“Serve God!! You’ve got to serve God—no matter what! Make up in your minds that you’re going to serve God!”
I was recently listening to a hyper-fundamentalist sermon along these lines and thought to myself, “For once, I agree with everything he’s saying here.”
But then the sermon continued.
The minister preached on the importance of women wearing exclusively long dresses and skirts, of only listening to certain Christian music, of never watching a movie, never dating a “worldly girl” (e.g. one who wears foundation), he put down other denominations as significantly inferior, and he alluded to the importance other Holiness dress standards, as well.
And then occurred to me—no, I don’t agree with this sermon at all! Not even the part about “serving God.” Because to this minister and audience, in the context of this sermon:
Serving God = Follow Holiness Standards
You can switch those phrases out to get a better understanding of how preaching on “serving God” would’ve actually been understood by the crowd:
“[Follow Holiness standards]! You’ve got to [follow Holiness standards]—no matter what! Make up in your minds that you’re going to [follow Holiness standards!”
•••
It’s so important to use discretion and ask clarifying questions when talking with people who are part of hyper-fundamentalism. From “saved by grace through faith” to “holy living” to “separation from the world,” it’s very common for mainstream Christians and hyper fundamentalists to use the same terms while meaning very different things. It’s like speaking another language without even realizing it, and it leads to massive misunderstandings.
There’s no one harmed more by this confusion than the hyper fundamentalists themselves, especially if they ever consider leaving or attempt to attend a healthy church. They’re trained to interpret common Christian lingo through a hyper-fundamentalist lens, distorting even the most biblical of sermons.
•••
This is why disentangling faith from hyper fundamentalism (rather than “just moving on”) is critical.
Resources created by believers who can decode the confusion are often the difference between someone making it safely into a healthy church or giving up on Christianity entirely. At Berean Holiness, we believe this so much that we do not charge for any of the support and resources we offer. We want everyone to make it safely into healthy faith community and the gospel of grace! If this is a mission you believe in, would you consider partnering with us to cover the costs and make it happen in 2026?
Right now, all donations are being *doubled* by matching donors—your gift will go twice as far in providing these resources. Monthly support goes directly towards increasing our team’s hours and capacity. (Link in the comments.)
Thank you for working with us to break down the hyper-fundamentalist language barrier and let the light of the gospel shine through!
Berean Holiness
“Serve God!! You’ve got to serve God—no matter what! Make up in your minds that you’re going to serve God!”
I was recently listening to a hyper-fundamentalist sermon along these lines and thought to myself, “For once, I agree with everything he’s saying here.”
But then the sermon continued.
The minister preached on the importance of women wearing exclusively long dresses and skirts, of only listening to certain Christian music, of never watching a movie, never dating a “worldly girl” (e.g. one who wears foundation), he put down other denominations as significantly inferior, and he alluded to the importance other Holiness dress standards, as well.
And then occurred to me—no, I don’t agree with this sermon at all! Not even the part about “serving God.” Because to this minister and audience, in the context of this sermon:
Serving God = Follow Holiness Standards
You can switch those phrases out to get a better understanding of how preaching on “serving God” would’ve actually been understood by the crowd:
“[Follow Holiness standards]! You’ve got to [follow Holiness standards]—no matter what! Make up in your minds that you’re going to [follow Holiness standards!”
•••
It’s so important to use discretion and ask clarifying questions when talking with people who are part of hyper-fundamentalism. From “saved by grace through faith” to “holy living” to “separation from the world,” it’s very common for mainstream Christians and hyper fundamentalists to use the same terms while meaning very different things. It’s like speaking another language without even realizing it, and it leads to massive misunderstandings.
There’s no one harmed more by this confusion than the hyper fundamentalists themselves, especially if they ever consider leaving or attempt to attend a healthy church. They’re trained to interpret common Christian lingo through a hyper-fundamentalist lens, distorting even the most biblical of sermons.
•••
This is why disentangling faith from hyper fundamentalism (rather than “just moving on”) is critical.
Resources created by believers who can decode the confusion are often the difference between someone making it safely into a healthy church or giving up on Christianity entirely. At Berean Holiness, we believe this so much that we do not charge for any of the support and resources we offer. We want everyone to make it safely into healthy faith community and the gospel of grace! If this is a mission you believe in, would you consider partnering with us to cover the costs and make it happen in 2026?
Right now, all donations are being *doubled* by matching donors—your gift will go twice as far in providing these resources. Monthly support goes directly towards increasing our team’s hours and capacity. (Link in the comments.)
Thank you for working with us to break down the hyper-fundamentalist language barrier and let the light of the gospel shine through!
1 week ago | [YT] | 9