Commercialism and Politics interrupt worship at a Baptist Church

It saddens me that some of the most head-shaking things that happen within the "church" in America today happen at Baptist Churches.  On one hand you have the screeching hate/conspiracy theories coming out of Westboro Baptist in Topeka, Kansas whose website is primarily dedicated to the things they're currently yelling about, and with them you can place Steven Anderson's Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, Arizona, who at least puts forth a normal website, but a quick Youtube search will find plenty of videos of his favorite targets for yelling.  Contrasting those in the us vs. the world camp, are those who have embraced the power that this world offers, going so far as to carve out time during Sunday's worship service to bring in a TV political celebrity to advocate for a new movie and of course promote the latest book from the famous pastor who himself regularly goes on the TV show of the famous guest.  Scratch my back, I'll scratch yours.

Pastor Jeffress interviews Sean Hannity during the worship service

First Baptist Church of Dallas, with Dr. Robert Jeffress as pastor of the mega-church, interviewed Fox News host Sean Hannity this past Sunday for fourteen minutes, at the end of which pastor Jeffress encouraged his audience to go see the movie that Hannity was there to promote.  Hannity received a standing ovation from the congregation (or is audience the right word here?).  This wouldn't be the first time that I've warned about the danger of how readily Pastor Jeffress is mixing politics with the Church, (blog post: Assassination, Pastor Jeffress, and Romans 13) as he has made quite a name for himself since the start of the 2016 election cycle, appearing on TV thousands of times and becoming a regular contributor to Fox News. 

At one point Hannity said, "I don't like liberals", which earned laughter and applause from the audience, then said, "I'm in the right church" as Jeffress laughingly said, "Hannity country right here".

At the end, as Jeffress indicated that his producers were telling him to wrap it up, Hannity joked, "We haven't even talked about Trump yet", leading Pastor Jeffress to chuckle and respond, "That's another sermon".

Perhaps this doesn't seem wrong to you, maybe you applaud the melding together of Fox News and First Baptist Church of Dallas, if so you probably won't be swayed by the mountain of historical evidence that shows the danger to the Church of getting in bed with political power, money, and fame.

At what point is the attention turned from the worship of God and the edification of his people onto the things of man, the pursuit of wealth and power?  If this isn't too far, how far can it possibly go, during a worship service, before you think it is a problem?  Will it be too far when they have commercial breaks during the service??

At what point does a pastor stop being a shepherd and start becoming a celebrity?  Is it not a problem when a pastor hocks products and helps people make money instead of leading people in worship of Jesus?  Whatever came before or after this point in the service, these 15 minutes were not in service to the Gospel.


If only Jesus had a book to sell, or was running for office...



 

Sermon Video: God rejects moral equivalence - Malachi 2:17

It has been evident throughout human history that virtue is not fully rewarded and wickedness is not fully punished; in fact, at times wickedness seems to be rewarded and virtue punished.  This state of affairs have led some to conclude that God does not exist and therefore right/wrong are simply arbitrary constructs based upon human consensus and thus open to redefinition.  Others have attempted to fix the problem by claiming that God himself (whether personal or impersonal) is not wholly good, but contains within himself both virtue and wickedness.  While both of these attempted solutions are unacceptable (especially since they're not based in reality), what is the answer to the problem of the existence of evil?
The prophet Malachi rejects the attempt by the people of Israel to embrace moral equivalence, telling them that God is wearied by willingness in their ignorance to blame him for the evil in our world.  God is holy, having no part in anything immoral or evil, that such things exist in our world is our fault, not God's.  In the end, the "success" of the wicked will probe short-lived, the justice of God will prevail, and righteousness will be rewarded.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: God Hates Divorce - Malachi 2:13-16

We all know that God "is love", even those who rarely, if ever, attend church seem to know that, but does God "hate" too?  The Word of God makes it clear that there are things which God hates, primarily things connected to idolatry, false testimony and violence among his people, but included within that list is something generally accepted by society: divorce.  The prophet Malachi declares that the LORD has said, "I hate divorce", a statement of God's response to the dissolution of marriages that leaves little wiggle room to those who value the authority of the scriptures.

Why does God hate divorce?  Malachi lists several reasons: (1) It is the breaking of a vow witnessed by God, (2) it is a rejection of the design of God as our Creator that two would become one in marriage, (3) it has a negative affect upon our responsibility to raise up "godly offspring", and (4) it puts the vulnerable party, usually women and children, into danger by depriving them of support and protection.

The Church is not unfamiliar with divorce, we have seen ample evidence that the people of God, when society allows them to do so, are willing to utilize divorce at rates nearly equal to those of their non-believing countrymen.  What ought we to do in response?  First, we must follow Malachi's example and warn our fellow Christians of the emotional and spiritual consequences of divorce, then we must help those who have made the mistake of seeking divorce to find forgiveness, as well as helping those who have been harmed by divorce to find reconciliation and healing.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: The Curtain is Torn - Luke 23:45 (1997)

We all start somewhere, maybe Billy Graham had the audience on the edge of their seat during his first sermon, but the rest of us need time to develop both our writing and our delivery.  This was my first sermon, delivered as part of an Easter service in 1997 at my home church of Galilee Baptist in Saranac, MI. 

The focus of the short message is the tearing of the curtain in the temple between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies (Most Holy Place) when Christ breathed his last, from Luke 23:45.

Sermon Video: Spiritually Uneven Marriages - Malachi 2:10-12

The prophet Malachi warns the people of Israel against the practice of marrying outside of the Covenant people, not for any racial reason, but because it brings into the nation those who worship other gods, and foster disunity within marriages and in parenting.  The same warning applies to the Church, as made plain by Paul's warning about being "unequally yoked" to the church at Corinth.  It is a dangerous choice for a Christian to marry a non-Christian, or for a committed disciple of Jesus Christ to marry a spouse for whom faith is not a priority.
What then do we say to those already in a spiritually uneven marriage?  Pray, continue to pray.  Be faithful, be patient, be kind, make sure that your devotion to God does not waiver, and make sure that your children are brought up in the knowledge of the Lord.

To watch the video, click on the link below: