Openn Letter to Pastors Everywhere

PASTORS

I want to bring to your attention a subject I have agonized over for a very long time. It has been on my heart and in my spirit for several years. I traveled the eastern half of the U.S. for four years on business and had the opportunity to visit a variety of churches during that time. I saw enough to break my heart and keep me in tears for the rest of my life. Be sure that the very last thing I ever wanted to have in the Lord was a super-critical view point resulting in an “us against them” type of ministry, but in light of recent events, I feel it is time to illuminate this situation for your prayerful consideration. It’s my goal to provoke a response that might open a dialogue in every spiritual arena in which you move. I hope this “open letter” will focus attention on some of the obvious problems of today’s spiritual crisis in the “American church society” and point out the role of leadership (mainly pastors) in the development of that crisis.

First, allow me to introduce myself so as to add as much spiritual weight as possible to this observation. Up until my early teens I was raised in a holiness church in Pensacola, Florida (no, not Brownsville Assembly). We were considered “the Pharisees of the Pharisees” in that the pastor upheld a “standard of holiness” unsurpassed in the fellowship circles we moved in. We put on a great show in the flesh concerning the outward things, some of which needs to be resurrected in the modern church society that exists in America today. The tyrant in charge was a pastor that was bent on building a legacy at any expense. There was corruption, spiritual wickedness and illegal sexual activity that involved a child molester and several minors that was swept under the rug for political and financial expediency (sound familiar). This was back in the sixties when I was a kid in my teens. We were very poor and treated as such. At thirteen, my brother and I were told by the pastor (secretly) to leave the church, ex-communicated (I thought that was a Catholic doctrine) and branded as “reprobates”. Our parents knew nothing about it until we told them. The pastor refused to recant and even told my parents there was no hope for either of us, we were doomed hell raisers! Other church members in our fellowship circle weren’t even allowed to speak to us. My mother was heart broken! As far as I know, my dad and my brother never set foot inside of another church until my dad’s funeral in late 1972. I left and never looked back. All of this over something my cousin did with his hotrod. The pastor eventually ejected my sister, mother and every founding family in that church. The whole time I attended there we heard sermons about money, makeup, hair, clothes, and holiness but I can’t remember even one message on God’s love for us.

I was a surfer then, so I just hung out at the beach for the next few years. I fell into the drug and alcohol scene, managed to get expelled from every high school in the county, hitch-hiked all around the country surfing and going to music festivals. I’d stay away from home for months at a time. Then on Valentine’s Day, 1972, I was at a draft lottery party at the Jr. College where we got loaded and watched the show. My birthday was picked number one, I was eighteen! I was so loaded and scared that I had a seizure and had to be taken to a clinic. Everyone that got drafted was sent straight to the Army and then Vietnam. I went home and talked it over with my dad (82nd airborne - AEF) and uncles. Following their advice, I joined the Navy, finished boot camp, graduated top of my class at computer school and was sent to the USS John F. Kennedy. Before I left, I married my girlfriend and she became pregnant. Navy life was pretty good under the circumstances.

Then it all started to fall apart. My son was stillborn at eight months and my wife blamed me for the loss. My father died of a heart attack and in my grief I accidentally overdosed on secanol. I was forced to accept an honorable discharge, took the bus home and was served with divorce papers after just ten months of marriage. I moved back to the beach, finished adult “high” school, started college, got married again, dropped out, did odd jobs and returned to church (Assembly of God). We moved to Mississippi where I took a job as an insulator’s helper at Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula (very hot and itchy work). I asked the Lord for something better and after reviewing my military training the V.P. of that company gave me the biggest promotion in their history. I went from the field to an upper middle-management slot at 23 years old. I was in charge of production analysis and control for five Spruance-class Destroyers!

So I took the job as a program administrator/production control analyst and at night I was learning pipe welding and hot work at the local college. We went to church often and I learned through a prophet that I was called to be a teacher in the five fold ministry. We had two daughters, went charismatic, I was an assistant pastor for a few years, found out my wife was having an affair and got divorced after eight years. I was dismissed as assistant pastor, asked to leave the church and was disfellowshipped by that group of ministers. I lost my ministry, my family, my friends, my job, my savings, my house and my will to continue. Everything in my life went upside down, the church had completely failed me and I fell as far down the rabbit hole as you can get. Throwing in the towel, I gave away my Bible and returned to the beach scene: to surfing, drugs and alcohol. Had it not been for my mother’s prayers I’m sure I would have gone through with what I was sure was the only remaining solution to get some peace of spirit. Injustice and betrayal will do that to you! Does any of this sound familiar? Anyway, this is just another example of your somewhat typical ministerial background. You see, I went away from organized religion even though it was very gratifying at the time because I felt that God had left me (even though He has never been very far away). He will never leave or forsake those who are His own. I had to learn that first hand. You can’t really teach what you haven’t walked in! But enough about me, let’s return to the subject matter.

The role of ministry has never changed from its commission at the beginning of the New Testament Church, i.e. preaching “the Gospel of the kingdom” to a world headed for destruction. (Remember when the gospel was “good news”). Its mission has always been to share the Word of Truth in the light of the Spirit to anyone, anywhere at any time. To lift up Jesus that He may “draw all men unto Himself” should be the only goal we strive for in ministry. The old saying that “if it’s the Gospel it’s not new and if it’s new it’s not the Gospel” is still very true. Remember, we must make a difference where the Bible makes a difference! There are two testaments that portray two different covenants, old and new, with two different groups of people in mind. The old employed a system of works with hints of faith contained in types and shadows. In the new, the old was taken out of the way at the cross in order to include all and to bring us to Christ by faith. Some of our “modern doctrines” become unsound when we deconstruct their scriptural basis in the light of the Spirit and find that Jesus (the expressed character of God’s love for the world) is no where to be found. When we claim to have a new revelation that we intent to teach or examine any “present” truth, we always need to ask ourselves if it’s Christ centered? We need to ask our Father the very same question Isaac asked his father, “Where’s the Lamb?”

You see, in America today there’s no problem providing the means (the wood) and the fire (the hype) to produce the religious bonfires that attract the masses, but where’s Jesus in all of this excitement? We have co-mingled grace with law, commonness with holiness, worship with entertainment and flesh with spirit for so long now that returning to the straight and narrow Godly path seems impossible! How do you stop a flood in progress? Only the powerful anointing of the Holy Ghost can turn the tide of popular Christianity. As ministers, we have nearly lost our ability to hear that “still, small voice” of the Spirit due to our white-knuckle death grip on the material things of “this present, evil world”. The gospel is big business ($140 billion a year industry) and everyone wants their piece of the pie. I’ve always said that if the prospect of fame and fortune were removed from the office of the ministry that the garbage dumpsters and gutters in every religious college and seminary in the western world would be overflowing with Bibles!

The “one man and one woman show ministries” of this day and age have absolutely no New Testament scriptural basis what so ever. Although we have ten thousand instructors in Christ the saints are less mature. We have an over abundance of Pastors, but sadly, few fathers. In this age of rocketing technology, limitless information, ever type of ministry school imaginable and a never ending flow of “totally new” revelations from the thrown room we have produced a generation of spiritual misfits despising any authority that isn’t financially profitable. I wonder how many frustrated apostles, prophets and teachers have thrown in the towel over trying to minister to a church where the only received and supported ministries are pastors, musicians and entertainers. Can you imagine how many saints are praying for a true spirit-filled move of God through men who aren’t entangled in politics and financial schemes. Congregations have become slaves to pastors “visions” the same way that the Jews were slaves to Pharaoh with the very same results; producing an earthly kingdom and building bigger monuments to the dead. Only when His people begin to cry out will the Deliverer proclaim “Let My people go“ with signs, wonders and a mighty hand. The religious strangle hold that pastors have over God’s saints is coming to an end. When this in-bred spiritualism is destroyed, which group will you be found standing in - sheep or goats? Sheep can be led, but you have to drive goats.

