What did Andy Stanley say? Unconditional Conference controversy explained 

North Point Ministries founder Andy Stanley has come under fire following his two-day Unconditional Conference. Several critics, including prominent religious leaders, expressed concern over Stanley’s beliefs.

Andy Stanley hosted the Unconditional Conference last week in Alpharetta, Georgia. The author spoke candidly about various topics, including supporting LGBTQ children who are part of churches. The pastor boldly criticized “biblical Christianity” and the Old Testament, which distressed certain people. One of the many supposedly controversial statements Stanley made included:

“A gay person who still wants to attend church after the way the church has treated the gay community, I’m telling you, they have more faith than I do. They have a lot faith than all of you. A gay person who knows- “you know what, I might not be accepted here but I’m going to try it anyway.” Have you ever done that as a straight person?”

“A gay man or woman who want to worship their heavenly father who did not answer the cry of their heart when they were 12, 13 and 14 and 15, God said- “no,” and they still love God… we have some things to learn,” he added.

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Andy Stanley’s Unconditional Conference sermon goes viral

X (formerly Twitter) user @TerriGreenUSA garnered immense traction online after sharing a clip of Stanley’s sermon. She amassed over 25K views on the platform for the same. In the clip, Stanley also said:

“We do what Jesus did. Jesus never started with theology he just started with the people in front of him and he went from there. If your theology gets in the way of ministry, if there is somebody that you cannot minister to because of your theology, you have the wrong theology.”

The 65-year-old reiterated that the religious faith of those who are gay “thwarts” his.

The pastor also spoke about the experience of a queer Christian student. He claimed those attracted to the same s*x do not “embrace the same” but “resist it.” Stanley also spoke about how homosexuality was an immutable characteristic.

“They pray, they beg God to take it away. They are literally afraid they are going to Hell, not because of anything they’ve done, but because of who they are,” he added.

Stanley also invited Justin Lee and Brian Nietzel onto the stage to speak about their gay relationship and marriage.

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Religious leaders criticize Andy Stanley’s beliefs

Denny Burk, the president of The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood and the professor of biblical studies at the Boyce College and Southern Seminary, called Stanley’s sermon “anti-Christian.” He claimed that Stanley’s beliefs allow “sinners” to not “repent of their sin in order to be a Christian.”

Burke went on to call Stanley a “false teacher” and claimed that his teachings have “disqualified him from being a pastor.”

The president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Al Mohler, also opined that the speaker’s sermon was a “departure from historic, normative, biblical Christianity.”

Speaking about Andy Stanley’s beliefs, Atlanta-based pastor Michael Youssef said:

“Get ‘unhitched’ from the Old Testament? This would be like saying, “I love this big, beautiful, tall building, but the foundation is not really necessary. Just let’s get rid of it.” You get rid of the foundation, the building will not stand for very long.”

Andy Stanley addressed the criticism during a recent sermon. He stood by his beliefs and said he never believed in Mohler’s “biblical Christianity” principles.