Friday, May 24, 2019

Persecution May Be Closer Than You Think: Tony Miano

Hi everyone,
In this installment of "Persecution May Be Closer Than You Think" you will get to hear the story of another minister of Christ, Tony Miano. Mr. Miano was very generous and offered his time to answer many questions for me. Here you will get a glimpse into some of Mr. Miano's ministry and how God is working in his life. You will get to read, not only about the legal opposition to his ministry, but why he does this ministry, and hear his insights on topics related to open air evangelism.

Below my words are written in BLACK, quotes from Mr. Miano in my emails with him are in BLUE and quotations that Mr. Miano wrote on his website are in BLUE ITALICS.

Virginia: "What is your ministry and what all do you do?"
Mr. Miano: "I serve as an evangelist in my local church—Grace Fellowship Church, of Davenport, IA. My
ministry is overseen by my three pastors. My ministry consists of:


  •  Open-air preaching
  •  Gospel tract distribution
  •  Sign evangelism
  •  Cross-walking
  •  One-to-one conversations
  •  Abortion clinic ministry
  •  University/College campus ministry
  •  Assisting my pastors in encouraging and equipping the members of our church, in evangelism
  • Organizing the church’s evangelism efforts

Virginia: "What is the main focus and goal of your ministry?"
Mr. Miano: "The goal of my ministry is to glorify God and exalt the name of Jesus Christ, through the
proclamation of the gospel; to encourage and equip the members of my local church, in
evangelism; to reach the lost with the gospel of Jesus Christ."

Virginia: "How did you get involved in open air evangelism and how long have you been involved in that
kind of ministry?"
Mr. Miano: "I preached my first open-air sermon in 2005. Here is a link to the testimony of that first 
open-air: http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/my-first-open-air/"
Mr. Miano had the opportunity to meet Ray Comfort and Stuart "Scotty" Scott, from Living Waters.
Both men answered his questions, and Mr. Miano observed them doing open air evangelism. After much indecision, while Mr. Miano was talking to Mr. Scott on the phone one day, Mr. Scott said: “Tony, just swallow your fears and do it!” Mr. Miano now had to decide on a place to preach. Since that day when
Mr. Miano first preached in the open air, he has been proclaiming Christ through open air preaching throughout the country and overseas. (2)

Virginia: "What do you believe is the most important thing God has taught you in your years of ministry?"
Mr. Miano: "It’s hard to say what is the “most” important thing I’ve learned. I’ve learned a lot over the last 20 years of full-time ministry. I’ve made a lot of mistakes. God has been very gracious toward and
patient with me.

If one isn’t careful, it is very easy to engage in ministry, in the flesh, without the leading and
power of the Holy Spirit. It’s very easy to engage in ministry to glorify self, instead of glorifying
Jesus Christ. It’s very easy, especially for those who are engaged in full-time evangelistic
ministry, to develop a nomadic existence—one that is not closely tied to the local church. This is
one reason why it is so very important for street evangelists and open-air preachers to be sent and
shepherded by pastors/elders of the local church. Having pastors oversee not only the ministry,
but also shepherd the life of the evangelist is critically important in keeping both the ministry and
the evangelist on track.
I’ve written and preached extensively on this subject. It’s cost me a few friends along the way.
Some Christians who have called themselves to ministry, do not like the idea of accountability to
a local church. But there is no biblical support for the idea of Christians living and ministering as
nomads without the fellowship and accountability of the local church."

Virginia: "I know you have experienced opposition to your preaching of the Gospel such as being arrested
in England and you also had a legal battle here in the United States for preaching outside an
abortion mill. Could you explain those situations?"
Mr. Miano: "Here are links to blog articles (with lots of internal links) that explain each of my arrests:

Iowa City, Iowa: http://crossencountersmin.com/featured-article/trial-state-iowa-v-miano/"
On May 30, 2017, Mr. Miano was standing on a public sidewalk outside a Planned Parenthood facility in Iowa. He was reading his Bible aloud, using no amplification, but in such a way so that the people inside the Planned Parenthood could still hear him. Mr. Miano was arrested/cited for doing this. Mr. Miano was tried in court on January 9, 2018 where he was sentenced to:

  • "30 days county jail (suspended). This means so long as I am not arrested again or violate probation during the next year, I will not have to go to jail on this conviction.
  • One year of self-supervised probation.
  • Do not have contact with any Planned Parenthoods during the next year.
  • Pay a fine of $135, plus court costs." (1)
Mr. Miano: "Pastor Nick Rolland (who was with me at Planned Parenthood when I was arrested/cited) and I
are represented by lawyers with the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ). We are suing
the State of Iowa in an effort to have the law under which I was arrested deemed
unconstitutional. Our hope is that a victory in our case will provide relief to other Christians who
minister outside abortuaries, freeing them from the fear of being cited or arrested as they fight
for the lives of unborn children and the souls of those bent on murdering them.

