Tim Tebow Backs Away From Controversial Church

Tim Tebow will spread his faith, but not at the expense of his image.

The famously religious football star has canceled two sermons he was scheduled to give at the First Baptist Church of Dallas on April 28. Though he did not explicitly express the reasoning, it is believed that the cancellation is due to the church's association with controversial preacher Dr. Robert Jeffress. Jeffress has made headlines for his outlandish remarks against gays and Jews, and also denounced Mitt Romney's presidential run because he is a Mormon.

Last week, an article appeared on NBC Sports' Off the Bench regarding Tebow's scheduled appearance. Writer Rick Chandler accused the Jets backup of taking on the gig without doing his research.

"I prefer to think of Tebow as someone who saw the word “megachurch” and got excited about speaking to a lot of like-minded people, and just forgot to do his due diligence on the guy in charge,"
the article read. "Remember Tim, Google can be your friend."

Tebow took to Twitter today (Feb. 21) to announce his decision:

"While I was looking forward to sharing a message of hope and Christ's unconditional love with the faithful members of the historic First Baptist Church of Dallas in April, due to new information that has been brought to my attention, I have decided to cancel my upcoming appearance. I will continue to use the platform God has blessed me with to bring Faith, Hope and Love to all those needing a brighter
day. Thank you for all of your love and support. God Bless!"

Jeffress nor anyone at the First Baptist Church has released a statement regarding the cancellation thus far.