三个脱离成功神学的见证
编者按：Grant Retief是南非德班市乌姆赫兰镇基督教会牧区主任牧师，和他教会里三位刚离开成功神学教会的年轻基督徒坐在一起，问他们同样的问题：“告诉我，刚来我们教会的时候注意到了什么。和你之前的经历有什么不同？听到了哪些新的东西？刚开始有哪些挣扎？”雷迪夫请他们三个从福音，圣经，集体敬拜，以及生活方式几个方面分享自己的观感。
以下是他们的回答。罗切尔（Rochelle）和尚塔尔（Chantal）在德班的一个成功神学教会待了15年；尼古拉（Nicola）则花了11年在一个迎合慕道友的类成功神学教会。
罗切尔：
我注意到的第一件事情是，罪被提及了很多次。在我之前的教会，罪从未被提起。我第一次听说我是一个罪人。
当我仍然在两个教会之间游移不定时，以前的牧师曾责备我，因为我开始和我们教会的人谈论罪和审判。我被告知停止这些言论，因为它太负面。
从小到大，我都认为自己可以通过努力获得救赎。在新教会里我第一次听到基督已经成全了律法。
开始我觉得被冒犯了：我的努力没有丝毫用处，我对自己的救赎也无能为力。对自己的救赎无能为力，这个事实令我不悦。但一段时间之后，这让我感到释放。
新教会中的一个领袖一直跟进我，而我一直不断地被拉回来。我意识到一直到那时我的整个基督徒生活都在假设福音。十字架过去只在复活节传讲。福音曾被视为过时的信息，并假定每个人都知道它，明白它，相信它。以前的教会只是对神的新话语感兴趣。
我感到被骗。我一直在哭。我感到背叛。我意识到他们自己都不知道。
我关于圣经的体会是它常常和“预言”连在一起。过去的做法是读经不读上下文，就立刻应用。我开始意识到圣经首先是关乎耶稣。
集体敬拜就是唱诗中的经验和感觉。它是一个邀请圣灵进入的时间，总是非常情绪化。
回首过去我意识到那个教会中领袖的生命缺乏敬虔。这一点特别从钱财的运用上可以看出来。有贪污，收到的钱有时不向会众公布。如果你没有十一奉献，带领者会一直追着你。
性犯罪也存在。青年组的带领者和基督徒女生约会，同时却和另一个非基督徒女友睡觉。这事被报告到带领牧师那里，但没有任何措施措。三年之后，他还是青年组的牧师。
尚塔尔：
我是在这个教会第一次听到罪的严重性。刚来的时候我觉得被冒犯了。之后，我带着释放回到了家，同时为罪忧伤。恩典对我来说全新的，也是很大的安慰。我意识到最重要的是明白恩典的福音。我第一次听到称义和成圣的解释。
刚开始我疑惑为什么每次讲道都要回到耶稣。现在我意识到它把我带回到一直以来我对救主的需要，那正是我为了改变而需要的。
当我和以前的牧师说些新教会里的教导时，他说讲福音在那个背景下是好的，但在他的背景下就不是。他觉得他的会众已经知道了福音，不需要再一直地听它。他觉得神在世上的话语和作为还有别的。
看我以前教会的牧师，你会认为他们生活得很敬虔，因为他们有一个出于行为的宗教。外面看起来很感人。但性犯罪在年轻人中间很常见，而且从未被教导。一个年轻人犯了性方面的罪，然后就长时间禁食。他在靠自己的努力来换得饶恕。
敬拜赞美在我以前的教会是最重大的事情：音乐和狂喜的礼物，方言和预言。服事有时候长达四小时之久，其中两小时在唱歌。诗歌总是贴近个人，歌词中很多“我”，几乎没有“耶稣”。
没有系统的圣经教导。过去的做法是完全不看上下文地引用经文。我不知道为什么要带圣经。圣经几乎不用翻。它仅仅是被错误地引用着。
尼古拉：
在我以前的教会，圣经的重要性被口头提起，但很少得到系统性的教导或研读。
对异象和预言中“神现在说什么”非常强调，常常破坏经文的背景和应用。
很重视使用人的技巧而非圣经教导来训练领袖。
最常见的是主题式讲道，呼吁行为的改变。来这以后，我才意识到自己得到的好的圣经教导很少。
领袖们很酷，很时髦，通常也很年轻，言语中非常迎合慕道友。服事中常常有特别的灯光，高亮的敬拜乐队，讲道前后会有很表面的神的话语。这些影响了对讲道信息的强调。
对敬拜的质量和数量非常重视，以致于有时没有讲道。示范性的敬拜总被提倡，甚至常常在讲道之后用频繁的圣坛呼召和回应来作为教导。
在我以前的教会，人们可以很快成为领袖。领袖们因为个人魅力而被提升，受欢迎。他们鼓励人们根据神在你心里说的话来做决定，而不是根据神的话来做决定。
Three Post-Prosperity Gospel Testimonies
Editor’s Note: Grant Retief, who serves as rector of Christ Church Umhlanga just outside of Durban, South Africa, sat down with three young Christians in his church who recently came out of prosperity gospel preaching churches and asked them all the same questions: “Tell me what you noticed when you started coming to our church. What was different from your prior experience? What did you hear that was new? What were some of the struggles at first?” Retief asked these three to comment on the gospel, the Bible, corporate worship, and lifestyle.
