One more reason I will never read John Piper...

I came across this today.

I've had friends tell me about the "great mind that is John Piper," but so far I have seen none of that -- especially when I read postings like this one from his Desiring God website.

Check this out. This is only a small bit of what the ministry of John Piper stands to say to people who think differently than them:

"to liberals in Christendom: Come home to objective, Biblical truth about God and Christ, and return to reality-based morality."

"to Muslims: Consider that the absolute sovereignty of God is not incompatible with his mercy, and that he is more glorious when he combines these diverse excellencies. Consider that his Son, Jesus Christ was not sexually conceived or even created, but is co-eternal with God the Father as perfectly one with him in divine essence so that there is only one God in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Consider that your zeal to honor Jesus by saying he escaped the cross, undermines his glory as the one who died by his own design and rose triumphant over death and hell and Satan, bearing our sin and giving eternal life to all who trust in him."

"to Hindus and Buddhists: The final state of the soul is not the end of emotion but ever-increasing capacities for all pleasing emotions, together with never-ending satisfaction in seeing and savoring Jesus Christ."

The world hates Christians because of people who say things like this. Not only do these statements alienate Christians who are more liberal, they alienate other religions, too. Check the rest of the page. Anything different than Piper's narrow, conservative Calvinist worldview seems to be heretical. Where's the conversation? Where is the real, authentic community that allows people to think differently and still be respected (and not condemned)? Not here. Definitely not here. And that, my friends, is sad. When we make dogmatic, absolute statements like these, the diversity of the Body ceases to be.

Desiring God? Don't Waste Your Life? Thanks for the advice, JP. I definitely won't waste any of my life on desiring things concerning your ministry, if this is the only picture of Christianity you present to me. I want a conversation, not a lecture of why anyone who believes differently from you is absolutely wrong and must change. Bring that to the table, and there will be progress within the state of the Body.