Is ‘evangelical’ in accordance with the Gospel?


Landslide due to growing evangelical influence

Lately it has become clear from various sides how much the influence of the so-called evangelical thinking has caused previously Reformed churches to follow another course and continues to do so.

Firstly in the book by Prof. Dr. G. Dekker (See how everything changes here, see the first editorial in this issue of Reformed Continua). He describes how the evangelical thinking plays a major role in the changes in the Reformed churches. Not only does Dekker conclude that the GKv has become radically ‘evangelical’, but also, according to him, the Gereformeerde Bond (the orthodox flank) of the PKN (Protestant Church in the Netherlands) and the experiential Reformed churches are slowly but surely moving in this direction. This is partly due to the youth being attracted to the EO (Evangelical Broadcasting company), namely the EO Youth Days. Also partly because experiential thinking is susceptible to emotional religious experience that occurs among evangelicals.

In addition to this comes the disclosure of Prof. Dr. A.L.Th. de Bruijne, who, in a newspaper article (ND, 9 April, 2016) speaks of reformed 2.0. In it he wants to characterize the protestant churches that have loose (or lacking) ties with the reformed confession. According to him, this type of church has long been seen in evangelical-reformed churches, but also in NGK (Netherlands Reformed churches). He notes with satisfaction that in the meantime the GKv churches are moving in the same direction because there is much more openness to other Christians who do not consider themselves bound to the reformed confession. He himself feels very much at home in this new type of being ‘reformed’, where the Reformed confession is not seen as truth for all times but as a product from the time of the Great Reformation that has its limitations.

Here at last is a public acknowledgment that the GKv has let go of the foundation of its Reformed confession. At the same time shocking, because here it concerns a landslide.
The desired openness that Dekker as well as De Bruijne speak about, has become an openness to all winds of doctrine. In the previous editorial we discussed various adaptations that can be observed. In this article we will pay attention to the influence of the evangelical movement.

Free Evangelical Congregations

Which driving forces has this evangelical movement exerted on the above-mentioned churches? To start with, how do they see the confession of the church? And how do they see the church?
There are many types of evangelical congregations and groups. In this article we can only speak in general terms of their way of thinking.

In general the Bond van Vrije Evangelische Gemeen-ten (VEG: Bond of Free Evangelical Churches) is considered the closest to the mentioned Reformed churches. There are even congregations that work together with the NGK, with combined worship services, such as in Amsterdam.

Through websites of the VEG we come to know the following on their vision of a confession:
they do not have any written confession! Because, they say, faith is experienced differently in different times. ‘God guides us by the Spirit again and again to new forms of confessing.’
‘Believing is dynamic’. Where you are and when you live, colours your faith’. ‘Free Evangelicals stand for a personal faith’.
But is there something that binds them together, a common foundation? According to them, that is limited to the statement: ‘Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior’. Thus, a mini-confession. Is there more? ‘We further discover from our own life story what God expects from us and what we may expect from God’.

This is, in our opinion, a matter of a subjectivist faith that one may fill in according to one’s own ideas and needs. No demarcation of errors. Obviously one has the idea that man is able to find out for himself what God demands. That can be different for everybody, depending on the situation and time.
How can one ever call this ‘reformed’? It appears rather post-modern: the truth is multicoloured, changes over time, and is dependent on the situation.

Origin

What is the origin of this ‘evangelical’ thinking and what are its characteristics?
The origin is complex. If we limit ourselves to the VEG then we see, schematically speaking, Dutch roots and American influences.
The Dutch origin of the VEG begins with the ‘Reveil’ in the Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk (Dutch Reformed (State) Church) in the 19th century. That Reveil was a revival movement from Switzerland. Influenced by this, several congregations under the leadership of J. de Liefde, H.W. Witteveen and H.J. Budding separated themselves from the NHK. The most important reasons for this were state interference and modernism. They did not join the Secession however, but sought independence. They wanted to finally be free. In 1881 the bond of the VEG was established. But this is not a church federation as the Church Order of Dordt prescribes. The congregations retain a great deal of independence (congregationalism or independentism).
Also one does not want to bind himself to the confession. The ‘offices’ come out of the congregation itself and there is much room for the deployment of individual members of the congregation.

American Evangelicals

Multiple influences throughout the course of time have affected the VEG. Firstly, the Maranatha movement of Johannes de Heer, with emphasis on personal religious experience, evangelism activities, and acceptance of chiliasm (the doctrine of the Millennial Kingdom).
In more recent times the influence of the ‘evangelicals’ from America can especially be identified. This American movement (which is very diverse) has its oldest origins in the Puritans that came to America from Scotland at the end of the 16th century. In reaction to the weakness in the Anglican state church they placed much emphasis on sanctification. Later on that brought on traits of perfectionism: as a converted person you no longer sin. Conversion becomes more of a one-time event. The necessity of daily forgiveness is seen less and less.
Christ has overcome the power of sin; it is now up to you personally to sanctify your life, such as through actions to bring others to conversion or to do good to others.
In this way you can answer the question: ‘What have you done for Jesus?’
Due to the strong emphasis on this ‘activism’ the place of atonement and justification is pushed aside.

Up until recently the orthodox evangelicals placed much emphasis on honoring the authority of Scripture. But that does not mean that their doctrine is Scriptural. For Scripture, through their subjective experience, is strongly selectively applied. With the result of an insufficient understanding of the unity of Scripture and the unity of the old and new covenant. That contributes to deviating views, such as the position of the state of Israel, the importance of infant baptism and in looking forward to the return of Christ (adventism and chiliasm).

