I once had the benefit of a premature departure from a church position.  It was an ugly and unpleasant experience.  During the process the church board was asked if they had a plan to be put into effect when I left the congregation.  The entire board stated publicly that there was a plan and no one needed to worry about it.
When I announced my departure by a private letter to the congregation the response was interesting.  The letter was short three lines.  1) I was announcing my resignation.  2) The date of my departure was ___.  3) Please not discuss this with my family.  Sincerely Yours signed and dated.
The response from the board was to deny any knowledge why I was leaving and one member threatened to go the denominations judiciary body and have my ordination removed.  (But he too has no ability to say why I left.)

I dealt with the situation by the immediate removal of my membership from the church. I severed all relationships with any member and have only contact with those who contacted me after my departure.  I have only been in the building twice since my leaving and only with an invitation and permission by the moderator (my requirement not his)
I joined a second church of a different denomination in order to attend and to serve while waiting for a new point of service.  I accepted a call to a small and struggling church where I am presently.

The church’s general board who are still in control still haven’t defined a plan of action.  They are still waiting for wisdom and financial security to fall from heaven.  The membership is declining and there is not a concern to address the issue. 

If you ask me to make a blunt evaluation the Board is happy nothing is being done.  They have enough members.  With no staff their needs are reduced.  And the church along with its leaders are happy with the status quo.  They get the be the victims with out the responsibility to find an solution.  It is consistent with their view of God and his creation.

I am not as bitter as I once was, there is a healing from God.  And I know that the place where I am now will need a lot of planning for the future.

Churches need to install Elders as leaders.
This does not mean paid staff only, since many associate staff are in their 20’s-they would not qualify as Elders. How could a subordinate younger staff member hold the Senior Pastor/CEO accountable for sinful behavior, it would never happen, the associate in an employee, and if a structure was in place such as a personel cmte to deal with such issues, they would always report back to the “Pope” who appointed them to the committee. The layman serving on the committee are afraid of losing the benefits of serving in the church, etc..and don’t want to get involved in being a peacemaker which the Bible wants us to be.

This would solve the problem of the egotistical, unaccountable, Senior Pastor (lone elder), who thinks he can manipulate anyone person or situation for his own selfish interests such as moving staff around so as to hire his son’s best friend, his son in law, and then firing someone who doesn’t “fit the mold” because he has ideas that have proved successful and benefited the ministry but challenges the status quo of the current older staff who want to cruise to retirement.
The single Elder idea doesn’t teach the congregation of their need to lead but “gives up” leadership and direction to the “Pope”. This is laziness on the part of lay people. Lay people who don’t care for the pastoral staff at all unless they are being catered to in some form or fashion by them. They end up having a pastor who acts the same way. If you take him out to eat regularly you are on the deacon board.

I was ready to quit the ministry until I found the “perfect staff” and leadership to work with at the new church I am serving as an associate. It is a safe place with Elders in place who loving confront the pastor and staff when needed.

I used the term “perfect staff” because this is what my previous pastor told me he had once I had left after having been fired. 

Yes, I still struggle with bitterness. But I am sure this will going away as I grow through loving confrontation and simple obedience.

As a member of a local church, I recently had to make a very unpleasant departure...and it has hurt me tremendously.

The departure was my decision, and mine alone.

I found out who my real friends in this congregation are.

And sadly enough, who they aren’t.

I agree whole heartily with Michael. The book by John Piper, “Brothers we are not Proffessionals” is an excellent book on church leadership. Mark Dever’s “ The Deliberate Church” Also a Good one. If a church is folllowing a Biblical model, rather than a traditional model, or a worldly model, There will be less room for failure. Simply stated God will bless the work if it is according to his pattern. Even so there is still room for problems, because that is the nature of the church. Remember Acts 20, Paul instucts the elders at Ephesus, that ravenous wolves will rise up from amongst them? Wasn’t Timothy an apostolic leader in Ephesus when Paul was writing to him about the problems with apostacy, and apostate l;eadership? Which is why certain character qualifications are given in 1 Tim 3. The model of putting people in school and hiring them with the “CEO” menataility is a recipe for disaster.  We must follow GOd’s word, in observing someone’s personal conduct, according to 1 Tim3, for a good season to see if thier lives are producing fruit evident of God’s calling. Only then can we make a decision in good conscience. I personally detest the idea of having a psychiatrist on the pulpit committee. That is just using worldly wisdom, as opposed to Godly wisdom. Hope the books I reccomended were helpful to some.

