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Judge Not: How A Lack of Discernment Led to Drunken Pastors, Peanut Butter Armpits, & the Fall of A Nation
The church has gone to the wolves.
• The blasphemously named “Holy Ghost Bartender” encourages people to get “drunk in the Spirit” and fall down laughing maniacally.
• A megachurch youth pastor puts peanut butter in his armpits and has his youth group lick it out.
• A celebrity pastor spends twenty-four hours in a bed, with his wife, on the roof of the church, in an effort to encourage his flock to have sex every day for a month.
This is just the tip of the insanity iceberg known as Evangelicalism. A famine of biblical discernment has led to skinny sheep, fat goats, and a compromised Christian witness.
While there are great, godly men who boldly and biblically shepherd their flocks, the majority of evangelical churches have become silly centers. The result? America the beautiful has become America the debauched.
In Judge Not, Todd Friel dares to violate Evangelicalism’s first thou shall not judge. Friel satirically and painfully exposes some of the rot in the underbelly of the contemporary church, and points to a solution to help rescue the church, save souls, and glorify God.
Prepare to potentially be shocked, offended, and inspired to do more than just complain about the state of Evangelicalism. This book will enable you to actually do something to put an end to the chicanery that pervades far too many churches.
It is time to act, before all of our children are consuming peanut butter a la armpit.
• The blasphemously named “Holy Ghost Bartender” encourages people to get “drunk in the Spirit” and fall down laughing maniacally.
• A megachurch youth pastor puts peanut butter in his armpits and has his youth group lick it out.
• A celebrity pastor spends twenty-four hours in a bed, with his wife, on the roof of the church, in an effort to encourage his flock to have sex every day for a month.
This is just the tip of the insanity iceberg known as Evangelicalism. A famine of biblical discernment has led to skinny sheep, fat goats, and a compromised Christian witness.
While there are great, godly men who boldly and biblically shepherd their flocks, the majority of evangelical churches have become silly centers. The result? America the beautiful has become America the debauched.
In Judge Not, Todd Friel dares to violate Evangelicalism’s first thou shall not judge. Friel satirically and painfully exposes some of the rot in the underbelly of the contemporary church, and points to a solution to help rescue the church, save souls, and glorify God.
Prepare to potentially be shocked, offended, and inspired to do more than just complain about the state of Evangelicalism. This book will enable you to actually do something to put an end to the chicanery that pervades far too many churches.
It is time to act, before all of our children are consuming peanut butter a la armpit.
406 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2015
40 people are currently reading
191 people want to read
About the author
Todd Friel
45 books83 followersTodd Friel is an American radio and television host, Christian author, and evangelist.
Friel is the host of Wretched with Todd Friel, a talk radio and television show, broadcast on FamilyNet. Wretched Radio is a daily show broadcast on Sirius Satellite Radio. It was created as a replacement for The Way of the Master Radio, which was also hosted by Friel. In addition to broadcasting, Friel has spoken at churches, festivals, seminars, and youth groups throughout the United States. Friel hosted Talk the Walk on KTIS, then it moved to KKMS in 2001.
Friel is the host of Wretched with Todd Friel, a talk radio and television show, broadcast on FamilyNet. Wretched Radio is a daily show broadcast on Sirius Satellite Radio. It was created as a replacement for The Way of the Master Radio, which was also hosted by Friel. In addition to broadcasting, Friel has spoken at churches, festivals, seminars, and youth groups throughout the United States. Friel hosted Talk the Walk on KTIS, then it moved to KKMS in 2001.
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February 9, 2016
I picked up this book after listening to a speech by the author, and the title sounded interesting to me. Discernment is one of my spiritual gifts, so that aspect of the subtitle caught my eye.
I have mixed feelings about this book, and as I do whenever I have mixed feelings, I like to break it down into the positive and negatives.
Positives
The premise of this book is to basically “call out” the Protestant church in America for some of it’s practices that are not biblical. I think that is fair enough - I think we need more discernment and we need to check questionable practices and theology against Scripture. Unfortunately the modern church has strayed in many areas, sometimes even in direct violation of what the Bible tells us. The author uses specific Bible verses to back up most of his arguments, and I found myself agreeing with a large majority of his concerns. I can’t stress how much I appreciated that he backed up his points with Scripture, because a lot of what he says does step on toes and would be easy to discard if it wasn’t so biblically based. I think sometimes we need a little tough love to get us thinking back on how God has instructed us in his Word, and this book definitely delivers. It gave me much to think about.
Negatives
Though I did agree with most of what the author said, I felt a bit uneasy with the tone he sometimes uses. He starts off with admitting that the book is snarky, and he has a sharp wit. I don’t feel that the "snark" was necessarily excessive, but just a little much for me at times.
Though many of his points were certainly valid, I didn’t agree with all of his criticisms. To give a couple examples, the author has a chapter on why he doesn’t agree with altar calls, and cites some statistics on the percentage of people who respond to an altar call and yet do not change their lives to follow Jesus at all (hint: it’s a large percentage). While it is disturbing how many “false conversions” may happen during altar calls, there are definitely some true conversions as well - and isn’t it worth still putting a call out there in sermons if it results in even one true conversion? I understand his point, but I don’t necessarily agree, and I wouldn’t go so far as to say altar calls are unbiblical (though perhaps we can handle them in a better way).
And just one more example - one chapter points out that the whole “church experience” seems manufactured to give the impression that Christians are always happy, from the cheerful greeters to the worship pastor cheerfully asking how everyone is doing while expecting a positive response. Again, he has a good point - people are often coming to church when things are not perfect in their lives, and we should be more comfortable showing people that everything is not all roses when you become a Christian. We are broken people, just like any non-believer, and our hope is in Christ, not our circumstances. But, really, what are we supposed to do - greet people with a sober expression, or not at all? That is just not a good alternative, and the author didn’t really present one.
