Christocentric

I’ve written before about progressive Christians such as John Shore, but again he has written another article that has my lil’ old fingers going in typing responses about his posts.  His latest article, “Pastor fired for linking to “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” article,  has motivated me once again to respond.  It is one thing to criticize Christians for not supporting homosexuality, but to get angry at a church for practicing what it believes?  This post by John Shore truly angered me as to how far the LGBT community and their supporters will go to vilify the Christian church.

[Update - 10/15/11: John Shore's article has since been removed from his website. His blog will give the explanation by clicking on his blog link above! The entire letter with John's comments have been copied from other blogs that are still running this post, (I read the original and this copy matches it completely) and can be seen in its entirety at the end of this page.]

[Update - 10/16/11: I received a private email from a member of the church that fired the pastor in John Shore's post.  She thanked me for "bringing God's light into a very dark situation." Their church is under heavy persecution and division so please pray for this church that as of now will remain anonymous on my site until they say otherwise.]

Sadly, my comments for the most part are banned from John Shore’s blog if there is any hint of major disagreement forcing me to post it on my on blog here. This time I didn’t even try to comment on his board because I know what the results will be.  One of these days I will tire of this heretical Christian, but now is not that time.

John Shore is a man who believes that homosexuality is NOT a sin, there is no hell, Jesus is just one way to God and a host of other anti-biblical beliefs.  And yes, I sincerely doubt he’s a true Christian, a judgement I’m totally at peace to make. (See my post on: Judging others – yes we can!)

Now regarding this rebuttal. I am not affiliated with the church that the article is written about and I have no idea who the pastor may be that is the center of attention in this post. But without knowing too much about this church, I do know one thing and that is it has every right to fire a member of dissenting and heretical biblical views! Heck, they are even giving this man a small severance package as long as he keeps quiet about it. Can you blame the church for asking him to be quiet when in today’s society just disagreeing with homosexuality has you labeled as a homophobe and with the laws shifting day by day that even a church may be sued for “discrimination” against one’s sexual preference? Just by judging the amount of responses in favor of John Shore’s anger towards this particular church, one can get of glimpse of the apostasy that’s growing day by day!

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, ² speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron,” 1 Timothy 4:1-2

John Shore’s article posted a letter from this  pastor who was fired and who also knew to write Mr. Shore as he is a leading progressive in support of homosexuality NOT being a sin.  This man sought a teacher who agreed with his beliefs for his comfort.  He sought the right person for his emotions, but the wrong person for biblical truth.

Okay, breaking down the post with a few central points found on Mr. Shore’s post:

1. The pastor had posted an article about Don’t Ask Don’t Tell repeal on his Facebook page in which many church members began commenting on. The pastor himself didn’t comment on the posting but the church members questioned him eventually going to the lead pastor and church board about it.
2. The chair of the elder board called an emergency meeting so that the pastor in question could share his opinion regarding homosexuality.  It is here that the church board learns that this pastor doesn’t view homosexuality as a sin.
3. The church came to the conclusion that he was unfit to be a pastor of this church and promptly fired him.
4. The church left him with a small severance package as long as he kept quiet about his release.

So contrary to what John Shore’s title would have you to believe, the pastor wasn’t fired for linking the Facebook article, but fired for his support of homosexuality.  Without knowing the church and hearing its side of the story and what it truly teaches, one thing this church and any Christian church has the right to do is to expel members from leadership position AND even from the church itself for persistent unrepentant sin (heresy/false teaching or beliefs is sin – see 2 Peter 2).  Although this pastor is not homosexual (according to this letter) he supports it placing himself in the same category as those who do commit homosexual sins.

“¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, ¹⁹ because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, ²¹ because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²² Professing to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

²⁴ Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, ²⁵ who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

²⁶ For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. ²⁷ Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

²⁸ And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; ²⁹ being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, ³⁰ backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, ³¹ undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; ³² who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.” Romans 1:18-32

In this one passage of several verses of the bible it reveals several things that apply to this whole mess that we call progressive Christianity which many are finding a “cool way” to believe these days.

