What is Pentecost?

The Day of Pentecost is a holiday celebrated 50 days after Easter by many Christians around the world.  This year, the date was yesterday (May 24, 2026).  This day serves as a reminder to reflect upon the remarkable acts of God that followed the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus and the mission we carry — events we read about in the book of Acts.

Acts 2 begins with the disciples celebrating what they must have anticipated to be a normal Pentecost, their Jewish festival.  A special day to be sure, perhaps like our Christmas or Easter, but they could never have imagined what would unfold on this particular Pentecost.

For many of us in the church, we hear about Pentecost in relation to Acts 2, but it is first mentioned in Exodus 23:16 and explained in Leviticus 23:9-14.  In the Old Testament, Pentecost is known as the Festival of Harvest or the Festival of Weeks.  The Jews celebrated Pentecost 50 days after Passover to commemorate God’s provision for His people.  Its observance is tied to God’s rich agricultural blessings as well as His giving the law to Moses on Mt. Sinai.  These details highlight the intentionality and significance of the Holy Spirit being poured out on the day of Pentecost — God is in the details.

Since the Holy Spirit is the One who equips God’s people for His service, a clear filling of the Spirit was vital at the start of this new era in Christian history.  This extraordinary event starts out with the disciples gathered in the most ordinary of spaces.  They were together in a house. We might have expected them to be in the temple, the place of gathering and worship for God’s people at that time.  The fact that God met them in a house instead marks a seismic shift in God’s relationship with His people.  God’s presence among His people would no longer be only at the temple.  Because of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, when God’s people are gathered, a mere house can turn into a holy sanctuary.

Imagine the scene.  As the disciples were gathered (most likely this was the 120 who were together when Matthias was chosen, Acts 1:15), the rushing sound of wind roared through, and tongues like fire rested on each worshipper.  Both wind and fire are important symbols in Scripture.  Wind often represents the Spirit’s presence, while fire indicates the Lord’s holiness, cleansing and judgment (2 Samuel 22:16; Exodus 3:2; Luke 3:16).  The disciples were swept up in this holy phenomenon, filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke in other languages.

Meanwhile, the visiting worshippers in Jerusalem suddenly heard this large group of Galileans praising God.  The astounding part is that each heard the outpouring of praise in his or her own language or vernacular.  How could this be?  Questions arise. Confusion abounds. Some are drawn in, while others turn away.  In the midst of this supernatural event, Peter stood up and delivered a clear explanation.

Peter explained this was all a fulfillment of the prophet Joel (Acts 2:17-21; Joel 2:28-32). Up to this point, God’s Spirit was typically given to prophets, priests and kings and on a very limited basis.  Now, all people — men and women, young and old, slave and free — can receive the permanent power of the Spirit through belief in the Person and work of Jesus Christ.  Moses’s words were inspired when he cried, “If only all the LORD’s people were prophets and the LORD would place his Spirit on them!” (Numbers 11:29).  Neither gender, age nor social class could prevent a person made in God’s image from being filled with His Spirit.

The initial outpouring of the Holy Spirit was a confusing event for the Jews who were present that day, which is why Peter began his explanation with a passage from the prophet Joel. Peter aimed to demonstrate from their very Scriptures that what they were witnessing was indeed part of God’s plan all along.  But Peter wouldn’t stop in the Old Testament.  He would continue to draw his listeners forward to the work of Jesus, the dividing line between those with the Spirit and those without.  

One of the goals of Peter’s sermon was to help his listeners understand the connection between Jesus’s resurrection and ascension and the coming of the Holy Spirit.  Peter argued that when David wrote in Psalm 16 about his body never decaying nor being abandoned by God, he was prophesying about Jesus, the Messiah (2:22-28).  That God had made the crucified Christ both Lord and Messiah was the most significant news the Jewish community could hear.  The extraordinary event at Pentecost testified to God’s presence in and among the disciples, but it also equipped them to carry on Jesus’s work and ministry.  It revealed and empowered.  The Spirit’s presence has the same impact on our lives today.  The Spirit testifies to God’s presence with us and helps us know Him more, and the Spirit fills and empowers us with what we need to carry out His work in our lives.

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit came upon all kinds of people, an event the prophet Joel foretold.  There is no way to overhype this moment in history.  Men and women, young and old, rich and poor could all partake of the Spirit of the living God in such a way that they were said to be filled by Him.  This is possible because of Jesus’s death, resurrection and ascension.  As the vindicated Lord, Jesus poured out His Spirit on those who bore witness to Him.

This moment in history precipitated the gift of the Spirit we get to experience today — together.  Each day, take the time to ask the Spirit to fill you with a greater awareness of Himself.  Ask Him to make you more aware of His activity.  Be on the lookout for Him. What an exciting time to be alive.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

‘American Idol’ Winner’s ‘String Cheese’ Song is the Pro-Family Anthem We Need

An unassuming 25-year-old stay-at-home mom from rural Missouri was crowned the winner of American Idol last the weekend.  She didn’t win with a power ballad or a showstopper cover. She won with a song about reheating her coffee for the third time. About Hot Wheels on the floor.  About postpartum depression — and the small hand that reached up from the couch and asked, “Mama, can you open my string cheese?”

Hannah Harper is an overnight household name.  “String Cheese” has now been viewed more than 120 million times as her “ordinary” lyrics moved judge Carrie Underwood to tears. Country legends, famous actresses and exhausted moms alike flooded social media to say the same thing: this song is my life.

The vocation Harper is singing about — faithful, exhausted, purposeful motherhood, sustained by a husband who sacrifices, a faith that anchors, and a community that shows up — is so much of what God designed family life to look like.  And yet millions of people heard it and wept because it felt like a dispatch from a world they’re not sure exists anymore. 

They’re not wrong to wonder.  Many opinion elites flat-out reject Harper’s life choices. They encourage a “me-first” approach to life and tell you that being married in your early to mid-20s is foolish.  This mindset proposes to our young people that the real path to happiness is staying single as a young adult while rejecting the sacrificial love of marriage and parenthood. Your 20s are really for careers, cubicle farms, nightclubs and weekend brunches.

Professor Brad Wilcox’s research and writing provide powerful pushback, showing instead that the happiest people in America reject this “wisdom” and pursue the meaningful love of marriage and parenthood.  Now, Harper has given us a powerful anthem championing Wilcox’s case through the clever storytelling of a song written from both the feelings of physical fatigue and life-giving love.

