NG Kerk Wynberg
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Nicky Gumbel het soos volg gereageer op Chris Hand se kritiek op die Alpha kursus: Chris Hand - Response toThank you for contacting us regarding the criticisms of Alpha by Chris Hand. We are aware of these criticisms which are very saddening indeed. In response to his book Falling Short: The Alpha course examined, as well as other articles, I would like to make the following points:- The gospel presented on Alpha is the Biblical gospel. This is why Alpha has attracted the support of so many senior church leaders across every denomination. Alpha has been endorsed by Professor J.I. Packer, Alister McGrath, Professor I Howard Marshall and many other respected theologians and church leaders. The front of the book Telling Others gives the endorsements to Alpha of many more church leaders. Over 6 million people are now estimated to have done an Alpha course. There are over 8000 Alpha courses running in the UK, and over 28,000 world-wide in 139 countries and across all the major denominations. This seems to bear witness to the integrity of the course. Second, Chris Hand states that the God of Alpha is not the God of the Bible and that Alpha fails to tell us anything we need to know about God. However, the God of the Bible has revealed himself supremely in Jesus Christ (Hebrews1v2). As the New Testament theologian Tom Wright points out “The Christian claim is not that Jesus is to be understood in terms of a ‘God’ about whom we already know. It is this: The resurrection of Jesus strongly suggests that the world had a creator and this creator is to be seen in terms of- through the lens of- this Jesus”. That is why we believe the right place to start an introductory course on the Christian faith is with the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. Third, Hand says that on Alpha there is no recognition of the need to repent, that people feel forgiven but do not seem to have repented of their sin. However Alpha is a course for those outside the church, which is why we use non-technical language. Although there is a considerable amount of material on the subject of repentance the technical term does not appear that often. Having said that, the meaning of repentance is clearly spelt out. For example, 'Although eternal life is free, it is not cheap. It cost Jesus his life. If we want to receive this gift, we have to be willing to turn our back on everything we know to be wrong. These are the things which do us harm and lead to 'death' (Romans 6:23a). Turning away from them is what the Bible calls repentance (literally changing our minds). We accept the gift through repentance and faith.”(Questions of Life, page 63). Questions of Life clearly unpacks this and spells out exactly what repentance means. May I also refer you to the prayer that people pray on Alpha if they want to give their lives to Christ. It is in the back of Why Jesus? and Questions of Life (at the end of the chapter ‘Why did Jesus die?’). Ultimately, however, it is the Holy Spirit who convinces people about their sin and the need for repentance. This may be one of the reasons that we see such a deep level of repentance on Alpha. Fourth, Chris Hand claims that Alpha is unable in the final analysis to answer the question of “Why did Jesus die?”. In answer to this may I refer you to the synonymous chapter in Questions of Life. Under the section entitled ‘The result’, Nicky illustrates the achievements of the Cross with an illustration of the law court. He finishes by saying “The illustration I have used is not an exact one for three reasons. First our plight is worse. The penalty we are facing is not just a fine, but death....Thirdly, the cost was greater: it cost God not money but his one and only Son - who paid the penalty of sin”. Fifth, with reference to the claim that the Holy Spirit of Alpha is not the Holy Spirit of the Bible may I refer you to Questions of Life chapters 8-10. These three chapters look at the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Every sub-point Nicky makes about the nature or work of the Holy Spirit begins with a reference to the Bible. This is then explained. It is worth adding that there is more material on God the Father and God the Son than there is about the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, it is right not just to pay lip service to the Holy Spirit. Therefore, three out of the fifteen chapters are devoted to the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Finally, Alpha is criticised for its connection with Roman Catholics (indeed we work with all the major denominations). For example, Chris Hand strongly objects to the fact that Nicky Gumbel quotes Mother Theresa and regards her as a true Christian. He writes, “Mother Theresa is accepted as a Christian despite evidence that she held no firm Christian convictions”(Falling Short page 91). It is difficult to take such an extreme position seriously. |
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