Sermon: Inclusivity?

#1684A
Ronny H. Graham
Given 10-Dec-22; 33 minutes

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As Ali and I drive to services each Sabbath, we pass at least half a dozen churches or so and I cannot help but notice the advertisements, if you will, offered by the various churches depicted on their signs out in front of their buildings. After thumbing through the Internet, I found perhaps part of the reason for the enticing ads is to try and draw people into their particular church. I remember when we first moved into our neighborhood, we received flyers in the mail to come on over and welcome us to the neighborhood, inviting us to worship with this church or with that church.

Now, according to a Gallup poll, beginning with the Millennial generation, church attendance is down across the board and as many as 62% of Millennials do not have a religious preference and do not attend any church. Gallup also reports that overall attendance has been dropping since that generation began. And now, for the most part, those who do attend church do not make offerings. The churches are in a quandary to attract membership and also to get people to contribute.

Over the past few months there is a church near our house advertising, "Join us for dinner and a movie." Most of the time they spell it diner. I do not know if that is trying to attract attention or not. They also have a blessing of the animals day where you can now bring your favorite pet to church. I could see Devon taking her longhorn in there and get a blessing. Bring your favorite pet for a blessing, and by the way, do not forget to drop something in the offering basket.

Another church, since it is football season, says wear your favorite team's colors in support of the team. Another one has an annual chicken bog get together for fellowship and to raise money. Back in October, I saw one where the church was encouraging attendees to wear pink to support breast cancer month, which is October. Another one was advertising a mission bazaar. Ali saw one somewhere that was having a Chinese auction. I had no clue what this was. I never had heard of it, but I looked it up and it is simply another way of raising money in the form of a raffle.

I do not recall any of these particular churches where there is any mention of God or come and hear the truth of God. Perhaps they assume since it is a church, people would know that or maybe they understand that the truth does not sell.

Now, there is one more church that I have mentioned before, and it is one that I pass each week in my travels to and from work. This church is in one of the more prominent neighborhoods in the Charlotte area and they have on display, draped down each side of the main entrance to their sanctuary, long banners perhaps 20 feet or so in length, with the LGBT colors. The banner on the right is the typical rainbow color that has been adopted by this group and it reads "All are welcome." And the one on the left is the same except it has four words on it. As time passed, I thought that might make a good subject for a sermonette or a split sermon.

The four words listed from top to bottom are as follows: 1) inclusivity, 2) community, 3) spirituality, and 4) justice.

The banners with these words inscribed on them have now been displayed for over a couple of years, so I began to wonder, what do they mean? What message is this church trying to get across or preaching? Now once again with this display there are no scriptures, but I do believe there is a progression or actually an agenda they are trying to portray in the order they chose to put them. I will also look at each one individually and see if we can figure out exactly what they are broadcasting.

Beginning with inclusivity, let us look at a few definitions first. From the Oxford Language Dictionary, it says, "The practice or policy of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized, such as those having physical or mental disabilities or belonging to other minority groups."

This next one, what inclusivity really means, coming from M. E. in the U. K., which I believe is a medical research facility, and they say, "The aim of inclusion is to embrace all people irrespective of race, gender, disability, medical or other need. It's about giving equal access and opportunities and getting rid of discrimination and intolerance." Inclusivity is about getting rid of intolerance? CNN weighs in too. I am not sure how they got in on this one, but you can be assured if there is a liberal political bias, CNN will be there. They add, "It means an uncomfortable discussion about race, history, culture, and inclusivity that is not black and white." Now with all three of these examples, you begin to see that there seems to be an underlying agenda in the use of this fairly simple word inclusive.

And just for kicks, I decided to look it up in our old hardbound copy of the American Heritage Dictionary, which was actually copywritten back in 1979. It simply says, "including everything." We even have to be on guard these days when referencing our dictionaries, and this also includes our Bible dictionaries. Let us look at one of those. Inclusive is not found in Strong's Concordance. As a matter of fact, the only Bible dictionary that I did find it in was in Holman's Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Now listen to this statement. "God chose Abraham from among the families of the earth to be the father of a great nation, which would then convey God's blessings to others. God's special relationship with Israel was never intended to be exclusive." Is this a true statement? Remember, this is a Bible dictionary.

Now let us look at a couple of scriptures for some real truth. Since they begin with Israel, let us go back to Exodus 19.

Exodus 19:5 "Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine."

A special treasure.

Let us go over to another one back in the book of Amos in chapter 3.

