Popularly known as "the porn pastor," Craig Gross has one simple message he wants to tell: Jesus loves you no matter who you are or what you've done.
That means Jesus loves gluttons, criminals, porn stars, homosexuals and even the religious.
Such inclusive messages are what have drawn some critical looks from the more conservative Christians. When Gross moved out to Las Vegas about a year ago and began proclaiming "Jesus loves sin city," some rejected the message saying it was wrong.
Now, the Las Vegas pastor is about to embark on a unique book tour to tell anyone and everyone that Jesus loves them.
Gross believes Jesus' vision and values have been distorted, twisted, hijacked, tweaked, relabeled, and distorted again, he writes in his upcoming book Jesus Loves You This I Know. And in the process, many have missed the simple yet profound message that Jesus loves them.
Christians have long been taught what Gross calls the "three-step approach to God."
"It starts with belief. Essentially, if you believe the right things, it will lead to a change in behavior. When you have changed your behavior, you will be accepted by the church. Believe, Behave, Belong."
Rejecting that approach, Gross declares, "It's time to flip this."
"The Jesus of scripture reached out and loved people regardless of where they were. It is essential to show people that they can belong in your world even if they don’t act, think, behave, or believe like you."
Whether a drunk, an inmate, a porn star or someone who claims to be Christian, "[t]o Jesus, we’re all just people who need God to save us from the mess we are in and lead us to a better way," says Gross.
As part of the Jesus Loves You project, Gross and co-author Jason Harper are launching on Sunday a six-city tour across the country. Their first stop is Topeka, Kan., where the infamous Westboro Baptist Church is located.
Their visit to Westboro is related to the last chapter, "Jesus Loves the Religious," in their book.
It was the toughest chapter to write, Gross says, because some of the most religious bring a bad name to Jesus. And Westboro Church is ultra-religious, he says.
When they arrive, the authors are not going to protest the church but they'll attend worship service there. Their intention is to simply show the family love and tell them that Jesus loves them.
Other stops in their tour will also relate to one of the ten chapters in the book including "Jesus Loves the Glutton," "Jesus Loves the Crook," "Jesus Loves the Outcast," "Jesus Loves the Disconnected," and of course "Jesus Loves the Porn Star."
For the glutton stop, Gross and Harper will be giving away 400 lunch buffets at The Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas on Sept. 30. The following week, Gross will debate porn star Ron Jeremy in Los Angeles. Then reaching the disconnected, the authors will be giving away a house in Detroit, Mich. Later in October, Gross and Harper will preach to inmates at Folsom State Prison in California.
Their last stop is the Atlanta Pride Festival on Oct. 30-Nov. 1 where they will set up a booth with the message "We Are Sorry."
"We're going to communicate that Jesus loves people right where they are," Harper said on XXXChurch.tv. "It gives us the opportunity to say 'I'm sorry ... for the way that we've punished people in the gay community by being judgmental, condemning or even dogmatic about their approach to life.'"
"I believe that rather than looking at their sexuality, we can speak to their spirituality and then let God work on their hearts the rest of the way," Harper noted.
Harper and Gross are anything but conventional pastors but they are two guys whose lives have been changed by Jesus and who want to tell others about him.
"Doesn’t matter what you do or who you are: Jesus. Loves. You," says Gross.
On the Web: www.jesuslovesyou.net