Those two examples are on minor issues, and I assure you that he does address much more significant issues in this book (on which I mostly agreed with him), but I did feel that on certain issues he nit-picked too much. He appropriately warns against nit-picking earlier in the book when he talks about addressing the sin of fellow believers, but I felt that same standard wasn’t applied as he was addressing the church as a whole. Again, his points were valid, but not always helpful. He also took certain concepts a little far, in my opinion (see the above paragraphs), and I have little notes throughout where I didn’t always agree with his approach, so if you do read and wonder what I thought about something, please ask me.
The only other two negatives were that I felt that the author’s position could have been made clearer on certain issues (such as the security of our salvation). I could tell that author does believe in our eternal security when we repent and believe in Jesus, but I was paying close attention - a casual reader may find some of his statements confusing if they don’t take the time to become familiar with his terms. I also felt the book really addressed too much - I almost think he should have broken this book down into categories and put them into separate books.
Back To Some Positives
I loved that he suggested in the last chapter that we solve all these problems he addresses by taking a high view of Scripture. I think Christians do not take Scripture, and interpreting Scripture rightly, as seriously as they should, and it’s a problem. I 100% agreed with this chapter. My toes may have been stepped on here and there, but it was rare that I couldn’t see this author’s point, because he does take a high view of Scripture himself.
So to sum this review up - I agreed with probably 90% of what the author said overall, and though I didn’t always love the way he said it, I felt that the points behind his criticisms were valid and something we should be thinking about. I wish he had been more gentle in the way he approached this book, but in all fairness, he did warn that we would probably be offended, and it’s a hard balance to strike between being firm in your convictions but loving in your delivery - I think the author did the best he could at striking that balance while still inserting his entertaining comments. This book made me think, and it’s worth a read, but don’t even attempt this book unless you are in a place where you can take some tough love.
I have mixed feelings about this book, and as I do whenever I have mixed feelings, I like to break it down into the positive and negatives.
Positives
The premise of this book is to basically “call out” the Protestant church in America for some of it’s practices that are not biblical. I think that is fair enough - I think we need more discernment and we need to check questionable practices and theology against Scripture. Unfortunately the modern church has strayed in many areas, sometimes even in direct violation of what the Bible tells us. The author uses specific Bible verses to back up most of his arguments, and I found myself agreeing with a large majority of his concerns. I can’t stress how much I appreciated that he backed up his points with Scripture, because a lot of what he says does step on toes and would be easy to discard if it wasn’t so biblically based. I think sometimes we need a little tough love to get us thinking back on how God has instructed us in his Word, and this book definitely delivers. It gave me much to think about.
Negatives
Though I did agree with most of what the author said, I felt a bit uneasy with the tone he sometimes uses. He starts off with admitting that the book is snarky, and he has a sharp wit. I don’t feel that the "snark" was necessarily excessive, but just a little much for me at times.
Though many of his points were certainly valid, I didn’t agree with all of his criticisms. To give a couple examples, the author has a chapter on why he doesn’t agree with altar calls, and cites some statistics on the percentage of people who respond to an altar call and yet do not change their lives to follow Jesus at all (hint: it’s a large percentage). While it is disturbing how many “false conversions” may happen during altar calls, there are definitely some true conversions as well - and isn’t it worth still putting a call out there in sermons if it results in even one true conversion? I understand his point, but I don’t necessarily agree, and I wouldn’t go so far as to say altar calls are unbiblical (though perhaps we can handle them in a better way).
And just one more example - one chapter points out that the whole “church experience” seems manufactured to give the impression that Christians are always happy, from the cheerful greeters to the worship pastor cheerfully asking how everyone is doing while expecting a positive response. Again, he has a good point - people are often coming to church when things are not perfect in their lives, and we should be more comfortable showing people that everything is not all roses when you become a Christian. We are broken people, just like any non-believer, and our hope is in Christ, not our circumstances. But, really, what are we supposed to do - greet people with a sober expression, or not at all? That is just not a good alternative, and the author didn’t really present one.
Those two examples are on minor issues, and I assure you that he does address much more significant issues in this book (on which I mostly agreed with him), but I did feel that on certain issues he nit-picked too much. He appropriately warns against nit-picking earlier in the book when he talks about addressing the sin of fellow believers, but I felt that same standard wasn’t applied as he was addressing the church as a whole. Again, his points were valid, but not always helpful. He also took certain concepts a little far, in my opinion (see the above paragraphs), and I have little notes throughout where I didn’t always agree with his approach, so if you do read and wonder what I thought about something, please ask me.
The only other two negatives were that I felt that the author’s position could have been made clearer on certain issues (such as the security of our salvation). I could tell that author does believe in our eternal security when we repent and believe in Jesus, but I was paying close attention - a casual reader may find some of his statements confusing if they don’t take the time to become familiar with his terms. I also felt the book really addressed too much - I almost think he should have broken this book down into categories and put them into separate books.
Back To Some Positives
I loved that he suggested in the last chapter that we solve all these problems he addresses by taking a high view of Scripture. I think Christians do not take Scripture, and interpreting Scripture rightly, as seriously as they should, and it’s a problem. I 100% agreed with this chapter. My toes may have been stepped on here and there, but it was rare that I couldn’t see this author’s point, because he does take a high view of Scripture himself.
So to sum this review up - I agreed with probably 90% of what the author said overall, and though I didn’t always love the way he said it, I felt that the points behind his criticisms were valid and something we should be thinking about. I wish he had been more gentle in the way he approached this book, but in all fairness, he did warn that we would probably be offended, and it’s a hard balance to strike between being firm in your convictions but loving in your delivery - I think the author did the best he could at striking that balance while still inserting his entertaining comments. This book made me think, and it’s worth a read, but don’t even attempt this book unless you are in a place where you can take some tough love.
