That's what he said. He's the President and CEO of a company that owns three small water parks in the Dallas area. My secretary and I went to a "free" lunch to hear some good news propaganda about good deals for Christians who long to slide down water slides.
I'm all for summer fun and youth outings. So I agreed to go eat a "free" lunch.
Though we did not pay for lunch and received two free passes for the water park we didn't get away without paying a bit of a price. The President and CEO, in what should have been a grace filled conversation, instead....put us in our "proverbial" place.
He simply asked my secretary and I: "What church do you represent?" We responded, "First Presbyterian." He in turn said, "Oh, I belong to So and So Presbyterian Church in Sacramento."
"Sacramento? Did he mean California?", my secretary asked. He did. He went on to tell us that his Presbyterian Church had left the denomination to which my secretary and I belong. He added that there was still a certain amount of fall out at the church since the change. They now belong to the EVP denomination or what ever the name might be. Those were his exact words. He then concluded, "At least we are a Bible believing church." He was trying to refer to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in America.
I sat stunned. Here is a man who wants money from my church and instead of offering unconditional grace and simple hospitality.....he instead made clear that his church is not like our church anymore. THEY BELIEVE IN THE BIBLE!
A short pause occurred and I looked him in the eye and said, "Our church believes in the Bible too, but that doesn't seem enough to keep us together." Without one more word he turned around and left. He didn't say one more word to us.
Wow! Why do Christians do this to each other? "I believe in the Bible more than you!" What does a person gain?
Jurgen Moltmann writes that in order for a person or a group to consider themselves righteous and good they must have the ability to point their finger at someone they consider unrighteous and bad. Moltmann goes on to say that the sinners....the tax collectors and harlots were healed simply by Jesus' invitation to eat with him.
I suppose the President and CEO of the little water park in North Texas brands me and mine as sinners....tax collectors and harlots. That's okay. Jesus continues to invite people like me to the table and his invitation heals and creates new life.
That is why I believe what I read in the Bible!
The real story is that the church of the President and CEO of the little water parks in North Texas doesn't want to be affiliated with a denomination that allows discussion, prayer, and debate concerning the inclusion of homosexuals.
I'm thinking Jesus would be eating with homosexuals today rather than Presidents and CEO's!
That is why I believe what I read in the Bible!
5 comments:
Good post, It is two bad that people hide behind the Bible to mask their cutural comfort.
I hope you share this story so that your church members might steer clear of those water parks this summer. I bet he worships the wallet more than any God.
Tell it, LP.
Speak truth to power.
It's funny how we can read the same texts and draw radically different conclusions ... I believe in the Bible, and I find the more there that speaks harshly of profits and the accumulation of wealth than anything against homosexuality ...
In truth, even the oft cited texts "against" homosexuality are less than clear ... the late Canadian Theologian Andre Guindon made that very clear in his writings ... but guys like the one you encountered would never read Guindon to begin with ... his loss.
I am ministered to by your blog, but at times you can come across with just as much heavy-handedness as the people you wish to expose. I may not agree with the gentleman's view of theology, but I do understand the fact that there are many Christlike individuals and congregations who do not see eye-to-eye with me on some hot-button issues. Many are not obnoxious about it and many wrestle with the most appropriate way to live out their faith. But it does concern me because anyone who disagrees with you is automatically labeled as narrow-minded or hypocritical. Other posters make bold assumptions, such as they bet "he worships the wallet more than any God." How is this statement any different than the ones made the Pharisees made about Jesus? While we may disagree with his viewpoints and his assertion that his interpretation of Scripture is more valid than those of others, we must realize that, in our response, we are being no more grace-filled or open-minded than those whom we criticize.
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