This is Terrible

The Affective Principle of Worship and Experience-Driven Ministry

Because now we have adopted what I like to call the affective principle of worship. And the affective principle of worship goes like this. If somebody likes it and it makes them feel close to God, it's good.

That's all that's required. If people are blessed by it, if it's meaningful to them, and if it facilitates an encounter, if it facilitates an experience with God, then it is acceptable.

I want the person who feels lonely and isolated and like God doesn't care, I want them to see how amazing Jesus actually is and what God actually did for all of us. So I said, we're going to go to the edge on this.

And they said, Pastor, how far on the edge are we going to go? I said, we're going to do everything short of sin. Y 'all, I felt the religious people, their booties got tight right there.

And anyone who says otherwise is judgmental and legalistic and mean.

Friends, I don't have a fatty. Girl, we keep telling you it's okay. Your little booty matter too, friend. Y 'all know they don't be discriminating.

And we know the 11th commandment is thou shalt be nice. And we don't believe the other 10.

So no, you may not wear a yellow and blue checkerboard suit, but I do. And we can be ourselves in this place. And I just thank you, Bishop, for creating the atmosphere for us to have what you're about to see today.

Mike Todd’s Easter Service and the Loss of Theological Foundations

In 2015, I became the pastor and I didn't know what a pastor did. And so I was meeting with a group of people and they was like, what should we do for Easter? I was like, I've never preached the Easter message.

So I'm not going to start this year. We need to come up with an Easter play. And they was like, all right, let's do it. I said, but it can't be no wack, raggedy. He got up. It just cannot be that. Okay, y 'all, I'm going to act like I'm the only one that's all like, oh, yay.

That was good. I was like, it's got to move people. And I really want it to be focused on people who don't know God or are far from him.

Amen, somebody. He even had a female hung on the cross while secular performers danced to the secular song on a supposed Christian church resurrection celebration. If the sensual and ungodly displays do not blow you away, certainly the lyrics should.

How can a Christian align with a song that says the dragon, which we all know is Satan, was an angel turned into a hustler?

Y 'all, it's almost one o 'clock in the morning, but I still cannot shake what God did tonight. I'm in my closet messed up, but I knew tonight was going to be special. Thousands of people showed up. The production was phenomenal.

Hundreds of people met Jesus. And then about an hour of worship later, after we dismissed overflow, hit the cast and the crew. Do whatever you got to do. Get to Transformation Church today. It's going to radically upgrade your life.

Pastor Mike Todd of Transformation Church said during the church's Easter service that. And I didn't know what a pastor did.

And he said, I've never preached the Easter message.

I know Todd is trying to be authentic and relatable here, but these statements are absolutely shocking. Coming from someone who is supposed to be a pastor, who is supposed to lead, guide and shepherd his flock, not communicate ignorance concerning what the Easter message is.

I believe that most of these preachers today on television and things like that, they would rather see Solomon and all his wealth than see Jesus Christ and all his righteousness.

Rather than boldly and clearly communicating the holiness and majesty of Jesus Christ on Easter Sunday, Todd wanted to put on a lavish skit that included women wearing skin-tight leather clothes and talking about their fatty bottoms.

It seems clear that Todd cares more about people experiencing something, whatever it is, even if it's unholy, more than he cares about preaching the true undiluted gospel.

All the while, the theological foundation was being ignored. And in both instances, we were arguing not for the regulative principle or the normative principle, but for the affective principle. This is how we meet God.

This is how we feel God's presence.

And it's certainly not just Mike Todd who is emphasizing experience over simply preaching the gospel. Stephen Furtick's sermons are likewise filled with moments that are designed to excite the audience, and he even has people play instruments at key moments in his sermons.

You're going to make it. I got an angel.

I got an angel. I got an angel. Now who are you going to listen to? Your angel said I'm going to fight all time. My angel said it's working for Mike. I'm not in covenant with a person. I'm not in covenant with a political party.

I've been coming out soaring. It's in me. It's in me. It's in me. It is God that worketh in you. It's always been in you.

To be clear, the point isn't that Furtick is exhibiting emotion. The point is all the production that is behind what Furtick is saying to manipulate the emotions of his audience. Similarly, watch this clip from a T .D. Jakes sermon, which is essentially identical to what Stephen Furtick does, including instruments playing to heighten the phrase he repeats over and over.

I'm going to get some treasure out of this. After I get through crying myself to sleep, I'm going to get some treasure out of this.

For pastors like Mike Todd, Stephen Furtick, and T .D. Jakes, it seems their primary goal is to craft a powerful and emotional experience and not to simply preach the gospel in its simplicity and purity.

Well, no, this is how we meet God. And this is how we feel God's presence. And as this was happening, the theological roots and foundations of worship were being all but lost.

Controversy Avoidance and Qualifying Clear Teaching on Homosexuality

Pastors like these are afraid of controversy because controversy will hurt their numbers. So they work extremely hard to stay out of controversy. Listen to what Mike Todd said about the issue of homosexuality.

