REVIEW OF BOOK BY CARY SCHMIDT

Many times through my life, someone said, “Christianity is a ‘done’ religion, not a ‘do’ one.”  Or something very close to that.  I gravitate toward that message; done, not do.  Sounds right.  It is, insofar you treat “done” right.

Many who write “done” don’t give it the right definition.  Let me explain.

Cary Schmidt and Done.

Cary Schmidt came from Hyles-Anderson in the Hyles days.  He went to Lancaster Baptist Church, which is also West Coast Baptist College.  Then he left there to Newington, Connecticut, where he still is.  He wrote the booklet, “Done,” which many churches hand to the lost in evangelistic packets and to new converts.  Many, many.   Hundreds of churches hand out thousands of this book.  It’s a tiny little book.  It’s short, small, and easy to read.

I have never joined the West Coast and Lancaster, spiritual leadership and striving together, orbit.  I’ve explained why here in the past.  It relates to doctrine, the gospel, and ministry philosophy.  I would not send anyone else into that sphere of influence either.  If someone was in it, I would encourage him to get out.  This does relate to the book, “done,” among many other things.

Before I talk about the problems of a false view of “done,” what is right about it?

What Is Right about Done.

Nothing is wrong with the general idea or concept of Done.  It’s good.  Jesus said on the cross, “It is finished” (tetelestai, perfect passive).  Jesus did everything on the cross for any person’s salvation.  He completed the work of salvation.  It’s results are ongoing (perfect tense).

Hebrews 10:12 says about the Lord Jesus Christ:  “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God.”  Four times the book of Hebrews records that Jesus sat down (Hebrews 1:3, 13; 10:2; 12:2).  He sat down because His work on the cross paid the penalty for sin.  He sat down too because of His burial, bodily resurrection, and ascension, all included and necessary for “done.”  The gospel includes the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-3).

No doubt, Jesus did everything.  We needed what He finished.  Religions and people in those religions, which teach and preach salvation by works, need to hear this “done” message.  They say “do” instead of “done.”

So, what’s wrong?  What’s wrong with “Done”?  Nothing is wrong with the word “done.”  We like it.  Does Schmidt represent it properly though?  He does not.

What Is Wrong

A False Presentation

One, what does it mean to believe in Jesus Christ?  Jesus did everything, but how do we access what He did?  Schmidt in his little booklet says you’ve got to take the gift Jesus gave like opening a gift on Christmas morning.  He makes the reception of the gift then, a two step process (p. 83):  (1)  Believe the gift is free, that it doesn’t cost you anything. (2) Receive the gift.

The way Schmidt describes it, the gift is under the tree, there wrapped and ready to take.  People do not get the gift because they won’t believe that gift is free and then because they think they might have to pay, they don’t take it.  Children know their gifts are free under the tree.  People in evangelism, however, according to Schmidt can’t or don’t believe salvation is free.

The way you get the gift, Schmidt says, is ask for the gift.  You believe that the gift is free.  That is believing.  Jesus paid for the gift, you don’t have to do that.  It is done.  Then you’ve got to receive the gift.  Schmidt makes those the two steps for receiving the free gift of salvation.  That is false.  This is the major way that “done” fails.  It is a big falsehood.  There really is very little different between what he says and 1-2-3, pray with me.  It’s a lengthier presentation of 1-2-3, pray-with-me.

Misuse or Perverting of Scripture

To make his completely false assertion about the gospel and salvation, Schmidt misuses verses of scripture:  Romans 10:9, 13, Acts 16:31, and John 3:16.  He leaves out important exposition of those verses.  He makes them mean something other than what they mean.  As a result, he twists all of the gospels and their presentation of Jesus Christ.  I would call it a very carefully crafted falsehood.

The deceit of the “done” message comes from getting one portion of the message of salvation right and twisting another vital part of it.  Many false religions do that, present some truth with error.  People understandably love the “done” part of the gospel.

If you ask almost anyone in the United States, “Did Jesus die for you?”  He will answer, “Yes.”  In all my years of evangelism, almost everyone believes Jesus died for them.  Schmidt leaves out the part of the plan of salvation that is the biggest stumblingblock to the lost, the most offensive part.  He eliminates the hard part, maybe on purpose or maybe because people deceived him in the past (perhaps Hyles and Lancaster?).

Head Knowledge/Heart Knowledge?

Schmidt (pp. 86-87) says the problem for people is that they get the ticket of salvation (head knowledge) but they won’t get on the plane (heart knowledge).  This is a false dichotomy about head knowledge and heart knowledge.  It’s useful to make it sound right, even though it isn’t.

Schmidt is right that some people think they need to earn their salvation.  They add works to grace.  That is not the difference between head knowledge and heart knowledge though.  They will not acknowledge ( in their heads) that Jesus paid it all, because their religion says they must contribute to what Jesus did.  However, that is not the biggest stumbling block today for English speaking people.

At the end of his book, Schmidt challenges the reader to become “done” instead of “do” by praying a prayer, which he records at the end to pray.  He might argue, “I argue that someone who prays that prayer, the way he receives the gift, he will become a new creature.”  When you read that short chapter, you find out that you become a new creature in that God takes your sins away as you pray that prayer.  You are new now.  You are forgiven, because you have prayed that prayer.  The change is a removal of sin.  Then you will grow as a Christian, whatever that means.

No Repentance or Lordship

“Done” says absolutely nothing about repentance.  Schmidt excludes repentance from the presentation.  When he quotes Romans 10:9, which says, “confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus,” he says nothing about the Lordship of Jesus Christ.  Christ will do everything for you.  You just need to pray that prayer.  That is the way you receive the free gift after believing it is free.  Heaven is free for you, just pray the prayer.

Both Jesus and John the Baptist preached, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  To receive the kingdom of heaven, someone needed to receive Jesus Christ as King, which is to receive Jesus Christ.  They needed to relinquish their own kingdom for His.  This is not like asking for and receiving a gift.  The kingdom of heaven is a gift, but it requires repentance.  Where is that in this presentation?  It isn’t there.

What About Believing in and Receiving Jesus Christ?

“Done” leaves out receiving Jesus Christ for who He is.  “Done” leaves out a presentation of the Person of Jesus Christ.  Nothing then is done, because someone does not know who Jesus is or receive Him.

Schmidt makes “done” about receiving the gift. No.  Absolutely not.  “Done” is about receiving Jesus Christ.  John 1:12 says, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”  John 3:16 and Acts 16:31 both say, “believe in Jesus Christ.”  Schmidt leaves that out.  He quotes the two verses and says they mean, “Pray a prayer.”

Like John says at the end of his gospel, ‘believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.’  To get into the kingdom, you must receive the King.  You are not in charge anymore, Jesus is.  Schmidt leaves all that out, which is the biggest difficulty that people have with the gospel.

By doing what he did, Schmidt deceives his reader on the gospel.  Most people reading what he wrote will not know what salvation is.  He perverts the gospel of Christ by leaving out what scripture says about believing in and receiving Jesus Christ.

More to Come (I will deal with problem number two of “Done”)