February 9, 2016
Arguably, the most misconstrued axiom in all Christendom is that which is born of Matthew 7:1 which reads, ““Judge not, that you be not judged.” While one might expect an unbeliever to foolishly extricate this verse from its context in order to bludgeon Christians, which happens regularly, one might not expect professing Christians to wield this foolhardy hammer so regularly and zealously against their brethren. Tragically, as the American church has grown increasingly nonsensical and irreverent, Biblical illiteracy has increased in lock-step with the silliness.
Poor exegesis and deceptive teachings have emboldened a breed of Christian who deem growing in intellectual sanctification something to be derided rather than desired (Rom 12:2). Sadly, with this group growing exponentially, destructive error has crept into the church and those espousing the need to “just love on people” often turn out to be the most unloving… to other Christians. It is safe to say that Chris Rosebrough will not soon be running short on material.
See the rest of this review here: http://bit.ly/1PuUBM1
Poor exegesis and deceptive teachings have emboldened a breed of Christian who deem growing in intellectual sanctification something to be derided rather than desired (Rom 12:2). Sadly, with this group growing exponentially, destructive error has crept into the church and those espousing the need to “just love on people” often turn out to be the most unloving… to other Christians. It is safe to say that Chris Rosebrough will not soon be running short on material.
See the rest of this review here: http://bit.ly/1PuUBM1
January 8, 2023
Good book on discernment. Todd Friel has the right amount of satire that shows how ridiculous the seeker sensitive movement is
July 6, 2018
This is s a book by Todd Friel. If you like him, then you'll like this. If you don't, then you won't.
I have been listening to Friel for years on Wretched Radio, so I knew what to expect. I generally like him. I agree with the majority of this book. But sometimes the jokes were just too forced and distracting. The whole book is a series of short points that could have each been a short radio segment or blog post. It's defiantly worth reading and I got a lot out of it, even with the cheesy jokes.
I have been listening to Friel for years on Wretched Radio, so I knew what to expect. I generally like him. I agree with the majority of this book. But sometimes the jokes were just too forced and distracting. The whole book is a series of short points that could have each been a short radio segment or blog post. It's defiantly worth reading and I got a lot out of it, even with the cheesy jokes.
September 14, 2018
I only read about 1/4 of this book. Although I probably agree with many of his points, I just had to put this book down because of its mocking tone. He pretty much makes fun of everyone and everything. Too much complaining. I didn't see this book as beneficial or uplifting to my faith in Christ.
April 12, 2024
Todd Friel does an excellent job of examining how evangelicals have essentially fumbled the salvation of the lost in America. I would consider this book a must-read for Christians. Friel is fair and accurate in his assessment of the state of the American Church and its shortcomings. We truly have fallen so far off the mark; it would be funny if it wasn’t so tragic.
In the final twenty pages of the book, I personally think Friel goes a little off the rails with some of his beliefs. Fortunately, they aren’t fundamentals of the Christian Faith, but his stance on several tertiary and cultural issues is in accordance with his Baptist denomination. I’m nondenominational, and have different stances than he does, but we certainly are able to lovingly disagree. He speaks with authority throughout the book to great effect and makes powerful, compelling points; his authoritative voice is unswayed in these final twenty pages as well, but he speaks with the the same authority on the final issues which, in my opinion, he isn’t actually inclined to speak for others on.
Despite the last twenty pages of this book and my disagreements with his stances, this is still a five-star read. I frequently reference this book and will continue to do so in the future. We must judge righteously and use our discernment to win souls for Christ.
In the final twenty pages of the book, I personally think Friel goes a little off the rails with some of his beliefs. Fortunately, they aren’t fundamentals of the Christian Faith, but his stance on several tertiary and cultural issues is in accordance with his Baptist denomination. I’m nondenominational, and have different stances than he does, but we certainly are able to lovingly disagree. He speaks with authority throughout the book to great effect and makes powerful, compelling points; his authoritative voice is unswayed in these final twenty pages as well, but he speaks with the the same authority on the final issues which, in my opinion, he isn’t actually inclined to speak for others on.
Despite the last twenty pages of this book and my disagreements with his stances, this is still a five-star read. I frequently reference this book and will continue to do so in the future. We must judge righteously and use our discernment to win souls for Christ.
June 6, 2021
Todd Friel serves up one massive spiritual smackdown in this book, and it is nothing short of excellent. Told from a satirical, highly intellectual and tongue-in-cheek humorous perspective, each chapter focuses on an element of modern Christianity (specifically the church) that doesn't pass muster when it comes to theology. An in-depth debunking of spiritual mythology ensues, and Friel fries everything from false conversion to illegal immigration. Nothing is off the table in this book, and a few chapters actually made me squirm a little (which is good - we need to be made uncomfortable sometimes to see truth). Friel is someone my husband has been listening to for a long time (Wretched Radio), but I was new to his material. Since I'm on a never-ending apologetics rabbit trail (because the know you more about God's word, the more you can't stop yourself from wanting to continually learn more), I grabbed this one based on its title alone.
We are told endlessly not to judge, but in this book, Friel lays out the context of what Biblical judgement actually IS and ISN'T, and why judgement is necessary to the modern church. Because without it, we have ended up with exactly what he lays out...kids licking peanut butter out of youth pastors' armpits and the Eastern mysticism of off-color churches like Bethel or pastors like Rick Warren.
I will say that I don't 100% agree with Friel on every tiny detail, but I would say that 99% of his stuff is dead on. Even so, my disagreement with him would be so tertiary that it's not even worth mentioning. Rather, I just felt that while he was smacking down all the things churches shouldn't do, there wasn't a full fleshing out of all sides of the argument in a couple of the chapters (the one about America, for example, or illegal immigration was mostly spot on, but with a little more context about the situations behind each scenario, there could be several more arguments made). Again, though, these are tertiary issues, nitpicking. I LOVED his discussion on foreign mission trips and the like. I have long said that churches are wasting their resources on missions trips that costs thousands of dollars (where the gospel can be an afterthought compared to the travel experience), when there is a mission field right HERE. Bloom where you're planted takes on a whole new meaning when you realize that you don't have to fly to Thailand and build houses to spread the gospel. You can do it anywhere, anytime. I love that he takes the time to unpack this topic.
