The following entries represent questions or comments that have been made to or about our group, mainly from current staff inside the ministry. To facilitate further dialogue, we invite you to consider our responses.
We are not perfect. We want to be open to careful, scripture-reasoned correction if needed. It is good for the Body of Christ to dialogue. “Come, let us reason together.”
Click on a gray comment box to read our response.
“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” Philippians 1:9-11
July 2, 2015
The short answer is: Yes.
However, we doubt there continues to be a reason to meet.
Diaspora had hoped from the beginning to meet with GFA leadership to address the concerns voiced in our first letter. As we moved forward through this process, we even chose a date with KP for such a meeting (October 2, 2014 and then October 13, 2014), but GFA’s leadership never followed through in actually sitting down to meet. Instead, we were told that Gayle Erwin was heading an investigation into our concerns and, as such, it was now out of KP’s hands and up to the board as to what to do next.
Please see the Communications History for the emails and phone calls between JD and KP concerning setting up a meeting.
Several months passed until Gayle Erwin sent his final report in March stating that our claims were dismissed and that they would no longer be communicating with us. We took that to mean an end of any opportunity for a meeting to take place.
Our original purpose for meeting was to clearly define our concerns and plead for repentance. We desired to see GFA leadership make changes reflective of a rejection of their false teachings on authority, a renewed respect of staff’s personal lives, and full transparency to donors of the nature of Believer’s Church. Our primary concern was not for individual personal hurts to be reconciled (most of us had already forgiven GFA for those things); but those personal incidents simply reflected the larger problems within the culture of GFA.
Because GFA leadership never admitted to the validity of our concerns in the March 26, 2015 Board Response, we progressively widened the circle of our communications from just the leadership and board initially, to the staff and finally to supporters, both current and potential (see June 1, 2015 post).
We broadened the audience carefully and progressively for two reasons: First, for the sake of GFA to give them a progressive chance to repent (per Matthew 18), and, second, for the sake of the donors who need such information to make informed stewardship choices.
Now that all our information is public, the original reason for meeting with GFA’s leadership seems to be nullified. They have not responded to our calls for repentance thus far, and now the current staff, the public itself and possibly the law continues the call to repentance and change. We’re not sure what a meeting would accomplish, unless the purpose of a meeting is to ask our advice in how to make changes. However, from GFA’s responses to us thus far, we doubt they would desire our help.
We have been told that GFA is telling supporters that the only reason the meeting has not happened is because “Diaspora would not meet without it being videotaped” and GFA has been counseled against doing so by the ECFA. Therefore, they have accused us of not being willing to meet.
We think this is disingenuous, as it gives the impression that GFA did all they could to arrange a meeting and the only thing that led to failed negotiations was our demand that it be videotaped (see Aug 22, 2014). This is simply false. Again, see our Communications History for the whole truth.
The only meeting negotiations between GFA and ourselves were the emails and calls between JD and KP. If one reads, s/he will find that JD asked one time about it being videotaped and KP never even responded to that. Then KP announced the investigation. After that, the negotiations about meeting times simply stopped and KP never spoke directly to JD after that. We would not call that a failure on our part.
Since then there has been one person—a brother named Greg—who has tried to negotiate his own meeting between Diaspora and GFA (see April 16, 2015). Our communications with him can also be seen in the Communications History. We were unable to work with him because we had no indication from GFA or its board that Greg had any authority to carry out such negotiations. GFA’s board has never retracted their statement that they are finished communicating with us (see March 26, 2015), so until the GFA board or leaders acknowledge directly to us that they would like to resume communications, we don’t see any point in working with a third party, like Greg.
In conclusion, we invite all to review our Communications History to decide personally the whole truth of our attempts and willingness to meet with GFA. Because of the lack of response from GFA over the process, we have incrementally broadened the audience to voice our concerns; thus, at this point in time, a meeting may no longer be appropriate. Nonetheless, we remain open should it be requested.
We have always been hopeful for real change at GFA resulting from an admission of wrong that leads to accountability and safeguards being implemented for the future.
Policy changes are effective when they result from uncovering the root of the problem and fixing it. We sincerely hope that any policy changes reflect a genuine desire to truly address concerns we brought to light.
However, because these policy changes are being implemented without any acknowledgment of our concerns, we have doubts they are born out of genuine repentance and desire to change the direction of the ministry.