My husband of 31 years, a church musician, was having an affair with his children’s choir director.  I left him when I found them together in my home, and I did not feel it was my obligation or duty to inform the church of what was going on.  The rumors were rampant, and even when confronted with absolute knowledge of the affair, NOTHING WAS DONE.

I believe that mayber our marriage could have been redeemed if even ONE staff person had stood on their moral authority and confronted my ex-husband about his immorality, Instead, he was allowed to resign quietly, the congregation was told that he was resigning “to pursue other offers”, and NOT ONCE by any of the pastors was he ever taken aside and counseled as to the spiritual and moral sin that he was committing by seducing young women under his spirityual authority for his own purposes.

The result is that he was given glowing recommendations by people who KNEW what he was doing, and he has gone on to pursue other positions with churches. 

The result of this, is that that church continues to bear the burden of what went on.  It is gossipped about, talked about under the table, but nothing was ever publickly acknowledged and dealt with.  Is it any wonder that the Christian church is in such muddy waters when it comes to moral and ethical issues involving their staff people?  If people who claim to be God’s men and women are allowed to just go on as if nothing happened, no one is required to face the consequences of their actions in any meaningful way, and they simply go on to other churches without ever confronting their own sin, God WILL hold churches and staff and boards responsible for this kind of “sweeping under the rug”.

John- curious as to your analysis of how well you followed Matt. 18 in the conflict with this woman… please share if you can.  I personally believe Matt. 18 can solve many of these problems… also add lots of love (five love languages)…

Sounds to me like she was dis-enfranchised with the new leadership, rather than engaged.  Her immense investment was devalued.

Wow!
What a topic, what great advice?
My experience has been that those who don’t know and/or understand accountability and how it’s suppose to work, hate it!

A wise board will develop clear guidelines and expectations of every position of ministry that they oversee that includes accountability…

I’ve been a part of a church in the past where the people were very loving, supportive, giving, but not very discerning and their lack of understanding the importance of accountability opened a whole can of worms that leads to people getting hurt.  This article is very helpful for those who are in a position of making the next hire and working to define the roles that are functioning within the church… The notion of team is most important.... people with no sense of accountability are “out there” by themselves.  Some times it’s the church’s fault for allowing this to happen… Unfortunately, some view the notion of being accountable “one to another” as legalism.  It can be if love is not applied throughout the process but my experience has told me that people who hate and fight accountability, will cry “foul” no matter how much love is applied!  At times it takes tough love speaking the truth in love, to see the rest of the body protected.

My husband and I have had more than one unpleasant departures, and we have attempted each time to protect the church for the Lord’s sake and for the sake of new believers.  One situation was especially painful for our family, because we had actually planted this ministry.  The Lord had given us the vision; we bought property; we built a coffeehouse youth center; and the Lord used my husband to start a new, thriving church and outreach ministry with a fellow Christian gifted in evangelism.  The coffeehouse plan made possible 2 full-time pastoral salaries, which hadn’t been available just by the church tithes.  It was definitely one of those God things.

The problem came in when we hired a local youth pastor and his wife who had a secret agenda of controlling the ministry themselves.  They began causing dissention among our leadership team, working to separate the 3 church planting pastors/elders who had previously been united in vision and, eventually, we knew it was stay and fight, or walk away from the vision we’d poured ourselves into building for 2 years.  It was a heart-wrenching situation; yet, we knew we had failed in hiring this youth pastor.  At this point, the youth pastor had so entranced the pastor (evangelist friend), that even if the leadership team voted to remove the youth pastor, the dissention would remain, and the pastor was no longer behind the original vision.