It’s an apologetic America badly needs.

According to the latest American Community Survey, the age of first marriage now stands at 30.  People are not only getting married later, but so many today will never marry.  The Institute for Family Studies estimates that one in three young adults today will never marry by age 45.  This drives shorter life spans and epidemics of loneliness and mental illness.

It robs many women of the deep joys Harper sings about.  This young mom grew up singing bluegrass gospel in small Missouri churches.  Her musical foundation was formed not in performance, but in connection — in the kind of community where people show up for each other.  “It truly does take a village,” she said after her win.  “If it wasn't for the village, it wouldn't have ever happened.”

The village in Harper’s case is the family of families — the small town and the local church.

“String Cheese” isn’t just a song about one mom’s hard season.  It’s a cultural cry for the place that was once commonplace but today only exists in hidden pockets of American life.  This village is the web of relationships, mentorship, and shared faith.  That village has been slowly displaced: by screens, by a rejection of sacrificial love, by the quiet erosion of institutions built to hold it all together.  The local church is the one institution with both the mandate and the relational infrastructure to rebuild it.

And I’m seeing it come back in both small and large ways.

Asked about her plans going forward, she didn't talk about record deals or tour dates first. "Every stage I step on is another ministry opportunity,” she said. “And it will always be like that for me.”

The hunger for what she’s singing about is real.  The longing for the meaning that comes from family, from vocation, from a love that costs something and means everything.

While others have attacked, it’s not going away.  Harper reminds us that God has hardwired us for this sort of love, which we are now seeing on unexpected stages, reaching people who haven’t set foot in a church for years.

The question for every pastor and church leader watching this cultural moment is simple: when young people begin pursuing the meaning that comes from this sacrificial love — the love of married life — will you be ready for it?

This is exactly what the Church was built for.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

3 Unhelpful Responses to False Prophecy

The Church at large is reeling from more and more exposure of sin in the lives of its leaders, whose greed, sexual immorality, abusive behavior, and lust for attention have left many weary and wary.

In the charismatic world, the list of problems includes failed “prophecies” from those claiming to speak for God.  It’s no wonder that even many continuationists have become gun-shy about the supernatural.  To be clear, by “continuationists” (more commonly, charismatics), means those who believe the Holy Spirit still distributes spiritual gifts today, including supernatural gifts like prophecy.  People who believe the Holy Spirit ceased distributing spiritual gifts after the apostolic age are called cessationists.

Scripture takes these issues seriously.  Jesus warns of false prophets (Matthew 24:11, 24), as does John (1 John 4:1).  Likewise, Peter and Paul warn of false teachers, prophets, and apostles (2 Corinthians 11:13; 2 Peter 2:1), and all their warnings are relevant for this moment.

With that said, the pendulum has swung too far the other way when it comes to the operation of supernatural spiritual gifts, especially prophecy.

Amid the fallout from the scandals and frustration, overcorrecting responses are reemerging regarding false prophecy, and they all fail to consider the whole counsel of Scripture.  The three that follow are typical.

1. “A failed prophecy is proof of a false prophet.”

Deuteronomy 18:18-22 speaks of this.  For brevity, here’s verse 22: “When a prophet speaks in the LORD’s name, and the message does not come true or is not fulfilled, that is a message the LORD has not spoken.  The prophet has spoken it presumptuously.”

While it is true that one way to spot a false prophet is when their words do not come to pass, before we grab an isolated Pentateuch passage to deal with false prophecy, we must consider the major differences between the first covenant and the new one.

In the Old Testament, prophecy focused on sin, God’s holiness, and the people’s need to return to covenantal faithfulness.  The Spirit came upon specific individuals at specific times to prophesy warnings, usually to kings, as well as promises of future blessings like messianic promises.  God’s people lived under the law and were required to obey His prophets.

In the New Testament, the focus is on grace and mercy.  The Spirit indwells every believer all the time.  The emphasis of prophecy is the regular building up of God’s people.  Believers are no longer under the law.  We are to evaluate prophecy as a community.

Huge differences exist between the Old Testament and New Testament covenants, and that extends to the nature of prophecy.

Nowhere in the New Testament do we find believers in Christ labeled as false prophets, nor do we find any punishment for inaccurate prophecy.  The term “false prophet” refers to unregenerate people who deny the incarnation and the basic teachings of the faith.

Thus, we must hold two truths in tension:

1. Beware of false prophets, who seem like real Christians.

2. Sincere believers who prophesy amiss aren’t false prophets.

How do we manage this tension?  By testing all prophetic utterances before receiving them.

1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 admonishes: “Don’t stifle the Spirit.  Don’t despise prophecies but test all things.  Hold on to what is good.  Stay away from every kind of evil.”

This is the Scriptural antidote to prophetic abuse — not shutting down prophecy altogether.

Sadly, many Christians treat those who prophesy today like Old Testament prophets and never question their prophecies.  This results in confusion, pain, and even loss of faith.

2. “The Bible says false prophets should be executed.”

This is taken from Deuteronomy 13:1-5.  Verses 1-3a, 5 read: “If a prophet or someone who has dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you, and that sign or wonder he has promised you comes about, but he says, ‘Let’s follow other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let’s worship them,’ do not listen to that prophet’s words or to that dreamer ... That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he has urged rebellion against the LORD your God … You must purge the evil from you.”

Sometimes, Old Testament false prophets prophesied accurately, but their motive was still to incite God’s people into rebellion.  Their most egregious sin was not inaccuracy, but seducing others into idolatry.  Negative character traits of false prophets included corruption, adultery, deceitfulness, greed, and many more (Jeremiah 23:11, 14; 14:13-16; Micah 3:11).

Idolatry is offensive to a holy God.  Character, not charisma, is the fruit to evaluate in the lives of those claiming to speak for God.

These truths are timeless.  However, the punishment prescribed in Deuteronomy is part of Mosaic law.  It was not used in New Testament church life, nor should we imply it is the “biblical mandate” for dealing with false prophets today.

3. “Prophecy still happens, but it shouldn’t be considered normative.”

This one is for my fellow continuationists: For Paul, there’s no such thing as a church without spiritual gifts in operation.

