Dominic Steele on Sam Allberry 'There are no rocks being thrown from this corner.'

Dominic Steele says 'There are no rocks being thrown from this corner.' 

Dominic Steele's Pastor's Heart for Sam Allberry.

I, like many Pastor’s Heart viewers, read online in the middle of the day on Monday that Sam Allberry had engaged in inappropriate relationship with a man in 2022 and that, as the statement said, while the relationship did not go as far as it could have, it was a serious breach of trust, and that Sam is currently disqualified from gospel ministry.

I immediately stopped and prayed for Sam and then wrote to him to say that I care for him, love him, have stopped to pray for him and that there are no rocks being thrown from this corner. 

Full Statement from Immanuel Church Nashville 

#thepastorsheart #samallberry

Anglican Aid
To find out more about supporting Anglican Aid.

Reach Australia 

For more on the Reach Australian National Conference 18-21 May go here

Advertise on The Pastor's Heart
To advertise on The Pastor's Heart go to thepastorsheart.net/sponsor

Transcript

A Friend’s Fall Breaks The News

SPEAKER_00 1:14

There are no rocks being thrown from this corner. It's Dominic Steele on Sam Albury. I, like many Pastorsheart viewers, read online in the middle of the day on Monday that Sam Albury had engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a man in 2022, and that as the statement said, while the relationship did not go as far as it could have, it was a serious breach of trust, and that Sam is currently disqualified from gospel ministry. I immediately stopped and prayed for Sam and then wrote to him to tell him that I care for him, love him, and have paused to pray for him, and that there are no rocks being thrown from this corner. I've been deeply involved in caring for and loving and supporting Christians with same-sex attraction for a long time. Although I'm no longer in the role, I was the founding chair of the Sydney Anglican Ministry Living Faith, which seeks to support Christians navigating same-sex attraction and gender incongruence. And Sam has long been one of my partners in the ministry as he's led by example, being a biblically faithful Christian in this space. Sam has spoken a number of times at our church at conferences that I've been involved in organizing, and he's been a guest on the Pastor's Heart. I love him. And at times over the years, I've sought his advice on how best to care for others who are struggling with temptation or have fallen into sin. And Sam has been super helpful in advising me on how best to care for them. Plus, he's been a long-term friend and we've enjoyed hosting him in our home. First, I wrote to Sam to say there are no rocks being thrown from this corner, that I'm a fellow sinner, and that I'm not casting any stones at you. I just want to sit and pray with you. I think there's a temptation when something bad happens to say nothing because we're not sure what to say. And so rather than get it wrong, we withdraw. To counter this, I've tried to be someone who said to people, I don't know how to handle this, but I wanted to run towards you and tell you that I care, that I love you, and that I'm for you. I want to be someone who runs towards a person in pain rather than runs away from them. I think then we want to be Galatians 6 people. We want to listen to Paul who says, Brothers, if anyone is caught in a transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. That's my first step. I want to stand with a friend and seek to remind them of God's grace and to reassure them of God's forgiveness in Jesus. And of course, that's my heart for my friend Sam. But then the next line is from Paul, keep watch on yourself lest you be tempted. And this is what I really want to speak to for a moment. Sam's failure, the word the elders used to describe it, has hit me hard, and I suspect it's hit others hard too. I'm not saying this is rational on my part, but I so admired him for his clarity and his faithfulness that I kind of thought he was almost immune from giving way to temptation in this area. So for me, I'm not looking down my nose in judgment at him. Rather I'm tempted to be discouraged, to be shaken, even to think, well, what hope is there for any of us not to fall? And that might be you. You might be thinking, well, if he can't resist temptation, how can I expect to? And if he can fall, well I can fall too. And that's right, we can all fall. None of us is immune from danger, and the more we think we are, the more we're setting ourselves up for failure, as Paul says in one Corinthians tense twelve, therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. We might fall, but we don't have to fall. By the grace of God, the work of the Spirit, the warnings of Scriptures, and the prayers and encouragement of Christian brothers and sisters, we don't have to fall. So we must not be complacent about the danger that we face. And we, I, should take this as a sobering wake up moment, especially if we're in Christian leadership. For when a Christian leader sins, as well as there being personal consequences, there are additional communal consequences. The faith of believers is shaken, the church is wounded, Christ is publicly dishonored, and unbelievers are given an opportunity to mock. The restoration that Paul speaks of in Galatians is a restoration of gospel forgiveness, and it's available not only to members of the church, but to leaders also. However, when a leader has damaged trust, it is a much more complex journey to win that back. Yes, we're encouraged to forgive and to love and we must, but trust is something that needs to be won, and that's not only hard, but takes time. The reaction that Paul is looking for in the next verse from us is to bear one another's burdens, and to so fulfil the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he's something when he's nothing, he deceives himself. So we need to help each other. None of us can fight this fight alone, and we must not think we have it all together. Rather we must think it is only by the grace of God, the work of the Spirit, and the encouragement of Christ's people that I'm not constantly falling into sin. And so to my many Christian, same sex attracted friends, who've looked to Sam as a role model, my heart aches for you especially. This is a hard time. I've rung and messaged several Christian friends just to let them know that I love them and that I'm sharing their pain today. You might want to do that too. Last Sunday, I preached on Luke seven, thirty six to fifty, where Jesus goes to the meal of Simon the Pharisee's home, and a sinful woman comes in. She is full of adoration, thankfulness, and worship as she kisses Jesus' feet and washes them with her tears. And Jesus gives us in that passage a powerful, deep, rich message of forgiveness. And there's a clear rebuke of the self righteous Pharisee. I have been disappointed at the almost gloating things that have been said about Sam by some Christians online this week. There may be serious conversations to have about theology, pastoral care, temptation, friendship, and accountability, but those conversations must be truthful. I'm disappointed at the misrepresentations of Sam's teaching, where he has been so careful and so precise over a long period of time. A brother's failure does not give permission to misrepresent his teaching or to slander him, and I plead with you not to walk in that ugly form of hypocrisy. And lastly, I just want to pray for Emmanuel Nashville and the elders there. I don't know them, but this won't be easy for them. I want to trust their judgment and to pray for them and to pray for Sam as they move forward. Would you pray with me? Heavenly Father, we pray for Sam Albury. We thank you that as this failure to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel has been addressed with Sam, that he has been repentant and humble and cooperative with the Emmanuel Nashville elders. We pray that Sam might know the deep sense of gospel forgiveness, and that God's people at Emmanuel would love him and care for him there. We pray for the other person involved too, we don't know his story, but we pray for the Spirit to be working in his life to draw him closer to Jesus. We pray for that local church and the leadership that you might strengthen them. For our brothers and sisters in Christ who are experiencing same-sex attraction, who've been buffeted at this time. We ask that you might strengthen them more deeply in their love of the Lord Jesus, as they and all of us strive together to walk, trusting and obeying Jesus Christ. We ask for the leadership of Nashville as they pastor Sam and strive, insofar as they're able, to restore in a spirit of gentleness to full fellowship in the Nashville Church. We pray this in the name of Christ. Amen.