Social Media Etiquette

In this era of modern technology we seem to have lost common sense. Here are a few suggestions for those having trouble navigating the vast "super-highway" lane called Facebook. (If you cannot handle sarcasm... read no farther.)

1. Don't be vulgar, profane, rude, dirty, obnoxious, or hateful. The rest of us get enough of that at work, in traffic, from our neighbors, and watching politicians; we don't need that from you too. It really doesn't prove anything more than you have no class and you are not a gentleman or lady. It doesn't make anyone think you are cool or impressive. The rest of us don't like for that kind of junk to pop up on our news feed. Do us all a favor: clean up your language, your attitude, your life, and your posts!

2. Keep private things private! No decent person wants to read the details of your marital in-fighting, nasty break-ups, family feuds, financial disarray, intimate physical relationship details, or other personal stuff on Facebook. You may not be aware of this, but anyone who is your friend on Facebook can read you posts. That means your posts are public. (As an addendum to this it is worth noting that most... if not all... of your friends are not professional counselors. In other words your private problems will not be solved over a wall post with a number of friends responding.)

3. Don't forward or click on links to chain messages. If the message seems out of character with the sender then do not open it. You can always verify the link by asking the sender to verify whether they sent the link. You may have received the link because they clicked on a message from someone else, which spammed all their friends with messages. Please don't propagate this!

4. Some things need to be done face to face, not on Facebook. Don't dump your girlfriend/boyfriend by posting on their page. Don't release that employee from their job by messaging them and then removing them from your friend list. And don't ask someone to marry you by posting on their wall (that's not creative... it's cowardly). Remember that to get through life you must really communicate with people!

5. Social media is not a place to give or receive counseling. Licensed counselors do not have Twitter counseling or Instagram therapy sessions. Venting and then looking for encouragement from people is an extremely unhealthy habit to fall into. If you need counseling, schedule a visit with your pastor! Do not air all of your problems in an attempt to fish for affirmation. Social media can, at best, produce only a counterfeit healing.  

6. Picture discretion advised. Your father, brother, relatives, decent co-workers and friends don't want to see you in a bathing suit, thong, underwear, skin tight spandex, or other immodest apparel. Neither do we wish to see your cleavage, tattoos (especially in places not normally seen), post-surgery wound pictures, making out sessions, any bathroom pictures, or you after you've had a drunken stupor outside of the bar. This does not help anyone's ability to take you seriously. (The same goes with videos.)

7. Cut the mushiness. If you are "in a relationship", "engaged", or "married" to someone, then the rest of us assume that you love that person. To be reminded occasionally of that truth is okay, but try not to be excessive. Usually those who never have anything more to say than "IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEE      UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" are actually the same ones that will break rule #1 at some point down the road.

8. Don't post about your illegal activities. If you are breaking the law, calling out people by name, cheating on your girlfriend, or calling in sick but actually running errands.... don't put it on Facebook. It wasn't the right thing to do to begin with and now you've just let the world know that you are a poor decision maker.

9. No one really cares about your quiz results. The rest of the world, if they have a life, does not care what movie star you are most like, what kind of animal best fits your personality, what your age at death will be, what your horoscope for the day says, what kind of a kisser you are, what movie best describes your life, or how much money you will make when you are 35, 45, & 55. We don't care. If you want to waste your time taking the quizzes that's fine, but don't waste our time by making us delete them from our homepage.

10. When you actually talk to someone in real life, don't make constant reference to Facebook. Constant references to information and knowledge you obtained on Facebook is weird and creepy. It makes you seem like a stalker and/or someone with no beneficial life functions... just don't do it. (While I'm at it don't put the following in your profile 'info' section: "if you want to know more message me" that's crazy! If they really did message you asking what your blood type was, wouldn't you be freaked out?) Real people are able to communicate and socialize beyond the confines of a computer screen, keyboard, and mouse... try it some time, you might just enjoy it.

What might you add?

Also check out the following articles...

