@MichelleDLesley@BaptistLeaders@Jeff_Iorg Don’t hold your breath. Don’t you know he is smarter than us and we just don’t understand? He called us voyeurs for wanting more details.
While surprised about the specifics of what occurred, I am not surprised G3 collapsed and the leadership of PMBC has resigned. Years ago I saw the arrogance of Scott Aniol and his display of a lack of wisdom and leadership. I tried on occasion to speak up but was largely ignored.
Bad news from the Pray's Mill Baptist Church/G3 orbit. The four disqualified and resigned elders (Aniol, Sikes, Norton, and Joyner) have not submitted to any sort of disciplinary process and remain unrepentant - having not actually confessed to their actual sins but rather an invented narrative designed to spin the public narrative in their favor and minimize the indefensible harm they attempted to perpetrate. All four have reportedly stopped attending/participating at PMBC and are attending other churches, in direct violation of the bylaws they have historically enforced against their own membership.
Norton is reportedly attending a PCA church (honestly, I'm surprised they all haven't switched to Presby considering their brand of "Baptist"). The other three are reportedly attending nearby Ramah Baptist Church, where the G3 director of operations, @LaramieMinga, is a pastor. Most disturbingly, Ramah Baptist Church lead pastor @CharlesHuckaby has reportedly gone to PMBC to convince their deacons that these still-unrepentant former elders are not disqualified from pastoral ministry. Considering the four have yet to actually admit to what they've done, this is nothing but naked, shameless gaslighting.
To recap, these four men conspired to destroy a fellow pastor and friend (and shatter the unity of a church) by laundering bogus AI-generated accusations of pastoral plagiarism via anonymous mailings. They hatched a plan to deceive recipients into thinking the mailings came from their friend's church by using fake return labels and wearing latex gloves to conceal their identities. When discovered and confronted, they slandered and lied to brothers who confronted them, and shamelessly gaslit the flock under their care regarding the actual circumstances of their sin. They hid the truth from G3 ministry partners, churches, and subscribers, dodged repeated requests to meet and reconcile, and spun the situation by releasing a fake narrative "apology" letter before every meeting with the church they tried to destroy.
None of this has changed to this day. Rather, these men and their friends continue to abuse the trust of the good saints at PMBC and heap shame and dishonor on the name of our Lord and Savior with their ongoing and shameless rebellion.
Charles, on what basis can you possibly have argued before PMBC deacons that Amiol, Sikes, Joyner, and Norton are not manifestly disqualified from eldership?
@DineshDSouza In the parable of the sower, 3 of the 4 soils resisted irresistible grace and it was their response that caused them not to produce. If the 4th soil was the only one predestined, why didn’t the sower just put the seed there?
@jasonkovacs I don't intend this to be rude or disrespectful, but I don't know of anyone "in the world" (assuming this means nonbelievers) that will look at a pastor taking a sabbatical and view it as rest in the image of God. It will only be viewed as a long vacation.
@JeffreyPWiesner Did Martyn Lloyd Jones ever work outside full time ministry? This is not a true statement. The professions mentioned do not shut down and go away. Many still work on vacation.
@ostrachan As a layman, I disagree. The secular workforce is also a grind and has gotten more complex in recent years-without sabbaticals. The congregation, funding the sabbatical, has to go right back to work on Monday morning. Pastors need to be able to relate to the congregation.
@DineshDSouza I’ve been watching these debates for the last few days. I find it interesting that almost without exception, it seems that those from the reformed community constantly try to recommend books to read to understand their position. None of those books, however, are the Bible.
@DineshDSouza Why do Calvinists beat themselves up over their sin? God tells us “there is now no condemnation“. What father who adopts a child wants that child for the rest of their life tell them how unworthy they were of adoption. Repent? Yes. Follow on our face in despair. No.
@LostMyHats The Reformed Pietist train others to be a Reformed Pietist. They decide how non-Reformed Pietist’s should think, act, worship. They call their standards “biblical” implying anything but what they say is non-biblical. Pride and arrogance has been there for years.