The truth is that every one of us lives by God's mercy every single day of our lives, and judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful" (James 2:13). As recipients of mercy and forgiveness, we want to lead the way in showing mercy and forgiveness. And as those who have been the objects of redemption, we want to offer redemption to all. That is the true grace of God." - Dr. Michael Brown
Is hearing from the victims now being called zealous? That is truly disgusting. What is equally repugnant however is the notion that people have been somehow merciless or that somehow these predators have in any way shape or form, been "repentant." I am reminded of when Ted Haggard, who was the President of the National Association of Evangelicals, was caught in a 20-year relationship with a male prostitute who he liked to do crystal meth with. After a very short period of time, he declared he was repentant and restored. He even opened up a new church and years later was charged again with all sorts of sexual misconduct, this time with youth in his church. If Mike Bickle or Robert Morris want to repent, that is between them and God. It has nothing to do with the church they abused for a combined 80 years. Again, we need to show mercy to the sheep, not the wolves. There is no career redemption here. They have disqualified themselves from ministry and proven they never should have been in ministry to begin with. Mercifully, Brown concludes:
"How, then, do we weave all these strands together? First, we do not minimize or excuse sin for a moment, and under no circumstances do we sweep unrepentant sin under the rug. Second, we create a culture and environment that is friendly to those who have been sinned against and unfriendly to those who continue in hurtful sin. Third, where there is repentance, we offer heartfelt love and compassion, thereby offering hope and pointing the way to restoration.
This is how we reflect the character of Jesus to the world, and this is how we demonstrate the beauty of the body of Christ." - Dr. Michael Brown
First, this entire article was minimizing sin, right down to the choice of hyperlinked articles. Floating unrelated points about slander was solely for the purpose of muddying the waters also minimizes sin. Remember that he linked in the very first line the Morris scandal. Secondly, do you think this presentation represents a safe place for victims? Your boss continues to be unrepentant for blaming the Bicklegate victims as being used by the devil! Third, we reject this notion that ravaging wolves should ever be restored to ministry and we ask, where is your heartfelt love and compassion for their victims? This has nothing to do with the character of Jesus. It has to do with protecting the brand and making the sins of the leadership lesser than they truly are. It is an insulting display of how far off the rails Dr. Michael Brown continues to be.
Reverend Anthony Wade - August 1, 2024
