Resources > Sermon Illustrations The man with a 'Purpose' Posted by Rev. Jeff Dixon, Senior Equipping Minister, Covenant Community Church on Jul 3, 2004, 13:40

The man with a 'Purpose'

The Rev. Rick Warren — the most influential evangelist you've never heard of — has the answer to the meaning of life

Warren's latest book, best seller The Purpose-Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?, outsold Billy Graham's autobiography — 4.5 million copies and counting sold so far.

President Bush and his wife, Laura, and advisers such as Karl Rove and Karen Hughes have read it. So have the chaplain for NASCAR, LPGA golfers and enough book shoppers to propel it to 23 weeks on The New York Times' advice best-seller list, several as No.1, and months on USA TODAY's Best Selling Books list.

By the end of 2004, about 2 million people will have joined in one of his "40 Days of Purpose" evangelism campaigns. They commit to read one of Life's 40 chapters a day and participate in an intense program of worship, study, fellowship and service. If you do not have a daily quiet time and need to learn how to have one it is an amazing way to start that journey. For many churches it allows them to refocus on why they do what they do and how to get people involved.

"I couldn't care less about people coming to see me; I just want to build an army of the faithful," says Warren, a fourth-generation pastor who often recalls his father's dying wish: to "reach one more for Christ."

Rick Warren aimed to first build one great church, then show others how to build theirs. He has devoted decades to teaching 300,000 pastors his principles for revival and renewal.

No appearances on Oprah. No financial or sexual scandals. No benedictions at public events. No news conferences on the Supreme Court steps. I admire his ability to focus and stick to what He has been called to do. He is a man with a purpose.

"He's not the typical mega-church preacher in the modern era: witty, slick, media-oriented and bantering like a talk-show host," says Terry Mattingly, who teaches mass media and religion at Palm Beach Atlantic University. "You cannot overstate how unusual he is in evangelical circles, in that he isn't personal and confessional and 'Me! Me! Me!' "

Still, Christianity Today dubbed Warren "America's most influential pastor" in a cover story last fall. And evangelical publishers and Christian booksellers just named The Purpose-Driven Life their book of the year.

The book is packed with lists and exhortations, not anecdotes. The chapter headings outline humanity's "five eternal purposes": You were ... "Planned for God's pleasure ... Formed for God's family ... Created to become like Christ ... Shaped for serving God. ... Made for a Mission."

Read for 15 minutes. Memorize a Bible quote. Get going.

Saddleback Church has grown from a Bible study in his condo in 1980 to 15,000 baptized members today. Another 70,000 people who've attended at least one service are in the church's database.

Every weekend nearly 19,000 worshipers choose from among nine "venues" as varied as the 3,000-seat main sanctuary, the coffee bar or the "beach hut" for high-schoolers. Built into the landscape — designed by theme park experts — are settings for 40 Bible re-enactments, including a stream that can part like the Red Sea.

In the pulpit, Warren delivers 40 minutes of preaching. Then, midsermon, he literally chills out for 20 minutes, behind a bank of fans or in his icy office, to avoid blackout headaches from a rare adrenaline disorder. Another of the church's 13 pastors carries on until Warren returns for a wrap-up.

The tag-team approach keeps him going physically. It also ensures that Saddleback's success isn't a one-man show. He proudly notes that during the seven months he was writing Life, he preached only Christmas and Easter services.

Warren is part of the Southern Baptist Convention, and all his senior staff sign on to the SBC's doctrines.

Warren says, "we believe in attraction evangelism. We believe in loving people into the Kingdom."

His 1995 book for pastors, The Purpose-Driven Church, was all about surfing pop culture's waves to draw in the unchurched.

This approach has its critics. Even some fellow Baptist leaders love Warren at arm's length. Southern Baptist Theological Seminary head Al Mohler praises Warren as an "organizational genius and communicator of profound ability." Beyond that, Mohler simply says, "I'm more traditionalist." (quoted in USA TODAY)

"I've got a target," he says. "It's called the globe: The whole Gospel for the whole world."

Warren is a part of an amazing ministry in California and perhaps the real story is about the man behind the book. A man who has a heart that beats for Christ, a man who lives with a purpose, and has tried to use his gifts and insights in a way that will draw others to Jesus. There is always things that the Body of Christ will disagree over, some of them are big, some not so big, some are more important than others….but if you are a believer interested in getting started on a journey of faith…for 40 days Warren has created a resource that will jump start some thinking.

This article comprised from information from Christianity Today, USA TODAY, Orlando Sentinel.