One Conservative Pastor Who Calls for Transparency

William Thornton is a conservative SBC pastor who used to be one of the moderators at the Baptist Life discussion forum. He now writes his own blog, "SBC Plodder".

William is one of the few SBC pastors - the only one that I'm aware of - that openly calls for transparency of financial matters in the SBC. He has written on this multiple times, most recently concerning compensation for Kevin Ezell, recently appointed as president of NAMB. William calls for Ezell to establish a culture of transparency in the wake of financial waste and terrible leadership for the past decade at that missionsary agency.

This morning, William refers to a report that the president of Dallas Baptist University earns over $850,000 (DBU school has an enrollment of about 5000 students), while in comparison the president of the University of Georgia, a public institution with over 35,000 students earns about $650,000 per year. (go here to read more about the DBU president compensation if interested).

And William makes the point once again: what is so wrong with demanding transparency from the leaders of the SBC that earn a living off of the Cooperative Program dollars given by SBC churches?

And I say, what is so wrong with mega church members, demanding complete transparency from their churches on what their mega church pastor earns in total compensation, including salary, housing allowance, car allowance, all the other allowances, deferred compensation, and honoria and gifts?

As William says this morning:

"Who would be harmed if full disclosure, like public corporations and universities, were the rule? Would our CEOs [or our mega church pastors, William] be harmed? The only way I can see that they would be harmed is if they were grossly overpaid, an assumption I have never made about any of our SBC people."

I am glad that at least one SBC pastor dares to call for transparency.

Thanks, William.

"There's Gold in Them Thar Pews!!"

I read a recent blog post by Maurilio Amorim, a church marketer who was and perhaps still is a church marketing consultant for Mac Brunson and FBC Jax. Maurilio was describing the difficulty that Christian publishers are having in these days of digital media, and he made the following statement:

"With the digital revolution flattening the distance between authors and end-users, the church is literally a gold mine of opportunity for publishers. Every week, Christian content consumers look at their churches for guide [sic] in their search for resources."

"...the church is literally a gold mine of opportunity..." This is disturbing. This just makes me wonder - how many of our preachers and their ace church marketing consultants view their congregations more as a market with deep pockets to be tapped, than they do as the people of God to be fed and served and discipled?

And even more disturbing is the question: do they really want to reach the "lost" so they can help them find the truth of Jesus Christ, or do the "lost" represent to them an untapped market of potential storehouse tithers? Does the Southern Baptist Convention really want to make inroads to the northeastern United States for the glory of God, or IS THERE GOLD IN THEM THAR HILLS?

I hope every pastor that reads this will stop and consider these questions - do you really want to reach the lost, or do you want to grow your church and expand your list of "giving units" to help you build your next building and hire another staff member to make your life easier? When you see a family visiting, do you see their hurts and needs and their potential for ministry, or do you see "benjamins" pasted on their foreheads?

And how odd that so many of these mega church pastors who utilize church marketers like Amorim also preach the false "storehouse tithing" doctrine abusively to their congregations! With the scriptural evidence that the tithing doctrine is absolutely not binding on New Testament Christians, we are left to wonder: do these storehouse tithing preachers REALLY believe the Bible teaches Christians are commanded to give 10%, or do they know it doesn't but teach it anyways to maximize their revenue?

But it goes way beyond the tithe. Mega church pastors become rock stars amongst their "giving units" and their own peers - thus they are magnets for gifts of gullible church members. Cars, clothes, and land gifts - people believe they are giving to "God's man". And not just gifts, the mega church pastors want their members to not only fork over 10% of their income, but they want them to also pay thousands to travel with them on cruises and Holy Land treks. They brazenly use the church website to SELL their trips! Funny, they don't use their power and influence to raise any money for the poor or downtrodden or the "least of these", but they will use their influence to advance causes that benefit them and their families. Gosh, even the NFL Jaguar football players have enough decency to do GOOD in their community for the sake of doing good and wanting nothing in return.