Navigating Social Media

We're All Winners

I Want to be a Growing Christian

When Did Holiness Theology Shift to Calvinism

Why You Lost Your Kids to the Kingdom of God

I recently read an article by Jim Daly in which he gave 10 reasons kids leave the church. My pastor's mind was spurred into thinking about this subject as I reviewed my time as a pastor and asked what common practices distinguished families that had children leave the church and families that had children raise the next generation in church. 

Here is my list:

1. The church tried to entertain rather than disciple. We wouldn't admit it mind you. We would rather say we were relevant or engaging or evangelistic. The truth is, we were so desperate that they would enjoy church, that we turned it into a show. When they ceased to be amused by our trite antics they searched for the genuine outside the bounds of their Creator's character.

2. We didn't teach them anything. They do not know what righteousness, atonement, justification, sanctification, or any of a number of other Biblical words or concepts mean. We bought them fancy Bibles with colorful covers and interesting pictures, but never took them by the hand and dived in. We confused discipleship with entertainment. When the atheists came around with their worldly philosophies, our children were unarmed and unprepared.

3. We turned them against our elders. We created a spirit of generational conflict in our church. We sided with our children when our parents warned that things were not going in a good direction. We ignored wisdom from our elders and listened to the "wisdom" of youth. (Didn't Rehoboam do that too?) We convinced our children that their enemy was the elderly of the church rather than "the spirit of the age."

4. We made them consumers rather than contributors. We treated them like royalty and they grew up to believe the church was suppose to serve them rather than them serving the church. If they whine about something we "fix" it. If they complain about something, we change it. We expected the church to be formed around their need to be amused and entertained. They became dead weight; then they cut themselves loose.

5. We did not distinguish between the holy and the common. We were content when they didn't embarrass us in public, get arrested, or cuss at church. We told them all the things they were not suppose to do (although we never told them 'why'). But we never told them the things they really should be doing. We never showed them the difference between common lifestyle and holy living. They never desired to live a holy life, because we were content that they didn't live an outright wicked one.

6. We focused more on them than Christ. Our children became idols. Some of us tried to live our lives vicariously through our children. All of the perceived injustices of our childhood we would correct through our kids; all our dreams would be fulfilled through our kids. Instead of seeing us bow before the King of Kings they saw us trying to live out the "American dream."

7. We criticized and complained in front of them. Every Sunday afternoon we critiqued the pastor's sermon. We aired all of our frustrations with our brothers and sisters in the church. Following each committee meeting we blasted those with different opinions. We highlighted the problems of the church regularly. And we did all this within ear shot of those who were inflicted with more damage than we ever realized.

8. Church was just on the to-do list. It was a Sunday only event. It never permeated our lives. The rubber never met the road. We never connected the necessity of a church family with our biological family and our relationship with God. It was just something we did when convenient. There was no joy in it, no fun, no expectation, just dead, dry ritual.

9. We nurtured (probably unintentionally) a love of the world. By our actions we showed sports, good grades, and entertainment were more important than honoring and living for Christ. Sacrificial living was ignored for comfortable living. Our children became more at ease in the world than among the people of God. Church attendance, family altar & prayer time, and spiritually nurturing disciplines were always second to the demanding schedule of a sports, entertainment, and other activities.

10. We never really had anything to pass on to begin with. I know, this one stings maybe more than any of the others. We have played the hypocrite too long. We never really loved Jesus ourselves in any meaningful way. We passed on ashes instead of a fire upon the altar. Our children didn't know what to do with ashes so they threw them out.

Karen Burton Mains: "Do you rush, push, shout and become generally unpleasant on Sunday mornings? Do you complain about church? Are you irregular in your attendance? Are you over-conscientious about matters that are not really important? Do you always criticize the pastor, the choir, the length of services and the usher crew? Then don't be surprised if your children grow up to look at Sundays as the worst day of the week." 

Anything you might add?

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Why I Don't Play the Lottery.

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I Want to be a Growing Christian.

I'm Getting Emotional

I'm not sure when it first took place, but it seems like emotion in connection with worship of God has come to be viewed as a negative thing. We seem to have developed a ceiling of excitement when we are worshiping the God who saves us from our sins. Be excited, we encourage people... just not that excited.

