Keswick & Evan Hopkins

After posting my last blog I decided to see what else I could learn about Evan Hopkins and Keswick. I stumbled across this really cool outline of Keswick, showing the founders, the most prominent people associated with it, those influenced by it (like D. L. Moody), and the teachings. But then as I turned to the fourth page I was shocked to see this conclusion: "Keswick Theology's view of sanctification is theologically erronious." It went on to say how we should avoid propigating this theology through books, lectures, sermons, articles, hymns, etc. (haha, yeah right...)



Apparently this guy even wrote a book about it. I'm not sure if it's out yet. It's called "Why 'Let Go And Let God' Is A Bad Idea". The 35 word title could have been "Let Go and Let God? Examining a Popular View of Christian Living: or, Why a Quick Fix to Your Struggle with Sin Will Not Result in a Victorious Life, Higher Life, Deeper Life, More Abundant Life, or Anything Other Than a Misguided, Frustrated, Disillusioned, and/or Destroyed Life."


It sorta boggles my mind that someone would feel a need to write a book against Keswick theology after all these years. Especially since he says that beginning in the 1920's, it started to change. Two of the biggest problem's that he talks about in the book are (1) that it creates two categories of Christians, and (2) that it advocates passivity (ie. resting in the Lord). Hmmmm . . .


I, for one, am thoroughly enjoying it! (Keswick Theology, that is. ;0) Because I believe that it is Biblical and truly leads to the Victorious, Abundant Life that Jesus said He came to give us. I also found this neat article about Hopkins. Here is an excerpt from it . . .


"Evan Hopkins had three children. When they were still small, occasionally, there were misunderstandings between them. One day he called the elder son, Evan, who was six, to his study room. He wanted to teach him the important truth: "in Christ." He wanted his son to understand what "to remain in Christ" means. So he took a card and a pencil. He drew a circle, placed the pencil in the centre and said to the boy: "do you see this pencil? I want you to stay in Christ just as this pencil is inside the circle. Inside the circle you will find everything to be happy, kind and obedient. But there are many small doors around the circle and when you come out of one of them, you become disordered. There is no bad mood that can show itself if you stay inside the circle. But if you come out through some door, you become disordered." And then he told the small boy what some of those doors were.


One day, his children fought again. He heard the older boy was crying. Then, he went to him asked him what had happened. The answer amid tears was: "Daddy, I left the circle." The boy was very heart-stricken, fearful of not being able to return into the circle. So Evan Hopkins asked him: "Evan, which door did you leave through?" He responded at once: "Through that door." His father explained to him: "If you came out through that door, you should return back through that same one." And both knelt down with that card in front of them, he confessed his sin, and when they got up, his face was radiant. He knew that he had entered into the circle again, and that he could enjoy Christ's presence."


As it turns out, this book that I'm reading (and re-reading) by Hopkins was written to explain (and defend) what Keswick believed and taught. When he finished the book, he sent it to a friend hoping that he would write an article about it to promote Keswick. Well, the friend loved it, but didn't feel qualified to write about it, so he sent it to another friend of his. This friend, Bishop Moule, however, didn't like what he read and wrote four negative articles about the book. Hopkins didn't try to defend himself - he trusted God to take care of it . . . and He did! It wasn't too long before Moule was staying with some friends in Keswick and was eventually persuaded to go to the convention - though he really didn't want to. God got ahold of his heart. When he got home, he wrote a fifth article - this one promoting Keswick. Moule and Hopkins then became friends and later Moule even became a preacher at Keswick. :0) God is good!


I'm finding that the only way to live life is in a continual attitude of surrender ("Let Go") to God. So who will join me in this grand adventure of "Letting Go and Letting God"? :0)