Concerning prophecy, he writes, “Pursue love and desire spiritual gifts, and especially that you may prophesy ... the person who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouragement, and consolation … the one who prophesies builds up the church” (1 Corinthians 14:1, 3).  Of all the spiritual gifts, prophecy is arguably the most important.  It is the most mentioned, explained, and promoted of the gifts; it edifies the whole church, reveals God’s will, and is the most used by the Spirit and connected with Jesus.  Prophecy helps believers endure hardship.  It offers specific direction and guidance beyond (but not in conflict with) Scripture.  It lets people know God sees them.

Why, then, should prophecy not be considered normative?

Do Christians no longer need strength, encouragement, or comfort?  Do we not need clarity when making decisions today?  Are we somehow better off only hearing from God through one another rarely, not regularly?

To put it another way, if prophecy should not be considered normative, should mercy or teaching or generosity also not be considered “normative?” (see Romans 12:4-8 and 1 Corinthians 12:7-11)

We can’t arbitrarily divide the gifts when the text does not do so.

Prophecy is a normal part of a healthy Christian life.  Yes, it’s powerful and must be handled carefully, but not by marginalizing the gift or applying Old Testament consequences to false prophets.

Rather, as believers living in the new covenant, we must take responsibility for testing prophecy — in community, with wisdom and discernment, no matter who the prophet claims to be.

Church, it’s well past time for us to get this right.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Pastor Jeffress Says Trump Knows Biblical View of Gov’t Better Than the Pope

Last week, Pastor Robert Jeffress said President Donald Trump has a better grasp of what the Bible teaches about government than Pope Leo XIV, specifically on the question of military action against Iran, entering a public dispute that has already seen Trump call the pontiff weak on crime and foreign policy.  The senior pastor of First Baptist Dallas, TX, made the comments on “Fox News Live,” two days after Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with the pope at the Vatican.

While he called Leo a “good man” and said the pontiff was “sincere in his faith,” Jeffress said the pope was “sincerely wrong when it comes to Iran,” according to a video clip he shared on X.  “It looks like President Trump has a better understanding of what the Bible teaches than the pope,” Jeffress added.

He noted that God created government for a distinct purpose from the church, citing Romans 13. “The role of government is to protect citizens from evildoers,” he said.

Jeffress said he was present in the Oval Office three days after the conflict with Iran began, alongside Trump and other faith leaders, and that Trump told the group Iran had been weeks away from having nuclear weapons capable of destroying Israel and threatening the United States.

Tensions between Trump and the pope preceded Jeffress’ comments.

After Leo urged prayers for peace in the Iran conflict, Trump called the pontiff “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy” in a Truth Social post.  Trump also expressed a preference for the pope’s brother, Louis Prevost, describing him as “all MAGA” and noting that Prevost had visited the White House the previous year.

Leo addressed Trump’s criticism directly while speaking to NBC News on a flight to Algeria.  “I have no fear of either the Trump Administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel,” the pope said.  He added that the Catholic Church wasn’t trying to make foreign policy and that he didn’t see his role as political.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump said he didn’t want a pope who thought it was acceptable for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, or one who criticized American military action against Venezuela.  He also claimed that Leo had been selected by the Catholic Church solely because he was American, and that the Vatican had calculated this would be the best way to manage his presidency.  “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” Trump wrote.

Leo denied Trump’s claim that the Vatican supported Iran’s nuclear ambitions and said the Catholic Church’s mission was to preach peace and oppose all nuclear weapons.

Trump also criticized Leo for meeting with David Axelrod, a Democratic political consultant and former senior adviser to President Barack Obama and called on the pope to “get his act together” and “stop catering to the Radical Left.”

Jeffress is a long-standing Trump supporter.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

1620 vs. 1619: Why the Mayflower Compact is America’s Real Founding Date

As we, as a country, celebrate our 250th birthday this year, we also celebrate the 406th anniversary of the Mayflower Compact, originally signed aboard the Mayflower on November 21, 1620, before the passengers disembarked to begin their new settlement, New Plymouth, in what is now Massachusetts.

It was originally called “Agreement Between the Settlers at New Plymouth.”  This was the first attempt at self-government in the English-speaking New World, and it was done by Pilgrims who were refugees from severe religious persecution under King James I in England.

These were freeborn Englishmen who arrived while escaping religious persecution, and they set up self-government in the Western World.  These refugees from religious persecution set out consciously to have what President Abraham Lincoln would later call “government of the people, by the people, for the people.”  This is a far better founding date for the experiment in self-government that became America than the preposterous New York Times’ “1619 Project” date.

These were freeborn Englishmen who arrived in the New World seeking to escape religious persecution and set up self-government, a government in which they elected their own representatives and were responsible to each other.  This is our priceless heritage of self-government and freedom of religion.

I suspect that those Pilgrims who had braved the North Atlantic in the middle of the stormy gale season to arrive on shores they had never seen before and begin to carve out a new nation on a new continent would say to us, the recipients of this priceless heritage, “Embrace this freedom, exercise it, and zealously protect it!”

And when the government tells you to “cease and desist,” reply, “We are Americans!  We are free men who will worship or not worship how we please.”

When the Pilgrims arrived on the shores of what is now Massachusetts, some passengers who were not religious said they would not abide by others’ authority once they landed.  So, before they disembarked, the Pilgrims drafted and signed the Mayflower Compact, and all the adult males aboard the Mayflower agreed to abide by the laws enacted under the Compact. The Pilgrims who composed and signed this document were Separatists in England, which meant they had already jettisoned a thousand-year unity of church and state in Western civilization.  They believed the church was a visible, separate body of saints, a local congregation of those who had professed belief in Jesus as their Savior, as opposed to the medieval parish church concept that had dominated Europe.  So, the Mayflower Compact inaugurated a secular, civic government, which protected religious freedom far more than the parish church concept.

There is a direct line of descent from the Mayflower Compact to the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.  The Mayflower Compact is indeed the American Magna Carta.  Future President Calvin Coolidge, while he was governor of Massachusetts, made the following statement about the Mayflower Compact:

“The compact which they signed was an event of the greatest importance.  It was the foundation of liberty based on law and order, and that tradition has been steadily upheld.  They drew up a form of government which has been designated as the first real constitution of modern times.  It was democratic, an acknowledgment of liberty under law and order and the giving to each person the right to participate in the government, while they promised to be obedient to the laws.”

As we celebrate our 250th birthday, let us always remember that it was the rich tradition our forefathers inherited that enabled them to declare their “independence” as “freeborn Englishmen.”