How sickening it is to hear pastors proclaim their belief in the five fold ministry when every other minister I talk to laughs out loud when I ask how much support they receive from their local church. How many of the other office ministries struggle with everyday financial concerns while pastors strut about with their nose in the air. Pastors, please show me any scriptural basis for putting all the tithes and offerings into your ministry. Building programs, personal bank accounts, new cars, private jets, vacation homes, gyms, private schools, cruises, entertainers, servants, book and musical endeavors, theme parks, television programs and movie projects costing millions are just some of the “essentials” on your list! After a certain portion has been set aside for strangers, widows and orphans, (remember them) the rest should be divided among the entire ministry as needed. The principle here is giving and sharing, not storing up for later. Claiming to suffer with the down and needy children of God isn’t the only thing we don‘t share in common! (Well done my rich and famous servant isn’t in the Bible). In every Christian organization in the western world, financial gain has become the new standard by which all spiritual progress is measured. Most ministers are mercenary predators praying on the weak and helpless. Remember - faith is always the first causality of worldly success!

How is it that this attitude exists on every level among pastors? How can you continue to ignore all the warnings in scripture concerning the deceitfulness of riches? How much is enough before even you begin to get sick? Can you get anymore selfish and ungrateful? Fleecing God’s people by extracting “seed money” with the promise of multiplied returns only makes you rich, not them. Demanding sacrifice from young saints through guilt and intimidation while you wallow in exuberance makes every minister look bad and brings a reproach on Christ and His church. Instead of being set free in Christ and allowing the Holy Spirit to guide them you’ve become lords over their inheritance. Pastors are most zealous when they are talking about their goals that are only achievable by our dedicated financial commitment to their vision. It’s disgusts me when I go into a church and find the pastor is the most pompous, arrogant and wealthiest person in the room. A majority of the pastors I’ve known in the years of traveling around the country have become so self-centered and super-spiritual that their influence is as broad as their egotistical ambition to spread their form of the gospel throughout the world. The number of truly called and spiritually confirmed ministers I’ve met is fractional compared to the overall number, with pastors leading the pack. It appears that the goal of most ministers is to write a few books, get on TV or make a movie about themselves (some TV pastors have hired acting coaches to increase their emotional appeal and “screen image”). I’ve even heard one tele-pastor from the Atlanta area say that he had all nine gifts of the Spirit, all nine fruits of the Spirit and that he held all five office ministries. He had no use for apostles, prophets or teachers and if he couldn’t get it done then God must have made a mistake putting him in charge. He hadn’t spent all that time building his multi-million “Dollar” empire to share it with anyone not under his direct control. I was by a TV once and saw him in one of the nastiest “gangsta rap” videos ever! I wonder how many “Eli’s sons” are desecrating that temple? These so-called pastors are worshiped on the same level as actors, rock stars and politicians. Little wonder many of them fall into the same traps. The huge successes of these “bloated goats ‘ have obscured the straight and narrow path by providing a freeway where courtesy and divine character are flattened into road kill by five lanes of drooling egotists speeding towards guaranteed financial success! What do these multi-millionaire pastors have in common with our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world where wealth is being measured by the grains of rice in your bowl? Shouldn’t our goal be to have all things in common? It’s a great career, right guys? It’s the con-mans dream come true. Clouds without rain instead of trains full of grain!