It's kind of like we just decided that visible signs of emotion were a scary/bad thing. The ideal has been that everyone sit through the church gathering and fulfill their scripted responsibilities. Stand when instructed to, sit when asked to, and sing when the music starts. Emotion has a tendency to disrupt our carefully planned and skillfully constructed order.

Emotional responses in a collective worship gathering can also make some people feel uncomfortable. I mean, think about what might happen if someone next to you just started crying; seemingly without cause. A little emotion, and especially a lot of emotion, can give others the emotional sensation of uncomfortability. This emotion thing could cascade!

What if the preacher does not have the opportunity to share the sermon? What if someone were to get up and leave the church over a show of emotion? Is it too much to ask that everyone act a little civilized during worship? Does anyone else think that emotional outbreaks can come off a little irreverent?

The real problem is that I have sat through more than my fair share of emotionless services. A people who were unresponsive and unengaged. No one really wants to sit through a sermon devoid of soul, worship without passion, or a service without emotion.

It is important to note that God created emotion. While we live in a culture that is increasingly prone to sterilizing everything because someone will be offended or have some kind of an emotional response, we must acknowledge emotion has a purpose in our lives. If God created our emotions (and has them himself) then we need to learn how to utilize them in appropriate ways and not hide them away.

It starts with our parenting. No one likes to see a baby or toddler cry. Typically we rush to appease the source of their sorrows. We want to stop the emotion as if it is bad. Following funerals I have heard friends tell the family of the deceased individual that it is time for them to move on now. Translation = do not be emotional anymore.

We sometimes too quickly run to medicines to numb the emotions we are dealing with because they are not always very pleasant. Stopping emotions seems to be a favorite past time for some. I even recall someone getting quite upset in a medical waiting room because someone was reading the comics and laughing. When did emotions become so offensive?

We brought some of these things into the church. Remain calm, stayed, and collected during worship. Do not act in anyway that would disrupt the solemn attitude of those in attendance. I once remember a mother leaning over to her toddler child in the pew at church who was snickering about something while oblivious to what was happening in the sanctuary and saying: "Quit laughing, you are in church."

Certainly I am not advocating for some kind of emotionalism in our worship. Emotions should not be the driving force for any area of life! I am simply advocating for a healthy expression of emotion during our times of corporate worship as an essential element of worshiping God! We ought to be "emotional" when we worship!

If we really begin to think about what God has provided for us in His work of redemption we might get a little emotional. If we begin to review the steadfast love and faithfulness of God in our lives, we might get a little emotional. If we meditate on the tremendous sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross of Calvary, we might just get a little emotional. If we think about the promise of life to come in Heaven gathered around the throne of God, we might just get emotional. Bad? Not in a million years!

This Sunday, don't check your brain at the door when you walk into church to worship with your brothers and sisters in Christ. But do not check your heart at the door either. Worship our great Redeemer with all your heart, soul, mind, & strength!



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Signs of a Good Church

20 Signs You Are in a Dying Church

Women Preach!

I Fired Jesus

Annual Pastoral Report Tips

Since my denominational pastoral reports are due soon, I thought I'd try to help all those other pastors who are fumbling through the statistics and numbers they have to report with a few tips. Disclaimer: I don't think these have been approved by any denominational boards.

  

The Basics:

(1) "Average" is such a strong word. It requires complex mathematical equations and probably does more to confuse than to give a good assessment of reality. I prefer to call them "educated guesses."

(2) Be positive when accumulating your numbers. Your "averages" need to be reflective of what you hoped they were going to be this year. Always round up, always guess high, always assume the counters missed someone or multiple people. If you are discouraged, your guesses will probably reflect lower numbers so keep positive. If you prefer you can call them "faith numbers" in reference to the coming year.

(3) Everyone will tell you "it's not about the numbers" but don't let that fool you. They are probably just trying to get you to focus on something like discipleship or evangelism while they build up their numbers. It is about the numbers! 

(4) Make sure our numbers are not round numbers as that seems a little "fishy." If you average 100 for Sunday School and 150 for Worship. Someone will start to wonder if you didn't "doctor" your numbers. Your averages should never be multiples of 10, 5, or 2. For example, your numbers would be more realistic if they were Sunday School- 103 and Worship- 151.