Mr. Miano was arrested on July 1st, 2013, in London England, and held in custody for 7 hours, because he was preaching from the Bible about sexual immorality, including, but not limited to, homosexuality. Below are excerpts from a letter Mr. Miano wrote to parliment:
"I was arrested under Section 5 of the Public Order Act for using “homophobic” language which was deemed offensive. The language I used was not homophobic, as I was not promoting fear or hatred of homosexuals. I was simply explaining a passage in the Bible which speaks of sexual immorality and that people should abstain from it (1 Thessalonians 4:1-12)." (3)

"I don’t expect you to share my beliefs but think you will agree that I, and everybody else, should have the freedom to express those beliefs without fear of reprisals from the Government. My freedom was taken away from me simply because someone didn’t like what I said. Now that your nation has begun down this slippery slope, where will it end? Will people one day be arrested for disagreeing with the political party in power? And what assurance will the people have that it will stop with speech? It did not stop with speech in 1930s Germany. Many of your countrymen sacrificed their lives to end the tyranny that began with the abandonment of free speech. Nations that do not learn from history are destined to repeat it." (3)

LR is Michael Phillips, Mr. Miano's solicitor. This is an excerpt from the police interrogation:
"LR: Just a couple questions I had. What would you say to anybody that said you were trying to insult people.

(Mr. Miano:)  I would say they’re wrong. 

LR: And why would you say that?

(Mr. Miano) The reason for being out there. The reason I flew all the way from Southern California to London, was to love people and share the Gospel with them. I hope to be used by God to see people come to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. There’s never intent to insult, there’s never any intent to inflame. Of course people aren’t going to agree with everything I say, just as I don’t agree with everything other people say. But my intention, is, to love people as others loved me and shared the Gospel with me so that I could receive forgiveness of my sin and the free gift of eternal life. That’s why I came to London last year during the Olympics. That’s why I came this year to Wimbledon. And that’s why I hope I can come back as many times as possible. Because I love this country and I love the people of this country. And I don’t want to see anybody perish in their sin. (4)

Thankfully the inspector decided to have Mr. Miano released without filing any charges.

On January 8, 2014, Mr. Miano was arrested in Dundee, Scotland. "The charge: a violation of 38(1) of the Scotland Criminal Justice and Licensing Act of 2010, with an aggravation of alleged homophobic hate speech." (5)
"Although it is alleged that I told a woman who claimed her son is a homosexual that all homosexuals are of the devil and going to hell, and that I told her she is a bad mother because her son is a homosexual, what I actually said was this. I explained to those within the sound of my voice that everyone knows that all forms of sexual immorality are wrong, whether homosexual or heterosexual, because everyone knows that God is faithful." (5)

"When the police arrived they interviewed complainants and witnesses, but they did not ask for my account of what happened. Neither did they review either the video or audio we had captured of the entire incident. They simply took the word of the complainant and arrested me. It’s chilling that in Scotland, as well as England–countries that profess to have freedom of speech–a person’s freedom can be taken away simply because another person says they didn’t like what the other person allegedly said." (5)

Less than a month after his arrest, Mr. Miano wrote: "If I am found guilty as charged when I return to Scotland to stand trial in April, the sentence could range from a fine, to a maximum of five years in prison, or both." (5)

This was the outcome of the case in Dundee:
Mr. Miano: "I was held in custody for almost 30 hours. Charges were filed against me and I appeared before the judge. I signed a “promise to appear” and was released from custody. I was ordered to return to Dundee in April of that year. However, the court date was postponed. In June of that year, I was notified that the investigators finally reviewed the video of the incident and determined there was not enough evidence that I committed a crime. Charges were dropped at that time."

Please remember, these incidents listed above took place in America, England, and Scotland. Persecution of Christians is happening in Europe and America. Please prepare yourself for the time when you may face arrest for your belief in Christ. Read your Bible, memorize it, pray, and preach the Gospel. 