A large majority of the pastors I’ve encountered wouldn’t qualify as deacons much less that of overall spiritual leader. Their households are usually in complete disorder and there always seems to be a power struggle going on with their wives and children. Even though they are the most spoiled, disrespectful and rebellious kids in the congregation they are usually given leadership positions over mature, experienced saints and even other ministers in order to “keep it in the family”. How many independent churches and loose religious organizations can you think of where this is a common practice? One time in Monee, Illinois, I was invited to a church that was having a Brownsville Assembly style Friday night revival. (They were trained at a special ministry school in Pensacola). Their pastor announced that If you weren’t wearing a special “prayer team committee” name tag you couldn’t pray for anyone. His nine year old daughter would be the one laying hands on everyone and a film crew would document her every word. After editing, copies could be obtained for various prices. Come on guys! A nine year old girl! Aren’t you tired of this sort of comedy? Why grown saints allow this foolishness to continue is beyond any spiritual or scriptural logic. Ministers aren’t called of God, confirmed by the laying on of hands and raised by mature congregations anymore, it’s just a process now requiring little more than the “minimum effort float“. Just keep your head above water long enough to survive and kiss the right rump until your ship comes in. Preacher schools are producing a specialized leadership now: businessmen and laity that guarantee a larger congregation, proven financial gains through structured “product pricing” and very strict in-house spending that will ensure that funds will remain under one roof. They know how to “get it done” and are overly confident in their own abilities. The Bible describes the work of the apostle, prophet, teacher and evangelist very well in the scriptures. Apostles are supposed to establish and oversee local area churches, appoint and confirm leadership and establish various orders in the congregations. The prophet works with the apostle. He’s supposed to hear from God and relay these messages to the church (point the way). The teacher’s job (along with the elders, deacons, bishops and chief women) is to instruct all the saints in righteousness, foundational doctrines and Godly principles by using the Word in the light of the Spirit and the evangelist is supposed to share the love of God to a lost and dieing generation (bring them in). Although I searched for years I can’t find any New Testament doctrine that places pastors at the head of the table. However, I do find a scripture that clearly defines the New Testament structure to be followed by the church. 1 Cor. 12:28 clearly expresses the order of church government and deliberately makes no mention of the pastor or evangelist! I purpose that pastors are to fill in the gap and make up the hedge where ever needed and submit to the higher authority when it’s present. It’s a rare thing to see a pastor take a back seat to a higher spiritual presence. You might steal their thunder and their sheep. God’s will concerning His leadership order is plainly given here in a simple way and what happens? Rebellion!

Since almost every church in the western world is controlled by the senior pastor then it is logical to conclude that all of the problems that plague the modern church today are a direct result of their colossal failure in every area of ministry. There is no example of a minister marring anyone in scripture yet pastors do it thousands of times a week while refusing any blame for the divorcees in the church. Instead of seeking the will of the Spirit in such matters they only want confirmation of the pay they will receive for their part. Marrying and burying is big business too. I’m tired of hearing pastors scream and accuse “their saints” for the problems they’re responsible for. The popular “gain is Godliness” prosperity message along with the foggy doctrines of grace, sin, and holiness are fueling an out of control Laodicean church that strives to keep up with the world in every way. It’s youth movement would replace anything old, tried and proven with anything that isn’t. Remember - the tail can’t wag the dog. We have taken the very doctrines (tackling) that have kept the “good old Gospel ship” on course and thrown them overboard with our own hands. Now we have a powerless hulk tossed to and fro and guided only by the prevailing currents and by every popular wind that blows.

This stream of morality is a mile wide and an inch deep allowing the broadest application of tolerance the church has ever known. Let’s not forget that “tolerance is the poison of commitment“. That’s a real quote from an Islamic cleric just before he killed himself and others in a suicide bombing. We have become the punch line to jokes told by other religions throughout the world. How shocking it must be to new converts who come to the Lord expecting something better only to awaken and find it’s nothing more than a breeding ground for contempt and disillusionment. Where is the power of God?

The church is now a secondary market for millionaire businessmen, celebrities, authors, musicians and entertainers who are emulated for their worldly success. Years ago God’s saints would not have tolerated having their church status reduced to that of a “financial partner” or “seed sowing slave” through guilt and intimidation. The sower’s seed is now money and not the Word. These right dividers of the Word have spiritualized truth right out of existence for their own personal gain. Situation ethics have since replaced honest commitment, justice is dismissed due to lack of evidence because facts are trumped by reasonable doubt and discerning of spirits is now the gift of suspicion. We traded in the Word of Wisdom for the wisdom of words with results we can see everywhere. Bad is good and good is bad. Ministers today seem to be preaching out of a comic book about some fairy tale rather than the Bible about God’s Kingdom. I’ve heard sermons entitled “Teacup conversations, Who let the dogs out, and Keep your underwear on” while the lost slip into Hell. God’s church is not a financial training institution, a theater for the performing arts, or character workshop (I don’t need my personality tweaked to a less abrasive “blue suit“ to disguise my faults). What is a mime-istry? What party crowd are we trying to attract with gospel gangster rap, spiritual line dancing and Holy Ghost hip hop? (Have we truly changed or just changed partners?). What’s the purpose of smoke and laser light shows at gospel rock concerts and why is it that when you turn off the sound you can’t tell it from any other rock and roll money maker? What are back stage passes supposed to suggest? If you were the Bridegroom, would you want a diseased, immoral and unfaithful Bride? Remember, there’s just no right way to do a wrong thing!

