We at The Dissenter have been warning about  The Gospel Coalition (TGC) and its clones like Together for the Gospel (T4G) for years and years upon years ago, we concluded that these organizations were compromised in such a way that they shouldn’t even be called “Christian.” Yet, Evangelical churches around the globe still flocked to these organizations because of the notoriety of those involved in them. Names like Tim Keller, Don Carson, Al Mohler, Russell Moore, etc., are like Apostles in the eyes of today’s compromised church leadership.

Yet, despite being labeled a “woke” organization that advances politically progressive policies, both subtly and overtly, in some instances, its defenders have rejected this label and Evangelical churches around the world have embraced it as the holy grail of Christian thought.

Besides publishing articles directly on their website, The Gospel Coalition has a section where they link to other authors and articles that they endorse as an organization. Under this section, they linked to an article titled Can You Have a Worldview Shaped By Scripture Alone? This article, written by Stephen Kneale, as of March 20, 2024, is sitting on the front page of The Gospel Coalition’s website for consumption by all:

If the title of that article alone isn’t enough to scare you, just wait until you find out who Stephen Kneale is. The article, which is linked to and promoted by The Gospel Coalition, argues that it is impossible to have a truly biblical worldview, and those who say they do are simply deceiving themselves. He then goes on to argue that having a different worldview that is shaped by different cultural elements is perfectly acceptable, so long as you can tie it back to some culturally-driven interpretation of Scripture. Basically, it’s a bunch of hogwash and Kneale demonstrates that he doesn’t understand what it means to have a Christian worldview nor does he understand biblical hermeneutics.

And this is why Kneale can describe himself in such a horrific, unbiblical way, while calling himself a Christian. Digging a little deeper into who Kneale is, I found his biography on his personal website. First, he claims that he is Reformed and holds to the historic Reformed theological tradition:

My theological convictions can be described as Modern Reformed Evangelical. I hold to the doctrines of grace, credo-baptism (significantly informed by my Grace Baptist background) and subscribe to the traditional tenets of Evangelicalism.

Then immediately following is this gem:

My political convictions can be described as Democratic Socialist and are in line with the historic Christian Socialist tradition in Britain. I favour public ownership, wealth distribution and a regulated economy. I believe in fairness in the markets and freedom for the individual. I am, to all intents and purposes, a socially conservative socialist.

Anyone who believes that socialism is in line with a biblical worldview is not reading the actual bible. You cannot read the bible and come away with the idea that socialism, which has destroyed economies, societies, and nations around the world over and over, is biblical. The very tenets of socialism are anti-biblical, particularly in the realm of personal responsibility, laziness, and work ethic.

The reality is, socialism stands in direct opposition to the biblical blueprint for human conduct and society. Paul’s words in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 slice through the socialist rhetoric like a double-edged sword: “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.” This isn’t just advice, it’s a divine command linking the dignity of work with the perservation of our life—something socialism seeks to sever with its agenda of wealth redistribution without regard to personal effort.

Then, of course, there’s the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), which isn’t a quaint bedtime story but a thunderous decree from heaven itself on the sanctity of individual stewardship and the moral bankruptcy of laziness. Socialism, with its lust for leveling the playing field by dragging everyone down to the lowest common denominator, blatantly disregards these biblical imperatives. It creates a culture where mediocrity is rewarded, and excellence is penalized, where the industrious are plundered to pacify the idle.

Such a system and worldview is not just economically disastrous, it’s a rebellion against the very heart of Scripture. To endorse socialism is to throw down the gauntlet against God’s design, a design that champions hard work, personal responsibility, and the wise stewardship of the resources He entrusts to us. In the biblical worldview, there is simply no room at the inn for socialism. This isn’t just my “conservative” interpretation of Scripture or my personal worldview informed by culture, it’s fact rooted in the inerrant truth of Scripture.