Biblical Sexual Ethics and Biological Reality

"The rise in government action, laws, and policies has had an impact on the ability of the Church to operate, their commitment to Biblical sexual ethics and biological reality."

Kristen Waggoner

After a brief introduction, Kristen Waggoner, legal counsel for the General Council of the Assemblies of God and the CEO of the Alliance Defending Freedom, captured my attention with the statement cited above, which she unpacked over the next 30 minutes during a recent General Presbytery meeting. This video will allow you to hear firsthand the challenges we are facing as a church and nation.

The following are helpful recommendations gleaned from Kristen's presentation for staying true to Biblical sexual ethics while navigating current social trends for church, office, and camps:

1. Clearly communicate a Biblical position to your congregation and your community.
2. Create core documents so that beliefs and practices are memorialized in writing and consistently applied.
3. Require employees to affirm your church's beliefs as a condition for employment.
4. Require employees to agree to follow a code of conduct covering their personal and professional lives.
5. Make clear on all employment applications that your church is a religious ministry that employs people of the same faith, belief, and practice and why this is important to the mission.
6. While one may seek to avoid using pronouns to reduce personal offense, pronoun usage should be based on biological sex.
7. Male and female ministries and breakout groups should be separated by biological sex to reflect AG's religious beliefs on sex and gender.
8. Adopt clearly stated beliefs on sexuality and gender to guide your operational policies.
9. Adopt policies on how cabins will be assigned - based on biological sex or by family. Make sure these policies are clear in the admission stage.
10. Consider providing individual restrooms, showers, and cabin accommodations for those who insist on identifying with a gender at odds with their biological sex.

As I listened to Kristen's presentation, I was reminded of Psalm 78:70-72, which reads,

"He chose David his servant and took him from the sheepfolds; from following the nursing ewes he brought him to shepherd Jacob his people, Israel his inheritance. With upright heart, he shepherded them and guided them with his skillful hand." 

Psalm 78:70-72

As God used David to masterfully lead Israel, I am confident he will use the ministers of the Oregon Ministry Network to effectively shepherd and guide God's people in today's challenging spiritual climate.

You can lead with confidence as a God-called shepherd of God's people!