'Christians Need to Unhitch the Old Testament from Their Faith': Andy Stanley's Sermon Draws Backlash

Popular evangelist Andy Stanley recently raised the ire of some Christians on social media when he publicly said that Christians need to "unhitch" the Old Testament from their faith.

Stanley, the senior pastor of the North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia, made the comments during an April 30 sermon to his congregation. The sermon was the third and final part of a lesson series titled "Aftermath: Not Difficult" that is available for public viewing on YouTube.

Stanley said that while he believes that the Old Testament is "divinely inspired," it should not be "the go-to source regarding any behavior in the church."

According to The Christian Post, Stanley had used Acts 15 in a previous sermon describing how the early church decided that Gentile converts did not need to observe Jewish law to become Christians.

"(First Century) Church leaders unhitched the church from the worldview, value system, and regulations of the Jewish scriptures," said Stanley. "Peter, James, Paul elected to unhitch the Christian faith from their Jewish scriptures, and my friends, we must as well."

In his sermon, Stanley expressed his concern that many Christians are turning away from the faith because of certain passages in the Old Testament. He argues the early church moved past the Old Testament for the sake of newly converted Gentile believers and that the resurrection of Jesus was their focus.

"Jesus' new covenant, His covenant with the nations, His covenant with you, His covenant with us, can stand on its own two nail-scarred resurrection feet. It does not need propping up by the Jewish scriptures," Stanley told the congregation. "The Bible did not create Christianity. The resurrection of Jesus created and launched Christianity. Your whole house of Old Testament cards can come tumbling down. The question is did Jesus rise from the dead? And the eyewitnesses said he did."

Stanley said he understands his comments might be "a little disturbing" to some, but for others, it is "liberating."

"It's liberating for men and women who are drawn to the simple message that God loves you so much He sent His Son to pave the way to a relationship with you," he said.

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WHY CHURCH SHOULD BE A PART OF YOUR LIFE Exclusive: Greg Laurie addresses those who love Jesus but 'just don't love Christians'

Studies have shown that being part of the church is good for your health both physically and spiritually. A February 2018 Time magazine article cites a comprehensive study that found “regular service attendance was linked to reductions in the body’s stress responses and even in mortality.” The article went on to say, “If a long life is what you’re after, going to church may be the answer to your prayers.”

Some people claim they love Jesus, but they just don’t love Christians. Yet how can they love God, whom they can’t see, when they can’t love his people, whom they can see? If you love God, then you will love his people. In fact, 1 John 3:14 says, “If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead” (NLT). God gives us a love for the people who are a part of the church.

And frankly, not going to church is proof that something is wrong with us spiritually. We’re told in 1 John 2:19, “These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us” (NLT).

The closer we are to God, the closer we’ll want to be to his people. The further we are from God, the further we’ll want to distance ourselves from his people. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable around Christians, then maybe there’s something wrong with you spiritually.

I think the problem is that we sometimes treat church like a movie theater. When you’re going to a movie, you know about how long the trailers will roll. Even if you get there late, you’ll still be able to see your film. Then, if you’re like me (and I have to admit that I do this), at the end of the movie I’m out of there. I don’t want to deal with traffic. When the credits are rolling, I walk out of the theater.

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