If your church serves Starbucks, Your pastor is a friend of the world
Posted by Todd Rhoades in Controversy on Feb 2nd, 2012 | 48 commentsFrom a press release, January 31:
What if Starbucks lost 80% of its customers? Christians across the USA are boycotting Starbucks for promoting homosexual ‘marriage’ in Washington State. There is an 80% Christian majority in the USA and 1-2% homosexuals.
“Christians are upset with Starbucks for turning against God, but we are glad to know that Starbucks doesn’t pretend to be for Christians,” said Pastor Steven Andrew, who is president of USA Christian Ministries. He calls every Christian and church to boycott Starbucks. Leviticus 22:18 says, “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.”
“This boycott is important because God blesses those who obey Him and judges those who don’t obey Him (2 Chronicles 19:2),” he adds.
Don’t expect to hear sermons with “grab your Starbucks” or to see Starbucks served at churches. “Starbucks is no longer fashionable. If your church still uses Starbucks, then your pastor is a friend of the world,” he adds. God calls those who oppose Him “haters of God” (Romans 1:30).
It is hoped that Christians will quickly share this boycott with their church.
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How many ways is this wrong?
48 Responses to “ “If your church serves Starbucks, Your pastor is a friend of the world”
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Todd- I wrote about this the other day on my blog and even posted the question on Facebook if people would boycott. I got some very interesting responses. I would say it split 50/50.
After the robust conversation, I went to Starbucks, got a coffee, said hello to two openly homosexual ladies that work there and went back to the church office. I guess I’m a friend of the world.
I recall someone who was such a friend of the world He gave his life for it…
hmm… I think I wanna be like THAT!
One oft-repeated line that I think applies here is, “don’t expect them to act like Christians until they become Christians.”
One major problem I have with this – besides the fact that most boycotts just plain don’t work – is that it’s rather… selective.
I agree that men “lying with a male as with a woman.” is sin. Ok. So, where should you draw the line, and ask for a boycott? I’m guessing that in a corporation as large as WalMart, there are a number of homosexuals employed by the company – some of whom may work at the very store I frequent. Should I boycott WalMart as well? After all, by hiring them, isn’t that tacit support of – at the very least, tolerance for – the sin of homosexuality?
Now, extend that logic to ANY organization which hires homosexuals. That covers a lot of ground. Got a cell phone? Verison, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint – they all almost certainly have homosexuals in their companies.
Need an oil change on your car? Heck, need a car? Well, JiffyLube, as well as Ford, probably have a number of homosexuals working for them.
Looking to by a computer, or services, or any product containing a product manufactured by IBM? They have a strong support for the homosexual community (I know – I used to work there, and read all the corporate diversity initiatives).
If you’re going to be consistent, you probably have to be neither in the world nor of it.
Hmmmm….. sounds like exactly like what some people suggest.
Another person who you are giving the benefit of the doubt to. I am glad to see that you are fair with all.
I guess easy targets are ok to criticize but your Leadership Network supporters who pay your salary are off limits and you are an apologist.
Hypocrisy at its finest
Thank you George. Appreciate it.
Todd
I don’t frequent Starbucks but just found a reason to. Sounds like that’s part of the community our church is targeting with the gospel of Jesus! What an opportunity! Thanks!!
I guess you welcome opinions of who you agree with but block and ban IP addresses of those that call you on your hypocrisy.
You mock fundamentalists and call your Brothers in Christ that disagree, “haters” while defending those who are in league with Leadership Network.
But when you are an apologist your supposed stance is that you give people the benefit of the doubt..Obviously that is a lie
Sam, is George your middle name? My wife works at Starbucks.
So, if this Pastor Steven Andrew is glad to know that Starbucks “doesn’t pretend to be for Christians,” why does he think it merits a boycott? Do we expect lost people to live like Christians? Do we expect them to live by the same standard? The only thing I expect from Starbucks is a good cup of coffee. That’s their purpose.
I am quite offended by this phrase “If your church still uses Starbucks, then your pastor is a friend of the world.” My youth pastor puts Starbucks in his personal budget every year and takes me there quite often to meet. I guess we have the most worldly church staff on the planet! I find this quote and your blog very judgmental and not in the positive way we are supposed to judge one another.
Guess we’ll just keep be friends of the world. I thought it was part of shining our light but I guess you and this pastor would rather hide your light.
You do realize, I hope, that Todd is not agreeing with the blogger? From your comments, it’s kind of hard to tell. Just wondering…
From the way he presented it, it seemed clear to me that he was endorsing the boycott! And he didn’t write anything to clarify that.