The Lord told my husband to lay it down, and He would give us back the vision.  We resigned and walked away without a fight, broken in spirit and disheartened.  The worst part was that because we left quietly, and the church knew that we were the ones who planned and planted the ministry, there were many questions.  We had asked the remaining pastors (evangelist & youth pastor) to please just share that we had a difference in vision, and we chose to move on because of that.  (The 4th leadership team member had already resigned when we didn’t dismiss the youth pastor.) Instead of allowing us to leave graciously, they told many lies about us and the other family who had left.  They said we were angry, we had lied, we had misspent the church’s money, and really painted an ugly picture of us.

With time, there has been healing for us personally, and the truth has become clear to those who were involved in that church with us, but it has taken about 5 years.  The Lord has blessed us in ministry since that time, and is now bringing together a new plant team with an expanded version of our original vision in the city where we’ve always wanted to live.  (Isn’t God good?!)We are so excited about the unity of our team and the Christ-like love we have for one another! 

At the same time, we know that the bad experience was for our training.  We now recognize easily that controlling spirit in potential team members.  We don’t ignore any “red flags” the Lord shows us.  And we are stronger leaders.  We certainly have not “arrived,” but we’re much more prepared for this ministry than we were the first time.

In all of this, I would encourage pastors and church leaders to use wisdom and discernment in placing people in your ministry (paid or volunteer).  Seek the Lord in every little decision you make.  And, most importantly, stay on track in the vision the Lord has given you and don’t compromise to please people or just to keep peace.  Please God with your decisions, rather than men.  And also, be gracious to those who do move on, as well.

Wow!  This is a long post!  Just wanted to share a little of what the Lord has shown us.  God bless!

This past year our church suffered at the departure of our youth pastor into another career field. Unfortunately the church was divided over his departure into two broad groups. One group felt the leadership fired him while the second group felt he had resigned. As a result words went everywhere, relationships were strained and broken. What started out as a board decision due to our youth pastor’s decision ended up (in the mind of some)as a supposed personal vendetta I had towards the youth pastor.  This was not our finest hour. In fact, there were several times when I (as well as the remaining board members) felt like resigning on several occassions.

If I never face another situation like this again in my life it will be too soon.

Let em’ go. They are expendable.

Pastor’s Wife told me to shut up and that I was stupid, one Sunday. I was SSSuperintendent. I was opening up about the lesson and that is when she told me that. It hurt and because everyone heard her and started laughing.

Same church I was youth leader a dad came up to me and told me “You will not be teaching my kids that crappy music you like. This is what you will teach them, and I don’t care if you like it or not.

Same church, Pastor told me to my face that I needed to leave and the radio ministry I started would not make it.

I shook the dirt off and moved on....

If candidates for pastor’s positions can have a psychologist review them, can this be requested of board members as well?  Fair is fair.

Respectfully, everyone keeps saying that a fully independently operated Congregation, governed by a local Board is Biblical. [After nearly 40 yrs in Ministry as a Sr. Pastor, Pioneering Pastor, Assistant Pastor, Youth Pastor, & Evangelist: With a ministry that has been recognized by Leaders from over five U.S.Denominations,Heads of Ancient Foreign Christian Denominations, International Independent Ministries, Presidents & Deans of more than one Seminary, having won awards with my Wife for our ten years in active inter-racial / inter-denominational ministry that has even brought us circumstances where we restored other Pastors & Priests of Evangelical - Pentecostal - Catholic Churches]: After truly researching Ancient First Century Synagogue Based, Hebrew founded, Judaistic Structured Christian Church Structure, & comparing that with what seemingly the majority of Western American Based Independent Churches consider “Biblical”, is in the least, very deluted; at the Most totally mis-guided rebellion, founded on a sinful desire by mankind to find a way to appear holy and biblical, while at the same time staying in control without being forced to truly be accountable and submitted to Biblical Authority.

