The term “gnostic” is an unfamiliar one today. Historically, it referred to a group of Christians who believed they had special knowledge. “Gnostic” comes from the Greek word gnosis, meaning knowledge,1 and the Gnostics believed they had that in a special form. They thought that God had spoken to them in dreams, visions, and revelations apart from Scripture. In the words of one author:

The Gnostics claimed to be the elite, the wise, the philosophers, to whom was revealed a secret knowledge which the overwhelming mass of mankind would never know.2

Because of this, Gnosticism came up with some bizarre ideas. In his book, The Gnostic Empire Strikes Back, Peter Jones summarized their views this way. He said the Gnostics believed that:

Everything is true (Bewildering Diversity)

You must know yourself (more than Scripture)

The kingdom of God is inside of you

Christ is our twin brother

God is unknowable and impersonal3

Needless to say, this is about as far away from Biblical Christianity as you could get. There is simply nothing Christian about Gnosticism, and yet its main idea is still floating around in churches today. Christians still believe that God gives special knowledge.

Just consider all the books on Heaven. While the numbers have slowed down a bit, in the summer of 2012, four of the best-selling books in the country were Christian books on Heaven.4 All of them claimed to have special knowledge.

The most popular one was Heaven is for Real, which sold more than eight million copies5 and was turned into a major motion picture.6 The book tells the story of Colton Burpo, a young child who visited Heaven after his appendix burst. While there, the angels sang to him, the Devil appeared to him, and he got to pet Jesus’ rainbow horse. He also describes how he did homework, flew around on angel’s wings, and sat beside God on His throne.

And his father believed it. He says:

I had been a Christian since childhood and a pastor for half my life, so I believed that before. But now I knew it.7

How did he know it? Because he read it in the Bible? No. Because he had attained Gnosis. Secret knowledge. Hidden knowledge.

The same thing happens in another book, The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven. This one sold more than a million copies8 and tells the story of another child who almost died and another father who believed every word he said. The father writes:

Someone had just spoken to my spirit . . . Like a radio signal tuning in to the right frequency, it came first in fits and starts. My heart raced within my chest. The Lord was directly communicating His will for me.9

And what was His will?

Use Alex [his son] to show who I am.10

And how will he do that?

With Gnosis.

Alex does not do it with a Bible Study. That would be too cliché. He does not do it by opening up the Book of Genesis or the Book of Revelation. He does not learn about God by studying the Prophets or the Apostles. He learns about God from experience. God personally takes him up to Heaven.11

Gnosticism is everywhere today. It is in books on Heaven. It is in books on worship.12 It is in books on decision-making and the will of God.13

And it is in daily devotionals.

One such devotional is Sarah Young’s bestselling book, Jesus Calling.14 Published in 2004 by Thomas Nelson Publishers, Jesus Calling has become an enormously successful work. It has sold more copies and been read by more Christians than any other book in the last decade. It has been featured on the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Christianity Today.15 In fact, according to Christianity Today, it is even more popular now than when it first came out:

Not since “My Utmost for His Highest” has a daily devotional enraptured the English-speaking world, from cynical intellectuals to sweet grandmas, across the theological spectrum . . . Jesus Calling didn’t seem destined to sell millions. And then, quite unexpectedly, it did.

During the first three years after its 2004 publication, Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence sold a total of only 59,000 copies, a modest success for a daily devotional from a then-unknown author. But then book sales skyrocketed: 220,000 copies in 2008 alone.

Sales of the book have nearly doubled in each successive year, says Laura Minchew, senior vice president of specialty publishing at Thomas Nelson. As of this summer, Jesus Calling had sold 9 million copies in 26 languages, and Publishers Weekly reported that it remained the No. 5 bestseller of the first half of 2013—for all books, not just Christian ones: It outsold Fifty Shades of Grey.16

The tremendous success of Jesus Calling has led to the sale of other spin-off books from Sarah Young such as Jesus Today,17 Jesus Lives,18 Dear Jesus,19 and Experiencing God’s Presence.20 There is also a www.jesuscalling.com website that “can act as a support network for its members and serve as a much needed sounding board for life’s challenges”21 as well as a Jesus Calling Radio Devotional that you can hear on various stations all across the country.22

Not bad for a humble missionary.23

Sarah Young began her ministry shortly after graduating from Covenant Theological Seminary and marrying her husband, a third-generation missionary to Japan. Upon graduation, they went to Japan and then to Atlanta where they planted churches in the Japanese community. While in Atlanta, she received another degree from Georgia State University and then proceeded to Australia to plant the first-ever Japanese church in Melbourne. Today, she lives back in the United States.24

That whole experience must have left a deep impression on Sarah because most of her writings are based on the journals she kept during those years. In the introduction to Jesus Calling, she writes:

The following year [in Melbourne, Australia], I began to wonder if I could change my prayer times from monologue to dialogue. I had been writing in prayer journals for many years, but this was one-way communication: I did all the talking. Increasingly, I wanted to hear what God might want to communicate to me on a given day. I decided to “listen” with pen in hand, writing down whatever I “heard” in my mind . . .

