Radio personality Todd Friel has written a book, Judge Not (with Not crossed out), about some of the goings-on in some of America’s so-called evangelical churches ( http://www.amazon.ca/Judge-Not-Todd-Friel-ebook/dp/B019DD7LBA ).
The item that caught my eye was the incident of the pastor zip-lining into his church dressed up as Spiderman. My earnest desire to wake up went unfulfilled. You’re already awake, you’re stuck with it. Crikey. Like, it ain’t real unless it comes out of a comic book? Somehow this was even worse than the youth pastor sticking peanut butter onto some kids’ armpits and having other kids lick it off.
No, I’m not making it up. I wish I were.
The churches with the Star Wars nativity scenes say they’re trying to be “culturally relevant.” I think that’s probably a sin. In fact, I’m certain it’s a sin. At the very least it’s a show of flagrant disrespect to God by persons who are supposed to be His servants. I would not want to have to explain such actions to the final tribunal.
Interesting things people do these days.
For the life of me, I cannot understand how these so-called ‘pastors’ and ‘church leaders’ and even some congregants can think that making a mockery of God’s Church could possibly teach repentance and salvation through Jesus Christ. If their purpose is to bring the lost in, their failure is glaring. What are they equipping the lost with? Spiderman and Star Wars? Maybe ufologists will join in. I would say this is tantamount to New Age ‘spirituality’, but it could be worse. New Agers think they don’t need God, but the Church has a duty to teach about Jesus, repentance and salvation. Surprised? No. Disgusted, disappointed, saddened? Yes.
I find myself at a loss to explain this–and I say that as someone who researched and wrote a whole series of articles about blatant paganism and goddess-worship in the modern American church.
These articles are all included in the early archives of this blog, if you’re interested in reading them.
Thank you, Lee. I’ll do that. As a matter of fact, I was perusing some of your earlier blogs last night.
It’s simple idolatry, really…not only of the culture, but of the Church as an institution. And it is also petty competitiveness and pride on the part of pastors who value quantity over quality when it comes to their weekly attendance numbers. Whatever justification they try to use, when a church stops putting God and His word first above all else, there’s a serious problem.
What is this fascination with comic books? Most of the movies made these days seem to be yet another rehashing of some stupid comic-book character. I was the original Batman movie; meh. I saw an X Men movie, which I sat through out of respect for the feelings of the person whom invited me. The bottom line, most of these movies are a bunch of special effects, a paper thin plot and some pathetic attempts to explore the depths and true feelings of fictional superheroes.
Now they want to bring that into church?!?!?!?!?!
I hate superheroes.
Me too. It’s pointless fantasy.
Honestly, I don’t understand how or why these churches think this will bring people in. People, I would say, who actually do decide to visit a church do so to hear about God and all things heavenly. Maybe they came in because they heard they could find the way to salvation there. I’m imagining seeing a pastor swoop in like spiderman would deter them from returning. Plenty of other outlets for comic book ‘heroes’ exist without such disrespect for God. Sickening doesn’t cover it.
Remember the fad of “seeker-friendly” churches? A Spiderman pastor is a mutation beyond it. FYI: All of a sudden today I am receiving some Comment links to Lee’s Blog??? Not all of them, but some.
Beats me.
The Church of Laodicea has nothing on some of today’s churches.
https://christiannews.net/2018/05/03/concerns-raised-as-atlantas-embassy-church-to-make-aerialists-full-part-of-worship-experience/
What can they be thinking?
Absolute folly.