In the First Century Church, actually set up at the Leading of Yahweh-the Holy Spirit - after Pentecost; This was the actual founding structure of the Church in totol form;

a) The Council of Twelve Apostles were the Supreme final decision makers universally through the Roman Empire that went from Northern Africa, up through most of Northern Europe & in the Ilse of Man - later to become the British Isles.

b) The “Church” was prodominently still worshiping -Hebrew & Gentile - in the Synagogues of Judaism, where-in their Rabbi’s (Teachers) & their own families were each commissioned to build, own, & run each synagogue.

c) As in Judaism, there has always been an understanding, & custom of Believers eating meals together, with that activity being considered an actual Form of Worship to follow Corporate Sanctuary Synagogue Worship, weekly: As the Believers in Jesus as Messiah Arm of the Judaistic Culture grew in numbers, they began fellowshipping with common meals, House to House.

d) Just as in the Pre-Messiah Days of Judaism, there were active Prophetic Ministries - Prophets. As the Messianic Arm of Judaistic Culture expanded, the Schools of Prophets naturally were encorporated into the Whole Church Body as a whole.

e) The Term “Church” was actually an ancient term from Judistic Culture that Denoted All Hebrews as “God’s Chosen” or, “Church of Yehovah Yahweh”. THus, as the Apostles over-saw the “Church”, it did not ever mean a single congregation standing alone. It actually meant the WHOLE MESSIANIC ARM OF JUDAISTIC BODY OF BELIEVERS TOGEATHER AS ONE UNIT scattered across each Region or City-State inside the Roman Empire. Men anointed as Evangelists were sent forth to reach regions where Hebrews were known to live; with the Gospel of the Messiah. They like Prophets, were considered to operate under the power of Yehovah-Yahweh-Yesua and though they would fellowship in different Churches as they went about their assignments, they -like Paul & Cephas, answered directly to the Council of Twelve Apostles.

f)As the “Church” was growing across the Empire, an Attorney set in the Judean Senate that operated as a Sub of the main Senate in Rome, called the Sanhedrin, as a Ruler over Judea for life; called Saul had the Holy Visitation of the Risen Christ, he 7 his Brother In Law began evangelizing across the Empire. At first, he went only to Hebrews. Thus, as in the City-State of Ephesus, & in the City-State of Corinth (which was in size nearly the size of our Rhode Island State); He put the “Church” in Order using the Judaistic Synagogue / Temple form. He even sent Lay Ministers back to Jerusalmem with Gifts & Letters, insuring he was setting things in proper Order according to the Council of 12 Apostles.

g) During this period of the Empire “Church” Age, the whole Empire was thrown into Economic Depression as has been historically proven. Further, the whole Earth was thrust into major Climatic changes. By that time, the “Church” was scattered over most of the Empire. The Apostles could not be traveling constantly in different directions, so the Second Phase was put in place.

h) The Rabbi-Teachers who taught the Law of Moses & Ancient Prophets, were now joined by a new Sect set up by the Apostles, Shepherd-Pastors. The Term Pastor came from an understood Jewish Sheep Herding Term. It designated anointed and appointed ones by the approval of the Council of Twelve, with the responsibility to lead the congregant Messianic Hebrews & Righteous Gentiles into good spiritual pastures with clear clean spiritual water of the Word. As the Apostles set the Pastors up to operate along side the Rabbi-Teachers of Judaistic History & Culture of Synagogue / Temple Worship; they were given the same authority and power held by Rabbi’s.

