04/24/2021
Brothers and sisters in Christ, you may have heard that some pastors in the BASIC Ministry have been preaching messages that are filled with racial slurs from the pulpits that they are privileged to minister the Word Of God from. If you haven’t heard that, I wanted you to hear it from me. If you’re outraged by those divisive anti Christian messages then you’re in the right place. That kind of behavior has no place in the Church, it has no place at BASIC Ministry, and it has no place being preached in any Christian denomination pulpit.
You should be outraged, not only as an Christian, but as a human being. And I’ll tell you, that the appropriate response for horrible language and horrible ideas, the appropriate response is a better idea. So that’s why I’m here. That’s why all these people are up here on the staff tower, so let me have everybody who’s up here please pull forward to the rails. Also, there’s so many people here, they’re lining the outsides along the windows. These are members of the faculty, BASIC Ministry staff, missionaries, church administrators, from the choirs, from my staff, from my headquarters, all aspects of the support staff, all aspects that make up volunteers and the BASIC Ministry leadership is here.
The reason that I am here. The reason why we’re all here is because we have a better idea. Some of you may think that that happened in another church body that you don't attend doesn't apply to you. I would be naive and we would all be naive to think that everything is perfect in your church body about the need to address racial inequality. We would be naive to think that we shouldn’t discuss this topic. We would also be tone-deaf not to think about the backdrop of what’s going on in our country. Things like Charlottesville and Ferguson, the protests in the NFL, that’s why we have a better idea. One of those ideas, the Dean brought people together to discuss Charlottesville because what we should have is a civil discourse and talk about these issues, that’s a better idea.
We received outstanding feedback from that session at Charlottesville, but I also have a better idea and it’s about our diversity, and it's the power of human Christian diversity, the power of the 4,000 of you and all of the people that are on the staff tower and lining the glass, the power of us as a diverse group, the power that we come from all walks of life, that we come from all parts of this country, that we come from all races, we come from all backgrounds, gender, all makeup, all upbringing. The power of that diversity comes together and makes us that much more powerful. That's a much better idea than small thinking and horrible ideas. We have an opportunity here, 5,500 people in this room, to think about what we are as an Christian ministry. This is our ministry and no one can take away our values. No one can write on a board and question our values. No one can take that away from us. And no one can preach a message from the pulpit of a BASIC Ministry church that goes against our values without our privilege to reproach that message.
So just in case you’re unclear on where I stand on this topic, I’m going to leave you with my most important thought today: If you can’t treat someone with dignity and respect in life, from the pulpit, in your position in BASIC Ministry, or just as a person in the congregation, then you need to get out. If you can’t teach someone from another gender, whether that’s a man or a woman, with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. If you demean someone in any way, then you need to get out. And if you can’t treat someone from another race or a different color skin with dignity and respect, then you need to get out.
Reach for your phones. I’m serious, reach for your phones. OK, you don’t have to reach for your phones, I’m going to give you an opportunity to reach for your phones. I want you to videotape this so that you can have it, so that you can use it, so that we all have the moral courage together, all of us on the staff tower lining the glass, all of us in this room. This is our Ministry, and if you need it, and you need my words, then you keep these words. And you use them and you remember them and you share them and you talk about them. If you can’t treat someone with dignity and respect, then get out.
My authority as a Christian Bishop is Matthew 18:16-17 New International Version
16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’[a](A) 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church;(B) and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
I will uphold the values of the saints of BASIC Ministry as they follow the Scripture and I will not summarily remove a pastor from the pulpit or any member from the BASIC Ministry ministry just because their truth is not expressed to another man or woman liking if their truth is Biblical sound and that is a scared law to me that governs my actions as a bishop. Yet I will not hesitate to remove any member from their office, the pulpit, or our church congregation if their actions goes against the scriptures in the Bible even if I have to do it in the courts of law.
That is my directive,
Excellency, Freddie Lee Murray ThD (Bishop of Brothers And Sisters In Christ Ministry - BASIC Ministry)
