In this video presentation, the Rev. Rob Renfroe, president of Good News, addresses the schismatic election of the Rev. Karen Oliveto in the Western Jurisdiction. Oliveto is the first married lesbian to be elected as a bishop. We encourage you to pray for the future of The United Methodist Church and to join us in Chicago on October 7 for the convening gathering of the Wesleyan Covenant Association.
Rob,
Thank you for creating Good News and it’s success. You have allowed God to work through you to address the disturbing Bishop election. Satan is so busy on so many fronts in our lives. May God bless you and your family.
Pam Benson
66 year old grandmother in Bentwater
Hi: I am having difficulty pulling up Renfroe’s video on the Openly Gay Bishop appointment. Can you help me……….
Thanks for letting me know that there was a problem. It should be fixed now. Let me know if you still have trouble!
The JC isn’t meeting until October, the COBs are obviously punting (probably due to the lack of unity in their own ranks). Let’s get rolling on making a new church that is truly Wesleyan. We need to show the COB’s that we vote with our feet and our money. If you wait too long, most of us will be gone already.
Pastor Rob,
Thank you for your spirit-filled remarks. I pray for the work of the GN staff and the entire movement; we are fortunate to have the GN staff informing us of these various UMC issues. Nonetheless, despite my great personal respect and spiritual regard, I find it problematic to believe that traditional UM’s will remain with the church until 2018. It seems as though every few months the sexuality debate rages anew and we are told that the ultimate resolution to the issue is “just around the corner.” This specific issue has been contended, debated and conferenced to death for longer than anyone would care to recount. And though some many be willing to remain as a faithful remnants of traditional UM’s, many, and perhaps most, will not be able to spiritually tolerate having professing and practicing gay ministers in our churches and in a position of bishop. If the Council of Bishops were to: 1) take a strong biblical and BOD stand 2) defrock all self-identifying gay ministers/bishops 3) insure that, from this time until the next GC, any/all UM pastors, churches or conferences that are party to either gay marriages or ordination of gay ministers or bishops will be in jeopardy of sacrificing their credentials and their church properties…perhaps this would stem traditionalists from leaving the church. I believe that the organizations that I belong to should reflect my faith and my character. Under the present situation of active disobedience to the Word of God and the BOD of the UMC, I cannot in good conscience invite people to become involved with the UMC and I find it difficult to ask God to bless the UMC.
Jesus would say choose today whom you will follow.The council of bishop should meet and separate from
those who have knowingly chosen to follow satan..God wants his people to be separated from the world.
God said today not two years from now. .
Thank you for all your service to the church. In your message you speak of two ways forward. I know being together will not work, only an act of God will allow this. The second way mentioned is also problematic, to say the least. The progressive church, which will be one part, will be no sister church, it will be a missionary field, requiring the traditional church to move into the areas occupied by the progressive church and to evangelize. Each side taking their respective properties will again be a further burden on the traditional church, having to start from scratch. The third problem is the underlying current within the church as a whole which has allowed this to happen. We must take this opportunity to reform our church back to solid biblical standards, to eliminate the errors which may have allowed for this from the very beginning. Next year will be the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, let us raise the banner of biblical inerrancy, and require that as the standard for our denomination. The use of the word canon has meaning in our Articles of Religion, each individual may have a struggle with that in their personal faith, but can we not hold that this is the only way forward for our denomination? I feel that as a country, certainly, and as a denomination, probably, we have abandoned God, and God has abandoned us, certainly not strong individual churches, but let us be candid. If we use Revelation 2 as a measuring rod for all churches throughout time and today, are there any in the USA that would score on par with an “Ephesus”? Personally, I think “Thyatira”, number 4 on the scale, would be our best, and in that congregation was the corrupt woman Jezebel, who’s sin they tolerated, but most were still believers. This gets us started on meeting God’s expectation, the first step toward re-gaining God’s blessings as a denomination, 1 Corinthians 5:11-13, and 2 Corinthians 10:5. I realize this is a hard path, but it is what we are called to do by God’s word, and perhaps in this God will bless us and make it possible. We should make proposals which place Jurisdictions, Annual Conferences, as well as Pastors and Bishops under the review of a church body trusted enough to either call for the repentance of individuals or purge them from the denomination. Let us propose a strong biblical message for this way forward and allow the message to be heard by all, God will either harden or soften hearts, and there will still be the remaining two ways if it is not God’s will for us to remain together..
Until concerned congregations actually withhold their apportionments, this will never stop. And the bishops (not all but enough to make progress impossible) will not act. Our pastor (We are a megachurch) threatened to withhold apportionments in 2012. It was a bluff. Nothing happened. He called for judicial process in 2014. Nothing happened.
Approximately 20 year ago, when our congregation was much smaller, we did withhold a small amount from our apportionments over a similar matter. We were flooded with attention from all kinds of suits from higher up. They promised to do better but never did. Our tiny amount of money was not enough to make them clean up their act. They must have been scared our “intolerance” would spread. But if every right thinking congregation calls their bluff, it is the only thing that will save this situation. Tie the apportionments to the actions of specific bishops and non-coompliant clergy. Those congregations and bishoprics that are causing the trouble are driving away far more Christians than they are saving. “29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.”
Jim , you echo my sentiments EXACTLY. This is a must do and the sooner the better. The COB has let the membership down and can correct the issues with PROMPT ACTION.
Thanks Rob, Yes you are right. We cannot live together in conscience the way things are. Our belief systems are different. Traditional orthodox Christians take the Bible very seriously. The new order wants to do whatever they think is right in their own eyes. Isn’t this what happened in the time of the Judges? They love the things that tickle their ears but God sets the. Rules not man. We are a house divided against itself. The way we are will not work. We need to pray that traditional Pastors in liberal conferences will have the courage to speak up for the Biblical way. We are in a mess but we are on the side of the Lord of Hosts so we will win this battle.
I live in Montana and our treasurer has agreed not pay our apportionments. I will continue to give to the local church as long as my money doesn’t go to apportionments. If we could get more people in other conferences to do the same. We could stop this very soon.
Thank you Rev. Renfroe for this response to the recent appointment of Oliveto.
I can’t tell you how much this ray of hope means to me as the blatant betrayal of my church sears into my soul.
I feel those of us IN the Western Jurisdiction can not contact our bishop so I am taking other measures for my voice to be heard.
Sola Scriptura: AMEN
I am certainly going to suggest not paying apportionments at the next finance or admin meeting!
AGREED!
I would like to withhold my apportionment from my pledge but I was told that apportionments are no longerSin required to be paid. Is this true? I am a 60 year member of the Bradley UMC in Greenfield, Indiana. I feel this is the only way I can voice my dissatisfaction. I am an 83 year old member and know no other way to have my voice counted. I have decided after much consideration and prayer to not seek another bible believing church. Sincerely Gloria L. Long
I am leaving the UMC because of the appointment of Oliveto. Of course, my giving to the church will go with me to a different church. Having served on the finance committee of the church, I can assure you that if a few people leave or stop ( or cutback) their giving to the church apportionments will not be paid. It will be difficult enough to keep the pastor paid and the lights on for many of the smaller congregations.
Unfortunately, our pastor published an article in our church newsletter touting how wonderful it is to have Ms. Oliveto as our new bishop. I see little or no hope for the UMC as it stands now unless those of us who believe what the Bible says revolt.
Rob, I appreciate your courageous defense of Church Discipline. I attended your Church in Atlanta, Texas and at Mission Bend UNC when I moved to Houston. May God bless and keep you in your defense of the Faith.