God decided male and female. No, no, no, I'm not. This is not a bad. I need y 'all to hear my heart on this. This is not a bashing. If I was there, maybe I would have told him, is there something in the middle you could do?

Like kind of like a little maybe if somebody, well, I was born like this, I don't know how I feel. I feel you. And I wish that there was an option of other in the kingdom.

Todd speaks as if he's disappointed that God made things so black and white. And he sounds as if he is apologizing for what God decreed. Notice that Todd does not simply proclaim what God has decreed as being what is best for humans.

Oh, God, pastors don't say this because they want to be absolute. Why did that? I don't freaking know. I know. Honestly, I wish God would have made it so much simpler. And it was like A, B, C or D like Frick.

Again, instead of teaching, this is what God has revealed in his word. Todd's preaching is filled with, I don't know. And I wish God would have done this. Todd communicates that he is ashamed of what the Bible teaches because he doesn't want to offend the majority of the culture.

This is why pastors stand up today. And when they preach on a topic that's controversial, their message usually dies the death of a thousand qualifications. I mean, think about it. You will not hear guys stand up for the most part and preach on the issue of homosexuality without 15 minutes of justification.

Now, I love homosexuals. I have friends who are homosexuals. I am not here to say, you know, just say what the book says.

No, I'm serious. As a pastor is like, so what do you think about gay men? I don't know. But I do know in the kingdom.

Again, Todd says, I don't know concerning an issue that God is very clear about in his word.

There is so much confusion on this outside the church. That's explicable. But there seems to be about equal confusion inside the church. In fact, there is a new kind of evangelicalism that labels itself tolerant, loving, nonjudgmental that is affirming those who carry about and legitimize these kinds of lusts and behaviors.

And they do so while maintaining the name of Jesus Christ and an affirmation that they themselves are Christians.

Todd doesn't seem to go as far as affirming the LGBTQ lifestyle, but he certainly seems to be unwilling to call it sin.

I don't know why he decided to do it like this. I don't know why you're wrestling like that. And I don't know what to do to help you, but to stand with you and pray with you and not. And you're welcome at Transformation Church.

Trans is in the title.

Transformation, you can be here. Of course, we welcome everyone to come to church. But our message is not that we will affirm you in your confusion and sin, but rather that you need to repent of sin and turn to faith in Jesus Christ.

And here's what Todd said about whether he would marry a gay couple.

Will I marry you? I can't, not because I don't think you found love. Just as a kingdom ambassador, when I look back at the orders that are in the constitution of the kingdom.

Again, everything Todd says is filled with so many qualifications.

He says, I can't, not because I don't think you found love.

But Todd does not say that homosexual love is not in fact true godly biblical love.

Not only that, love becomes sinful when it arises from the wrong source. Not only when it's when it's pointed in the wrong direction, pointed toward the wrong object, but when it arises from the wrong source.

Likewise, when other popular pastors are confronted with this issue, even if they do ultimately believe that homosexuality is sin, they work far harder at hiding what they believe and sounding apologetic than they do in communicating what the Bible clearly teaches.

Trust me, I've talked to enough LGBT, they are not all the same. Oh, for sure.

But how do we, first of all, is your thinking evolved on this?

Evolved and evolving. Will a gay person be accepted into heaven as you see it? Well, I believe they will.

And unsurprisingly, it's absolutely impossible to find any clip of Stephen Furtick addressing the issue of homosexuality. We see now that there are two very distinct approaches to what churches are supposed to do.

Two Competing Models of Church: Emotional Experience or Biblical Truth

First, we have the approach taken by pastors like Mike Todd, Stephen Furtick, T .D. Jakes, and Joel Osteen.

On the one hand, there is the idea that says we need an emotional experience. We need an emotional catharsis. We need to focus in on what it is that will create the environment that will allow us to feel the way we want to feel or we ought to feel or would like to feel.

And everything needs to be designed around that.

These are also the pastors who will essentially compromise and bow down to celebrities who support them, regardless of how ungodly the celebrity is. Hi, Lakewood community.

I'm Mariah Carey, and I'm so glad I could join you this Easter. We find ourselves in a unique time in history where we can't celebrate together in person, and I'm grateful that so many of us are staying home and staying safe.

Hey, we are so honored to have a world changer, a history maker, great voices of our generation. Ms. Oprah Winfrey is right here.

And second, we have the approach taken by pastors like Vodie Bauckham, John MacArthur, and Paul Washer.

And the other says, here's who God is, regardless of the circumstances. And here's what God says about himself, about worship, and about death. And it will be enough. You are a wretched, miserable, sinful creature who deserves to die and go to hell.

And unless you repent of your sin, unless you are aware of the fact that you deserve to die and be crushed under the weight of the holiness and majesty of God, you don't get it. Thank you so much for watching.

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