Virginia: "Some people probably think that if a street preacher is arrested it is because of some fault of
their own. I do believe that some people who claim to preach on the street and are arrested, are in
the wrong. However, others are arrested merely for preaching the Gospel. As a former law
enforcement officer yourself, I believe you respect LEO's and respect the law, however you have
been arrested. How do you balance respect for the law and law enforcement, and resisting
unjust/unlawful orders and continuing to preach the Gospel, even if you will be arrested for
doing so?"
Mr. Miano: "Romans 13:1-5 commands me, as a Christian, to submit to governing authorities. At the same
time, Jesus has commanded me to deny myself, take up my cross, and follow Him (Matt. 10:38;

16:24). Scripture is clear that if a situation comes down to obeying the laws of men or obeying
the God and His Word, I have no choice but to obey God (Acts 3-5).
The above is where I find and from where I try to exercise balance when dealing with law
enforcement contacts, while engaged in public evangelism. In the end, I am less concerned
about my civil rights than I am about being obedient to God and His Word. If proclaiming the
gospel costs me my freedom or even my life, so be it.
This being understood, the apostle Paul also gives us a couple examples in the Book of Acts in
which he respectfully challenged the application of laws by governing authorities (Acts 16:35-
40; 22:1-29).
So, if I’m truly being guided by the Word of God and the Spirit of God within me, it is certainly
possible, even probable, to find a biblical balance when dealing with law enforcement. But even
a balanced approach can be costly. The world, while governed by God’s providence, doesn’t
play by God’s rules. The world hates Jesus, and He promised Christians that the world would
hate us, too. Therefore, we are to biblically engage government authorities while always willing
to count and pay the cost, knowing that a win for Christ might result in a conviction in a human
courtroom."

Virginia: "How would you encourage other Christians to respond to law enforcement and possible ensuing
legal issues, concerning preaching the Gospel in the open air, in a way that is honoring to
Christ?"
Mr. Miano: "I wrote this: http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/hello-officer-interacting-with-law/"
I suggest reading the article for yourself but here are just a few of many good points that Mr. Miano writes: 
"Be respectful even if you feel that the officer is not being respectful to you. You will not win a sinful, prideful war of words with an officer. Nor should you want to." (6)
"If an officer orders you to stop preaching or distributing tracts, respectfully ask what law(s) you have violated. – Use an inquisitive tone of voice, not an argumentative tone.

If the officer cannot or will not cite a specific penal code or municipal code section, respectfully ask why you must stop your activities if you are not in violation of the law.

Respectfully explain to the officer that you are exercising your freedom/right to express your strongly held religious beliefs, in a public place.
" (6)

A major point it to: "Be polite, but persevere!" (6)

Virginia: "I know there are some people who are involved in "ministry" that seem to be more yelling at
people instead of preaching the Gospel. As an example: those who would have signs or who
would say: "God hates fags", instead of exposing sin through the law and proclaiming the
Gospel. How does your preaching differ from such people?"
Mr. Miano: "I do use signs in evangelism, but they are all Scripture-based. And none of them are intentionally
inflammatory by calling people names or using terminology that will unduly offend others. All
of my signs are reviewed and approved by my pastors.
When open-air preaching, I try to frequently assert my love for listeners, letting them know that I
am not angry with them and that I want God’s very best for them—which is to repent and believe
the gospel. Without compromising the gospel message, I want people, to the extent they are able
and to the extent I am able to rightly express it, to hear love in my voice and see love in my eyes.
I believe it was John Wesley who once said, “Preach 90% law and 10% grace.” I disagree. I
think we should make much of Christ and His finished work on the cross. We should make more
of Christ than the law. While using the law in evangelism is biblical and essential, the gospel is
the power of God for salvation to all who believe (Romans 1:16).

Sadly, there are many men (and women) on the streets and college campuses who seem to relish
in emphasizing the condemnation of the law, with little genuine care for the souls within the
sound of their voices. Yes, the law should be used in evangelism. But it should be used as a
mirror, not a hammer. It should be used by a friend warning their friends that they are in danger,
not by an enemy as a weapon to crush and destroy the one at which it is pointed."

