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    God’S Church, God’S Money, False Profits: How to Know the Truth About Your Church and Pastor According to the Word of God.
    God’S Church, God’S Money, False Profits: How to Know the Truth About Your Church and Pastor According to the Word of God.
    God’S Church, God’S Money, False Profits: How to Know the Truth About Your Church and Pastor According to the Word of God.
    Ebook195 pages2 hours

    God’S Church, God’S Money, False Profits: How to Know the Truth About Your Church and Pastor According to the Word of God.

    By M. L. Petty

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    About this ebook

    For years I agonized over writing a book to address the many questions
    concerning Gods church today. The following are some of those questions and concerns:

    Are you being deceived from the pulpit?
    Does the church use offerings for Gods purpose?
    What is the pastors salary and compensation?
    Does your Pastor conform to or live like those in the world?
    Are detailed financial statements distributed to each member?
    Should you continue to give money to your church?
    Are you sure that your church is the place for you to worship God?

    After much prayer and study I felt the need to accept the challenge to address these questions in this book entitled, Gods Church, Gods Money, False Profits. It is with some trepidation that I approach these issues because, for some, the revelations may be uncomfortable to acknowledge or accept. And for others, they will find "truth" that will set them free (John 8:32).
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAuthorHouse
    Release dateSep 30, 2011
    ISBN9781463443580
    God’S Church, God’S Money, False Profits: How to Know the Truth About Your Church and Pastor According to the Word of God.
    Author

    M. L. Petty

    ABOUT THE AUTHOR M. L. Petty has been a member of several Christian churches for nearly forty years. He has thirteen years’ experience as a Bible class teacher in a Lorton, Virginia prison facility. Every Wednesday he shared the word of God and led inmates to Christ through his prison ministry. M. L. Petty has over twenty-five years’ experience in banking and finance. He has an extensive background in mortgage financing and is well qualified to analyze and review financial statements and income tax returns. During his career, he developed a strong relationship with the church community and has helped many of them obtain mortgage loans. M. L. Petty is very concerned about the deterioration of the church today. He is dedicated to sharing the truth about God’s church and is hopeful that believers will demand transparency and full disclosure from pastors and leaders in the church. He currently lives in Oxon Hill, Maryland, with his wife, Patrice.

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      Book preview

      God’S Church, God’S Money, False Profits - M. L. Petty

      God’s Church, God’s Money, 

       False Profits

      How to know the truth about your church 

       and pastor according to the word of God.

      M. L. Petty

      US%26UKLogoB%26Wnew.ai

      AuthorHouse™

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.authorhouse.com

      Phone: 1-800-839-8640

      © 2011 M. L. Petty. All rights reserved.

      No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

      Published by AuthorHouse    04/16/2012

      ISBN: 978-1-4634-4360-3 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4634-4359-7 (hc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4634-4358-0 (e)

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2011914003

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

      and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Contents

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      ABSTRACT

      TESTIMONY

      INTRODUCTION

      PROBLEM STATEMENT

      RESEARCH QUESTIONS

      GOD’S CHURCH

      THE CREATION

      PURPOSE AND FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

      CALLED OR CHOSEN

      WHO CALLED YOU?

      BE NOT DECEIVED

      NONPROFIT VERSUS FOR-PROFIT (CORPORATION)

      GOD’S MONEY

      PASTOR COMPENSATION

      TOP MEGACHURCHES AND SUMMARY

      CHURCH RESOURCES

      BE NOT CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD

      GIVING IN THE CHURCH

      FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

      HELPING THOSE IN NEED

      RECOMMENDATIONS

      CONCLUSION

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      REFERENCES

      APPENDIXES

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      I would like to dedicate this book to my father and mother, Raymond and Melvina Petty. Although both of my parents have departed this life and are now with the Lord, they blessed me with their lives here on earth. To my father, I thank God for you and how you taught me to be a God-fearing man. You set good examples as a husband, father, and leader of your household. To my mother, I thank God for sending me a woman who taught me how to love unconditionally and to always keep the Lord first in my life. To my lovely wife, Patrice, I thank you for your support, constant love, and sacrifice. To my friend Dr. Jan Felton, thank you for your guidance and support. Finally, I dedicate this book to all believers everywhere who, like me, want to see the Word of God and his truths go forward and continue to be preached and taught to men and women everywhere.

      Abstract

      The policy of giving the pastor total and absolute authority may have created the biggest problem in the church today. Pastors are often the cause of the very problems we see and deplore in the church. It is apparent that this is true when a pastor has violated moral standards or departed from sound biblical doctrine. Research shows that poor leadership and bad management practices have contributed to core issues leading to division, instability, and suspicion in churches.

      The Holy Bible clearly states our responsibilities and those of the leaders of the church in the book of Hebrews 13:17. It is also clear that the pastor’s and church leaders should watch out for our good: For they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief.

      I have researched problems associated with the handling of money in the church, and I have offered solutions and recommendations. It is my belief that many pastors, church leaders and those who attend church will benefit from the solutions and sound direction that have been offered.

