(CP) Pastor Greg Locke of Global Vision Bible Church in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, told members of his flock that the setting on fire of around 200 Bibles in a trailer near his church by an unidentified suspect on Easter Sunday is proof that Christianity is "under attack" in the United States.
"If you think Christianity is not under attack more than ever before in the United States of America, you've not been paying attention. You need to get your head out of the sand. Quit being lukewarm," Locke declared during the Easter Sunday service.
"I'm telling you they are attacking churches in America. Can I remind you, for Evangelical believers and for Catholics for that matter, this is the most important day historically and biblically that you can imagine? And now Joe Biden makes it Trans Visibility Awareness Day."
Biden drew criticism from conservative Christians for proclaiming Easter Sunday as "Transgender Day of Visibility."
"If you think for any second that Christianity is not under an assault and under an attack, you are not paying attention friends. Wake up to the reality. The beast system is here. They hate those that tell the truth," Locke asserted.
Hours earlier, at around 8am Sunday, Locke revealed in a statement on Facebook that a witness saw a man dropping off the trailer of Bibles near his church and setting it ablaze. It was all caught on security cameras.
"Happy Resurrection Sunday. This morning at 6:00AM our security cameras caught a man dropping off a trailer in the middle of the intersection and blocking the road into our church. He then got out and set fire to an entire trailer full of Bibles right in front of our church," Locke wrote.
"There was a lady that had driven through the night to get to our church, and she was in the parking lot and was able to get the police officers here quickly, but it was quite the scene to wake up to on my first morning back from Israel. Had to block traffic in all directions but they are almost finished cleaning it up. It's going to be a great day in the Lord."
The Wilson County Sheriff's Office confirmed the incident in a statement, noting officials are withholding some details to "uphold the integrity of the ongoing investigation."
"Around 6am this morning, the Mt. Juliet Police Department and Fire Department swiftly responded to a trailer fire located at the intersection of Old Lebanon Dirt Road and Chandler Road," the statement said.
"The fire was promptly extinguished by the diligent efforts of the Mt. Juliet Fire Department. Following the containment of the fire, Wilson County Sheriff's Office deputies and detectives assumed control of the investigation. The trailer, containing bibles, had been dropped off in the middle of the intersection and then intentionally set on fire. To uphold the integrity of the ongoing investigation, other specific details cannot be provided at this time."
Locke told his congregation that police told him FBI was called in because the burning of Bibles is being investigated as a hate crime.
"He's got his hazard lights on at 5:58 in the morning," Locke said. "I'm like, 'Wow, here's the most polite crook I've ever met in my whole life.' I've never met, you know, polite Satanists.
"And so he unhooks the trailer and douses it with gasoline, with fuel, and then — there were probably 200 Bibles," the outspoken pastor added. "I don't know where he got them."
