Promise Keepers: Of God or Man?

Soon after learning of the Promise Keepers organization, I became concerned about a number [of problems]. As I have struggled with the desire to be righteous in my response -- having the right motive and attitude -- as well as being right -- having the right words and actions -- I have talked, prayed, read and sought understanding about this phenomenon. Following the recent Promise Keepers meeting in Houston, I have continued extensive conversations with friends and brothers who attended. At present, the following is a brief summary of my conclusions:

1. If the Promise Keepers' rallies are employed by the local church as a stimulus for establishing ongoing discipleship training in the local church, which would result in a legitimate men's ministry, then it can be a very effective tool in the Kingdom.

However, if the Promise Keepers' rallies are used by the local church as a substitute for establishing legitimate, ongoing men's ministries in the local church, it, like so many other para-church organizations, will grow to a certain point and then continue to exist while having lost much of its vitality. Some of the issues associated with this point of concern are:

a. The focus of "some" ("many"?) of the men and pastors who attend the Promise Keepers rallies is, "I can't wait for the next one." This is not the fault of the Promise Keepers, but it is a flaw in the design. If the rally is a stimulus, another rally, which is essentially like the first, is not necessary to establish an ongoing, effective men's ministry. It may be beneficial to take men who did not get to go to the previous rally to the next one, but certainly the focus of the men's ministry should not be on the "next rally".

b. There are reasons why many local churches, particularly Southern Baptist churches, have effective, ongoing women's ministries, but not men's ministries. Among these is the fact that men's ministries are much more difficult to control. Because of bad past experiences with the leadership of men's ministries, pastors are often preoccupied with "control", i.e., "making sure things don't get out of hand." The control which is desired should come from the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, not from organizational impediments to the movement of God in the lives of men.

c. Promise Keepers should encourage men to become disciples of Christ and not Promise Keepers. This can partially be done by making certain that local churches form accountability groups or discipleship groups, not Promise Keeper groups. Many local groups are attempting to "repeat" the thrill of the big Promise Keeper meetings without success partially because they do not have the skilled and experienced speakers at the local "wake up" call meetings.

d. Promise Keepers must recognize the performance orientation of today's culture. Christianity and particularly discipleship must be participatory. Fruitfulness for Promise Keepers will not be quantified by the growth of the rallies, but the growth in the lives of men.

2. If the real concerns of well-motivated men about Promise Keepers are to be properly responded to, Promise Keepers will need to:

a. Repudiate The Masculine Journey: Understanding the Six Stages of Manhood by Robert Hicks. The Acknowledgments to this book states:

"Thanks goes to NavPress and the Promise Keepers for having a vision for this project" (page 11). At best this book is questionable, at worst it is blasphemous. The artificial "theological construct" into which Hicks attempts to place the emotional and spiritual journey of men is more Freudian than it is Scriptural. Hicks, like Freud, defines the normal by looking at the abnormal. Statements like:

"Possessing a _____ places unique requirements upon men before God in how they are to worship Him." (p. 51)

"The phallus has always been the symbol of religious devotion and dedication." (p. 51)

"Current Christianity cannot openly deal with or talk about the male phallus in its full sexual activity or fantasy." (p. 54) "As men, the phallus defines our identity." (p. 68) "I believe Jesus was phallic with all the inherent phallic passions we experience as men. But it was never recorded that Jesus had sexual relations with a woman. He may have thought about it as the movie The Last Temptation of Christ portrays, but even in the movie He did not give in to the temptation and remained true to His messianic course. If temptation means anything, it means Christ was tempted in every way as we are. That would mean not only heterosexual temptation but also homosexual temptation! I have found this insight to be very helpful for gay men struggling with their sexuality." (p. 181, emphasis added)

Men are not defined by their _____. If a man is emasculated, he does not cease to be a man. The male imprint is placed upon a child long before he is even aware that he has a _____. Hicks' book reflects that he has been deeply influenced by modern psychology and humanism. His book attempts to Christianize secular psychology by trying to create a "Scriptural paradigm" in which to fit all of the humanistic writers he quotes. The book distorts men and women. Any comfort which a sodomite (a homosexual) gets from imagining that Jesus Christ was sexually attracted to men, is a false hope offered by a false prophet.