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Apostle Peter vs. Modern Catholicism: Whose View on Assurance is Right?

Soteriology is the study of the doctrine of salvation.  And the Apostle Peter’s inspired soteriology is vastly different than what eventually became known as “Catholicism,” in spite of the Catholic Church’s dubious claim that Peter was “the first pope.”  After all, Peter did not instill within believers the unhealthy religious fear which Catholicism tends to instill, whether intentionally or not, within many of its adherents.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10).  This godly fear is righteous and holy.  It involves deep reverence for our Creator, and a profound awareness that I will stand before the Lord on Judgment Day.

But a different kind of fear is produced by what I will call Catholicism’s “contingency apparatus,” and it is not conducive to spiritual health or spiritual maturity.  For example, David Wissel was a Catholic, and then an atheist, before eventually becoming assured of salvation through faith in Christ’s atoning death on the cross.

David described his despair within Catholicism:

“Learning about mortal sin in Catholic middle school religion class was the first step on my journey to atheism.  I remember thinking: ‘I could live my entire life as a devout Catholic, only to commit a mortal sin, get hit by a bus, and go to Hell.’  I concluded that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the sacerdotal treadmill of mortal sin and confession; I would end up condemned anyway.  The only hope, it seemed, was that God did not exist.”

Imagine a father telling his 8-year-old daughter: “Heather, as you know, your mother and I have reserved a condo in Florida where we are planning a weeklong vacation at the beach this summer with you and your brother and sister.  We want you to go with us, but I must warn you.  Every time you do something really bad, I will remove your name from the reservation, at least until you apologize for your disobedience.”

In this scenario, a lingering fear would undoubtedly haunt Heather’s heart: “Will I be good enough to go on our family vacation?”  It would cause Heather to grow up believing that her father’s “love” for her is conditional and is based on her performance.

Peter, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, knew how to help believers develop a deep love and appreciation for the Lord, and to walk in godliness and genuine compassion for others.  Rather than dangling eternal life in Heaven over their heads like a carrot on a stick, Peter underscored the eternal inheritance which had already been assigned to them.

Peter refers to believers as “God’s elect” (1 Peter 1:1), assuring them of their place in Christ’s eternal Kingdom.  The apostle wrote to those “who have been chosen,” (v. 2) here again stressing the permanency of their relationship with the Lord.

Peter then celebrated this glorious fact: “In His great mercy, God has given us new birth into a living hope” (1 Peter 1:3).  The new birth occurs through faith in Jesus (see John 3:1-8) and a “living hope” refers to the certainty that Heaven is my eternal home because of my Savior’s sacrifice on the cross for my sins.

Peter encouraged them in their salvation by pointing to their “inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade, kept in Heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:4).  No contingency talk here, but only the wonderful promise that a believer’s heavenly inheritance is essentially under lock and key and will definitely be enjoyed one day.

I am reminded of Christ’s words: “My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:27-28).  Compare our Lord’s comforting promise to the terribly misguided claim made by Cardinal Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621): “The greatest of all Protestant heresies is assurance.”

Do you see why Peter, if he was on Earth today, would not make a good Catholic theologian? The apostle never resorted to “carrot and stick” motivation when teaching believers the truth about God’s grace and eternal salvation.  A religious contingency apparatus does not accurately convey the love of God or unleash the power of the Gospel, but instead, makes believers feel like their “potential salvation” is on a razor’s edge and contingent on them being good enough.

Catholicism’s contingency apparatus is directly connected to the Catholic concept which Bishop Robert Barron describes as “growth in justification” and “the Catholic difference.” Catholics would be far better served if their church body replaced their contingency apparatus with the inspired biblical approach of helping sincere believers experience the assurance of their salvation through the promise of the Gospel.

Perhaps you worry about this question: “Will I be good enough to get into Heaven?”  If your soul has been burdened by a religious contingency apparatus, then turn your anthropocentric focus and wavering confidence away from your best efforts, and rely instead upon what Jesus, the “Rock,” (1 Corinthians 10:3-4) accomplished on the cross for your salvation.  And then commit your body and soul to living every moment for your Lord and Savior.

“Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26), but faith never comes alive by doing more works.  Faith only comes alive when the Holy Spirit enables you to believe the Gospel (see John 1:12, John 3:16, John 3:36, 1 Corinthians 12:3).  Thankfully, believers in Jesus are on the narrow road to Heaven, rather than the broad road to Hell (see Matthew 7:13-14).

And unless your soteriology was inspired by the Holy Spirit, you will be unable to accurately teach the doctrine of salvation.  St. Peter’s inspired soteriology came “not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the (Holy) Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words” (1 Corinthians 2:13).

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Pastor Convicted for Preaching John 3:16 in Public

A retired pastor has been found guilty of breaching an abortion clinic’s “safe access zone” after he preached a sermon on John 3:16.  Pastor Clive Johnston, 78, was found guilty by a district judge at a hearing at Coleraine Magistrates’ Court in Northern Ireland on last week.  He has been convicted of two charges under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Act after he held an open-air service on the fringes of the buffer zone outside Causeway Hospital in Coleraine in July 2024.

The grandfather of seven faces a criminal record and thousands of pounds in fines, according to The Christian Institute (CI), which has been supporting his case.

Pastor Johnston, the former president of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, is now weighing up his legal options and is expected to appeal.

Commenting on the verdict, he denied harassing anyone and called his conviction a “dark day for Christian freedom.”  He said, “We held a small, open-air Sunday service near a hospital. We made no reference whatsoever to the issue of abortion.  And yet the buffer zones law is so broad that holding a Sunday service has been found to be a criminal offense.  And at 78 years of age, I find myself, for the first time, convicted of a crime.”  He continued: “If someone is out there causing trouble, stirring up violence, harassing or verbally attacking people, then, absolutely, go ahead and prosecute them. But I wasn’t doing any of those things as the police video shows and as everyone involved in this case accepts.”

John 3:16 is one of the most beloved Bible verses, and states, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Speaking before Johnston’s court hearing, Simon Calvert, deputy director of CI, said that John 3:16 “is a wonderful, famous verse and everyone knows it says nothing about abortion.”  He accused the police and Public Prosecution Service of “overstepping the mark” and said that preaching the Gospel should not be conflated with protesting against abortion.  “We have amazing freedom in this country to share the Christian message. That’s why we’ve taken on this case,” he said.

