PRESTONWOOD BAPTIST. A real menace for Gays. The church of Ken Paxton, Matt Shaheen, and Jeff Leach. Update.
Its influence reaches down into Dallas.
Subscriptions are free.
Prestonwood Church
Both Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Texas State House Rep. Matt Shaheen, and Texas State House Rep. Jeff Leach. Both of these House Rep. are Republican.
This article is about people who are upset with them having lots of fun, not that this is a church of homophobes.
This is their website.
Their homophobia.
This is their statement of beliefs.
https://prestonwood.org/about/our-beliefs/
They aren’t very upfront about their homophobia. There is at the bottom of their belief statement is this.
Read The Baptist Faith and Message for our full statement of faith.
(We will review another item at the Prestonwood Baptist Chruch after this item.)
The link is to The Baptist Faith and Message.
Which has a link to this.
There is an internal link to XV. The Christian and Social Order
https://bfm.sbc.net/bfm2000/#xv
All Christians are under obligation to seek to make the will of Christ supreme in our own lives and in human society. Means and methods used for the improvement of society and the establishment of righteousness among men can be truly and permanently helpful only when they are rooted in the regeneration of the individual by the saving grace of God in Jesus Christ. In the spirit of Christ, Christians should oppose racism, every form of greed, selfishness, and vice, and all forms of sexual immorality, including adultery, homosexuality, and pornography. We should work to provide for the orphaned, the needy, the abused, the aged, the helpless, and the sick. We should speak on behalf of the unborn and contend for the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death. Every Christian should seek to bring industry, government, and society as a whole under the sway of the principles of righteousness, truth, and brotherly love. In order to promote these ends Christians should be ready to work with all men of good will in any good cause, always being careful to act in the spirit of love without compromising their loyalty to Christ and His truth. [Boldface added.]
Exodus 20:3-17; Leviticus 6:2-5; Deuteronomy 10:12; 27:17; Psalm 101:5; Micah 6:8; Zechariah 8:16; Matthew 5:13-16,43-48; 22:36-40; 25:35; Mark 1:29-34; 2:3ff.; 10:21; Luke 4:18-21; 10:27-37; 20:25; John 15:12; 17:15; Romans 12–14; 1Corinthians 5:9-10; 6:1-7; 7:20-24; 10:23-11:1; Galatians 3:26-28; Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians 3:12-17; 1 Thessalonians 3:12; Philemon; James 1:27; 2:8.
“Philemon” in the table of references doesn’t have a link. The other links are to Biblia.com. Maybe because that is a part of the Bible where a runaway slave is asked to return to his owner (kidnapper). https://biblia.com/books/esv/Phm They are called, the Southern Baptists. Still can’t quite let go of slavery.
The above links are part of the entry. Their belief is that homosexuals should be obliterated. Though the above statement gurgles and burbles about “love.”
The Biblical Links don’t go to anything specific about Gays. However, the Southern Baptist Church is fairly clear on Gays, just not in the message statement.
A review of the Southern Baptist Convention’s (SBC) positions shows how little the difference is between them and Stedfast Baptist Church. Whereas Stedfast is direct, the SBC tactic is more roundabout eliminating by degrees space in which LGBT can exist.
In 2007 the SBC denounced hate crimes legislation that included the protection of LGBT from hate crimes. The SBC might want to push their “love the sinner, hate the sin,” theme and not get their hands dirty, but they don’t want the federal government to stop or act against individuals who might choose immediate violent methods to attack LGBT. The SBC doesn’t ask that LGBT get shot in the head like Stedfast, but they don’t want the federal government to be active in preventing anyone from shooting the LGBT in the head.
https://www.sbc.net/resource-library/resolutions/on-hate-crimes-legislation/
The SBC was upset that the Supreme Court invalidated laws which made homosexual acts illegal. Of the two examples which they select to criticize the federal judiciary, Roe v. Wade, (abortion), and Lawrence v. Texas (homosexual acts), are chosen.
https://www.sbc.net/resource-library/resolutions/on-the-federal-judiciary/
R. Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary thought it was catastrophic.
Instead of “shooting homosexuals in the back of the head,” the SBC position is lock them up and thrown them in prison.
The SBC theological views on Gays get close to Stedfast also.
In this 1988 resolution are the statements: “homosexuality is a manifestation of a depraved nature,” “deviant behavior has wrought havoc in the lives of millions,” “perversions of diving standards.” Acceptance of homosexuals is held to be due to the “Erosion of moral sanity … a major problem of modern society,” resulting in society’s “moral decline.” Homosexuality in the resolution is “an abomination in the eyes of God.”
There is reference to Leviticus 18:22; Romans 1:24-28; and 1 Timothy 1:8-10.
https://www.sbc.net/resource-library/resolutions/resolution-on-homosexuality-5/
These are the Biblical sections referenced.
https://biblia.com/bible/esv/leviticus/18/22
From Leviticus 20
“If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.”
In Romans 1:24-28 God makes people homosexual as a punishment and then in Romans 1:27 they die, “due penalty for their error.”
27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%201%3A24-28&version=NIV
What this “due penalty for their error” might be is clarified in Romans 1:32 where we read:
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Timothy 1:8-10 is as follows:
We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine.
Homosexuals are compared to “liars,” “unholy,” “sinful,” people who murder their parents, “perjurers,” and “slave traders.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Timothy%201&version=NIV
The beliefs of the Stedfast Baptist Church and the Southern Baptist Convention regarding homosexuality are very similar.
The difference is that the SBC realizes that the popularity of calling directly for the death of homosexuals is close to the popularity of slavery. Evangelicals might want to go about gurgling about Jesus, but they don’t want to see their child, sibling, uncle, aunt, cousin, nephew, niece, co-worker, colleague, neighbor taken out and killed.
