M [Applause] Yeah He [Applause] [Applause] Good evening good evening good evening this is the day the Lord has made we will rejoice and be glad in it another Day’s Journey and so glad about it and so grateful we are at the last Saturday of 2023 and I am grateful that you are spending this time with me as we’re
Closing this year out in prayer uh and I want to do a couple of things tonight uh one that the Lord has just laid on my heart and I want to address it uh I want to encourage you if you uh know someone who is a member of of a Greek letter
Organization you want to text them right now and say uh pastor’s about to uh address an issue with Greek letter organizations and um I’d like to because the Lord is really laid it on my heart but before we get there I’d like to remind you uh about what’s coming up uh
Tomorrow first of all thank God for today for those of you we did say that we weren’t having prayer this morning uh and some of you still showed up thank God for you uh and uh they did open the doors for you to be in please know that
Prayer is going to go on um and even uh as we move forward if there are times that I’m not there one of my associates will be there and prayer in the sanctuary at the Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church will be a regular part of what it
Means to be in the life of our church and we want to establish that the scripture says that uh his house should be a house of prayer for all people people and I believe very strongly that the Lord has told us to do it it began
As a 7-Day experience that the Lord was ask told me to do it for those seven days and to observe um and then uh said to just make it a part of what we do and that’s what we’re going to do and I want to thank you for those of you who feel
Called to that Ministry and I believe that that is a Ministry uh it’s a Ministry of intercession we’re not going to turn into a program we’re not turn it’s not performative um and uh we are on guard for anything that will change it from
What it is uh so I thank God for those of you who believe in the power of prayer and I believe our church is experiencing the power of that prayer and so thank you very much also to our African Heritage Ministry uh thank you for uh our celebration of K Quanza today
Nia purpose and we thank God for those of you that came out and were a part of it all of the dancers uh all of the vendors all of the persons that were there uh pastor Kevin Murphy who gives leadership to our discipleship Community or illumination community and we thank
All of you for being there a job well done and so um please remember tomorrow is a old school throwback Sunday what do I mean by that well in the morning at 6:45 we have 6 45 worship at 10:00 we have our 10:00 worship and then we are
Coming back tomorrow night at 10 p.m for our watch Night Service um it just so happens that watch night the Eve is on a Sunday we’re not canceling anything to fit in I am asking you uh to come to your regular service in the morning and
Then I’m asking you to come back for watch Night Watch night is a uniquely African American Christian experience it is something that black people did in 1862 in preparation for 1863 and the Emancipation Proclamation to kick in uh and they gathered to watch through the night into what we hoped would be
Freedom what we know took a few more years some would argue that we’re still not there yet but uh it is expressly African-American and it is a tradition I think we need to keep and I think you need to be at church I really do in fact I believe being at
Church on the last Sunday of the year is important uh and many of you know that we’re going to have a special prayer uh for our daughter of our church on tomorrow uh who will be the next mayor of the city of Philadelphia who is the first African-American female to be
Mayor first woman uh to be mayor first African-American woman to be mayor and we’re going to pray now please understand what this prayer is we are praying for the woman the wife the friend the person yes and we’re praying for the mayor but we’re praying that God
Cover her uh and we are asking uh that you be there to pray for your sister who is from our ranks and so we’re looking forward to that and uh of course the gospel will go forth and then on tomorrow evening we will have our watch Night Service which is always I think
Important and it serves as the first night morning of our 31-day Biblical challenge meaning the passage of scripture that I preach from on tomorrow night will be the first passage which will lead to the first um the first of 31 passages of scripture that we will
Cover over the next 31 days as the people of God gather and every day I will have a random act of kindness or a random act of Devotion to God that we’re asking you to do uh it’s going to be powerful I believe and our goal my goal
Really is now we know more than 2,000 people are going to do this but I really want 2,000 people to join me at 6:30 in the morning I I you know some people will get to it when you get to it and I understand and I thank God that you can
Get to it when you get to it but there’s going to be something very very special for those of you who are in the Eastern Time Zone that can get up and get there at 6:30 and let’s pray let’s pray together let’s study the word of God uh
Let’s pray together we will then send out an action step for you to do and then go do it uh we want to spread good around um this is also an exercise for you as member of Enon to get in uh the touch point system now in all fairness