But the marketing extends beyond the Holy Land trips. We've seen at FBC Jax now how the Pastor's Conference has been transformed under Brunson and Amorim as a marketing bonanza, where ministries are encouraged to pay thousands and tens of thousands to get access to the eyes and ears of the attendees - who also pay a fee to attend and to hear - you guessed it - the mega church rock stars. They even now sell access to the pulpit, er I mean "stage". Mike Miller of NavPress was on the platform at last year's Pastor's Conference in an incredibly awkward moment congratulating Mac on his new book and showing a confusing Navigator's video. The marketing never ends. And I won't mention the Jim "Jesus" Caviezel infomercial at PC 2007.

And you know what? It is ALL on the backs of gullible Christians who are the source of these revenue streams. Like the federal government who wants more and more of our money each year and whose bureaucrats take a piece at every stage resulting in only pennies on the dollar actually making it to provide services to citizens, so it is now in modern Christianity. Only pennies on the dollar that we the people, the Christians actually give - goes to do real ministry or missionary work. The vast majority is wasted on salaries and buildings and maintenance and marketing and a myriad of other things that has nothing to do with "Kingdom work", as they like to say.

Yes, these pastors and their marketers are sucking on the teat of the church, milking it for all it's worth - and then to top it off: they have the bald-faced audacity to accuse their church members of "robbing God". Unbelievable. So brazen, all you can do is just sit back and admire it.

So who really are the robbers in this game? And how long will true Christians continue to support such a system? People are leaving the churches in droves because they no longer want to be a part of this system. They are finding smaller churches, or no "church" at all but gather with other believers in their homes.

Meanwhile we wait for some real preachers to step forward and put a stop to the marketing madness.

Mac Uses 10 People Holding Dollar Bills to Show What "All the Upset is About" - It's Just "That Little 10% that God Requires"

I want to congratulate Mac Brunson on a stellar performance in September 2010. He exceeded even the September 2008 fund-raising performance that I criticized when I was still a member that ended with a criminal investigation into my blog the day after the offering. This year Mac really pulled out all the stops, and took the fund raising at FBC Jax to a "whole nutha level". Textbook stuff, really. Mac even taught the church what "10 percent" means, as shown in the picture at right. Unbelievably, everyone now knows that "10 percent" means "1 out of 10".

Here's a recap of the month; it was a lot, so I'll try to be concise:

He started out the month giving a staunch defense of the tithing doctrine. He still teaches that the borderline between obedience and disobedience is exactly 10% of your income. He took a swipe at authors Frank Viola and George Barna who are among a growing number of credible Christians who dare to speak the truth that the storehouse tithing doctrine is unbiblical. These tithing preachers need to stop with the misuse of Malachi 3 and the "robbing God" accusations, and they need to teach more of Proverbs 22:22, where it says "Do not rob the poor because he is poor...for the Lord will plead their case and take the life of those who rob them." Perhaps that should be quoted right before the offerings on a regular basis. But you don't hear much about THAT "robbing" Old Testament verse, which is much more appropriate today in the storehouse tithing mega churches, than is the Malachi 3 verse.

Mac announced via a special letter that they needed to raise $1 million cash or they wouldn't be able to finish the renovations of the auditorium. Somehow, FBC Jax was a whopping 25% short of cash needed for a $4 million project that included addition of Sunday School space, and then ripping up the carpet and replacing the pews and wall coverings in the 9000+ seat auditorium. Mac said the carpet was "ratty", the "pews were a mess", and the wall coverings needed to come down. Mac said he was just following his dad's advice: "You can at least be clean". One expensive "cleaning", that is for sure.

Mac then preached "reaping and sowing" out of Genesis 26, misusing scripture to say that because Isaac sowed of his "resources" during a "double dip recession" (it's in the Greek), that people today should also sow of their financial resources and portfolios into the church to be obedient and receive God's blessings during our own double dip recession. He actually said that Isaac planting seeds means he was trusting God with his "commodity, his portfolio, his finances". I didn't see that in the text. It says Isaac planted seeds. But Mac said Isaac's sowing and then bountiful reaping from God means Christians today during terrible economic times need to give more money to their church so they too can reap. Amen!

Mac then declared that the people of FBC Jax are "gripped with fear" because they won't let loose of their 10%. He used himself as the model of faith, as he tithes, he doesn't "mess with the tithe, or the house payment or the shoe money". Hardy har har.

