Cows In The Pews and The Atheists Too became even more relevant this week. An article posted Tuesday, 05 June 2018 by Alex Newman at www.thenewamerican.com entitled Liberals May Win Control of Largest U.S. Protestant Denomination opens with these paragraphs:
The Southern Baptist Convention, America’s largest protestant denomination and a historically conservative wing of the Christian church in the United States, is on the verge of falling to organized “progressive” social-justice forces and anti-Trump activists, according to media reports and insiders involved in the battle. One leading opponent of the scheme has even blasted what he described as the “Evangelical Deep State” working to infect the church with unbiblical ideologies.
The goals of these forces, dubbed “neo-Marxist” by some critics, include softening and eventually quashing Christian opposition to homosexuality, normalizing gender confusion in the church, promoting left-wing politics at all levels of government, fuelling constant obsession and angst over race and gender, facilitating mass Islamic migration into the United States, and much more.
Most rank-and-file Southern Baptists remain oblivious to what is happening, insiders said. But the implications for the church, the culture, the nation, and politics could be earth-shattering.
Take a little time to do some research about the “acceptance” of LGBTQ doctrine into numerous mainstream “Christian” denominations, and you might be surprised to learn just how pervasive this progressive movement is. Now, for starters, this is not going to be a homosexual bashing. As I’ve said numerous times, we live in a free country and as such people can choose whatever “lifestyle” they want; limited of course by God given standards of decency in terms of adults not choosing children. And yes, I said choose because I don’t care how you slice it, so-called alternative “lifestyles” are just that; a choice. I don’t care how hard you argue that it’s not a choice, it doesn’t change the fact that at the end of the day, it is a choice. You are choosing to live your life apart from the “norms” of society and more importantly, apart from the morality set forth in the word of God. Of course, that’s where the rub is. That’s where the divide is. Heterosexuality is biblically moral and as such, normal from the vantage point of true Christians; homosexuality and any other sexually deviant “lifestyle” is amoral making it abnormal. I might share my reasoning for seeing sexuality ultimately as a choice at another time, but for now I’ll just stick to the topic.
With that said, the focus of this post will be to explore the word of God as it relates to the spiritual battle that rages on, not only in society, but also in the halls of denominational “Churches”. The article I sight above is part 2 of a 3 part series laying out this long, drawn out history of the upper echelon, i.e. the “leadership” in “America’s largest protestant denomination”. And in the case of the Southern Baptist Convention, you can’t help but notice the manifestation of the “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” at work. Bold statement, I get that. But, if you take time to read the articles, you’ll come to realize that the things that went on at the highest levels of the “largest denomination” have been going on for decades and you can’t help but come away noticing the outright carnality and disunity among those who fill the leadership positions in the SBC.
This is on-going. This is right now. It’s a form of infiltration. There are people claiming to be “Christians” actively organizing to change the doctrinal position held by southern Baptists regarding homosexuality and all the other moral/socio-political issues listed above. This same thing is happening in a number of other prominent denominations like the Presbyterians and Episcopalians.
And I can’t help but point out the last paragraph in the excerpt above:
“Most rank-and-file Southern Baptists remain oblivious to what is happening, insiders said. But the implications for the church, the culture, the nation, and politics could be earth-shattering.”
Why do I point it out? Moo.
The average church-going christian doesn’t know, doesn’t want to know, doesn’t want to get involved, probably doesn’t know one way or the other whether God “accepts” homosexuals, if they’ll be saved, forgiven, what have you… Just keep the church services coming and I’ll see ya next Sunday!
I’m kinda getting off on a tangent here, so I’m going to bring the point of this post back into focus. Specifically, what I want to bring to the forefront of this discussion are passages in the Bible that have to be either ignored in its entirety or removed from the text of the KJV all together in order to put forth doctrine that attempts to lead people to “accept” or be “inclusive” of the homosexual “lifestyle” in these organizations.
For the record, I’m not inclined to shy away from controversy ‘cause that’s what this is. In today’s PC culture, one things for sure, you’d better be open to the injection of homosexual doctrine in all aspects of our life or you will be figuratively outcast by the communist/fascist/leftists/progressives who are foisting this free-for-all, pan sexuality on our society.
As I said, you have to ignore or remove very specific passages from the bible to argue that homosexuality and all the various forms it takes is “OK” with God. That’s where I’m taking this because that’s exactly where it needs to go. We can let ourselves be drawn into the false narrative put forth by these forces and the emotionally manipulative way in which they communicate it or we can stand. The question of course is, stand for what? If we are who we say we are, we stand for the word of God. We stand for the morality found in the pages of the Bible and it’s application in our lives. Not saying it’s easy, just saying that fundamentally it’s just that simple. I either believe the bible as the inerrant word of God or believe it requires revision to keep up with changing culture.
That’s what’s at the heart of this; you have people who don’t like what it says, who don’t agree with what it says, who don’t believe what it says, who think it’s a “living document”, and that it’s OK to change it as they see fit. And in my mind, what it means is that these people are in truth nonbelievers; they are counterfeits.
With all of this in mind, let’s turn to the pages of the KJV and let ourselves be instructed by God as to his “position”, as it were, regarding these moral issues and those who would pervert His testimony, i.e. his commandments. For starters, let’s go back to the Mosaic Law contained in Leviticus to understand God’s direction to the nation of Israel:
Leviticus 18:22
Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it [is] abomination.
Leviticus 20:13
If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them.
Uh, I don’t know how you miss that. I don’t know how can turn that around somehow to say that God “accepts” homosexuality. Granted, this is from the Old Testament and the Mosaic Law in particular and I’ve certainly made the argument in Cows In The Pews and The Atheists Too that we’re not under the Law. But, just from a simplistic standpoint, it sounds pretty cut and dry that a man laying with a man as with a woman ain’t OK with God. And to be clear, I’m gonna say this to be on record sayin’ it: the Mosaic Law was FOR the nation of Israel, NOT the gentile nations. If God’s law called for death for those who commit such an abomination, that’s between God and the Jews, not God and gentiles.
As it turns out, from the Old Testament to the New Testament, the bible is consistent with this man lying with man thing; let’s consider Paul’s epistle to the Romans specifically. I’ve included all of these verses here for context so you can see this build up, as it were, to verse 26 and 27. The first part of verse 26 says, “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections” and proceeds to describe both men and women giving themselves over to these shameful acts of “vile affections”.
Romans 1:16-32
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed [it] unto them.
For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified [him] not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
And even as they did not like to retain God in [their] knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
What strikes me is that what’s going on in the case of the SBC and the other denominations undergoing similar division is that people want to change “religion” as promulgated by the typical Christian denomination to allow people to have their cake and eat it too. They want to be able to say on the one hand, “I’m a believer, but I don’t want to have to change my behavior in any way”. “I don’t want to have to repent of my prior “lifestyle” because I would have to admit, acknowledge, confess, etc. that what I’ve been doing is wrong… I don’t want to do that. I want Christianity to realize that to put forth this “judgmental” morality is wrong and exclusive and needs to change its doctrine to catch up with the times…”
Ephesians 6:12-13
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places].
Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