Virginia: "How would you encourage elders to be involved with street preachers or open air ministers in
their congregations?"
Mr. Miano: "I think it is very important for pastors/elders to participate in street evangelism. Speed of the
leader, speed of the team. Pastors/elders must shepherd their flocks from the front. This does not
mean that street evangelism should be the pastors/elders primary ministry. They are called first
and foremost to teach the Word, pray, and shepherd the flock.
I am blessed to be a member of church in which all of the pastors are involved in street
evangelism and abortuary ministry.
Over the years, I have found that the best way to encourage pastors/elders to get involved in
open-air ministry is to show them the rich scriptural and post-scriptural heritage of open-air
preaching, and to point them to the videos of biblical open-air preachers for whom I have great
respect.
If there are already open-air preachers in the church, or men who desire to engage in this kind of
evangelistic ministry, then my encouragement to those men is to invite their pastors to join them
on the streets. The purpose: to evaluate the open-air ministry of their members; to provide
instruction, correction, and counsel; and to pray. If pastors will join their members on the street,
it won’t be long that they will join in the activities."

Virginia: "What do you believe is the line between pointing out sin while urging people to repent, as
opposed to provoking people to anger in both preaching in the general public and at abortion
mills?"
Mr. Miano: "The line is drawn on the heart of the evangelist. With what kind of heart and with what kind of
words is the evangelist calling out to people. A raised voice does not automatically imply the
evangelist is angry. But the tone of voice can.
Again, lost people hate Jesus and hate the truth. If they are going to be offended, let them be
offended by the content of the message, and not the behavior of the messenger.
I was once an angry evangelist. By God’s grace, He has granted me repentance in this area of my
life and ministry. I wrote about it, here: http://crossencountersmin.com/featured-
article/testimony-gods-amazing-grace-angry/ "

Virginia: "How can people be praying for you in your ministry?"
Mr. Miano: "People can pray that I remain faithful to Christ and His gospel—not only in my street
evangelism, but in the areas of my life that aren’t visible every day on YouTube and Social
Media.
Pray that I continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of God, through faith in my Lord Jesus
Christ.
Pray that I continue to grow as an evangelist, church member, husband, father, and friend.
Pray that, through daily repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, God will continue to
conform me to the image of His Son, and that I will not do anything to bring a reproach upon His
great name or His gospel.
Thank you."

Again, I would like to thank Mr. Miano for his time in helping me with this article. 
With love in the Lord,
Virginia

Sources:
(1) http://crossencountersmin.com/featured-article/trial-state-iowa-v-miano/
(2) http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/my-first-open-air/
(3)  http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/tonys-letter-to-parlimen/;
(4) http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/police-interrogation-of-tony-miano/
(5) http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/dundee-attest-reactions-my-responses/
(6) http://crossencountersmin.com/uncategorized/hello-officer-interacting-with-law/

Saturday, May 18, 2019

A Response To A Maine Senator On Abortion

Hi everyone,
Recently Senator Lisa Keim gave a speech in opposition to LD 820 and voiced her opposition to taxpayer funded elective abortions. Below is the video of Senator Keim giving her speech and then my written response.
Senator Lisa Keim's speech

"Hello Representative Keim,
My name is Virginia Cowperthwaite. We have corresponded on the issue of abortion in the past, and I watched your video of your speech in opposition to LD 820. I agree with some of the things that you said in your speech, such as the fact that it is a living pre-born child whose life is being taken in an abortion, and the fact that religious liberty should not be trampled under foot in our State by this bill.

I would however, like to point out a few concerns with your speech. You spoke about elective abortions and how tax payers should not be forced to fund elective abortions. One of the issues is that the murder of innocent human beings should never be funded by anyone, even in the cases of rape, incest, or cases where the life of the mother is supposedly at stake. There is never any reason to murder a human being. In the case of rape and incest, we do not murder a child because their father is an evil man. In the case of life of the mother, there is no circumstance where you must intentionally murder a child to save the life of the mother. In a case where the mother's life is at risk, a doctor must do all they can to save both the mother and the child. Both mother and child have an equal right to life given to them by their Creator God. If a baby dies while you are doing all you can to save their life, and the life of the mother, you are not a murderer, you are a human being who cannot always save a person's life. However, if a person intentionally tears a baby apart, or injects poison into them, to supposedly save the life of the mother, they are a murderer.

We should not have a discussion about whether or not tax-payers should fund abortions. We should not even talk about whether or not abortion should be legal in our State. Abortion is murder and must be treated as such.


