Over the years, we’ve had significant theological issues with Tim Keller, and we do not intend to minimize these problems. However, Keller is a human being, made in the Image of God, and is currently facing immanent death and judgment amid complications from his pancreatic cancer that he’s been battling for the last several years. And we are asking the body of Christ to unite in prayer for him and his family.

Posted to his Twitter account by his son, we’ve learned that Keller has been discharged from the hospital and has been admitted to Hospice care.

To be clear, we’re asking for prayer for Keller not simply for comfort and peace, but for repentance and faith. We are not making a judgment call on the eternal state of his soul, but we can say unequivocally that with his many, many false teachings, he is not finishing well.

This article should not be construed as mockery or scorn but should be seen for what it is—a deep concern for the state of his soul as the Bible is clear that teachers will be held to a higher standard.

“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” —James 3:1

During a sermon he gave several years ago, Keller insisted that social justice was a necessary component of the gospel. It is in the same category as the Galatian heresy of adding to the gospel, Keller posed the question “How do you know you’re saved by faith?” He responded to this with a gospel of social justice, stating,

You care about the poor. When you see people without resources, your heart goes out to them. If it doesn’t, maybe you’re saved, but you’re lacking the evidence of salvation. Justification leads to justice. Justice is the sign of justification. It’s all through the Bible.

Right now, we will apply these same words to him: Maybe he’s saved, but he is lacking the evidence of salvation.

To be clear, there are plenty of times when Keller has seemingly demonstrated a clear understanding of the gospel. But there are plenty of times when he has not, and his continued promotion and defense of these false teachings reek of rebellion.

Keller is a proponent of theistic evolution, essentially a Christianized version of the evolutionary worldview that contradicts what the Scriptures actually teach about Creation. In a paper he published at Biologos, he argued that in dealing with people who are unable to reconcile science with their Christian views, Christians must figure out how to present the Scriptures to them in a way that seems compatible with science. Theistic evolution was also heavily pushed in his 2008 book, The Reason For God, where he taught that the solution to doubt — which he insists is normal and healthy — is to reconcile the secular view of evolution with the biblical creation account.

The compromise is extremely dangerous because it undermines the truthfulness and reliability of Scripture. Not only does it call into question the reality of the fallen nature of man and the curse the world is under because of sin — it also calls into question the reliability of the doctrines of the virgin birth and resurrection of Jesus Himself.

Under the guise of “biblical mysticism,” as he calls it, Tim Keller also practices and teaches contemplative/centering, also known as “wordless prayer,” which is a method of emptying one’s mind into solitude. In 2009, Keller’s church taught a class called The Way of the Monk which involved several dangerous practices including contemplative prayer.

Do you long for the great theology in your head to be more real to your heart? Come discover age-old methods of contemplative prayer and worship that can help you encounter Christ in a more intimate, experiential way. In this hands-on workshop, you will experience the ancient art of chanting the Psalms (they were meant to be sung!), embark on a practice of authentic Christian meditation, discover how a simple, time-honored tool can help unleash the prayer warrior in you, learn what a typical monastic day is like and how you can make your own, private retreat at a monastery, and much more!

Making matters worse, Keller has spent much time platforming the works of Roman Catholic mystics and theologians such as Flannery O’Connor and Peter Kreeft.

However, placing him directly into the category of false teacher, Tim Keller has completely embraced the false gospel of social justice and is one of the leaders of the woke church movement in Evangelicalism. Tim Keller was pushing social justice as an alternative to the saving gospel of Jesus Christ long before the woke church movement became popular. Tim Keller has redefined the gospel to include works–particularly, social justice.

Keller has continued to advocate the false conflation of justice and “social justice” which translates into a gospel of works righteousness. It is no more than the heresy propagated by the early 20th-century theologian, Walter Rauschenbusch who wrote A Theology For the Social Gospel.

In all of this, we hope it is clear that the reason we are asking for prayer is because we care deeply about our fellow human beings and we wish, as God does, that all would come to repentance and faith. Again, we are not making a judgment call on his salvation—that is between Him and God. But we are asking that before he passes, God will open his eyes and if there is still a need for repentance or a lack of faith, that God would grant it to him.