Last week, Reformation Charlotte reported that a large Southern Baptist megachurch pastor took the stage to brag that his church had homosexuals, transgenders, and every other kind of God-hater working and serving in their church. This pastor, Danny de Armas was not only the senior associate pastor of First Baptist Orlando, he was also formerly the head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s North America Mission Board.
After the backlash from this report from Southern Baptists, the senior pastor of First Orlando, David Uth, took the stage this past Sunday to preach a sermon doubling down on the church’s stated goal of having lost people in the church serving. Twisting the Great Commission in Matthew 28, Uth explains:
When we invite them [lost people] into our small groups, they see the gospel lived out. The way I like to say it is that everyone needs a safe space to come to explore faith. The church needs to be that safe space…
Quoting from Outreach Magazine, David Uth agrees that:
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When a non-Christian is allowed to be a full participant in a community and get an up-close look at what difference the gospel actually makes in people, he or she is given a front-row seat to the working of the Holy Spirit in our midst. The same people who don’t yet know whether they want to give their lives to Jesus, you can’t serve here your voice won’t be heard here, that’s a quick way to shut down the process of their discovering of whether or not Jesus is someone they want to give their life to.
He then goes on to quote a former member of his church who is now a pastor in California, “every truly healthy church has two things, heretics and people who are sexually immoral.”
Clearly, David Uth and First Orlando have absolutely no idea what the Great Commission is. For starters, Jesus said to GO OUT into the world to make disciples; he did not say bring the mission field into your church, let sexually immoral people handle your children on Sunday mornings, and allow coax them into “giving their lives” to Jesus. That’s not how the gospel works and that’s not how the Church functions.
The Apostle Paul was abundantly clear;
But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.” –1 Corinthians 5:11-13
Uth and First Orlando are in direct opposition to the Scriptures by allowing the sexually immoral to work and serve and have a voice among the bride of Christ. What can someone who hates God offer the Church? Who can give counsel to the Lord? Christ is the head of the Church; He alone instructs His bride.
Despite this, Uth goes on to explain that his church knowingly had a lost person working and serving in the special needs class at his church. Why in the world would you place someone who is at enmity with God over the most vulnerable and innocent people in your church? It should come as no surprise since David Uth is the same pastor who allowed Orlando homosexuals to take the pulpit to preach to the Church about tolerance and inclusion after the gay nightclub shooting several years ago.
“There are all kinds of places for them to serve,” Uth explains, “because we think that when they get around us, they’re going to want to know more about the Jesus we love.”
No, being around people is not what makes people who hate God love them. Romans 10 is clear; faith comes by hearing the gospel preached by those who are sent by the Church. You don’t join a church unless you’re a Christian. The Church is the body of believers; yet, David Uth desires his church to be a body of unbelievers. This is Andy Stanley theology and is not derived from Scripture in any way.
David Uth clearly acts on emotion rather than abiding by the Scriptures. This is a clear demonstration that this church is not functioning according to the Scriptures or even the Baptist Faith and Message and should be disfellowshiped immediately.
You can watch his entire sermon below:
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