Actually, Kris – at the very end of the article, Todd asks, “How many ways is this wrong?”
Doesn’t sound like he’s endorsing it to me.
I didn’t see that before now, but the way he tweeted the link made it sound like he agreed with the pastor. I’m surprised he hasn’t replied directly to me if he disagrees.
Yet another example of self-righteousness that makes Christians look, well, self-righteous and arrogant and ignorant and unloving etc etc
Jack, don’t forget to add “illiterate” to your list. Its funny how a so-called Christian can get all worked up over Leviticus 18:22 (I don’t think the 22:18 as shown above is correct) but yet totally ignore Leviticus 19:19 which says Do not mate different kinds of animals, Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed, Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.
they also ignore my favorite passage which is Leviticus 19:27 which says: “Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.”
I will also point out that Leviticus 19:20 seems to say its ok to take a woman as a slave and rape her if she is not promised to another man.
The bottom line is if you want to quote Leviticus you had better be DAMN careful!
And I mean that literally.
Mark – it’s not quite that simple. It has LONG been recognized (since, say, the Jerusalem conference in Acts 15, or Peter & Paul’s Galatian disagreement) that Gentile Christians are not expected to keep Torah. What is NOT obvious is how to discern which parts of Torah teach moral truths that apply to Gentiles as well, vs. cultic observances peculiar to Israel. Paul certainly taught a lot about how Christian life should be shaped, and drew deeply from Torah to do so.
I’m not saying this is a slam-dunk “yes, we can say that homosexual intimacy is immoral, but the whole what-you-do-with-your-beard thing is just for ancient Israel.” But, since Jesus quoted Leviticus favorably, we can’t just say “ah, it’s all a bunch of Old Testament craziness.”
Eric wrote:
> “Gentile Christians are not expected to keep Torah”
And that’s fine. But if you don’t keep the Torah then you have admitted that its ok to ignore portions of what we call the Bible. Once you do that, then all that now remains is the argument over which portions of the bible we can ignore and that’s where the massive human corruption sets in.
The problem is that you have thrown away your honesty and integrity when you try to claim that Leviticus must be obeyed literally and yet you proclaim this “truth” with a clean shaven face since Leviticus CLEARLY COMMANDS that you not shave your face.
In light of all this Bernie Madoff styled religious game playing and mental gymnastics I propose that instead of boycotting Starbucks, we boycott Christian churches.
I propose that everyone get up and walk out of church tomorrow and do not return if ANYONE in that church demonstrates a homophobic attitude while sporting a clean shaven face for they bare the mark of the hypocrisy beast.
Its clearly the “biblical” thing to do!
Mark,
Thanks for the reply! I’ll disagree with you a bit, though. I don’t mean to be rude, but I fear you are the one playing Bernie Madoff games here – saying something is there when it’s not. I did not anywhere say anything about Leviticus being “obeyed literally.” I have no problem when someone disagrees with me. I do not, however, appreciate having words put in my mouth (or in my keyboard, as it were).
I also didn’t say anything about “ignoring” anything. Leviticus is to be taken with utter seriousness. I am not a Jew; I am not part of that particular covenant. But, I believe that this covenant DOES have much to show me about the nature of God.
Does “the beard thing” apply directly to me? No. But, it does make me ask this: what seemingly-innocuous practices that are accepted in our culture do I freely adopt (say, buying a big-screen TV like everyone else has) without considering whether or not they are part and parcel of a deeper pattern of idolatry (as the cultic practices forbidden in Leviticus were)?
So then, the question which requires significant mental gymnastics (and I would take that in a positive light – do we not desire to have minds that are strong and agile?) is this: is the character the OT gives to heterosexual marriage as the normative context for sexual intimacy (and this claim’s echoes/ repetitions in the NT) a culturally-particular expression against a pattern of idolatry that existed then, but not now? If so, then what was the idolatry then, and what are its parallels now? If not, and if the idolatrous reality then is also a reality now, then how do we constructively and compassionately demonstrate a living counter-example to the idolatry around us?
Most of the “traditional” or “conservative” ways of talking about this are indeed intellectually and spiritually impoverished, quite lacking in wisdom and compassion. That, I think, is the real challenge the Church faces. Boycotting Starbucks is a cheap way to be proud. I fail to see how that benefits anyone.
Peace, Mark.
Eric wrote:
> “I am not a Jew; I am not part of that particular covenant.”
That’s fine, Eric. I don’t believe that Starbucks is part of that particular covenant either.
My point is not really about you. Its about the hypocrisy of Pastor Steven Andrew.
My proposal is that instead of boycotting Starbucks we should instead boycott Pastor Steven Andrew and any Homophobes like him.