“Prosecuting Pastor Johnston for preaching ‘God so loved the world’ near a hospital on a quiet Sunday is a shocking new attempt to restrict freedom of religion and freedom of speech in a part of the world where open-air Gospel services are a part of the culture.”

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

DOJ Releases Report Detailing Anti-Christian Bias under Biden

A new report compiled by the Trump Administration reveals that the Biden Administration treated Christian organizations and individuals much harsher than their secular counterparts, pointing to a pattern of what acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche calls the “devastation” of Christians.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently released a report titled “Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias Within the Federal Government.”  The report, which spans about 200 pages and contains over 300 pages of exhibits, was compiled by the Trump Administration’s Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias.

“No American should live in fear that the federal government will punish them for their faith,” said Blanche, who serves as chair of the Task Force to Eradicate Christian Bias. “As our report lays out, the Biden Administration’s actions devastated the lives of many Christian Americans.  That devastation ended with President Trump.  The Department of Justice will continue to expose bad actors who targeted Christians and work tirelessly to restore religious liberty for all Americans of faith.”

One of the main findings of the report was that the Biden Administration imposed disparate penalties on Christian institutions and pro-life activists compared to their liberal or secular counterparts.  The report cites statistics documenting prosecutions under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which subjects anyone who “intentionally injures, intimidates, or interferes with or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with any person” who provides or assists in the provision of abortions to federal charges.

In addition to subjecting pro-life protesters to federal charges, the FACE Act imposes federal charges on anyone who targets religious houses of worship, and its protections also apply to pro-life pregnancy centers.

“The Biden DOJ requested an average sentence of 26.8 months for pro-life defendants, compared to 12.3 months for pro-choice defendants,” the report stated.  “Pro-life defendants were ultimately sentenced to an average of 14 months, while pro-abortion defendants were sentenced to an average of 3 months.”

The report also maintains that the Biden Administration selectively enforced the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits nonprofit organizations, including churches, from engaging in political advocacy or supporting political candidates.  For example, New Way Church in FL was investigated by the Biden Administration after a school board candidate spoke at the congregation, and Grace Church in St. Louis, MO faced scrutiny for outlining “positions local candidates held” as a tool to educate voters.

By contrast, the report found “no public indications” that the Biden Administration opened investigations into the more than 1,600 faith leaders in the U.S. who backed former President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.

The report cited data from the American Principles Project, finding that 59 of 87 actions taken by the U.S. Department of Education were targeted at “faith-based or career education schools.”  This accounts for roughly 70% of all enforcement actions despite the fact that these schools only educate 10% of students.  Another finding from the report revealed that the average fine imposed against a Christian school amounted to $815,000 compared to $228,571 against secular public and private institutions.

One of the most notable enforcement actions taken during the Biden Administration was a $37.7 million fine against Grand Canyon University in AZ for allegedly engaging in deceptive advertising, despite the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit finding no evidence of wrongdoing by the Christian school.  Liberty University in VA also faced a $14 million fine for allegedly violating a federal law requiring transparency about “public safety issues” at institutions of higher education.

Several years earlier, when Pennsylvania State University made national headlines for violating the same law by failing to report acts of child molestation by assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, it was fined a much smaller amount of $2.4 million.  When Michigan State University was found to have violated the law by not reporting illicit sexual behavior by team physician Dr. Larry Nassar, its fine was $4.5 million.

When the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) conducted faith-based outreach efforts between March 2023 and January 2024, the agency met with 20 Muslim organizations, 18 Jewish organizations, one Sikh organization and 20 organizations characterized as “interfaith groups whose invitees and content require further review to determine inclusivity.” Just two of the groups DHS met with as part of its faith-based outreach were explicitly Christian.

“This disparity is notable given that Christians comprise an estimated 62 percent of the U.S. population,” the report states.  The document also cites testimony from DHS employees who alleged that “Within the workplace, employees were directed to avoid explicit reference to Christian celebrations like Christmas, while similar directives were not provided in cases of holidays celebrated by other religions.”

Additional actions taken by the Biden Administration that were flagged as problematic in the report include the denial of economic injury disaster loans from the Small Business Administration to nearly 170 Christian organizations on the basis of their faith and awarding less than half of Federal Emergency Management Agency funding reserved for religious nonprofits to Christian organizations.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

America at 250: Satanic or Christian Revival?

As America approaches its 250th anniversary, we are stepping into more than a historic milestone — we are stepping into a defining moment.  Two very different visions for our nation are emerging, and they could not be more opposed.

On one hand, there is a growing movement of recounting, reclaiming, and rededication. Across the country, believers are gathering to recount God’s faithfulness, reclaim the spiritual foundations of this nation, and rededicate America to the Lord.  This vision recognizes a simple but profound truth: our freedoms did not emerge in a vacuum.  They were forged in a worldview shaped by Scripture — one that acknowledged that rights come not from government, but from God.

From the earliest days of the Republic, prayer, dependence on divine providence, and biblical conviction shaped the course of history.  As we approach 250 years, many sense that this is not just a time to celebrate — but to return.

Intercessors for America members across the nation have been partnering with elected officials at every level across the nation to create proclamations of rededication of cities, counties, state supreme courts and legislative bodies.  These grassroots efforts are resulting in hundreds of gatherings to publicly recount, reclaim, and rededicate these areas of our nation to God.

At the President’s direction, the White House is organizing a national rededication day on May 17th, held on our National Mall, called Rededicate 250.

But at the very same time, a starkly different movement is rising.

In cities across America, we are seeing the normalization of what previous generations would have immediately recognized as spiritual darkness.  Public events openly celebrating Satanism are no longer fringe — they are organized, promoted, and in some cases even defended under the banner of “freedom.”  What was once hidden is now being paraded.

On May 1-2, Baltimore will host the Satanic Temple’s Satanic Revival.  Those words were chosen carefully by organizers.  Not just their yearly meeting, but a “revival” to counter the moves of God that are happening across the nation.  An effort to infuse spiritual darkness into our nation.  Counterfeiting and twisting what the Holy Spirit is doing in America and what our Rededicate 250 event is designed to usher in.

