Megachurch Pastor Uses Ladders to Teach Faith

Faith Facts

• Pastor Josh Howerton serves as senior pastor of Lakepointe Church in Rockwall, Texas.
• During a recent sermon, Howerton used two large ladders as an object lesson to illustrate the Christian life.
• The illustration drew both attention and criticism on social media platforms.

Pastor Josh Howerton, senior pastor of Lakepointe Church in Rockwall, Texas, faced criticism on social media for using two large ladders as an object lesson during a recent sermon about the Christian life.

Church leaders often seek creative ways to communicate biblical truth to their congregations. Howerton chose a visual demonstration that many found memorable and thought-provoking.

By popular demand, here’s the full #LadderGate2026 sermon illustration. Week 7 of series through 2 Timothy, right after a few hundred people surrendered to Christ and are deciding whether to be obedient in baptism next week. Would do this again a thousand times for those ppl (if I weren’t getting too old for stuff like this!)

— Josh Howerton (@howertonjosh) October 5, 2026

Apparently, Josh Howerton was not the first to come up with the ladder idea.

— Justin Peters (@JustinPetersMin) October 3, 2026

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