Watch this before reading any further:
updated 3/3/2016 (7:51 pm mtn. time) Andy Stanley responds on Twitter to his comments: “The negative reaction to the clip from last weekend’s message is entirely justified. Heck, even I was offended by what I said! I apologize.”
I saw this video posted by Voddie Baucham and Stephen Bratten early Thursday afternoon and then saw that SBC Voices just posted an article citing the same sermon clip. I don’t like giving knee jerk reaction to things I see on Facebook or Twitter or read articles on so I thought I better go get a bottled water out of my office fridge and drink all of it before searching for the full video.
I don’t want to be guilty of taking anything out of context.
Well, can I say, I think this short clip brought about my reaction that required two more trips to the office fridge.
There are more things at stake in what Stanley is arguing for (and more against) than just the size of a congregation or at best the size of the youth ministry. This is what it sounds like when men adopt worldly philosophies and disregard the sufficiency of Scripture.
I get that there is something attractive about being known as the rising “star” or model church for church growth. I’ve been paraded down that road and it is a frenzied path of silliness.
It’s the same attraction that dogs have for their feces. Who doesn’t love being around a happy dog, wagging its tail – liking your face? But that same happy dog has just recently been feasting of its own excrement. (I know, your dog knows better.)
This kind of ‘preaching’ is waste matter discharged from bowels after junk food has been digested.
The church must reject this silliness and call it out as such.
Now don’t get me wrong – I’ve said dumb things before too. I pray God will help me discover more of those dumb things and do the right thing after he shows them to me in his word.
Wow. That’s really how I feel about this. The crazy thing now is I’ve got to spend some time in search of my own heart to be sure I’m not just jealous of pastors of large churches. That’s what this kind of thing does to a pastor.
I need another bottle of water.
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