Alongside this, there is an increasing push for ideologies fundamentally incompatible with the Constitution.  Efforts to normalize and implement aspects of Sharia law in American communities represent not just cultural differences, but a direct contradiction to the freedoms enshrined in our founding documents — particularly freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and equal protection under the law.  Sharia is a political system that masquerades as a religion.  We are seeing explosive growth in Islam all across the country — Bible belt included — in our 250th year.

At the same time, radical protest movements continue to gain momentum — many fueled by anger, division, and a desire not to reform America, but to dismantle it entirely. These movements often reject the nation’s founding principles outright, viewing them not as something to be improved upon, but something to be erased.

As is customary, communists will be holding May Day protests around the country.  This year, the No Kings protestors will be joining in those rallies.  It’s not a stretch; many socialist and communist groups are part of the No Kings collective.

So here we stand — at 250 years — with a choice.  Will we be a nation that remembers who we are and whose we are?  Or will we continue down a path of cultural and spiritual fragmentation?  This is not merely a political divide.  It is a spiritual one.

Scripture reminds us in Deuteronomy 30:19: “I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing.  Therefore, choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.”

That choice is before us again.

The celebration of America’s 250th anniversary will not just be about fireworks and ceremonies.  It will reveal the direction of our national heart.  Will it be marked by humility, repentance, and rededication to God?  Or will it be overshadowed by rebellion, confusion, and competing ideologies that pull us further from truth?

The answer will not be decided solely in Washington, D.C.  It will be decided in churches, in homes, in communities — and in the hearts of individuals who choose whether to stand, pray, and act.

I encourage you to actively participate in spiritually fighting for our nation.  In this monumental year, the forces of darkness are doing all they can to steer America off our Judeo-Christian path.  It’s up to us as believers in Christ to fight that spiritual battle.

And perhaps, at 250 years, that is the true invitation before us — not just to celebrate America’s past, but to contend for its future.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Are Mainline Churches Moving Toward Extinction?

Some two decades ago, former pastor-turned-political scientist and researcher, Ryan P. Burge, who was raised Southern Baptist, found a more comfortable home for his faith in an American Baptist Churches USA (ABC/USA) congregation.  “I like the liturgy of the Mainline (Church),” Burge told The Christian Post in a recent interview.  “We do call and response, we sing hymns, I like hymns.  I think a lot of Evangelicals now have gotten a little too obsessed with praise and worship music for my liking,” he said of his preference.  “I’m kind of an old soul that way.  I want to read the creeds.  I want to have responsive readings, I want to have an organ playing, and I want to sing hymns.  That’s sort of how the best expression for my faith is — those things.”

The ABC/USA churches is considered a mainline denomination, and for Burge, this brand of Christianity, which sits in the middle of extremism and unbelief, is a “perfect fit” for a “doubter” like him.  “The American Baptist Church was a perfect fit for someone like me.  It’s a tradition dating back to the Civil War,” Burge explains in his latest book, The Vanishing Church: How the Hollowing Out of Moderate Congregations Is Hurting Democracy, Faith, and Us, released by Brazos Press, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

“When the majority of Baptists in the South wanted to allow missionaries to own slaves, abolitionist Baptists broke away and formed the Northern Baptist Convention, which was later rebranded the American Baptist Church,” he writes.  “The denomination has always emphasized a middle path.  A local church decides who its pastor can be.  If the pastor is a woman, so be it.  If a church wants to affirm LGBTQ + individuals, the national headquarters can’t do anything about it.  For American Baptists, each believer gets to make up their own mind about how to interpret the Bible.  It isn’t the pastor’s job to tell them what to think.”

Burge, who says he wrote the book from his position as a social scientist, further explained to ChristianPost (CP) that moderate Christians allow what the “majority of Americans agree with.”  “If the majority of Americans believe that two men should be able to get married, that's moderate.  If the majority of Americans think that women should have access to abortion, that's moderate.  I try not to make any sort of normative discussions about what I think moderate or conservative is,” he says.

“I think that’s the biggest criticism of the book is what I call moderate, a lot of more conservative Evangelicals would call liberal,” he reveals.  “I don’t know how to square that problem.  I always joke, if you’re an atheist, anyone to your right, basically, is a fascist, and if you’re an Evangelical, anyone to your left is basically a communist.  And I think that’s sort of the problem, for me, it’s just a very empirical decision.  If your opinion agrees with what most Americans agree with, then you’re a moderate on that specific issue.”

After joining the ABC/USA, Burge would go on to become a pastor in the denomination. He served at First Baptist Church of Mount Vernon in IL for 17.5 years until dwindling membership forced its closure in July 2024.  Now he is worried about the future of moderate Christianity in America.

The polarization of American religion, he argues in his book, has been shrinking the available space for millions of moderate Christians.  And if the trend continues, mainline churches could be extinct in much of the U.S. in two or three decades.

“At one point, about half of all Americans were part of this moderate, mainline tradition. In twenty or thirty years, if current trends continue as predicted, the mainline tradition will largely be extinct across many parts of the United States,” he explains.

Using a combination of narrative, graphs, charts, and other data points, Burge traces the trajectory of Protestant Christianity and Catholicism across more than 200 pages in his book.  He also explores how religious and political polarization has led to the collapse of the mainline church and the rise of Evangelicals and the religious nones — people with no formal religious affiliation.  He further offers what he believes is a healthier way forward and suggests that the Church needs to change course.

“The religious landscape of the United States has never looked starker than it does today. There are huge geographical swaths of America where the only place a Protestant can worship on a Sunday morning is an Evangelical church that takes a literalist view of the Bible and believes that women have no role in spiritual leadership,” Burge writes.  “The vibrant religious marketplace that was pervasive for most of U.S. history has been replaced by a type of faith that certainly appeals to a subset of the country but is objectionable, if not downright repulsive, to a significant number of Americans,” he adds. “In short, American religion has become an ‘all or none’ proposition — conservative Evangelical religion or none at all.  This leaves tens of millions of theological and political moderates with no place to find community and spiritual edification, or to work collectively to solve societal problems.”

Burge told CP that the mainline Church began declining because it “succeeded so well.”  “It failed because it succeeded so well, because the average American started believing a lot of what the mainline believed, and I’ve said this many times on podcasts.  The mainline became too much like a country club.  With just a little bit of Jesus sprinkled on top,” he says.  “They didn’t take Jesus seriously enough, and a lot of people said, ‘Well, why don’t we go to the country club then?  We’ll have more fun, and I can drink there.”