Jesus Christ had the opportunity to sin placed before Him; those opportunities represented all of the categories -- in their body, their soul and their spirit -- which men and women have ever faced, but Jesus was not drawn to them. Jesus was not attracted by sodomy or by fornication. To suggest that He was, and even to dignify The Last Temptation of Christ with a reference in a supposedly Christian book is unthinkable. A recent statement published by Promise Keepers states: "...we feel that The Masculine Journey is a valid resource for men to grow in Christ..." Hicks' book is a distortion of the biblical view of man and of men. Until their endorsement of this book is withdrawn publicly, no man of God should trust any publication or statement of Promise Keepers.

Many pastors who have talked with me about Promise Keepers say, "I wish they would repudiate this book, but there is so much good in the organization." It is impossible to exaggerate the barrier which Hick's book has to Christians embracing the ministry of Promise Keepers. If their leadership, along with Focus on the Family, are so insensitive to the "doctrine of Christ" as to underwrite and endorse this book, then one must hold the entire organization suspect until they correct this egregious error.

b. Repudiate the endorsements of Promise Keepers by Mormons. It has often been the case that a politician has received the endorsement of an organization which contradicts his beliefs, i.e., Ku Klux Klan leaders have endorsed local and national politicians. No one can be faulted for receiving the endorsement of those with whom they disagree. But, having received the endorsement, they can be faulted for not repudiating that endorsement.

The May 6, 1995, Los Angeles Times reported the statement of Mormon attorney, Chip Rawlings, who said: "The movement's 'Seven Promises' are like something straight out of the men's priesthood manual of the (Mormon) church." Other statements of Mormon leaders have declared the Mormon church and Reformed Latter Day Saints church "have no problems with Promise Keepers." Promise Keepers cannot be faulted for having received the endorsement of a cult, but like the politician endorsed by the Klan, they can be faulted for not repudiating that endorsement. Until Promise Keepers declares categorically that the heresy of Mormonism is totally incompatible with Promise Keepers, they will continue to be viewed with suspicion as a "new age" ecumenical movement.

c. While the plan of salvation preached at Promise Keepers is sound, if preached in a local Christian church, it is questionable whether it is adequate at an ecumenical gathering of thousands of men. It is deceitful to embrace the "heritage" of the denominations of those present when you know you are addressing Campbellites, United Pentecostals, Mormons and other groups which consider themselves the "restoration movements" of Christianity. Paul preached on Mars Hill until he had reached the point at which the Gospel became an offense to the religiously lost philosophers. If Promise Keepers is going to avoid the deceit of ecumenism, they will have to preach the Gospel until it becomes an offense to those who are trusting in error. At that point, they may cease to be a phenomenon of growth, but they will commence being faithful to the Gospel. (see I Thess. 2:4-6 and Matt. 19:16-26)

In addition, while no one wishes to discourage Roman Catholic men who are seeking a personal relationship with God through Christ, neither must we embrace the Roman Catholic communion as "just another valid way of being a Christian." The "Evangelicals and Catholics Together in the Twenty-first Century" document caused a furor because it endorsed Roman Catholicism as a valid expression of Christian discipleship, and because it endorsed sarcedotalism. Any organization, such as Promise Keepers, which finds itself being embraced by Roman Catholic leaders, priests, bishops and archbishops, must reconsider the accuracy and effectiveness of its presentation of the Gospel.

3. Perhaps the greatest weakness of Promise Keepers' groups which are meeting in local churches is that immature men are often training immature men in immaturity. The New Testament model of "mentoring" is that a "Paul" trains a "Timothy" who then trains another "Timothy". When "Timothys" start training each other compromise, error, mediocrity or immaturity will result. This is not necessarily the fault of the national Promise Keeper organization, but if they are going to be faithful to the Gospel, they need to address this potential design flaw in their movement. With the leadership of the Promise Keepers evidencing insensitivity to critical issues of historical, biblical Christianity, one should be concerned about the fruit their organization will produce.

