Crisis at Bobby Welch's (Former SBC President) Church

1.5% of the church is holding meetings, circulating petitions, and answering phone interviews in the local paper. The pastor, the footsteps he follows, and his recent changes may not be the only problems here.

 

When is trouble in a church ever blamed on the people. Gossip can start a huge fire and destroy many lives. Many people were resistant to Jesus. I know a pastor who was pastoring a church which grew from about 75 to almost 600 in six years. The entire time he was there the deacons gave him trouble because they did like the new people coming in the door. The new people were new Christians.

You are right that following a long term pastor does not have to be a short term situation. Most of the time it is. It happens too often because the church wants a miracle working pastor and when it does not happen they do not like it. Most people do not accept others and do not like change even if it good. Our entire life is about change. We age and our bodies change. Our wisdom and walk with God should be changing. A person who refuses to change is a grump. A church I went to a few years ago planned for the pastor's retirement six years in advance by bringing on an assistant pastor to fill the place of the senior pastor once he retires. Gradually the assistant was given more and more the responsibility of the senior pastor. With the blessing of the senior pastor when he retired the assistant became the senior pastor. Things exploded after that. The church grew quite rapidly and is continuing to grow. When you walk in the door you know that the church is serious about ministry.

Sometime look at www.ctkonline.com and see how serious that church is about reaching people. It is less than eight years old. The pastor came from a fundamental Bible believing church that was led by pew warmers and asked him to leave. About three years later he started a new church and it has been growing at a rapid pace. When you walk in that place if you are not serious about ministry and reaching people you will either get on fire or go somewhere else. People’s lives are transformed and the place radiates Christ. Take a look at how many church they have planted since they began. The number is staggering.

Ministry is a team effort and too many churches are focused on programs and not the personal responsibility of doing ministry. Pastoring is never a one man band. That pastor had the blessing of a group of people to be able to spend so much money. If churches would be up front about their spending they might not be able to run wild so easily.

 

Sad to watch because Christ's name is dragged thru the mud.

 

I think you hit the nail on the head there, and it is not just at this church that this is taking place in and has taking place in. All across the SBC churches are being held captive by the will of the minority, and i think a lot of pastors are run off by only a handful of people while the majority refuse to speak up.

 

Ah, yes........ the wonders of "The Purpose-Driven Church." Drive out the seniors, bring in the drums.

 

David Cox submitted his resignation last night.
http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?ID=24835

 

Please...



forgive me...this was the widest brush I could find. Hope it's broad enough.

 

It seems a statesmanlike statement that recognizes reality and is aimed toward healing. I have no doubt that Brother Cox will find a new call. I applaud him for not leading a "rump" group out to start a competitive church. But what a task lies ahead for an interim pastor! The hostilities generated in a situation like this do not go away readily. I can envision some folks leaving anyway.

I was amused, though, that BP just could not resist doing a little marketing at the end of the article, reminding the reader that the FAITH strategy not only originated at FBC Daytona Beach, but also that it is available at Lifeway, etc.! It is an ill wind indeed that blows no one some good.

 

Happens each week through the SBC state gossip (slander) papers and the majority see it as information and not for what it is.

 

It is all over and not just in the SBC. When is the last time that people let the authority be the authority. It is happening among teachers when students are asked to evaluate their professors. It is a well known fact that teachers who make their students work hard do not receive as favorable of evaluations as those who are easy. It is also true among parents. When a child gets a high grade the parents think of the teacher as a better teacher than from those who grade harder and expect more.

 

I ifnd it interesting that FBC Dallas, Bellevue Baptist and FBC Daytona Beach have all had serious problems.

 

All I see is GOSSIP!

 

So true, but he didn't ruffel as many feathers or as quickly as Cox.

 

An excellent rule.

It is true of any organization, school, or corporation -- never take the job of a long-term, well loved individual. The new person will always receive criticism as they are not exact clones of the person who left the job.

 

Forgive me for being dense...but two things come to mind:

1. Why resurrect a 3 year-old thread?
2. Why air a church's issues out in a forum like this? If one has a problem with that church...shouldn't it be handled in house? Is it really our place to hash out a church's isues in public?

 

Personally I've experienced it and many times I've seen it. Follow a well loved and respected long time serving pastor and you may be in for a rough time. The old time membership who worshiped the former pastor, most likely, would even be critical even if Jesus, Himself, came to be their new pastor.

 

Having never seen the inside of a Masonic Lodge, can someone tell me what that statement means?

 

Used to hold services in an old lodge. When we first walked in it was still set up from the last meeting that had happened years earlier. And I still do not know what that means.