Mainline churches catering to things in society, such as same-sex marriage and transgenderism, are also contributing factors, Burge admits.  “A lot of mainline clergy feel like their response to the power of evangelicalism is to become even more proud of their liberal beliefs.  And how many rainbow flags we can fly, and how many Black Lives Matter signs we can put up on our front lawn,” he explains.

“I've looked at survey data about this question, and they ask young people, ‘Would you be more likely to go to insert mainline church here, knowing that it is LGBTQ affirming, and the answer is no,” Burge adds.  “Very few young people are even attracted by that. And there’s a huge gap in the mainline, by the way, between what the clergy believes politically and what the laity believes.  The clergy is significantly more liberal than the laity.  I think that’s a real structural problem,” he adds.

“I didn't have data on it when I was writing the book.  But that’s what I would take the mainlines to task over.  There’s this huge disconnect between what the leadership wants the church to be and what the laity wants the church to be.  And I think that the reactive nature of if they’re Right, we should be Left.  It’s not the appropriate approach.”

Still, Burge argues that if Christians and other religious groups don’t learn how to appreciate comprise and diverse voices, America could become ungovernable.  “The way we’re cloistering ourselves off on the Left and the Right has made it harder for us to govern ourselves.  We should seek out ideologically diverse spaces, we should be part of ideologically diverse spaces,” he tells CP.  “American religion, whether it be Catholic, Protestant, Mainline, Evangelical, those places used to be politically diverse, and now, largely, they’re not anymore.  And I think that’s a problem.  I think it’s a problem when atheists drive out anyone who’s conservative.  And I think it’s a problem when conservatives drive out anyone who they see as liberal.”

In his book, Burge references the 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial, formally known as the State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes, to make a point against Evangelicals who try to make a significant impact on the larger culture, having a history of it not ending well.  The landmark legal case is about high school teacher John Scopes, who was accused of violating Tennessee’s Butler Act.  The law prohibited teaching human evolution in state-funded schools, and the case became a national spectacle pitting modern science against religious fundamentalism.  Burger highlighted how prominent Evangelical William Jennings Bryan, the special prosecutor hired by the state, admitted that he believed the Earth stood still as described in the book of Joshua to defend that the Bible is the literal Word of God.

“Any time that evangelicals tried to make a significant impact on the larger culture, it often resulted in ridicule, mockery, and derision from mainstream society,” Burger writes.

The former pastor who now serves as a professor of practice at the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University in St. Louis says he’s worried “tribalism, division, and strife” is a real threat to “the future of the American experiment” and churches should be part of the solution to address those divides.  “I am convinced that the biggest threat facing the United States is not a foreign adversary like Russia or China.  If the United States falls, it will be due to infighting, not external attacks,” he adds.  “If we can survive the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Great Depression, two world wars, the Civil Rights Movement, and 9/11, but we are taken down by political and religious polarization, then we may not be as good as we once were.”

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Most Mainline Protestants, Catholics Support Legal Abortion

Newly released research shows that most Americans and majorities of mainline Protestants and Catholics think abortion should be legal in all or most cases, as the country remains deeply divided on the issue following the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision.

The Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) released new data it compiled on Americans’ views on abortion based on interviews conducted with 22,111 U.S. adults last year as part of its American Values Atlas.  The survey had a margin of error of +/-0.87 percentage points.

Overall, 61% of American adults believe that abortion should be legal in all or most cases, with 25% supporting legal abortion in all cases and 36% backing it in most cases. Broken down by religious affiliation, support for legal abortion in all or most cases was highest among Unitarian Universalists (89%) followed by the religiously unaffiliated (82%), Jews (80%), Buddhists (79%), Hindus (78%), adherents to other non-Christians (76%), black Protestants (75%) and white mainline Protestants (65%).

Majorities of Hispanic Catholics (62%) and white Catholics (57%) favored legal abortion in all or most cases, as did most (54%) of Muslims.

Support for legal abortion in all or most cases was lowest among Hispanic Protestants (40%), Mormons (31%), white Evangelical Protestants (27%) and Jehovah’s Witnesses (21%).  To the contrary, majorities of Hispanic Protestants (58%), Mormons (69%) and white Evangelical Protestants (72%) think abortion should be illegal in all or most cases.

Jehovah’s Witnesses (which is not a Christian denomination) had the largest share of respondents (24%) who skipped the question about abortion, although a majority (54%) still indicated that they thought abortion should be illegal in all or most cases.  Likewise, Mormonism is also not a Christian religion.

The new research also revealed a correlation between the frequency of practicing religion and opposition to abortion.

Those who pray seldom or never constituted a plurality (46%) of respondents classified as “abortion legality supporters,” with Americans who pray weekly making up 36% of this group and those who pray monthly or a few times yearly comprising 17%.

Conversely, respondents who pray weekly constituted the overwhelming majority (68%) of “abortion legality opponents,” while 16% of those who oppose abortion legality seldom or never pray, and 15% pray monthly or a few times yearly.

A large majority (70%) of “abortion legality supporters” seldom or never read a religious text, while much smaller shares read a religious text monthly or a few times yearly (15%) or read a religious text weekly (13%).  By contrast, 44% of “abortion legality opponents” read a religious text weekly, while 35% seldom or never read a religious text, and 20% read a religious text monthly or a few times yearly.

The overwhelming majority (67%) of “abortion legality supporters” seldom or never attend church services, while 19% attend church services monthly or a few times yearly, and 13% go to church weekly.

Respondents who attend church weekly constitute a majority (44%) of “abortion legality opponents,” while those who seldom or never go to church (34%) and Americans who go to church monthly or a few times a year (21%) make up smaller shares of this group.

The publication of the PRRI survey documenting Americans’ views on abortion comes nearly four years after the Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson that the U.S. Constitution does not contain a right to abortion.  Since then, states have taken divergent paths on the issue, with some states banning abortion in all or most cases and others offering few or no protections.

PRRI also examined support for abortion legality by state.  Nearly all of the states where support for legal abortion in all or most cases is highest have few or no pro-life protections.

Support for legal abortion in all or most cases is highest in Vermont (78%), followed by Massachusetts (77%), Rhode Island (76%), Nevada (74%), New Hampshire (74%), Hawaii (73%), Oregon (72%), the District of Columbia (71%), Washington (71%), New Jersey (70%), Alaska (69%), Connecticut (69%), Illinois (68%), California (67%) and New York (67%).