Besides baptist thinking, remonstrant thinking also ties in with the emphasis on personal faith and sanctification. The believer’s own choice receives a more important place than God’s covenant promises. That leads to a relativation of infant baptism, with a preference (or not) for adult baptism. Many evangelicals have no place for original sin. That also applies for election. Many adhere to a general atonement: ‘God loves everyone’.

How do evangelicals see the church? Well, it is clear that so much individualism stands in the way of the true vision on the church. In general churches are seen as cold, rigid and impersonal. There is far too little experience. And if one was a member of a church, then one wants to be free from confession and church federation. Contact with others can be done through interdenominational activities and events.

Attraction

Another important element in evangelical thinking is that the Spirit is also seen as working separate from the Word. Some teach a so-called (second) baptism by the Holy Spirit that does not coincide with coming to faith, but which you receive in further sanctification.
Much significance is assigned to the so-called direct inspiration of the Spirit. He lets someone know in his or her heart what he or she must do at a given moment. For example to make a trip to a far off country to convert people.

Also expressions of happiness (handclapping) and performing charismatic acts (driving out demons, faith healing, speaking in tongues) must make the presence of the Spirit visible and tangible. For them that intensifies the faith experience. Among some evangelical movements (i.e. Pentecostal churches) this is stronger than among others. Many reformed people look with envy at such spontaneous expressions of faith. That’s where there are signs and that’s where miracles happen!

For a long time those in reformed circles positively appreciated the strong emphasis on the authority of Scripture and sanctification, as two important characteristics of the evangelicals.
Also evangelism campaigns (for example those of Billy Graham) drew attention.

EO, EH, Alpha-courses

Since 1960 the American evangelical movement in the Netherlands was directly reflected especially in the EO (Evangelical Broadcasting company) and the Evangelische Hogeschool (EH: Evangelical College) and the Alpha-course.

Unfortunately in those early days also in the GKv the reaction to this was too positive. Members were encouraged by one of the professors to become a member of the EO! It is true that there were warnings against the unreformed subjective thinking, but at the same time it was often stated that you could still learn a lot from the evangelicals.
Their openness, their freshness, their public defense of God-given life (against abortion and euthanasia) were issues that appealed.
Systematically the evangelical way of thinking, by way of the EO, entered into the living rooms of reformed people. ‘EO, more than a broadcast’, was the slogan; and indeed, it transformed the reformed world into an ‘evangelical’ world.

The Alpha-course was welcomed with open arms, not only for evangelism purposes but even as catechism instruction for own baptized members. The following statements from this course illustrate the remonstrant (1,2), charismatic (3) and subjective (4,5) thinking:
1. ‘Each person has a choice to do good or bad with his or her life’. Against this see: Canons of Dort I,9,11; III-IV, 10-14).
2. ‘If Jesus is with us, we can turn our backs to evil’. Against this see: Heidelberg Catechism, LD 44.
3. ‘The mark of the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues’.
4. ‘Which way does God direct me today? God gives me a feeling that a certain way is the right way’.
5. ‘Young people seek kicks, they only believe when they see that it works’.

No longer Reformed, no longer Evangelical

Unfortunately in the last twenty years there is not much left of the two previously mentioned positive characteristics (authority of Scripture and sanctification). The secularization has not only hit hard in the Reformed churches but also in evangelical circles. The difference between the EO and the NCRV (National Christian Broadcasting company) or even with a non-Christian broadcast is often difficult to indicate.
The EO and the EH, meanwhile, have surrendered to the teaching of evolution (theistic evolution). The EO announced this through the public statement by A. Knevel in 2009; the EH last year at the presentation of C. Dekker’s book.

We see another public expression of secularization in a annual event, the Passion, where the Christ’s suffering is used for public entertainment by playing on human emotion.
EO-Youth Days are barely distinguishable from worldly entertainment, where youth may indulge and live it up. That Christ’s name is still used here is more of a shame than an honor.

In the course of the last few years there are, unfortunately, few within the GKv whose eyes have been opened to this. Now that there is an open declaration of love for the evangelical way of thinking, the vast majority feels happy with this ongoing evangelical character. All sorts of elements of the above mentioned process are appreciated by the post-modern man, even if he was previously Reformed. We will sum up some important consequences of this:
* Giving first place to own feelings and own faith experience.
* Freedom of confession and church order.
* Applying a mini-confession ‘Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior’, where each individual can give his own interpretation.
* Exchange of adherence to certainties of faith for an awareness of its limited and temporary nature.
* Openness to new forms of doctrine, adapted to the times.
* Attach less importance to knowledge of sin and misery.
* Finding it unnecessary to spend much time on deepening the knowledge of God’s Word.
* Giving preference to actions: discipleship and being a missionary church; ‘being there for the world’.
* Expressing spontaneous and contemporary expe-rience during the worship services with visual and active elements.
* Appreciation of charismatic matters in the congregation.
* No longer opposing adult baptism or re-baptism.
* Emphasis on the independence of the own congregation.
* Openness towards others outside the own church walls, with inter-church collaboration and open Lord’s Supper.

The question is now: what you are then left with as far as church and faith is concerned, is that still reformed? Is that still according to the Gospel; is that still according to Scripture? Or has man replaced the Gospel with ‘another gospel’ where not God and Christ and God’s Word are central, but man, with his own personal feeling and experience? Man with his own choice and will. If then God’s Word and His commandments are also let go of, isn’t this then nothing less than self-willfulness?
The described process of an ongoing evangelical character is a big warning also for us as reformed believers who live in a post-modern age. We should not underestimate this great attraction for ourselves or for our youth.
Let us therefore bring into practice in every direction, for now and the future, what the apostle John teaches us in 1 John. 4:1:
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.