Chuck Lawless on the Emerging Church

Chuck Lawless is the new Dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth at SBTS and a guy I really like.  When I was commissioned as a "missionary" to international students I asked him to preach at the service.  I think very highly of him. 

Dr. Lawless recently gave a breakout seminar on the Emerging Church at the collegiate conference held at SBTS.  Here's a news article giving some of his thoughts and critiques.  I like a lot of what he has to say.  And though I might say some of it differently, I think it's good to have Dr. Lawless encouraging students to learn (cautiously) from the Emerging Church.  I have the last bit for you...

"We have to build relationships to gain a hearing," he said. "I'm right there. But New Testament evangelism does not say, 'I'll just wait and listen and when you ask, I'll respond.' New Testament evangelism is initiatory and it is confrontive."

Some teachings from the emerging church movement "do not fit Christian orthodoxy," Lawless warned.

"Read very, very cautiously. Hear the positive. Then pray that God would help us to work on our own churches to take those positives and to become more relational, to become more authentic, to become more vulnerable as needed, but without ever compromising the truth of the Gospel."