Pride Month

Rainbow tinted profile pictures, rainbow light displays, the pride flag on nearly every staff—reminders about what month we’re in greet us at every turn. Pride Month has grown from a recessed community recognition to an international celebration. 

We can no longer ignore what’s going on “out there” in the world, because now the world is barging into the community of believers, demanding full acceptance (or else). Followers of Jesus must reckon with the LGBTQIA+ community — the agendas and the people. Especially the people. But we need to remind ourselves of what the apostle Peter wrote to the first century Christians who lived in a world generally annoyed and angered by them:

Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect (1 Pet 3:14-15).

Sometimes what we feel about this celebration of sin looks like “righteous indignation” and maybe zeal. But as truth takes hit after hit after hit, we need to draw some hard lines in the proverbial sand, stand up for what’s righteous, and speak for the truth. Yet, in a society fueled by outrage about nearly everything, I want to propose that while indignation may have its place, our first response should very likely be a broken (and therefore compassionate) heart.

Remembering My Sinfulness

Allow me to ask: What’s the worst sin in the Bible? 

There’s only one sin that Jesus said was unpardonable, unforgivable — the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Matt 12:22-32). This is the section just before Jesus’ statement about us being judged for every idle word we may say (vv. 33-37).

Outside of this sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit I would believe it right to say that any sin will destroy our perfect relationship with God, separating (even eternally) from God. 

And He was saying, “That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.” (Mark 7:20-23)

Daniel serves well as a cautionary story — he was captured as a teen, and he lived almost his entire earthly life in Babylon; nearly 70 years in captivity. One day while he was reading and thinking about the prophecies of Jeremiah, he realized that the time of exile was nearly done. He knew why his people had been punished by Babylon in the first place, and in his prayer, he said: “Compassion and forgiveness belong to the Lord our God, though we have rebelled against him and have not obeyed the LORD our God by following his instructions that he set before us through his servants the prophets.” (Dan 9:9-10)

We might wonder what sin Daniel was guilty of because there’s nothing in the biblical record that tells us, but he, like all of us, certainly was a sinner (Rom 3:10, 23; Gal 3:22). My point is that in his prayer he includes himself by saying “we” and “us.”

If we have any integrity, Pride Month could probably be called “Self-Righteousness” month for us all. Like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable (Lk 18:9-14), we are prone to thank God that we’re not like “them,” as if we’re a better class of sinner.

This month we all need to remember that every sin, including self-righteousness, is only forgiven by the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God and our mediator (John 14:6; Rom 6:1-7; Gal 3:26-29, 1 Tim 2:5). As Isaiah reminds us all: “But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousness is like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” (Isaiah 64:6)

It might seem easy to condemn others this month, but if we’re looking in the mirror of God’s word (James 1:19-25), then we will see our own hideousness. We all need to see the ugliness of our own sins and busy ourselves working on ourselves (Philippians 2:12-13).

We All Need Jesus' Compassion

The one big thing it seems the Pharisees lacked was compassion. In Mark 3:1-6 we have an example of just how hard-hearted they were against others who were not them. In this case, there was a man with a withered hand: 

Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they kept silent. And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. (vv. 4-5)

In Luke 18:9-14 Jesus tells them a parable — and we’re informed by the Holy Spirit that “He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others.” (v. 9) He could well be telling that parable to us all.

I often think of Jesus walking among us, among mankind. I realize we may feel that things in the 21st century are much worse than they were in the 1st, but we’d be wrong with that assessment. Mankind is chock full of sinners (Rom 3:23). Our sins today are like all the sins of yesterday. And they are despicable.

And yet Jesus didn’t walk around sneering at people and mocking them. That’s essentially what the Pharisees seemed to do:

But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues . . . But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. . . . But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. (Matt 23:5-6, 11-13)

Do we weep over our own sins? We may feel justified being angry about the sins of others — again, it being Pride Month — but are we moved to tears?

Sin destroys lives — think about the first sin of Adam against all of mankind (Gen 3; Rom 5). “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 6:23)

We should be moved to pray for others — “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” (Matt 5:43-45)

We also need to pray to God to help us when we’re talking to others. “Speaking the truth in love” (Eph 4:15). “Love is always patient; love is always kind; love is never envious or arrogant with pride” (1 Cor 13:4).

Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. (Col 4:5-6)

Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world (Phil 2:14-15)

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matt 5:16)

We are not judges, we are sinners — “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” (Rom 5:6)

Consumer Christianity

Our culture is all about the consumer. We hear and believe things like—“The consumer is always right.” And the real problem comes into focus when we find people applying the consumer mindset to God, His church, and salvation. For example, the notion that one church is as good as another, or that we’re all heading to heaven in different ways. The expression, “Go to the church of your choice” seems to summarize the religious person’s consumer mindset.

One writer put it this way—“Every church has the problem of Consumer Christians: people who attend, sing, listen, drop in some money, and go home.” The point is simple enough: Consumer Christians lack a genuine connection to the Lord (they don’t understand the relationship He seeks with us) and even the relationships they are supposed to be a part of with other disciples: “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24–25). Or, “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor” (Romans 12:10).

These Consumer Christians among us have essentially left their first love (Revelation 2:4) if they ever had that love in the first place. And once they are dissatisfied—whether they find themselves disappointed in people or in God—they go shopping somewhere else to find what they’re looking for. “Self-made religion” is what the apostle Paul called it (Colossians 2:23). It existed in his day, and continues in ours.

When Paul wrote Timothy, he gave him the solemn charge to “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:2–4).

With a consumer mindset, people look to God and the congregation of believers they are part of in a number of misdirected and dangerous ways.

Some will look to God as a harsh taskmaster that they really don’t want anything to do with; that He’s aloof and detached from real problems. He’s there, but He’s not attentive. They will look to the congregation as something they’re not a part of, speaking in terms of “What they do …” rather than, “What we’re doing.” The Consumer Christian doesn’t simply have high expectations, they have unrealistic and often subjective expectations they hold to firmly in their unfair condemnation of others without first considering themselves; that these high expectations (and rules) don’t apply to them, but do apply to everyone else.

We’re all going to fail one another at one time or another. We’re all going to disappoint one another, but when we eagerly show compassion and love to one another, we won’t hold it against anyone that they’ve failed us because we realize that we, too, fail others. “Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart … Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 1:22; 4:8).

Rather than being a Consumer Christian, we need to strive to be a Servant just like our Lord and Savior—“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). When we serve one another from a genuine heart of love we will “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love” (Ephesians 4:15–16).

Instead of us asking what others could do for us, we need to ask what we could do to help others. “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

“Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. … For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends” (2 Corinthians 10:12, 18).

Don’t be a Consumer Christian.