4. The potential for laymen to be placed on a "guilt trip" when they discern any deficiency in their pastor is great in the Promise Keeper mentality. Part of the success of the Promise Keepers is their total and complete support of the pastor in the local church. While no pastor should be plotted against to be dismissed, neither must the pastor be above reproach. Pastors are under tremendous pressure today, but the solution is not to give them a carte blanche for their behavior even when it falls short of biblical leadership standards. When the pastor operates out of fear or slothfulness, he does not need approval, he needs appeal. That appeal should be based on respect and brotherly love, but it also must be based on reciprocal accountability. Promise Keepers must not further isolate pastors by insulating them from the loving and supportive counsel of those who observe their ministry daily and weekly.

5. Promise Keepers must be aware of the impact which music, particularly dissonant rock music, has on the generation which it is trying to reach. Sensual and emotionally stimulating music will further undermine the work of developing men into effective disciples of Christ.

6. Finally, the very name "Promise Keepers" should raise an alarm among Christian leaders. There is no biblical mandate for men to be "promise keepers". In fact, God Alone is the only Promise Giver and Promise Keeper which the Bible speaks of. Men are to make vows and covenants, but they are not commanded to make or to keep promises. If anything, the Bible contends that men cannot keep promises, therefore God wants them to make vows which He will then give them grace to keep.

Lacking historical and biblical Christian roots, the leadership of Promise Keepers may have reflected the New Age and Mormon concept of man becoming a god by encouraging men to assume a responsibility which belongs to God. If men can and should be "promise keepers", then they can and should be little gods. This is what Joseph Smith taught, and this is what is taught by some who are embracing Promise Keepers. It may be they have recognized a common spirit in the errors propagated by the misuse of language and by the compromise of Truth.

7. Racial reconciliation and cross-denominational fellowship are by-products of the Gospel. Making these the focus, as if to make them the end of the Gospel, dilutes the Gospel message unwittingly. While denominational division often causes unnecessary turmoil in the Christian community, ecumenical efforts invariably result in the compromise of the truth.

If men are not grounded in sound doctrine (orthodoxy) and in sound practice (orthopraxy), their enthusiasm and emotional "lift" which they receive at the mass rallies will result in their embracing error rather than becoming disciples of Christ. While Promise Keepers is now publishing materials which endorse the "five fundamentals of the faith," their past ridicule of doctrine as being divisive makes them subject to the danger of minimizing the truth in favor of experience.

The basis of fellowship in the Christian body is truth (sound doctrine), not experience. Every cult which we deal with began with a magnification of experience over truth. Promise Keepers is not a cult, but it could spawn such if it does not ground its movement in sound doctrine. With leadership which is former Roman Catholic and presently members of the Vineyard Church, it is problematical as to whether that "sound doctrine base" will be forthcoming. If it did it would require some major changes in speakers who are invited to address the Promise Keepers meetings and in the denominational affiliations of the leadership of Promise Keepers.

Promise Keepers blames denominationalism for dividing the Christian community. Superficially that may appear to be true, but fundamentally different bodies of Christians are divided by doctrine. Doctrine is not popular today, in face of our experience based mentality, but without doctrine men will accept any lie. Promise Keepers will not be a legitimate healing influence in the body of Christ by minimizing doctrine in an attempt to eliminate denominations through ecumenism. They will help bring legitimate healing to the body of Christ by exalting, preaching and upholding TRUTH.

Those of us who perceive problems and/or potential problems through Promise Keepers must be prepared to embrace and delight in the work which God does in the lives of men through this organization. There are many good things coming from Promise Keepers. Yet, those who have benefited from Promise Keepers and/or who support it must not ignore the cautions which we raise.

Above all Promise Keepers does not have to be the focus for division in the body of Christ or in the local church. If Promise Keepers will make some of the adjustments recommended here and elsewhere by others, they can avoid the pitfalls which this phenomenal movement faces. If they do not, only time will declare who is righteous and right about Promise Keepers.

James L. Holly, M.D.
Proverbs 22:17-21

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