My journaling thus changed from monologue to dialogue. This new way of communicating with God became the high point of my day.25

So Jesus Calling is based on the dialogues that Sarah Young had with God during those hectic years of ministry. It relates how she listened to Him, pen in hand, and wrote down everything He said.

So what did God say? And why is it so popular? And what does it have to with Gnosticism?

Content.

To understand the content of Jesus Calling, we must first understand what the author means by “Presence.” The subtitle of the book is Enjoying Peace in His Presence because that is what the book is all about. “Presence” or “My Presence” appears more than 300 times, almost once per page. The word “Peace” appears more than 50 times as well, and other phrases appear such as “My Power,” “My Love,” “My Face,” and “My Song.” But the focus is overwhelmingly on “My Presence” as the Introduction states:

This practice of being still in God’s Presence has increased my intimacy with Him more than any other spiritual discipline, so I want to share some of the writings I have gleaned from these quiet moments. In many parts of the world, Christians seem to be searching for a deeper experience of Jesus’ Presence and Peace. The devotions that follow address that felt need.26

It is interesting that God’s Presence is so prevalent in the book, because it is never really defined but we are told that it can fulfill our deepest longings,27 provide true joy,28 and pop bubbles of worry.29 It can heighten our awareness of God,30 drive out darkness,31 and take away negative feelings.32 We are encouraged to soak in it,33 rest in it,34 sit in it,35 walk in it,36 open up to it,37 and keep our antennae tuned to it.38 But its identity remains a mystery. We are never told exactly what it is.

However, it appears to have something to do with prayer. “My Presence” is where God speaks to us directly in prayer. It is where He unfolds His secret will to us, which is why Sarah Young writes from a first-person perspective.

I have written from the perspective of Jesus speaking, to help readers feel more personally connected with Him. So the first person singular (“I,” “Me,” “My,” “Mine”) always refers to Christ; “you” refers to you, the reader.39

So, to take a few examples of this first-person correspondence, on March 19, Jesus says to us:

I speak to you from the depths of your being. Hear Me saying soothing words of Peace, assuring you of My love . . . I want to inhabit all your moments – gracing your thoughts, words, and behavior.40

While we are not told specifically what the soothing words of Peace or the assurance of love are, we are told where they occur. They occur in “the depths of our being.” They occur in our soul.

On June 20, Jesus says again:

I speak to you continually. My nature is to communicate, though not always in words. I fling glorious sunsets across the sky, day after day after day. I speak in the faces and voices of loved ones. I caress you with a gentle breeze that refreshes and delights you. I speak softly in the depths of your spirit, where I have taken up residence.41

This communication occurs in our “spirit.” Jesus does all of these wonderful things from within the depths of our souls.

He also makes His thoughts “burst freely upon your consciousness, stimulating abundant Life.”42 He puts “My thoughts into your mind.”43 “As you sit quietly in [His] Presence, [He fills] your heart and mind with thankfulness.”44 But that is the crux of the book: Jesus speaks to our souls. He talks to us on the inside. He did that for Sarah Young and now He does that for us.

All we have to do is remain silent as the entry on December 24 tells us:

I speak to you from the depths of eternity. Before the world was formed, I am! You hear Me in the depths of your being, where I have taken up residence . . . Learn to tune in to My living Presence by seeking Me in silence.45

Or as March 28 puts it:

To increase your intimacy with Me, the two traits you need the most are receptivity and attentiveness. Receptivity is opening up your innermost being to be filled with My abundant riches. Attentiveness is directing your gaze to Me, searching for Me in all your moments . . .46

So to receive Jesus’ Presence, we must be silent and wait for, well, Jesus’ Presence. To get it, we have to wait for it.

