About Pastoral Madness

It is in the news. Pastors and evangelists who keep asking for money but live lavishly. They have, and they want more. Excessive spending on luxuries for their ministries and personal lives. Not a clear-cut line where the expenses for ministries end and personal expenses begin. So much so that a Congressional investigation has started, and those investigated claim separation of church and state as a shelter to continue their financial operations. Although high-profile ministers have come to the attention of officials, there are many more ministries that operate similarly but on a lesser scale.

More news: Ministers who divorce and continue ministering, with the approval of the congregation.

Not long after a lavish, spectacular wedding of a high-profile ministerial couple, the pastor-husband beats his evangelist-wife publicly. He is arrested, and after legal proceedings, comes back to the pulpit and receives a standing ovation from his congregation. Not only is there Pastoral Madness, but there also seems to be “congregation madness”!

Another high-profile couple co-pastoring a church divorces. The woman continues appearing on her TV program, and is offered a nice position with another ministry. The man does not miss a beat pastoring his church.

Not very old news: A highly influential, mega-church pastor is accused of homosexual activity by his homosexual partner, who also exposed the pastor’s alleged drug use. A few months after he stepped down from the pulpit, he wanted his “followers” to provide financial support for him and his wife to go college to obtain a certain degree.

Old news: A famous pastor is caught with a prostitute. This judgmental pastor was judging others while visiting prostitutes. His sexual escapade makes the news, he repents on national TV with tears streaming down his face, and later, he is caught with the prostitute again. He is still pastoring.

Old news, about the same time as above: A married couple with a large ministry and a very much watched TV program cry and moan for more money constantly or the program is going to fold. A financial mess is uncovered. An investigation uncovering excessive spending hits the news, where it became a joke that their dogs have air-conditioned dog houses. Jail time for him. Divorce. The woman marries the pastor’s best friend. He is out of jail and has started a ministry again, with a television show.

More stories like these are happening across the country in smaller, less famous churches and ministries. These stories rarely get in print, but there are many. What is happening to the churches?

 

Pastoral Madness!

 

I am one of those persons whom pastors like to call church-hoppers. But here is the catch: because I am in the deliverance ministry, many pastors don’t want me in their church. I have been kicked out of some churches. From others, God led me out, but not soon enough–I wanted to leave, but He would not let me go until He showed me something that He wanted me to learn.

I learned about Pastoral Madness in a very small church, rather financially poor. I had visited the church, and I did not like it–it looked dirty, and the children were not disciplined. God made me go to that church anyway. As I started observing some anomalies, I wanted to leave. The Lord said “No.” This was repeated several times, as I was seeing more and more things that disturbed me. I finally became disgusted with the pastor and desperately wanted to leave.

One day, the pastor’s face came to my mind, like a vision. This happened a few times thereafter. I did not want his face on my mind. Because of my experience in the deliverance ministry, I discerned a demon giving me that vision, so I called a friend for deliverance.

As soon as she told the demon to manifest, it did. She asked his name and he did not want to give it. She asked how he entered and he said “through her pastor”. She asked the name of the demon’s boss and he said “Pastoral Madness”. I was delivered of that demon and the vision did not return.

Now if you think this is far out and I don’t have scriptural backing, read this:

And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered. And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it? And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other. And they were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus. (Luke 6:6-11)

¹⁰ But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. ¹¹ Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord. ¹² But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; ¹³ And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; ¹⁴ Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: ¹⁵ Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; ¹⁶ But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of the prophet. ¹⁷ These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever. ¹⁸ For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. ¹⁹ While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. ²⁰ For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. ²¹ For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. ²² But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire. (2 Peter 2:10-22)

The first scripture refers to the Pharisees. They were accurate in all matters referring to the law; however, their thoughts were about murdering Jesus. Jesus knew it, and asked them if it was lawful to save life or to destroy it. They, the “ecclesiastical” group, were filled with madness.

The second scripture refers to a prophet filled with madness. In both scriptures, it shows that men who were spiritual leaders were filled with madness. In the first case, because of spiritual jealousy and a desire for power. In the second case, because of greed.

What the Lord showed me.

I came back home wondering about that Pastoral Madness demon. I felt I was released to leave the church. Then the Lord explained to me that Pastoral Madness is the demon that corrupts religious leaders, and he does it this way:

1- The demon starts by building the pastor’s ego. The demon speaks to the pastor’s mind telling him he is an important person now.

2- Next, he tells the pastor that he is one of God’s favorites, that he is special. The pastor starts feeling that he is superior to the congregation. This is the teaching of the Nicolaitians: clergy and laity. (Revelation 2:15)

3- The demon picks people from the congregation to start idolizing the pastor. In their eyes, the pastor can’t do any wrong. They laugh at all the pastor’s jokes, and applaud for any little thing the pastor says or does from the pulpit. This keeps building up the pastor’s ego.

4- The demon tells the pastor he deserves more salary, a luxury car, a bigger building, a TV program. The congregation starts feeling the pressure to give more and more money.

5- The demon tells the pastor that he is special, anointed, chosen, elected, and that in this exalted status he can do some things that are prohibited to other people, but not to him, of course. The demons tells him that he is so pleasing to God that he can get away with anything.

6- The pastor starts demanding more giving from the congregation. He might imply or even say outright that those who withhold their money will be cursed. By this time he is also thinking that his wife has not kept up with him, that she does not look the part, perhaps he made a mistake in marrying her, and this is not the woman that God had for him.

7- The pastor starts feeling he needs bodyguards, who not only keep him safe outside, but also keep members of the congregation away from him when he leaves the pulpit.

8- Due to his TV program, the pastor starts to become known, and he starts to be invited to speak in out-of-town places. Coach travel is no longer acceptable, only first-class will do. Later he feels he deserves to rent a private airplane, then buy his own airplane.

9- He now feels he needs a new wife, because his first wife is not a match for him. After all, he is not the same person that he was before. Now he is important, famous and rich. He has a chauffeur, a pilot and bodyguards. He needs a trophy wife.

I hesitated to write this next part, but this has been in the media lately: because a divorce does not look good for their careers, some pastors murder their wives, making it look as a suicide. In their madness, they believe murder is a better solution than divorce. About 15 or 20 years ago, there was a case in Dallas about a pastor who wanted to be bishop. He had been having an affair with a beautiful prophetess, the daughter of a bishop. He planned the murder of his wife, and created his alibi by using his car phone to leave messages on his home answering machine where he gave the time of each call, creating the illusion that there’s no way he could have murdered his wife as he was calling from his car phone at the time of the murder. However, the phone records showed that when he was leaving messages saying what time it was, it was not the correct time. He was the primary suspect, and there was a lengthy trial. Because of lack of evidence, he was freed. He moved to California and found a job at a church there. This is how far Pastoral Madness can go.

Pastoral Madness may be in a pastor from the beginning of his calling. I have ministered to poor and humble pastors in Mexico, and I have cast out Pastoral Madness from them. I was surprised, because I really did not expect them to have it. But greed, adultery and desire for fame and recognition can work their way into a soul no matter the financial status of man.

In my experience, the majority of spiritual leaders reject the deliverance ministry. They explain their position with cliches such as “we are Christ-minded, not devil-minded”, ignoring the fact that a large part of Jesus’ ministry was deliverance. Because of their rejection of this ministry and the erroneous belief that “Christians don’t have demons”, they succumb to the wiles of the devil, because they have not been trained to recognize the devil’s traps, much less combat them. Thus, instead of being overcomers, they become losers in the warfare. It becomes the case of the blind leading the blind.