Amos 3:2 "You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities."

There again, you only have I known. Does this sound inclusive or exclusive?

There is one more I will just refer to in I Peter 1:2, and there Peter is writing to the elect. The elect, brethren, are an elect, a special group.

Now the second word referred to on this banner is community. Now, community is another one of those words we do not actually find in the Bible or at least in Strong's or some of my other concordances, but there are some words that are very close to the same meaning: assembly being one of them and congregation being the other (and you might be able to think of a few more). On several occasions we find the children of Israel mentioned as the congregation of Israel.

When we use or hear the word community, generally speaking we do not necessarily think of a large number, but a small, perhaps close knit group of people. I grew up in a small community of around 1,100 people and we were all a close knit group. We only had one school, several churches, but one school, we all went to school together. And for the most part I spent the first 25 years or so of my life in the same area with the same people.

Now keep in mind what I have been mulling over while passing this church every week trying to figure out what they are broadcasting. If you look at a little closer at the word community, it too seems to lean more to the exclusive side of things rather than inclusive. According to Strong's Concordance the Hebrew word edah means a gathering of people and it is used for congregation and assembly, depending on where you are reading. It can also mean a herd of animals or it can also mean a swarm such as bees.

Going back to the 40-year-old dictionary, we find that "community is a group of people living in the same locality under the same government." Similarly, it can be a group of people with the same interests. Adding one more definition from Cambridge Dictionary, which says, "All the people who live in a particular area or a group of people who are considered as a unit because of their shared interest, background, or nationality." Again, I cannot see where community supports the idea of inclusivity. Perhaps it sounds warm and fuzzy, so that is why it is there.

The third word on our banner is spirituality. What comes to mind when we hear the word spirituality? I actually had someone ask me if I believed in or practice spirituality one time on the job, and for a moment I was taken off guard. I asked, "What do you mean?" While we did work at the same property, I never went around humming like a monk or chanting so I do not know why they asked the question. Perhaps they saw something that I was unaware of. Be careful who is watching you! After informing them that I did believe in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God in man, the conversation ended. I guess that was not the spirituality they were looking for. If I had pulled out a peace pipe, I guess we probably would have been okay.

Now, let us first consider some guidelines as to how the worldly sources define spirituality and its purpose. This information is put out by the University of Minnesota regarding spirituality and healing. "The purpose of spirituality recognizes that your role in life has a greater value than what you do every day. It can relieve you from dependence on material things and help you to understand your life's greater purpose." That does not sound too bad.

Now let us read what the so-called experts have to say on the subject and they define it this way. I did not know there were experts in spirituality, but evidently there are. Christina Bukowski, an MD, Director of the George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health, contends that, "Spirituality is the aspect of humanity that refers to the way individuals seek and express meaning and purpose in the way they experience their connectedness to the moment, to self, to others, to nature, and to the significant or the sacred."

According to Mario Beauregard and Denyse O'Leary, researchers and authors of The Spiritual Brain, "Spirituality means any experience that is thought to bring the experiencer into contact with the divine." In other words, not just any experience that feels meaningful.

Our third one here comes from two nurses, Ruth Beckman Murray and Judith Proctor, and they write, "The spiritual dimension tries to be in harmony with the universe and strives for answers about the infinite and comes into focus when the person faces emotional stress, physical illness, or death." We have here people who are labeled experts in spirituality, but there is no mention of God. About the closest they come to is mentioning the divine. And what do they mean harmony with the universe?

Now, one last one here from our secular sources and it reads, "Spirituality is about seeking a meaningful connection with someone, something bigger than yourself, which can result in positive emotions such as peace, awe, contentment, gratitude, and acceptance." A meaningful connection with something bigger than ourselves. Why is it so hard to say God? The world view of spirituality is just the trickery of Satan to get us to worship itself and in turn worship the creature rather than the Creator.

Speaking of experts, you might think that any church who uses the Bible would certainly have to mention this next one. And in reality, I do not know how do you begin to explain spirituality without him. He is probably the most misquoted writer in all the Bible. And yes, you guessed it. Let us go to Romans 8, one of the writings of Paul. Now, we will read several verses here from Romans 8.

Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8:5-6 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Romans 8:9 But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

You know Paul does not mention finding the self or sitting and watching nature or tree hugging or connecting to the moment. Another suggestion that I read says to stare at a painting to connect with your spirituality. Paul must have forgotten that one. Be careful, brethren. When the instructions to spirituality focus on self-awareness, inner self, or finding yourself in the moment, where is the focus? S-E-L-F.