It is difficult to not perceive changes announced to staff as a way to control damage to GFA’s reputation both internally and externally. GFA leaders’ responses clearly denied any wrongdoing and (board member) Gayle’s final report stated that all of our concerns are “neutralized” and that the case is closed. This does not evidence true repentance.
True repentance is evidenced by a willingness to admit specific wrongs and to discuss—not dismiss—the points so many witnesses have raised.
Many of us have watched this same reaction over the years by leadership each time there was a staff crisis—yet the systemic problems emerged again, prompting mass staff exoduses in 1993, 2004, and perhaps now. Why? Because the root of the problems never changed.
Staff policy changes may be good, but they alone will not fix all of the ministry’s systemic errors.
It is good to avoid an evil report once you know it is indeed evil. Scripture admonishes us not to answer a matter before we hear it (Proverbs 18:13). We are to test all things and hold fast what is good (1 Thess. 5:21). Even the New Testament Bereans were counted more noble because they tested the Apostle Paul’s words to the scriptures (Acts 17:11). Testing is a way to help avoid deception. It is not wrong to test what even our leaders have to say to determine if it is true.
None of us is beyond rebuke. We invite you to also test us! Test what we have to say to the Word of God. We invite you to evaluate for yourself our concerns and our dealing with leadership before coming to a conclusion.
There are many examples of godly rebuke in the Bible. It was to the Jewish religious leaders, whom the people were following, that Jesus Himself had His strongest words of rebuke. Paul rebuked even Peter at one time. He also warns us about others: “Note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them” (Romans 16:17). This does not mean we should simply avoid anything divisive. It means we should find out if it is contrary to the scriptures first. A person cannot discern if they do not take time to evaluate. We are showing that GFA practices some doctrines that are contrary to the doctrine we have learned from the scriptures.
It is sad to us that staff have been programmed to unquestioningly trust leadership and reject any alarming message from outside without testing it themselves.
We wonder if discerning an issue is difficult for some because of many years without being taught the whole counsel of God. Instead, many may have been taught things pertaining only to selected passages that have to do with submitting to authority, reaching the lost, and extreme discipleship—without the rest of the Bible’s balance.
Actually, after careful consideration, we have gone about this biblically, according to Matthew 18:15-17 and 1 Timothy 5:19-20.
You see, over the years, many of us individually shared our concerns directly with leadership. In some cases a leader seemed to be open to our concerns and even agree with them—but no changes ever resulted. In other cases, leadership immediately fired the staff member and told them to clear out their desk that day.
This failure of adequate response from GFA when we approached individually according to Mat 18:15 prompted us to move to the next step of taking multiple witnesses, per Mat 18:16. We did this through our initial group letter. GFA leadership had already proven they had no intention of acting on our individual concerns, so we felt we must dialogue only as a group to hold GFA leadership to a higher level of accountability. This is why we chose to not dialogue further individually with GFA leaders when they tried contacting each of the initial letter signers.
The scope of GFA’s problems goes beyond restoring personal offenses in Matthew 18:15-17. It is now apparent that 1 Timothy 5:19-20 is also appropriate here to address doctrinal errors that are hurting people.
“Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses. Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear.”
Additionally, we sought out pastoral counsel to ensure we had not violated scripture’s guidance but had handled this process in a godly manner. We invite you to read our notes from the counsel of Pastor Bruce Morrison.
For further clarity on the issue, we invite you to read When a Pastor Sins, written by Pastor Bruce. The following are a few quotes we thought were helpful in clarifying this issue:
“If a pastor wrongs a person and the wrong done does not affect the whole church, the pastor is in a position to resolve the matter privately. Once the same type of behaviour is experienced by two or three people it becomes a public matter. In this case the whole church is to be told what the sin was and the pastor needs to publicly take responsibility….”
“Depending on the nature of the sin, and the contriteness of the pastor, a determination of future ministry needs to be decided. If the sin is habitual, meaning there is an obvious need to mature in one of the character requirements for ministry, the pastor needs to take time to mature in that area before returning to ministry.”
“When any of us sin, including a pastor, a restored conscience only comes through confession of the sin, acknowledging the damage done to others, and true repentance. A pastor who meets the qualifications for ministry, but then sins, will, by the very virtues he has developed that qualifies him for ministry, be the first to want to stand before a congregation, acknowledge the sin, and ask forgiveness.”