However, there is more that we can do. According to Sarah Young, we can also pray in God’s name. When we are afraid of displeasing people or find ourselves in a tight spot,47 we can pray “Help me, Holy Spirit”48 or “Jesus, help me!”49 and He will answer. He will not leave us high and dry. If we just say those words, He will respond as July 12 says:

When you trustingly whisper My Name, My aching ears are soothed . . . The power of My name to bless both you and Me is beyond your understanding.50

We can also remain positive,51 thankful,52 and like what we see in the mirror.53 We can find our true selves54 and realize that we are worthy of His Love.55 We can feel our faces tingle as we “bask in [His] Love-Light.”56

But it all goes back to My Presence. That is what the book is all about. In the words of one reviewer:

In terms of content, the message [of Jesus Calling] is reducible to one point: Trust me more in daily dependence and you’ll enjoy my presence.57

Or as the book’s publisher put it in an extended summary:

After many years of writing her own words in her prayer journal, missionary Sarah Young decided to be more attentive to the Savior’s voice and begin listening for what He was saying . . . In these powerful pages are the words and Scriptures Jesus lovingly laid on her heart. Words of reassurance, comfort, and hope.  Words that have made her increasingly aware of His presence.

Jesus is calling out to you in the same way. Maybe you share the author’s need for a great sense of “God with you.” Or perhaps Jesus seems distant without you knowing why. Or maybe you have wandered farther from Him that you ever imagined you would. Here is a year’s worth of daily readings from Young’s journals to bring you closer to Christ and move your time with Him from monologue to a dialogue.

Each day is written as if Jesus Himself were speaking to you. Because He is. Do you hear Him calling?58

That is the book in a nutshell. It is Jesus calling to us through the missionary Sarah Young. It is her how-to-manual for knowing Christ. It is a day-by-day, step-by-step guide to feeling and enjoying and experiencing God’s Presence.

Which brings us to the next section of this Book Review.

Evaluation of Content.

Is Jesus really calling to us? Do we really experience God’s Presence in this book?

While we cannot get to everything in this review, it would be the topic of experiencing God’s presence.

First, we need to applaud Sarah Young for discussing the presence of God. Christians everywhere seem to be interested in getting closer to God and Jesus Calling definitely scratches the itch. Young should be commended for acknowledging that and addressing it.

She also writes in a very compassionate style. As she discusses Jesus, she does so with a caring heart. Here are some examples:

When anxiety attempts to wedge its way into your thoughts, remind yourself that I am your Shepherd. The bottom line is that I am taking care of you; therefore, you needn’t be afraid of anything.59

In a world of unrelenting changes, I am the One who never changes. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Find in Me the stability for which you have yearned . . . In My Presence you can face uncertainty with perfect Peace.60

But the negative aspects of Jesus Calling far outweigh the positives, and the greatest negative is that Sarah Young claims to speak for God. She claims to speak with the same authority and power and supremacy that God Himself has. In a quotation that was alluded to earlier, she says:

The Bible is the only infallible, inerrant Word of God, and I endeavor to keep my writings consistent with that unchanging standard. I have written from the perspective of Jesus speaking, to help readers feel more personally connected with Him. So the first person singular (“I,” “Me,” “My,” “Mine”) always refers to Christ.61

The Bible is the only infallible, inerrant Word of God. Young was totally right in that statement but she missed the significance of it. The Bible is the only infallible, inerrant Word of God. There is no other Word. The impressions and feelings you get when journaling do not take the place of Scripture, and they should not be written “from the perspective of Jesus.”

In the Old Testament, when a prophet spoke falsely, he was stoned.62 In the New Testament, when he taught error, he was thrown out of the church.63 In other words, it was a big deal to speak for God. You could not make up whatever you wanted to and say, “God told me.” There were consequences for that. Serious consequences. And there have been serious consequences in recent history. Just consider what some of these cult leaders have said.

Joseph Smith (founder of the Mormons):

Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? . . . Behold, I say unto you that they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God . . . and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.64

Marry Baker Eddy (founder of Christian Science):

I would blush to think of Science and Health and Key to the Scripture as I have were it of human origin and were I apart from God its author. I was only a scribe.65

The Watchtower Magazine (Official Magazine of The Jehovah’s Witness):

The Watchtower [the official magazine of the JW’s] is a magazine without equal on earth, because God is the author.66

An article on David Berg, the founder of the Children of God:

Berg, who is said to have several concubines, insists that his letters are “God’s Word for Today” and have supplanted the biblical Scriptures (God’s Word for yesterday).67

Every cult leader claimed to speak for God. All of them said that Jesus called them and they “listened” with pen in hand.

This is not to say that everything in Jesus Calling is cultic but it is to say that it is written from a cultic premise. Sarah Young says that this is “God’s Word for today.” She claims that “God is the author” of her book. She says that she was only a scribe, just like Joseph Smith and Mary Baker Eddy and the Jehovah’s Witnesses and David Berg.

