For as long as I have been a pastor (almost 20 years), I have heard my evangelical brothers and sisters use as a paradigm for dealing with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) the parable of the frog in water brought to a gradual boil.
Instead of jumping out, the frog adjusts to each small increase in temperature, until it is boiled to death. The lesson has always been that leaving the denomination is the only safe course, and that wise frogs leap out, they don’t stay in. For as long as I have been a pastor, I believe this is why at every new presbytery in which I have been examined, the statement has been made, either publicly or privately, that I would lead the congregation out of the denomination. The assumption has been made, not without evidence, that those who easily use the name of Jesus in the second person familiar are not in the denomination for the long haul. It seems that too many of us are proving this assumption yet again in withdrawing further from participating in the part of the Body where Christ placed us. This sense of a need to escape — wise frogs leap — needs to be questioned. I was present, front and center, at the 218th General Assembly; I think I know just how hot the water is that we find ourselves in. But what I know tells me that escape is wrong. I know that I have not broken my vows; I know that I knew who I was joining 20 years ago (one of the benefits to this slow-motion conflict). I will not break my vows. That is not a judgment on anyone else’s actions — it is simply a statement of the fact of my conviction. I know that I will not agree, no matter what the polls say or what governments do, that ordination without heed to the individual’s practice of what the Bible calls sin is a good idea. I know this because I have experienced it first-hand, not because I fear homosexual people, or don’t know any, or don’t believe that God calls. The practice of calling sin virtue not only undermines the life of the leader proclaiming it, it also poisons the souls who follow who know the difference between sin and virtue, and leads them away not just from the leader or the congregation, but from the Lord. I cannot agree to do that again. So, I sit in the boiling water, and think of three models: Shadrak, Meshak, and Abednego. In the midst of blazing fire that would reduce them to dust, they praised and sang — and emerged alive and well. Perhaps frogs wise in the ways of Jehovah do not leap. They sing Jehovah’s praises in the midst of the death-dealing situation, heedless of the temperature. There is too much I must break to leap — I cannot. I will not. If the boiling water kills me, let Jesus get the glory that my last words are words of praise and witness. If I emerge alive, it will only be because of Christ’s protection. Stay. Get involved. Embrace your inner frog, and sing God’s praises for all you’re worth. Clay Allard is pastor of Oak Cliff Church, Dallas, Texas.
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