In your speech you talk about abortion and refer to it as the taking of a human life, but I challenge you that you have the platform to do even more then affirm that abortion is the taking of a human life. You have the platform to proclaim that abortion is murder and must be outlawed. I ask you to oppose abortion in all circumstances. Do not just oppose tax-payer funded abortions, or elective abortions. All abortion is the murder of a human being created in the image of God. I ask that you would use your platform to speak the truth about abortion, and seek to abolish it completely in our State. Please propose a bill that would outlaw abortion in every circumstance and that would make the penalty for abortion the same as the punishment for 1st degree murder. I know that such a bill would probably never make it into law, however, that is not an excuse to allow children to be murdered in your State without doing everything within your power as a representative to stop it. Be faithful to God and what He has called you to do. He has said to rescue those who are being taken away to death and hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. (Proverbs 24:11) Do everything you can to seek to outlaw abortion in every circumstance, and leave the results up to God.


Please do not merely appeal to the fact that a majority of Maine voters are opposed to tax-payer funded abortion. I urge you to appeal to the Ultimate Standard, the Word of God. God has said you shall not murder. Even if everyone in Maine agreed to tax-payer funded abortion, it would not make it right. God has spoken and must be obeyed.


The Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade but that decision is not law, and does not determine what the States can say about abortion. The States still have every right to make abortion illegal. The question is, will the States do justice and defend the pre-born as commanded by God, or will they sit and allow the Supreme Court to pretend that they have the power to make laws and the power to determine what the States can and cannot do when it comes to outlawing murder, and allow the murder of children to be continued in their State under the guise of law?

~Virginia Cowperthwaite
Thomaston, Maine
Age 16"


Tuesday, May 14, 2019

It's Actually Biblical


Hi everyone,
In this post we will be talking about biblical commands and practices that are often ignored in the professing Church in America today. We will look at street preaching, head covering, washing of feet, the holy kiss, and maybe more. I know I have written about some of these in the past, but I believe that they are still important, and still largely ignored in the professing American Church

Street Preaching:
We will start first with street preaching. Is it biblical? Is it still supposed to be practiced today? I highly suggest “Dear Christian” by Ryan Denton. It is a pamphlet which provides verses of Scripture in response to opposition to open air preaching. 


Please do not misunderstand me in thinking that I believe all men should be preaching on the street and if you are not preaching on the street you are in disobedience to a biblical command, that is not what I am saying. All Christians are commanded to make disciples, and all Christians must proclaim the Gospel, but that does not mean that all Christians have to street preach. Having said that, open air preaching is a biblical practice and should not be condemned by professing Christians. It is absolutely biblical. You may ask if it is effective. A man of God who is faithfully proclaiming the true and complete Gospel is absolutely effective, because the Word of God does not return void but will accomplish all that God intends it to accomplish. A man of God who is preaching the full and complete Gospel leads everyone who he talks to towards Christ. It is not up to men to save, that is the work of God alone. The Christian leads them to Christ, God chooses whom He will save.

As we consider open preaching let us think about some of the examples we have in the New Testament. John the Baptist preached in the open air. He was in the wilderness proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, (Luke 3:3). Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount, on… a mountain. In Mark 2:13 Jesus was teaching the people beside the sea. In Mark 4:1 it says, “Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land.” In Acts 17:17 Paul was reasoning in the marketplace with those that happened to be there.   

Street preaching has been used as a biblical principle for proclamation of the Gospel throughout the history of the Church and it should continue to be practiced today. Praise God that there are some men who are faithful to proclaiming the Gospel in the open air. May God raise up many more who will do the same.

Head Covering:
For those of you who do not know what the web address of my blog means, “Katakalypto” is the greek word for head covering. If you have read my other posts on this issue, or seen pictures of me, you may have realized that I believe in the modern practice of head covering. 
I suggest the work of Jeremy Gardiner in “Headcovering: A Forgotten Christian Practice For Modern Times” although I do disagree with him on the matter of head coverings only being for meetings of the Church. I do not see that established in Scripture and understand that women should cover their heads, and men should uncover their heads, when praying or prophesying anywhere, not only in Church services. However, apart from this disagreement, I believe Mr. Gardiner provides a solid argument for why head covering should be practiced today. This post will not be as exhaustive as Mr. Gardiner’s work, it will merely be a fairly short explanation that will hopefully provide some insight into why this is a biblical command for women today.   
Please read 1 Corinthians 11:1-16 and think about what Paul is saying. 
As we look at this passage let us remember who Paul is writing to, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:” 1 Corinthians 1:2. This is written to all Christians, not just those in Corinth at the time that Paul wrote this. 