(5) I know that there is often a significant difference between intentions and reality, but not in pastoral reports! If they said they'd be there and intended to be there, they ought to get counted.

                                      

How to increase your worship average without actually increasing your worship average:

(1) Have a Sunday night service? Well, that's a bonus since most churches don't have one. Take your morning worship average and multiply it by 1.5. That number is looking better already!

(2) We all know that people get up and leave the service to go the restroom, fix their hair, take the baby to the nursery, etc. Whoever counts will probably miss those people. Add 7% to your worship average for the "hall & foyer traffic."

(3) Have babies in the sanctuary during service? You need to add 3% to your average attendance (round up). Do you know how difficult it is for the counter to make sure and cover every baby in the sanctuary? They can be easily missed... but not on your statistics!

(4) Is your church located in a subdivision or community surrounded by houses and/or apartments? Turn up the sound system and open a window and you could conceivably triple your worship attendance "average." The sky is the limit here!

(5) Maybe your church is located on a main highway instead of a subdivision. Do you have a message board church sign? It may be a short sermon, but its something! Use those three lines to bump up your worship average. You know that sign blesses hundreds... maybe thousands of people a day. You might just be the pastor of a mega church and not even know it!

(6) We take a strong stand on the fact that life begins at conception. With that in mind, any pregnant women in the church can be counted twice: once for the mother and once for the baby. (Just to be safe you may want to assume that mothers are going to carry twins.)

(7) Those extremely dedicated church attendees who sit on the first two or three rows need to be counted twice. Anyone who would put themselves through the torture of sitting that close to the preacher while he is preaching needs to be counted twice (maybe three times). That's just not normal.

(8) Snow day ruin your Sunday attendance? Rain? Sickness? Drop that Sunday from your average. Obviously, had God wanted that to count in your average attendance he would not have sent that pestilence among the people of the church. The sun would have been shining. To "average" in that low number may be in defiance to a higher authority.

(9) Have some "regulars" out this Sunday? Add them anyway. If they come 3 out of 4 Sundays a month they are regular attendees and need to be counted. If they weren't on vacation they would be at church. If they weren't getting the holiday shopping done they would be at church. If they weren't watching the ball game, they would be at church. If they weren't so tired, they would be at church. Since they would be there if they could, you need to count them.

(10) Does your church have sermons available online for streaming or download? If so, do you realize that the Internet is worldwide!? There are literally millions of people with Internet access around the world! You have the potential of doubling the size of your whole denomination! You are probably responsible for church plants in places you've never heard of before!

I don't know about you, but I feel like I'm going to have some major gains this year!! Prepare for district assembly rewards.



Check out these other articles:

Why I Like the Church of the Nazarene

Some Useful Pastoral Resources

Get a Back Bone

Why I Still Have Revivals in the Church I Pastor

A Missionary to the Nursing Home

We have a missionary to the local nursing home. Some people might call her a "shut-in" or  "homebound" but I call her a missionary. She does not receive a salary for being a missionary, in fact, she is "self-funded" in her Great Commission endeavors. Let me explain.

I had recently begun to pastor in Indiana and was busy learning names, finding addresses, and becoming acquainted with my new church family. The "shut in list" included names and addresses that I had printed out on the office printer from a list of contacts of our church family. 

The next person to be visited on the list was Beatrice**(Name changed for privacy.) It had been a few years since she had been to a church service on our physical campus due to her declining health and restrictions associated with living in a nursing home. I checked in at the front desk and the receptionist directed me to her room through a set of double doors with a keypad and a couple of long hallways strewn with elderly in wheelchairs.

I walked down the hallway reviewing the room numbers and name placards next to each room. The familiar smell of nursing home hallways went with me. One lady held tight to a railing that went down the entire length of the hallway as she made her way in the opposite direction.

I walked into her room and spotted a lady sitting in a small recliner working on a crossword puzzle and asked, "Are you Beatrice?" 

She looked up from her book and smiled warmly. "Yes, I am."

As I introduced myself to her as the new pastor of Mackey Church of the Nazarene, she invited me to sit on the edge of her bed as she sat in her seat a few feet away. Her room was small and modest but included the chair she was sitting in along with a little table holding a lamp and some other reading material next to her chair. There was a Bible sitting next to some of her mail and other puzzle books.