Pastor Steven Andrew is not really fooling anyone. He has some unresolved homosexual issues within himself that he is too cowardly to deal with honestly. Instead he lashes out at Starbucks. This is the most UN-Christian behavior imaginable. But, alas, Pastor Steven Andrew is not the first person to claim to be a Christian while behaving as opposite as Christ’s teachings as one could imagine.
Another time the church does what the church does so well … disconnect itself from the rest of the world. I hope my pastor is a “friend of the world.” Wasn’t Jesus a friend of sinners? Unbelievable:(
WWJD? Probably join the boycott because we know he never hung around with…
…oops! Never mind.
I don’t agree, however we just have to wonder how much of the reaction contrary to the viewpoints of the article aren’t due to evangelism at all… but because we are so in love (lust?) with Starbucks.
I remember when the thought of going to an R rated movie was unthinkable for a Christian. Now, people do it just to stay relevant. I doubt that. Its because they want to see the movie.
John, I personally dislike Starbucks. In my opinion, they heat the coffee too high, and scorch it, which I don’t like. I much rather like Land of a Thousand Hills coffee. But my opinion, stated above, still stands.
Good question, though, and one worth asking.
I like to picture Jesus wearing a white wig and holding a picket sign.
Sorry,
I just keep picturing those signs from your post a few days ago, the ones saying “God hates figs” … and well, it makes me laugh
I have a Starbucks sign in my office, own stock in Starbucks, and had a Starbucks today. In fact I encourage people to give me gift cards to Starbucks as opposed to anything else. I love Starbucks.
I don’t expect Starbucks to determine biblical values for me. I think the Bible is pretty clear on its values. My job is to demonstrate the love of Christ by leading an authentic life that reflects His glory. I’m pretty sure that includes living in the world. I don’t drink Starbucks because of what they stand for, I drink it because I think it’s really good coffee.
Pass me a grande.
Amen
I still drink Starbucks too… but, what if there was a big sign above the counter that said, “10 cents of every cup of coffee you buy goes directly to the pro-homosexual movement.”
Would that change our minds? Just thinking out loud as I’m sitting in a coffee shop (not a Starbucks).
What if there was a sign above our heads, just lusted, lied to his wife last night, took off early from work but still got full day pay, yelled at his kids too much, secret drug user, ignored the homeless, hasn’t prayed in 3 weeks…
Drinking a starbucks and thinking too.
Awesome!!!!!
Leonard wrote:
> “What if there was a sign above our heads…”
Great idea, Leonard, but let me take it a step further. What if we lived in a world of REAL christians who actually followed Jesus’ commands? This would be a world where we wouldn’t need signs over our heads because we would feel safe freely confessing our own sins knowing that the christians around us would love us anyway and not scorn us or…. gasp…. boycott us.
We currently live in a very broken world. So broken in fact that the people all around us who claim to be christians are lying. They are not behaving even remotely like christ commanded. Today’s christians are arrogant, self-righteous and completely stuck on themselves with their collective noses high in the air while they boycott “those bad people over there”.
I wonder if we will ever see real christianity where real christians are on their knees in public begging Jesus for forgiveness of their own sins instead of wasting time and energy worrying about the perceived sins of starbucks.
I know tons of real Christians. Those whose love for God and others is authentic and powerful. They are generous and real. You do not describe any Christian experience since the day of Pentecost. There is no time in the history of the church where people freely confessed their sin to each other. I personally know of many churches and many christians who are forgiving and loving.
Give some grace Mark.
Beside that, you completely missed my point in what I posted.
Leonard responded:
> “There is no time in the history of the church where people freely confessed their sin to each other…”
And that’s exactly why today’s church is not a church of Jesus at all but merely a human created selfish delusion where arrogant people hide inside their walls and think they are so much BETTER than everyone else. Gosh, its so hard to decide which one of those BAD PEOPLE outside we should boycott today.
People seem to be getting a lot of things conflated & confused here.
A lot (most? all?) of organisations will have homosexual members of staff. I don’t think the pastor is calling for a boycott because Starbucks are employing homosexuals or serving homosexuals coffee! Starbucks (and a number of other organisations) are giving their support to a political campaign to change the definition of marriage. Is it just me that asks the question, Why?! Of all the pressing social, economic & foreign affairs issues that they could choose to affiliate themselves with, why choose this one?
And let’s be honest: we seem to be very selective about the sinners Jesus was happy to be friends with. Let’s not forget Jesus would be happy to be friends with “right wing” sinners just as much as liberal, cause célèbre ones – KKK members; climate-change deniers; greedy corporate bankers etc. Hey, Jesus even loves paedophiles. If Starbucks were adding their corporate voice to a campaign to allow them to deforest large parts of the Amazon for coffee plantations you can bet a whole different bunch of Christians would be calling for a boycott.