Below you’ll find their answers. Rochelle and Chantal participated in a prosperity church in Durban for 15 years; Nicola spent 11 years in a prosperity-tinged seeker-sensitive church.
Rochelle:
The first thing I noticed was that sin was spoken about a lot. In my previous church, sin was never talked about. For the first time I was told that I was a sinner.
While I was still straddling both churches, I was once rebuked by my previous pastor when I began talking about sin and judgment with people in our church. I was told to stop it, because it was too negative.
I grew up thinking that I gained salvation by my works. At our new church I heard for the first time that Christ had fulfilled all the law.
At first I was offended that my works counted for nothing and I couldn’t contribute to my salvation. The fact that I couldn’t contribute to my salvation was offensive. But after some time, it became liberating.
One of the leaders at the new church kept running after me, and I kept coming back. I realised that up to that point my whole Christian life had assumed the gospel. The cross was only ever preached at Easter. The gospel was seen as old news, and it was assumed that everyone knew it, understood it and believed it. The old church was only interested in a new word from God.
I felt so deceived. I used to cry. I felt betrayed. I realized they knew no better themselves.
My experience of the Bible was that it was often added to with “prophecies.” The norm was to read the Bible without context and with immediate application. I’ve come to realize that the Bible is first about Jesus.
Corporate worship was all about the experience and feeling one had during the singing. It was a time of inviting the Holy Spirit to come into us. It was always very emotional.
Looking back I realise that there was a deficiency of godliness in the lives of the leaders of the church. This was seen particularly in the way the finances were handled. There was corruption, and money received was sometimes hidden from the congregation. If you did not tithe, you were approached by the leadership.
There was also sexual sin. The youth leader was dating a Christian girl, and sleeping with his other, non-Christian, girlfriend. This was reported to the head pastor, but nothing was done about. Three years later, he is still youth pastor.
Chantal:
Coming to this church was the first time I heard about the seriousness of sin. When I first came I was offended. Later, I’d go home liberated and grieved at the same time. Grace was completely new to me, and such a comfort. I realized it was most important to understand the gospel of grace. For the first time, justification and sanctification were explained to me.
At first I wondered why each and every sermon went back to Jesus. I now realize that it takes me back to my need for a saviour all the time, and that is what I need in order to change.
When I spoke to my previous pastor about some of the things taught at my new church, he said that the gospel was good for that context but not for his context. He felt his people already knew the gospel and didn’t need to hear it all the time. He felt there were other things that God was saying and doing in the world.
Looking at the leaders of my previous church, you’d think they were living godly lives because of their works-based religion. Externally it looked impressive. Yet sexual sin was common amongst the youth, and never disciplined. One young adult sinned sexually, followed by a long fast. He was working for his forgiveness.
The idea of praise and worship was the biggest thing in my previous church: music and the ecstatic gifts, tongues and prophecy. Services were sometimes four hours long, with two hours of singing. The songs always seemed to point to the individual, with a lot of “I” and almost no “Jesus” in the songs.
There was no systematic Bible teaching. The norm was quoting scriptures completely out of context. I don’t know why I took my Bible. The Bible was seldom opened. It was just misquoted.
Nicola:
In my previous church, lip-service was given to the importance of the Bible, but seldom was it preached or read systematically.
There was a strong emphasis on “what God is saying now” in visions and prophetic words that often undermined the context and application of Scripture.
There was an emphasis on training leaders with people skills rather than Bible teaching
Preaching was most often topical and called for behaviour modification. Since coming here, I have realised how little good Bible teaching I had received.
Leaders are cool, trendy, usually younger, very seeker-sensitive in their language. Often services had special lighting, highly polished worship bands, and words apparently from God were brought before and after the sermon. This diminished the emphasis on the sermon by adding to it.
There was a focus on the quality and quantity of worship to the extent that sometimes there was no sermon. Demonstrative worship was always encouraged and even instructed, with frequent altar calls and responses after the preaching.
In my previous church, people became leaders very quickly. And the leaders were elevated and are popular due to their personalities. They encouraged people to make decisions according to what God is saying in your heart rather than according to his Word.
作者：Grant Retief
作者是南非德班市郊乌姆赫兰镇基督教会牧区主任牧师。他和妻子育有三个孩子。
翻译肢体：咸燕美
用圣经视野和实用资源装备教会领袖
进而通过健康的教会向世界彰显神的荣耀
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