Should This Matter?

As I was skimming through my  Facebook page, an interesting article caught my eye.  I couldn’t resist clicking on the article because first, it was related to my hometown, Greenville SC, and second, it was on a topic that is unquestionably controversial in the Christian community.  The article, titled “With tears, John Gray defends gift to wife: no Relentless Church money used to buy Lamborghini”, was written by Mike Ellis and published December 13, 2018 by The Greenville News.

Needless to say, I was intrigued.  Pastors are to be the pillar of the community and the example for their flock.  Is this ok?  Should a pastor buy a $200K+ car for his wife?  Is it ok if the money is not from the church?  There are plenty of tough questions that confront Christians and non-Christians alike.  The comments on my Facebook page ranged from outrage to “leave him alone”.

My initial thought in reading this was disgust.  But my anger waned a bit to see the money didn’t come from money he received from the church.  However, I still feel that the situation stinks.  Let me give an example: When I open my refrigerator, everything may look fine, but if I smell something bad then I know there must be an item that has expired.  Sure enough, a closer inspection will reveal what has spoiled.  Only when I toss that item in the trash will the smell dissipate.  I feel like this situation is similar.  In fact, it reminds me of a quote from Justice Potter Stewart in his 1964 decision regarding a test for obscenity.  He basically acknowledged the difficulty of articulating exactly when a situation becomes obviously obscene and in so doing he famously wrote “But I know it when I see it.”  My initial feeling with Pastor John Gray is the same.  Technically, maybe it isn’t wrong, but it sure feels wrong.  Basically, I “know it when I see it” even if it is hard to articulate exactly where this pastor went wrong.  As a Christian, I like thinking through these tough issues but doing so biblically.  So, my questions is: what does the Bible say about this?

First, here is a little background on Pastor John Gray.  As of May 2018, John Gray took the position of lead pastor of the megachurch Relentless Church in Greenville SC (formally Redemption Church).  Before that he was, and still is, an associate pastor at Lakewood Church (Joel Osteen is lead pastor there).  Pastor John Gray has made a name for himself.  He has his 2nd book deal and stars in a reality show called “The Book of John Gray” on the OWN network which provide some of they outside income that Gray says he used for his wife’s car.  I have never seen his show so I cannot account for his personal life, but he sounds like a decent person.

So, is he wrong?  The only authority that can provide an accurate judgement is the Word of God.  I immediately thought of the passage in 1 Corinthians 10:18-33.  Here is the specific passage:

¹⁹ What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing?

²⁰ But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.

²¹ Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.

²² Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?

²³ All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.

²⁴ Let no man seek his own, but every man another’s wealth.

²⁵ Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake:

²⁶ For the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof.

²⁷ If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.

²⁸ But if any man say unto you, this is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof:

²⁹ Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man’s conscience?

³⁰ For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?

³¹ Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

³² Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:

³³ Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.

Here Paul is addressing a very similar situation: is it ok for a believer to partake in meat offered to idols?  (Ok, this doesn’t sound the same but hold on.  I’ll explain!)  The Christians that Paul was talking to had the temptation to eat meat with friends and that meat may have been offered to an idol before the meal.  On one side, Paul reminds us that everything belongs to God.  Nothing on the earth “belongs” to any person.  No person can give away something to an idol that doesn’t even belong to them in the first place.  So, for a Christian to partake in the meal wouldn’t technically be wrong.  But on the other side, when a person offers an animal to an idol as a sacrifice, they are offering it to demons.  And no one can offer to demons and to God at the same time.  You either belong to Satan or God.  There is no middle ground.  So where should a believer stand?  Verse 23 and 24 tells us!  “All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.  Let no man seek his own but every man another’s wealth.”

Paul goes on to explain that a believer can eat the food that a person gives them.  But once he finds out that the food was from a sacrifice to an idol, he shouldn’t eat of the meat.  Not because of anything wrong with the meat (as mentioned above a person could never give meat to an idol since all things on earth belong to God) but for the sake of the person offering the meat.  Paul then confronts the next logical question: why should I be judged based on the conscience of another person?  Because in everything we do, we should glorify God.  If we are offending or confusing another person, we are not glorifying God.  We shouldn’t be concerned with our profit or needs but the needs of others to bring them into the kingdom of God.

So, lets apply Paul’s logic to this contemporary situation.  Is it wrong to purchase a car for your wife?  No!  But just because it isn’t wrong, doesn’t mean that it is expedient.  Does this purchase further the kingdom of God?  Or does it send a wrong message?  Would people be turned away from Christianity?  I would argue, that this decision that Pastor John Gray made was not taking into consideration the kingdom of God.

Pastors are held to the highest of standards in the Bible.  We may not like that, but they are.  We should hold our pastors to a high standard as that is Biblical.  Sadly, today, our culture has lowered the standards placed on our leaders.  Just look at our presidents!  It is more and more common to see appalling behavior from them (such as sexual misdeeds) but we brush it under the rug and say “they are only human, just like us.”  These are the leaders of the strongest nation on the planet.  They should be the best of us!  Of course, we should understand that they will make human mistakes, but we should also expect the best behavior possible.  I feel like this attitude as slipped into our churches.  We no longer expect our pastors to be the best of us but just another one of us, but they are supposed to be leading us to a better understanding of God’s Word!

In conclusion, I see this decision by this pastor as a bad one.  It may not be technically wrong, but I think it furthers the materialism that has infiltrated our churches.  I believe many people who look at this story from the outside will not come away with a positive view of Christianity.  I think in the long run, this decision hurts the kingdom of God, not helps it!  Like I said, it just smells of something not right.  As Paul says, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God…even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.”  Furtherance of the kingdom of God should be an underlying factor in everything we do!

References:

“With tears, John Gray defends gift to wife: no Relentless Church money used to buy Lamborghini”, by Mike Ellis, published December 13, 2018 by The Greenville News.

United States Supreme Court decision Jacobellis v. Ohio 378 U.S. 184 (1964)