Mac then brought 10 people out of the audience to show everyone what "10 percent" means. Everyone now knows that 10% means "1 out of 10", because Mac took one of the 10 people, who all had dollar bills in their hands, and made her move to the end of the newly constructed stage. Mac then declared that this is "what all the fuss is about", "just that little 10%", that little part that "God requires". Again, more of the same: God requires 10%, and you people are just not trusting Jesus.

Then Mac showed a video of a stay-at-home mom of four children whose husband was sentenced to jail on drug charges a few years ago, and the mother's testimony was that they were completely out of money, couldn't pay their electric bill, couldn't pay the rent, almost at foreclosure...a real-life family and financial tragedy. And her testimony is that at that moment of financial disaster, she said she made the decision to start tithing. I'm not criticizing her, but what does this say about the ministry of FBC Jax and Mac Brunson, that a poor mother with no food and money decides to start forking over 10% of her income to the church? But then again, this is what Dave Ramsey teaches: that he tithed all the way into and out of bankruptcy. Apparently the tithe to the mega church must be paid by poor struggling moms who have lost their husbands. This testimony sent the message: even you poor folks who can't pay your bills, you need to give 10% too, so you can be obedient, and your bills will be paid too. It is nothing short of financial and spiritual perversion.

Mac squeezed the good folks at FBC Jax for all they're worth. Even the Sunday of the offering, they moved the offering to the END of the service to give everyone a chance to "prepare" their special offering. This also gave Mac one more whack at the wallets, preaching again out of the Old Testament on the temple of God, and how the care of the temple reflects what Christians think about God.

So it was a great month of fund raising. It had it all. Scripture was misused, tithing was put forth as the path to obedience and God's blessings, and Mac wrongly characterized the real concerns that his church members have with their finances during these days. People need to give 10%, they're not, they're fearful, and not exhibiting faith. Times are tough for a mega church with such cheapskates as members.

September 2010 will be a perfect case study of non-scriptural "fund raising" that other pastors can be sure to follow (or avoid, whichever is the case).

And let's see if they raised the million.

If not, perhaps I'm just days away from more subpoenas.

Brumley Article: Is Eddie Long Being Prematurely Attacked? A "Gay Man Struggling with His Sexuality"?

Jeff Brumley, religion writer of the Florida Times Union, has an article this morning about Eddie Long, asking the questions:

"Why do so many people delight in the misfortune of others?"

and

"Do such attacks amount to kicking a man while he's down, or is it deserved scrutiny and punishment for a hypocrite?"

I really am at a loss for words. "Such attacks"? So Eddie Long is being "attacked"? Hardly. He has credible accusers. I expect pastors to call being credibly accused of sexual sin as "being attacked", but he is not being "attacked". If these men are telling the truth, he is the attacker and abuser.

And "misfortune" - are we to characterize Bishop Eddie as having experienced misfortune? Bishop Eddie is hardly a man who has experienced "misfortune". This is a man who has become wealthy by preaching a false gospel, a health and wealth gospel, telling people they were obligated to give 10% of their income and more to him, and who has become a millionaire preying on people's desire to be close to God.

And now we hear credible accusers (have you seen the video of the one accuser brave enough to speak publicly?): that Long used his spiritual position, gained the trust of their families, in order to transform young men into his sex toys. It is a sin so heinous that it is difficult to fathom for believers.

The part of the story that Brumley is missing is that any kind of criticism aimed at evangelical pastors is viewed as an "attack" on the "man of God." Evangelical pastors are so thin-skinned that critics are viewed as troublemakers and dividers. Eddie Long himself has claimed that he is under attack from these charges.

If there is another story here, it is not whether people are justified in "prematurely attacking" Long, it is why is there no accountability system for mega church pastors like Long - who is a "Baptist", and other Southern Baptist pastors? There is no formal grievance process for victims to come forward to get help, and the pastors absolutely do not police themselves. There is no "defrocking" process by which a misbehaving pastor has their ministerial credentials revoked as in other Protestant denominations.

