Introduction
The first time through The Naked Gospel proved to be a fairly quick
read. Andrew Farley writes very
well, in a conversational style, which makes reading his book quite easy. He is quite conversational, and one can
feel as if one knows him already. As
this writer made his way through the book though, red flags began to flap in
the breeze.
If one were to fly an airplane from east to west on a 5,000 mile trip,
but off by one degree, one would wind up way north or way south of the desired destination. In the same way, if one fails to
remember a common navigational equation—Heading = Course + Wind Correction +
Intercept—one will again miss the desired destination.
The same thing is true in studying the Bible. If one starts with a premise that is not supported by the
Scripture, or if one starts with an erroneous understanding of what Scripture
says, then the conclusions one comes to will be “off”. More importantly, if one begins with an
“opinion” rather than Scriptural truth, then the conclusion cannot be
considered a Biblical position.
At the risk of alienating the reader at the outset, I have to be
honest—my second reading of Farley’s book not only confirmed the concerns that arose
the first time through, but a number of conclusions he arrived at cannot be
considered Biblical positions. Why? They cannot be considered Biblical
positions because they begin with a flawed premise or with his personal opinion
rather than with the Scripture. Additionally,
a little more than half way through the book it seemed that his argument is more
about feeling good about oneself as a believer, rather than the grace-infused
gospel of Jesus Christ as revealed in the Scripture.
A Dusting of Error
The majority of what Farley writes is quite Biblical in its content—most
of what he wrote is Biblical truth.
However, throughout the book, there is a bit of a “dusting” of error,
rendering entire arguments ineffectual.
Farley’s past “church” experience—something his description left no
doubt as to its being in the extreme—leads the reader to believe that he
perhaps moved to the opposite extreme.
One extreme seems to have led to another—not unlike this writer’s
personal experience growing up years, being told, “you shouldn’t feel that
way”. That particular extreme led
me to stifling my feelings in my teen years and following, resulting in my
being in a position where I did not know what I felt, as well as an
unwillingness to “get in touch” with my feelings. I went to the opposite extreme.
Another notable problem is that Farley is attempting to make
understandable that which cannot be completely comprehended in this life. There is still mystery that is veiled,
only to be disclosed on the Last Day.
A Lack of Specificity
Farley makes a number of statements in the book, as if he has discovered
something new. At issue is the
fact that he neglects to explain what his premises “look like”, he does not
provide any “specificity” as to what he is attempting to convey, and he does
not provide any Scriptural support for the statements. In most instances, he utilized examples
from the human experience to “prove” his “spiritual truths”, rather than using
the Word.
Exegesis and Hermeneutics
Farley’s exegesis of the written text in many places is faulty. The premises he articulates, for
example, about Adam and Eve, John’s epistle, and James’ letter are, at best,
inaccurate. He does not properly interpret
multiple passages of Scripture.
Listening to a Heretic
Finally, of grave concern is the fact that Farley quotes from a
recognized heretic to make his point that “religion is a headache”. (p. 32) Hannah
Whitall Smith was a Universalist whose view of God was horribly skewed. Many other people could have been quoted
to make the point—including D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones who preached a series of
sermons on spiritual depression, discussing some of the issues Farley referred
to in quoting Smith—but Farley chose to quote one who made it her goal to
advance heresy.
The purpose of this paper is to examine a selected few of what appear to be problem areas in various sections, and I do so with one goal: to point to God’s Word in order to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. I have provided alternate section titles in order to summarize the thrust of Farley’s teaching.
NEXT: Farley Part II: How One Studies Matters
