What is a celebrity preacher?
I want to start this by saying "within biblical Christisnity" but the problem is there are many within so called Chridtianity thats overrun with false teachets. I cant say within protestantism either because theres false churches popping up everywhere since 2005 that are sects and cults. So what I can say a celebrity pastor is either someone who became popular online and was platformed, invited to speak at conferences or one who travels around preaching at churches. A lot of times it can be both. Looking at this from within biblical Christianity...
Who is being lifted up? Christ or the person.
So, I wouldn't put John MacArthur in that category, though he is known as America's Pastor. He is popular because his sermons at Grace Church began being put on radio shows in 50s by believers who got ahold of his cassettes and wanted listeners to her sound "solid biblical exposition through Scripture". His popularity rose over time both being the head of the Masters College which is now a University, and ranked as one of the top schools in America. He also started Masters Seminary to help educate, train and send out men to be biblical based Pastors at churches nationally. His church also sends out many mosdionaries, and has a solid biblical education offered at varied times on the church campus including on Sundays. This is to deeply equip believers to know the Bible. They also are heavily involved in providing biblical counseling education, conferences, college majors, and have a counseling dept at the church, bit also equip members to be able to self counsel and lovingly counsel other believers they encounter wherever they are. JMac does travel and give speeches snd preaches, but he is mostly focused on his church and it's related ministry locally. He is under the authirity of the church elders. Which is very important biblically. [* He has never had any legitimate scandal; the ones some claimed -were debunked, and most were easily debunked].
Similarly Voddie Baucham wouldn't be one either. He is a member of his church, he moved to South Africa a short while back and leads a church there. Pastors are not to be a one man show but are to be accountable to the elders and the congregation. He spoke on his travels as guest speaker-preacher and said he returns right home and limits his trips to 10 days a month because he wants to quickly get home to his wife, and family.
You have others who would fit the term "celebrity preacher". One notable one in recent years would be Steve Lawson. People gravitated to him. He started a ministry snd wanted to follow somewhat a pattern after John MscArthur in training and sending men out. So you would see him leading such studies with men at (sort of now defunct) One Passion Ministries. There was clearly an ulterior motives for this and it likely was power, position, status and money. Even if we look at everything prior to 2019 that still might be the case. You can have right theology and or speech editors to help you give a sermon or speech and still appear as a solid believer. For a while.
After a whole scandal broke out in late 2024, [a real scandal btw], a load of info came out about him, and a bombshell update hit in early November 2024, that this man, wasn't even a Pastor at the church he regularly preached at. A guest speaker-preacher might come through a church once every 6 months perhaps to fill in for a solo pastor run church (who has no rlders to fill in), or at a conference of like minded pastors, but that pastor wouldn't be a regular preacher at a specific church and 1 Not be a member, 2. Not be their actual pastor. The world thought he was the actual hired pastor over that church and it had riders. That church was running unbiblically we just learned, as they had paid him to regularly preach there and he left and went home. This is s problem as he wasnt a pastor snywhere, not s member anywhere and this is shocking because it means he had zero accountability to anyone. He was not under the authority of any church leadership so his scandal couldn't result in any church discipline! Matt 18 couldn't be started, he couldn't be kicked out of a church following Scripture, and while the world can call him to repent... he has no leadership accountability over him as a member of a church to be disciplined, to be under discipline, nor to go to to repent and be reconciled to God! But the world knows him and knows this scandal situation. He can't be held accountable by any leadership, cuz hes under none! He sneakily set himsrlf up over the years to be untouchable. So all we can do is announce he is disqualified as a preacher for sins that Scripture says disqualifies him from leader/teacher/preacher positions, and call him to repent. So far he has said he hasn't done anything he needs to repent fir, and such arrogance and self righteousness calls even his salvation just to question.
Similarly was Ravi Zacharias. He came from India and was embraced as a immigrant of sorts, and had a church or ministry he ran and got himself popular on the speaking circuit, until his whole sexual sins scandal came out after he died. So nothing could be done about him and his salvation was highly un question.
