Meet Nancy E. Petty. She is the pastor of Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh, NC. To conservative Christians, the fact that a woman serves as the pastor of this church is enough to raise concerns about this church. Add to this that Nancy is a practicing lesbian, and you have even more reason for concern. Then, as if all of that were not enough, Sunday, November 20, 2011 the church unanimously voted to prohibit their pastor from preforming weddings until she can legally preform same-sex marriages in North Carolina. The total disregard this church has for the clear teaching of God's Word is mind boggling.
How can a church just ignore what the Bible says about women not having authority over a man (1 Timothy 2:8-15)? How can they ignore what the Bible teaches concerning homosexuality? And, how can they ignore what the Bible teaches concerning marriage? We should not really be all that surprised. The Bible warns us, "The time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." (2 Timothy 4:3-4, ESV). We are seeing these verses fulfilled before our eyes.
The question that faces us is what should you and I do in response to this? We need to continue faithfully preaching and teaching the Word of God. We are to continue even in times like these when people are turning away from the truth. Notice Paul's instructions to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:1-5, "I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." (2 Timothy 4:1-5 ESV). Let's keep preaching the Word!
