My Banner is Christ
My Banner is Christ-
An Appeal for the Church to Restore the Priority of Solus Christus and mortify the idols of Celebritism and the Fear of Man:
This work in progress addresses the danger of celebrity-worship and man-centeredness within Christ's body. The Reformers heralded the priority of Solus Christus for a very important reason - Christ alone must be the church's first love and sole authority, or all is lost. While there is nothing inherently wrong with the idea of celebrating godly men and their ministries, there is everything wrong with the idolatry of celebritism: the act of exalting men in a way which diminishes the glory and sole authority of Jesus Christ.
When the church becomes more enamored with popular individuals or things that are deemed as "trendy," she enters into a dangerous flirtation with man-centered thinking. In a world which demands that it have its various celebrities and idols (professional athletes, pop icons, movie-stars, internet-idols etc), the church must remember that it is called to a much different standard - the higher standard of Christ alone - Solus Christus. It is imperative for Christ's body to seek the restoration of John the Baptist's crucial confession:
"He must increase, but I must decrease." (John 4:30).
Without such a confessional standard raised as the church's principal banner, she is susceptible to countless forms of temptation, compromise, and loss of a Gospel witness amidst a watching world.
Title: My Banner is Christ: An Appeal for the Church to Forsake the Idolatry of Celebritism and Return to the Priority of Solus Christus
Introduction – He Has Given Us a Banner
Chapter I – Lessons from History with Pillars of Warning
Chapter II – Being Subject in the Fear of Christ
Chapter III – Celebritism and the Worship of the Nehushtan
Chapter IV – Solus Christus Versus Man-Centered Partisanship
Chapter V – You Cannot Serve Two Masters
Chapter V – Solus Christus in the Land of Sodom and Gomorrah
Chapter VI – Solus Christus in the Home and Church
Chapter VIII – Solus Christus in the Land of Beulah
Chapter IX – Not all are Teachers
Conclusion – The Palace that is Called Beautiful
Appendix – Part I: John Bunyan, John Flavel, and the Fear of God
Appendix – Part II: The Fear of Christ in Marriage and Family
Appendix – Part III: Thomas Manton's Epistle to the Reader
Date of Publication: October 31st, 2015
ISBN-9781935358107 - 282 pages.
Copyright Year: © 2015