There was a large curtain hanging from the ceiling that served as a sort of divide in the room from the other resident and her bed in the same room. It all felt very small, almost insignificant, but there was something about this room I could not shake. 

I shared a little bit about myself and Beatrice listened patiently. A staff-person from the nursing home came into the room. Beatrice knew her by name. She had come into the room to check on Beatrice. She did not recognize me and exhibited a level of love in her concern for Beatrice's well being by finding out the identity of this new visitor.

"This is my new pastor," Beatrice informed her. The subtle message of her safety was communicated to the staff person who greeted me and moved on to tackle her duties for the day. I then began to listen as Beatrice pointed out pictures of family and recounted her own life story. 

As a pastor does, I eventually came to the point in the conversation where we discussed Beatrice's spiritual condition. Beatrice quickly confirmed what I already had a hunch about: "I love Jesus so much. He is with me here every day and speaks to me."

She did not need to do or say anymore to convince me. Her smile and words were saturated with the presence of the Holy Spirit. Curiosity compelled me to dig deeper though: "How do you serve Jesus in here?"

The question was abrupt and almost seemed to disrupt the flow of our conversation to that point. Beatrice put her crossword puzzle book on the little table and repositioned herself in the recliner. She leaned forward a little as she began to speak: "I can't do much in here. I don't have any money to speak of and my body just won't let me get around like I'm use to. But I love Jesus so much. Sometimes I sit in this room for hours and pray for my family and people who need Jesus."

The answer was no surprise, but then she continued. "The other day, there was a gentleman who had no family. He was an Alzheimer patient who was dying down the hall from me. I felt so sad for him. So Jesus told me to go be with him. I went in to his room and sat in the chair next to his bed and held his hand. He couldn't talk because of the advancement of the Alzheimer's disease and when he looked at me I could see in his eyes that he was scared. So I prayed for him right there. I asked Jesus to save him. And then I began to sing. I'm not a good singer anymore pastor, but I sang for him. Before I knew it, it seemed that all the employees in the whole building were standing in here and out into the hallway just crying."

Beatrice thought she did not have much to offer the Savior, but I think she did. I cannot claim I know what happened to the man after he breathed his last, I do not even know his name. The world seemed to care little that a man who was elderly and riddled with a disease that robbed him of speech and his own memories. But Beatrice cared. And Jesus ministered to that man through a woman who has refused to stop serving the Lord in her latter years.

When Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman, an American evangelist, was in London, England, he had the opportunity to spend some time with the founder of the Salvation Army. William Booth and the Salvation Army, A holiness denomination that is well known for its ministry to the poor, were part of the holiness movement in England. General Booth was past eighty years of age when Dr. Chapman sat down with him. He listened as General Booth shared the obstacles, victories, revivals, and ministries he had participated in throughout the year. Then the American evangelist asked the general if he would disclose his secret for success.

“He hesitated a second,” Dr. Chapman said, “and I saw the tears come into his eyes and steal down his cheeks, and then he said, ‘I will tell you the secret. God has had all there was of me. There have been men with greater brains than I, men with greater opportunities; but from the day I got the poor of London on my heart, and a vision of what Jesus Christ could do with the poor of London, I made up my mind that God would have all of William Booth there was. And if there is anything of power in the Salvation Army today, it is because God has all the adoration of my heart, all the power of my will, and all the influence of my life.’”

Dr. Chapman said he went away from that meeting with General Booth knowing that, “the greatness of a man’s power is the measure of surrender.”

Yes, we have a missionary in our local nursing home. She is praying with people, singing to comfort them, and being present with them as they transition into the life to come. There are people more intelligent than her; people who are physically better off, financially more capable, and even more gifted. But Jesus has all of Beatrice.

Can you pray for a missionary from our church who is trying to fulfill the Great Commission in the local nursing home? She might be praying for you.


Other articles you might be interested in...

The Cry of My Heart

Transformation is Available

The Funeral God Attended

A Perspective Changer

Why I Can No Longer Support Nazarene Theological Seminary...

