Why you shouldn't look for God in "The Shack"

There is probably not one of us who has either seen the movie The Shack, or read the book, or at the very least, knows of someone who has, and thought The Shack was the best movie or book they have ever read.  Now, while I can believe such a book or film can be entertaining, and insightful; even plant seeds of faith in a non-believer; we have to be able to discern what is truth, and what is fiction.  The Shack is fiction, and dangerous fiction in that while it feels good on the surface, it has some false premises that can damage or even destroy ones relationship with Christ.  Below are just a couple of key points:

• In "The Shack", God the Father Himself comes to the shack...as a woman?  God has always referred to himself as masculine (sorry, ladies; but please stay, with me for a bit longer!) and never in the flesh.  That was Jesus's job, to be God in the flesh.  Jesus walked and talked with us on earth.  God the Father on earth could not be directly viewed by sinful man without dying (Exodus 33:20; Isaiah 6).   What The Shack does is recreate god in man's image; or, in other words, promote idolatry.

• What? No Hell?  The Shack implies through an underlying theme that all of mankind and even Satan and his fallen angels can and will be reconciled to God, enter Heaven, thus eliminate the need for Hell and the Lake of Fire.  Very appealing, but not very biblically Sound.  (Revelation 20:10-15)  Satan will not be let back into the heavenly realm, so he can try to overthrow God again.  Those who choose to reject God and his offer of love will not be forced to repent and be thrown into Heaven, as The Shack suggests.  That's not love, love respects freedom of choice.  (Ladies, you know that guy you had no interest in who kept pursuing you?  Would that be love if he forced you to love him??  God is not just a God of love, but a God of justice as well.

While The Shack can be treated as good, secular fiction, with a lot of biblical truths; one must be careful in regard to the half truths and falsehoods that are laced throughout the book and film.  This story paints a universal message, that all religions lead to God; while Jesus said He is the way, the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him. (John 14:6)  So while all religions do lead to God, most lead to a God, sitting on a throne of judgment, seperating himself from those who chose not to have any relationship with Him while they were on earth.  The only place for an eternal human being to go who does not want fellowship with God is the lake of fire; the second death, that truly lasts for eternity.

Christianity is not a religion where you need to appease a god; it's about God's love for us, that He (Christ) died for us (Romans 5:8).  God has done all that needs to be done to reconcile the relationship between mankind and Himself, that will we have left to do is say, "Thank you, Lord Jesus", and spend time with Him; in prayer, in reading His word, the Bible, and sharing this good news with others.

The Persecution of Christianity in America

Christian persecution in America is becoming a greater and greater issue.  Now, for followers in Christ living in Africa, the Middle East, or China, they have to be thinking “Persecution?  You call this persecution??  Americans have no idea what persecution is!!!”

Fortunately for us in the United States, they would be correct by a huge margin.  In America, we don’t imprison Christians simply because they preach the gospel on our streets (though some have been cited or even arrested for street preaching in some cities), nor set on fire entire towns of Christians nor crucify Christians because they won't submit to Islam.  Persecution of this magnitude does not happen, and I believe it’s mainly because of the Constitution and Bill of Rights, founded by a mostly Christian body almost 230 years ago, makes such actions illegal.  Even the state and local governments cannot “prohibit the free exercise of any religion”

The problem has been, for over 50 years, Christianity has been under attack, and the Christian body in the US has been strangely silent.  Christians have been told so many times that “this world is not our home”, Christians have not only stopped voting, we have stopped participating in the government process.  As a result, us Christians, in the name of tolerance, are allowing ourselves to be overrun in society by anti God, atheistic principles that want nothing to do with God or Christ, and want to silence any believer in Christ by any means possible, including accusing them of being “intolerant”. Go figure.

To date, Christian organizations wanting to achieve non profit status are being delayed or even denied such status by the IRS.  Liberal, anti Christian organizations get rapid approval.  Conservative, Christian individuals starting such groups are being investigated, harassed and intimidated into withdrawing their applications for non profit status by these government agencies.  But that is about to end.

There is a “new Sheriff” in Washington DC.  Put in place by many people in America who are fed up with the status quo being shoved down our throats by a few elitists, Donald Trump may be a man, put in place by God, to lead us out of our mediocrity and encourage us to put God first in the way we live, work and govern ourselves.  (I say this with caution: he may also be just another bully and tyrant; only time will tell)

As Christians in the United States, we need to stand up to these “bullies”.  We need to proclaim to all that the United States of America was in fact founded by Christians, to be a Christian nation, showing no prejudice against any religion including islam and atheism.  The challenge is, that followers of these other religions need to know and understand this; that if they want to live in the freest society on earth, they need to live within these Judeo - Christian rules, and assimilate into this culture.  This has not been happening over the last 50 years, all in the names of tolerance, equality, multiculturalism and for the benefit of the global community.  Anything short of this will result in a one world, global communistic dictatorship.  A dictatorship the rest of the world seems to desire.