On December 4, she says:

As you spend time in My Presence, My thoughts gradually form in your mind. My Spirit is the Director of this process. Sometimes He brings Bible verses to mind. Sometimes He enables you to hear Me “speak” directly to you.68

So then God has not said all He wanted to say in Scripture.69 Sometimes He brings Scripture to our minds but sometimes He “speaks” directly to us. The Bible is the Word of God but so is the Presence. The Almighty Presence. The Divine Presence.70 This is far from what the Bible says about itself. Second Timothy 3:16-17 says:

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Which leads to another concern with the book. What is the presence? What is that phrase referring to?

In the Bible, God’s Presence was compassionate, as Young portrays,71 but it was also terrifying. No one came into the Presence of God without trembling. For instance, when the Prophet Isaiah came into it, he said:

Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.72

The Prophet Daniel said the same thing:

So I was left alone and saw this great vision; yet no strength was left in me, for my natural color turned to a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength.73

Ezekiel fell on his face.74 John “fell at His feet like a dead man.”75

But none of this is mentioned in Jesus Calling. Instead, we are told about finding our true center76 and fulfilling our deepest longings.77 The book talks about turning dreams into reality78 and learning to laugh.79 It encourages us to listen to God’s love song80 and to feel His love light81 and to follow in His love steps,82 but it never talks about trembling in the Presence of God.

In fact, the word “sin” is never mentioned in the book83 and neither is the concept of holiness.84 God’s presence is holy and you cannot come into it with sin, and yet this 386 page book leaves all of that out.

So that raises the question: what kind of “Presence” are we talking about here? There is more than one kind of spiritual presence, after all. The Devil has a presence, too. So do the demons. And so does indigestion, as Gary Friesen writes:

Impressions could be produced by any number of sources: God, Satan, an angel, a demon, human emotions, hormonal imbalance, insomnia, medication, or an upset stomach . . . One encounters a quagmire of uncertainty [when dealing with impressions].85

So how do we know if Jesus is really calling to us here? How do we know that He is speaking through this book?

Biblical Accuracy.

If Jesus was speaking in Jesus Calling, then the book would agree with Scripture. And, in some places, it does. On January 30, it says:

Worship Me only. Whatever occupies your mind the most becomes your god.86

That is exactly right because Deuteronomy 5:7-9 tells us:

You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol . . . for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.

This is the essence of true worship: you worship what you think about. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”87 Jesus Calling gets that right.

The book does that again when it says on February 17:

I am the Risen One who shines upon you always. You worship a living Deity, not some idolatrous, man-made image. Your relationship with Me is meant to be vibrant and challenging, as I invade more and more areas of your life.88

That agrees with Psalm 42:2:

My soul thirsts for God, the living God.

And Mark 12:30:

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.

And Second Timothy 2:28:

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel.

Jesus is risen and He expects us to acknowledge it. He wants to invade more and more of lives. He wants our relationship with Him to be vibrant and challenging. He wants to be our King.

There are other examples of Biblical Accuracy in this book. Jesus Calling says that God hates grumbling,89 gives us peace,90 and provides for all of our needs.91 It rightly acknowledges that He makes no mistakes,92 His grace is sufficient,93 and apart from Him, we can do nothing.94

But that is about where the accuracy stops. In fact, Jesus Calling misses the entire point of the Bible.

The Bible is concerned with the Presence of God, but its main concern is how we get there. How do we approach a holy God? How do sinful people come into His Presence? That is what Scripture wants us to know.

The answer is found in Hebrews 10:19:

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh.

It is also found in Hebrews 10:11-12:

Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God . . .

We see it again in Hebrews 12:2:

Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

First Peter 3:18 also says:

For Christ died for sins, once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous to bring you to God.

In Old Testament times, you could not walk straight into the Presence of God. You had to go through a priest who had to go through a temple and then through sacrifices. He would take an animal, cut its throat, and take the blood into the holy place to atone for your sin.

Until Jesus came.

The author of Hebrews says that, when Jesus came, He took the place of the animal and He took the place of the priest. He brought us into the holy place Himself. His death satisfied God’s anger towards sin, and His resurrection offers new life to whoever believes in Him.

