eCommerce WordPress Themes

Rick Warren's Political Interpretation Of ion Draws Christians' Ire: 'Embarrassing'

By Jon Brown, Christian Post Reporter Wednesday, February 12, 2025 Rick Warren, founder and former pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., appeals the removal of the church from the Southern Baptist Convention during an afternoon session of the SBC annual meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, on June 13, 2023. | Flickr/Baptist Press/Sonya Singh

By Jon Brown, Christian Put up Reporter

Rick Warren, founder and broken-down pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Woodland, Calif., appeals the elimination of the church from the Southern Baptist Conference throughout a day session of the SBC annual assembly in New Orleans, Louisiana, on June 13, 2023. | Flickr/Baptist Press/Sonya Singh

Saddleback Church founder and broken-down senior pastor Rick Warren drew scorn on social media for implying that Jesus Christ would be a political centrist as of late because of He became as soon as crucified between two thieves.

“‘They crucified Jesus with two others — one on both aspect & Jesus in the center,” Warren tweeted Tuesday, quoting John 19:18. “The guys on both aspect were thieves. Must you’re buying for the #realJesus, now not a comic strip disfigured by partisan motivations, you’ll procure him in the center, now not on both aspect.”

John 19:18 “They crucified Jesus with two others-one on both aspect & Jesus in the center.”
The guys on both aspect were thieves.

Must you’re buying for the #realJesus, now not a comic strip disfigured by partisan motivations, you’ll procure him in the center, now not on both aspect. pic.twitter.com/wYmLyayqsZ

— Rick Warren (@RickWarren) February 11, 2025

Diverse prominent Christian voices on X took the bestselling creator of The Cause Driven Lifestyles to job for what they deemed a questionable utility of the biblical textual divulge.

“Must you’re going to misuse the anecdote this execrable, you ought to moreover show that the thief on the Steady is the one who went to heaven lol,” tweeted Babylon Bee managing editor Joel Berry.

Justin Peters, who heads a global expository preaching and teaching ministry, rebuked Warren for what he characterized as sloppy biblical interpretation.

“Here is, sadly, identical earlier of Rick Warren’s system to scripture,” wrote Peters. “This would were laughed out of biblical hermeneutics on day 1. Frequent hermeneutics dictates that you strive for authorial intent, and here is definitively NOT the level the creator became as soon as making. Here is now not fully embarrassing, it’s miles inexcusable.”

Here is, sadly, identical earlier of Rick Warren’s system to scripture. This would were laughed out of biblical hermeneutics on day 1. Frequent hermeneutics dictates that you strive for authorial intent, and here is definitively NOT the level the creator became as soon as making. Here is now not fully… https://t.co/PJCpLeooyS

— Justin Peters (@JustinPetersMin) February 12, 2025

Others accused Warren of exhibiting the lukewarmness that Jesus wanted in opposition to.

“Your Jesus sounds extra indulge in a lukewarm sensible to your possess image,” tweeted Aaron Edwards, a theology lecturer at Cliff College in Derbyshire, England, who became as soon as terminated in 2023 after he tweeted in opposition to homosexuality.

Ryan Visconti, pastor of the Arizona-primarily primarily based Generation Church, advisable Warren’s demand political moderation among American Christians has become antiquated and successfully inconceivable given what basic of the Left helps as of late.

“How would one be ‘in the center’ on abortion, mutilating child’s genitals, homosexuality, delivery borders, DEI, CRT, etc? There’s no center floor between tainted and righteousness. You’re immoral, Pastor Rick. Your approach made sense in 1990, nonetheless now not as of late,” he wrote.

Creator and podcast host Eric Metaxas echoed Visconti’s sentiment, calling Warren’s tweet “deceptive posturing.”

“What does it even mean? Lets be ‘in the center’ in terms of standing in opposition to killing babies or mutilating youth or corruption in our possess govt? There’s a time to be dauntless as lions in opposition to tainted! That’s now not ‘partisan.’ It be the Lord’s will,” he wrote.

Attorney Jenna Ellis tweeted that Warren ought to “be embarrassed to name yourself a pastor.”

“Jesus is now not a sensible or ‘in the center’ in terms of reality. To pronounce him as such simply because of of the placement of his execrable is perverting an historical truth into a symbolic meaning to abet your possess ideological agenda,” she added.

“It be so execrable my jaw is on floor,” creator and Each day Wire reporter Megan Basham wrote in retaining with Ellis’ tweet.

Basham, who has written widely about the infiltration of left-flit financial interests in the American church, moreover advisable that Warren’s frequent affect in the Evangelical world would possibly presumably moreover need contributed to its show theological weak point.

“The truth that here is the pastor from whom tens of millions of People stumbled on spiritual guidance for years explains so much about the narrate of our theology,” she wrote.

The truth that here is the pastor from whom tens of millions of People stumbled on spiritual guidance for years explains so much about the narrate of our theology. https://t.co/iiE0VhON1c

— Megan Basham (@megbasham) February 12, 2025

“With every post, Rick Warren proves the data of Southern Baptists in kicking him out,” wrote William Wolfe, who serves as executive director on the Center for Baptist Leadership.

In 2023, the Southern Baptist Conference upheld the elimination of Saddleback Church from the denomination for allowing a girl to abet in the plan of enterprise of practising pastor, no subject an impassioned plea from Warren.

A area dedicated to Warren’s bestselling ebook touts him as “The US’s most influential spiritual leader,” and notes how he “is a member of the Council on International Family participants and the Pacific Council on International Policy,” and has delivered addresses to global bodies such because the World Economic Dialogue board.

Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Put up. Ship recordsdata solutions to jon.brown@christianpost.com


Offer:www.christianpost.com

Share:

Related Articles

Young Christian Man Facing Death Penalty After Unknowingly Being Added To Facebook Chat Groups

Young Christian Man Facing Death Penalty After Unknowingly Being Added To Facebook Chat Groups

Alexander Koerner/Getty Images LAHORE, Pakistan — Federal agents in Pakistan arrested a young Christian man under a blasphemy law mandating the death penalty for comments posted in Facebook chat groups under his name by unknown persons, his family said.  Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials took 24-year-old Arsalan Gill of Railway Quarters in Mughalpura, Lahore, into
Read More
Remember Fireflies? The Viral Hit That Launched Bedroom Pop Just Hit 1 Billion Streams On Spotify – RELEVANT

Remember Fireflies? The Viral Hit That Launched Bedroom Pop Just Hit 1 Billion Streams On Spotify – RELEVANT

Sixteen years after it first made you feel vaguely emotional for reasons you still can’t explain, Owl City’s “Fireflies” has officially crossed one billion streams on Spotify. Yes, the synthy, sleep-deprived anthem of your Christian Tumblr youth is now a certified streaming giant—right alongside Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Gorillaz’s “Feel Good Inc.” and even
Read More