Michael Wear’s ‘Center for Christianity and Public Life’ Promotes Liberation Theology At Inaugural Summit
At the Center for Christianity and Public Life’s 2024 inauguarl summit, CJ Rhodes of Mt. Helm Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi, who once served as the Public Theologian-In-Residence for the “And Campaign,” promoted a bit of liberation theory, saying:
“I hear some of you saying, ‘Wait a minute. The gospel is about our souls being saved.’ Yes, that, AND what Jesus says in Luke 4. ‘That the spirit of the Lord is upon me, for He hath anointed me to preach the good news to the poor.’ Dot dot dot. ‘And to set at liberty those who are captive.’ Not just spiritually captive, my friends, but physically captive. Those who have borne the weight of oppression both here and abroad need to hear that there’s good news not just in some sweet by and by but right here, right now. That God calls us to beloved community and God calls us to experience freedom and to experience hope.”
The Center for Christianity and Public Life is a nonpartisan institution in Washington D.C. with the mission to “contend for the credibility of Christian resources in public life, for the public good” all the while having a bit of a progressive streak running through it.
Commenting on the clip, @wokepreachertv on X writes:
I have said many times that liberation theology makes the same error as Bethel and faith healer hucksters. Some charismatics claim that the gospel is not complete without signs and wonders, particularly in regard to physical healing. And while SOME people will receive miraculous healing in this life, to the glory of God, not ALL who receive the gospel also receive miraculous healing. Therefore, if you can have the full gospel without miraculous healing, then miraculous healing is not a necessary element of the gospel.
In the same way, SOME people will receive socioeconomic liberation or political victories in this life, to the glory of God, but not ALL who receive the gospel also receive these things. Therefore, if you can have the full gospel without physical liberation, then physical liberation (in this life, not in the eschaton), is not a necessary element of the gospel. It is a blessing that God may bestow on some of his people in some particular contexts, but it is not the gospel (which is the forgiveness of sins, promise of future resurrection and eternal life, the current indwelling of the Holy Spirit and fellowship of the church, accomplished by Jesus’s perfect life, his work on the cross, and his victory over the grave-see 1 Corinthians 15).
He explains further:
Even in the course of Jesus’s earthly ministry, we can see the “physical” interpretation of Luke 4 is not universal.
-He did not free John from prison or prevent his martyrdom (Matthew 14:1-12…plus in Matthew 11:2-6, he repeats the Luke 4/Isaiah 61 language TO JOHN WHILE HE IS IN PRISON).
-He commended a Roman centurion, of the oppressor class, for having greater faith than his countrymen who were oppressed by Rome (Matthew 8:5-13).
-He instructed his disciples to pay a tax even if it was corrupt and selectively enforced (Matthew 17:24-27).
And there is the theme throughout the rest of the NT that we suffer now for a better life in eternity (Hebrews 11, 2 Corinthians 4:7-18) and to be patient about receiving this reward (1 Peter 1:3-9, James 5:7-8).
The Liberation Gospel is one of the only ways that political leftism and Christianity can be syncretized. The Coneists are trying to level up by claiming they are “conservative,” i.e. not denying the deity of Christ. But like the Judaizers, you can take orthodox theology and make it cursed by ADDING something to the true gospel and demanding that addition as a requirement for inclusion in the body of Christ.
Editor’s Note. This entire thing is basically cribbed word-for-word from @wokepreacherTV’s post, with permission.
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