David Platt T he year-long legal fight between McLean Bible Church and a faction who accused leaders including David The year-long legal fight between McLean Bible Church and a faction who accused leaders including David Platt of a theological takeover has come to an end. OnJune 30, the church held a members meeting to vote on affirming three new elders. McLean Bible Church Is Fighting Back Against Radical Pastor To enjoy our website, you'll need to enable JavaScript in your web browser. A group of critics that runs a Facebook group called Save McLean Bible Church claimed that church leaders had substituted critical race theory and social justice for biblical teaching. It wasnt long before he became a nationally prominent preacher and Bible teacher. We were historically a conservative church and David is left of center hes taken our church down paths we never anticipated. Pastor expresses sympathy for church members 'hurt For now, David Platt has won the battle against internal ", "Families and friendships and congregations and countless other foundational parts of our lives have been upended and changed in ways that have been both painful and disorienting," Burnett added. Following the first failed election, a second election was held in early July 2021, this one where members had to sign their ballots which critics said violated the church practice of using secret ballots. We are voting again so that the entire body of MBC has an opportunity to speak into this critical moment in the life of our church, the church said in a statement on their website about the first election. Some church members who had been attending online rather than in person claimed their ballots had been disqualified. These are claims as the judge noted that are not theological or doctrinal but squarely in the realm of processa process guaranteed in the contract of the McLean Bible Church constitution. A religious liberty newsletter that is a must-read for people of faith. They will stop at nothing to force individuals back into a time when everyone noticed race and judged others based on their physical attributes. The pastor was among many who participated in protests against police brutality following the 2020 death of George Floyd. The elimination of the secret ballot will likely subject these staff persons to discipline up to and including termination and being publicly dismissed from the Church fellowship at the hands of the powerful Board of Elders, who should this Court not intervene will know, to a person, how each member and staff person voted, the disgruntled members argued. What did David Platt know and when did he know it? Praying for the remnant. The fight to restore free and fair elections for all members of MBC will move forward. All rights reserved. COVID-19 also played a role. What are the connections between the North American Mission Board and McLean Bible Church leaders? It does not store any personal data. We are more equipped than any other people in our culture to think about these issues. Various posts on the Facebook groups page imply that Platt and other church leaders represent forces of evil seeking to destroy the church. Recently disgruntled members of the church have begun speaking out against Platt and his woke leadership. He was senior pastor at the Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama, from 2006 to 2014. Pastor David Platt preaches at McLean Bible Church, July 18, 2021, in Vienna, Virginia. Remember God goes before you. Stay strong. We hope you will! Pastors announced the outcome across its locations on Sunday. Thursday, July 15, five McLean members filed amotion for injunctive reliefagainst MBC claiming that Platt and other leaders illegally prevented them from voting at the most recent congregational meeting. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". I think about a group in our church that just went through a multi-week journey where they were diving into all these different kinds of issues together, and people sharing passionate disagreements with each other, with tears, borne out of a lot of personal experience and even hurt, but they were listening to each other. To no surprise to anyone, the elders put up by David Platt and the MBC leadership win in a landslide, one post remarked. While the DC-area congregation celebrates getting to move forward, critics continue to accuse leadership of a liberal takeover. David Platt preaches at McLean Bible Church in June. T he year-long legal fight between McLean Bible Church and a faction who accused leaders including David Platt of a theological takeover has come to an end. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. At age 26, Platt became the pastor of one of the largest churches in the state of Alabama, in the heart of SBC country. At the time he was Return to homepage. The Cult of Bart Barber has a home on Facebook. Every time this lawsuit has been filed or amended or refiled, it has resulted in a dismissal, he said. Pastor Diego MesaPastor Diego Mesa is the Senior Pastor of Abundant Living Family Church in Rancho Cucamonga, California. "The biblical gospel exalts Jesus above everything in this world," Platt said. Courts arent often the ones to adjudicate matters of church bylaws, but Sarah Merkle, an attorney and professional parliamentarian, told CT in 2021 the incident highlights the importance in any church of establishing and following sound voting procedures. Sign up for our newsletter: At McLean, this dispute spilled over into the election of elders. Is It Biblical to Seek to Influence Culture? In a lawsuit to defend the voting rights of members of McLean Bible Church, the dissident conservative members won a victory before a Fairfax Circuit Court judge Friday, December 3, 2021. He is the author of the New York Times Best Seller Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream. McClean Bible Church Pastor David Platt addresses his congregation on July 4, 2021. "Why He allowed it, we don't understand, but we know that God has the final say.". We are not an event. David Platt is not just a three-time New York Times bestselling author, he is the former president of the Southern Baptist Conventions International Mission Board Back in 2018, Platt was interviewed on hisdecisionto repent for racial blindness. I look at my life and ministry and, in so many ways, my world has been so white, he stated just because we have a 106 different nations doesnt mean we are pursuing the kind of diversity and community that God designs for us to., It was clear from the beginning that Platt would be bringing a political agenda with him while he was preaching the gospel. In that election, the elders were approved, which led dissident members to file a lawsuit. [3][4], He served at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary as Dean of Chapel and Assistant Professor of Expository Preaching and Apologetics. Your daily news briefing from the editors of CT. John Ortbergs Church Announces New Investigation, Steven Curtis Chapman Ranked Alongside George Strait and Madonna. Covid-19 also played a role. Nothing has been forthcoming up to the date Defendant filed its Motion for Plea in Bar nearly a full year since this action commenced.". Its time for the church to lean into these issues with our Bibles open and to see the beauty of the gospel come to bear on a church that for centuries has been divided according to the color of our skin. Im incredibly grateful for the courage of our church in staying together and persevering, in pursuing peace in ways that required numerous steps of faith, and for trusting God all the way through to the actual dismissal of the lawsuit, said Wade Burnett, a lead pastor at MBC. As weve noted in other reports, discovery is the thing that scares Big Evangelical leadership the most. [6] At age 27, he became the youngest megachurch pastor in the United States. Some church leaders and supporters claimed the critics behaved in unethical ways in spreading rumors and rounding up inactive members to come back to church to vote against the slate of elders. The lawsuit can move forward with the court applying neutral principles of law to the dispute over McLean Bible Churchs Constitution. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. [9] In September of that year, Platt was introduced as pastor-teacher of McLean Bible Church. 2023 Baptist News Global. He knows something about trials and tribulations, but his new book focuses instead on joy. I thought there was more to Jesus than this. I really wanted to write a book to say, to shout, There is! Its way past time for us to turn the tide on that history., The modern church is better equipped to tackle this challenge than many believe, he asserts. David Platt preaches at McLean Bible Church in June. Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. Ephesians 6:12.. He knows something about trials and tribulations, but his new book focuses instead on joy. Senior Pastor | ALFC - Abundant Living Family Church On Friday, a Fairfax County, Virginia, judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by dissident members of McLean Bible Church who sought to overturn the results of an election for church leaders, known as elders. "The final step in the Plan for Lawsuit Resolution involved pursuing the actual dismissal of the lawsuit in light of the church's clear desire to move forward under the leadership of the new board. Pastor and author David Platt says in a new book that too many Christians have bought into a political-centric false gospel that has led to discouragement and division within the church and has pushed younger generations away from Christianity. Thousands of our brothers and sisters in Christ have left our congregation, some slipping away quietly, with over a hundred writing letters to the Elders as they went. According to a church census released in 2018, it claimed a weekly attendance of 10,510 people and 5 campuses in different cities. We are pleased that the Court is allowing this case to move forward. David Platt: Too Many Christians Worship the 'False Gospel' of McLean Bible Church is a cooperating church with the Southern Baptist Convention, yet like all Southern Baptist churches, remains independent and autonomous in its functionality and governance. Tysons; Arlington; Loudoun; Montgomery County; Prince William; About. I wanted to share some of my own personal journey of how being in, leading and being a part of a multiethnic church with a lot of different brothers and sisters from different backgrounds and different perspectives, and leading alongside people from a variety of different backgrounds and perspectives, has been so eye-opening and so helpful for me. Wade Burnett, a pastor on McLeans leadership team, said the congregation decided to move forward together in a difficult time. To some ultra-conservatives, the mere mention of Black Lives Matter is a sign of liberalism, while other conservative evangelicals take a more holistic approach that sees systemic racism as a reality that defies even conservative biblical teaching. The Board announced a euphemistically-titled 'Plan for LawsuitResolution.' Approved by a substantial majority of the church, that plan included the resignation and a re-vote for the three elders. ", The church says it made efforts to resolve the complaint and invited the plaintiffs to pursue "Christian mediation and reconciliation." A lawsuit has been dismissed against McLean Bible Church in suburban If David Platt was upset in July, just wait for the next couple of months. Leadership apologizes for lack of transparency that eroded trust. (Clockwise from top left to right) Recently elected McClean Bible Church elders, Chuck Hollingsworth, Ken Tucker and Jim Burris. McLean Bible Church I know that many churches across America have faced and are facing similar challenges during these days, and it is vitally important that we move past division and live out John 13:35, demonstrating love for one another and love for a world in need of Jesus.. All active members were allowed to vote. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title.
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