The 9Marx Toolkit that Every Elder Board Needs!

Posted on by June 6, 2025avatar

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Galations 5:1 RSV

“I’ve read some of the 9Marks writings and some of these ideas are troublesome to me. I am concerned that while the basic principles may seem to work as a guideline for good and decent shepherds, they also may give license to those pastors who are heavy-handed in authority and ruling over their congregants. We need to be wise in turning to core values in the Bible, not core values of Dever and 9Marks.”
-Julie Anne, Spiritual Sounding Board, August 5, 2013

Jamieson (another 9 Marks leader) argues that Baptists have long rejected voluntary resignation. Without entering that argument in depth, it seems odd to argue based on this point since church history is dominated by an almost unending succession of abuses and misuses of disciplinary power. The Roman church used prison, torture, and execution-by-fire among their “discipline” practices. The Protestants did the same at times. It was the Baptists themselves, ironically, who often argued against such abuse of Scripture and the church’s power. If history teaches us anything about church discipline, it is that human leaders cannot be given absolute power without being corrupted.
When church discipline is sin
Jason Harris, 26 March, 2013

Back in 2013, I resigned from a 9Marx church in Dubai that I had been a member of since 2009. I had previously been a member of Sovereign Grace Church of Gilbert, AZ (they have since changed their name to Center Church, undoubtedly due to the negative connotations associated with the coverup of sexual abuse in the Sovereign Grace denomination). I had learned of the scandal in 2011 through direct communications with Brent Detwiler and had alerted John Folmar to the fact. Folmar had become a Christian through the direct work of Mark Dever. After Folmar had converted to Christianity he attended Southern Seminary in Louisville and then returned to Washington D.C. as an associate pastor under Dever at Capitol Hill Baptist. From there Folmar went to Dubai, accepting the senior pastor’s job at United Christian Church of Dubai (UCCD). Dever and Folmar remained close friends, and Dever spoke at UCCD on at least two occasions while I was a member there. After I had learned of the scandal at Sovereign Grace Ministries I advised Folmar he may want to let Dever know that allowing C.J. Mahaney to attend his church after fleeing Covenant Life Church could have negative consequences. I also urged Folmar to cease promoting C.J. Mahaney’s book, “The Cross Centered Life.” My advice was rejected. Folmar had been in contact with Dever and was advised by him there was nothing to the story of a sexual abuse coverup in Sovereign Grace, additionally, Folmar advised me that “The Cross Centered Life” was his “go-to book” for new Christians!

I believe in late 2012 I began posting links to stories about the Sovereign Grace Ministries scandal on a Facebook page started by a regular church member of UCCD. In March 2013 I received an email from this man advising me that he no longer operated the Facebook page, but had let UCCD take it over. Within a few hours of this notification, I received an email from an assistant pastor of UCCD, John Welkner, that my links to stories about the Sovereign Grace Ministries scandal had been removed from the Facebook page because they “were not helpful to UCCD members.” I replied to the email the same day, stating that we were resigning our membership effective immediately. You can read more about my story in an article Dee wrote titled “My, my, Dubai.”

After several years most Christian leaders who were friends with C.J. Mahaney distanced themselves from him, and some, like Albert Mohler, even issued a public apology. Mark Dever was not among this group. Though John Folmar was never friends with C.J. Mahaney, I think an ethical Christian man would have contacted me and apologized for the treatment I received at his hands, but I have never heard from him.

After I resigned from UCCD I was subject to ongoing harassment by several of the church elders. They had not removed me from their membership roster, having instead placed me on their “care list.”  I was badgered numerous times about where I was attending church to which I replied it was none of their business. Over 6 months after I had submitted my letter of resignation my wife was informed by an elder’s wife that they had removed us from their roster! Nothing says spineless cowards quite like that!

I have since heard numerous similar stories of harassment from individuals who have resigned from a 9Marx church. I believe that history will not look favorably on the 9Marx movement. I think they will be viewed similarly to the Shepherding movement of the 1970s-80s, except I am doubtful there will ever be an apology.

