Peter’s first epistle instructs the early church on how to live as a Christian in a world not of Christians. It is becoming a more relevant book of the Bible as western civilization collapses in on itself in an orgy of sins of the flesh. Christianity is again becoming an oddity in a secular world.
Peter quoted Isaiah that “the grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.”
There are a number of churches in the world struggling with how to deal with the mainstreaming of homosexuality. The Episcopal Church fully embraced it, like so many mainline churches, and began its death march away from Christ into the world.
Christ wants Christians to show Christian love, but that is not a worldly love. It is a love that does not love the sin, but preaches repentance and redemption. Hillsong, an Australian church with a global reach and presence, has an annual conference. In the past it has come under criticism for putting peddlers of the prosperity gospel on its stage. Now Hillsong is declaring it will exist the stage, or at least that part of the stage where Christianity brings moral clarity to the dilemmas of this alien world.
Andrew Walker has more on this. In short, Brian Houston the pastor of Hillsong Church has decided he has a better, different way than 2000 years of Christian orthodoxy. The pastor of Hillsong’s New York based church claims since Jesus never talked about homosexuality, Hillsong won’t do so either.
It is important to note that Hillsong has been drifting away from the Gospel of Jesus Christ for some time and toward a prosperity gospel. Its hipster church leaders have decided not to be set apart from the church of the age, but to embrace it.
They are more invested in the enterprise than doing the right thing.
As Andrew Walker noted, Laura Lentz, one of the pastors’ wives, said, “It’s not our place to tell anyone how they should live. That’s their journey.”
Hillsong no longer has room for Peter who wrote in 1 Peter 2:11-12, “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”
And a church with no room for Peter, one of the foundations of the church, has no room for its Cornerstone either. Hillsong will begin its death march away from Christ and into the world that is hostile to the things of Christ.
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