My Pastor Has Admitted That Our Church is a 501c3 Organization

[bluebird724]

I brought up the topic about 501c3 churches to my pastor and he knows very well about it and even wished that churches would not be 501c3 churches. I then asked him if our church was a 501c3 church and he admitted that it was, indeed, a 501c3 church.

Based from your experience, have you asked your pastor about your church's 501c3 status? What is your experience with bringing this topic up to your pastor and your church?

[strangersmind]

If your pastor is why you call him pastor? Or better yet why go to his church?   If he say no church should be 501c3 but yet is one, it should be your first clue that something is very wrong.

[bluebird724]

If your pastor is why you call him pastor? Or better yet why go to his church?   If he say no church should be 501c3 but yet is one, it should be your first clue that something is very wrong.

I definitely agree with your point, but I want to see if it's possible to convince him in regards to this. I want to also see if other people have successfully convinced their pastor or church of removing their 501c3 contract.

Worse comes to worst, if I am not able to convince him, I will leave the church. God comes first - He is second to none.

[creationliberty]

I want to also see if other people have successfully convinced their pastor or church of removing their 501c3 contract.

I have to say confidently that you did not understand my teaching on the subject. I gave an analogy to help understand the matter because you are looking at the surface symptom as the problem, instead of looking at the source of the problem. By trying to get someone to remove a 501c3 status, it ignores the problem of leaven which led to the 501c3 status in the first place, which is like trying to convince someone to wipe the mold off of their bathroom wall, when you refuse to consider that the moisture behind the wall is the source of the problem.

Wiping off the black spots on the wall will only allow the mold grow back, and wiping away 501c3 will only allow the greed and lust that man's heart to continue to permeate the church building. I would suggest you go back to the book and read the entire thing, or if you claim to have already done that, then I suggest to listen to the entire audio teaching again to try and understand the fullness of the matter so you can understand how you are addressing the wrong problem, and not only wasting your time, but endangering yourself to the same leaven of that pastor.

http://www.creationliberty.com/articles/501c3.php

[bluebird724]

Christopher, I think I found the section you were mentioning in your article. Let me quote your article here:

"Before we get into the details, it's important to note the Lord Jesus Christ told us to beware of leaven (Mat 16:6-12), and in that context, leaven is corruption of false doctrine which comes from the sin of man's heart. I want readers to understand that I know of many non-501c3, KJB churches that are leavened, or in other words, 501c3 is NOT the root of the problem; it is only a symptom of the underlying problem.

There are many people out there who read this book and decide they are going to go on some "holy crusade" against 501c3 because they foolishly believe that if you remove 501c3, the problem with church buildings will be solved. That could not be further from the truth. Those people are ignorant because they foolishly judge according to the outward appearance, instead of judging righteous judgement.
Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.
-John 7:24

In this book, we will see that 501c3 is not the source of leaven, but rather, the churchgoers and preachers got the 501c3 status because they were ALREADY leavened. Leaven comes from the hearts of men; it does NOT come from getting 501c3 status."

When I talked to my pastor in regards to the 501c3 church, he acknowledged that he knew about the subject and wished that churches would not be a 501c3, yet, his church is a 501c3. In summary, he had prior knowledge about the matter, but he did not do anything about it. In other words, would he and the church be considered leavened and a possible "lost cause"?

[creationliberty]

It's not a question of IF they would be: They ARE leavened. This man is financially benefiting from something he knows is wrong. What more do you need to know that this man is greedy of filthy lucre and extorting others to get it? If any of us Christians found out that we were doing something wrong, and financially benefiting from it, we would get out of that immediately, but this guy just sits around in it because HE DOES NOT CARE. He doesn't care because he's leavened, meaning that there is false doctrine and sin in his heart, and he has not repented of it, and therefore, since he leavened, that means the entire church building is leavened, and therefore, you will also be leavened.

A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
-Gal 5:9

This is not a game. This is the Word of God delivered to us by the Holy Ghost.

[bluebird724]

Christopher and Billy - you guys are right. I have been holding onto a tiny, glimmer of hope that if my pastor and the church learned about the 501c3 contract, they would change. But as Christopher has emphasized, my pastor and the church are leavened. My pastor has admitted to knowing about the 501c3 contract and he has done absolutely nothing about it. He has shown that money, not God, is his master.

Thank you for waking me up from my delusion - I fully understand that it's time to leave this church once and for all.