Pillars are Just Crutches

There is something lacking in the leadership of the charismatic church today.  Something that is fundamental to the Christian walk.  It’s been evident as Todd Bentley’s story unravels and it looks the same way for Mike Guglielmucci, that this thing is absent within charismatic Christian leadership today. However, a lot of church leaders will tell you that to live a proper Christian life without this one thing is next to impossible.

It is Accountability.

There is a story I read today that I think sums up what I want to say.  So I’m going to tell it, then I’m going to quote John Arnott who commissioned Todd Bentley in his ministry.  The difference is staggering!

The story comes out of NASCAR.  Joe Gibbs (who is a Christian) Racing was asked by NASCAR to lower their horsepower so as to even the game (Gibbs had one over 1/2 the games that season!).  And unknown to Gibbs the mechanics and technicians, rightfully angry at NASCARS decision, tried to cheat the system and ended up getting caught.  Gibbs did not blame his mechanics or engineers, he took on the blame for himself.  He said that the incident “goes against everything we stand for as an organization.” He added that “we will take full responsibility and accept any penalties NASCAR levies against us.”

A few months back John Arnott along with others went down to Florida to lay their hands on and commission Todd Bentley.  Bentley would go on stage and speak his mind, talk about angels and praise heretics of the past.  Arnott and the others were nowhere to be seen, when, seemingly out of the blue, Todd filed for separation from his wife after getting emotionally attached to another woman.

John’s response to what happened: was “Had any of us known what was just ahead, perhaps we would have been able to intervene before things went into crisis … I wanted to be available to Todd if he needed advice. I had no agenda other than to see what was happening in Lakeland continue and to see Todd nurture this revival successfully.  I wish I had known that he was struggling in his marriage, but unfortunately, I did not.”

Do you see the difference?  John thinks that because it didn’t happen to him he is clear of the event and thinks he has no connection.  However, he commissioned Todd as a leader telling the people around that this guy is a faithful follower of Jesus.

But Gibbs understood that he is accountable for the actions of his crew (of the people he commissions to work) even if he doesn’t know that those actions are taking place!

One response is godly, the other is not.  One asks for forgiveness the other raises his hands and says, “don’t look at me!”

The charismatic leaders must stand and be accountable for who they allow to speak from the front, what that person says and does.  Until then the celebrity pastor will continue to live until no one takes Christianity seriously.

There hasn’t been such a bizarre, heart-wrenching and disappointing fall within Christendom quite like Mike Guglielmucci’s in recent memory.  We’ve seen the standard falls, the crooked money deals and the hidden mistresses, but never something like this.  There’s this feeling that innocence was lost.

The recent Todd Bentley case has served as a good reference point, because people were disappointed by it but most didn’t seem hurt by it.  It’s different this time, it’s personal.  In fact, I would say to a lot of people who didn’t know Mike would consider the offense deeply personal.  People worried, prayed, and supported someone that they did not know only to find out that it was a con.

I’ve read some blogs in which the individual expresses their departure from the faith.  I’ve read through the whole range of emotions: angry, hurt, disappointed, cynical, happy … and even more.

There is no proper emotional response.  How you feel is how you feel.  It’s alright to be angry or hurt.  It’s alright to let a little bit of that naive Christian inside of you go and being a little more skeptical next time around.

Some would say that this just goes to prove what many people already know: Christianity is a scam.  This really doesn’t prove anything however.  Even if every Christian is a scam artist this saying is still not true.  Christianity is based on Jesus Christ.  His teachings, His Death, His Resurrection.  Our actions (My actions – thank God) do not effect it’s (actual) validity.  But it still effects people’s perception of it.

What can we do?

Pray.  For him, for the people who were hurt the most, for those who now think Christianity is a scam, for good to come from it.

Forgive.  This is a process.  It’s a hard, deliberate and continuous act but the alternative, bitterness, will literally make your Christian faith useless.

Talk.  Talk about it.  Talk to people who are on the fence about Christianity, talk to those hurting, just talk about it.

How can we avoid this?

Truthfully, we can’t.  My only recommendation would be to stop putting leaders on pedistals and thinking too highly of them, they are fallen and hurting just like you, just like me.

For those wondering why someone would do something like this … I think this may have some answers

The leader of the Lakeland ‘revival’, Todd Bentley, announced a couple days ago that he is separating from his wife.  He will not be leading the Lakeland ‘revival’ and in fact the ‘revival’ has gone through some turmoil because of the news.

Todd is one of the recent batch of controversial charismatic preachers who thinks very little about (or: of) theology (side note: he has no formal biblical education), is often quoted saying something silly (read: heretical), and has been noted as a ‘violent’ prayer – kicking people and knocking teeth out.

He has made favorable comments about William Branham – a charismatic preacher who (among other weird doctrine, like serpent seed) denied the Trinity and in the end of his ministry claimed to be the reincarnated Elijah! – saying (on stage) that the same angel (read: not God) that brought healing in Branham’s meetings was going to bring healing to his.

To make matters worse, GodTV, the outfit who was broadcasting his meetings from Lakeland said, “any criticism of Todd Bentley is demonic”.

WOW.

I really wonder how the charismatic community puts up with this??  Earlier this year some of the top charismatic leaders laid hands on him and commissioned him out.  And yet they let them run amok with what seems like no accountability!  Why didn’t someone say ‘STOP’ before things like this happen?  Where were those leaders who commissioned him?

We should be holding the charismatic leaders responsible!  It’s obvious that these leaders are too near-sighted to see the damaging effects of putting someone like Todd in that place.  Whatever happened to mentoring?  Slowing future leaders down, getting them understanding the Word and most importantly, making sure that they’re putting family first.  Was anyone talking to him about his doctrine?  Was anybody telling him to go home and get his family life straight?  Why would anybody let him go to Florida if they knew that his marriage was falling apart?

And ‘we didn’t know’ is not a valid answer.  Not for the leaders who commissioned him.

The Charismatic Movement needs to take a close look at itself and ask themselves some serious questions, and go through some serious reforms before they disqualify themselves because of their lack of diligence and accountability.