Written by H.B. Charles Jr. |
Monday, December 11, 2023
Some celebrated preachers dare to say that Jesus was wrong when he declared, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). You don’t have to believe this divine claim. However, you cannot claim to follow Jesus and call him a liar. It is one thing to neglect the Great Commission. It is another thing to cancel it by deeming it unnecessary. What will your legacy be? That question has nothing to do with size, numbers, or prominence. It has everything to do with your fidelity to biblical authority, sound doctrine, and gospel truth.

Waking up after a long Sunday nap, I surfed channels and landed on Carlton Pearson’s broadcast. He was a younger preacher than many on TV. His church was jampacked, mega-sized, and racially diverse. A traditional black preacher, Pearson even “whooped” – backed by a Hammond organ. This set of ministry dynamics is rare now. Imagine how alien it was thirty years ago. 
I was encouraged by the message I heard that night. Pearson was articulate, joyful, and – from what I could tell – sound. None of the subsequent messages I heard raised any red flags. For the record, I was (am) a non-Charismatic Baptist preacher. Pearson was Pentecostal (At this point, I did not know about his connection to Oral Roberts and “Prosperity Theology”). However, Pearson did not preach in a way that would turn off a non-Pentecostal. 
It was not long between hearing Carlton Pearson’s name for the first time and hearing it everywhere. His national TV broadcast grew in popularity. He was consecrated a “bishop.” His Azusa Conference drew tens of thousands – bringing together different ethnicities, denominations, and traditions. His speaker line-up may have been unknown when they stood up, but they were household names soon after they sat down. Pearson’s singing was as good as his preaching, maybe better. His music recordings gave a new generation a love for the old songs of the church, all while giving contemporary Gospel artists a national platform. 
Then, out of nowhere, it all came crashing down. 
After watching a documentary, Pearson’s theological positions radically shifted. He began to preach what he called “The Gospel of Inclusion.” Discerning Christians recognized his doctrinal shift as the old heresy of Universalism wearing makeup and a new dress. A “college of bishops” charged him with heresy. After allowing Pearson to defend himself, the group concluded that he was preaching “another gospel” (Galatians 1:6-10).
Bishop Pearson would soon lose everything he built – his home, church, conference, platform, and associations. 
Unfortunately, we regularly hear about the downfall of high-profile religious personalities. Most of the time, ministers are disqualified for moral failures or financial improprieties. Sometimes, the preacher is ousted after being on the losing end of a church fight. 
Carlton Pearson’s downfall was unique. He was not brought down by money, sex, or power. Members fled his church for doctrinal reasons. Admirers lost respect for him because of his position on eternal punishment. Friends shunned him because he denied the existence of hell.
Hell is the most unpopular subject in the Bible. You would think people would be glad to hear the finished work of Christ meant everyone goes to heaven. But for Pearson to be right would mean the Bible is wrong. That Jesus himself was wrong. It was a bridge too far for even Pearson’s most fervent allies. When men who deny the Trinity, make false prophecies, and teach Word of Faith theology call you a heretic, you’re a heretic!  
Carlton Pearson was given many opportunities to teach and defend his Gospel of Inclusion. During these occasions, he stated his convictions clearly, articulately, and graciously – though not convincingly. Yet those who debated him were often unable to pin him down. He sincerely explained his error better than his detractors explained the truth. 
Over the years, Pearson remained on the outskirts of church life. He was not embraced in orthodox circles. Yet he was not wholly shunned. He was generally received warmly when he popped up, as many Christians remembered what he once meant to them.
Meanwhile, Pearson roamed further away from the biblical and historic Christian faith. He flatly rejected the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. He led a Unitarian Church and a New Thought congregation. And he affirmed homosexuality and gay marriage as legitimate Christian lifestyles. 
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Paul’s books were his companions in the closing stages of his earthly pilgrimage. They had been his best friends in his life and ministry along the way and he knew they would not fail him at the end. For those who struggle to understand why books matter to pastors (and why it is so important to have Christian publishing companies that are faithful to Scripture), think again about the priority Paul gives to his books even as he prepares for heaven.

It is often the case that a minister only begins to really appreciate the value of his books when the time comes for him to part with them. Sometimes it happens when he runs out of space on his shelves and he is forced to thin them out. Or it may be when it comes to his retirement and he is downsizing his house and there simply isn’t the same amount of space in his new accommodation. Either way, he finds himself struggling to decide which ones to keep and which to let go. It begins to dawn on him that these volumes mean more to him than he may have previously realised.
I well remember an occasion when the value of Christian books came home to me in a way I had never experienced before. It was in relation to a Bible College in South Africa that our church had been able to help. I had met its founder and Principal on a visit to the country a year previously and he had spoken of his desire to build up a decent theological library for the college, but in the same breath said they lacked the finance to do so. It so happened that my church in London at that time was quite close to a Christian charity that specialised in good Christian books and they had a section in their warehouse that was dedicated to theological works. So, I told my friend that the next time he was in London he could come and choose a thousand volumes and our deacons would arrange to have them shipped out.
About a year later I was back in South Africa and the Principal asked if I would come and deliver a guest lecture at his little institution. When I arrived at the college, I was immediately struck by the extreme poverty that surrounded it and just how primitive its facilities were. But the students were overflowing with warmth in the welcome they gave me. It was clear that there was one room they wanted to show me and it was their library. When I saw what these books meant to them, it dawned on me as never before just how valuable such books really are.
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COVID-19 shouldn’t make us forget what this nation is supposed to stand for. COVID-19 shouldn’t make us forget our history. COVID shouldn’t make us forget our fundamental freedoms. If our freedoms aren’t fundamental in difficult times, then they aren’t fundamental at all.

One of my friends sent me a text earlier this week saying:
It’s interesting: in all my 29 years of living in this country, I’ve never once felt that I was a minority—until now.
I feel the same way.
My friend and I are what the Canadian government officially labels as “visible minorities”. But we’ve never accepted that term. We are not minorities. We’ve never felt outnumbered in this country. We’ve never felt like outsiders in our home.
Until now.
We’ve never felt like minorities—until now. We had the same rights as everybody else—until now. We’ve never felt like minorities in a two-tier system—until now. We’ve never felt like second-class citizens—until now. We were not marginalized or segregated—until now.
I wasn’t a minority—until today.
Yesterday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced that vaccine passports will be enforced in our province starting September 22nd.
Because of Doug Ford’s provincial vaccine passport and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s federal vaccine mandate, I will no longer be allowed in restaurants, movie theatres, concerts, gyms, some trains, and planes.
Justin Trudeau recently said:
[unvaccinated people] are putting at risk their own kids, and they’re putting at risk our kids as well. That’s why we’ve been unequivocal: if you want to get on a train or a plane in the coming months, you’re going to have to be fully vaccinated so families with their kids don’t have to worry that someone is going to put them in danger in the seat next to them or across the aisle…those people are putting us all at risk.
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