Now that we have established who he is writing to, please look back at 1 Corinthians 11:1-16. Paul is looking at the the structure that is put in place by God. This passage is not teaching that women are lesser than men, but that the husband is the head of the wife. They are equal in value and dignity but have different roles established by God. Christ is not in any way lesser than God the Father and yet this passage says, “and the head of Christ is God.” it would be heresy to say that Jesus is lesser than God the Father. God is the head of Jesus in the established order, but Jesus is not inferior to the Father. Woman is not inferior to man but man is the head of his wife in the established order.

The issue of head covering is not a cultural command given to first century Christians in Corinth. While it is not a salvation issue, it is an issue of the glory of God. Man is the image and glory of God and woman is the glory of man, (verse 7). When we are proclaiming the words of God to men and when we are speaking to and worshipping God, we want the glory of God to be seen and the glory of man to be covered. Thus, a woman covers her head, to cover the glory of man, and a man uncovers his head to show the glory of God. 

Head covering does not just apply to women, it applies to men equally in the fact that a woman is commanded to have her head covered, a man is commanded to have his head uncovered. A man who prays or prophesies with his head covered is just as much in opposition to this command as a woman who does so with her head uncovered. 

Realize that Paul appeals to the created order, and not to a cultural practice of woman covering their heads to show that they were married. There is no indication in the text to show that this is cultural. 

Please also realize that this covering that Paul is commanding woman to cover their heads with is not long hair, as some may like to argue. If you take that position it makes verse 6 read very strange. It would make it say that “For if a wife will not have long hair, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her have long hair.” That does not make much sense. However if Paul is talking about a piece of cloth that is removable when he says “let her cover her head.” that verse makes much more sense. 

Look at verse 10. “That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.” Now I may not exactly understand this verse fully, however, it does refer to a head covering as a symbol of authority. Women are to be in submission to their husbands as to the Lord. Head covering is a visible sign of a woman’s submission to God’s created order. 

I know that this position is not held to by the majority of the professing Christians in America, however there is no reason from the text to say that it is not applicable to us today. We sometimes like to ignore or explain away commands because we do not wish to follow them. May we not be guilty of doing this. If we say we are willing to die for Christ, are we not willing to cover or uncover our heads in obedience to the commands of God?

Washing of Feet:
Please read John 13:1-17.
Jesus loved his disciples to the end and washed their feet. In verse 14 Jesus says, “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Again in this passage, there is nothing that points to this being cultural. The command was never rescinded. Washing someone’s feet is a very good way to show love and honor for brothers and sisters in Christ. It is a very humble task, and I believe it should still be practiced today. 
This is sadly another very neglected practice in the American Church. As an example, there was a man who had been involved in full time ministry for about 8 years or so, no one had ever washed his feet. That is sad. 

Holy Kiss:
I know I hold a lot of beliefs that are unpopular in the American Church, these are not salvation issues, but I believe that they are biblical and should be discussed. 

The holy kiss or the kiss of love is commanded 5 times in the New Testament. Romans 16:16, 1 Corinthians 16:20, 2 Corinthians 13:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:26, 1 Peter 5:14. Again, there is nothing in the text that says that this is cultural. A friend once pointed out that a kiss used to be a sign of submission. In Ephesians 5:21 we are commanded to submit “to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Not that that is the only reason that we should practice the holy kiss, but that is something interesting to think about. 

In our culture today a lot of things are over sexualized. A kiss is not something that is inherently inappropriate; even between men and women. I practice a holy kiss on the cheek but I do not believe it is sinful to greet each other with a kiss on the lips if that is your choice. It should be done in purity, (consider 1 Timothy 5:1-2). 

There are a lot of things that are biblical but make us uncomfortable in our present day and culture. Let us return to Scripture and what God has said. Let us not take our opinions to the Scriptures and try to make them fit our view. May God and His word be our standard in all matters of faith and practice. 

I know that I have mentioned a lot of unpopular beliefs in this article. I ask that if you disagree with any of these beliefs, you would point me to the Scriptures that have convinced you otherwise. I am not above correction and want to have a biblical view. Please leave your thoughts in the comments. 

By the way, on the topic of unpopular beliefs that I hold, I am reformed, but that's another blog post.

With love in the Lord,
Virginia