Back to Prestonwood Baptist church and their concern with “Sexual Brokenness.”
https://prestonwood.org/connect/life-recovery/
This is a class they offer.
THE JOURNEY: HEALING FROM SEXUAL BROKENNESS
The Journey is based on Jay Stringer’s groundbreaking research addressing the key drivers of unwanted sexual behavior, be that the use of pornography, infidelity, or buying sex. If you want to find freedom from sexual brokenness, it begins by identifying the unique reasons that bring you to it.
To register, please e-mail liferecovery@prestonwood.org .
There is a webpage for Jay Stringer’s book.
https://www.thejourneycourse.com/
If you go to the webpage you won’t find mention of homosexuality.
However, if you do any Googling you can see that this is a recommended book for guilt ridden Gay Christians to reject themselves. It seems that the book is directed toward Evangelical men who are watching pornography, having extramarital sex, or hiring prostitutes.
The homophobic Christians don’t want to be found out as actively going after homosexuals, so they have adopted this term, “broken sexuality” or “sexual brokenness.”
Their homophobia in the news.
Their senior pastor is Jack Graham.
https://prestonwood.org/about/our-staff/dr-jack-graham/
He was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention in 2003.
In the article his views on homosexuality is reported.
“The outreach to the homosexual community is certainly of keen interest in our time. It’s obviously a huge cultural issue,” Graham said when asked about Southern Baptists’ task force on ministry to homosexuals, which is a joint initiative by LifeWay Christian Resources and the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
“We, as Southern Baptists, believe that a person can experience freedom — sexual purity in their life…” Graham said. “We do not believe that people are captured by a way of life that does not please God. A person can come out of that lifestyle. There can be a past tense experience and the cleansing experience of the blood of Christ, the forgiveness of God.”
Because there is so much “volatility on this issue,” Graham said he wanted to clarify that Southern Baptists are not “angry or full of hatred” toward homosexuals.
Southern Baptists “oppose the homosexual lifestyle, but we lovingly and compassionately seek to bring people to faith and forgiveness in Jesus Christ. We want every person to know that Jesus loves them and that the message of the Gospel is for every person,” Graham said.
Graham is upset over the Supreme Court allowing same-sex marriage. In the Dallas Morning News article, “Dallas-area churches react to Supreme Court gay marriage ruling,” he was the first person interviewed.
He is quoted:
“I am extremely disappointed that the Supreme Court has chosen to redefine marriage. God designed marriage to be between a man and a woman, and now that has been put aside by the laws of man.”
Graham is one of the sixteen former SBC presidents issuing a statement against Gay marriage as reported in this 2015 article.
https://www.baptiststandard.com/news/baptists/former-sbc-presidents-unite-against-gay-marriage/
This is a video of his denunciation of same-sex relationships.
https://sermons.love/jack-graham/10899-jack-graham-are-same-sex-relationships-really-the-same.html
He is one of the signers of the Nashville Statement against Gay marriage.
https://cbmw.org/nashville-statement/
Jack Graham is the author of “Unseen: Angels, Satan, Heaven, Hell, and Winning the Battle for Eternity,” 2014. He sees evil forces acting in everyday life, and one of those things caused by the evil forces is homosexuality. From page 118 of his book:
“I’ve talked to countless people who are stuck in a stronghold – even in this particular stronghold of lust—sincerely do not know how to get out of it. They are swept up in the devastating habit of using drugs or drinking alcohol or visiting porn sites or acting on homosexual tendencies …
In his book, “Courageous Parenting,” 2006, on pages 46 and 150 see homosexuals as assaulting the family and Christianity. On page 122 he quotes Corinthians, 6:9-11, denouncing “homosexuality.”
What religious leaders in Dallas see Prestonwood Baptist as moral leaders.
There is Bryan Carter, senior pastor of Concord Church in Dallas. He is a nationally known for his anti-Gay activities. The executive pastor is Dallas City Council person, Zarin Gracey who was endorsed by Stonewall Democratic club despite this being known.
https://prestonwood.org/about/our-people/forward/
This is about the homophobia of Bryan Carter.
This is about the Stonewall Democrats endorsement of Zarin Gracey.
There is Tony Evans, pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas.
https://www.texanonline.net/articles/features/sbtc-pastors-conference-celebrating-gods-family/
This is another web of interconnectedness from Plano into Dallas.
https://cocipm.org/member-churches_m/
Likely Prestonwood Baptist Church has other tendrils into the City of Dallas, but it is going to be hard to find them all.
It isn’t surprising that members of Prestonwood Baptist Church are the spiritual home base of people bringing craziness to Dallas and Texas.
Ken Paxton sues Pfizer for their covid vaccine. When the HIV vaccine comes out, will we be able to get it in Texas?
Rep. Matt Shaheen harassed the Texas Latino Pride Fest.
Ken Paxton wants drag show performers in Plano prosecuted.
Rep. Matt Shaheen behind SB12.
Rep. Jeff Leach was also active against drag shows.
https://twitter.com/leachfortexas/status/1661742186592083968
It shouldn’t be surprising that Kate Cox has to flee Texas to not risk dying from a medical complication due to pregnancy.
We live in craziland with churches like Prestonwood Baptist leading the way.
Prestonwood wants to control bodies, whether it is having a same-sex relation, getting an abortion. It is not surprising that one of their members wants to prevent you from getting a covid vaccine for your body, and several of them want to make sure that men in women’s clothes aren’t observed.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/12/kate-cox-flees-texas-to-seek-abortion/
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-texas-ban-7d865cdfd75bdc6b2f4186f4d1e6e8bd
Conclusion
We need to have a community taking a much stronger stand against Christian homophobes and certainly not endorse them if they run for office.
We need to take a much more militant stand against Christian nationalists.