Todd Friel is an exceptionally gifted writer and speaker, and it is clear that he has been blessed with discernment. If everyone in America read this book with an open mind, it would change the course of history.
We are called to be kind, but we are called to be firm.
We are called to love, but we are called to reprimand, too.
Most importantly, we are called to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, to make disciples, and to repent (this comes first, actually but ya get what I'm saying).
I highly recommend this book, if for no other reason than to get your critical thinking skills kicked into high gear. Once you understand the depth and the clarity of scripture...there is no unknowing. It is the objective standard of everything, and it becomes our duty to look to scripture alone (and therefore God/Jesus) to determine truth, function, theology, and everything else that we face in life.
We are told endlessly not to judge, but in this book, Friel lays out the context of what Biblical judgement actually IS and ISN'T, and why judgement is necessary to the modern church. Because without it, we have ended up with exactly what he lays out...kids licking peanut butter out of youth pastors' armpits and the Eastern mysticism of off-color churches like Bethel or pastors like Rick Warren.
I will say that I don't 100% agree with Friel on every tiny detail, but I would say that 99% of his stuff is dead on. Even so, my disagreement with him would be so tertiary that it's not even worth mentioning. Rather, I just felt that while he was smacking down all the things churches shouldn't do, there wasn't a full fleshing out of all sides of the argument in a couple of the chapters (the one about America, for example, or illegal immigration was mostly spot on, but with a little more context about the situations behind each scenario, there could be several more arguments made). Again, though, these are tertiary issues, nitpicking. I LOVED his discussion on foreign mission trips and the like. I have long said that churches are wasting their resources on missions trips that costs thousands of dollars (where the gospel can be an afterthought compared to the travel experience), when there is a mission field right HERE. Bloom where you're planted takes on a whole new meaning when you realize that you don't have to fly to Thailand and build houses to spread the gospel. You can do it anywhere, anytime. I love that he takes the time to unpack this topic.
Todd Friel is an exceptionally gifted writer and speaker, and it is clear that he has been blessed with discernment. If everyone in America read this book with an open mind, it would change the course of history.
We are called to be kind, but we are called to be firm.
We are called to love, but we are called to reprimand, too.
Most importantly, we are called to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, to make disciples, and to repent (this comes first, actually but ya get what I'm saying).
I highly recommend this book, if for no other reason than to get your critical thinking skills kicked into high gear. Once you understand the depth and the clarity of scripture...there is no unknowing. It is the objective standard of everything, and it becomes our duty to look to scripture alone (and therefore God/Jesus) to determine truth, function, theology, and everything else that we face in life.
September 12, 2019
Todd Friel offers a religious conservative’s take on everything that has gone wrong in the Christian church in recent years inJudge Not. He begins by beating everyone’s favorite (not) dead horse. He points out that many (almost all) Christian churches fell in with the seeker friendly movement and the fact that we hands down know it failed (see Reveal: Where Are You? by Greg L. Hawkins, Cally Parkinson) has in no way changed how we do church. In fact, many have relabeled it as Belong, Believe, Become and gone on to continue with the program. For those unfamiliar with this heresy, I will give a brief explanation. Caught flat footed by the Civil Rights movement, many Christian colleges which had previously discouraged students of color found themselves in danger of losing crucial federal funds. Whiplashing on their previous supportive stance of abortion, protestants created various political Christian groups with the idea of forming a voting block using abortion as the shield for the tax issues, which had failed to interest their congregants in the past. The program was successful but had an unexpected consequence via dropping attendance and a cultural divide which was becoming far more difficult to cross in terms of bringing new members into the fold. The seeker friendly church movement, a program which grew mega-churches in various suburban areas, was formulated to cross that divide. Offering church services which catered to their audience rather than preaching the gospel, this project helped pastors preach sermons based on passages in the bible instead of preaching on the focus of it (Jesus) or going through it book by book and teaching the particulars of it.Because these churches are based on commodities rather than Christ, they are also different based on geography and a host of other factors. In the west, they tend to be a bit more mystical. In the south, it tends to be more God, guns and (old) glory. In the midwest and in affluent suburban areas it’s about how God can work for you (think Robert Schuller) or lots, and lots and lots about how to get along with people in your daily life. Initially enjoying great success with the “feel good” Boomer generation, it created a plethora of problems for believers. You can read all about those in the book by Hawkins mentioned above.
Friel focuses on several of them in his own work. The first involves the numbers - the programming has failed to work with the current generation (you can learn why in the book unChrisitan ) and Friel quotes statistics to show us just how bad the situation is including a 61% loss rate among young adults (attend church as children and teens and leave as adults.)
Friel reminds us that we are to judge those in the church (1 Cor. 5 among other passages) and insists that our failure to do so has resulted in the above statistic. He points to the fact that with the church set up for seekers, the saints have no place to be equipped with the gospel, which quite possibly explains our dropout rates and the abysmal state of discipleship and biblical knowledge among believers. Those looking for depth won’t find it listening to an hour of feel good sermons at a seeker friendly church, he argues, and we need to make our services convicting.
Next, he goes on to critique the heart of some Christian “disciplines.” His argument against short term mission trips is something I’ve heard before but it always bears hearing again. STMT’s do little for the community they seek to aid. They take money that could be spent on the community in need and spend it instead on a plane ticket for an American to feel better about themselves. The language barrier keeps us from truly reaching the people we are meant to be ministering to. Most churches could be built in a third world country and filled with pews and supplies for what STMT members spend on one week in laying the foundation. STMT pull jobs out of the community. Because we live in a foreign country we can’t disciple the people we do reach and by not supporting local missionaries we both pull money from that mission and we offer something very hollow (a field trip of work) in exchange. Not mentioned by Friel but included in the laundry list by others is the fact that it often blinds middle class American’s to the needs in this country. I have heard more than one STMT benefactor speak of how in X third world country everyone is so grateful for everything and they have so much less than the poor here and the poor here are just whiners etc. etc. etc. I am not arguing against supporting missions overseas and neither is Mr. Friel. We should for sure do that - but we should also realize that statistics show it is better to do that through local missions and also realize we have issues here.
The author then offers up one of the great myths of the conservative branch of the seeker friendly movement - America as a Christian nation and the heresy that surrounds the verse 2 Chronicles 7:14 (If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.) which is not about the U.S., no matter what Mike Pence might tell you. This portion of the book would have been a lot more meaningful if the author had denounced the heretics who speak this heresy (something he is quick to do with other heresies) rather than just offering a half-hearted refutation of this outright lie.
He speaks against the culture of Chrisitan celebrity (Is Bebier a believer? Bono?) and rightfully reminds us that this isn’t important. In fact, Mr. Friel spends almost all of the text on the attack.I agree completely about the need to take a more balanced approach to the Jewish roots of our faith, that we should give no truck to the “I spent X minutes in heaven” books, and we need to ditch completely our obsession with the purity ring culture. I don’t know that name calling and vitriolic sarcasm dripping from the page really makes for winsome arguments on these issues, though.
However, Friel’s concern isn’t for Chrisitanity but for the conservative religion that has sprung up in its place in many areas of the U.S. He speaks often of church luminaries and reminds us that Christians watch Fox News (was that covered in Mathew or Mark? My bible seems to be missing those passages. .. ) He tells us Christians should be involved in politics, but our political positions cannot become stumbling blocks to the gospel. To be clear, we should speak loudly about moral evil, but we should do it as Christians, not as political activists. Let the world hate us because we are Christians, not because we are Republicans. The world knows the difference and saying things like Hillary Clinton is guilty of committing the same sin as the Moabites who sacrificed babies to Moloch. She needs to repent. will not hide your Republican roots any more than Hillary Clinton is a typical liberal Democrat who is willing to pay for abortions in order to buy women’s votes. We need to elect a pro-life president. Don’t assume Democrats are dumb - most of them are better educated than Republicans, remember? That’s why Fox loves the term “elite”. This is simply a way of rewording conservative doctrine to give it the veneer of a dietetic blessing, something we are warned against in the very first commandment (yep, those things aren’t just for putting in buildings. They’re meant to be followed. )
The saddest part of this is that the author has a lot of good points, which are lost in his angry rhetoric and defense of putting his politics before his faith (the author would argue he doesn’t do this but believe me, if you are apolitical at all you will recognize instantly that he is conservative first and Christian second.) I’m glad I read this as it clarified my own thinking on some points and encouraged me to research some issues but again, much which could be gained from this is lost in the sarcasm and political ranting.
Friel focuses on several of them in his own work. The first involves the numbers - the programming has failed to work with the current generation (you can learn why in the book unChrisitan ) and Friel quotes statistics to show us just how bad the situation is including a 61% loss rate among young adults (attend church as children and teens and leave as adults.)
Friel reminds us that we are to judge those in the church (1 Cor. 5 among other passages) and insists that our failure to do so has resulted in the above statistic. He points to the fact that with the church set up for seekers, the saints have no place to be equipped with the gospel, which quite possibly explains our dropout rates and the abysmal state of discipleship and biblical knowledge among believers. Those looking for depth won’t find it listening to an hour of feel good sermons at a seeker friendly church, he argues, and we need to make our services convicting.
Next, he goes on to critique the heart of some Christian “disciplines.” His argument against short term mission trips is something I’ve heard before but it always bears hearing again. STMT’s do little for the community they seek to aid. They take money that could be spent on the community in need and spend it instead on a plane ticket for an American to feel better about themselves. The language barrier keeps us from truly reaching the people we are meant to be ministering to. Most churches could be built in a third world country and filled with pews and supplies for what STMT members spend on one week in laying the foundation. STMT pull jobs out of the community. Because we live in a foreign country we can’t disciple the people we do reach and by not supporting local missionaries we both pull money from that mission and we offer something very hollow (a field trip of work) in exchange. Not mentioned by Friel but included in the laundry list by others is the fact that it often blinds middle class American’s to the needs in this country. I have heard more than one STMT benefactor speak of how in X third world country everyone is so grateful for everything and they have so much less than the poor here and the poor here are just whiners etc. etc. etc. I am not arguing against supporting missions overseas and neither is Mr. Friel. We should for sure do that - but we should also realize that statistics show it is better to do that through local missions and also realize we have issues here.
The author then offers up one of the great myths of the conservative branch of the seeker friendly movement - America as a Christian nation and the heresy that surrounds the verse 2 Chronicles 7:14 (If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.) which is not about the U.S., no matter what Mike Pence might tell you. This portion of the book would have been a lot more meaningful if the author had denounced the heretics who speak this heresy (something he is quick to do with other heresies) rather than just offering a half-hearted refutation of this outright lie.
He speaks against the culture of Chrisitan celebrity (Is Bebier a believer? Bono?) and rightfully reminds us that this isn’t important. In fact, Mr. Friel spends almost all of the text on the attack.I agree completely about the need to take a more balanced approach to the Jewish roots of our faith, that we should give no truck to the “I spent X minutes in heaven” books, and we need to ditch completely our obsession with the purity ring culture. I don’t know that name calling and vitriolic sarcasm dripping from the page really makes for winsome arguments on these issues, though.
