The Shack – a popular “Christian Novel” written by William Paul Young has been in the Top 10 sellers list for months.

The cover reads:

Mackenzie Allen Philip’s youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in and abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later, in the midst of his “Great Sadness”, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to the shack for a weekend.

Against his better judgement, he arrives at the shack on a wintery afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack’s world forever.

In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant, THE SHACK wrestles with the timeless question: Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain? The answer Mak gets will astound you and perhaps transform you as much as it did him. You will want everyone to read this book.”

Well, I finally got around to reading this book of fiction, endorsed by Eugene Petersen. So that makes it OK, right?

Wrong!

Here are a few things you’ll confront when reading The Shack.

• Everyone goes to heaven even if you’re not a follower of Christ. (That alone is enough reason to reject the book)
• You do not have to be born-again to have a relationship with Christ.
• You can be Mormon, Jehovah Witness, Buddhist, Muslim or whatever. It doesn’t matter to God. He doesn’t want to make anyone a Christian.
• The god of The Shack is not the God of The Bible.
• God does not want us to serve Him.
• God is our servant.
• There is no evil. (The book contradicts this at times)
• Satan and demons do not exist.
• The husband is not the head in marriage.
• Hierarchy is man-made and God does not approve.
• God does not desire for us to be obedient to Him.
• Guilt is bad and does not direct a person to Christ.
• Unitarians would love it.
• Although the Father is always given the male attribute in Scripture, The Shack makes Him female.
• Jesus does not live in His glorified state but as fully human.
• Wisdom is an actual person.
• God does not have a miraculous way to relieve you of your pain.
• The Holy Spirit has a body.
• The Holy Spirit does not empower us to live holy lives.
• Papa (Father God) has scars on his wrists just like Jesus does because He was crucified too.
• When Mack started reading the Bible in bed God came and took it from him. (Hmmm?)
• Freedom is an incremental process, not immediate.
• During an entire weekend with Mack, God never once quoted or referred to Scripture in a positive light.
• God does not want us to fully comprehend Him.
• The Father did not grieve when Jesus went to the cross.
• The New Jerusalem is not literal even though the Bible gives its measurements.
• The Emergent church would fall for this book easily.
• God is not to be feared.
• God does not find more pleasure in those who love Him then those who do not.
• God does not punish or discipline anyone for sin.
• God is not a God of wrath.
• Jesus is not under the Father’s authority.
• God is not a God of order.
• We are not in a spiritual battle.
• We are to keep our eyes on the present and not on eternity.
• Jesus thinks it’s amusing when we curse.
• The awesome God of the universe is submissive to us.
• We are not called to be like Jesus. He was not intended to be our example.
• There is no final judgment.
• Sophia (Wisdom) uses human thought to teach that there are no judgments.
• Sophia is part of the mystery of the Holy Spirit.
• Jesus did not come to build the church.
• “Religious folk” don’t understand the Trinity.
• We don’t need to ask forgiveness when we sin. Once on the cross was enough.
• God is reconciled to the whole earth, even those who don’t believe and/or reject His Lordship.
• The Ten Commandments were not given to help us live righteously.
• The Law does not point out our sin anymore.
• The Commands of God are evil and if used causes man to feel superior.
• God does not have any expectations for us therefore He is never displeased with us.
• God does not want us to put Him first, (or make Him Lord).
• Humans respond to one another in colors.
• God “messes” with us.
• God does not forget our sins.
• No evangelism is required, just relationships.

Don’t waste your time – this book is heresy. If you want to know  truth, read the book that God wrote – read the Bible.