Lord deliver us from the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Awesome-ites, High-five-ites, Good-old-boy-ites, Gospel-Dancing-Clown-ites, the Once-Famous-but now Rich and Famous Former Hollywood Star Turned Minister-ites, the Glory Robbing Musical Ego-ites, the I am Woman Hear Me Roar-ites and the Satellites!

I was passing through Indiana once and stopped to chat with a pastor transforming a storefront into a church. He told me how to start a successful, self-supporting, full time ministry. First, you start with a copyrighted logo that will brand you to your organization and all of its endeavors. Find a great location with lots of parking and a colorful marquee that will attract attention. We went inside where he showed me the key to making this all work and at a much faster pace, “The youth room”. He was sparring no expense on it’s furnishings that included a sound room with recording equipment, DVD player, giant TV with cable service and name brand musical instruments. There was a pool table, pinball, foosball and air hockey for the younger kids and he put in a few snack machines to round it all out. He‘d already spent thousands and was only half finished. Then he showed me the sanctuary containing folding metal chairs, an unpainted plywood platform decorated with potted plants and a meager sound system all wrapped up in unfinished sheetrock. He told me that first you appoint a cool youth pastor the kids will trust. The youth room gives them a place to hang after school, week-ends and summer break. Once the hook is set, they will brag the place up to their friends and family. Be sure to include as many youth events, programs and concerts as necessary to start the ball rolling. Entertaining the kids and word of mouth advertising are the keys! They’ll surely convince their parents to visit and before long you’ll have a new support base of tithing adults. By “babysitting” their kids you’ll win them over. Preach a middle of the road gospel and by the time the youth room equipment wears out you’ll be “full time”. This formula will work almost anywhere in America, according to him. Shocking? Not really. Remember, the Gospel is big, big, big, big business!

Wake up church!

Well, I could go on all day pointing out the obvious problems plaguing the western church society and Christian subculture of America. I wonder if there’s any achievable solution to this nightmare in my life time that wouldn’t require another terrorist attack or global disaster to initiate. If everyone who claims to hear God’s voice actually did then the pathway to a more nobler Berean-type church would be a short trip. Discerning your own flesh is the vehicle that will get us there, but this is an impossible journey as long as we continue to compare ourselves among ourselves. A scriptural reflection would raise every standard of doctrine, personal behavior and public image in the church. Sounds pretty easy, right. Wrong! Most professing Christians are lazy and “Gospel hardened” so much so that Christian duty infringes on their right to pursue happiness through leisure time activities. I once heard a true apostle say the seat of Satan is our flesh and that most preachers are delusional due to an egotistical self image. Instead of fellowship, they all believe that if we would only persuade ourselves to become “the fellow in their ship” we can save the world together with just a small monthly commitment to their support! Retreating from carnality and worldliness to a closer, selfless walk with Jesus that’s easily “known and read of all men” seems to be the only solution not involving total disaster. Remember, you can’t cast out flesh, it must be crucified!

Pastors are the most successful failures the church world has ever seen! The bigger ones use every marketing technique the world offers to lighten the load in your wallet while the smaller ones emulate their every move. Most provide nothing of value freely while their emotional appeals for money drain God’s people for their own selfish agendas. They build bigger barns to hold more sheep in order to extract more money to build bigger barns, etc. If honesty were gasoline and it took a gallon to go around the world, most pastors I’ve met couldn’t get out of sight on a moped. They tolerate anything that promotes a kinder, gentler gospel they can all profit from. When’s the last time you heard a pastor mention sin much less preach about it? The sure doctrines that have guided the Church through the ages have become so “spiritualized” and deluded they only produce confusion and more rebellion. Fear and doubt now rule instead of spiritual unity in the bond of peace. Even the animals in the Ark denied their natural instincts and managed to survive without chaos and the predators devouring the defenseless and the weak. Oh, by the way, just so you’ll know, divorce is not the unpardonable sin. Though our society allows its’ children to literally get away with murder is no reason for the church to surrender to their rebellious ways. Kids are still worth it and still need a savior and a deliverer for their souls. Also, there is absolutely no place in the church for brazen feminists who feel that they (or some other woman) should be in charge. I know church groups where there are no men in any position of authority. Lately, our country has become a nation of woman worshipers. The Bible shouts back repeatedly against this type of rebellious activity. We’re supposed to be different and separate from sinners and yet we‘ve become these trendy pop-outs and unsanctified friends of the world.