Um you can be being in touch point and not enan uh because it’s it’s really for us in the community and so forth but what I’m looking for are the members of enan to get in touch point so I can I can minister to you better I can
Communicate with you better we can communicate with you better you can own your intellectual property and your own stuff uh in ways that will help us just take membership and communication and followship to a new level uh and part of this 31-day biblical challenge is going
To help us do that what I’m also looking to find out is where are our clusters of people in venon here’s a goal where I find that there are you know if I if I find that there are a hundred people in Dover Delaware who are all members of
Enon I want to pursue what it would look like to have a Revival in do Delaware what do I mean just so that people who are in venon but are in the same area maybe we could plan to get together what would that look like let me find out
There’s 50 hundred people down there what I would then do is pack up our worship team and come do a three night Revival uh we just get a hotel and get a ballroom and let’s just do it let’s call the church together but that’s also true for 50 people in South Carolina I’m
Trying to find out where we are I know we’re all over the place but let’s figure it out and let’s see how we can build Kingdom build Church uh and that’s what I’m interested and so your being on touch Point helps me understand the length and breath of us even more so I’m
Going to ask that you keep that in prayer so I’m looking forward to seeing on tomorrow and uh looking forward and then of course we’re back in Tuesday night’s Bible study uh and we move on from there we are back doing Church doing the thing that God has called us
To do so with that in mind um there there’s a conversation that may not mean a lot to a lot of you but I need and feel led to have this it’s not going to take me long um but I’ve been hearing and it’s it’s not a new conversation
It’s not a it’s a recurring conversation that happens over the generations um that seems to be picking up steam again amongst young adults and that is this renouncing of letters meaning someone who has pledged uh Sig F Beta Sigma or Delta Sigma Theta or Zeta
F beta AKA and now has had a new Rush of faith and conviction and now feels the need to renounce your uh involvement and give up your letters uh and make a public statement about it and go on because you’ve been called deeper into God and into Christ
First of all if I’m talking to you I celebrate you and your newfound conviction um and I believe the Bible says uh that when something bothers our conscience and I’m paraphrasing uh when something bothers our conscience it then becomes sin to us and you need to follow your conscience and I
Celebrate that and no one should ever keep anyone from following their conscience because um what your conscience is pointing is to what the Lord is leading you to do now the question about how we handle this and renounce I’m not getting ready to take up a Bible study
Because I want to do this I want to talk about what the real theological issue is and the real theological issue in this moment is differing doctrinal convictions see back I’m going to assume that there are people all over the map on this issue meaning there are some
People who feel wonderful about their involvement in Greek letter organizations serve God feel no conviction and are doing it I’m going to tell them you’re right there’s somebody who says you know what I’ve studied this thing and I’ve studied scripture and I believe and I feel led
To say that I cannot be in those organizations anymore I’m going to say to you you’re right because you know it’s about your conscience it’s about what you feel led of your understanding of scripture to do now the Bible is clear and I want to read a passage of
Scripture to you and it’s found in Romans the 14 th chapter and wherever you and I find ourselves at an impass doctrinally we’ve got to go to this passage of scripture because I’m not going to sit here and debate whether the Bible says you can or cannot I’m
Going to say once we are fully convinced of what we’re convinced remember first the uh Corinthians the 13th chapter says we see through a glass Darkly what does that mean we see through glass Darkly that means on your best my best theological day it’s like looking at reality through a stained glass window
That’s what it means so on my best day my understanding of God and scripture is like looking at life through a smoky glass or stained glass window which means I have to always have a little bit of I could be wrong in the back of my my
Mind that’s to keep any of us from being arrogant because we see through a glass Darkly doesn’t mean don’t have a conviction have a strong conviction but not unto disputations remember how uh uh the material in Colossians and other passages that was suggest that you don’t sit around and
Argue with people about scripture and convictions you believe what you believe and then walk in it don’t receive a brother unto disputations are you with me but here’s what Roman says that I think you and I need to hear him that is weak in the faith receive ye but not to
Doubtful disputations don’t argue about it for one believeth that he may eat all things another who is weak eateth herbs let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not and let him which eateth not judge him that eateth for God hath received him who art thou that judges
Another man’s servant to his own Master be uh he standeth or falleth yay he shall be Holden up but God is able to make him stand one man esteemeth one day above another another esteemeth every day alike let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind that has to do