However, Friel’s concern isn’t for Chrisitanity but for the conservative religion that has sprung up in its place in many areas of the U.S. He speaks often of church luminaries and reminds us that Christians watch Fox News (was that covered in Mathew or Mark? My bible seems to be missing those passages. .. ) He tells us Christians should be involved in politics, but our political positions cannot become stumbling blocks to the gospel. To be clear, we should speak loudly about moral evil, but we should do it as Christians, not as political activists. Let the world hate us because we are Christians, not because we are Republicans. The world knows the difference and saying things like Hillary Clinton is guilty of committing the same sin as the Moabites who sacrificed babies to Moloch. She needs to repent. will not hide your Republican roots any more than Hillary Clinton is a typical liberal Democrat who is willing to pay for abortions in order to buy women’s votes. We need to elect a pro-life president. Don’t assume Democrats are dumb - most of them are better educated than Republicans, remember? That’s why Fox loves the term “elite”. This is simply a way of rewording conservative doctrine to give it the veneer of a dietetic blessing, something we are warned against in the very first commandment (yep, those things aren’t just for putting in buildings. They’re meant to be followed. )
The saddest part of this is that the author has a lot of good points, which are lost in his angry rhetoric and defense of putting his politics before his faith (the author would argue he doesn’t do this but believe me, if you are apolitical at all you will recognize instantly that he is conservative first and Christian second.) I’m glad I read this as it clarified my own thinking on some points and encouraged me to research some issues but again, much which could be gained from this is lost in the sarcasm and political ranting.
July 15, 2019
This book was a quick read for me. If you have never heard Todd Friel I would connect to his Wretched radio podcast and listen to a few (he also has a YouTube channel). When he says that the book will be snarky he is right but if you have listened to him for awhile you will know that he is a very fair discerner.
I can’t say I have much to disagree about in his book. I got the book because of the way the Judge Not verse is such a broken record not just from unbelievers but believers too. The passage taken as a whole is Jesus actually teaching HOW we discern, not telling them not to discern. Friel is good at backing up the arguments with scripture.
He is snarky in spots but if you are familiar with him, it is somewhat expected. I like his approach because my teenagers tune in when they hear that it is Wretched radio playing. They have learned a lot. He addresses the problems in the evangelical world and there are points to be considered in every area. I am thankful that people like Todd Friel are willing to listen to the false teachers and give their warnings. He is good at explaining and that brings out great conversations in my house. We will definitely be having discussions about these topics in our family.
I can’t say I have much to disagree about in his book. I got the book because of the way the Judge Not verse is such a broken record not just from unbelievers but believers too. The passage taken as a whole is Jesus actually teaching HOW we discern, not telling them not to discern. Friel is good at backing up the arguments with scripture.
He is snarky in spots but if you are familiar with him, it is somewhat expected. I like his approach because my teenagers tune in when they hear that it is Wretched radio playing. They have learned a lot. He addresses the problems in the evangelical world and there are points to be considered in every area. I am thankful that people like Todd Friel are willing to listen to the false teachers and give their warnings. He is good at explaining and that brings out great conversations in my house. We will definitely be having discussions about these topics in our family.
February 26, 2016
Good information, but I wish he'd focused a bit more on Matthew 7 and a little less on the laundry list of things he doesn't like within the church.
May 11, 2020
There are a lot of great books of theology out there dealing with the ways modern evangelical culture has gotten away from the Gospel and become a poor witness, but this is definitely not one of them. I only read this book because a friend gave me a copy and recommended it; I cannot do the same for anyone else.
On the plus side, Friel's theology and main point are (mostly) accurate and clear. Nothing about his interpretation of scripture made me shake my head, and each chapter identifies a separate problem he sees along with his recommendations for addressing it - almost all of which are real issues.
That said, even setting aside the snarky tone of the book, there are some hugely worrying things in here. First, for example, is that some of Friel's arguments are straw men. Take the chapter on Messianic Movements. He presents them as something trying to bring otherwise solid christian believers back to their roots and getting lost in enforcing Old Testament law. Maybe those are out there, but for the most part, these organizations are doing exactly the opposite of that. They exist to explain to Jewish people how Christ came to fulfill the Law and free everyone who believes. They honor tradition without being weighed down by it. They are living embodiments of the Book of Hebrews. You can't get more scriptural than that!
Another, bigger, problem is the way Friel's personal worldview seeps through every page. For example, he's very proud of the way he homeschools his own children, and even calls public schools "government indoctrination center[s]" on the second page. This wouldn't be an issue if he were able to recognize where he is departing from scripture and expressing his own opinions and interpretations. Instead, he actually has an entire chapter on putting children in day care and how he believes it to be unbiblical. The woman's place is at home with the kids, he says, and anything else is damaging God's design for the family. Not only is this very much not what scripture says, not only is this running against church history (even the earliest church members watched each other's kids some of the time), but it is a very priveleged stance. Even though he cites a lot of studies showing how children who spend extended time in day care perform better, we have to remember that correlation is not causation. Children who stay in day care longer are often there because they need to be - either because a single parent has to work, or because both do in order to put a roof over the kid's head and food in their mouth - and these same parents tend to not have as much time to help with homework. Despite what he writes, this is typically not a choice. Let me say it clearly: Putting your children in day care is not a sin. Period.
Similarly, this is written with the expectation that you cannot be a christian without being a political conservative. This, we should know by now, is absolutely false. This is especially ironic when Friel included a chapter titled, "Acting More Like Republicans Than Christians". He makes fun of President Obama throughout the book, while proclaiming governments are ordained by God whether or not we always agree with them. He spouts Fox News talking points and conspiracy theories constantly, while explaining the ways we need to befriend our neighbors so we can be good examples and share the gospel with them. In fact, at one point, he even writes, "If you truly are an evangelical, you undoubtedly watch Fox News." Friel makes no attempt to be neutral on his personal stances. A good theologian can make their case from scripture without letting their politics or worldview color their argument - or at least they would offend everyone equally.
