The pastor of Power House International Ministries in Chicago, Illinois, Antonio Rocquemore, irritated the LGBTQ community recently when he openly rebuked a male church member for attending a worship service dressed as a woman. The church member had been warned repeatedly prior to the incident he would not be permitted to do so, but disregarded those warnings.
Another of pastor Rocquemore’s members, James Lhuillier, thought the pastor’s open rebuke of the person was decidedly un-Christian. While I have serious questions as to how the cross-dresser and his defender became members of the church in the first place, this matter brings two issues into specific relief: the confusion over gender in our culture and what it means to be a Christian.
After his fast in the wilderness Christ was tempted by Satan to feed Himself by turning the stones into bread. Jesus replied by quoting from the Old Testament, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,” Matthew 4:4 (cf. Deuteronomy 8:3).
The very essence of what it means to be a Christian is to be like Christ.
The very essence of what it means to be a Christian is to be like Christ, to affirm what Christ affirms. So I believe “every word” in the Scriptures has been inspired by God from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21, there are no exceptions. It is why I have diligently studied the Scriptures for over forty-five years and I am on my fifty-third reading through them.
So I believe what God spoke to Moses, “A woman shall not wear man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God,” Deuteronomy 22:5. Ergo, I think the pastor would have been un-Christian if he had not openly rebuked the offender, and would have given tacit approval for others to sin in like manner.
Why is it an abomination?
It is an abomination to think you are something you are not, and try to deceive others about who and what you are. Cross-dressing is a veiled effort of an unveiled attempt to encourage a same-sex relationship, another abomination.
I believe the church is supposed to be a hospital for sinners and not a hotel for saints, but we come to Christ for forgiveness for our sins, not to flaunt them. Our culture has mistaken God’s patience for His permission, and would feel much more comfortable in its sin if Christians would be a little more compromising.
The consequences of compromising
But compromising the truth would destroy our witness and be a bad example for the culture’s welfare. In the end it is His approval we seek and not the approval of men (John 12:43).
Those who practice perversions seem to crave the approval and acceptance of others who are unwilling to forsake the realm of reality to join them in their fantasies, and they subsequently become frustrated and depressed, even suicidal. While I do not want to see anyone injure themselves; I don’t believe placating their make-believe world is the biblical approach.