Rick Warren Hosts A “Blacks Only” Worship Service!

Hey guys, Colin here, and welcome back to the channel where the Bible and critical thinking meet to give you real Christian commentary about the things that matter. Thanks so much for watching, let's get into the video.

So I don't talk about politics an awful lot on this channel, but when I do, I try my very best to make sure that every point of view I present is rooted in Scripture. You see, you don't have to be afraid of talking about politics when your political perspective is a Biblical perspective.

Unfortunately, though, there are some in the Christian Church who don't think that politics have anything to do with the Bible, and they stay away from it entirely. But more than this, a significantly higher percentage of Christians will actually misuse and misapply the Bible to defend their bad political views.

Rick Warren and the Claim of a Blacks-Only Worship Service

Speaking of misusing Scripture, though, Pastor Rick Warren. He's the pastor of Saddleback Church in California, which boasts over 25 ,000 weekly members and has 14 campuses. I mean, Saddleback might as well be a denomination at this point, it's so big.

But I digress. Most of Pastor Rick Warren's success came as a result of the book The Purpose Driven Life, and I have to say, personally, I never really understood the hype behind this book. I really don't think it's that great of a read, but then again, there are millions who would disagree with me, so let's move on.

Rick Warren is not the most horrible false teacher out there, and I'm not even sure I would clearly define him as a false teacher yet, but he's getting really, really close. What I will say about him, though, is that over time, Rick has become more and more suspect in his theology.

For instance, his comments on the pandemic and his response to it as a church leader was concerning at the very least, especially when you contrast this with the response of fellow Californian pastor John MacArthur.

But in any case, I stumbled upon an article written by Reformation Charlotte, link in description, and this article blew my mind, I kid you not, because it claimed that Rick Warren had hosted a blacks-only church event at Saddleback Church.

That is to say, it was a church event which only black people were allowed to attend, and I thought, there's no way this is real. So I read the article from that frame of reference, but unfortunately, I was dead wrong, because just a few months ago, Rick Warren literally did hold a segregated worship service that only allowed black church members and their spouses.

I do believe there was a little teaching that went on at this event as well, it was done over Zoom. Again, the proof of all of this will be in an article in the description, and I'll show you a quick screenshot here of Rick Warren's actual invitation.

It's written by him, or at least, it has his name at the bottom. So in this video, let me offer you three biblical points that demonstrate how truly unbiblical this forced segregation in Rick Warren's church is.

No Partiality in the Church on the Basis of Race

Number one, segregation in the church on the basis of race is never okay for any reason, and the Bible makes that very clear. Let me offer you some scriptures that demonstrate this truth. Galatians 3 .28 says the following, there is neither Jew nor Greek, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Now, this passage is not saying that those categories don't exist. There were indeed Jewish and Greek people. However, the passage is saying that all these different categories of people, it also mentions men and women, and free and slave, they are not supposed to be treated with partiality in the church.

That's the important distinction to be made here. The event held at Rick Warren's church strikes at the very heart of our unity in Christ, according to this passage, because we are all equal at the foot of the cross.

God does not show partiality on the basis of race for black people or white people, and church members are commanded to follow God's example. There are liberal Christians, however, who would tell you that being so-called colorblind here is sinful, because it doesn't recognize our beautiful and wonderful racial differences.

I guess those same liberals must disagree with the Apostle Paul in Inspired Scripture when he says that there is neither Jew nor Greek, for those who are in Christ Jesus do not belong to those categories first and foremost.

So if you agree with Rick Warren here, stop the political posturing and pretending that your view is biblical when you know it's not. The truth is, if your entire perspective on church life, or a significant portion thereof, relies on the idea of there being stark and important racial differences that we need to highlight all the time, you are the problem with racial tension in the church.

You are the one who's obsessed with race, not everyone else. So why don't people like Rick Warren worry a little more about their own conscious racial bias, rather than worrying about everyone else's unconscious racial bias?

Moreover, Acts 10, 34 -35 says this,. Peter opened his mouth and said,. Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation, anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.