That brings us into God’s presence. That is what it is all about

Therefore, it is shocking that a book that mentions “My Presence” more than 300 times misses this. When it does mention it, it does so almost in passing.95 For instance:

Having sacrificed My life for you, I can be trusted in every facet of your life.96

I died to set you free, and that includes freedom from compulsive planning.97

Jesus did sacrifice His life for us, but trustworthiness was not the point.98 The point was to pay for sin. The point was to deliver us from evil. And Jesus did free us but not from compulsive planning. He freed us from sin. He freed us from Hell. Jesus Calling seems to miss the significance of that.

The most disturbing example of this is probably found on April 21:

I risked all by granting you freedom to think for yourself. This is godlike privilege, forever setting you apart from animals and robots. I made you in My image, precariously close to deity. Though My blood has fully redeemed you, your mind is the last bastion of rebellion. Open yourself to My radiant Presence, letting My Light permeate your thinking.99

This is elaborated on later in the entry from December 11:

Talk with Me about everything, letting the Light of My Presence shine on your hopes and plans. Spend time allowing My Light to infuse your dreams with life, gradually transforming them into reality. This is a very practical way of collaborating with Me. I, the Creator of the universe, have deigned to cocreate with you.100

In other words, God risked everything so we could have free will, and He wants to cocreate with us. His blood redeemed us so we could be close to deity and help Him create the future. Not in an artistic sense but in a literal sense: “allowing My Light to infuse your dreams with life.”

This is known as Word of Faith theology, which teaches that Christians can access the power of God through speech.101 That, if we just pray in Jesus’ name, God will do whatever we want. This is not what the Bible teaches. As John MacArthur writes:

In Word Faith religion, the believer uses God, whereas the truth of biblical Christianity is just the opposite: God uses the believer. Word Faith theology sees the Holy Spirit as a power to be put to use for whatever the believer wills. The Bible teachers, however, that the Holy Spirit is a Person who enables the believer to do God’s will. Many Word Faith teachers claim that Jesus was born again so that we might become little gods. Scripture, however, teaches that Jesus is God, and it is we who must be born again.102

The Scriptures do not teach that man creates the future. They teach that God alone creates the future.

Isaiah 29:16 says:

You turn things around! Shall the potter be considered as equal with the clay?

Isaiah 46:9-10 says:

Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me,  Declaring the end from the beginning,

Daniel 4:35 says:

All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’

Romans 9:19-21 says:

You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use?

But all of this is to say that Sarah Young has an unbiblical understanding of salvation. She has an unbiblical understanding of God.

While she mentions the cross,103 she never ties it into the main theme of her book: “My Presence.” We cannot come into God’s presence if it were not for the cross. We cannot have peace with God if it were not for the cross. We would go to Hell for all eternity if it were not for the cross.

So whoever was saying this to Sarah Young, it could not have been Jesus. Jesus would not have missed all of this. He might not have talked about it every day, but He would have talked about it. He certainly would have mentioned it once in a bestselling devotional.

Consistency.

So who is “My Presence?” Who was talking to Sarah Young in this book?

There are not too many options to pick from because there are only two spiritual forces in the world: God and the Devil, and God only speaks truth.104 “My Presence” must have been a Satanic presence.

That sounds harsh, but Satan loves to mix lies with the truth. He always has. When he tempted Eve in the Garden, he twisted God’s Word to ask:

Indeed, has God said, “You shall not eat from any tree of the garden?”105

When he tempted Jesus, he did the same thing. He quoted Scripture three different times, each time distorting the meaning.106

Jesus Calling does that. When Sarah Young sticks to Scripture, she speaks the truth. But, when she writes about “My Presence,” she misinterprets it. This is seen not only from a biblical perspective but from a logical one as well. There are numerous statements in Jesus Calling that do not make sense. For instance, on February 20, she writes:

The external world is always in flux – under the curse of death and decay. But there is a gold mine of Peace deep within you, waiting to be tapped . . . I want you to live increasingly from your real Center.107

Yet two days later, on February 22, she says:

Your neediness, properly handled, is a link to My Presence. However, there are pitfalls that you must be on guard against: self-pity, self-preoccupation, giving up.108

So which one is it? Should we be self-preoccupied or not? Should we look to the gold mine deep within us or should we avoid it?

The same confusion occurs on April 7:

On some days your will and Mine flow smoothly together . . . On other days you feel as if you are swimming upstream, against the current of My purposes. When that happens, stop and seek My face. The opposition you feel may be from Me, or it may be from evil one.109

What does that mean? When is the opposition from Me and when is it from the evil one? How do we know if we are swimming against His purposes?

