There’s a lot to celebrate in Christian worship services. Singing hymns, prayers, and the learning of God’s Word are all part of corporate worship, and I happily participate in that. I also participate in confession.
The Protestant tradition involves both a public and silent confession of sins. It’s an acknowledgement that we are sinful by nature, and have sinned by thought, word and deed. Through this confession and our earnest repentance, we seek and receive forgiveness through God’s grace.
I sin every single day. I don’t like that I sin but as a member of the human race, it is an inescapable truth with which we’re stuck. As the apostle Paul wrote to Christians in Rome, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” That includes me.
Rational people can agree that sin is bad, and I do not embrace my sin; I confess it and seek forgiveness. Jesus Christ said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him,” so I reject any celebration of my sin.
But not all sins are treated equally. Increasingly, Protestant churches are celebrating sin through the installation of ministers whose behavior promotes LGBTQ ideology.
Consider this February 15th report whose headline heralds the “First openly transgender pastor called to guide Lutheran church in North Dakota.”
The pastor’s installation was unanimously approved by the congregation of the church, which has reportedly hosted town hall meetings to discuss, among other things, whether people should be forced to deny reality by calling women men, and vice versa; and whether children should be protected from genital mutilation. One can only speculate as to how those discussions will be steered.
The article goes on to quote the new pastor saying “Historically the church hasn’t been kind to transgender people. A lot of churches still aren’t kind to transgender people.” I do not know how the pastor defines what is kind or unkind but I do know that historically, the church has believed in the word of God as written in the Bible. A lot of churches still believe what is written in the Bible.
The behavior that defines LGBTQ ideology is sinful. That’s not my assessment, that’s what Christ said. He laid it out in the Gospel of Mark when He said, “Out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
Affirming and celebrating the behavior of LGBTQ adherents raises a question for Christians: If we’re going to celebrate this sin, what other sins are we prepared to celebrate? That’s a scary proposition and it’s already happening.
The sin of murder is celebrated through the increase of euthanasia. The sin of theft is celebrated through prosecutors who have decriminalized it through their failure to prosecute. The sins of coveting, envy and deceit are celebrated through Critical Race Theory. The sin of slander is celebrated hourly on cable news channels.
Components of Critical Race Theory are even creeping into conservative parishes today. Whether this portends churches celebrating the sins of CRT’s advocacy for race hatred or its alignment with Marxist ideology remains to be seen.
We all sin, and through confession, repentance and grace, God forgives us. We are also called to forgive those who sin against us. Whether these are sins of sexual immorality, envy, theft or anything else, our duty is to forgive others as God forgives us.
But forgiving sin is not the same as affirming it.
The Bible instructs us to love one another but it also tells us to abhor that which is evil. None of my sins should be celebrated; they should be abhorred. If any pastor in the pulpit affirmed or celebrated my sins, I would walk out in the middle of that sermon and find a better church. But more churches are celebrating more sins, and it’s a colossal moral and civic hazard.
If the North Dakota pastor has been harassed, threatened, assaulted or otherwise treated unkindly, that is flat out wrong. Likewise, the pastor is entitled to the full enjoyment of and participation in American civic life, and I would demand that any effort to prevent the free exercise of these rights be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
But it is not unkind to believe what the Bible says. It is not unkind to call a sin a sin. It is not unkind to notice reality and natural law. These are normal behaviors. Just as I reject any affirmation of my sin, I reject any attempt to deny that which is normal and in accordance with Scripture.
In many cultures across time and space, the church has provided the moral bedrock of society. When churches celebrate sin, that bedrock crumbles and over time, so do the societies built upon it.
The fake Pope worships False Gods of the Earth
God has said that no one who practices homosexuality will enter heaven and He is the ultimate Authority and never lies. This should have all who practice and celebrate homosexuality very very afraid. Sadly there are few who fear God
“If any pastor in the pulpit affirmed or celebrated my sins, I would walk out in the middle of that sermon and find a better church”
Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen much. We even have a visitor that posts here who’s revealed his Lutheran Church is flooded with “woke” pastors that celebrate sin such as homosexuality and abortion. Yet, this individual stays at the church because, as he stated “I like the organist.”