Why I can no longer support Nazarene Theological Seminary's current leadership.

I write the following with a heavy heart. Before I get into the reasons, let me give a little background.

I came to know Jesus as my Savior through the Church of the Nazarene. It was in 1989 during a weeknight at a Fall revival at Lafayette Church of the Nazarene (Lexington, KY). I was young, but it was a transformational turning point in my life. I love the Church of the Nazarene. The Church of the Nazarene is where I heard about the message of holiness and God's work of entire sanctification. I have sensed the presence of the Holy Spirit in Churches of the Nazarene in different states and international places. I have been taught in her Sunday School classes, worshiped in children's church, participated in teen camps, attended camp meetings, gone on work & witness trips, listened with interest as missionaries told of the mighty works of God.

It was the Church of the Nazarene that affirmed God's call on my life and ordained me. My ordination in the Church of the Nazarene means something to me. I have now pastored churches since 2003. I have served in small places and large places. God has seen fit to allow me the opportunity to serve through the Church of the Nazarene. 

The consensus among many is that young people in the church are only going to be reached by a continued compromise of our identity. At first that compromise involved only our standards found in the covenant of Christian conduct (the "rules" of membership). Things that many people were not completely comfortable with but were not willing to battle as they were not "essential." It seems now that we have delved into "essentials."

My concerns are listed below, but let me first say that I have spoken via the phone with Dr. Jeren Rowell. I have voiced my concerns directly to the Seminary president. I have also spoken with staff, students (current & former), and other denominational leaders about my concerns. I am not sharing anything that cannot publicly be verified or has not been addressed directly with those responsible for overseeing these issues. I have sought to follow a Biblical approach of working through differences. 

With that said, here are some of my concerns...

1. Professors on staff:

The visiting professor of spiritual formation and discipleship is Dr. Michael Christensen. He is an elder in the United Methodist church who actively promotes the full inclusion of those who are practicing LGBT. The UM church that he attends declares that they proclaim the love of Christ to everyone which, for them means that they will include you in membership, ministry, etc regardless of your lifestyle concerning the LGBT issues. He has also personally signed a statement by the "reconciling ministries" that supports active LGBT clergy within the UM church. Why would someone like that be allowed to teach at our flagship seminary? You can also see some of the things he worked to promote during his time at Drew Seminary.

Previously, Dr. Elaine Heath, was the visiting professor of evangelism at Nazarene Theological Seminary. She served for a short time as the Dean at Duke Divinity School. Her stand on issues of affirming the LGBT lifestyle are best shared in her own words from her op-ed in the Herald Sun. Heath, like Christensen, view the affirmation of LGBT lifestyle and the inclusion of those who practice such a lifestyle as a social justice issue. In other words, not fully including someone in active ministry within the church who is a practicing homosexual is sin from their perspective. **Update** Elaine Heath is not presently teaching at NTS.

2. Conference & Special Speakers:

Dr. Molly Marshall recently spoke at a preacher's conference. Dr. Russell Moore, of the Southern Baptist Church, writes an article outlining Marshall's views on a few things. Some are, like women in ministry, are inline with the Church of the Nazarene, but some, like LGBT inclusion/affirming, are not!

At the same preaching conference hosted by NTS, Libby Hugus was given a platform. The church of which she is a pastor is socially & theologically progressive congregation. This video is Hugus telling about the church that she pastors. Lot's of vocabulary may lead to bad places, but it is the universalism that remains blatant.

Nick Pickrill was yet another speaker. His church is a self described "socially progressive" and "queer affirming" church.

Dr. Thomas Oord is a frequent speaker and friend of NTS. At one time Oord was a professor at Northwest Nazarene University before his controversial views led to a shake up at the school. What are his controversial views? He believes in process theology. He is also a proponent of full inclusion of LGBT into every facet of ministry. Check out a social media post on his own profile. (It really leaves me wondering how he can remain ordained in the Church of the Nazarene and have such blatant/public opinions that are obviously counter to Biblical teaching and the Church of the Nazarene's official stance.) How is he still an ordained elder in our church?