One more example is found on December 30:

The closer to Me you grow, the more fully you become your true self – the one I designed you to be . . . Marvel at the beauty of a life intertwined with My Presence. Rejoice as we journey together in intimate communion. Enjoy the adventure of finding yourself through losing yourself in Me.110

How do we find our self and lose our self at the same time?111 How do we intertwine our presence with “My Presence?”

Jesus Calling is full of these kinds of statements. It is a very confusing book. Therefore, it did not come from God. “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.”112 God wants you to know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. He does not want you to read it mixed with lies.

Scholarship.

Sarah Young’s education is philosophical and psychological. In her biography, the publisher says:

Sarah has a degree in philosophy from Wellesley and holds graduate degrees in counseling from Tufts, Covenant Seminary, and Georgia State.113

Covenant Seminary is a Christian institution, but all of the other schools are secular. So most of her training is worldly, which is not a bad thing unless it influences her ideas about Christianity. And it does.

Numerous times Young refers to psychological terms such as positive thinking,114 performance anxiety,115 consciousness,116 and abandonment117 without clarifying them. She never explains whether performance anxiety refers to sin or to a mental disorder. She never tells the reader whether consciousness refers to the soul or to the Freudian ego. Her worldly training influences every page of this book.

CONCLUSION

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be close to God. Every Christian should want that. Neither is there anything wrong with seeking “My Presence.” Every child of God should long to live and move and breathe in His presence.118

But we need to make sure it is God’s presence we are seeking and not someone else’s. We need to make sure it is God we are drawing close to and not some false prophet. Sarah Young’s book would not be so dangerous if she did not claim to speak for God, but she does. So the following passages apply to her.

Matthew 7:15:

Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

Jesus says that false prophets will look like sheep. They will sell millions of books. They will have their own websites. They will amass huge crowds on Facebook.

Matthew 24:4-5:

See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, “I am the ^‘Christ,’” and will mislead many.

Sarah Young does not claim, “I am the Christ,” but she claims to speak for the Christ. That is the same thing.

First John 4:1 says:

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Jesus Calling needs to be tested to see if it is from God and, when it is tested by the light of Scripture, it fails. Like the popular books on Heaven, it has more to do with Gnosticism than it does with Scripture. It relishes in its secrets and hidden knowledge. Just consider how it compares to the Gnostic Credentials that we looked at earlier:

Everything is true (Bewildering Diversity) – while the book does not claim that everything is true, it is bewilderingly diverse.

You must know yourself (more than Scripture) – the book makes references to Scripture119 but it spends more time focusing on knowing yourself120 and finding yourself.121

The kingdom of God is inside of you – On July 20, it says: “I made you in My image, and I hid heaven in your heart.”122

Christ is our twin brother – fortunately Jesus Calling leaves this one alone.

God is unknowable and impersonal – this may be the closest parallel to Gnosticism in the book. While attempting to make God known, it fails. “My Presence” is mentioned over and over and over again but it is never defined. It is a great mystery. A big secret.

Like Gnosticism.

You do not need secrets to get closer to God. God has given you everything you need to do that.123 His Word has equipped you for every good work.124 You do not need to go beyond what is written.125 All of the answers that you need are found in the Bible.

Therefore, obey its teachings. Follow its commands. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and turn away from your sins. Pray. Worship. Fellowship. Evangelize. Serve in a sound, Bible-believing church. And God will bring you into His presence.

Do not look for secrets.

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law.126

 

