Five Signs a Church is Going Woke
The creeping plague of wokeness has infiltrated many churches like a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It doesn’t always announce itself with a flashing neon sign but seeps in, subtly reframing priorities, redefining terms, and reinterpreting Scripture. What typically begins as a seemingly harmless nod to cultural relevance quickly metastasizes into a full-blown infection that eats away at the lifeblood of the church—the gospel itself.
Before long, the gospel is reduced to nothing more than a prop for a social and political agenda, and the pulpit becomes a platform for progressive propaganda. If you’re paying attention, the signs are there—glaring and undeniable—like warning lights on a dashboard that too many are choosing to ignore. Here are five signs that a church is going woke.
1. Social Justice Takes Precedence Over the Gospel
One of the most obvious signs is the shift in focus from proclaiming Christ crucified to pushing the latest social justice trends. Sermons that once called sinners to repentance now sound like TED Talks on dismantling "systems of oppression." The message of salvation is sidelined, replaced by endless tirades about equity, privilege, and "dismantling power structures." The gospel—the very heart of the Christian faith—is treated as if it’s insufficient, a relic of a less enlightened time that must be updated to suit the ever-changing whims of modern society. How many churches now preach activism over atonement? How many pastors have traded their Bibles for buzzwords?
2. Biblical Sexual Ethics Are Compromised
Churches that once stood firm on God’s design for marriage and sexuality are now bending the knee to the rainbow flag. Some churches may give lip service to biblical sexual ethics, but water it down with "love over doctrine” or “we welcome everyone” language.
They rationalize their compromise with platitudes about “inclusion” and “affirmation,” as if love means applauding sin instead of calling people to freedom from it. Some will even argue that Jesus would have done the same, as if the Lord who called people to “go and sin no more” would suddenly celebrate what He died to redeem them from. Do these leaders truly believe they’re more loving than Christ Himself? Or is it just easier to sell out the gospel than to face the wrath of the Twitter mob?
3. Language Reflects Leftist Ideology
The language of wokeness is another glaring red flag. It often starts with “third way” or “middle ground” idealism. But once you start hearing words like "intersectionality," "reproductive justice," or "toxic masculinity" tossed around in Bible studies, you can be sure that the gospel has taken a backseat to ideology.
The vocabulary of the woke church isn’t just borrowed from the secular left—it’s designed to smuggle in its worldview under the guise of Christian compassion. “Equity” becomes the new gospel, “diversity” the new Great Commission, and “justice” the catch-all term for whatever the culture demands today. When was the last time you heard a woke church talk about sin, repentance, or the wrath of God with the same enthusiasm it devotes to "privilege"? The only “sin” is conservatism.