azspot:

First, emergents cannot accept the idea of Bible inerrancy. Verbal inerrancy will not stand modern critical examination in the study of languages. To assign fixed inerrancy to ancient documents written in the Hebrew and Greek used thousands of years ago stretches credibility.

Affirming inerrancy does take some degree of faith. But without it we can make Scripture say whatever we want.  Evangelicals believe God is big and strong enough to guard the integrity of his revelation to humanity.

Second, emergents have come to believe that the gospel that they have been taught is a caricature of the message of Jesus, rather than the real thing.  Increasingly they are putting other Biblical writings in the background and have shown increasing interest in what Jesus said and did.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable….”(2 Tim 3:16) We are to use Scripture to interpret itself. Focusing on just one person or book increases the likelihood of poor interpretation and lopsided theological emphases. Jesus’ and Paul’s teachings are equally important theologically because both are the divinely inspired Word of God.

They ask “If we are followers of Jesus, why do we not live and preach his message?” In short, they are looking for a much more radical Christianity than they have found in the Evangelical (and mainline) churches.

Agreed. People who profess to follow Christ need to live it out better, myself included. (It’s important to note, however, that the previous sentence has been true through all of church history.)

Third, exposure to science in public education, universities and personal studies has led emergents to disown the conclusion that when the Bible and science appear to collide, science must take a back seat to the Bible.

In this conflict, emergents are not abandoning the Bible, but are raising critical questions about the Bible’s nature and content. This new bread of Christian remains quite committed to the Bible but they are very open to new ideas and understandings.

Affirming that the Bible is NOT the believer’s highest authority IS in fact abandoning it. Bowing Scriptural authority to “science in public education, universities and personal studies” (personal studies—is this a joke?) is a perfect example of the human tendency to conform Scripture to culture instead of the other way around.

Fourth, emergents have become disillusioned by the clay feet of church leadership. It is not just the Jim Bakkers and the Jimmy Swaggarts, but the rank and file of church leadership.

Emergents compare what Jesus had in mind and what is going on in churches, and they see a need to start over. They want a fresh start with serious intent to follow Jesus.

The tendency to throw the baby out with the bathwater is one of the hallmarks of Emerging theology. This is partly because many (not all) of this movement are disaffected evangelicals overreacting against excess.

Fifth, our public schools and our nation in general are insisting that we be truly multicultural. The churches’ teaching, that people not like us, are doomed, is not acceptable to emergents. They want a much broader definition of what it means to be accepted in the family of God.

John 14:6 - “No one comes to the father except through me.” ~ Jesus (you know, the guy emergents want to focus on at the expense of the apostles).

John 3:3 - “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” ~ Jesus

Sixth, emergents are insisting that God be understood as totally gracious and loving. The angry, vengeful God that is sometime presented in both Old and New Testaments is not acceptable.

Unless you dismiss all the OT, I don’t see how one can ignore any of the elements of God’s character (all of which are perfect and holy). God required a blood sacrifice to atone for sin. Nothing has changed in the demand, but thankfully Jesus offers to pay that price for us. As a reviewer of Death by Love writes, “those who demand justice for the poor and oppressed today but deny that God should seek justice for the sins we commit against him are hypocrites.”

Seventh, acceptance of homosexuals in the family of God is common. Being pro-gay or anti-gay is not the issue. Emergents recognize that sexuality is far more complex than is generally recognized. To live in harmony with gay and lesbian friends and family members is a part of the emergent’s perspective.

Emergents’ confused viewpoints on sexuality are, again, products of conforming Scripture to culture instead of the other way around. Sexuality is one of the clearest issues in the Bible. Obfuscations abound today. Still, we in fact called to love everyone.

Eighth, echoing the first named characteristic, emergents recognize the role that language plays in their understanding and practice of the Christian Faith. Theology is language bound. Language is a limited tool of communication.

If theology is language bound, it is also culturally shaped. To be rigidly exclusive does not make sense to emergent Christians.

Again, this is too often used as an excuse to make Scripture say what you want it to say and descend into relativism.

I highly recommend “Why We’re Not Emergent (By Two Guys Who Should Be).”