i) With the Empire in economic & climatic upheaval, Messianic Believers began suffering along with everyone else. THe Council of Twelve did not have the time to handle the setting up of a full system of feeding and clothing the now destitute families. So, they designated a new Servanthood Ministry. Yes! a directly defined Servanthood Ministry. Deaconhood. THese were sent forth with clear defined spiritual requirements. They had to have experienced the same as those on the Day of Pentecost, They had to be of a servant’s heart, being directly led by the Holy Spirit just as the Apostles, Evangelists, Rabbi’s & Pastors were. But, THey were given a specific job range and job authority: No more, no less! They were to coordinate the traveling, the collecting, transferring, and warehousing of food and clothing between all separate congregations in each Synagogue led and managed by the Rabbi’s & Pastors that were situated in each City-State, and coordinate the distribution of food - clothes - & funds to each registered family across the Empire that needed assistance. That was it! No more - No less! They too were under the authority of the Rabbi’s & Pastors, who with the Prophets and Evangelists answered to the Council of Twelve. At no time did any Deacon receive authority to set up, manage, hire, or, fire any Rabbi, Pastor, Prophet, Evangelist, or Apostle. They were rather Servants of all the above with one job duty alone.

j) As the “Church Body” scattered across the Empire grew to the hundreds of thousands, it grew to large for the Apostles to directly manage, so, they then designated a new Office of Ministry as “Sub-Apostles” in authority: Bishops. It was the responsibility of each Bishop to teach and anoint, by laying on of hands, and assign, all Rabbi’s, Pastors, Evangelists, approving those chosen as Servant Deacons. THe Bishops continued to answer unto the Council of TWelve Apostles until each died. The Bishops were actually raised up into each Seat of Apostle as one died. Until there was the Council of Bishops. The Council of Bishops over-saw their own “Church Body” that was made up of in some City-States, as many as 125 separate Messianic Synagogue Congregations. But, As early as Peter-Cephas, & Saul-Paul, when a Legal Dissertation (as the early Rulership Letters were called -Epistolic Letters); was Written either for the setting up of the Church as a whole across the Empire, or, those separate Synagogues scattered across a City-State such as Galatia - Ephesus - Corinth in settling management issues, THere had to be designated rules for new departments of a growing empirecal church: “Convent Ministries for the Elderly Destitute Women, who were assigned to teach young women how to be proper righteous wives, feeding the destitute-working with the Servant Deacons in food preparation for the needy. Elders were always a part of Judaistic Culture. It was a Term designating the Oldst Clan Patriarch in every Family. For, in Judaistic Culture, each “Family” was actually made up of every Son & Daughter & their Spouces & children extended, until that Patrirach passed away. THe next Eldest would replace the Patriarch of the family. So, the Apostle / Senatorial Attorney - Paul, set the same Role asside in the Church Body of each City-State, headed up by their Bishop. Each Church Body, scattered across each City-State, headed up by their Pishopric/Apostle, was then investigated by each Bishop, as Timothy. THe Bishopric/Apostle was then to choose the Oldest, Most Holy Spirit (Yahweh) led Male Members, set them apart, teaching them, instructing them in the Law of Moses, the Customs, & the Messianic Teachings of the New Covenant, & in proper Empirical Wide Church Structure, anointing them with one job duty. They were to be walking in the Gift of Healing & other Holy Spirit Gifts of spiritual ministry. They were designated to function under the Bishopric/Apostle - Rabbi - Pastor. They were to aid in praying for the sick and those battling other spiritual concerns. But, at no time were they place in authority to manage, hire, fire, anyone. They were in essence filling the Role that in current culture is caoined; “Assistant Pastor”.

This Church Structure was built by the Council of Twelve Apostles. Even the Attorney/Senatorial called -"Apostle to the Gentiles” in the last half of his ministry; As he set up Church Structures in different City-States, went back to Jerusalem, staying with the Brother of Yeshu-Jesus (A later designated Apostle with Peter on the Council of Twelve); to make sure that everything he was doing and teaching was exactly correct.

