Exodus International's Alan Chambers Accused of Antinomian Theology
Chambers says he isn't advocating that gay Christians simply "lie down and give up." The 40-year-old ex-gay husband and father of two maintains that celibacy is a gay Christian's most biblical option. But he prefers encouraging people to "seek Christ" over "shaming them into a particular set of patterns of behavior."
"Our focus should never be on how good we do, but on how good God is," Chambers said. "When we are focused on the truth of his word and the grace that he embodied, I don't think your life can help but be changed."
Some critics traced their concerns over Chambers's soteriology to his home church, Grace Church Orlando. Senior pastor Clark Whitten, who serves as Exodus's chairman and recently published Pure Grace, could not be reached in time for comment. But he explains on the church's website that only God can judge those "who say they are Christian yet continue in their sin," so "the best thing we can do for that person is to keep loving them and telling them about our awesome King who died for them."
Russell Moore, dean of the School of Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, finds Chambers's motives commendable but his doctrine problematic.
"I can only imagine the sort of situation he finds himself in—trying to speak in a winsome sort of way to people who feel hated by evangelicals," said Moore. "I just think that he has uploaded some really bad, reactionary tendencies from popular evangelicalism."
"There is something going on in evangelicalism where everyone is always reacting against whatever error they encountered in childhood," said Moore. "A lot of people who grew up in legalist, performance-based churches are over-reacting with an antinomian, repentance-lacking gospel."
"The problem biblically is: legalism sends people to hell and antinomianism sends people to hell," he said. "Reacting against a hellish-legalism with a hellish-antinomianism is still sending people to hell."
Unfazed by the accusations of theological error, Chambers addressed his detractors with some pointed words.
"It's disappointing to see Christians drive personal agendas at the expense of other human beings," he said. "We've received a tremendous response from men and women who are desperate for grace."
Today's other related articles on salvation, grace, antinomianism, sexual ethics, and other matters include a Reformed response to Chambers's statements from Michael Horton, a Wesleyan Arminian response from Ben Witherington, and a CT Classic on "Lordship Salvation."
A Fractured and Beautiful Faith
Streaming This Weekend, May 24, 2013
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Nelson Banuchi
Chambers said, ""I don't know how anyone could call grace cheap when it cost Jesus everything." Grace is not cheap, we agree, because of the person who sacrificed his life to demonstrate it. However, believers cheapen it when they assert that deeds are irrelevant of deeds in the Christian life as far as one's relationship with God and their eternal destiny are concerned.
Bob Bobo
'I find it disheartening that we [evangelicals] are so inconsistent and over-focused on one group of people over another. I agree that many organizations have demonized gay lifestyle to the point of legalism, as if this sin is greater than other sin. But the problem with his quote is; a christian who commits adultry knows its sin. They do not look for a scriptual out,lets them carry a torch stating its not sin and God's ok with it. Being christian they struggle living a lie, feeling condemnation from there own heart and hiding their shame. I empathize with a christian who struggles with their alternative life style. But, since they can't believe how they feel could be so condemmed by a loving God, they attempt to change the scripture so they can have Jesus and their partner (s) too. I agree with Exodus's chariman that we need to love people in these situations, and let God judge. But I have more respect for gay people who reject the bible rather than change it.
Glen Waugh
Gentry has made too many assumptions in this article. The article is about homosexuality and modern thought, NOT homosexuality and the teaching of Scripture against it. FIRST, "antinomianism" is NOT unbiblical or dispensationally in error (See Rom. 6:14 & Acts 13:38&39). Chambers is right, but he's also wrong. In Eph. 5:25, Paul does not refer to the church's relationship to Christ as just a group of people and Christ, but he is directed to use the analogy of a "normal" husband and wife relationship. Paul presents examples of the proper way for lust to be controlled (1 Cor. 7:8-10). "shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? let it not be!" (Rom. 6:15). The homosexual relationship as an extramarital relationship is sin and even if the Scriptures didn't remind us of such, our conscience would and has been doing so for millenia.