I opened the book expecting some funny yet heartbreaking examples of how churches have gone of the rails, along with ways to correct course. Instead I found a list of things the author didn't like, with some legitimate concerns mixed in, delivered with more sneer than snark and accompanied by very few practical antidotes. I recommend you read something else.
On the plus side, Friel's theology and main point are (mostly) accurate and clear. Nothing about his interpretation of scripture made me shake my head, and each chapter identifies a separate problem he sees along with his recommendations for addressing it - almost all of which are real issues.
That said, even setting aside the snarky tone of the book, there are some hugely worrying things in here. First, for example, is that some of Friel's arguments are straw men. Take the chapter on Messianic Movements. He presents them as something trying to bring otherwise solid christian believers back to their roots and getting lost in enforcing Old Testament law. Maybe those are out there, but for the most part, these organizations are doing exactly the opposite of that. They exist to explain to Jewish people how Christ came to fulfill the Law and free everyone who believes. They honor tradition without being weighed down by it. They are living embodiments of the Book of Hebrews. You can't get more scriptural than that!
Another, bigger, problem is the way Friel's personal worldview seeps through every page. For example, he's very proud of the way he homeschools his own children, and even calls public schools "government indoctrination center[s]" on the second page. This wouldn't be an issue if he were able to recognize where he is departing from scripture and expressing his own opinions and interpretations. Instead, he actually has an entire chapter on putting children in day care and how he believes it to be unbiblical. The woman's place is at home with the kids, he says, and anything else is damaging God's design for the family. Not only is this very much not what scripture says, not only is this running against church history (even the earliest church members watched each other's kids some of the time), but it is a very priveleged stance. Even though he cites a lot of studies showing how children who spend extended time in day care perform better, we have to remember that correlation is not causation. Children who stay in day care longer are often there because they need to be - either because a single parent has to work, or because both do in order to put a roof over the kid's head and food in their mouth - and these same parents tend to not have as much time to help with homework. Despite what he writes, this is typically not a choice. Let me say it clearly: Putting your children in day care is not a sin. Period.
Similarly, this is written with the expectation that you cannot be a christian without being a political conservative. This, we should know by now, is absolutely false. This is especially ironic when Friel included a chapter titled, "Acting More Like Republicans Than Christians". He makes fun of President Obama throughout the book, while proclaiming governments are ordained by God whether or not we always agree with them. He spouts Fox News talking points and conspiracy theories constantly, while explaining the ways we need to befriend our neighbors so we can be good examples and share the gospel with them. In fact, at one point, he even writes, "If you truly are an evangelical, you undoubtedly watch Fox News." Friel makes no attempt to be neutral on his personal stances. A good theologian can make their case from scripture without letting their politics or worldview color their argument - or at least they would offend everyone equally.
I opened the book expecting some funny yet heartbreaking examples of how churches have gone of the rails, along with ways to correct course. Instead I found a list of things the author didn't like, with some legitimate concerns mixed in, delivered with more sneer than snark and accompanied by very few practical antidotes. I recommend you read something else.
Read
May 7, 2019Hmmmmmmm.
Okay, I'm forgoing a star rating because it's difficult to rate a book when it's talking about the things wrong within the Church, behaviorally and doctrinally, and what needs to stop. I'm also forgoing the PROS/CONS review system I've been using as of late because, again, it would be difficult and it would basically be a list of things I agreed with and things I didn't.
This is a book that addresses key components to the Church, the Body of Christ. Specifically, how the present-day church is ailing. I didn't agree with everything Mr. Friel wrote. I enjoyed his blunt, snarky style and the way he didn't pull punches when it came to addressing what the Church is doing wrong. I appreciated that he was doing this out of love and concern for his fellow believers, not out of anger and spite.
While I don't agree with him 100%, I do think that believers ought to read this book for no other reason than to examine themselves. We can't fix all 350,000 protestant churches in the USA, but we can change the way we live. We can live in a way that's pleasing to our Lord and in doing so, maybe encourage others to do the same.
Okay, I'm forgoing a star rating because it's difficult to rate a book when it's talking about the things wrong within the Church, behaviorally and doctrinally, and what needs to stop. I'm also forgoing the PROS/CONS review system I've been using as of late because, again, it would be difficult and it would basically be a list of things I agreed with and things I didn't.
This is a book that addresses key components to the Church, the Body of Christ. Specifically, how the present-day church is ailing. I didn't agree with everything Mr. Friel wrote. I enjoyed his blunt, snarky style and the way he didn't pull punches when it came to addressing what the Church is doing wrong. I appreciated that he was doing this out of love and concern for his fellow believers, not out of anger and spite.
While I don't agree with him 100%, I do think that believers ought to read this book for no other reason than to examine themselves. We can't fix all 350,000 protestant churches in the USA, but we can change the way we live. We can live in a way that's pleasing to our Lord and in doing so, maybe encourage others to do the same.
August 23, 2021
Have you ever read a book of over 300 pages and feel like it was just an introduction? That's how I felt about this book (in a positive way). In 40 chapters, Todd lays out 39 issues in churches today (last chapter is dedicated to the solution), and unless you go to an exceptionally good church, your church probably has several of these issues in them. I read the book from start to finish and enjoyed it, and it really gave me things to think about, but it can also be read in individual chapters if there are specific issues in your church you want to read about. As I said, 320 pages for 40 chapters with issues makes it feel like an introduction, and the topics I felt most struck about I would recommend reading further about elsewhere.
I love Todd as author as well, he has a humorous tone which makes this book fun to read, while at the same time discussing very serious topics. I would definitely recommend this book to everyone.
I love Todd as author as well, he has a humorous tone which makes this book fun to read, while at the same time discussing very serious topics. I would definitely recommend this book to everyone.
July 7, 2019
Convicting, Bible centered, eye opening, and holding Christians accountable to the Word of God.