Several weeks ago I was surprised to find links forwarded to Dee and I from a trusted individual on the changes about to take place in 9Marx leadership. Mark Dever has stepped aside from his leadership role in 9Marx. Trusted side-kick Jonathan Leeman has replaced him.

Leeman stated that he plans to increase the impact of 9Marx churches worldwide. His ambition makes sense if you see his organization as he does – the ones who have finally gotten Christianity right!

9Marx, in what appears to be a close partnership with Crossway Publishing, has seemingly come up with a great plan to both increase revenue and convert many more churches to their way of doing church.

 

As you can see below, the 9Marxists have a plan to implement “biblical change”. Let me remind you of a quote at the top of this article – “If history teaches us anything about church discipline, it is that human leaders cannot be given absolute power without being corrupted.”  Seeing that the main plank in 9Marx is church discipline, I am concerned with Leeman’s plan to take over the world! (I maintain that 9Marx should be 2Marx, as their two points of emphasis are church membership and church discipline.

So the million-dollar question is, how much will it cost to purchase each toolkit? A mere $120 per person, and since each elder you are attempting to win over to the 9Marx way needs his own toolkit, it could get rather pricey. (And that’s the beauty of the plan!) But I think a clever pastor could push the sheeple out in his audience to dig a little deeper so his boys can all obtain a proper education without impacting the church budget.

Caveat emptor!

For further reading: The Presumption and Favoritism Involved in the 9 Marks View of Church Resignation
Posted on Fri Jul 18, 2014

When Church Discipline is Sin, by Jason Harris

Comments

The 9Marx Toolkit that Every Elder Board Needs! — 62 Comments

  7. From the 9Marx toolkit site, it looks like you buy the toolkit from Crossway, find some code inside the book, and use it to create an account so you can access extra digital resources like ‘sample documents’ etc.

    Crossway also offers ‘What is Biblical Leadership’, a small group study guide for $11.99. I assume this is to be ordered in bulk for the flock. The guide ‘helps churches learn a biblical model for church leadership and smoothly transition their teams to the new structure’. Both the toolkit and the study guide were published 13 May this year.

    Surely churches like Dever’s or Leeman’s congregations would only contain healthy™ sheep, so this looks like a campaign to innoculate other sheep against unhealth, through the life-giving power of the biblical™ system. It must be a heavy burden indeed to be one entrusted with taking this message to places where it may not be needed or wanted.

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  12. Oh goodie.

    Jamieson is waiting in the wings to take over a different CHBC, this time in Chapel Hill and not DC.

    I’m always struck by the lists that purport to describe what a “true” church is. Haven’t yet seen the word “love” mentioned. It’s like they yanked 1 Corinthians 13 out of their ESVs.

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  13. Todd
    I recall discussing your situation with Leeman. He gave me that same old baloney, “You don’t know the whole story.” So, I pulled out my card. Todd will sign an affidavit saying he will let you share your “side” of the story. He became livid, saying, “Who is going to adjudicate this?” I said this was simply a way to have an honest conversation. The conversation quickly ended. Was it the word “honest” that upset him the most?

    It was at this moment that I knew I was dealing with a bunch of dishonest controllers. I recommend that no one enter a 9Marx church.

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  16. Adrian Romano:
    “Too much shepherding and not enough fishing” was the problem with the house church movement in the UK back in the 1980s.

    The problem with house churches is that they can pinch themselves off into “Us Four, No More, Amen!” cult country with NO external reality check.

    Conspiracy Theories and Secret Societies for Dummies (great read) touched on this in their chapter on Occult Secret Societies. There they called it “Ten guys in socks chanting in somebody’s living room”. (And neither tend to be very stable; as a Wiccan once told me “The reason covens are limited to 13 is if they grow too big factions form, the fight is on, and the coven usually splits apart.”)

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  18. I have a tool box for Baptists: a copy of each of these: The Christian Religion in its Doctrinal Expression, EY Mullins. What Baptists Believe by Herschel Hobbs. The New Covenant Changes Everything by Wade Burleson. Fraudulent Authority by Wade Burleson. Any good book on preterism would be a nice add on. And if you like devotional Bibles, the Simple Faith Bible with notes by Jimmy Carter.

    Bingo bango bongo saved you the cost of seminary.

    And all of it is actually Baptist or Baptistic, not today’s version of “baptist.”

    Enjoy!

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  19. One of the reasons I left Evangelicalism was the constant use of the adjective “biblical”, along with the word “gospel” used as an adjective, with the assumption that everyone agreed on the definitions of the words. The reality I experienced was that whichever group was using the words was using them as a bludgeon (covered in velvet, of course) to “remind” people that that group’s views were the only Christian ones. Yes, there is actual content to Christianity, both historical and as a matter of praxis, but I just got sick of not only the competing views (which I could understand, because people interpret the text of Scripture differently and sometimes the text allows for that), but the attitude based not only in lack of humility, but also in willful ignorance about that history and praxis.

    So, I went back to the basics: What actually is the Gospel, the Good News, that was proclaimed by the first generation of Christians? Most especially, what did Jesus in the Gospels say the Gospel is? And then, what was received by the second generation of Christians from the first generation? That is, how did the Next Christian Generation interpret Scripture? (Those questions took me on an interesting journey nearly 20 years ago now, with Orthodox Christianity coming out of left field and slapping me upside the head…)

    D.

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  20. Dever and Leeman have a faulty understanding of Christian authority. They see it as based on one’s office instead of one’s character. Submission should never be demanded; it should always be earned. Christians are called to be “teachable” and to yield to leaders who demonstrate wisdom and empathy.

    9Marks also has a faulty theology of “church,” equating the local congregation with the kingdom of God. Their improper demands regarding vows and oaths are a symptom of abusive authority. They usurp the authority of Jesus and the New Covenant based on a misinterpretation of “binding and loosing.” These terms reflect the responsibility to present the teachings of Jesus that bring healing (binding up of wounds) and loosing of those in bondage.

    The dangerous teachings of 9marks defy God and what He requires of us – to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly. It is a system that brings injustice, lacks love, and causes pride.

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  21. dainca,

    Understand your sentiments. Sad when those with a so called godly agenda use and abuse the true meaning and purpose of words and phrases to the extent that you begin to have some disdain for the words and phrases themselves rather than those who do all the soiling and polluting.
    As some have rightly pointed out, the constant motherhood usage is often a red flag. Nonetheless, the true meaning and purposes of words and phrases won’t be stolen from me.

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  23. Ian Docker: Nonetheless, the true meaning and purposes of words and phrases won’t be stolen from me.

    Is there a useful “true meaning” of ” ‘biblical’ + a noun”? If seems to me that, if there were, anyone who has read the Bible would know exactly what is meant by “biblical church leadership” or “a biblical understanding and practice of prayer.”

    I have read and continue to read the Bible. However, I do not know what the 9 Marks writer means by “biblical church leadership.” It seems to me that a wide variety of structures can be supported by the very limited references to “church” and “leadership” in the New Testament.

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  24. Cynthia W.: I have read and continue to read the Bible. However, I do not know what the 9 Marks writer means by “biblical church leadership.” It seems to me that a wide variety of structures can be supported by the very limited references to “church” and “leadership” in the New Testament.

    I agree with you. It appears to me that “biblical church leadership” means precisely what the teachers of any subset of Christians deems it to mean.

    “He has told you, mortal one, what is good;
    And what does the LORD require of you
    But to do justice, to love kindness,
    And to walk humbly with your God?”
    -Micah 6:8 NASB

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  25. “Though John Folmar was never friends with C.J. Mahaney, I think an ethical Christian man would have contacted me and apologized for the treatment I received at his hands, but I have never heard from him.”

    And you never will. The New Calvinist darlings are never wrong about anything. Folmar fits the NeoCal mold well … new recruits for the movement take on the personality of their mentors; they parrot what they think, say, and do. New Calvinism is a cult, pure and simple. But My People love it so!

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  26. “9Marx, in what appears to be a close partnership with Crossway Publishing, has seemingly come up with a great plan to both increase revenue and convert many more churches to their way of doing church.”

    No doubt about it. Crossway is your one-stop-shop for New Calvinism. There would be no NeoCal movement without Crossway publishing their aberrant teachings. Every successful deviation from Truth has their own propaganda arm. The ESV Study Bible is their biggest prize … indoctrination at its finest!

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  35. Max: However ‘they’ define it.

    Well, right, I had made it that far. However, it doesn’t convey any specific content to me. Same with all their other “biblical-plus-a-noun” formulations. They probably explain it in their book, but if “biblical something” meant anything specific, I would know, because I read the Bible.

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  36. Cynthia W.,

    I’m assuming they mean that because there are so many others out there in the church marketplace, our church leadership structure and practices are the most biblical in nature and practice, hence kosher & most trustworthy. Business principles 101 establish trust.
    Yes, these definitions and cultural redefinitions can be somewhat confusing, but it’s about highlighting that I/We stand above all the others.
    In relation to “leadership,” people often forget that through his life and teachings, Jesus turned the values of the world, most significantly with regards to Kingdom leadership & greatness, upside down.

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  38. Cynthia W.: “biblical something”

    Everything “biblical something” in their world is filtered through a reformed theology grid. The New Calvinists truly believe that they alone hold truth as framed in their doctrines of grace … that they have come into the world for such a time as this to restore the “gospel” to the rest of the church. Any other interpretation of Scripture is in error; thus, their “biblical something” is here to save the day and you better listen to them!

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  44. linda: The tool kit I offered was for those that want to be or claim to be Baptist. They need to know what Baptist really is.

    SBC can no longer be considered “Baptist”, IMO. The New Calvinists have stripped it of its Baptist identity. But millions of uniformed non-Calvinists in SBC pews continue to bankroll the rebellion. It’s the darnedest thing I’ve ever seen! Ignorance is one thing, but to be willingly ignorant is the pinnacle of ignorance.

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  47. Max: SBC can no longer be considered “Baptist”, IMO.The New Calvinists have stripped it of its Baptist identity.But millions of uniformed non-Calvinists in SBC pews continue to bankroll the rebellion.It’s the darnedest thing I’ve ever seen!Ignorance is one thing, but to be willingly ignorant is the pinnacle of ignorance.

    95% of the people in the pews care only about their friendships at the church and waving their hands at the ceiling during the contemporary music. Most know no Bible verses other than John 3:16. They’re considered advanced Bible students if they know John 14:6, Romans 8:28, and Ephesians 2:8,9. They don’t know or care what Calvinism is. Shameful that the people at First Baptist Jacksonville had 60 years of good teaching under Homer Lindsey Sr. and Jr. and didn’t run Heath Lambert out after 6 months. But they like Lambert because his personality has a touch of that of Dr. Lindsey Jr. and he looks how a conservative Southern Baptist pastor should.

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  48. Headless Unicorn Guy: Arlo: “Leeman stated that he plans to increase the impact of 9Marx churches worldwide.”

    For whatever reason this line brought the following to mind:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBkT19uH2RQ

    I hadn’t seen that cartoon before. Looks like a good fit for aggressive gospelly campaigns aimed at setting the masses straight about whatever biblical principle. Also you can check on the 9Marx site to see how much ground it’s gaining in your location (& whether your local church has been assimilated).

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  56. Arlo:
    Headless Unicorn Guy,

    A lot of ideas floating around some churches make as much sense as exclaiming “Narf!” or “Poit!”.

    Maybe they think they’re The Brain but they’re really Pinky?

    Thing is, Pinky was right much more often than The Brain; in most every episode, The Brain’s elaborate plans for world Domination end up blowing up in his face with Pinky as the unwitting catalyst.

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  58. Arlo,

    I’ve been reading Marsden and D’Elia about Fuller Seminary (a random but presumably fairly influential sample parachurch). Having forbidden surrounding secular society to explore honest philososphy of relevance to everyone, some religious scholars short on Holy Spirit belief or prayer, pretending to be less exclusive than the separatist wing, were in turn by their category mistakes failing to combat the slipshod Bultmann or the ultraliberal pretribs effectively.

