The downgrade of Rick Warren has been going on for a long time. But certainly in the last year, this decline has accelerated. Rick Warren became a member of the Branch Covidian cult and has been simping for Gavin Newsom, much like The Gospel Coalition in Canada. Moreover, Rick Warren has embraced Critical Race Theory. However a new level was achieved when Rick Warren declared that he was egalitarian by ordaining three female pastors.
There are few acts that can land send a church packing from the Southern Baptist Convention. Embracing homosexuality, harboring sex offenders, and occasionally female pastors can get a church disfellowshipped from the Southern Baptist Convention via the Credential Committee. So far, this committee has been a step in the right direction, however modest.
With the upcoming Southern Baptist Convention, the candidates for SBC President were challenged over this event.
Randy Adams points out that this is a clear violation; however, he notes the unlikeliness of repercussions because Saddleback Church is not receiving Cooperative Program funds. But he does seem to indicate that public pressure can move the needle towards orthodoxy on this issue.
Mike Stone was blunt in saying that Rick Warren is not following Scripture when he tweeted this in context. Note: the liberal candidates have not commented on this issue so far.
There are two reasons why Rick Warren and Saddleback Church would not be kicked out of the Southern Baptist Convention. The first is money. I have written in that past that Beth Moore is the Lifeway Queen. Rick Warren is the Lifeway King. The amount of books he has sold has made him a purpose driven cash cow for the Southern Baptist Convention. His teachings are extremely influential in the church today including how churches are planted. The Southern Baptist Convention accommodated heretics like Beth Moore while small churches leave the convention due to their tolerance of Jezebel. But Beth Moore would leave in a coordinated career move. Perhaps Rick Warren is planning the same. A failure to disfellowship Saddleback Church would rightly be perceived as a move motivated by greed. Alternatively, a failure to disfellowship Rick Warren would be seen as an assent to his egalitarianism.
Because Rick Warren and Saddleback Church are so influential, it is imperative that the Southern Baptist Convention make an example out of Rick Warren and disfellowship him and his church.
