An influential American pastor revealed about the prevailing culture of "superficial Christianity" and the internet's exposure of the Christians whom he called as "phonies."
Pastor John MacArthur said that some of the country's biggest churches made much money by supporting a culture of corrupt "superficial Christianity" but the internet is now making it more difficult for "phonies" to survive. He added that the combination of the current pandemic and ministry's technological shift has resulted to "sifting and shifting."
The pastor declared this statement to the congregants of Grace Community Church in California during his return to the pulpit after a brief absence, The Christian Post reported.
"We had for decades, people trying to create a cultural Christianity that would appeal to nonbelievers, that was accepting of immorality, accepting of homosexuality, accepting of racial hatred. There was a kind of superficial, shallow Christianity that watered down the Gospel, didn't talk about sin, tried to have a positive message. And it was very successful. And I get it because I fought that battle well for almost all the time I've been here."
The pastor stated that it was tough for him to call on the church to repent because "superficial Christianity made a lot of money" and "elevated a lot of charlatans."
"It was successful. The biggest churches in America are part of it. It was very hard to call people to faithfulness when you could be so corrupt and so successful in Christian religion. That was the battle. Now I think there's a sifting and a shifting."
"First of all, phonies are going to have a hard time hiding with the internet. We're seeing one after another after another. Dead ones and alive ones. This dead apologist had a deviant sex life. This cool dude rock and roll pastor was immoral with multiple women for years and years," he further said.
MacArthur implied about the late apologist Ravi Zacharias and former Hillsong pastor Carl Lentz who are both embroiled in sexual misconduct controversies.
The pastor also stated that he has managed to keep his church open despite government-mandated restrictions, court actions and fines to close the church during the pandemic. He also called out major media companies and "ungodly bloggers" who tried to discredit the church.
He contended for the church's legal right to continue holding worship services in spite of the fines they faced each Sunday which he said had only made the congregation thrived.
"In the middle of the lawsuit, the Lord has grown our church. So this was a very small tiny local church until COVID. One thousand new members, baptisms. Did you hear the testimonies in baptism Sunday night? There's a new evangelical term. I love it. It's 'Grace refugees'. It's the people who had no other church to go to so they came here as church refugees," Macarthur stated further.
He said that he will take everyone in, in his church. He also revealed that people all across the country have flown and driven just to worship with them every Sunday.
The pastor concluded his statement by saying that some of the congregants came, not just because it was the only church open, but that it was a church that presents the Gospel and the Word of God.
Aside from being a pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church, MacArthur is also a conference speaker, an author, Grace to You media ministry's featured teacher and the chancellor emeritus of The Master's University and Seminary, his church website says.