    Now bring in mass evangelism that over-promises. And Fuller even employed Wagner and Wimber (both huge in Britain now, though less named) to teach the dispensation of the superapostles. None of us are meant (by the religion elite) to be convinced in our own minds, any more (my own faith hung on by gut feeling, for years, amidst the fog) – after all, the generation of Roy Clements wasn’t so why should we. Hence mind games with billions of people (this tendency always pretend to underestimate their influence). Flannel = placing a heavy burden only it’s fluffy.

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  59. Michael in UK: failing to combat the slipshod Bultmann or the ultraliberal pretribs

    Don’t know about your side of the Atlantic, but on these shores Pretribs are ANYTHING but “ultraliberal”. Just the opposite, BIBLE-only Fundagelicals constantly playing Pin-the-Tail-on-The Antichrist and setting dates without actually setting dates.

    Now bring in mass evangelism that over-promises

    And that, high-pressure selling a Salvation with the aroma of being sold a bill of goods.

    Wretched Urgency Witnessing, where you HAVE to constantly make more converts than anyone else or God Will Punish You (or at the very least withhold your Crown of Glory and give it to someone with a better sales record). With results and side effects shown in this YouTube cringe video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0Oo_5YYAXk

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  60. Headless Unicorn Guy: Fundagelicals constantly playing Pin-the-Tail-on-The Antichrist and setting dates without actually setting dates.

    This suddenly reminded me of some ‘biblical prophecy’ lectures in a church I attended. Visiting Christian speakers would spend hours giving vaguely unintelligible talks on the book of Revelation, while selling what looked like self-published books with their theories plus some arithmetic & diagrams. Geopolitical enthusiasts would have conversations hinting at the true identity of various apocalyptic characters, but this was not for the uninitiated. There was a sense of ‘if you know you know’. So strange thinking of it now.

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  61. Headless Unicorn Guy: Don’t know about your side of the Atlantic, but on these shores Pretribs are ANYTHING but “ultraliberal”. Just the opposite, BIBLE-only Fundagelicals constantly playing Pin-the-Tail-on-The Antichrist and setting dates without actually setting dates.

    And that, high-pressure selling a Salvation with the aroma of being sold a bill of goods.

    Wretched Urgency Witnessing, where you HAVE to constantly make more converts than anyone else or God Will Punish You (or at the very least withhold your Crown of Glory and give it to someone with a better sales record). With results and side effects shown in this YouTube cringe video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0Oo_5YYAXk

    I usually play Pin-The-Tail-On-The-Anti-Christ after a couple rounds of Patron. Besides after those rounds you are likely to be more accurate in your predictions than Hal Lindsey or any of the other dispie sensationalists.

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  62. Headless Unicorn Guy: but “ultraliberal”

    Dallas Willard wasn’t the only one to observe that some “conservative theology” is in effect “liberal theology”. Now reflect on Gresham Machen’s intuition that “liberal theology” (as science of God specifically) is illiberal (stingy with reality) if and when it is slapdash (some “conservatives” having set a low bar in logic to copy).

    This sort of thing inevitably accrues around all big teachers (partly through insincere acolytes) almost without regard to what “angle” they want to be seen to strike, the long ago category errors never having been corrected. Thus the nomenclature of the so called “perceptions” is the same here as in your region.

    By false top-down ecumenism the cumulative effect of a number of parachurches is to divert from what has been the typical best benefit of most of the traditional denominations. Their gift was their distinct focuses of attention in religious knowledge by which they helped us nurture each other. On our many good days we were too busy in gratefulness about that, to waste breath about pet hates. Or what we are told to imagine others imagine is our pet hate about their imagined pet hate about etc. Ordinary householders knew how to fellowship with the friend from another church, without rulings from above.

    Maury Blair dusted himself off after an abused period of youth (with, in different ways, other family members). Inspired by a Billy Graham radio broadcast (in absence of crowd fever), he got nurtured thereafter by a solidly loving church in his neighbourhood, which he got led to because there was a lot of prayer going on around – probably most of it by people he didn’t know.

    When one is hurt, all are hurt too. But prayer is God’s power-sharing arrangement as Willard pointed out, and not dumbed-down manoeuvring.

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