CHICAGO – Last Sunday night, a man in drag that had been attending Chicago's Power House Ministries was confronted by Pastor Antonio Rocquemore during the worship service.
The confrontation was broadcast on Facebook and as of Friday morning, the post has over 1 million views. The pastor is being criticized for publicly confronting the man dressed as a woman. In response, Rocquemore responded in a Facebook live broadcast the next day.
"He is a full member of the Power House International Ministries, he's not a stranger off the street," Rocquemore said on Facebook. "It was also said that he was put out because he was gay. That's wrong. I don't separate sin. Sin is sin. When you single something out, it doesn't make sense."
Despite reports, the man dressed as a woman was not told to not return to the church and security was not told to take him out.
"When you join my church, all the rules and regulations are told then. If you slip up, we will talk to you privately," the pastor said. "I went to him personally myself. He said I joined this church because I wanted to sit under a man and wanted you to lead me and show me how to be a man.
"All I can do is pray for you outside the church. There's nothing I can do for you. We don't allow you to dress like a female in church," Rocqemore said.
Other religious leaders among Chicago's conservative movement sided with Rocquemore.
"I'm not sure I would have done it the same way, but I totally agree with observing some standards within the House of God that I am shepherding," Caesar LeFlore told Illinois Review. "I would probably had asked to speak with him in private, shared the same message with him, and then explained to congregants why I felt it important to do so. Would have referred to Paul's teaching about order in the Body of Christ."
Rocquemore had privately confronted the man with his dress beforehand – as other members had, he said on his Facebook page.
"I'm glad the pastor stood up for Biblical standards when this person confronted him publicly," Dr. Eric Wallace said when told about the situation. "The Church is being challenged by the LGBTQ community and we should expect more of this in the days ahead."
Pastor Rocquemore said if the man in drag returned Sunday dressed as a man, he would be welcomed to return.
Pastor Rocquemore's Facebook Live response:
No Christian can rewrite the Bible or ignore parts to please lgbt, who hate true Christianity and our constitutionally protected religious freedoms. To be a true Christian one must have faithful obedience to God’s word.
The Bible says, “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin” (James 4:17)
While sin is a personal act, we have a responsibility for the sins committed by others when we cooperate in them:
• by participating directly and voluntarily in them
• by ordering, advising, praising, or approving them
• by not disclosing or not hindering
• by protecting wrong doers
To a true Christian, same-sex unions, LGBT behavior and same-sex marriage are a sin. You cannot separate freedom of worship, right of conscience, and freedom of speech without denying Christians the free exercise of religion. No one has to support a sinful behavior.
No one has to be an accessory to a sin…. Pastor Antonio, did the right thing. People need to leave churches with apostates/heretics in the pulpit,no matter how “nice” these wolves appear. Pastor Antonio knows
you can’t rewrite the Bible or ignore parts you may not like to suit you. To be a true Christian you must live Biblically and you must have faithful obedience to God’s word.
SECTION 3. RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination, shall forever be guaranteed, and no person shall be denied any civil or political right, privilege or capacity, on account of his religious opinions; but the liberty of conscience hereby secured shall not be construed to dispense with oaths or affirmations, excuse acts of licentiousness, or justify practices inconsistent with the peace or safety of the State. No person shall be required to attend or support any ministry or place of worship against his consent, nor shall any preference be given by law to any religious denomination or
mode of worship. (Source: Illinois Constitution.)
I am not a true Christian, but I cannot agree more. No homosexual or other degenerates has an endemic right to act out in public, in a business, or even a Government entity. Societal mores exist for a reason. The rapidly accelerating degeneracy needs to be curtailed.
He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. 21 For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”
Mark 7:20-23 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Mark%207:20-23&version=NIV
I pray that all churches will practice Biblical sanctioning, to do other is an offense to God. The defiled heart is blaspheming God and has NO PLACE in worship.
I also pray that his heart is transformed, that he repents and begins his walk with Jesus vs Lucifer.
Good. Sounds like a lot of the churches in the black community don’t bend at the knee to pressures from liberalism. White mainline protestant churches have largely moderated in a desperate attempt to stay relevant and not be called names. This has caused many confused people, and it hasn’t even helped the churches’ attendance.
My local Lutheran Church of America (LCA), originally the Swedish Lutheran Church, went soft on perversions of this type.
Result: many members deserted to the town’s more traditional, conservative Missouri Synod German Lutheran Church.