Hillsong Refuses to Address the Issue of "Same Sex Marriage"

Brian Houston

In a recent interview, Brian Houston, pastor of Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia, refused to give a definitive answer when asked to clarify his stand on "same sex marriage." He said that "the Western world is shifting its thinking on this issue, and churches are struggling to stay relevant" (Jonathan Merritt, "Hillsong's Brian Houston says church won't take a public position," Religion News Service, Oct. 16, 2014). He said, "The real issues in people's lives are too important for us to just reduce it down to a 'yes' or 'no' answer in a media outlet." Earlier this year, Carl Lentz, pastor of Hillsong New York City, told CNN that Hillsong has "a lot of gay men and women in our church and I pray we always do," and he claimed that he is "still waiting for someone to show me the quote where Jesus addressed it on the record in front of people" ("Hillsong New York pastor Carl Lentz," Christian Today, June 6, 2014). What Jesus did was limit marriage to one man and one woman as in the beginning of creation (Matthew 19). Obviously this leaves no room for "same sex marriage." Hillsong is so "relevant" that they are traitors to the truth of God's Word, yet their music influences multitudes of Baptists and fundamentalists. When asked by a reporter why Hillsong is so successful, Brian Houston replied, "We are scratching people where they are itching" ("The Lord's Profits," Sydney Morning Herald, January 30, 2003). That is right out of 2 Timothy 4:3, which is a warning of apostasy. It describes people who itch for a new kind of Christianity, and it describes many preachers who will scratch this illicit itch. "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears." That describes Hillsong to a "T."

(Friday Church News Notes, October 24, 2014, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

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