Kim Davis is the Christian hero of the day. If you are one of the few people who hasn’t followed the story (I just found out my college-aged daughter is one who hasn’t), Mrs. Davis is the Country Clerk in Kentucky who was recently released after being jailed for several days for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Here is a short video of her Rocky Balboa type public appearance after her release.
While there are many Christians who feel that Kim Davis is being a poor witness for the Christian faith because she is refusing to meet her obligations, there are also many who see her as a Christian hero who is standing for her faith against the Goliath of the federal government which is increasingly anti-Christian. The cheers and her rhetoric fit this narrative as seen here when she spoke briefly after her release.
But, none of that is really the point of this post. I ran across an article entitled “What is Kim Davis’s Apostolic Christian Church is All About.” The article is interesting because it points out a huge theological issue that none of the Christians championing Kim Davis are mentioning. Kim Davis is a Oneness Pentecostal. While that may not immediately raise flags for some, it means she denies the Trinity and embraces the ancient modalist heresy. This is important because I see again and again the trend in the American church to bow to the altar of conservatism as much if not more than God’s altar. It is concerning that she is being uncritically championed as a contemporary hero of the Christian faith when she denies one of Christianity’s most basic tenants.
This may seem like a small issue to some. But, what we have is an American Christianity that is theologically unsophisticated and is looking for political capital before spiritual fidelity all while claiming to be motivated by unwavering spiritual fidelity. If we are claiming this is all about honoring our God, we may want to be careful that our champions are not swimming in the stream of ancient heresy.
On Facebook, I asked my friends, “So is it okay to deny the Trinity as long as one opposes same-sex marriage?” I think it is an important question. Are we willing to sacrifice central doctrines to fight for secondary doctrines that are political hot topics?
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Loved your piece! Absolutely not. It is never okay to deny a central tenant (doctrine) of the faith, such as the Trinity, PERIOD. Failure to embrace the doctrine of the Trinity is to embrace “another” God other than the revealed God of Scripture. She is champion for the god she serves and the God she serves is not the Christian God. Christians don’t seem to know what they believe any more. The ignorance among Christians of basic Biblical doctrine is horrible. I think the problem is that Christian people are too busy to study because they’re on a mission telling all the gays and lesbians they’re going to hell and that God hates them, and they’re arguing about how they don’t need to help the poor or those in need because after all, if you don’t have a job then you’re either lazy or on drugs. I see this not only in the case of embracing this lady because being against same sex marriage is more important than the glorious revelation of our holy sovereign God, but in all the other things going on in the media labeled “Christian.”
Most Christians simply flat-out don’t know what they’re supposed to believe and truthfully, I’m sure if they really want to know it.