This article will publish the transcript of what Brian Houston said at the press meeting and will also publish his statement on his church website.
Brian Houston has recently published a statement on his church website with this good advice:
“I encourage people not to assume a media headline accurately represents what I said at a recent press conference.”
Visit the below link to hear the audio of Brian Houston yourself.
Here is the transcript. (Notice how they don’t use the bible in their conversation.)
Brian Houston: The message is sacred but the methods have to change uh- for the church to stay relevant. And uh it’s challenging! It’s challenging to stay relevant. I mean we go to you – you know – the one big hot topic maybe for churches is now with homosexual marriage uh legalised and uh – you know – and churches for generations, they- they hold a set of beliefs around what they believe the Word of God- the bible says. And all of a sudden in many circles the church can look like a pariah because- to many people it’s so irrelevant now on that subject. So staying relevant, it’s actually a big challenge. Uh- I think it’s more than just – you know – singing more contemporary songs and- and uh – and – you know, the c-c-colours you paint your walls or whatever.
It’s- it can be challenging for churches to stay relevant because many mainstream churches – uh – you know – in how in what- would they would believe is a long established view in what the bible says on the subject of homosexuality. But the world’s changed around and about them.
On the subject I always feel like there’s three things: there’s the world we live in, there’s the weight we live with and there’s the word we live by. The world, the weight, the word. And to me, the world we live in, whether we like it or not, is changing around and about us. Um- homosexual marriages legal in your city and uh- and will be in probably in most Western world countries within a short time. So the world’s changing and we want to stay relevant as a church. So it- that’s a mixing thing. You think, “How can we stay- ho-how can we not become a pariah”.
So that’s the world we live in. In the weight we live with is the reality that in churches like ours and virtually in any other church, there are young people who have serious questions about their sexuality. And uh- who maybe spea- you know – hypothetically – speak to a youth leader. A youth pastor. And says -uh, “I think – you know- I’m gay”.
And maybe they feel a sense of rejection there. Or maybe even their own Christian parents can’t handle it and uh- exclude them at the time when they are the most vulnerable in their life. So you can have in churches not- not just our church – churches, young people who are literally uh depressed. Maybe even suicidal. And sadly often times grow up to hate the church because they feel like the church rejected them.
So there’s the world we live in, the weight we live with and the word we live by. And the word we live by is what the bible says. And uh- it would be much easier if- if- if- if you could feel like all of those three could easily- easily wind up. But they don’t necessarily. And that’s why Carl always says, “For us it’s a conversation”.
You know to us, I think it’s very easy to reduce, “What do you think of homosexuality” to just a public statement. And that would keep a lot of people happy. But we feel at this point that it is an ongoing conversation. That the real issues in people’s lives are too important for us to reduce it down to a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer in a media outlet. So we- we’re on the journey with it aren’t we?
Carl Lentz: Yeah I think. So what- what you asked initially, what do – what do you meant by relevance, was that there was an age perhaps where I didn’t have to have a – you know – a consuming interest in how to make the, “How does this matter”. If you’re in an areas where this is not relevant, you know a pastor don’t have to worry about this at all.
But when you live in New York city, you better figure out a way quickly to say, “This is what our bible says. This is what we believe and here’s how it applies to your life”. So that’s what he meant by “It’s a challenge to stay relevant”. A lot of churches refuse to be relevant and just say, “This is that”. And will refuse to even look at your situation. Even try to explain this or make some sort of a bridge. So that’s… I think was the… You know…
Source: Hillsong Church pastors Brian Houston and Carl Lentz comment on homosexuality and cultural relevancy during a press conference on Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014, in New York City; By Nicole A. Menzie, Hillsong Press Conference Homosexuality, Soundcloud, https://soundcloud.com/nicola-menzie/hillsong-press-conference-homosexuality, Published 18/10/2014. (Accessed 20/10/2014.)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 1)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 2)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 3)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 4)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 5)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 6)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 7)
Hillsong grooming members to embrace Queerstianity? (Part 8)
Hillsong Church Watch 
Again Brian has got a foot on each side of ” the barbed wire fence ” and is uncomfortable as he sidesteps, ducks and evades the issue of a making clear unambiguous position.
A double minded man is unstable in all his ways, tossed to and fro like a ship upon the ocean.
The true church has always welcomed sinners by the grace of God and may that continue, but that grace is given in the hope that we become more Christ like .
Jesus said , ” My Kingdom is not of this world . ”
School teachers who are Christian and God fearing will soon be without jobs if they refuse to read books to students that promote the same sex lifestyle.
The same sex lobby is aggressive and demanding and will not go away.
Is that what you want Brian, will you support the Christian teachers in schools ?