Now, what did Jesus Christ focus on? This should be an easy one for us. His focus was on revealing the Father and doing His will. Now, what we find here in chapter 8, brethren, is Paul describing spirituality, And what does it produce? Verse 6, "to be spiritually minded is life and peace." And not just any Spirit. Verse 9 says you are in the Spirit "if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you." What Paul is describing here is there are only two ways we can go. Those who set their minds on the flesh and those who live according to the Spirit of God. Verse 11, "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." No amount of tree hugging or staring at paintings will bring about this spirituality.

We can add John 6:44 to this equation, "No one can come to Me unless the Father draws Him." No one can find the Spirit of God unless He gives it.

Let us look at one more in the first chapter of John.

John 1:11-13 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Do we really grasp what this says here, brethren? "Who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." How often do we consider that those whom God has given His Spirit are born of God the same way Christ was? Did He not give Christ His Spirit when He was baptized? Why would He not want us to have His Spirit, brethren? There is no greater calling than the one we have been given.

Now there is one other stipulation required in order to receive God's Spirit. God calls whom He wills and He so desires before the foundation of the world even. But we must repent and surrender our mortal bodies to serve Him. I wonder why repentance did not make the banner.

The fourth word on our banner is justice. We began with inclusivity, community, spirituality, and now justice. Now our 40-year-old dictionary I decided to stick with, simply says, "moral rightness." Is that what this banner is portraying? Morality? I am not sure whoever made up these banners gave that one much thought. The word justice is derived from the Latin word, jus, meaning "right" or "law." It therefore follows that a just person obeys the law and does what is right morally and ethically. It might be just me, but it seems that justice does not fit on this banner given its true meaning. Did someone make a mistake?

Now I decided to look a little deeper into this church so I went to their website, and guess what? I found more banners, and here is what was written on them. All of the banners carry the rainbow colors and the first one reads: "Climate change, bad; a climate for change, good." The next one: "Fist bumps, high fives, chunking the deuce, all totally cool during passing of the peace." What in the world is chunking the deuce? I have been out of it for a long time, I think. Number three: "Guilt free, like a donut on cheat day." These banners were inside the church! And there is more banners, but I did not want to read the rest of them.

But what is missing? There is no scripture and no mention of God, not one scripture! I wonder if they even mention God in their services. After further research, what I found was these words, proudly portrayed on the front of this church, are nothing more than buzzwords. I know you are probably tired of hearing definitions by now, but you know what buzzwords are? Buzzwords are "a word or expression that is very often used, especially in public discussions, because it represents opinions that are popular." You get that? Opinions that are popular. It seems that our society jumps from one buzzword to the next and inclusivity is just another word for tolerance, acceptance, diversity, change is good, chunking the deduce—whatever that is. And on down the line they go.

And I do mean they. Because what I found out is that this church, with this banner strung up, is not alone. The progressive leftist liberals have invaded the religious community and are trying to remove God and the Bible altogether; and it seems like they are well on their way. Because the advice they are giving to churches, according to the article back with the Gallup poll, says, "they can survive, but they must adapt." Adapt to what? The world view of spirituality? Passing of the peace? Alignment with the universe? Chunking the deuce? I have got to figure out what that is.

Now, Herbert Armstrong used to say that God would not budge one inch with His law. Do we believe it? Do we remember any buzzwords from the past in the church? I am sure those of you old enough will remember the one that began shortly after the death of Mr. Armstrong, "We are family." Ironically, the Worldwide Church of God began to fall apart shortly after we all became family. Ali and I were living near Pasadena and one of the phrases I began to hear was, "I'll never follow another man." It seems that some in the ministry had not lived up to others expectations and people began to fall away at will.

Doctrines were revisited, if you will. And I believe the first one to be altered was the healing doctrine. I distinctly remember this one because Ali's mom was so upset about it, and you know what she was upset about? When that booklet came out, they took God and faith out of the healing equation and it really burned her around the collar for a long time. Shortly after we began hearing another buzzword, born again. And soon after that Worldwide became just another worldly social club. So like many of the churches today, they adapted to accommodate the world view.

