It is important that every church member know if their church is targeted for a Purpose Driven Church takeover. Initially, a small clique of church staff, possibly including the pastor or a new pastor, plans the change without telling the rest of the church membership. 'The Purpose Driven(R) Church has brought focus and direction to more pastors and church leaders than you can count.John Ortberg, bestselling author Every church is driven by something. Tradition, finances, programs, personalities, events, seekers, and even buildings can each be the controlling force in a church. Every church is driven by something. Tradition, finances, programs, personalities, events, seekers, and even buildings can each be the controlling force in a church. But Rick Warren believers that in order for a church to be healthy if must become a purpose-driven church by Jesus.

The widely popular Purpose Driven church model is causing a controversial stir among congregations in the United States. While the model is adopted worldwide across denominations, arguments around it go back to the age-old debate of Christian tradition versus cultural relevance.

One of the chief causes of the end times apostasy we see all around us today is the Purpose Driven Church model. Rick Warren wrote the book in the 1990s and it seems every up and coming pastor since has been taught all of the purpose driven tenets. The result is a church that is focused on those that do not come to church while the sheep of the.

Coined by megapastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., the Purpose Driven model is changing the way thousands of churches are worshipping and reaching out in the 21st century. Pastors adopting the change preach a more culturally relevant message, ditching the traditional theology language.

'I like to teach theology to people without telling them it's theology and without using theological terms,' said Warren on ABC News' Nightline. 'Simple does not mean simplistic. Simple does not mean superficial. Simple means it's clear.'

Amid some complaints that the popular teaching may be more 'self-help' than Biblical, Warren acknowledged the difficulty in balancing relevance and Biblical teachings. The evangelical pastor, however, is trying to bridge what happened over 2,000 years ago to today.

'When you're preaching and teaching the good news, you walk a very fine line where you're taking the world of the Bible and the world of today, and you're building a bridge between those [worlds],' he explained on Nightline. 'Now, it's easy to be biblical if you don't care about being relevant … And it's easy to be relevant if you don't care about being biblical. I happen to want to be both.'

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Not everyone is a fan of the Purpose Driven sermons.

First Baptist Church in Daytona Beach, Fla., debated for weeks in town hall-like meetings over its new senior pastor's use of The Purpose Driven Life and other modern adoptions such as contemporary music and twin movie screens. David Cox, who led the 4,000-member church for less than five months, resigned from his position in January.

But one pastor believes the entire debate is 'silly.'

'It's kind of silly to me to hear somebody criticizing the [Purpose Driven] model,' said the Rev. Jim Cowart who heads Harvest Church in Warner Robins, Ga. 'It's just a model. It's really what you make it.'

'The model is not about theology or denomination,' he said. 'The essence of it is to live out the Great Commission and the Great Commandment.'

Purpose Driven churches are not all the same. Each church follows the same system, but targets different audiences and ministers in their own context, depending on their surrounding community.

'Even if I try to imitate Rick Warren, I'm not Rick Warren,' said Cowart. 'So it's going to come out differently.'

Cowart's Harvest Church, which also follows Warren's paradigm, targets the unchurched. So his congregation has a contemporary praise band, casual dress, and his sermons are relevant to his church of 900 people.

While Cowart says he is not an expert when it comes to church models, he says he's a 'satisfied customer' of the Purpose Driven model.

'If this works for you, go ahead and use it,' says Cowart.

Any other model would have worked, but growth would not have been as large at Harvest. 'I think we would've survived ... but I don't think we would be nearly as healthy or the size of the church we are now.'

And although the ministry style of Harvest Church draws a large crowd, it's not for everybody.

Cowart's father put it best. He was there at the first service when Harvest Church began six years ago.

'The message was good. The music was good. But I wouldn't come [here],' he told Cowart. 'You're not building this church for me. You're building it for the people who don't know Christ, people in the childrearing age.'

Cowart recently came out of a conference with nearly 400 people that trained them with the Purpose Driven model. He and the Purpose Driven Planting network, headed by Ron Sylvia of Church at The Springs in Ocala, Fla., plan to launch 1,000 new churches in the next five years.

The Purpose Driven Church Pdf

Those upcoming churches may not suit everyone's tastes. And churches that adopt the model may see losses. But costs come with growth.

'You know, I wouldn't intentionally want to cause pain to any person or to anyone,' Warren said on Nightline. 'Am I willing to put up with pain so the people [that] Jesus Christ died for can come to know him? Absolutely.'

And whatever is helping people come to Christ, Cowart's all for it.

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In the past ten years a large percentage of churches in America, and in other countries have changed from a traditional New Testament church model to a contemporary Purpose Driven model, many with sorrowful results.

