On many levels I have always found Rick Warren’s Purpose-Driven Life problematic. Warren opens his book with the words, “It’s not about you,” and then proceeds for about 300 pages to talk about nothing but you under the guise of talking about God. Certainly the notion that we have a purpose is not an unbiblical one, but nevertheless the way Warren focuses that purpose seems to me to be more about using God’s purpose to attain our own ends rather than to truly come to understand what God’s end is.
The biblical alternative to The Purpose-Driven Life has just arrived and every pastor ought to be encouraging their people to read it if not outright leading their people through it. Paul David Tripp’s A Quest for More: Living for Something Bigger Than You
Warren says we were created for a purpose. Tripp says we were created to be a part of something big. Warren leaves it to the individual to determine what his or her purpose is. Tripp makes it clear that humanities purpose is the kingdom of God, not in some prophetic, in-the-future, sweet-by-and-by framework, but right now, in the here and now, in the mundane routine of our lives. Not only were we created for something big, but the pursuit of that something big is hardwired into our natures by our Creator.
This “hardwiring” for something bigger than ourselves is a result of what Tripp calls the “above and more” position of humans in the creation accounts of Genesis 1 and 2. Man is not the highest of animals. Man is above and apart from the animals and from everything else that God has made. Man was made for transcendence, to aspire to be a part of something outside of themselves, like a fan feels a part of a world championship without ever having participated in the success of the team. God’s purpose for us is not our own self-fulfillment and pleasure. God’s purpose for us transcends our own little kingdoms. Tripp says many believers have settled for “below and less” when we were created for “above and more.”
Living for a purpose isn’t enough. The key, says Tripp, is to recognize that we are hardwired for glory.
There are many people who have lived lives of purpose that didn’t really make much of a difference. Every person’s life is purposeful because every human being lives in pursuit of something. So, it is not enough to determine to have a purpose. Let me state it this way: it is a good thing to have a purpose, but if your purpose isn’t tied to glory, you have still denied your humanity.
Our purpose in life must be tied, Tripp says, to “four transcendent glories that were created to be the life-shaping focus of every human being. The first is the glory for which every human being is to live, and the following three are glories that flow from the first.”
- God glory. Our lives were designed to be shaped more by our attachment to the Creator than by creation.
- Stewardship glory. The transcendence of human beings is expressed as people reflect God’s glory by their rulership and stewardship over the surrounding created world.
- Community glory. Human being’s lives were meant to transcend the narrow glories of independence, autonomy, and self-sufficiency.
- Truth glory. God did something with Adam and Eve he didn’t do with the rest of creation: He spoke to them. God spoke the secrets of His divine wisdom into the ears of the people He had made, calling Adam and Eve to transcend the boundaries of their own thoughts, interpretations, and experience.
Have you ever dreamed of being part of something big? What are you settling for?
Paul David Tripp will be my guest on Monday’s edition of The Paul Edwards Program.
Paul,
> The point in what I was saying (which you cite above) is that Warren seems to have a utilitarian view of our relationship to God. “If you are not happy, add God to your life and you will be happy,” which ultimately means my desire is not God, but my own happiness.
Yes. I do see what you are saying. Point well taken. However (oh yes, you knew there would be an “however”), there are some things to consider here that make the issue not so cut and dry.
1. Many people without God are indeed unhappy, unfulfilled, lost….purposeless, if you will. It is not unbiblical to tell people that they were created for a divine purpose — ie.., a godly purpose for which they were specifically shaped by God as a unique person. Indeed, all our days are numbered and we each have missions, callings, anointings, minstries, and gifts/talents to fulfill those ministries.
2. It is also not unbiblical to tell people that significant measures of unhappiness, uncertainty, confusion, anguish, torment, and lonliness will dissipate if they come to Christ. The Bible is replete with passages about joy unspeakable, peace, and gratitude in the arms of Jesus. Even The Dictionary Biblical Imagery notes how Paul and the other NT writers communicated to their readers the basic promise that “Christians can live joyfully in a fallen world” (p. 465).
Now, let us suppose a person hears all this and says, “Gee, I want that. I want to live a life of peace, and joy, and hope. I want to be forgiven for all these things I have done that have messed up my life. If Jesus can do that, I want him, the Son of God who can forgive me, and change me, and fix me, and give me a new life here and in the world to come.”