With conscience he that regardeth the day regardeth it unto the Lord and He that regardeth not the day to the Lord he doth not regard it he that eateth eat to the Lord he that giveth God thanks he that eateth not to the Lord he eateth
Not and giveth God thanks for none of us live to himself and no man dieth to himself for whether we live we live unto the Lord and whether we die we die unto the Lord whether we live therefore or die or or die we are the Lords but to
This end Christ both died and Rose and revived that he might be Lord both of the dead and living but Why th Dost thou judge thy brother why Dost thou set at not thy brother for we shall stand before the Judgment seat of Christ for
It is written as I live sayith the Lord every knee shall bow to me and every tongue shall confess to God so then every one of us shall give account of himself to God how does that passage of scripture take up this issue I’m going to allow everyone’s argument to be true because
It’s possible what you believe is what you believe what somebody else believes is what they believe now what do we do with it how do we handle it I believe I have a little oil on this because I have been in both spaces if you if I am your pastor you
Have been raised in a church where we do not do Greek letter organization uh funerals and things like the Omega chapter stuff now remember I am a sigma five Beta Sigma fraternity Incorporated Epsilon Omron chapter of Ohio University spring 83 back in the 80s we’re the reason we got all these rules
Now anyhow um I loved it brand on my chest the whole deal when I accepted my call to Ministry I kind of moved on um didn’t really stay active all that active um didn’t you know say anything I mean just moved on went to Seminary started pastoring Church didn’t have
Time to do anything I’ve kept in t touch a little bit with uh the Frat and so forth and when I see frat we DAP in the whole Port but I’ve not been active until quite frankly recently with new Sigma here in Philadelphia um I took my time to study
Uh what I was in and then all the rituals of not only my fraternity but the Masons and so forth and I deduced for myself that as a pastor I could not participate in omeg Omega chapter stuffff number one I don’t believe there is an Omega chapter meaning it’s a nice
Right of passage that we can do to process the pain of loss of brother and sister but I don’t believe that there is an Omega chapter so I don’t do it I believe there is also some syncretism in some of those rituals and so as my conviction I said I can’t do
That and because because I am the senior pastor of the Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church said we won’t because I am responsible and I believe this to God I am responsible for the worship that happens in the place where I am uh the angel of the house are you with me now I
Will not go in another church and tell them what they can and cannot do I don’t believe that it is wrong for somebody else to do Omega chapter stuff I won’t I don’t do them I won’t show up where there’s one going on and then sit in the
Back and show out that I’m not participating because here is the issue you can have difference of opinion but when you start doing things like renouncing or speaking on or making definitive statements on somebody else’s actions we’re beginning to be judgmental you know what if if the Lord
Has led you to not be in your organization anymore I salute you just stop don’t send your money in stop wearing your letters you may write a letter to your chapter and say to them you know I’m choosing not to participate anymore and then move on you need to
Understand that the renouncing language that some of us are beginning to use that steps over into an area of judging those that haven’t renounced and I don’t think that we’re allowed to do that I am allowed to hold my own convictions and you’re allowed to hold your convictions but I think when
We begin to get into those areas of renouncing we’re probably stpp into an area that is just as offensive to God um and challenging of Brotherhood and Sisterhood because even if you choose to no longer be a part there’s still some wonderful people who are over there that
We might not want to judge them let me pull it a little closer I I don’t think that I can be I would not be my Allan Waller I would not be a Mason because of what I understand is what in my theological conviction um is syncretism and I am called to rightly
Divide an unadulterated Gospel of Jesus Christ so for me I can’t take the oath of as I understand it a Mason but I know some great brothers who are masons and I know some good guys who think differently about that now over the 30 years that I’ve
Been the pastor of Enon there have been times and they are legendary there have been some organizations that have um not liked me I’ve been talked about um because of my conviction around that uh today uh it’s not as bad in fact sometimes we’ll kind of joke about it
With some organization well we know we can’t do that so we going to take this funeral somewhere else and I accept that the real sign of your Healthy faith is not how loud you can be on somebody else’s actions but it’s how quietly strong you can be with your
Own so if you really feel led to renounce just stop paying your dues stop wearing your letters and move on allow other people the right to do what they do and um Let the church roll on because the real sign of your faith is that you can hold your
Conviction even if you’re the only one that holds it and you can allow for others to hold their convictions as well now we’ll speak from later on in years you know when I was younger and I was I mean I was sort of a knockdown drag out evangelist and I was you know