1. Verses 18-19: God’s wrath will fall upon those who suppress His truth, to those to whom His truth has been revealed.  Pastors who teach false doctrine fit into this category and the pastor who wrote this letter is a good example.  He knows the truth but refuses to believe it.
2. Verses 26-27 – the famous verses that homosexuals and their supporters try to ignore or simply try to claim that the apostle Paul’s writings don’t count.  It is clear it’s speaking of women and men of same-sex attraction.
3. Verses 28-32 – examples of sins that those who practice AND those who support those who practice those sins that will fall under God’s judgement.  Men such as John Shore and the pastor who wrote the letter are the same as those who commit the sin of homosexuality.

Churches also have the right to remove those who refuse to obey God by the following scriptures:

“I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.

For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.” 1 Corinthians 5:9-13

This is a clear example of a church practicing discipline by removal of its unrepentant members.  The passage ends by saying to “put away from yourselves the evil person” – evil being the opposite of righteous.  Supporting homosexuality can not be named righteous so it would easily fall into the “evil” category.

Now keep in mind this is only involving those who call themselves Christians.  The non-Christian doesn’t fall into category as they aren’t judged or condemned at all. (Again, see my post on judging).   But very harsh words and actions to those who claim to children of God through Jesus Christ (John 1:12).

As for John Shore and others like him, he will only continue in popularity as the apostasy of the church grows.  There will be people such as the pastor in the letter who will seek teachers that fit their dogma and feed upon their godless emotions:

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,” 2 Timothy 4:3

I won’t give up the hope and pray that one day they will open their bibles, absorb ALL of its truths and pass the true word of God on to others for the perfecting of people’s faith.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,  that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Updated 10/16/11

___________________________________________________________

The original article from John Shore’s blog of 10/13/2011:

Greetings John,

My name is [X], and I am/was a Pastor of [Super Cool-Sounding Job Title] at a church here in [Big American City]. My wife and I have both been very grateful for your blog, and it has spoken to us many times. Thank you for the work you are doing, for using your voice and following Jesus in the way that you do. Your courage has/is inspiring me.

I’d like to share with you what’s just recently happened in my life. I’ve been serving as the Pastor of [Awesome Job Title] at [Church Name] in [Big American City] for the past five years. My wife and our two boys (at the time; our fourth is due in December) moved here from [State] to join [Church], which at the time was a small church of two hundred. Now it is a thriving community of over 1500 people committed to [Slogan That Could Be Easily Googled to Identify Church].

However, four weeks ago, all that changed. Four weeks ago the discriminatory law of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” was finally abolished. Even though no one in my church community was aware of my views on homosexuality (I have been intentionally tight-lipped about it, knowing how divisive that issue is), and I’ve never talked about it, I felt like it was good to celebrate the end of discrimination. So I posted a link to an article about the end of DADT on my Facebook page. I made no commentary on the article–which was not about the “issue” of homosexuality at all. [He shared the article to which he linked: written by a leading politician, it simply could not be more innocuous.--J.]

Over the next few hours, several people from my church started commenting on my wall: “How can a Christian be pro-homosexuality?” “Why is a pastor actively promoting the gay-lifestyle?” and so on. Even more people were calling/texting/emailing our lead pastor and the chair of our elder board.

What resulted over the next six days was not fun. The chair of the elder board called for an emergency board meeting to deal with me. I was summoned to the board meeting, where I was forced to give my stance on homosexuality (even though the church has no official stance on the matter, and has never before talked about the issue). And even though I reminded them that we all agree on our church’s statement of faith, ultimately, when they learned that I don’t view homosexuality as a sin, and that I would be in favor of two gay people being allowed to get married, they came to the conclusion that I was unfit to be a pastor at [Name of Church]. And within a week of posting the article on FB page, I was fired from a church I’d served faithfully and helped to build for five years.