This form of Church Structure stood until the Battle of Bishops in Rome & Constantine brought a separation of the Empirical Church into separate divisions, operating under each Bishop. Then, as each New Revival Form would arise somewhere in the Empire, rather than being able - If the Ruling Bishop was not truly holy - or, if that Bishop feared loss of Control or proper Church Structure at times; Those -Usually un-educated, or undereducated Laymen would attempt to “Set Up” their own new “Denomination” with protective systems in attempts to guard the Very Move of the Holy Spirit-Yahweh which they were experiencing in their DAy, in their region; They being uneducated concerning Biblical Church Historical Structures, & not wanting to loose control of what they had, or, literally not being educated in the language of Greek - Hebrew - Aramaic - Latin, of which all of the Writings of the Law of Moses, the Ancient Prophets, the Apostolic/Bishopric Letters - (Epistles), or Writings of the other Ancient Messianic Hebrew Teachers and Evangelists or Scribes such as Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, etc. They, literally set up their “Denominations” by HEAR-SAY understanding of what someone told them the New Testament Church was structured as. Remember, in the Middle AGes & up into the middle 1800’s the majority of people could not afford to send children to Schools to learn to read their own several languages, much less, the Ancient Biblical Languages. Thus, it was left up to either HEAR-SAY understanding, or, low educated traveling Ministers to attempt to help set up congregations. Thus, As each period of Hundreds of years, with caos running across thew world, in the hundreds of years following the collapse of even the Holy Roman Empire, & the Downfall of the Eastern Empire by the over-running of the Muslim Armies: As Lesser Kingdoms fought against one another, scattering peoples world wide, the Original Understanding of Early Judaistic Hebrew Synagogue / Temple, Apostolic/Bishopric Church Structure was lost to the Masses of the ever growing Gentile Body of World Wide Christians. Thus, as each generation came and went, as is natural in cultural mixing and in constant eroding that will take place until the End of Time of the “Church Age” with the Return of the Messiah/King: Each GEneration has lost more and more. THat is why Yeshua-Jesus declared about the Time of His Return, when he declared; “When I return to this Earth, Will I find any FAITH on the EArth.” Now, John the Beloved in his long extended Holy Vision, wrote Prophetically concerning each manifested future Church period, by using each City-State’s division of the Whole Body of Believers on the Earth at that time, declared: The Last Period of Laodocian Church Period, would be one of Brokenness, One of much “Knowledge” but of little truth, One of Congregations, each declaring in themselves supremity of Doctrine, allowing for many false doctrines. Just as another Apostle declared Prophetically, when he declared that in the last period of the Church Age, men would be out for only money and power gain in their churches and ministries, that regular merchandising of the Gospel would be done, when many would rise up, declaring themselves holding a “Form” of true christianity, but deniers of the Power. THat declaration is two fold, for, in the one sense, it was prophetically declaring that men was “Say” they believed everything as written in the Bible for their Day, but, in action, & reality, they would be denying the Power of what Yeshua-Jesus declared, saying; “When the Holy Spirit - Yahweh is come, the things ye have seen me do, you will do, and even greater shall ye do, & in Saint John 17, saying; Those coming later, beliving the testimony of these with me, they shall bew one, walking in my “Glory” (Power). Thus, sadly, every Lay person, walking about Western Cultural Christianity, demanding that Rabbi/Teachers-Shepherd Pastors, Bishopric/Apostles, Evangelists, ALL SUBMIT UNTO THEM BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN ELECTED OR CHOSEN TO HOLD THE NAME, BUT NOT THE ORIGINAL SERVANTHOOD POWER OR JOB ASSIGNMENT AS THE FIRST CENTURY DEACONS HELD, Or, CALLING THEMSELVES ELDER: DEMANDING SUBMITION FROM THOSE WHOM IN REALITY THEY ARE TO BE MINISTERING SERVANTS UNDER AS SUBMITTED ASSISTING MINISTERS; SADLY, THEY ARE NOT IN TRUTH BIBLICALLY IN ORDER! Thus, Sadly, so many Congregations, though large, or, small, find little New Testament Power. Their Numbers shrink. They bite and devour one another, ever competing to be in control. Their Rebellion, generation upon generation, has caused the fading away of the RABBI-TEACHER who built, ran, and owned each Synagogue. Thus Solid Biblical hard Teaching of the Whole Word of God has also faded away. Thus, every Believer sits under his proverbial tree believing whatever he chooses to belive - calling himself Biblical Christian, as an Ancient Hebrew Prophet declared would come upon the earth before the King’s return. Congregations now, attempt to pattern themselves properly, but, they are not, and thus, they operate separate from one another, sitting on corner after corner across town and city, all competing for their share of Members and their money, so they can build the fanciest and best building they can, forgetting all of what First Century Christian Ministry truly was. Pastors sit now as hirelings; having invested their youths, hard efforts, hard earned monies in much education, with many personal sacrifices; As they must play politics and placate laymen whom have set themselves up as, quoting Holy Scripture; “Someone believing themselves to be something when they are nothing.” as the Apostle Paul declared would come upon the “Church” one day. And all the while, the Lost Sheep, the Baby Believers, the Sick & Dieing, and a World gone mad, slides right on by the “Chruch Building” doors, wagging their heads in sorrow, saying; “They say they have the answers for what ails me, but, why won’t they come out to rescue me?” As self righteous lay christians snub their noses at the “Lost” believing they have more than they really have. So, as Yeshua-Jesus declared saying; “Those believing they have, yet having little, it will be taken from them...” They quible about words of doctrine, attempting to placate members and the world, about the Sin in their lives, hoping that they won’t qit attending services, or, else they might have to close their pretty buildings down and loose their SEAT of rebellious Athority.