1. G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (New York: T & T Clark, 2001 ed.) 94. Gnosis refers to “a seeking to know, an inquiry, investigation, knowledge.” [↩]
2. A. M. Renwick in The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Volume Two (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982) 486. [↩]
3. Peter Jones, The Gnostic Empire Strikes Back (Philipsburg, N. J.: P & R Publishing, 1992) 19-30. [↩]
4. Those books are Heaven is for Real (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 2010); To Heaven and Back (Crawfordsville, Ind.: Random House, 2012); The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven (Carol Stream, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 2010); 90 Minutes in Heaven (Ada, Mich.: Revell Publishing, 2007). In the words of John MacArthur: “Given the relatively high number of multimillion best sellers in the genre, these books no doubt already constitute the single most financially lucrative nonfiction category in the history of evangelical publishing” (John MacAthur, The Glory of Heaven (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 2013, ed.) 35). [↩]
5. The front cover of the book claims that it sold over 8 million copies. [↩]
6. The movie was produced by T. D. Jakes. For more information, see www.tdjakes.com. [↩]
7. Heaven is for Real, 84. [↩]
8. “‘Boy Who Came Back from Heaven’ Actually Didn’t; Books Recalled” by Ron Charles, January 16, 2015 at www.washingtonpost.com. [↩]
9. The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven, 186. [↩]
10. Ibid., 187. [↩]
11. In Ron Charles’ article in the Washington Post, he quotes Alex as saying: “I did not die. I did not go to Heaven . . . Please forgive the brevity, but because of my limitations I have to keep this short. … I said I went to heaven because I thought it would get me attention. When I made the claims that I did, I had never read the Bible. People have profited from lies, and continue to. They should read the Bible, which is enough. The Bible is the only source of truth. Anything written by man cannot be infallible.” Because of this, the publisher has taken the book out of print. [↩]
12. An example of this would be Jack Hayford & S. David Moore’s The Charismatic Century: The Enduring Impact of the Asuza Street Revival (New York: Warner Faith, 2006). [↩]
13. An example of this would be Jack Deere’s Surprised by the Voice of God (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996). [↩]
14. Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 2004). [↩]
15. This information is taken from Jesus Calling, 386. [↩]
16. “Sarah Young Still Hears Jesus Calling” by Melissa Steffan, October 1, 2013 at www.christianitytoday.com. [↩]
17. Jesus Today: Experience Hope through His Presence (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 2012). This book won the 2013 EPCA Book of the Year Award. [↩]
18. Jesus Lives: Seeing His Love in Your Life (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 2012). [↩]
19. Dear Jesus: Seeking His Light in Your Life (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 2007). [↩]
20. Experiencing God’s Presence (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 2015). [↩]
21. Jesus Calling, 385. [↩]
22. More information about the radio devotional can be found on the website: www.jesuscalling.com. [↩]
23. Jesus Calling, xi, 385. [↩]
24. This information is taken from pages ix-xii of the introduction and page 386 of Jesus Calling. [↩]
25. Ibid., xii. [↩]
26. Jesus Calling, xiii. [↩]
27. Ibid., 259. [↩]
28. Ibid., 292. [↩]
29. Ibid., 328. [↩]
30. Ibid., 332. [↩]
31. Ibid., 294. [↩]
32. Ibid., 146. [↩]
33. Ibid., 193. [↩]
34. Ibid., 212. [↩]
35. Ibid., 76, 228. [↩]
36. Ibid., 269. [↩]
37. Ibid., 219, 221, 234. [↩]
38. Ibid., 75. [↩]
39. Ibid., xiv. [↩]
40. Ibid., 82. [↩]
41. Ibid., 179. [↩]
42. Ibid., 189. [↩]
43. Ibid., 258. [↩]
44. Ibid., 342. [↩]
45. Ibid., 375. [↩]
46. Ibid., 91. [↩]
47. Ibid., 129. [↩]
48. Ibid., 226. [↩]
49. Ibid., 354. [↩]
50. Ibid., 203. [↩]
51. Ibid., 45. [↩]
52. Ibid., 111, 124. [↩]
53. Ibid., 204. [↩]
54. Ibid., 381. [↩]
55. Ibid. [↩]
56. Ibid., 262. [↩]
57. “Review of Jesus Calling” by Michael Horton, March 5, 2013 at www.whitehorseinn.org. [↩]
58. “Jesus Calling,” at www.thomasnelson.com. [↩]
59. Jesus Calling, 48. [↩]
60. Ibid., 153. [↩]
61. Ibid., xiv. [↩]
62. Deut 18:20-22. [↩]
63. Rom 16:17; 1 Tim 1:18-10; 2 John 7-11. [↩]
64. The Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1950) Alma 5:45-46. [↩]
65. Mary Baker Eddy, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany (Boston, Mass: n. p., 1941) 115. [↩]
66. The Watchtower Magazine, April 15, 1942, p. 127. [↩]
67. Christianity Today, February 18, 1977, p. 18. [↩]
68. Jesus Calling, 385. [↩]
69. This flies directly in the face of Jude 1:3, which refers to the “faith once for all handed down to the saints.” The faith has been once for all handed down to the saints. It is not continually being handed down. This also contradicts Revelation 22:18-19: “I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.” [↩]
70. Jesus Calling, 211. It is not a stretch to say that Sarah Young considers this a divine presence. On July 20, she writes: “Do not feel guilty about taking time to be still in My Presence. You are simply responding to the tugs of divinity within you.” [↩]
71. Psalm 16:11 says: “You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy.” Psalm 95:2 says: “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.” [↩]
72. Is 6:5. [↩]
73. Dan 10:8. [↩]
74. Ez 1:28. [↩]
75. Rev 1:17. [↩]
76. Jesus Calling, 53. [↩]
77. Ibid., 259. [↩]
78. Ibid., 362. [↩]
79. Ibid., 176. [↩]
80. Ibid., 78, 170, 173. [↩]
81. Ibid., 168. [↩]
82. Ibid., 284. [↩]
83. At least, I could not find a reference to it. [↩]
84. In all fairness to Sarah Young, there are some references to “repentance” but they are all related to issues like excessive planning (Ibid., 119) and not feeling loved (Ibid., 277), never to sin. [↩]
85. Decision Making and the Will of God (Sisters, Ore.: Multnomah, 1980) 130-131. [↩]
86. Jesus Calling, 31. [↩]
87. Matt 6:21. [↩]
88. Jesus Calling, 50. [↩]
89. Ibid., 88. [↩]
90. Ibid., 370. [↩]
91. Ibid., 132. [↩]
92. Ibid., 137. [↩]
93. Ibid., 207. [↩]
94. Ibid., 261. [↩]
95. “Review of Jesus Calling” by Michael Horton, March 5, 2013 at www.whitehorseinn.org. Michael Horton picks up on this when he writes: “In short, the gospel is taken for granted. When exhortations to trust are separated from a clear proclamation of who Christ is, what he has done, and why he is therefore trustworthy, trust simply becomes a work—something that I need to work up within myself.” [↩]
96. Jesus Calling, 105. [↩]
97. Ibid., 117. [↩]
98. This is not to say that trustworthiness is not a side-result of the cross. It is just to say that it is not the main point of the cross. [↩]
99. Jesus Calling, 116. [↩]
100. Ibid., 362. [↩]
101. This is also known as “Word Faith” theology. See John MacArthur quote below. [↩]
102. Charismatic Chaos (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992) 325. [↩]
103. There are a few other times when Jesus Calling mentions the cross. July 3 says: “My children make a pastime of judging one another – and themselves. But I am the only capable Judge, and I have acquitted you through My own blood. Your acquittal came at the price of My unparalleled sacrifice. That is why I am highly offended when I hear My children judge one another or indulge in self-hatred” (Ibid., 194). August 9 says: “Wear My robe of righteousness with ease. I custom-made it for you, to cover you from head to toe. The price I paid for this covering was astronomical – My own blood. You could never purchase such a royal garment, no matter how hard you worked. Sometimes you forget that My righteousness is a gift, and you feel ill at ease in your regal robe. I weep when I see you squirming under the velvety fabric, as if it were made of scratchy sackcloth” (Ibid., 232). That provides a little more information about what Jesus came to do but it still falls woefully short. Jesus died to acquit us from sin but there is no appeal here to acknowledge that. There is no encouragement to see ourselves as sinners and Christ as our substitute. We are only encouraged to avoid judging each other. Yes, we are covered in the righteousness of Christ, but whether the robe is scratchy or not is irrelevant. What is relevant is whether we are trusting in Him alone for salvation. [↩]
104. John 17:17 says: “Sanctify them in the truth; Your Word is truth.” [↩]
105. Gen 3:1. [↩]
106. Satan quotes from three Old Testament Scriptures in the temptation of Jesus: Deuteronomy 8:3, Psalm 91:11-12, and Deuteronomy 6:16. Each time he takes them horribly out of context. For more on this, see Matthew 4:1-11 and Luke 4:1-13. [↩]
107. Jesus Calling, 53. [↩]
108. Ibid., 55. [↩]
109. Ibid., 102. [↩]
110. Ibid., 381. [↩]
111. To be fair, Jesus said in Luke 9:24, “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.” But He said that in regards to salvation. If that is how Sarah Young uses it in the above-mentioned quote, she is not very clear about it. [↩]
112. 1 Cor 14:33. [↩]
113. Jesus Calling, 386. [↩]
114. Ibid., 45, 101, 138. [↩]
115. Ibid., 114, 210, 339. [↩]
116. Ibid., 71, 129, 143, 189, 220. [↩]
117. Ibid., 224. [↩]
118. Acts 17:28 says: “For in Him we live and move and exist.” [↩]
119. There are Bible passages on almost every page of Jesus Calling but they are almost never referred to, and they often do not relate to the topic at hand. [↩]
120. Jesus Calling, 381. Young refers to it as “finding” ourselves. [↩]
121. Ibid., 381. [↩]
122. Ibid., 211. [↩]
123. 2 Pet 1:3. [↩]
124. 2 Tim 3:16-17. [↩]
125. 1 Cor 4:6. [↩]
126. Deut 29:29. [↩]