I was preaching somewhere in a town of 5,000 people and this guy [who was a street preacher] . . . had earrings and everything and hair all moussed and all this stuff because man, he was working the street. . . . He’s the dude, he’s the man you know, Serpico for Jesus type thing . . . and he’s like you don’t understand, you’re in context, you know, you’re preaching . . . [And I said] look, I worked inner city Dallas, I lived with male prostitutes, alright? And I’ll tell you how I dressed: I wore a pair of blue jeans, tennis shoes, a shirt, and my hair was combed. ‘Cause I want to be honest with you, those guys down there selling their bodies and the other guy’s selling drugs, and the girls dying of AIDS, they could care less whether I looked like them or not. What they wanted was someone who loved them. So that whole idea of you gotta look like them to relevant–no, you gotta love them to be relevant.
– Paul Washer
Christ Alone Wyoming 
I don’t remember this one. Which sermon/message is it from?
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I heard him say this at the Reality Check Conference in December, if that helps.
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You can actually listen to the message here.
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Wow! Another thing about ‘not looking like’ the target audience is giving people hope that they ARE accepted by others that look different. So many kids who go goth feel alienated by others. Their goth look is rebellious and in your face saying “I don’t care what you think of me”, even though they do care. Once Jesus touches their heart then now they have someone that they can turn to to leave that Goth look behind. Someone to help them change on the outside because now Jesus has changed their inside!!
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But there are some who will say that you are very judgmental for saying that. Who are you to say that they can’t be Gothic and a Christian at the same time? They will say you can have an encounter / experience with the living God and remain the same.
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I hope you are just trying to ‘set me up’….because, there is no way you can have a true experience with the living God and remain the same.
And…as far as judging or being judgemental. Here is what I told my son who began ‘loosing’ his belt after he left the house and looking like a little gangster…”Don’t come crying to me about how unfair it is that people follow you around in their store because they think you might steal from them.” When you look like a thug, you are treated like a thug, whether people are nervous around you or flat out don’t trust you.
People aren’t born ‘gothic’ and they aren’t born liking their pants around their booty. (Look at most little boys and they will have their pants up past their belly buttons when left to themselves.) Kids/people learn these styles by associating with others of that style or by wanting to be like those people. Those ‘christian’ goths today did not start this trend. Goth trends were started by those who rebelled against God and societal norms. Those ‘goth’ kids who got save and remained ‘goth’ did so because they chose to hold onto some of the world.
We all do that. Struggle with our flesh. It is nice that men like Paul Washer stand firm in saying we need to strive to be more like Christ and not like the world….what ever part of the world it was He saved you from.
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“I hope you are just trying to ’set me up’….because, there is no way you can have a true experience with the living God and remain the same.”
I was just playing the Devil’s advocate. I actually agree with you.
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Colleen,
If you are the same Colleen that has been replying to “Holycow” then I welcome your insightful comments 🙂
You are right. There is NO WAY you can be radically changed from the inside out and remain the same…
Not if the change is from God.
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I am the same Colleen. 🙂
I think what bothers me the most about the posters on Holycow….is that they seem pretty intelligent, yet they just don’t see what it is we are saying. We say one thing, yet they hear something so different! They are blinded..or deafed. 😉
Every now and then I have to do a reality check to see if it is me that is deceived or them. I have to check and see if they ever say, “you are not answering my point”…or….”that is not what I said.” But, they never do that. They read our comments and respond to some inner voice in their head or something with a reply that doesn’t match the conversation. Very scary.
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Hi!
here Paul Washer’s video.
http://lumbrera.wordpress.com/2007/11/09/predica-por-la-cual-paul-washer-fue-censurado-ver-video/
God bless you!
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But aren’t you saying that I have to look like you to be a Christ-like? I’m not a fan of suits, ties and the whole “look”…not because I don’t love Jesus but because I don’t like to dress like that, I personally don’t like the look.
You are assuming that someone has an earing for any other reason then because they like the look do you say the same for a lady?
We are SO quick to judge the external. I think we should go to the word and remember we should not be the one’s making the judgement, it’s not our right to make.
There should be a difference between us and the world, no doubt about it. I think that difference should be much more of a heart issue than a wardrobe issue (though certainly those that need to change what they are wear, ie. short short skirts, etc).
Robert and Colleen…I heard your argument I simply don’t agree with it. You try and twist things around to meet your definitions and I don’t agree. I absolutely know what you are saying, but I simply think you are wrong. That’s my opinion, and I understand you disagree and that’s okay because as a brother and sister in Christ I love you both.
Have a great service tomorrow, may God be exalted and may we focus on Him and not on what people are wearing.
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