“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.” (Ephesians 5:11)

“Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18)

“Scoffers set a city aflame, But wise men turn away wrath.” (Proverbs 29:8)

SAVE THE DATE: June 17, 2023 – Outreach in Lititz, 10am-6pm

Pride festivals invite the judgment of God on our county.

Yes, we are all sinners. But the Bible makes a clear distinction between repentant sinners and unrepentant sinners. The former mourn their sin and seek to live according to God’s law. The latter mock God and raise their fists to heaven in defiance. God is not mocked and the consequences of public wickedness affect all of us – indeed, the scoffers set a city, or a county, ablaze in immorality and divine judgment.

Our desire is that all would repent of their sin (homosexual or otherwise) and come to faith in Christ Jesus. The love of Christ compels us to implore our neighbors to be reconciled to God through the gospel of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20).

We have no especial interest in drawing attention to the sin of sodomy that is being publicly celebrated in our county. However, faithfulness to Christ requires us to not only “take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness” but also to “expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).

We reject the use of physical violence to achieve our ends, but soberly affirm the need to publicly expose the unfruitful works of darkness being openly flaunted in Lancaster County. Obedience to Christ and duty to future generations requires we take action.

Previous outreaches to pride festivals have revealed a spiritual darkness evident among many of the youth in Lancaster County and their eagerness to hear the truth of God’s Word. In many ways, the field is white for the harvest.

There are two main reasons to conduct outreaches at pride festivals in Lancaster County.

First, a Christian witness at these events provides attendees – many of them teenagers – with a rare opportunity to hear the message of hope and forgiveness in Christ. We desire the salvation of those trapped in sin.

Second, for the sake of future generations we ought to stand opposed to the destruction-inviting celebration of sin being carried out in our county. The first chapter of Romans clearly teaches that there are consequences for pride and idolatry – namely a divine “giving over” of people to their debased lusts (Romans 1:21-28). The consequence for such judgment will affect our children and grandchildren. We owe it to them to seek to stand in the gap and avert the wrath.

If you are committed to the lordship of Christ, we invite you to join us this June in providing a Christian witness against the public celebration of sin in Lancaster County.

Do’s and Do Not’s

• DO pray for the attendees of these pride fests – but for the grace of God, there go each one of us.
• DO remain calm and self-controlled during any interactions.
• DO be thoughtful in the signs you will use. The acceptable “offensive” signs should be ones which simply quote the Bible, such as “Pride goeth before destruction, And an haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16:18) or “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination” (Lev. 18:22).
• DO sign up for e-mail updates so we can coordinate training and outreach details.

• DO NOT get into a shouting match or try to simply yell things at people. There is a place for raising your voice and sharing a thoughtful message of the need to turn from sin and trust in Christ for salvation but yelling over each other results in people unable to understand anyone. As the Apostle Paul said, all things should be done decently and in order.
• DO NOT return evil for evil. If someone insults you, overlook the offense and continue to testify to the truth. Be prepared to turn the other cheek.
• DO NOT use unbiblical verbiage on signs. Just stick to the Bible verses. 

Last year, LNP | LancasterOnline printed a story with false accusations regarding signage held at our outreach. It is not above pro-homosexual activists to pose as protestors or spread false rumors. Be wary.

A Brief History

In June 2022, Independence Reformed Bible Church conducted outreaches at two pride festivals in Lancaster County (one at Lititz Springs Park and one at Clipper Magazine Stadium). The local media (LNP) misrepresented our outreach in Lititz, claiming that we had a sign that said “Burn Gays.” We carried no such sign. You can read the story here.

At those outreaches, we witnessed public blasphemy and celebration of sin. High school age attendees flaunted their sin, while adults in attendance encouraged it, meanwhile mocking the Christian message. We had numerous conversations with people, including one man who said he would kill himself if his “sex change” operation did not bring him happiness. Many of us were able to share the good news of forgiveness with numerous people.

Early this year, the Lititz Moravian Congregation Board of Trustees rejected the homosexual activism group Lititz Chooses Love from using Lititz Springs Park again in June 2023. The board cited our outreach as one of the reasons for their decision. For more on the Lititz Moravian church board’s decision to nix the pride event at Lititz Springs Park, click here. However, the park board defied that decision and granted Lititz Chooses Love the park for another pride fest. Shortly thereafter, the Lititz Moravian Congregation Board recanted their rejection and openly aligned themselves with the pride festival.

Just as the true church of Jesus Christ will not stop proclaiming the gospel and calling sinners to repentance until the knowledge of the glory of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea, we will not stop exposing the works of darkness in our county for us long as the Lord gives us breath.

Training

Independence Reformed Bible Church hosted a training seminar on June 10 to prepare for the outreach. The videos are posted below.