      TESTIMONY

      I grew up in the city of Washington, DC, with caring, Christian parents who worshipped and served in the church. As godly parents, they did their best to instill Christian values into our family and led me to believe in God and his Son, Jesus the Christ. However, to their credit, they did not pressure any of their children, and we were allowed to make our own decision to accept Christ as our Lord and Savior. I remember one Sunday morning the pastor announced that the doors of the church were open. This is when individuals are extended an invitation to come and stand before the congregation and accept or proclaim Christ as their personal Savior. On this particular Sunday, the entire congregation was standing and singing a come to Jesus song, waiting for someone to come. While it was my intention, I decided not to accept Christ at that time.

      The following Sunday, the same opportunity presented itself, and once again I failed to come before the congregation and accept Christ. Later that day, I told my parents that I was going to join the church the next Sunday. They were very excited about my decision. So on the next Sunday in the year of 1969, the Lord spoke to me inwardly and very clearly: I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except by me (John 14:6). When the pastor opened the doors this time, without hesitation I got up, walked down the aisle, and accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior. That year my whole life changed forever, and accepting Christ brought a lot of joy to my parents.

      (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted,

      and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee:

      behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is

      the day of salvation.) (2 Corinthians 6:2)

      I thank God for giving me the strength and courage to make up my mind to accept his Son, Jesus, and not miss that opportunity. According to the scriptures, (now is the accepted time of salvation), and tomorrow is not promised to anyone.

      This was the right decision and the first step in establishing a relationship with God. After being submerged in water and baptized in the name of Jesus, I became very curious and wanted to know how it would affect my life. I started to ask questions about the church and my new relationship with God. I was told all the answers to my questions could be found in the Word of God, the Holy Bible. So I started to read the Bible and attended church regularly. I continued to study and search the scriptures more and more during the next few years, and my relationship with Christ grew stronger.

      INTRODUCTION

      The years would come and go until one day, a friend invited me to attend a Bible class at a nearby prison. I was amazed at how much I enjoyed sharing and studying the Word of God with the inmates at the Lorton Prison Facility in Lorton, Virginia. I attended on a regular basis until one day, God spoke to my heart and led me to teach my own Bible class at this prison. Teacher—a person who teaches, instructs, or trains. I accept the challenge to teach God’s word, to be diligent and consistent in studying the word of God, maintain well prepared study lessons, and thoroughly search for and share the truth.

      While I am not a Bible scholar and not educated at a Bible school or college, I was led by God’s spirit to teach Bible classes at the Lorton Prison for more than thirteen years. During this period, I studied and searched the Holy Scriptures and grew spiritually, becoming more knowledgeable about God’s Word. God blessed me and taught me to rely on his Word for spiritual discernment and interpretation—and not on any man. God gives all believers the same spirit of discernment and the ability to search the scriptures for the truth. He did not leave the interpretation of his Word up to one man (2 Timothy 2:15).

      God has no respect of persons; in other words, he shows no favoritism or partiality toward some people as opposed to others (Acts 10:34; 1 Peter 1:17). Using Peter as an example, you see that the Lord issued a call to follow him several times under different circumstances (Matthew 4:19; 16:24; Luke 5:10–11; John 21:19, 22). From the four Gospels, we can deduce at least five different meanings to the phrase to follow the Lord. God continues to call man to follow him today.

      *  *  *

      As part of my journey through life, God blessed me professionally with a career in banking and finance for more than twenty-five years. During that time, I provided loans for churches that were in need of construction, renovations, and the refinancing or purchase of properties. I have an extensive background in reviewing and analyzing financial statements and have processed, underwritten and settled many church loans.

      I have also been a member of several churches in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area for over forty years and have served in the music ministry. Today, most of my time in church is spent enjoying the Sunday morning worship service and hearing the Word of God.

      PROBLEM STATEMENT

      The church today has changed from the church I knew while growing up. It has become a place of greed, materialism and moral decay rather than true worship and devotion. The policy of giving the pastor total and absolute authority has become a major problem in many American churches. In some of these churches pastors are not accountable to anyone. Another concern is the amount of time churchgoers are spending in church and not at home with their families. We have some members in the church who give money (offerings) they cannot afford to give. There are no scriptures that support neglecting your family or financial obligations for the sake of the church. Then you have believers who are discouraged with some of the questionable activities they see in the church. However, research has shown that the biggest problem in the church could be the demand, management and use of money. This could be the leading cause for the decline and deterioration of God’s church today.

      RESEARCH QUESTIONS

      For years I agonized over writing a book to address the many questions concerning God’s church today. The following are some of those questions and concerns:

      •   Does the church operate according to the Word of God?

      •   Are the pastors and leaders called and chosen by God?

      •   Should pastors have absolute authority and total control in the church?

      •   Are believers being deceived from the pulpit?

      •   Does the church properly manage and utilize God’s money (tithes and offerings)?

      •   Are complete and detailed financial reports and statements presented to each member in the church?

      •   Why is the church in decline, and who or what is causing it?

      After much prayer and years searching the scriptures, I felt the need to accept the challenge to address these questions in this book entitled, God’s Church, God’s Money, False Profits. It is with some trepidation that I approach these issues because, for some, the revelations may be uncomfortable to acknowledge or accept. And for others, they will find the truth that will set them free (John 8:32).

      One of the primary problems faced in the church today is the collection and use of money. There are many

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