These are hard words I realize. As it was written, saying; “In the Last Days, Men will not heed to the Truth, rather, they will heep unto themselves false Teachers who will preach only what tickles their itching ears!” Sadly, the “Body of Yeshua-Jesus Christ” is now there. Thus, as it was prophesied; It is now being fulfilled in our Day. And sadly, as each truly dedicated, loving, sacrificing, anointed Minister of the Gospel stands outside the “Church Buildings” crying, saying “Here I am! Hire me to lead you silly sheep into strong tender grassy pastures of Heavenly food, down to still, quiet flowing, clear streams of water of the Living Word”.... THe silly rebelleous sheep sit smuggly inside, saying to one another, “We like it this way! We can tell our “Pastor” What to say - When to say it - How to say it - When to jump - How high to jump - Where to jump - When to bend over!” We are in control! But by golly! No minister better tell us that we aren’t Biblical! If he/she does, we’ll FIRE THEM faster than their heads can spin!” So, the World and all her inhabitants are sadly marching blindly to utter destruction, outer darkness, and separation from a tender, loving, merciful, Saviouyr who says; “Come unto me all ye who are weary and heavy laden! I know your downsitting, your up-rising,your going out and your coming in! If you come unto me on my terms, I will give you rest!” And there is no little rest for the weary sheep. How many Believers who served as “Deacons & Elders” will be surprised upon reaching the Heavenly Seat of Jesus, when he says unto them; “I declared that he who desired a leadership position in my Body would be judged harsher than those who did not!” Why? Because their lives, more than most, affected untold hundreds of lives, ever lost, because they were so busy controlling - rebelling - competing, with those in the True Biblical OFfices, that those having made a Vow unto the Lord to preach - Teach - Shepherd & Save the Lost Sheep, simply couldn’t fulfill their Vows. Thus, the curse promised falls upon their heads, which declares, saying; “Do not make a Vow unto the Lord, for the Angel of the Lord will require it of thee! Do not say, I’m sorry, I can’t fulfill my Vow unto thee! For the Angel of the Lord will force thee to.” [Paraphrased]

long winded ordained minister

I agree with you that a senior minister need accountability.  I’m not sure anyone on this blog will disagree with that actually.  But are you saying that a church that is not part of a larger organization/denomination is not biblically sound?

come on.

Accountability is ten times as effective when the people holding you accountable are your peers/fellow ministers...not some committee a couple towns over.