Francis Chan has made a major contribution to the Christian products world with his first two books, but his greatest offering could be the book he does not write.

His reluctance to get sucked into the Christian publishing machine and crank out another title just because his name will guarantee strong sales has captured mainstream media attention and should cause those of us who are part of the industry to pause and reflect.

The man whose debut, Crazy Love, was recently named Family Christian Stores’ Book of the Year and which together with its follow-up, The Forgotten God, has been the closest thing to a really big best-seller we have seen for the past couple of years, spoke to CNN recently about his surprising decision to resign his pastorate and disappear for a while.

“Even in my own church I heard the words ‘Francis Chan’ more than I heard the words ‘Holy Spirit,’ ” he told the network. “I think there has been too much emphasis on me. I want to be used by God, but I think we have this desire to make heroes out of people rather than following God and the Holy Spirit.”

Chan had expressed similar concerns when I spoke with him a year ago, for an article about how David C. Cook was endeavoring to shepherd the momentum of his message while maintaining its integrity.

There has always been an element of celebrity in Christendom, of course, and it doesn’t always have to be a bad thing. Billy Graham’s profile was raised when newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst ordered his editors to “puff Graham” when the evangelist was still largely unknown.

In his first letter to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul noted that he, Apollos and Cephas each had their own fan clubs in the early church, while he also told the Philippians that he wasn’t bothered if some people had muddied motives for ministry as long as the name of Jesus was being proclaimed. 

At the same time, Paul was not afraid to talk about his own successes (and weaknesses) and did encourage people to imitate him, so he didn’t buy into the faux humility that’s not uncommon in our circles.

But I see two current trends that make it perhaps more tempting to focus on individuals rather than God, to make it more about him (or her) than Him.

First, the economy has caused many publishers to reduce their output, cutting down the opportunities for new faces and voices and focusing more on established names. These folk are often referred to as “brands” (which makes me think of a logo rather than the Logos). 

Not that branding is wrong, per se. Done right, it is powerful, clarifying and concentrating core values and goals, helping maximize strengths and opportunities. Done badly, it plasters slick marketing over shallow content, hoping that sizzle will sell substandard steak.

The second issue is a ripple from the economy that has been strengthened by technological change. From online to self-publishing, authors are able to express themselves without the help of a big-time publisher these days in ways that were previously impossible. But to grow that audience, they and writers contracted with established houses but who don’t warrant some of the slimmed-down marketing monies available are all being encouraged and advised to build their own “platforms.”

Put simply, this means: promote yourself. But doing so in a balanced way isn’t easy. Spend any time on Facebook or Twitter and you’ll soon see that. I likely spend more time there than most folks, by virtue of my job, but, frankly,  sometimes I feel like I am drowning in a sea of self-absorption.

And let’s not pretend that Paul’s insistence that “the important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached” is an ends-justifies-the-means clause, meaning that the integrity of our message matters more than the integrity of our methods. He merely acknowledges that others’ motives may be beyond our control, but Paul’s other writings clearly call for purity of purpose.

This isn’t a new dilemma. It’s one that relief organizations have wrestled with for years as they create their fund-raising newsletters and videos featuring images and reports of those in need—how do you raise support to help others without in some way exploiting the very ones you are seeking to minister to?

With his rejection of the “rock star” route (dare I say disen-Chan-tment?), Chan not only brings this crucial issue of motive back into sharp focus, but he may also point to a hopeful emerging trend, according to David Almack, a member of our editorial advisory board and the U.S. director and publisher with CLC International.

In a recent blog, Almack spotlighted Crazy Love and David Platt’s Radical—a challenge to radical discipleship along similar lines to Chan’s—as examples of a new rash of books that “instead of looking inward for ways to improve ourselves and achieve the American dream by joining the right church or reading the right book ... are pointing us in an entirely different direction for finding significance and purpose in life.”

Almack observed “a new generation of readers (that) appears to be seeking a robust presentation of the love of Christ for a dying world,” and suggests it’s time for “sober introspection” to “evaluate the serious consequences of promoting a gospel that requires so little while promising so much.

“Now is the time for us all to repent and return to publishing, distributing and selling books that present Jesus as the ‘lamb that was slain’ and who gave His all so that we might have life at all.”

What might that look like for you?