People of the cloth and Christian Churches have no business being politically correct. Yes, you can be compassionate and understanding, but you must be honest and call out sinful behavior. Far too many pastors cave in to the Left’s demands.
If you are going to quote what I say at least make the attempt to get it right.
I never said my church was flooded with woke pastors. I said there are 3.
re: the Organist…she is a great musician and I play every weekend with her. She and her husband are friends, teachers and I have learned a lot about the Church’s body of music.
You are simply regurgitating what some maroon named Sebastian kept quoting over a series hysterical posts a month or so ago. He also kept saying I wasn’t a “real” Christian. Christianity seems to attract it’s share of busy bodies
Given that your name is simply ‘se’ I would bet I am dealing with the same maroon who insists on being stupid.
If you aren’t him please try and get your facts straight. I know it’s tough but intelligence is a tough commodity to claim.
I’d say 3 pastors that are woke can be determined that your church is “flooded.” That’s absurd you have THREE pastors that are woke preaching woke sermons. How many people attend this church? I’d say 3 woke pastors are manipulating many congregants.
And no, you are not a real Christian. You are what we call a “cafeteria Christian”. That is one who picks and chooses what he wants to follow out of the Bible.
I don’t know why “Se” came out as my name. Apparently a glitch or something.
You should be ashamed of yourself for emboldening woke pastors by attending this fake church. The church having a good organist isn’t a legitimate reason to attend this woke church.
Seems like maybe there’s more to the story of you and the organist than just music. You’re treading on thin ice.
We have an average attendance of 300 people at each service each week. How many hypocrites and busy bodies at your church?
It really doesn’t matter what you say. And who the hell are you to say who is a real Christian. I think that is for God to decide.
If you want to call three woke pastors “flooded”, that is also your business, not mine. And I never said every sermon is a woke sermon. you did. This is really all about you and your need to control everyone around you. I’d say the real cafeteria Christian is you, lecturing, hectoring and really showing me what hypocrite you are.
The Organist is 73. Her husband is 75 and your mind is apparently in the gutter. But I am not surprised. The church having a good organist and good choir director is precisely the reason I am there. It is precisely the reason we have a wonderful music program. And there is nothing you can do about it.
You seem very agitated. Maybe you should see a psychiatrist about your OCD issues
Intrepid… YOU are the one that claimed you attend your (satanic) church so you could “chase female tail”…
Besides… tell us where in the Bible does it say to attend church so you can watch “good organists” and good Choir Directors”?
In other words… your reasons for attending church are wrong!
By the way they don’t “celebrate homosexuality and abortion either. So you are lying.
The satanic Lutheran ELCA approves of homosexuality and the worship of the fake god allah of satanic islam…
You have been schooled on this already!
Good to know you are still insane. Personally I thought you were dead.
So who are you to say my reasons for attending church are wrong. The Religious Police? You couldn’t school your way out of a paper bag.
The only person who is rattled here and has been rattled for years is you because nobody listens to you or cares about what you have to say.
The only person who suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder is you.
Signs and symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder and the severity of symptoms vary. People with the disorder can: Have an exaggerated sense of self-importance. Have a sense of entitlement and require constant, excessive admiration. Expect to be recognized as superior even without achievements that warrant it.
There is not a thing you can do to change anything I do. And that is a source of true happiness for me….and obviously misery for you.
It’s nice to see how others are catching on to your sick , distorted ways and exposing you for what you are!
Yes, they do. You advertised your woke pastors and fake church. I have to question your commitment to Christ.
Fortunately you are not in charge of me or anything else, and I don’t really have to listen to you. You nothing more than an annoying busy body.
I have to question your commitment to Christ.
Yes, fortunately for you I have no say so in what you do, but I can tell you if I was a lead pastor of a church you wouldn’t be allowed in. Only real Christians; not fake woke folks, like yourself.
Have you heard of the virtue signaling term “holier than thou”? It describes you perfectly. Your biggest problem is you think you are better than everyone….not exactly Christ-like is it.
Fortunately you are not a lead pastor or any kind of pastor. You are the antithesis of a pastor and a Christian.
I wonder what kind of test you would make people take to see if they are worthy of being allowed to sit in the pews. And if they manage to slip by your test what happens if they fall short of your idea of Christianity. Flogging? Crucifixion? Burning?