Really ready to distance from everything um as I think about what it means to be a pastor today and a community Builder um some of my Hardline positions of my youth uh I have I hold my convictions but I’m always looking for ways to build community and not divide us I’m clear
The scripture does say Come Ye out from among them but I think we ought to know what the among them really are and I’m not so sure that it is in the light and trite stuff of organizations I mean I believe that to the this point even with Muslims I
Believe I am a Christian there is no other name given among men whereby we must be saved save the name of Jesus the Christ I don’t believe that there is any other way to be saved except through the blood of Jesus Christ I believe that but how will I
Win people to Christ by judging their religion by dogging them out by separating myself from them no how will we win them by respecting them by standing strong on your own beliefs and being able to love respect others and allowing them to be who they are while holding firmly to your faith I
Know in whom I believe and I know that my redeemer liveth and he shall stand at the latter day what am I trying to say I’ve been listening to uh a new generation of young adults fight this fight that we fought and people fought before what’s most important in this moment is you
Personally know what you believe what do you believe about your salvation what do you believe about Jesus Christ what do you believe about God’s call in your life to serve I believe that I’m called to serve through the church and so no organization claims my attention like the church
Does but I believe that there are others who are serving God through their organization now I’m about to get in trouble because sometimes and I will I own this truth sometimes what you and the Ley will do is parot some teaching that some Pastor has put out there you
Know for instance when everybody was throwing money on the Altar and um you know I think that that’s crazy but the person actually doing it was probably sincere and they’re sincere because some Pastor or church leader taught it and they just want to be good Christians and they’re following some
Teaching and I would challenge us as pastors be real careful how we teach people cuz sometimes pastors who are jealous of organizations jealous of the time that people in their church are giving to other organizations can begin out of their own pain to bleed and preach against things just because they don’t
Like it and may go farther than the word of God gives us permission to do so I want to challenge you to think about your own conviction and stand strong and don’t be afraid of it but the real sign of being a strong believer is not in how loud you can get
On somebody else is how how strong you can be in your own faith and still allow others to live out their faith even if it is just allowing them time to come to where you are I am prayerful um that maybe this Romans 14 will give us some room to think about
How we treat each other because I will say this in the grand scheme of theological reflection this ain’t the thing to lose friends over this is not the thing to draw lines in the sand this is a thing that each of us needs to make a decision for ourselves but also give room
For your brother or sister to have their same journey I celebrate your conviction and I celebrate being a part of a church that makes room and I also thank God for the deacons and those of you who have stood with me over the years at times when people have had Pastor Waller stew
Because of my convictions but I bless God because at the end of the day I’d rather serve God and have people mad at me then serve people and have God mad at me and so I want you to make sure that your conscience your understanding the
Word of God allows you to live deeply into your faith but that your maturity doesn’t that you that you will in maturity not judge others because remember this this and I close people have the right to not be you I I need to remember that you have
The right to not be me and it is possible that when you are totally opposite of where I am that God actually loves you and honors you too let’s keep all of that in mind as we seek to live out our faith and as we seek to build community and holler at
Back at me and if there are those that would like to go deeper in in public in this conversation I would love to do that as well come on let’s go to God in prayer and I look forward to seeing you in the morning God I bless you and I
Thank you thank you for the opportunity to teach your word and be with your people I pray oh God that you help me to understand what you’re calling me to help us to understand what you’re calling us to I pray oh God that you would help people walk in their faith in
Ways that honor you and draw people close to you and build community Lord I pray for those who will stand to preach the gospel tomorrow and that the word would go forth with power thank you for bringing us through 2023 thank you for the ways in which you’ve
Shown Yourself Strong in our lives and thank you for the ways that you have protected us thank you for the ways that you’ve never left us now God as we go into the new year we pray that you would give us greater Vision greater understanding so that in our lives you
Get glory and it’ll be for our good Lord I love you I bless you and I thank you go with us until we meet again it is through Christ and for his sake we do pray let us all say amen amen love y’all much I’ll see you in the morning
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