Update (02-22-22): The Grider-Winget Lectures in Theology with Dr Willie Jennings on February 26, 2022 features the professor and author known for "Can 'White' People Be Saved: Triangulating Race, Theology, and Missions." His insistence to push racial division is not surprising as he also serves as an advocate for gay marriage (and therefore the practice of homosexual behavior). Jennings says: “[G]ay marriage must be celebrated just as strongly, as loudly, and as intensely as any marriage of disciples, because what begins in civil toleration when touched by the Spirit of the living God becomes joyous and extravagant celebration”

Updated (08-26-22): The 2022 Preacher's Conference in September welcomes Rev. Dr. Frank A. Thomas as the speaker. His twitter feed and a Google search can give a pretty clear picture of his standing on various issues. He is a strong pro-abortion, pro-LGBT, pro-gay marriage, and critical race theory proponent. Sound good enough to invite to our seminary and give instruction to our future pastors and leaders?

Updated (02-22-22): If you contact someone who speaks for the seminary you will hear these standard lines: "As an academic institution of higher learning we want our students to engage in a variety of viewpoints and perspectives." Of course no one would suggest that we train our future ministers, who will lead our churches, without an understanding of teachings that contradict Christianity or even our own Wesleyan-Holiness theology. Our pastors and leaders need to understand the falsehood to be able to combat the thoughts and philosophical ideologies that stand as obstacles to seeing minds transformed by the grace of God. The problem is that these ideologies are often treated as acceptable alternatives to clear biblical teachings.

Updated (02-23-22) For example, many leaders will strongly affirm their adherence to the Church of the Nazarene's statement on human sexuality. What they will not do publicly is affirm that those who practice homosexuality will not inherit eternal life. For so many in our Nazarene Seminary, the issue of practicing homosexuality is a denominational issue to be addressed much like we address Calvinism vs Arminianism. We hold to a stance, but acknowledge that you can be a Christian, within the "big tent", and take a position that is contrary to the clear teachings of Scripture. In other words, while they will publicly declare their adherence to a Manual statement, they often do not privately agree with it.

3. Other Seminary Staff:

There are also other members of the staff at NTS who identify as homosexual. There are some who were removed from the ordination process because of their beliefs/lifestyles. Some simply no longer adhered to the doctrine and ethic of the Church of the Nazarene so they walked away. Yet they are/were still employed by our Seminary despite their contradictory lifestyles and doctrinal positions. (Update 02-22-22: One such employee referred to in the previous paragraph was fired after refusing to resign.)

It would seem that more people are identifying as homosexual than are being entirely sanctified in the flagship seminary of the Church of the Nazarene.

4. Getting Rid of "Hell"

I must admit that I don't think this is a problem peculiar to our Nazarene Seminary in Kansas City. However there is a culturally based movement to get rid the idea of "Hell." It is not palatable to our modern sensibilities. It would appear that some of the professors and leadership of our seminary are aiding this influence in the Church of the Nazarene by proposing that we eliminate the negative idea of "Hell" in our articles of Faith. The idea is that a "loving" God could never punish someone for eternity in Hell. Do we believe all of the Bible is allegory now? Did Jesus literally die and rise again? Is Heaven real? (Ever notice how people want to disregard Hell, but not necessarily Heaven?)

There is a trend away from Biblical authority in this move.

5. The Main Issue:

How can our flagship seminary allow our future ministers to be instructed by professors, some of which are unabashedly pro-homosexual? Their theological and biblical ability must be questioned on all fronts if they have come to the conclusion that people who are living actively in homosexual lifestyles are approved and encouraged by God (including their ordination). This taints their whole hermeneutic and leaves every theological conclusion they come to in question.

This is not a random post that has been done in the "spur of the moment." I have personally called and spoken with Dr. Jeren Rowell as well as other various other interactions with staff and personnel from the school. I have spoken with current and former students and staff. I have prayed for this institution (as I continue to do). Churches I have pastored have received offerings to support the work of the Seminary. A small portion of the World Evangelism Fund is given to the seminary annually and as a local church pastor, I have worked to always support the work of the Church of the Nazarene around the world through payment of the World Evangelism Fund. I love the Church of the Nazarene. I now deal with discouragement because of what is happening at the place where many of our missionaries, pastors, and denominational leaders are being trained.

