“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:36 ESV)
For the next several days we are taking a sabbatical from our study of the Gospel of Matthew. Instead, the subject to be studied will be Deconstruction Christianity. Perhaps you have heard this term, or others like it. What is Deconstruction Christianity?
Faith deconstruction, also known as deconstructing faith, evangelical deconstruction, the deconstruction movement, or simply deconstruction, is a Christian phenomenon where people unpack, rethink and examine their belief in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and their involvement in organized religion or the church.
For some, it is rejecting justification by grace alone, through faith alone in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone. For others, this may lead to dropping one’s faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord all together or it may result in an even stronger faith in Christ. The deconstruction movement is broadly defined but generally involves a reexamination, and often a rejection, of the biblical, or religious, doctrines you learned as a child, teenager and young adult.
Deconstruction is “a process of re-examining the faith you grew up with,” explains Tyler Huckabee, in Relevant magazine,
John Stonestreet and Timothy Padgett, co-authors of The Problem of Deconstructing Faith, note that the terminology is used both descriptively (covering everything from the deconversion of Kevin Max, through the soul searching of Derek Webb, to the theological revisions of Jen Hatmaker and Rob Bell), or prescriptively (“recommended, especially to those questioning what they’ve grown up with, as a courageous thing to do”).
“Deconstruction is the process of systemically dissecting and often rejecting the beliefs you grew up with. Sometimes, the Christian will deconstruct all the way to atheism. Some remain there, but others experience a reconstruction. But the type of faith they end up with embracing almost never resembles the Christianity they formerly knew,” states author Ivan Mesa, books editor at The Gospel Coalition.
Notable advocates of faith deconstruction include internet comedy duo Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal (who published multiple podcast episodes detailing their spiritual deconstruction), John D. Caputo (who in 2007 wrote What Would Jesus Deconstruct?: The Good News of Postmodernism for the Church), and Richard Rohr. Prominent former Christians who underwent deconstruction include Joshua Harris (who briefly offered a course on deconstruction), Abraham Piper, and Marty Sampson.
I personally experienced a deconstruction from the liberal Christianity I knew as a child in the Lutheran Church. I was converted to an evangelicalism rooted in the biblical doctrines of regeneration, justification, redemption, reconciliation, sanctification and glorification. These doctrines are historically and redemptively sourced solely in Jesus Christ through His virgin birth, sinless life, substitutionary atoning death on the cross and bodily His resurrection.
I have known others who rejected the church and these teachings as falsehoods. In some cases, they abandoned not only the church, but their friends and family. They replaced them with an unbiblical hostile attitude and behavior towards the same. This resulted in great antagonism on the part of the deconstructionist, and corresponding hurt and sorrow on the part of those rejected by the individual.
In the example of a deconstructionist older brother, his relationship with his younger Christian sister experienced, and resulted in, great damage relationally. Family gatherings became verbal battle grounds. Their once close sibling bond was broken by his increasing opposition to biblical truth and her contrastingly strong commitment to the same.
What are the reasons behind Deconstruction Christianity? For those who fall away from the church, does this mean they have lost their salvation in Christ? Can anything positive occur in the process of deconstruction? I shared my positive deconstruction story. Are experiences like mine the exception or the norm?
I hope to answer these questions with biblical answers. I pray that all who read these articles may benefit from them and use them to prepare for their own ministry to loved ones who have deconstructed. Have a blessed day in Christ.
Soli deo Gloria!
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