The other states with majority support for legal abortion in all or most cases and few or no pro-life protections are: Minnesota (64%), Maryland (63%), Virginia (63%), Maine (62%), Michigan (62%), Montana (61%), Colorado (60%), Delaware (60%), Ohio (60%), Wisconsin (60%), Arizona (58%), Pennsylvania (58%), New Mexico (53%) and Kansas (52%).

The only state with few or no pro-life protections where most residents oppose abortion in all or most cases is Missouri.  Fifty-two percent of respondents in the state think abortion should be illegal in all or most cases.

Residents of many states with near-total abortion bans oppose abortion in most or all cases, with opposition the highest in Utah (64%), followed by West Virginia (54%), Idaho (53%), South Dakota (53%), Arkansas (51%), Louisiana (50%) and Oklahoma (50%). Residents of Mississippi and Tennessee, additional states with near-total abortion bans, are more divided.

Forty-eight percent of Mississippi residents think abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 46% have the opposite view.  Similarly, 49% of Tennessee residents think abortion should be illegal in all or most cases, while 47% hold the opposite position. Majorities of those living in Alabama (58%), Indiana (51%), Kentucky (54%), North Dakota (56%), South Carolina (57%) and Texas (55%), which also have near-total abortion bans, think abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

Most residents of states with heartbeat bills that ban abortion after six weeks of gestation, specifically Florida (61%), Georgia (59%) and Iowa (57%), think abortion should be legal in all or most cases.  Most residents of the fourth state with a heartbeat bill, Wyoming (56%), think abortion should be illegal in all or most cases.  In one of the two states with a 12-week abortion ban, Nebraska, most residents oppose abortion in all or most cases (53%), while in the other state, North Carolina, most residents support abortion in all or most cases (64%).

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

The American Church is Undergoing a Season of Exposure

The Evangelical Christian church in the United States is undergoing one of the most thorough and sobering seasons of exposure and cleansing ever seen.  This has been percolating for some time, but in recent months and years, the scope of the exposures has substantially increased.  The cleansing is across several denominations and expressions, in churches large and small.

Much of the current exposure is due to social media and independent investigative podcasters with large online followings.  While there are pitfalls to these particular means of exposure, the dark secrets, cover-ups, and manipulative tactics of corrupt leaders in churches can now be aired more quickly and more thoroughly than was possible in previous decades, and I consider it a net good.

God’s timing is the greatest mystery of faith, but what’s occurring is a sovereign move of His hand.  The LORD has determined that the present moment is His appointed time to clean house.  For sincere Christians in every stream, it is wrenchingly painful to watch this purification process unfold.

For believers desiring to remain anchored in their convictions, it’s a humbling (if not downright humiliating) experience to have perceptions shattered and realize that esteemed people they thought were godly actually were not.  Wolves are usually skilled communicators, masters at hiding their destructive patterns until they finally become so visible as to be undeniable.

And if a church environment turns out to be a mixture of good and bad, of truth and deceit? Spiritual cognitive dissonance besieges the minds of people who are often already confused and hurting as they struggle to understand how God’s Word might have been faithfully proclaimed from the pulpit and taught within its ministries, yet indisputably rotten fruit appeared in the lives of leaders.  Many wonder: How did the Gospel truths they espoused not yield transformative change where it truly mattered?

Barna Research reveals that over a quarter of American adults report that past experiences with religious institutions fuel doubt in Christ.  As Teasi Cannon aptly noted last week, many such people exit churches in self-preservation, not rebellion, forced to conclude with genuine sorrow: “If this is Christianity, I can’t survive here.”

Not to diminish the severity of the current scandals, but gross compromises and distorted doctrines among God's people are not new.  The New Testament records how sexual immorality and the abuse of the Lord’s Supper existed in the early Church among the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 5:1-5 and 11:17-34).  The Galatians were called foolish, having been bewitched into another Gospel (Galatians 3:1).  Individual wolves in the Church are not new either, as the Apostle Paul had to turn Hymenaeus and Alexander over to Satan that they might be taught not to blaspheme (1 Timothy 1:20).

Churches and ministries dealing with a dreadful mixture of righteousness and grievous sin are also not new.  Among the seven churches addressed in the Book of Revelation, some had exhibited remarkable faithfulness to God in ways He commended them for (Pergamum, Thyatira, and Ephesus), but He also had to rebuke them for their compromises. (Revelation 2:1-29).

Many centuries later, as the contemporary West convulses, the Judeo-Christian norms and ethics that have long undergirded society have eroded.  A significant contributing factor to this erosion is pervasive distrust and rejection of religious institutions that have simultaneously furthered and covered up sins that have wounded people, the same sins that the churches claim to oppose doctrinally.

As the exposure continues, it leaves many newly sobered Christians thinking and asking: “This is terrible.  This cannot be the abundant life in the Kingdom about which Jesus spoke.  What should we do now?  What can we do?  Where do we even go from here amid this fierce heartache and countless people harmed in God’s name?”

The only response that makes any sense, and maybe it sounds simplistic, is genuine repentance.  In Acts 3:19, Peter speaks to the men of Israel about how they had rejected the Holy and Righteous One (Jesus), saying: “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.”

We, too, have forgotten the holiness and righteousness of God.  We would do well to rend our proverbial garments and earnestly cry out to Him, even if we have not been directly involved in or impacted by such a scandal.

If you’re a believer in Jesus Christ who is grieved to the core by the rampant sin in the camp that is manifesting nowadays, continue to search your heart before the Lord, and repent of anything and everything that would grieve Him.  Each one of us needs it.  Pray that a fervent love for God’s righteousness resurges in the Church, and that reverential fear of the Lord return in great measure to His House.  Intercede that His people remember the awesomeness of a holy God, and that He is not mocked (Galatians 6:7).

Our sin is great, and we do not deserve His mercy.  But His mercy is vast, and it triumphs over judgment (James 2:13).

Because if I know what animates committed Christians who are clinging to Jesus amid this disruptive chaos, it is an earnest yearning for another Great Awakening, an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and revival — the precursor of which is repentance.  May it sweep our land like wildfire; it’s our only hope.

Perhaps then, as seen in the pattern of Scripture, God may grant us the times of refreshment in His presence that the remnant longs for in this sin-saturated world.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel