I flinch every time I see reference to “Life Group.” The New Calvinists coined that term for their small group meetings where members are indoctrinated with reformed theology (not much “life” in that!). The NeoCals were also the first to come up with the title “Lead Pastor.” These were early red flags that you had stumbled into an SBC church or church plant under the stealth and deception of the new reformers. Other religious groups are now using those terms – I guess they are cool or something. Of course, the dead giveaway that you are in a NeoCal church is the preponderance of ESV Bibles; it’s the sword of choice by this bunch (while the regular ESV is harmless enough, the ESV Study Bible is loaded with Calvinist commentary by Piper and assorted other NeoCal idols).

But to stay on topic … every organization eventually takes on the personality of its leader. So, I’m not surprised that church staff/members would participate in this deception.

Regarding Lakepointe: “If this teaching or movement is merely human it will collapse of its own accord” (Acts 5:38)

“ We communicated the study to our leaders at our
Rockwall campus and encouraged our staff team to
utilize the patterns that would be measured.”- Chris Barkley.

(I googled him. He is one of the pastors at Lakepointe.) …. Encouraged our staff team to utilize the patterns that would be measured.” ~was that an ooops? That statement itself is almost telling staff to be ‘misleading’.

They try to hide the fact that they are Southern Baptists, they make plans to create a fake traffic jam…..
What else are they fakin’??? (I don’t think 3rd time will be the charm on this one.)

** “That decision was made without knowledge by senior executive leadership at Lakepointe and the sign-up list was immediately taken down as we were made aware of what occurred,” Tim Smith, senior executive pastor, said in an emailed statement. **

How puffed-up with vanity is the concept of “senior executive leadership”. Leadership, senior leadership, executive leadership, senior executive leadership … what’s the next step up?

I wonder if they ever go wash the feet of the toddler-nursery volunteers?

Stay home Sunday! Save 10 percent!

For a little local flavor on your trip there you can read all about Pastor James Flanders of Calvary Emerald Coast. There is even a Dateline episode about it.

One could view this as a hilarious (in a bad way) example of “Nehemiah mode prayer”: pray to God about the matter that concerns you, and then form and implement a plan.

At least they didn’t pull any beards out to induce participation in the driving shifts.

Max: is done, it just hasn’t quit ye

This brings to mind the Eric Hoffer quote: “Every great cause begins as a movement, becomes a business, and eventually degenerates into a racket.”

Perhaps there really is a “Problem of wineskins.” Of course, fermentation of grape juice, even if it doesn’t burst the container, can lead to vinegar instead of wine.

Max,

I wonder how many of these undercover SBC churches got start-up money and assistance from the NAMB?

And we have yet another example of Christians = Liars.

Nancy2(aka Kevlar): dee, the very first time I ever flew, I was all alone and had to change planes at the Dallas/Ft. airport.
That day, I saw all of Dallas I ever want to see.

Same here.
I had to change planes to a DIFFERENT terminal. In an airport about the size of Greater Los Angeles.

Saw all of Dallas I ever wanted to see, and I didn’t ever get out of the terminal!
Never got to see the Rich Guys’ Megachurches who inspired GCB

Nancy2(aka Kevlar): They try to hide the fact that they are Southern Baptists

Just like the KGB-organized Front Groups of the Cold War.

Smith did not address questions about why church staff, including the pastor of the Rockwall campus and another longtime leader

Reminds me of the incident that got Dee to start this blog.

When a paid intern at the church Dee and I were attending got arrested for sex with boys from the church, suddenly all the interns became volunteers. Paid volunteers with W2s at the end of the year but no longer interns. So all the church communications after the arrest were about a “volunteer”, not an “intern”. Which made it appear he was not on the payroll.

That little change had a big impact on me and my understanding of a lot of people at that church.

When hands are discovered in the cookie jar, make sure you word things to hide the associates involved in the cookie theft.

I live in Dallas having moved here from Northen Virginia, just outside the corruption of DCI love it! Finding a good church anywhere is hard, it seems to me. Park Cities Baptist Church is one. Egalitarian, non SBC(Texas Baptist Conference), mainly Arminian, and preaching the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ.
Anyway, some of us love Dallas!

Grainne McDonald: preaching the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ

After fighting NeoCal aberrant theology in the blogosphere for years, that is so refreshing to hear!

“Lead Pastor of Creative” [huh?] is his title.

Jerome,
Yeah, me too…. Huh, what? LOL! How does that title make sense?
But, I do think they left a word out. The man’s title should read, “Lead Pastor of Devilishly Creative”.

“ positively impact” = having tax payers foot the bill will be to OUR benefit!

NC Now: Paid volunteers with W2s at the end of the year but no longer interns. So all the church communications after the arrest were about a “volunteer”, not an “intern”. Which made it appear he was not on the payroll.

“Is no Slaves in Russia. Here we call it Servitude.”
— One of the Tsars

Max: IMO, the American church started going South when it felt a need to entertain the masses rather than lead them to the altar … when fools built platforms over altars so “pastors” would have more room to strut their stuff.

They never had an altar to begin with. No non-liturgical church uses an altar. Too Romish.
(Weird to have Altar Calls without an actual altar…)
Instead of an altar, they had a pulpit for preaching which focused a spotlight on the Preacher. Replacing the nonexistent altar with a full stage is just an expansion of that; Pastor’s Pulpit grows to envelop all before the audience pews, what liturgical churches call the Sanctuary. And then come the zip lines and fog machines to add more and more impact..

I read the article Julie Roys posted about this and made the mistake of scrolling all the way down to the comments. Predictably, there were a couple folks there shouting about how great Lakepointe is, and its rapid growth shows that God is working mightily there, and this incident and the recent criticism of Josh Howerton are attacks of the devil. I don’t get it. Personally, if my church was large enough to need its own stoplight, that would give me pause. Whose glory is that giant performance venue *ahem* sorry, worship center, really for, anyway?

Headless Unicorn Guy: They never had an altar to begin with.

The “altar” in traditional SBC churches are/were the steps leading up from the congregation to the pulpit platform; some churches had benches at the front of the church. Southern Baptists of old used to kneel and pray there – they prayed for lost family/friends, for healing, for God to intervene in desperate situations, etc. I frequented those altars in former years.

Nancy2(aka Kevlar): The more entertaining, the bigger the masses; the bigger the masses, the bigger the tithe and offering totals; the bigger the tithe and offering totals, the bigger the paychecks …

“There is a great harvest, Jesus told them, but only a few are working in it … Now go on your way. I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Don’t carry a purse or a pair of shoes … Whatever town you go into and the people welcome you, eat the meals they give you … How fortunate you are to see what you are seeing! I tell you that many prophets and kings have wanted to see what you are seeing but they never saw it, and to hear what you are hearing but they never heard it.” (Luke 10)

21st century church leadership knows little about this level of commitment to preaching the Gospel. Many just don’t get it. They have exchanged the blessing to worship The Great God Entertainment. The limelight is more important than the Light.

Muff Potter: It’s the American way.

But it shouldn’t be the church way.

Max,

Lakepointe wasn’t a new startup with a hidden affiliation. It was previously called Lake Pointe Baptist Church and was originally in nearby Rowlett; it has been affiliated with SBC from its origin. It moved to Rockwall after the pastor of nearby Church on the Rock, Larry Lea, was exposed in an ABC special (along with W.V. Grant and Robert Tilton); when that church started shrinking while Lake Pointe was growing, the churches swapped properties.

Mark R,

Thanks for the history on Lakepointe, Mark. Whew, that corner of Texas produced some real ministry characters!

Nancy2(aka Kevlar): But, the Opry is probably more moral, honest, and wholesome than some of these churches. Another ‘but’ – most of the church musicians, singers and pastor-comedians could never cut the mustard at the Ryman.

Like everything else creative or artistic, “CHRISTIAN(TM)” means third- and fourth-rate knockoffs with Bible Verses and long prayers as a topcoat of paint.

CHRISTIANESE COUNTERFEITS of the Real Thing.

Max: The “altar” in traditional SBC churches are/were the steps leading up from the congregation to the pulpit platform; some churches had benches at the front of the church.

And these HUGE Trendy Magas and Gigas don’t even have that.

Nancy2(aka Kevlar): But, the Opry is probably more moral, honest, and wholesome than some of these churches. Another ‘but’ – most of the church musicians, singers and pastor-comedians could never cut the mustard at the Ryman.

I’d go to the Opry six-ways to Sunday before I’d ever set foot in one of those ‘churches’.

NC Now: A church email asking people to CHEAT in their daily interactions with their community, which really means lie, is a total fail in the point of being a Christian church.

Deception is not a fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Max: What is most disturbing to me about this is that a “church” would even come up with an idea like this! … that it would be an OK thing to do! … that there are “pastors” who don’t have a problem with it!

Not only don’t have a problem, but signed right up and went all in on the scheme.

“If they cheat on this, they are cheating on something else. What is it?”

I have a feeling that we haven’t heard the last yet about the ministers and ministries at Lakepointe.

Max,

The so called “regular” ESV is in two non-harmless versions – the lying Grudem version and the worse lying Grudem version.

Michael in UK: The so called “regular” ESV is in two non-harmless versions – the lying Grudem version and the worse lying Grudem version.

worth repeating for you folks out there considering a new Bible purchase

Headless Unicorn Guy: “The more they Virtue-Signal their Righteousness, the more Corrupt they are.”

Some of those who preach the hardest about a specific sin are eventually exposed an engaged in the same sin (e.g., Ted Haggard).

Michael in UK:
Jerome,

Isn’t God a creator?

And in a lot of Evangelical Theology, God is the ONLY Creator.
The only One who is Permitted to Create. Anything.
The rest of us?
“WE ARE ONLY THE CREATURE. HE! IS!! THE!!! CREEEE!!!! AAAAAA!!!!! TORRRR!!!!!!”
And because God is THE CREEEEEE-AAAAAAA-TORRRRRRR, nobody else can be allowed to create anything.

R’as al Ghul: Though interestingly, if we are Imago Dei, then we have the ability to create. Not something from nothing, but we have been creating things using raw materials and other things since we first appeared.

Which point was made by Mormon SF author Orson Scott Card in an interview many years ago.
To him, Imago Dei MEANT the ability to Create – “We’re MEANT to be Creators”.
But he’s a Mormon, so he doesn’t count.

And because God is THE CREEEEEE-AAAAAAA-TORRRRRRR, nobody else can be allowed to create anything.

This is itself a specific application of the general Worm Theology principle “Because GOD must have the Greatest Importance, nothing else can have ANY Importance whatsoever.”

Making God into a Cosmic Lord Farquar from Shrek (an achondroplasic dwarf) who Hath Decreed that all in his realm shall have their legs amputated so Nobody can ever be taller than their Lord.

Max:
“If they cheat on this, they are cheating on something else. What is it?”

I have a feeling that we haven’t heard the last yet about the ministers and ministries at Lakepointe.

I would love to see what a forensic accountant would turn up if he looked over their books.