Highly recommend this book for any and all Christians but especially for those in positions of leadership in our churches. Recognize the non -biblical actions that are taking place in our houses of worship. Great motivation to stand on The Word of God and put a stop to the feelings based bubblegum preaching that is not directly sourced from God's Word and change our churches.
Highly recommend this book for any and all Christians but especially for those in positions of leadership in our churches. Recognize the non -biblical actions that are taking place in our houses of worship. Great motivation to stand on The Word of God and put a stop to the feelings based bubblegum preaching that is not directly sourced from God's Word and change our churches.
June 9, 2023
A helpful book on discernment relating to various unbiblical - and sometimes even outrageous - ideas or practices that have become accepted or even the norm in many churches. Written with a healthy dose of humour, but nonetheless serious and challenging in nature. The chapter on the New Apostolic Reformation is a good summary of Todd Friel's documentary "Drunk in the Spirit" which I would also highly recommend if you want to see (rather than read) for yourself what the NAR is all about.
October 9, 2025
This book exemplifies what is wrong with much of contemporary Christianity. Here we see fundamentalist Christianity at its worst—negative, judgmental, and quick to point fingers. I may agree with Friel on several of these issues, but his approach reminds me of the harsh, biting tone Paul uses in Galatians.
March 25, 2017
This book was awesome. Granted I found some of Friel's arguements to be over generalized, but he backs hit generalizations with Scripture and often tradition. This book certainly motivates one to think and search The Word.
July 29, 2017
Great overview of the current challenges faced by christians today due to a lack of discernment and how the church has become more worldly and what we can do to fix it. Highly recommended. Challenging and may change your views on some "Christian" practices in the church today.
October 7, 2022
Fantastic!
Friel called out several issues which I've been griping about for years, called me on the carpet in other areas where I needed challenging, and brought to my attention things I'd never even heard of/considered before!
This is a must-read!
Friel called out several issues which I've been griping about for years, called me on the carpet in other areas where I needed challenging, and brought to my attention things I'd never even heard of/considered before!
This is a must-read!
August 12, 2017
Excellent!
August 30, 2018
Good read!!
May we (read I) be humble to accept the changes required that we may truly represent our loving and gracious Lord.
May we (read I) be humble to accept the changes required that we may truly represent our loving and gracious Lord.
December 20, 2018
Lots of food for thought, and biblical answers. Well done, Mr. Friel!
July 21, 2019
Great book for contemporary church age
September 25, 2021
On Point!
This book was really a very educational read for me! It did a great job explaining the proper Christian worldview in this crazy culture we live in.
This book was really a very educational read for me! It did a great job explaining the proper Christian worldview in this crazy culture we live in.
January 20, 2025
Good book Todd. Sorry it took me so long to finish.
April 23, 2016
I have two concerns about this book: 1) The people who read it, possibly don't really need to and the ones who do need to read it, won't. 2) With those who do read it, there will be some who will counteract the content and say, uniquely enough, "Judge not lest you be judged," which is precisely why the author wrote the book. In his normal straight forward approach, laced with many humorous points, Friel does a masterful job of dealing with six broad categories: 1) Discernment Disasters (which is where he goes after those who misapply the "judge not" verse; 2) Ecclesiastical Calamities (that is where he addresses the problem of peanut butter in the armpits); 3) Theological Train Wrecks (he addresses critical issues that anyone who loves Jesus should really ponder); 4) Wonky Evangelical Movements (this is where many professing believers are going to get bent out of shape); 5) Toxic Threads (Conservative Evangelicals are going to get bent..possibly out of shape at this section); and 6) Bad Attitudes (where he addresses Republicans, those who are disgusted with a certain segment of society, immigration, and Chronological snobs). Lest you think that I stand on the sideline of life and say, "Everyone else needs to read this book, but thank goodness I wasn't confronted," you would be woefully wrong. The last section, in particular, challenged my heart in many respects. I highly recommend this book. It is an easy read with short chapters. It is one resource we'll start to carry in our Resource Center.
June 26, 2016
I very much enjoyed Friel's last book "Jesus Unmasked", probably the best introductory book on seeing Christ in the Old Testament out there. I was excited to see pick up this book as the topics I saw would be ones that could be presented to center the conversation. One not to one extreme or extreme in reaction. And for the most part, this book does do a good job. It covers a lot of material. It covers too much material and the way is presented physically laid out on the page in too much. The topics covered are important but under the one title of the book, not all of them fit. Some chapters are so short they are there to get in and get out and the point is made and onto the next.
There isn't anything that is unsound or unbiblical. Most of the topics I've heard covered on the Wretched Youtube channel. But each chapter feels like one of those 3 minute clips. The book is good, just too much and too brief on the subjects themselves. Final Grade - B-
There isn't anything that is unsound or unbiblical. Most of the topics I've heard covered on the Wretched Youtube channel. But each chapter feels like one of those 3 minute clips. The book is good, just too much and too brief on the subjects themselves. Final Grade - B-
March 8, 2016
A no-holds barred look at modern Christianity and the foolishness the church has embraced. Friel's book answers the question: should Christians judge one another? A bible-based guide teaches the reader how to confront the false gospel message and even false teachers with love and humility. Every church member should read this book.
January 26, 2016
Much needed book
This was a hard book to read at times and filled with scriptural references. I will read it again and make more notes. The church today is guilty of much of what is being presented and so am I . I recommend this book.
This was a hard book to read at times and filled with scriptural references. I will read it again and make more notes. The church today is guilty of much of what is being presented and so am I . I recommend this book.
March 7, 2016
A must read!
Friel takes us to Scripture in effort to expose our subtle drift from Biblical Christianity. Warning: Friel is, by his own admission, snarky and sarcastic at times. I like that, but some might find it helpful to be aware of his approach before reading the book.
Friel takes us to Scripture in effort to expose our subtle drift from Biblical Christianity. Warning: Friel is, by his own admission, snarky and sarcastic at times. I like that, but some might find it helpful to be aware of his approach before reading the book.
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