Early in my ministry in South Louisiana, I was pastor of the only Baptist church in a town of about 6,000 people. This was Jimmy Swaggert territory, and many Pentecostals and charismatic/nondenominational churches dotted the area. You were most likely either Catholic by birth or Pentecostal, and there did not seem to be much in-between.
I recall being asked by Pentecostal ministers and members alike, “Are you full gospel?” I knew what they meant, of course: Do I speak in tongues? Have I received the fullness of the Holy Spirit? Are there visible healings and emotional outpourings occurring in our church?
I never did, but always wanted to say: “Of course, I’m full gospel. I believe and preach all the gospel.”
It did not take long in ministry to realize that, even though we as Baptists liked to refer to ourselves as “People of the Book,” the truth was we were people of selective books and passages. Maybe we did not really believe and practice the “Full Gospel” after all. We had a penchant for passages about judgment and the law — the do’s and don’ts of Scripture — but the gospels only received a cursory view.
Joe Alain
Now, the “red letter” passages in many evangelical churches seem to be largely off limits, seldom heard or reinterpreted in a law way that does not offend popular conservatism. Today, I hear more law and less grace, more condemnation and less of Christ.
Rail against gay or trans people, the liberal school board, or any number of “conservative” talking points or fabricated crises looping continuously on far-right stations and websites, and you will hear a chorus of amens.
But challenge people to be conformed to Christ, to love your neighbor and to follow a host of other unsettling and comfort-disturbing teachings of Jesus, and the congregation becomes strangely silent.
As a pastor in a Southern Baptist church who has a good deal of experience with the “silent” pews, here is a sample of the teachings of Jesus from the Beatitudes (Matthew 5) seldom heard in many evangelical churches:
Here is a sample of the teachings of Jesus from the Beatitudes (Matthew 5) seldom heard in many evangelical churches.
Humility (Matthew 5:3). In a culture where toxic masculinity is glorified, talk of humility falls on deaf ears. Instead of humility, we want to be challenged to assert our pride, power and privilege over others. This is alien to Christ, but not so as interpreted in many of the warring and patriarchal passages that often form Sunday morning texts.
Mourning (Matthew 5:4). Have we forgotten how to lament? Has our faith lost its tears? Somehow, if you mourn for the starving children of Gaza or the poor who have no healthcare, you break the twin commandments to never question the powers in charge and to always be happy.
Meekness (Matthew 5:5). Jesus was meek — exhibiting strength under control — but he was anything but weak. His meekness put him on a collision course with the empire that crucified him. Instead of meekness, the evangelical church has become Darwinian in its survival-of-the-fittest controlling ambitions, pursuing power and privilege. The irony is evangelicals once sought to be separate from the world, but now instead of resisting the empire, evangelicals are the empire.
Righteousness (Matthew 5:6). This verse often is interpreted to mean conservatives who stand up against the “liberals” of the world are standing for “righteousness.” However, that misses the whole point. The blessing is on those who are doing what is right and good, who are advocating for “rightness.” Is righteousness condemning immigrants or having compassion for people made in God’s image? Is righteousness spewing proof-text verses of hatred from the Bible or loving your neighbor?
Mercy (Matthew 5:7). Who does not want and desperately need mercy? Apparently, many people. When you remove Jesus as the interpretive key of the Bible, you are in effect removing mercy and all that goes with it — empathy, for instance. And with mercy removed, you are free to overlook, condemn and act harshly without pricking your conscience.
Pure in Heart (Matthew 5:8). “Purity” has mostly been interpreted in the limited way of sexual purity. This in spite of the fact many evangelical leaders have practiced the opposite of what they have preached. “Do as I say, not as I do.” But what about the heart, which Jesus said is the wellspring of everything? Remember, Jesus characterized the Pharisees as whitewashed tombs, beautiful and clean on the outside but full of dead bones inside — dead bones of hatred, prejudice, lust and greed.
Peacemaking to evangelicals sounds a lot like compromise, which is the cardinal sin you shall not commit.
Peacemakers (Matthew 5:9). Peacemaking to evangelicals sounds a lot like compromise, which is the cardinal sin you shall not commit. “If we compromise, we may have to admit we are not the owners of all truth,” they reason. For so long, evangelicals have been taught everyone else is probably lost and cannot be trusted. No wonder evangelicals have no interest in peacemaking.
Persecuted for righteousness (Matthew 5:10). Evangelicals continue to perpetuate the myth that U.S. Christians are being persecuted for their faith. The truly persecuted are not people who assert their rights on nonissues, but those who live righteously, doing what is right, ethical and Christian. And strangely enough, the persecution is not coming from without but from within the evangelical church, because courageous individuals dare to speak contrary to an “authorized” evangelical position.
At the end of the day, I am truly an optimist by nature. After all, as in the days of Elijah, I believe there are the 7,000 who have not bowed to Baal. And I take to heart the words of Jesus to the young church, “Fear not, little flock.” So, I will keep teaching and preaching the words that are seldom heard — even in the silence — because I still am a Baptist and of that small tribe who desire to be “People of the Book.”
Joe Alain has been a pastor about 38 years. He is senior pastor of Carrollwood Baptist Church in Tampa, Fla., and a hospice chaplain for Chapters Health.
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