you will also appear with Him in glory (COL.3:3-4).

In the context of JOHN 10:10, in JOHN 10:9 Jesus says, 'l am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.' The use of 'Good Shepherd', 'sheepfold,' 'pasture, and 'sheep' in the Bible (as per John 10:7-14) speaks of life after Jesus cores back: REV.7:16-17, 21:3, 22:11,17, IS.40:11-12. Also, 'saved' in the Bible (as per John 10:9) is often used to refer to something that occurs at the return of Christ when we are raised from the dead: HEB.9:28, Rom.13:11, ICOR.5:5, 1PETER 1:5, MATT.10:22. So the foundational verse used in the '4 spiritual laws' that speaks of ''God's wonderful plan for your life" is actually speaking of 'life' AFTER Jesus returns and raises us from the dead, which is the HOPE of the gospel IN THE BIBLE!

Paul wrote that he wanted to present the Corinthians as a chaste virgin to Christ (2COR.11:2). The 'life abundantly' gospel that is being preached in the church is ANOTHER GOSPEL (2COR.ll:4) THAN THE GOSPEL THAT CALLS CHRISTIANS INTO THE GRACE OF CHRIST THAT BRINGS SALVATION TO THOSE WHO EAGERLY WAIT FOR THE APPEARING OF JESUS CHRIST (Titus 2:11, HEB.9:28, 1PETER1:13).

While it may be true that some have been saved by this method of evangelism, and have continued to be saved throughout their lives, the end result is usually not that happy. Statistics show that there is an 80-90% fall away rate from decisions in our churches, and nearly a 100% fall away rate from Crusades. Bill Bright himself, in one of his later interviews, admits that he was wrong for using and promoting this method because of the tragic results it produces (Revivals Golden Key, p.83). Rather than producing real conversions, the "love, joy, peace" gospel seems to only produce stoney-ground hearers and bitter backsliders who are innoculated to the gospel message.
Martin Luther called the ones in his day who used the same love-joy-peace gospel message that the majority of modern evangelists use a "sect" that was "stirred up by Satan"

I would not recommend these tracts or this method, but rather the method that Jesus, Paul, all of the great preachers in history (including C.H. Spurgeon, Wesley, Finney, Edwards, etc) have used and promoted vigorously. It is the use of the law to bring men to Christ. For a good book on this, i recommend reading "Hells Best Kept Secret" by Ray Comfort, or "Revivals Golden Key" by ray comfort.