"Pop Goes the Hype!" [Granger Community "Church" - gccwired] (SliceCast)

* 47% of those attending DO NOT believe in salvation by grace.
* 57% of those attending DO NOT believe in the authority of the Bible.
* 56% of those attending DO NOT believe Jesus is the only way to eternal life.

These are the statistics you would expect to find if you were to poll your local mall or baseball game, but these statistics are of a "Church"! The question must be now: "Is this even considered a Church?" If over half of the people attending there don't believe in core doctrines of Christ, how could this be a body of believers in Christ? The simple, logical, and right answer is, "It couldn't."

Join Ingrid Schlueter and Chris Rosebrough on this edition of the SliceCast as they discuss these new results the leaders there are producing from "leading smart" as they self-profess to be doing.


UPDATE (8/23/08): Tim Stevens, executive public relations correspondent and spin control supervisor at Granger Community Business replied to these results in this blog post ( http://tinyurl.com/6j3jw7 ). Now, I am having trouble deciding which is more shocking, the results or his response. Here's a quote from it: "I would much rather be in a church where 57% don't believe in the Bible than in a church where 100% of those attending do believe in the Bible. That would be awful!" - Tim Stevens of Granger


No, Tim, it would be awful if we believed that what you have there is a church instead of the business of promoting narcissism* that it is. It's when you willingly deceive people for the idol of popularity that it affects sound judgment on other issues.

*narcissism (n):

1) self-admiration or self-love; a tendency to over-estimate one's abilities and importance.

2) an exceptional interest in and admiration for yourself; "self-love that shut out everyone else".

3) a word I didn't make up.



From CRN:

"Granger Community Church, one of the premiere Purpose-Driven churches and the 6th most influential church in America just announced the results of their Reveal Study. The results are SHOCKING but not surprising because sites like this one have been warning for years that the seeker-sensitive / purpose-driven model was creating false converts and now there is hard statistical data that backs up this claim.

Granger's own qualitative study revealed that: 47% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe in salvation by grace. 57% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe in the authority of the Bible. 56% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe Jesus is the only way to eternal life.

From SliceCast:

"In this latest Slicecast, the guest is Chris Rosebrough. Chris is the publisher of ExtremeTheology.com and host of the Pirate Christian Radio program, Fighting for the Faith. In this edition of the program, the recent survey taken at Granger Community Church is the topic of discussion. When nearly 60% of Granger's church attenders reject the authority of the Bible and over half don't believe Jesus is the only way to salvation, are we even talking about a Christian church any longer? Can Granger's Pastor, Mark Beeson, turn things around with a Wednesday night Bible study when his pop culture laden, entertaining Sunday morning service will reportedly remain unchanged? These are the topics at issue on this Slicecast."

Download the Slicecast here:
http://tinyurl.com/5tfxne


Granger Community Church's Mea Culpa!:
http://tinyurl.com/5vggc6

The Details of the Changes Coming to Granger:
http://tinyurl.com/5m744c


http://www.sliceoflaodicea.com

(This video is protected under the US Copyright Fair Use Law as it is used for presenting and criticizing a position for educational purposes. http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html )

Category:

Education

Tags:

• gccwired
• granger
• community
• church
• mark
• beeson
• ingrid
• schlueter
• chris
• rosebrough
• sliceoflaodicea
• slicecast

[oaklandasrock]

Is this a joke?

[LaneCh]

Is what a joke? (ie. define "this".)

[oaklandasrock]

What this "church" is doing.

[LaneCh]

Gotcha. Unfortunately, it isn't a joke. These people take it seriously, and are either oblivious to the fact that they have strayed so much from what the Bible declares that we should be doing, simply don't care, or both.

[empiremom]

you accused me of producing a red herring because I don't agree with you. A 1-min excerpt from one message (that was misrepresented by you i might add) does not make you the final authority. That is your opinion. Jesus and His Word is the final authority. And if GCC is seeing salvations in spite of GCC then you should champion that. Even Jesus told the disciples to leave the one alone not following with them in Luke 9. "for he that is not against us is for us". The bottom line is souls saved.

[empiremom]

Jesus counted. Peter counted. So I guess they would be considered "you guys" or "you people". Numbers represent lives changed, salvations; they represent PEOPLE. Not pats on the back or "thank you"s. How many were fed with the loaves and fishes? In Acts 2 how many people were saved? seeing drug addicts, prostitutes, and lost people leaving the world behind and committing to Jesus Christ is what the message is all about. So if I am a "you people" then Peter and Jesus and I are in good company.

[homeless018]

I wonder how long it'll take this church to realize that their cover songs are hokey. hahahaha

[theflarpus]

"I think that a lot of pastors our realizing that the language they are using isn't helping"...Does this language include preaching the word of God. Here is an idea. Preach the unadulterated word of God. Then let God be God. You are to preach the truth. Preach on things like sin, death, the cross, the resurrection and let God work on their hearts. Stop being so irresponsible with God's word. IMO the sideshow that they put on seems more like they are ashamed of Christ. It truly saddens me.

[gihfe]

A church that 100% believing in salvation via God's grace, and the Sacredness of Scripture, would not have any of the "lost" in it. It seems like this church is more than 50% people who are hearing about god's love love and plan for them for the first time. I wish we had people off the street wanting to come to Church where i work.

Also- why are you only showing the part of the service where they play a pop song and not the part where they offer God's alternative. Its kind of disingenuous.

[ScottJ5860]

You also made an accusation against Beeson & GCC that they mocked the holiness of other churches. Nothing can be further from the truth. This church is well aware that there are those that won't agree with the GCC format & for that reason they would rather people attend a church that they can grow & serve in rather than remain unchurched. Isn't there a commandment about bearing false witness.

Matthew 7:3-5

[ScottJ5860]

I also noted that the statistics you cited were without a source. Interesting. But let's say they are correct...GCC is a seeker friendly church. A church that size is bound to have non believers stray in. But they're in. While you were quick to point out aspects of the church that you have declared as heretical, you failed to use any excerpts of a typical weekend service message. I would challenge you to point out how the church teaches anything other than the Good News of the Kingdom.

[ScottJ5860]

I find it pathological that while GCC is reaching out locally to the marginalized in the inner city. Reaching out to poverty stricken & oppressed people in India. Not so much giving these people a hand out but rather a hand up. GCC also buys tons of food every year for distribution to those in need w/in the community. Yet you sit tall & mighty on your high horse & condemn them with your self proclaimed righteous indignation. Check out Matthew 25 sometime.

[rwwilson75]

I do not know of any church who hasnt strayed from the word of God. By belonging to the 501c-3 you have submitted authority from God to Government for tax purposes, but the truth is the Government puts limitations on the sermons or will strip you of your tax exempt status. How many churches have this lazy aditude of gods law as unnecesary even though Jesus said to keep the law and he also did? How many of you carry idol items such as crosses, or man made images of Jesus?

[rwwilson75]

Ive been attending for four years now and am not surprised by the results but disapointed. I do get the sense that a lot are there for other reasons other than to learn about or worship GOD. Maybe these are just my stereotypes of dress and class, but i cantr believe how many woman I see coming to church dressed in a sexual manner that you would see saturday night at the club or maybe they just came from there. You know the type that live in the Mcmansoins in granger.

[carpentersdaughter2]

you might as well join the Mormon church then because they do all this and more.

Church IS for Believers in Jesus Christ, and the 'Church" is to go out and proclaim the Gospel to the lost. The church meeting itself is designed for the 'Church" NOT unbelievers.