I was raised by two apostles that came out of the latter rain movement who have passed on now. The love of God was so thick around them you could feel it when they walked into the room. I’ve seen many miracles, healings and words of knowledge that all came true exactly as the were delivered. There was never any “hope so, think so, maybe so” guessing games going on and the fellowship was real and genuine. They always prayed before every major decision and then waited for the Lord to respond and were never out of patience. They were father and son and both of their ministries were characterized by wisdom, knowledge of the Word and a calm demeanor that persisted throughout every crisis. I’ve yet to find a single pastor as well rounded and able to compare spiritual things to spiritual without getting the stream all muddied up. They always taught by revelation but never without a scriptural foundation and their discerning of what was needed was almost scary. I consider myself extremely blessed to have known them both.

I’ll conclude this letter by asking for your prayers as I have many faults and am truly thankful that the King is mindful of me. I have a genuine concern for God’s people and a true desire to see things done right, as I’m sure every teacher does. I once agonized over the fact that I saw so many things wrong that I questioned the Lord about it. The Spirits response was that all true teachers of the Word have a God given eye for detail and can’t stand anything that’s out of tune. Those that know me will testify that I’ve cried buckets in prayer over this situation. The church won’t get right until the leadership gets right. Repentance should be the order of the day with pastors leading the way. I’ve visited many churches in my life time and have concluded that most are doctrinally unsound and problematic because of self-serving, egotistical and disingenuous busy-bodies masquerading as spiritual leaders.

Pastors, I invite you to respond with any comments you feel are warranted. Please don’t think of me as being holier than thou and I will try not to think of you as blind leaders of the blind. I want to shock and offend as many of you as possible in hope of getting your attention. The truth is almost always deeply offensive and usually provokes an intense response from the heart. That’s what I’m after! Remember guys, your not now nor were you ever intended to be a one man show and please don’t tell me you believe in the five fold ministry cause we both know you really don’t. If you did you would support us but since you don’t then the truth is obvious. I’m sickened that a church will support a five fingered mimes-try but not the five fold ministry. Just so you know some of the neglect that myself and others like me have suffered at the hands of pastors I‘ll use myself as an example, but this is buy no means unique. On average, I get asked to speak about once or twice a year, usually for only one night and then I never receive any funding. I’ve only received two offerings in my lifetime for a total of less than $150. I’m not in this for the money and never have been. Its rare if I get invited to Sunday dinner and even rarer if someone offers to pay.

At conferences (pastor’s back scratching parties) I’m usually never introduced much less given any chance to speak. I’m almost always housed in the church basement instead of a motel. My expenses are never met or even discussed but I’m often invited because they expect me to give big bucks. When a visiting minister comes by I’m not invited to the fellowship dinner after church. I’ve traveled hundreds of miles to speak and not receive one dime for my efforts, even though all were blessed. You’re probably thinking I’m just some bitter old fool seeking a sounding board, but I really wonder how many there are out there that could tell the same story I just told? I‘m not seeking a pulpit either cause when that ship goes under thank God I won’t be on it!

Remember, one of these days you leaders will give an account of your stewardship and I’m wondering how you‘ll fare? There is a very real and visible problem here and it’s going to take the mature and spirit-led to repair it. A radical change is necessary and we must all participate from the Apostle to the youngest saint.

Thank you for your time and remember me in your prayers. Pray for His soon return and the unspeakable joy He will bring with Him. Be strong and of good courage!
God is moving!

Bro. Terry