harvest bible church scandalharvest bible church scandal

With so much gaslighting going on and public take-downs of those who would speak truth to power, and your investment in the church industrial complex, I can imagine how difficult it wouldve been to speak out publicly at the time of your leaving. 35The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. Well said Lina. Yet their silence hurt me and sometimes made me question the validity of my reasons for leaving. | Photo: Harvest Bible Chapel Facebook The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability has suspended Chicago-area megachurch Harvest Bible Church following the firing of its longtime pastor James MacDonald and amid ongoing revelations that the ministry had misappropriated funds. Until recently, I thought I had escaped my fear by leaving Harvest, but I was still afraid. In Jesus precious name. Its so fitting that you likened the pain at Harvest to the pain of a divorce. 1. Prevent these types of money exchange corporations, Both of us were involved in many forms of leadership and had invested for many years in the outreach of the church and all of its fellowship. I appreciate the Biblical distinction you made Sheila, in relation to the Bible calling us to be good ; which doesnt always mean being kind and nice. As Gods word says it would. These changes were never made, but the critics were silencedfor a time. Persecution is supposed to come from the world with the devil behind it, as Jesus said. 7. The pastor of that church,John Secrest, said he would be uncomfortable with MacDonald preaching at his church and asked Harvest to sever their affiliation. Thank you for sharing your story and for doing so in the right spirit. No matter what everyone else says, it does take courage to say something. see My Dream Church https://sites.google.com/site/mydreamchurch/, I would love to chat and learn more of what you are doing. Thank you for your openness and sharing! Torn between right and wrong. The two entities released separate statements detailing the results of the process, which went through the Institute for Christian Conciliation. Fear is dead life a remnant of Satan. I was there when Ted launched. My blog had indirectly undermined James. In addition, what was shared now, may have been heard better now, then it would have been heard before Lina left Harvest. I chose to believe the Bible and Gods promises. Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world. The Spirit has shown me that Church, the Body of called out believers are those Christians you meet with. Perhaps the Holy Spirit prompted Lina to share from the HEART. I continue to pray for the people this has affected, the elders and pastors, and that the darkness will be continually exposed to the light. Ross, Ross, than submission to leaders Still, even I knew when enough was enough. I am so glad Lina has spoken up. Thank you for being honest and speaking truth. Thank you. Love my bible sisters. The reason there are spiritual Pol Pots that number in the thousands like our friend James McDonald is because men are happy to give themselves authority. I too visited Harvest. For years, I kept believing the deception fed to the congregation by the elders. This was encouraging to read and I hope others take it to heart. Everyone sat still as if he mentioned chocolate milk. Church Online is a place for you to experience God and connect with others. Laurie Newman, a Harvest member, told Christianity Today that she believes the church's current leaders, like Bradshaw, are "good people who want to lead the church the way God wants it to. The problem was not so much the pastor but the members that lived worldly. On January 7, 2019, Harvest elders announced they decided to drop the lawsuit against Julie Roys and four other individuals. Im about to lead a teaching tomorrow night about the mark God placed on Cain after he killed his brother Abel. If so Id be in agreement but again- this is not a political post. Lina isnt hanging Harvest Bible Chapel. Sarah, I am so sorry for whatever happened to you. There are dozens if not hundreds of witnesses against many Elders at Harvest all saying the same thing. I do not think the solution is replacing the pastor and associates with a new administration. But are they? During his sabbatical, MacDonald had planned to preach at the. I also dont know why it took me five years to leave, but now Ive been at a true Bible preaching, Jesus exulting church, not too far from the RM campus. Even if the criticism in the letter had been unwarranted, this response is a huge red warning sign. The abuse I suffered first hand and working through the realizations and implications of that abuse have been traumatic. Although he denied stabbing the photo, MacDonald said, I may have put my knife up against it or into it.. Those of us that have experienced spiritual abuse and church hurt personally can truly resonate with your story. I was so surprised to read that you were afraid because you seem like such a strong and confident person. Each former leader that speaks out helps us heal and validates our experience. Only time will tell whether Harvest can outlive its founding pastorand the scandal that has enveloped both him and his elder board. It was an extremely long and difficult decision to finally leave (we did our best to leave peacefully with the good of Christs church in mind) knowing very well that our reputations and many of our friendships we had there would be severely if not permanently damaged. 2.) Their letter covered MacDonalds self-promotionlove of moneydomineering and bullying abusive speech[and] outbursts of anger.. Do not judge the timing, Gods timing is Always Perfect. I questioned a particular sermon that clearly was unbiblical but no one else did. It was love at first sight!! In addition to leading Harvest, MacDonald acquired a massive evangelical following through his books, Bible studies, and Walk in the Word radio program, with more than a million fans on Facebook. My last complaint. The Scripture that came to me as I read this is I Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment. He kept telling me that I didnt understand authority and I was in rebellion. God is faithful, and He is doing what needs to be done to protect His bride. While every major financial decision was supposed to be examined and approved by the churchs eldersand it was claimed that this was casethis was not actually happening. I think God has not lifted the veil on a lot of eyes for some reason. Mike was genuinely shocked when we told him our son had Paxton as a camp counselor for whole week at Camp Harvest and we never received notice as HBC falsely told Daily Herald. This is why Jesus did not come to this present church environment. Harvest Bible Chapel of Naples, whose leadership recently turned over after scandal rocked its Chicago parent megachurch, is the most . May God have mercy on his soul. They made excuses for him. Im grateful that the sin of James and the elders/staff who allowed his tyranny to prosper is finally coming to light, so that the abuse can come to an end. Praying for you, many blessings for all you do. I was mortified. Your sincere desire to move us further in our relationship with Jesus Christ. My first two books were scheduled to be released smack in the middle of that summer, and I didnt want to impact their potential not to mention that James had agreed to write the forward on my first book.. Then, on February 8th, Roys revealed material obtained under subpoena that backed up critics claims that Harvest Bible Chapel inappropriately took money from HBF. Ive been asked, what would I do if I were still on staff. Thats when eight former elders sent a letter to the sitting elder board, warning them that MacDonald was disqualified for office, she said in a response posted Wednesday. I am so inspired to see you today. James MacDonald (born October 4, 1960) is a Canadian-born evangelical Christian pastor, television evangelist, and author. But, the truth is, I am ashamed to say, I should have left much sooner. He went recently, saying the time had come. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand., And even JMac was right when he quoted 1 Corinthians 16:13: Church is of the world. Hoping you come back and teach a book of the Bible. Now you can stop going to church altogether and free your mind from religious delusion. There were several close family deaths, lost our home, business and more. Many were kicked out and shown the door. Excited for the new study, hoping One of your teachings would be chosen. I guess I felt like one of the peons of Harvest, and that me reaching out wouldnt matter, since I was not a part of the inner circle or personally close to you. In Christian arbitration, the preacher was granted $1.45 million and the rights to Walk in the Word. There are people there I thought were my friend and as soon as my life takes a left turn and happens out of order (first came baby then came marriage and then another baby) I get ousted out and judged and hurt. Then God led him to Harvest Bible Chapel. Or share it. And yet, I stayed. I have never attended Harvest. perfect response and reminiscent of what scripture teaches. After telling us that the elder board always made every decision by full consent, we learned that the former head of the elder board found out about major church initiatives from his seat in the congregation. Lina, this took courage and Im glad you said it. No Celebrities Except Jesus: How Asbury Protected the Revival, Southern Baptist Convention Disfellowships Saddleback Church, After Pushing for UMC Unity, Former Bishop Joins New Denomination, After Chaos and Crisis, Beth Moore Still Finds Refuge in the Church, With Gossip of the Gospel, the Church Grows in Nepal. The ungodly jockying for power and control is still an issue in all our churches. Did you realize elders and pastors are personally apologizing g to people? The Bible even says Truth shall set you free. Youre sharing your story and I think those who have been hurt by HBC (including me) needs to hear these stories. I dont appreciate you getting political this has nothing to do with it.. Are you referring to the Democratic Party? Hes my brother in Christ. I was so dissappointed to hear that she left. There would be major issues involving James, followed by a carefully worded elder update or a carefully scripted announcement in church. Its true, Anonymous, we have no right to predict the eternal destiny of even the worst of sinners, for God longs to show mercy and grant repentance to all. Nellie, But I hope the healing can begin, and I hope the abuse will stop.. Superior to whom? May the love of Jesus Christ and his peace flood over you this day! Your sister in Christ in Auburn, Indiana. Gods timing is always perfect. If you read the history and understand the public record of offenses at Harvest (with many more than the requisite two or three witnesses), you will understand why this is not only completely justified, but actually necessary to the restoration of healing and good order to Christs Body. From elders (Dave Corning, Jon Gaus, The Elephant Debt etc) to nobodies one by one we were all ignored and in many cases bullied. Oh Kristy, Thank you so much for expressing exactly what I am feelingsuch sorrow, such heartbreaking sorrow. That is, so many think that the church is the pastors ministry and they dont adequately facilitate the ministry of believers. After leaving Harvest no one from the church reached out to me to see how I was doing, to ask why I left. Thank you for sharing. Can you imagine how God feels when he sees his churches ( all denominations, we are in this together). Do you remember how Jesus acted towards the money changers and false shepherds? Long story short he kicked my husband and I out of the church. What would Jesus do? OnFebruary 13, the elders announcedJames MacDonald had been fired. The 60-year-old pastor called on his former church to confess its wrongs and correct the record. At my former church, I reached the point where I couldnt, in good conscience, stay because of the amount of bull-headed spiritual abuse that was going on combined with covering-up of sexual abuse. While I am personally removed from the situation, my brother and sister-in-law attend a Harvest Church and there has been a lot of pain through all of this. With my life and schedule, my friends are few and far between, and have always been aware that my saying anything publicly about Harvest or James would jeopardize those friendships that I still love and value so much. And it wasnt just some random bloggers saying these things, either.

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