Being white or black or from a certain country doesn't matter in God's eyes, for he shows no partiality on the basis of those superficial things. Of course, God can always punish a nation for disobedience, and that may see one ethnicity or nationality being punished more than another.

This happened several times in the Old Testament, but that punishment did not happen on the basis of race. It happened on the basis of sinful and wicked behavior. So what's my point here? My point is this, there is no precedent for segregation of any kind in the church on the basis of race, and by hosting this event, Rick Warren is complicit in both the sin of partiality and causing disunity in the church.

Scripture Does Not Permit Racial Segregation for Any Group

Number two, there are no provisions made in Scripture, none whatsoever, that allow for the segregation of races in church, period, even in the case of one being a hypothetically oppressed minority group.

That stuff doesn't matter. We hear this kind of excuse all the time though, especially with the rise of Black Lives Matter, the argument goes something like this, It's okay to have segregation in the church and separation in the church as long as it happens and it's serving a historically oppressed minority group.

Actually, when you say things like that, you have no clue what you're talking about. The Bible contradicts this kind of claim clearly and consistently. In Galatians 2, Paul writes the following, quote,.

But when Cephas, that is Peter, came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles, but when they came, he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party.

He separated himself from the Gentiles. Peter was accused of practicing a form of segregation. Now, if only there was an oppressed minority group in Scripture, I wonder if there was an oppressed minority group who were made slaves and mistreated by the world.

Hmm. If only we had that example. Oh, wait, the Jewish people fit that description perfectly. They were enslaved. They were mistreated. However, Peter was still chastised by Paul for encouraging ethnic separation in the church of any kind.

You see, even though this separation was serving the Jewish people who were the historically oppressed minority group, Peter was still sinning when he did this. And the Bible makes that clear. So please spare me your silly and ridiculous arguments about racial separation in the church being OK.

These arguments come from your freshman sociology textbooks. So stop pretending that they come from Scripture, because we all know you're full of it. The basic reading of the New Testament text will clearly show anyone with an ounce of common sense that what Rick Warren did here is wicked and deeply unbiblical.

And unfortunately, guys, this stuff is happening more and more frequently in local churches across the world. Number three, let's take a look at Rick Warren's biblical excuse for this event, because it really is pitiful.

Love Cannot Be Used to Contradict God's Word

In defense of this unbiblical nonsense here, he said this, quote, It is not enough to just say we love people. We have to show love. Oh, isn't that just so sweet? Let me go break out my little violin so I can play a sad little song and we can all clap for good old Pastor Rick, because we got a real Atticus Finch over here, folks.

He's solving all of America's racial problems. Everybody listen up, because Martin Luther King Jr.'s apprentice, Rick Warren, has a novel idea about how to end racism in the church. Pay attention, folks, because this idea has never been tried before in all of American history.

It's called segregation. Hmm, isn't that a new one? Maybe we should consider that. But here's the thing, Rick Warren. In all seriousness, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that you're not going to increase racial unity in the church by separating people of different races.

This is literally, by definition, the exact opposite of what you're to try and do. But of course, Rick Warren's excuse for all of his unbiblical statements is always, and will always be, love. You just gotta feel the love, man.

Well, I hate to break it to you, folks, but Woodstock ended in 1969, so please stop acting like hippies in the church who use love as an explanation for why a person can't read the Bible properly or for whatever reason can't seem to think logically.

In all seriousness, you can't use love as an excuse to disobey God's Word. After all, 1 John 4, 8 says God is love. We wouldn't know that God is loving without believing that His Word is true. But the very same God who is love also inspired the writing of all Scriptures that contradict Rick Warren here, including Galatians 3, 28 that says there is neither Jew nor Greek, for all are one in Christ Jesus.

Here's my point. Using love, a characteristic of God, as an excuse to contradict the Word of God is foolish. It really just demonstrates that Mr. Warren has no compelling argument to offer because he constantly hides behind this facade of love.

So let's pray for Rick and for Saddleback Church that they would repent of this sin and find the truth of God's Word. Thank you so much for watching. If you liked that video, please like, comment, share, subscribe, and hit the notification bell so that you never miss another one.

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