Dr. James White from Alpha & Omega Ministries (http://www.aomin.org/) covers it pretty succinctly here:
“Brian Houston says, “He notes that the Western world is shifting its thinking on this issue, and churches are struggling to stay relevant.” Relevant to whom? The Church has an audience of One before whom “relevance” is to be judged. Our aim is to be pleasing to Him (2 Cor. 5:9), not to the “Western world.” In fact, a biblical worldview would lead brother Houston to recognize that the more pleasing we are to Christ, the more of a stench of death we will be in the nostrils of those who have been given over in judgment to their own lusts and rebellion. Relevant? Was Elijah relevant during the judgment of drought and famine? Was Jeremiah relevant as the armies of Nebuchadnezzar marched on Jerusalem? I guess it all depends on one’s perspective as to what “relevance” is all about.”
Houston spin on being in the world but not of it……………..just say’n
All that waffle should bring on Déjà vu for those apologists who covered the Emergent/Emerging Church movement.
e.g. “Let’s have a conversation…” http://carm.org/emerging-church-terminology
And for a more humorous approach, a picture is worth a thousand words. Enjoy! A picture is worth a thousand words so enjoy! http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/posters.htm
This is just so heartbreaking to see these Pastors cowarding out and bending the word of God to stay relevant to the World which is run by Satan! Did the Christians in Rome back down and try to relate and stay relevant to their current city? No they died and got fed to the lions, burnt alive as torches throughout Rome for not bowing down to the world system then!!!
Brian knows that the governments are going to force churches to accept this issue and they will be persecuted if they don’t accept Satans filth. Does Brian have the faith and the GUTS to push forward Gods standards and risk the church closing? But still trusting God to carry the church forward not him? Or does he want to slime along with the worlds standards just to keep Hillsong going even if it doesn’t even end up a church at all. eg not preaching on sin cause it isn’t relevant to the world, the cross offends the world so will they take that down too?
I feel like crying because I’m a single Christian woman who doesn’t believe in sleezebagging around before marriage and the abuse and horrible snide comments I’ve had to take for years from others at work can be heartbreaking but Brian is more worried about offending the gay people! I’ve had nights crying alone because I’ve followed Gods standards (but I will still follow the Lord gladly). I know a Baptist woman and her husband gets constant verbal abuse from people at his work because he follows Gods standards.
When will the church stand up and encourage and support the people who don’t believe in the worlds systems of fornication, adultery and sodomy but take CONSTANT persecution for not being a troll like the world.???? I’ve NEVER HEARD a sermon for those people. Who will support us? I can’t get ANY support from Hillsong because Brian says that we’re evil if we think its wrong, where not to judge and not to .. and I quote from one of his sermons ‘Don’t cast an evil eye’. So am I wrong to believe in virginity before marriage or should I just trollup around according to Hillsongs standards and jump up and down to the music wearing revealing clothing and say “I can be a whore to the world and Grace will cover it, Yay!” Lets all sleazebag together and praise God for it, love , love, love! Uggghhh!!!!
Thanks Brian Houston, you’ve broken my heart, and I’m now going to go and cry because you offer the single virgins NO support and you pat the world on the back for its filth and Satanic rot. We need encouragement too you know!
Spot on dear !
Brian wrote a book called ” You need more money ” , and Bobbie will probably think about a new book called ,,” You need more sex ! ”
I think the time has come for me to hand Hill$ong over to Satan because they are not listening to God.
Brian was on TV last week with Karl Standanovic the compare of The Today show.
I could not tell the difference between the two guys.
Both came across wordly, relevant , loving and ………..LOOOOSSSSSTTT !!!!!!!
Lost …I doubt Brian was ever found. Sad to say, but how could Brian even have a dilemma with Scripture. He seems to have more a dilemma at offending the world then offending God.
We are an offence to the world even nominal Christians are discovering this. How far will BH have to go to keep peace with the world????? He will need to answer that and answer (IF BH wakes up) how he will fix the damage caused by encouraging and facilitating the implementation of Hillsong cloned type of worship in nearly every denomination. SCARY place to be Brian. I pray for you and pray you wake soon.
Linton
A clarification by bhouston..i’m not even sure he believes what he is saying.
BH:”That the real issues in people’s lives are too important for us to reduce it down to a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer in a media outlet.”
What if i asked Brian, should i become a murderer? The Bible is clear on the matter but brian seems unable to process a ‘ yes ‘ or ‘no’ answer to Biblically proven doctrine. Absurd.
I have noticed houston increasingly uses the “Jesus came to save and not to condemn” scripture to downplay any punishment for sin. May i suggest he also use Matt:10:34 and the very Words of Jesus Christ: ‘Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.’ A sword for false teachers, false apostles and false Christianity.
The above transcripts [ and the Royal Commission transcripts] really prove how inept houston is as a communicator without a rehearsed, ‘safe and controlled’ environment such as hillsong.