Some of the excuses for not acting on the situations above include a myriad of reasons. Some include a supposed inability to take the appropriate action. Hands are "tied" to be able to "fire" personnel or cancel "legal" contracts. This represents a legal snare that is, in reality, impotence of leadership or an unwillingness to act.


6. What is your response?

Some people have become "institutionalized." They will automatically defend the institution no matter what. It might come from a sense of loyalty to the organization or the social structure. Like me, they care deeply about the denomination they are part of, but will refuse to see any wrong in what is written above.

They will accept the "scripted" answers from some people in hierarchy. "We believe in the articles of faith and the statement on sexuality from the Church of the Nazarene's Manual." It is a painful thing to come to terms with the fact that the institution you love has divorced it's original mission and spiritual DNA.

If you address these issues you will probably receive responses that sound something like this: "We need to be willing to have difficult conversations." "Discussions that involve varying viewpoints are always had at graduate level theological institutions of higher learning." "Our denomination is a big tent that is representative of many people from differing perspectives." "You are harming the unity of the church." These excuses, at the end of the day, simply do not hold up to Biblical imperatives and standards. Our polity can be manipulated to become a smoke screen for agendas of worldly ideologies pushing for change. Real Christian unity is always "unity in Christ". That is, division is created in the body when people reject the truth of Christ.

Let me propose a course of action...

1. Pray. No, seriously, stop and pray. This information may be new to you and has a tendency to evoke anger. This is a temptation. Spend some time sincerely praying for Nazarene Theological Seminary. If you are not willing to pray, I would ask that you not do anything. After praying...

2. Call, e-mail, and/or visit the Seminary. Express your concern with boldness but make sure your speech is seasoned with grace. Do not be dissuaded in your resolve for measurable action to be taken. Do not dilute your concern by using angry rhetoric. Do not attempt to be a bully, but do not be distracted by flowery rhetoric.

3. Act. Prayerfully consider what future actions to take if our seminary continues to persist in actions that undermine Biblical truth and the historic teachings of the church. Acting consistently with grace and firmness is important. Should you stop supporting this institution financially? Should you stop referring students? Those questions need to be answered in light of much prayer and contact with the seminary leadership. (Please do not take such action based solely upon reading a blog. Prayer and personal communication with someone or multiple people at the seminary is essential before taking further action.)

4. Stand up for Truth and Grace. Do not accept the temptation to either ignore Biblical truth or become an "angry protestor." Lead in your local congregation or denominational position with integrity on these issues. Make sure it is clear to those around you about your adherence to Biblical morality as we outline in our stance on issues like Human Sexuality in the Church of the Nazarene.

This is quickly becoming a major issue on every level of the universal Church of Jesus Christ. The United Methodist church is preparing to split over the same issue and countless other denominations have suffered the division that comes from people rejecting Biblical morality in favor of cultural and philosophical idols. Be faithful to God's Word. He hasn't changed His mind. Neither should we.

Many pastors and denominational leaders are fatigued with the conflict. Many will not act because they just long for harmony and unity within the church. I understand the fatigue. I too, long for harmony and focus on the mission of Christ and the promotion of full salvation & holiness again. I too, am tired of the incessant push by some toward a cultural agenda which normalizes sin and diminishes the need for real evangelism. I too, wish to be focused on being fruitful in the harvest. 

There is an incessant push from the world for the church to adhere to it's morality rather than Biblical morality. Some leaders are afraid of the conflict. They know that standing against something is unpopular and costly (personally, emotionally, financially, etc). My prayer, and please don't read sarcasm here, is that they would develop a back bone. Uncle Bud Robinson, a Nazarene Evangelist, said: "Oh Lord, give me a backbone as big as a saw log, ribs like the sleepers under the church floor, put iron shoes on me and galvanized breeches, give me a rhinoceros hide for a skin, and hang a wagonload of determination up in the gable-end of my soul, and help me to sign the contract to fight the devil as long as I've got a fist and bite him as long as I have a tooth, then gum him till I die. All this I ask for Christ's sake. Amen."

See also: "Why I Like the Church of the Nazarene"