An “Evangelical” Church in Nashville Embraces Gay Marriage, Churchleaders.com

What strikes me about this sermon is that it reveals that the church’s transition actually occurred three years ago, not three weeks ago. But the church’s identity is so bereft of biblical ecclesiology that they apparently don’t realize it. What do I mean?

Pastor Mitchell says in the sermon above that when the church began their “conversation” about sexuality three years ago, they extended “partial membership” to practicing gays and lesbians. That “partial membership” consisted of welcoming them to be baptized and to the Lord’s table but of barring them from leadership and from the “sacraments” of baby dedication and of marriage. The only thing that changed three weeks ago was that those final three barriers were removed. So what gives?

Well, in the evangelical tradition, baby dedication and marriage are not sacraments. The only two sacraments (or ordinances) are baptism and the Lord ‘s Supper. Those two ordinances are defining marks of church membership, but leadership, baby dedication, and marriage most assuredly are not. That means that GracePointe crossed the theological Rubicon years ago, but apparently no one noticed.

And this underlines a problem that makes many churches vulnerable to the same kind of error that has now emerged at GracePointe. Churches that do not have a biblical ecclesiology will be more likely to fold than those that do. A biblical ecclesiology is God’s provision for sound teaching, qualified leadership, and meaningful membership—all three of which are essential to a healthy church and which are certainly missing at GracePointe.

Galatians 1:6-10 English Standard Version Anglicised (ESVUK)

No Other Gospel

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant[a] of Christ.

Further Reading

1)     The rest of this article

2)   More on Gracepointe Church

3)    How Evangelicals are changing their minds on Gay Marriage, Time Magazine

Gays Are 1 in 50, Not 1 in 4, Michael Brown, In the Line of Fire. Charisma Magazine

According to a 2011 Gallup poll, Americans thought that 25 percent of the population was gay (meaning one out of every four people), while those aged 18-29 put the figure at closer to 30 percent (meaning almost one in every three people). The reality is that less than 2 percent of the population is gay (meaning fewer than one in 50 people), and many gay leaders know this is true.

People of America, you have been duped.

For many years, we were told that "one in every 10 Americans" was gay, a figure based on the massively flawed 1948 study of Alfred Kinsey. (Kinsey actually relied on data from male prisoners to come up with his statistics.)

Even though gay activists knew the figure was inflated, they used it as a convenient lie, since, as two leading gay strategists noted in the late 1980s, "there is strength in numbers." (For details, go here.) As expressed by a gay leader a few days ago, "The truth is, numbers matter, and political influence matters."

In other words, if Americans realized that less than 2 percent of the population was gay rather 10 percent (let alone 25 percent), they would have a very different view of "gay rights."

To be sure, it is wrong to bully or oppress or mistreat anyone based on gender or ethnicity or romantic attractions, so that is not the question. And whether gays are 1 percent of the population or 90 percent, they should not be mistreated.

Read more here:

Further Reading:

Equal Marriage : Just Plain Wrong: A Christian Perspective on the Gay Marriage Debate in the UK Equal Marriage; Just Plain Wrong.

Gay Rights Activists Publicly Display Names of Conservative Opponents, Charisma Magazine

Opponents of Houston's proposed gay rights ordinance say that intimidation—not openness—is the motive behind supporters' move to publicize the names of more than 30,000 people who signed petitions asking that the measure be put on a referendum ballot.

With more than 30,000 "pre-verified" signatures collected favouring the referendum, opponents say that even if some are deemed fraudulent or to have come from people who are ineligible to vote, there will still be enough signatures to pass the threshold of 17,269 required to place the ordinance on the ballot for a public vote.

Gay rights supporters are asking citizens to pore through the paperwork and search for evidence of voter fraud.

"Was your name placed on the petition without your permission?" asks a headline on the homepage at heropetition.com, which backs the city's so-called equal rights ordinance. The measure was pushed through the city council by Mayor Annise Parker, an avowed lesbian. But church groups and others want the issue placed before the voters.

The ordinance would extend special legal protection to lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people and would apply to businesses that employ as few as 15 people.

Read more here:

Further Reading