He Kissed Faith in Jesus Goodbye

Josh Harris is not a Christian. Before you accuse me of being Pharisaical, or judgmental, please understand that Mr. Harris said so himself.

Link to source

Here's the most relevant quotation.

The information that was left out of our announcement is that I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus. The popular phrase for this is “deconstruction,” the biblical phrase is “falling away.” By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian. Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now.

If you were a Christian in the '90s - especially if you were in your teens or twenties, as I was - you probably know who Josh Harris is. If not, you may be wondering, "who is this guy, and why should I care?"

Josh Harris achieved fame and acclaim when he wrote a book called I Kissed Dating Goodbye. Family Life Today describes the book this way.

Joshua Harris' first book, written when he was only 21, turned the Christian singles scene upside down...and people are still talking. More than 800,000 copies later, I Kissed Dating Goodbye, with its inspiring call to sincere love, real purity, and purposeful singleness, remains the benchmark for books on Christian dating.

I never read the book, so I won't critique it, but I did get pestered about it all through my 20s (which is probably why I never read it). However; does anyone besides me see anything wrong with the picture painted by that description? Anyone who purports to teach millions of people is clearly setting himself up as an elder in the church. The Bible delineates the qualifications for a church elder very clearly.

1 Timothy 3:1 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; 3 not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; 4 one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence 5 (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); 6 not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. 7 Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.⁣⁣

Titus 1:5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you— 6 if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination. 7 For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, 8 but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled, 9 holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.

Does anyone think that a 21-year-old, unmarried, childless Josh Harris met all, of those qualifications? I don't know any 21-year-olds who meet all of those qualifications. Do you? I would never expect any 21-year-old to meet all of those qualifications. Would you?

In fact, Josh Harris wouldn't have even qualified to be a deacon.

1 Timothy 3:8 Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, 9 holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. 10 But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. 11 Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. 13 For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

So, the first folly was letting a 21-year-old, unmarried, childless, untested novice take on the mantle of writing "the benchmark for books on Christian dating", contrary to all Biblical standards on who should serve as an elder. The second folly was taking him seriously.

Mr. Harris became head pastor of Covenant Life Church, a megachurch in Gaithersburg, MD, in 2004. He was 30. He resigned in 2015, after a scandal in which pastors, including Mr. Harris, decided "to handle a child sexual abuse case internally instead of going to police".

In 2018, Mr. Harris released a documentary called I Survived I Kissed Dating Goodbye that repudiated his first book. I actually watched that one. Here's a trailer.

 
His new work, and his "reevaluation" of his previous work, was hugely encouraging to people who oppose Biblical teachings on marriage and sex.

Then, on 17 July 2019, Mr. Harris announced that he and his wife are divorcing.

Link to source

He didn't provide any details, like whose idea it was, or who filed, so I won't comment on any of that.

And, now, Josh Harris announced that he's not a Christian.

My purpose here is not to criticize Josh Harris. Frankly, I find his honesty refreshing. Unlike the legion of counterfeit Christians who don't believe what the Bible says, yet continue to call themselves Christians, while abusing the Word of God for their purposes, Josh Harris told the truth. He's not a Christian. Good to know. Let's pray for him and his family. I wish more people who don't believe the Bible would simply admit that they're not Christians.

My purpose here is to point out to Christians the folly of ignoring Biblical requirements.

First, Christians followed a single, childless, untested, 21-year-old novice like some kind of spiritual guru, violating all kinds of Biblical requirements.

Then, Christians chose that spiritual guru - now 30, and married, but still untested - to pastor thousands of people, again, violating Biblical requirements.

Then, Christians tested him. Unsurprisingly, he failed.

Then, the former guru/pastor and his wife decided to divorce, violating even more Biblical requirements (read Matthew 19).

Then, the former guru/pastor repudiated faith in Christ.

Hey, Christians who followed a 21-year-old like he was some kind of spiritual guru; do you feel stupid now?

You should. It's not as though you weren't warned.

Listen, Christians; we don't get to pick which parts of the Bible we believe, and obey, and which we ignore. We don't get to ignore Biblical requirements just because we don't like them. The Bible is God's Word. All of it.

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Got that? All Scripture. Not just the New Testament, not just the parts highlighted in red, and definitely not just the parts we like. All Scripture. If the Holy Spirit inspired the prophets and apostles to write something, there's a reason for it. Let's not ignore it.

Alternately, if we choose to ignore what is written in the Bible, if we don't believe it was inspired by the Holy Spirit, then let's follow Josh Harris's example, and stop pretending to be Christians.