Why have I chosen to go through these things? While at the Feast this past October in Myrtle Beach, I heard some disturbing things from a few people that happened to float through. Floaters, as I call them, since there are several church groups attending in Myrtle Beach for the Feast. It seems that every year we get visitors and that is great. One such person told me that they had become upset with the group they were attending because their leadership had decided that it was now okay for some professions to work on the Sabbath. Another group (or maybe the same one) has decided that it is not necessary to pay tithes as we had so many years been taught in Worldwide through the Scriptures. And the reason I heard was that times are difficult enough without having to pay 10%, 20%, or every three years, 30% of your income. What messages are they sending? And we might ask, who are they coming from?

There are also those who are beginning to revisit or question the Old Testament prophecies regarding Jesus Christ. This is what David [Grabbe] was touching on last week. Now, another floater I spoke with after asking them what group of the church you are with, they informed me that they were not with any group. We like them all. Is there any loyalty left in the church? How does God feel about those attitudes?

Now more specifically, what do these things I have been going through have to do with us? Did you know that the Church of the Great God had the lowest attendance at Myrtle Beach this year that we have ever had at a Feast since we began? Are we going to need to have a Chinese auction, a chicken bog bazaar? I was thinking a few weeks ago in talking with Ali about our wedding (almost 40 years ago, April will be 40 years), right down here in nearby Columbia, South Carolina. And you know how many people were there? There was 400 people at our wedding. I did not know many of them, except for a very few of my family. They were all in the church. The Finklea's, the Saxton's, Jennifer assures me she was there but 40 years ago she must have been an infant. But where did all the other people go?

Let us go back to Romans 8 and we will pick up a few more verses here.

Romans 8:35-39 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: "For Your sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter." Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

How many things does Paul list here that quite possibly we might have to face? But there is one in particular that we kind of just gloss right over. "Shall tribulation, distress, persecution, or famine, sword, or nakedness?" "Yet in all these things we are conquerors through Him who loved us, Jesus Christ." I do not think any of us want to have to face these things and Paul is encouraging us that these things cannot alter the love of God.

But did you catch the one I skipped in this list Paul goes through? He assures us that we can indeed endure these things, "nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us." Now ask yourself, why did he begin with "who"? He makes the list of all these things but he begins with "who shall separate us." If someone tells you you do not have to keep the Sabbath anymore or you do not have to tithe and make offerings to God, what should you do? Well, Joseph gives us a good example. Run, get out of there. What spirit is this coming from?

Years ago I was talking to some people about tithing and they were just adamant that God would never want you to tithe if it meant not being able to buy food for your family. At least one of these people is no longer in the church. Who planted that idea in their head? I have known people who were afraid to stand up for God's truth with their mate or with a beloved child. Just let it go. God will understand. And they just drifted away. Where are they?

As we begin to close, let us go to John 14:15. This is a very memorable scripture, a real easy one.

John 14:15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments."

That is very simple. If you love Me. Is God really first in our lives?

You know, brethren, Satan is not worried about the churches of the world. He has got them right where he wants them. Loving the world and the things of the world, as it says in I John 2:15, "If we love the things of the world, the love of the Father is not in us." Do we believe that? Back when the Worldwide Church of God began to fall apart it was a very distressing time for many of us and at times you did not know who to trust or who to believe.

Now, Ali and I were in Atlanta by this time and I had just asked a question to another church member, and of course he was one of the minister's spies, so it prompted a visit. He came to our house with one of his sycophants and was there for quite some time. Needless to say, I was quite agitated by this time. And then he made a statement. You know what he told me? He said, "If you are going to be in God's Kingdom, you have to go through me." He did not know how close I was so wanting to go through him! That is when I stood up. There was an ottoman between me and him and I threw my Bible down on the ottoman—this same Bible, I think. You know, brethren, that was a real telling moment. He would not even look at it, he would not touch it. He looked away.

That was the first time I got put out of Worldwide. I did get put out again. He let me come back and then he put me out again. But we were not alone. There was many brethren around the globe suffering similar persecution from the ministry and the brethren, including Ali's mom and dad, John and Evelyn Ritenbaugh. They were called on the carpet numerous times. Or as we said when we lived in Pasadena, they got called up to the fourth floor. And the big-time academics came in to try and turn them and change their mind. Even the Tkach's themselves tried to turn them over to the dark side, but they refused to adapt to the new regime.

Now, one last scripture back here in Revelation.

Revelation 3:11 "Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown."

God indeed has a plan that is inclusive for all of mankind that has ever lived. But for those whom He has called, the elect of God is an exclusive group that He has chosen. Us, brethren, to give His Spirit, working with us to become His firstfruits.

Let no one take your crown!

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