The question in the title may sound strange, but it is inspired by an article that appeared on The Christian Century website: How to be a purple church in a red state. The colors refer to those commonly used to signify the two major political parties in the United States – red for Republicans and blue for Democrats. A “purple church” is one made up of “people from various political or even religious backgrounds” where “all voices are given space.” The quote above is from Josh Scott, pastor of the Morgantown Community Church and one of the two pastors featured in the article. In what Scott described as “our very traditional, largely fundamentalist community,” he is endeavoring to lead people on a “journey into progressive Christianity.”* On one hand, it is absolutely true that the church should be open to everyone. However, there is a fundamental problem when we think of a local congregation as a “purple church” in the way it is described in the article from The Christian Century and in the way it is displayed in churches like the Morgantown Community Church. This problem is illustrated in another quote from Josh Scott in the article: “Whether it was affirming women in leadership, inviting my friend, who happens to be a lesbian, to share the stage on a Sunday morning, or critique of the direction our country is taking, sometimes people can’t keep making the journey with us.” In other words, being a “purple church” is not about being faithful to Christ and following the standard that has been revealed in His word (cf. Luke 6:46; 2 Timothy 1:13). Being a “purple church” is about promoting left-wing social and political ideology and then manipulating the Bible to affirm what the Scriptures define as sin. If there should be any color used to describe the church, we ought to look to the Bible rather than 21st century American politics. When the Lord addressed the church in Sardis, He said that those “who have not soiled their garments…will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments” (Revelation 3:4-5). He told the “lukewarm” church in Laodicea to obtain from Him “white garments so that you may clothe yourself” (Revelation 3:18). White is a symbol of purity. Paul described this idea when he compared the relationship between Christ and the church to that of a husband and wife. He wrote, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless” (Ephesians 5:25-27). Under the guise of tolerance, a “purple church” embraces sin and disregards the pattern the Lord gave to His church in the New Testament. We are to work to “clean out” what is sinful and wrong in the church (1 Corinthians 5:7-13). Those who have their sins forgiven are “whiter than snow” (Psalm 51:7). We are to have our robes “washed…and made white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14). The Lord’s church should not be purple, red, blue, or any other color. It is to be a color that represents what is clean, pure, holy, and undefiled – white. If a church is another color, whatever color that may be, it is not what the Lord wants it to be. —Andy Sochor * For more on “progressive Christianity,” listen to the sermon titled Progressivism which was preached on November 20, 2016. The material from the sermon is also available as an article. [This article was published in the August 2017 issue of Banner of the Cross]
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