Are you saying this is not a good enough reason to come to God? I hope not!! There are many, many, many reasons that people come to Christ: a) fear of hell; b) it’s the best option (note Paschal’s wager); c) nothing left to live for (addicts, prostitutes, criminals); and d) an intellectual acceptance of the reasonableness of Christianity based on evidence (see Lee Strobel’s story and also Simon Greenleaf).
In other words, if I simply read assorted passages from Romans close the book, then ask someone, “What are you gonna do about it?” and they say, “I want Jesus” — HALLELUJAH, I’ll take it.
Or, if I express to someone how their life can be totally re-arranged by Jesus and transformed from a confused, purposeless life into a life of peace, joy, and purpose serving Christ who saved them from their sins on the cross, then ask, “”What are you gonna do about it?” and they say, “I want Jesus” — HALLELUJAH, I’ll take that, too.
I hope you see my point. Same Jesus. Same Gospel. Same effects (eternally & temporally) — different method to communicate the love of God. It’s not utilitarian, its evangelism to different crowds.
> My issue with The Purpose Driven Life (as stated in my original post) is not that finding God’s purpose is not biblical, but rather limiting God’s purpose to what ultimately fulfills us
Now this is interesting. And might be a semantic problem. Are you saying that in Christ we are NOT fulfilled? I would say that if you are in Christ and not fulfilled, you either have: a) the wrong Christ; or b) a wrong concept of fulfillment; or c) a misdirected desire.
When Warren talks about ultimate fulfillment, he is NOT talking about the fulfillment of self-ish desires, but rather that kind of divine-centered, holy, righteous, peacful, joyful fulfillment/CONTENTMENT that comes from knowing God, knowing his will/purpose for you — and living it out for His glory.
R. Abanes
Richard,
I’m honored you found my blog and commented!
The Purpose Driven Life quotes scripture, many times out of context, more than 1,000 times. It’s principles are dervied more from Jungian psychology coupled with these out of context scriptures as proof texts.
The point in what I was saying (which you cite above) is that Warren seems to have a utilitarian view of our relationship to God. “If you are not happy, add God to your life and you will be happy,” which ultimately means my desire is not God, but my own happiness.
“Godliness with contentment is great gain,” is what the Scriptures say. Warren, it seems, leaves no room in his Purpose-Driven philosophy for the possibility that God’s purpose for my life may be suffering and ultimately UNhappiness.
My issue with The Purpose Driven Life (as stated in my original post) is not that finding God’s purpose is not biblical, but rather limiting God’s purpose to what ultimately fulfills us is not biblical.
You should come on my radio program and you and I can talk through these differences in the context of your book, Rick Warren and the Purpose that Drives Him.
I am very much icommitted to making certain I have interpreted Warren correctly. If I haven’t, I want to make that right.
Best,
Paul
Dear Paul,
You said: “Certainly the notion that we have a purpose is not an unbiblical one, but nevertheless the way Warren focuses that purpose seems to me to be more about using God’s purpose to attain our own ends rather than to truly come to understand what God’s end is.”
ME: Actually, I am not sure how you got this from The Purpose Driven Life because that is not what The Purpose Driven Life states. The problem, according to Warren, is the very thing you accuse him of teaching — i.e., us trying to find fulfillment and purpose in life without God (trying to do our own thing, for ourselves, for our own desires).
Warren actually tells people that their lives will always be empty and without real purpose until they come to God, who was in Christ, reconciling us through his death and resurrection. Then, once you know God (i.e., have entered into a relationship with him), you will find your REAL purpose on earth, which will be whatever God leads you to do for your life, which in reality is HIS purpose for you.
In other words, GOD’S purpose for your life, becomes YOUR purpose for your life – and by doing HIS purpose, you find fulfillment in being what you were created to be: a child/servant of God.
Sounds fairly biblical to me.
Happy New Year.
Richard Abanes
I think that it is understandable that biblical theologians would trip up on the purpose driven book/church. Its not meaty or thought provoking. Its milk for self centered new baby christians. I think Warren is doing a good job feeding that target group . Tripp feeds a diffrent kind of group, a little more refined. The church body has many parts and many kinds of leaders are needed to reach the lost. All groups would benifet from encouragment,mercy,love ect. And with hope, desire and prayer a believer comes in to maturity in Christ.
“hardwired for glory.” I really like that!