Yeah, I LOVE emergent/contempo’s harping on commercialism and consumerism that’s rampant in the church…. then half way living at Starbucks home of ridiculously priced coffee.
Boycotts are foolish, I agree. But no more foolish than daily paying $4 for a coffee drink.
You all take your kids to Disney and not think a thing about it, or buy your soda from magic underwear wearers (who don’t drink the crap)… Gays are easy to pick on and make everyone feel so self righteous…. ERRRRRRR!
Christian boycots always win many souls to Jesus and show the love of Christ to people.
Oh wait.
And if you try to boycot anything that is associated with sin……..that’s everything, including the Church. We are all sinners in need of God’s grace.
How about we stop boycotting secular companies and start boycotting hypocrisy and sin in the Church?
I am so simple….
I didn’t know Starbucks ran WA states legislative process.
I have lived in WA state my whole life and never picked up on how much clout Starbucks had.
Amazing.
If the crusaders are all fired up to legislate morality….
There is a Capitol building in Olympia.
I am sure the Occupy folks would loan them a tent.
I will be heading to Starbucks in the morning.
I have numerous family members that work for Starbucks.
And YUP, they are Christians.
In case you haven’t noticed, jobs are hard to come by in the real world.
OK, I am not the “FRED” who dissed you.
I just wanted to say:
Surely the Starbucks coffee energy drinks aren’t included in the boycott? That would have to be a sin! lol
Although it probably could have been said a bit more tactfully, I fully agree.
Boycott Starbucks. Drink tea. Vote pro-marriage between a man and a woman!
I used to work at Starbucks. I became employed there after 17+ years at AT&T came to an end and I was transitioning myself to a new calling in education. I thought I was working there to get health insurance for my family since COBRA costs were so exorbitant, but it turns out I was there for them, but more for me. These employees that are “of the world” are the world because of this type of all or nothing thinking. I remind myself often that Jesus did not spend much time visiting the official church of His day, and when He did the message conveyed was one of disgust. The church leaders burned with anger and plotted to kill him just after His first visit.
I still have many ties to my local Starbucks because the workers did not know what to think of me. They couldn’t fit me in their view of Christians because I loved and served them while I was among them, and they did the same in return. I cannot even count the number of times these young people came to me for advice, a listening ear, or a shoulder to cry on. Yes, Starbucks is of the world, a hurting world that needs justice, love, and the peace that passes all understanding.
Starbucks is not the problem. Billy Graham says “the leading cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who honor Jesus with their lips but go out the door and do not honor him with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable”.
Jesus hung out with the sinners no one else would touch or speak too. And he would call us to hide out in the cathedral behind a locked door, sipping Folgers or Maxwell House (who both support and employ homosexuals)?
Is it wrong to serve Walmart Great Value coffee also, or just bad taste
“Friend of the world” – is that anything like being called “a friend of sinners”? I know a guy they said that about…
I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler-not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? (1 Corinthians 5:9-12 NASB)
Great article to highlight the confusion, division and double mindedness currently present in the church.
Initially I was in support of this article, and posted it on my facebook, however, I have just removed it as I can see an argument both ways.
We shouldn’t be supporting organizations that are opposed to God’s ways, that is clear. But where do you draw the line? The church is so full of hypocrisy, (including myself) But we also need to make sure we don’t condemn homosexuals in the process.
So I guess now that Starbucks have made such an anti God move, their shops will be filled with homosexuals and christians.
Steve Andrew should have chosen his words much better, perhaps he would have got a more understanding response…
When Christians are operating with power instead of words, I doubt such debates will happen!
Shoot. I didn’t know that I just paid $3 for a ticket to hell when I went through the drive thru.
Todd, I am thankful for your site, and enjoy how you bring awareness to various topics and create a platform where others can express themselves. I know I am going to go a bit against the grain so bear with me.
Is this guy a Christian? Even though the issue is about the starbucks/homosexual thing, ithere is another issue, the way we have respnded as Christians. Mainly, the way we have summed up who this guy is and judged him as a fool for his belief. Did you try and contact him to see if you could better understand his reasoning and what he is trying to accomplish before posting this article?
My wife loves coffee and we plan to visit the first ever Starbucks later this spring…cant wait! Just frustrated I guess for how easy your site has made to speak about a brother in Christ like we have. Or, are we assuming he’s not a Christian because his conviction is radically different than 90% of Christians in America?