And of course you think you are on the glidepath to heaven, right? Well, pride goeth before the fall.
Did I strike a nerve? Good spin. This has nothing to do with me thinking I’m holier than thou. It has everything to do with someone who sits in a “church” filled with woke pastors preaching woke sermons. You willingly do this. And by your own admission the only reason you stay is because you like the organist.
Instead of saying “yea, I should probably look into finding another church” you double down on stupid. This leads me to believe you are woke yourself and not following the Bible, but instead, picking and choosing what you feel like following.
Sorry , that’s not the way it works, sir. I suggest you conduct yourself accordingly. If you need help finding a real Christian Church I’d be happy to assist you.
No derp, you didn’t strike a nerve. It is clear you have been triggered big time. I didn’t ask for your moronic opinions but you keep coming back for more abuse. Take a break. I don’t care what you think or believe.
I know who and what I am. If you read my other posts here on various subjects you could see that I am not woke. I am a conservative MAGA guy who plays music with other great musicians. If that’s a problem for you eff off.
Perhaps you should learn the golden rule, “Treat others as you wish to be treated.”
I guess for you things are black and white. That’s not how I roll. That must really suck for you.
I can only imagine the horror show church I would end up in if I relied on you for anything. Everyone running around trying to determine who is “Christian enough”
The big difference between me and you is I am actually very happy doing what I am doing. You seem positively miserable and angry and you want to spread the misery around.
Thanks, I’ll pass.
You’re rattled Intrepid… and it shows… you’re not happy at all, you narcissist…
Dr. Larry Chapp just today published a great (but intellectual) article on just this issue:
The problem with identity politics in the selection of ministers and pastors or rabbis is that Jesus and the Disciples were not identity politics activists. The criteria for selecting church or synagogue leaders should reflect the values and beliefs of the founders of the Christian or Jewish faiths. It does seem they were rather meritocratic, not primarily environmentalists, identity politics advocates or Marxists or liberation theologians. The right people should be the best people, not the ones that have the right identities, such as LGBTQ etc. The key identity is one that centers on the teachings of Jesus and the prophets and church fathers and mothers. Not choosing someone, because her identity is underrepresented in the religious leadership. Faith and exemplary life, which are merits, not identities in the woke sense. Equity should not be the criterion but rather equal chances for the faithful and just. Or am I wrong?
You are absolutely correct.
We’ll said.
Scripture warns that in the end times there will be a great apostasy ( in Greek, falling away from the faith), which we are seeing today. One can no longer rely on any particular denomination to teach/preach Sola Scripura, but seek out where a pastor stays with the Truth of God.
People like to sin, and woke churches delude themselves into thinking that because they are gathering together in a ‘church’, that validates their behavior that is an abomination to God.
Church leaders have a greater responsibility to be scriptural, but they will all experience the wrath of God.
We have a free choice to decide whether we chose to be righteous or unrighteous. 1 John 3:10
I am not Catholic, I am Protestant–a Southern Baptist. I am now in my seventies. Things are not now in American religious life as they were when I was a child and a young adult. There are today many different Protestant denominations in the United States, and they are each in some way, small or large, doctrinally different from each other. Some American Protestant denominations are politically, and doctrinally, left of center, and some are right of center. But because of the differences among the various American Protestant denominations, it is error to try to group together ALL of the American Protestant denominations as being the same. True, in any American Protestant denomination there will be the aberrant congregation which does not follow that denomination’s generally accepted doctrinal positions, but these rogues do not a denomination make. While such matters are generally in the eye of the beholder, not all rebellion is in my opinion bad. For example, it has recently been in the national news that the United Methodist Church denomination is splitting because a large number of UMC congregations find the national UMC too doctrinally leftist, and these more doctrinally conservative congregations refuse to be affiliated with the UMC any longer (I myself think that this UMC division is good).
Continued from the above.
I will also note that in the decades since my childhood, there has been the rise in American Protestantism of the Nondenominational Church–often mega-congregations whose Christian doctrine can be as varied from one congregation to the next as the number of possible different human interpretations of biblical scripture will permit. I cannot speak to the differences in Catholicism or Judaism with the same knowledge, so I will not.
Those fake priests are soon going to find out who runs the whole thing