Dr. Mike Miller is a long-time preaching professor at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and the current pastor of Central Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Texas. Today, Dr. Miller took to Twitter to strongly condemn one of the most popular “Christian” books of the century.
Well, this is a gut punch. Some of these endorsements are terribly upsetting. “Jesus Calling” is unbiblical garbage. Good grief! https://t.co/DCKKHwdJKA
— Mike Miller (@iliketopreach) December 4, 2018
Jesus Calling has sold millions and millions of copies. It was the No. 5 best-selling book in the world for the first half of 2013. It even outsold Fifty Shades of Grey. It has spawned an entire franchise which includes Jesus Always and a children’s devotional. It has also inspired an entire book, Another Jesus Calling, dedicated to warning Christians about its deceptive statements and New Age nature. Dr. Miller, rightly so, declared in his tweet that Jesus Calling is “unbiblical garbage”.
The “gut punch” which Miller described in his tweet was the realization that so many popular preachers, including many of the most powerful and influential men in his own denomination, have endorsed Jesus Calling. These endorsers include former Southern Baptist Convention presidents Johnny Hunt and Jack Graham and Guidestone Financial Resources President O.S. Hawkins.
To make matters worse, Miller’s denomination even sells Jesus Calling through its LifeWay book store chain; it surprisingly sells Jesus Calling at the Lifeway bookstore located at Miller’s own seminary! Imagine Miller’s frustration. The Southern Baptist Convention has given the responsibility to Dr. Miller with training its pastors for ministry while, at the same time, profiting from the sale of the very “unbiblical garbage” about which Miller warns his students and congregants. Southern Baptists would do well to listen to the laments of its professional bible scholars instead of the vain endorsements of big-money shills like Johnny Hunt and Jack Graham.
For more on the danger of Jesus Calling see this helpful review by Tim Challies.
*Please note that the preceding is my personal opinion. It is not necessarily the opinion of any entity by which I am employed, any church at which I am a member, any church which I attend, or the educational institution at which I am enrolled. Any copyrighted material displayed or referenced is done under the doctrine of fair use.