But still, even though credibly accused, Eddie hasn't experienced much "misfortune" yet - he got a standing ovation from his congregation last week after the story broke while not directly denying the charges made in the lawsuits. He probably took in an even larger offering that day. His ministry will likely pay for his expensive defense against the lawsuit, and he will likely pay-off his victims with a large settlement from the ministry and Eddie will keep the gravy train running on the backs of the gullible sheep who worship their pastor.

And the story is whether people are piling on poor Eddie?

The article ends with an absolutely disgusting quote from someone who implies that Eddie Long himself is a victim! Brumley quotes Rev. Grant Lynn Ford, pastor of a local church with a mostly gay congregation:

"But Grant said he feels compassion for Long - partly because of the hit he's taking and partly because he may be a gay man struggling with his sexuality. Grant said it's an issue he once wrestled with himself and that for some gays the struggle ends in suicide. 'I feel sorry for the guy, Grant said."

Ugh! Are you kidding me? Eddie is "taking a hit"? Is he kidding? And Grant says Long is "a gay man struggling with his sexuality". I think I will throw up now.

The only thing that would make this story worse is to find out Long's mentors were a popular preacher and seminary president that knew of Long's sexual appetites and stood silently by while Long continued to pastor and gained access to more victims. Or that his successor knew of his deviance, and did nothing to step in and stop it.

Nah, that could never happen - in Atlanta. Only in Jacksonville.

Mac Brunson: Need a Million Bucks, But FBC Jax People are "Gripped With Fear" and Not Supporting the Work of the Church

The people of FBC Jax have not been good Christians or church members this year, apparently. According to Mac they are not giving to support the ministries of the church, because they are "living in fear because they are not giving" during this recession and are not trusting God with their finances. Giving is down a whopping 14% below budget (over $2 million annualized) and they blew through the building fund for auditorium renovations and need $1 million dollars else they can't pay the contractor to finish the job.

Wow, how things have changed. Giving is weak, and they started construction without having the cash, or having a financing plan in place. I would be nervous if I were the general contractor!

Mac says:

"What do you do with a church when people in the church are so gripped by fear that they don't give to support the work of the church, and let me tell you something, the work of the church goes on. We continue to do the work of the church, and it is obvious that a lot of our people are living in fear because you're not giving."

I think Mac needs to come out of his ivory tower. While he and Whitmire are drawing HUGE compensation packages, many people in Jacksonville are suffering. He gives no credit to the fact that giving in his church is down because people are perhaps earning less during this time, people's taxes and fees and utility bills in Jacksonville have been rising, and uncertainty abounds in the job market. People might just be saving more, and paying more money to get themselves out of debt. Some might be giving elsewhere. Some might be helping friends and family who are hurting during this economic down-turn. But in Mac's world: you either fork over 10% or more to the church undesignated, or you are "gripped by fear" and not trusting God.

And Mac is not just upset over the general budget giving, he also not at all happy that he is short $1 million for the renovation of the main auditorium:

"We have on-going needs at First Baptist Church of Jacksonville that we feel like we've got to do some semblence of ministry in the midst of financially difficult days. But what am I to say to you? And what are we going to do in this auditorium. Next Sunday morning...the 30th of September we will have depleted all of our building fund money on the renovation that has about a million dollar's worth to go. We've got to finish this. We're under contract. We can't really legally get out of completing the work, we don't want to stop the work, but what do we do if God's people don't give? What am I to say to you in the midst of a financially difficult day about trusting God and giving to God?"

Amazing. Who sounds fearful? Who is "gripped with fear"? Why can't he just "trust God" that the money will be provided?

Mac is asking what are they going to do about the auditorium renovation costs. That is a good question, Mac. What will you do? Are you implementing any cost cutting measures at the church, as in reduction of salaries starting with the top two: yours and Whitmire's? And I don't see Brunson recommending people NOT go on his "Holy Land Trip with the Brunson Family" (prominently advertised on the church website) and instead donate an equivalent sum to the auditorium or to make up the budget shortfall.

And why did Mac obligate the church beyond their means? Why did he sign construction contracts without the cash on hand, or a plan to finance it? And why did the renovation include ripping out all the pews, replacing the carpet and wall coverings? Was that absolutely necessary given the church didn't have enough cash for the entire project? Later in the sermon he gives a financial tip that a person should never buy anything that they can't pay for at the end of the month. What hypocrisy. Why did they sign contracts for construction that they didn't have the money to pay for? Of course: this axiom doesn't apply when you're spending the money of OTHER people, since you can just go ask them for more of it.