Contrary to Purpose Driven Church propaganda, millions have been leaving their churches after the change occurred. It is important that every church member know if their church is targeted for a Purpose Driven Church takeover. Initially, a small clique of church staff, possibly including the pastor or a new pastor, plans the change without telling the rest of the church membership.

Church Transitions, an associate of Saddleback Church in California, trains the clique initiating the change in eight published steps. The church membership is not to be informed of the transition until the fourth step. After the sixth step in the process of change, if there are some in the church who voice concerns, the following is suggested:

1. Identify those who are resisting the changes;

2. Assess the effectiveness of their opposition;

3. Befriend those who are undecided about the changes;

4. Marginalize more persistent resisters;

5. Vilify those who stay and fight; and

6. Establish new rules that will silence all resistance.

This means the church membership is not told until it is too late to make a difference. In other words, the church is stolen. Then the members either accept the changes, or leave the church, which they may have served and given to build.

Dr. Rick Warren, author of 'The Purpose Driven Church' and 'The Purpose Driven Life' has boasted: 'When you reveal the vision to the church, the old pillars are going to leave. But let them leave... they only hold things up.'

Dr. Warren is right in one way. It is the senior members of the church who do indeed hold a church up and keep it from falling into apostasy. While some PDC initiators may not implement the full PDC format, generally, these are the signs that your church is targeted for a Purpose Driven Church format:

1. Change in music to a contemporary rock style.

2. Removal of hymn books; eliminating the choir.

3. Replacement of organ and piano with heavy metal instruments.

4. Repetitive singing of praise lyrics.

5. Dressing down to casual and informal attire.

6. Eliminating of business meetings, church committees, council of elders, board of deacons, etc.

7. The pastor, or a new leader with a few assistants, usually four, takes charge of all church business.

8. A repetitive 40-day Purpose Driven Church study program stressing psychological relationships with each other, the community, or the world, begins.

9. Funded budgeted programs are abandoned, or ignored, with ambiguous financial reports made.

10. Sunday morning, evening, and/or Wednesday prayer meetings are changed to other times; some may even be eliminated.

11. Sunday School teachers are moved to different classes, or replaced by new teachers more sympathetic with the changes being implemented.

12. The name 'Sunday School' is dropped and classes are given new names.

13. Crosses and other traditional Christian symbols may be moved from both the inside and outside of the church buildings. The pulpit may also be removed.

14. In accordance with Dr. Warren’s instructions, new version Bibles are used; or only verses flashed on a screen are referenced during regular services.

15. Purpose Driven Church films, purchased from Saddleback, precede or are used during regular services.

16. The decor, including the carpets, may be changed to eliminate any resemblance to the former church.

17. The word 'church' is often taken from the name of the church, and the church may be called a 'campus'. Denominational names may also be removed.

18. An emphasis on more fun and party sessions for the youth.

19. Elimination of altar calls or salvation invitations at the close of the services.

20. The elimination of such words as 'unsaved', 'lost', 'sin', 'Hell', 'Heaven' and other Gospel verities from the pastor’s messages.

21. The reclassification of the saved and lost to the 'churched' and the 'unchurched'.

22. The marginalizing, or ostracizing, of all who are not avid promoters of the new Purpose Driven Program.

23. Closed meetings between the pastor or chosen staff members without any reports made to the general membership.

24. Open hostility to members who do not openly embrace the new program, or who may have left for another church.

What You Can Do

If your church is in the initial stages of change (music or the first 40-day program), your church could be saved by talking with other church members, and with activist intervention by 10-20 percent of the membership. If nothing is done at this early stage, then by the time the program advances to step four, there is little that can be done except look for another church. Your church has been stolen and become a Purpose Driven entity in association with Saddleback Church of Orange County or Willow Creek of Chicago.

You must educate yourself, and others, so that you can mobilize the membership to effectively resist. 'For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind' 2 Timothy 1:7.

The Purpose Driven Church books and most of the programs are published by Rupert Murdoch, who owns 175 newspapers worldwide, and a large percentage of the television and communications industry. He also owns several magazines, some of which have been classified as pornographic.

Billions of dollars pour into the Purpose Driven Church movement. Dr. Warren has stated he intends to send one billion Christians into the world to bring in the 'Kingdom of Heaven'. The entire movement appears cultish.

Don’t be fooled by the Saddleback Website. You don’t catch many fish unless you have a look-alike bait!

The following may or may not be available:

The Purpose Driven Church Summary

Copied from printed pamphlet from: Southwest Radio Church Ministries, Box 100, Bethany, Oklahoma 73008, 1-800-652-1144, www.swrc.com

For more-in-depth information order the book: 'The Dark Side of the Purpose Driven Church', by N.W. Hutchings