On the topic and issue of homosexuality (a word which I’ve wearied of saying over the past month), over the past five years I have journeyed with Jesus, and undergone a shift in my beliefs about people being born gay (versus merely “choosing”), about the Father’s posture towards such people, about their inherent right to love, and the beauty in their loving, committed, monogamous relationships, etc. No longer do I believe it is a sin to be gay. And my heart and soul hurts at the rampant discrimination towards the GLBT community all around the world. I mourn that the church is not a safe place for them. I mourn that the church has chosen to alienate and in some cases attack them. I mourn that ignorance has clouded people’s judgment. I wish that people could open themselves to hear what other people are saying with regards to what the Bible says (and doesn’t say) about this issue. What science is showing us. What the GLBT themselves are saying. How being a follower of Jesus ought radically impact our posture towards the GLBT community.

Right now, three weeks after being fired, I have so many conflicting emotions. I’m devastated at being fired. I’m angry at the process by which it was done. I was just eliminated almost immediately. In the eyes of the church body and the staff I essentially just disappeared. I was there one week, and not the next. It’s made me feel like a leper, like someone who committed some heinous sin and had to be “dealt” with. I’m disappointed that the church I’d loved and served and believed in ultimately came up short. I desperately wanted (Name of Head Pastor] to stand by me, and say to the board and to the negative people in the church, “[Guy's Name] and I agree on what it means to follow Jesus. We agree on the essentials of the faith. And we have done ministry together for five years, and I want to continue to serve alongside him. We disagree on things, on non-essential elements of the faith–and you know what? That’s okay! We celebrate our unity in the faith, and we welcome different viewpoints and beliefs.” That’s what I wanted; that’s what I hoped for.

Moving forward I have no idea what’s next. I’m only a third done with my Master’s of Theology program at [Name of Seminary]. All our family is back in [State], and so that draws us. I don’t think I can (nor should) hide my left-leaning beliefs, and search out another church to be a pastor of. So right now my wife and I are just waiting on the King for a sense of what is next. About twenty families from [Name of Church That Just Fired Him] would like us to start our own faith community, as they are all very disenfranchised at the moment with [Church]. Not just what they did, but the statement that they have made in doing so. But [Name of Wife] and I struggle with the idea of planting a church from a situation like this—and yet the idea of planting has always been enticing to us. Ugh! What to do!?

I have wished in the past few weeks that I had someone like you in my life. A mentor, adviser… someone who could understand what I’m going through. Someone who shares some of my beliefs, and can help me sort through this mess. I’m not really asking anything from you, so please don’t feel pressured or obligated to respond. Just knowing you took the time to listen means a lot. By now, if you’ve made it all the way to the end of this email, I think you deserve a gold star. Thank you for your ministry. Your writings. Your teachings. God bless you and keep, and may God’s face ever shine upon you. Thank you, John.

So. There’s that.

I’ve seen a couple of videos of this young man preaching. He’s fantastic. He’s a tall, handsome, earnest, passionate, unpretentious, articulate communicator, with clear knowledge of the Bible. I wouldn’t be surprised if his chickens**t pastor–one of those worn jeans-wearing, hair-perfectly-messed/gelled up, shirt untucked, telegenic hipster poseurs– let him go because he was jealous of him.

The author of this letter and I exchanged a couple of emails. I told him that twenty families is a lot; I encouraged him to consider the possibility that God arranged this so that he could start a church that is in keeping with the message Jesus came to deliver.

But we’ll see. Right now he’s leaning towards returning to his home state, where he and his wife have family and friends. And of course that makes sense.

And his beautiful young wife, with a child due in December. And a husband who’s now unemployed.

What shameful, shameful bulls***.

When I asked the young man if I could share his letter here, he said sure. But he asked me to take care to remove any identifying information within the letter. You know why? Because his church told him that if he at all spoke or wrote about what had happened, they’d withhold the modest severance package they’re giving him.

They’re strong enough in their convictions to fire this pastor, but not so strong that they want anyone knowing that’s why they fired him.

Jesus must be so proud.

___________________