Courage for Christ - 6

Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.



Do you? Do you go and tell others about Jesus, baptizing those who come to believe? What do you do to “promote and market” Jesus Christ to the world? At work, while shopping, driving in your car or even while taking a walk in your neighborhood.

Be it wearing a simple t shirt, placing a bumper sticker on your car, a sign in your window or plaque at your front door; or leaving bible tracks in public places; hold up a sign on a street corner that says “Jesus IS Lord and God” (or whatever) these are all tools you can use to “advertise” Christianity. Also, you can distribute flyers to the houses around your church building, and even knock on doors, promoting your congregation as a warm fuzzy place to check Jesus out. These are all things any of us, regardless of handicap, fear, insecurity, or even laziness can do.

We can also fund these efforts. Donating to cover the printing, and distribution of literature; sending someone on a mission trip; or funding a relief organization are alternatives if you are blessed with more money than time.

Yes, it can be scary. We have heard of the unsults thrown and the violence incurred. (That’s just Satan seeking revenge against you for hacking him off!) Jesus said these things would happen, but Jesus also commands we tell the world about Him. He also promised, he would “be with us always, even to the end of the age”. So when you share Jesus, the Holy Spirit is with you. You will know what to say and when, as well as what to do and when. And you will be protected, comforted, and blessed for keeping His commandments.

Have You Prayed for your Country Today? 9

Prayer Update: Our prayers are being answered.   Give glory and thanks to God!

Over the past year, with the apparent public and substantial congressional majority, our government has attempted to impose an anti Christian, pro communist agenda on America. With few faith based supporters remaining in Congress, the only thing left for Christians to do was pray, and peacefully protest. And pray and protest we have done. Praying not just for America, but for our leaders as well.

Right from the start, laws and executive orders were passed that go against our US Constitution, against God, and against what our founding fathers wanted for our country. These politicians have repeatedly exchanged the truth for lies, called evil what has always been right, and declaring right that which always has been evil. (Isaiah 5:20) They turn challenges and mild problems into crisis’s that “we the people cannot handle” and only the government can solve. And they proceed to attempt to finish the destruction of the land of opportunity, and turn the land of the free into the land of the oppressed. But they cannot touch the home of the brave.

The 1000 + page stimulus bill is being exposed for the government control sham that it is. Same goes for the cap and trade legislation. The global warming crisis has just been identified as an international hoax designed to shake down the wealthy for more money and power. And support for the 2000+ page health care bill is grinding to a halt, as more and more Americans take to the streets protesting this government attempt to control the masses via “health care legislation” which has more to do with government control than anything else.  Better still, the supporters of this program are now fighting amongst themselves, turning the congressional process into a poor "Three Stooges" movie.

But American citizens have been stepping up, praying, and letting their Lord and God take over. The result? All of this aggressive legislation gets gummed up, the supporters of the health care legislation start arguing amongst themselves so much it may possibly fail, our currency remains strong when it shouldn’t, and our president, as popular as he is, is losing support even among his cabinet, his congress, and the political base that put him in power. Psalm 7:14-16.

Even the terrorists can't blow up a plane right!  The attempt to down a plane over Detroit on Christmas day should have been a huge success for Al-Qaida.  But the detonator failed.  Everything else worked for the terrorists except for this one detail.  Call it what you want, but I say this has the hand of God Almighty written all over it!

This is not a Democrat or Republican issue. Both political parties are guilty of this mess. But our God is slow to anger, and abundant in love. He can and will forgive those who repent and turn to Him. He can repair the damage man has created; be it economically, environmentally, emotionally, physically or spiritually. Continue to pray, praising God, give thanks to God; encourage your neighbors who are lost and broken, and it may be possible that God will hear our prayers and heal our land.  It's never too late, as long as we don't quit.

And what if we fail, and lose? Don’t worry. The same God we pray to, the same God that saved Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from Nebuchadnezzar and his fiery furnace has promised to protect us from eternal calamity. We may lose our life on earth, but we’ll gain treasure in heaven. Remain faithful. God is with us, and if God is with us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31; Psalms 118:6)


© 2009 David Etenburn. Non - commercial reproduction permitted