So Mac goes on to preach on "sowing and reaping" out of Genesis 26. Mac makes the point that God has promised to take care of his people IF they are obedient.

"I mean you cannot mistake it unless you're just lame in the head, folks. God is saying 'If you will be obedient to me I will take care of the needs of your life.' Now listen to me: God doesn't promise that he will give you your wants, but that he meets the needs of his people. "

This sounds good, but in the context of Mac's sermon he is trying to convince his congregation that if you want to have God take care of your financial needs, you MUST be obedient in giving the tithe to your church. This is instilling fear into his people - most of them are not giving 10%, and thus Mac is telling them that they are exposed and God may not take care of them since they are not tithing. It is not true. Under the New Covenant, there is no prescribed percentage for a Christian that is a prerequisite for receiving God's protection and blessings.

Then Mac goes on to cover "sowing and reaping", and uses Isaac's example in Genesis 26:12-13:

"In economically difficult days, he (Isaac) took what he had, his seed was his commodity, it was his portfolio, it was his finances, and he sowed it in the ground, he planted it in the midst of famine, and the Bible says this: 'he reaped in the midst famine in the same year...ten thousand percent"...but the man of God did when he trusted God with his finances in the midst of an economic downturn. Now you explain it any better than me, YOU GET UP HERE AND EXPLAIN IT! That is exactly what the text says."

That is not what the text says. The text doesn't say Isaac sowed his "finances", or his "portfolio". The text does not say Isaac trusted God with his finances in an economic downturn. I know, because I read it, and it doesn't say that. Isaac sowed SEED, and the Lord blessed him agriculturally. Mac implies that this means Christians should "sow" their finances (and portfolios) in the church, and they will reap God's blessings. Give to the building renovations, and God will bless and protect. This is Benny Hinn and Robert Tilton territory for sure. "Money, COME!" says Robert Tilton.

Mac then brings ten people to the platform, gives them each $1 that represents $50, which in total represents $500 net income for a person. He then separates one person out of the 10 representing the tithe and then condescendling says:

"Now here's your tithe right there. That is what you're worried about. That's what all the concern is about, that's what all the fuss, all the chatter, all the upset, all the despair, all the heartache, all the brokenness, 'I'm leaving church cause they talk about that right there.'...'Can't possibly survive because of that over there'.... Just that one little tenth that God says 'You honor me with that'....Now I want you to listen to me...why do we not tithe? Number one, because we don't trust God. We don't trust that God can take what is left over and can meet our needs with it."

So Mac is trying to close the deal here, to let people know that their failure to tithe not only will cause them to not have God's protection and blessing, but he mocks the reasons why people might not give 10%. He says they are "fussing", and "chattering" about having to give what God requirs, etc...notice he says "that one little tenth". I've said it before, but 10% to a wealthy person who has plenty of margin is not the same as 10% to a person of modest means who has little margin.

I wonder if they will get the million dollars on October 3rd. One thing we know for sure, with both mega churches and the government: if you give it, it will never be enough. They have an insatiable appetite for YOUR money, and they'll likely need more in an "emergency" again next year.

And if they get it, the likelihood of wise expenditure cuts won't happen. No need to cut inflated senior pastor salaries if they can get people to fork over more money. They can get the million, it is there, it's just that they don't want to cut where they need to cut to get it. It is so much easier to ask the plebe in the pew.

And finally, listen to exerpts from the sermon below from earlier in September, where Mac preaches out of Ezra to show the church that the Jews "took up an offering" to rebuild the temple (with new pews and carpet and wall coverings I'm sure), and Mac reminds them arrogantly that they don't get free electricity from JEA, and he gives his reasons for the auditorium renovations ("My daddy says you can at least be CLEAN!!"). At the end, Mac complains about complainers, screams to tell people to STOP YOUR GRUMBLING AND START YOUR SHOUTING.

Rebuilding the Temple from FBCJax Watchdog on Vimeo.