Elderly Steve Lawson might be lying about his 5 year affair with the young woman, in all it entailed, but since he was seeing her out of state on his travels, and didn't have a church home, he was able to get away with that since nobody had a clue. But when her father found out he threatened to expose him if he didn't go to the church he was assumed to be yhe Pastor at, so he did, knowing they had no authority over him. All they could do was remove him as a guest speaker from their church.
But that church hid a lot of this from everyone especially the fact that he wasn't the Pastor there, (only a weekly paid guest speaker !).
That whole thing is why you tubers and podcastors have been calling for an end to celebrity pastors. Specifically, you yourself not putting someone on a pedestal to revere and look up to, to where if they fall from scandal/ disqualification that it wrecks your faith.
Such a thing never should happen, since we know Scripture constantly warns of wolves and weeds making their way into the Church, and also motes what's jn the dark will come to light and be exposed, plus Jesus said not everyone who claims him will be saved and ghe goats/weeds will be separated to judgment & then into the Lake of Fire.
So always compare what's preached to the Scriptures. Know the Scriptures, be a Berean and examine what a pastor preaches. If it's blatantly against the Essentials Scripture teaches, or further decieves by a false gospel promising self seeking things Satan offers subtly craftily by deception... then you'll see those red flags (as you grow in faith) and you will flee that church or preacher-teacher.
This is why we are adamant that you understand Scripture, the Essentials, who some well known false teacher-preachers and authors are so you can avoid and block them from your life and social media.
We are trying to look out for you and help save you decades of problems and pain, and help you undergrad things you need to know about Christianity and also church related things. Being well informed will help you grow strong in faith and not be shaken when you hear about another false preacher or some famous person fall who was known in Christianity.
What to do in your local bible based church & life ? 1. Focus on listening to your pastor and teaching at your church. The leaders there are gifted to you by God to educate you and kerp you within biblical orthodoxy. Dont go chasing every wind of doctrine and teaching inline by some random joe blow & allow yourself to be decieved. 2. Only interview & hire biblical and qualified men to lead your church, and hold them accountable both in their contract, and conduct. If you mess up and picked a wrong one, repent and replace him 3. Supplementing your bible knowledge, growth, understanding etc with reputable well know pastors who've proved worthy in the long run to be qualified and solid in teaching Scripture is ok, just dont put them on some high pedestal or flock to travel and go hear them in person somewhere like a groupie. Today all the content of their speaking engagements is available online to see freely (and to examine against Scripture). Just be cautious and focus on Scripture and God... not fallen fallable people.
Footnotes:
On the Fall of Steve Lawson:
He was disqualified from being a Pastor- Preacher in Sept 2024.
>Inappropriate relationship with a woman.
>Removed as preacher and from One Purpose ministries
All his material has been removed online when he disqualified himself from pastor-teacher leadership position. He had a good 16 part series on Attributes of God and published a book "Show me your Glory", workbook, cd for it in 2014, and videos at Ligioner. Unfortunately he didn't publish under his name so when this issue happened in 2024... Ligioner removed all of these from online. I kinda do hope they republish it without his name, under Ligioner or something. It was a great series and helped millions better understand who God is. It is a very sad and hard loss. Someone can put out biblically accurate material that can greatly help believers understand Scripture on important doctrines, and still be disqualified after that. But at the same time it is understandable to remove everything they taught because in eras before technology where everything is available, the fallen pastor would just fade into the darkness and never be heard from again, including his material. So there is some debate about this and some have decided to leave his material available where it's somehow available to offer. Personally I would only offer that Attributes of God course, but label caution about anything else about him... until I could find great material to replace his course with. So please be gracious to me if you believe all should be destroyed, as that course was very well made and prior to his Fall. I want to educate people well in God and his Attributes as I find many many believers and unsaved people online need to grasp this topic so their faq and innparticular explaining the Gospel well makes sense. If we have a right understanding of Who God is then the rest easily falls into place, and can be a big seed planted towards them coming to salvation.
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