“Through a public rebuke the church is taught a healthy fear of the Lord. A good example is thereby set before the congregation, that when any one of them sins they should take responsibility for it. The public rebuke of a pastor is not punitive, but restorative. It is not about vengeance, it is about correction.”
“…elders…who are in a position to correct a pastor who sins, but fail to do so, “share” in the sin. They…become party to the sin. The same applies to church members who know that a minister has sinned but do nothing to address the sin by not taking the matter to other leaders.”
Pledging lifelong allegiance to a man or a group requires following that man or group into sin and error if they stray from the Lord’s ways.
Instead, our allegiance should be to the Lord alone, following Him and working with different saints in different places as He leads over time, perhaps sometimes in full-time work and sometimes as a “tent-maker”.
Love for God, love for the truth, and love for His people—these are the reasons we bring our concerns to you.
If you look at all we say on this website, it should become clear that we are neither bitter nor against the work of the Lord. Rather, we are for His work being done in His ways. We are for honesty and transparency. We are for leaders loving and serving His sheep as Jesus loved and served His disciples, not lording authority over them.
We neither want to tear down GFA nor seek any type of vengeance. We know God will do what is fitting. As a result, we are free to love and pray for GFA leaders as we confront their errors in hopes of repentance and restoration.
We agree that GFA is family! It was a wonderful blessing to fellowship there with you, our fellow staff members and families. It was also a privilege and honor to pray for the lost with you.
The love of God is apparent in the staff in many ways. So when the leaders severed some of our relationships with you through unbiblical shunning, it was quite painful to us!
We are not against the people of GFA or the fellowship there; we are against the ministry’s man-made system of authority and lack of transparency with donors.
We recognize that one way or another, there may be fallout for KP and his entire ministry as the truth becomes known. It grieves us to know that you, our friends on staff, are affected as churches stop their support when they see how GFA has been dishonest with them. Please remember that we deeply love each leader, staff member and student, and we stand ready to help as needed.
If a donor drops support because of GFA’s unrighteousness, please don’t blame us. We simply followed through on our moral obligation to reveal how supporters have been misled. If GFA can demonstrate that they are above reproach, then donors can make their own decision to continue.
However, we’ve not yet seen any evidence to refute our claims despite GFA leadership having more than 9 months to produce it for us.
We invite you to read Psalm 15 and evaluate whether we are the ones slandering, or whether leadership is slandering us. This also requires reading and listening to what we have to say—hearing both sides of the story—before making your decision.
It is not our intention to pull staff away from GFA. Rather, our goal is that leaders wholly turn back to God’s ways, that the board and donors hold them accountable, and that staff know and walk in the truth.
If staff know the truth and feel called to stay, they can be agents of change as they help the ministry walk in the light. And then the Lord can be pleased as the Gospel reaches the unreached of Asia through righteous means.
On the other hand, there may be some staff who sense God is calling them on from GFA to partner with others to serve the Lord, whether though full-time ministry or “tent-making”. We know by experience the challenge involved regarding finances, housing, and procuring a new job—not to mention the process of discerning the will of God in all of this. In fact, these things caused some of us to remain on staff longer than what we sensed was God’s will. Yet He faithfully provided for each of us.
May God accomplish His work through each person as He sees fit for His kingdom.
Thank you—good comment. We should not gossip. Gossip is speaking of private things to others, without permission, outside of the bounds of the immediate relationship—often with speculation and judgment. Doing this is unbiblical and betrays the trust of the immediate relationship and tarnishes—perhaps falsely—the reputation of the person being spoken about.
However, after attempting the first two steps of Mat 18:15-16, the Bible then instructs us to tell it to the church. (Mat 18:17). Also, after sharing our accusations against an elder with multiple witnesses (1 Ti 5:19), we are then to rebuke in the presence of all. (1 Ti 5:20).
Our hope was to avoid having to do so; yet because our concerns were not legitimately addressed by GFA after giving them generous time, we needed to follow the next step and share with the church (which we first limited to GFA only) the reports of systemic sins that go beyond personal offenses as evidence to disclose all that has transpired.
Is KP infallible? No, only Jesus is. So how can you implicitly trust a fallible man? Can you see the danger in that? There are countless stories of ministry leaders who have fallen. Is KP or any one of us immune to that possibility? “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12).
Many of us already had quite a few one-on-one discussions with leadership while still on staff about these concerns. In fact, some of us were fired and immediately escorted out of the office for raising them. The GFA leadership team lied when they said that none of us did this, just as they lied when they claimed that every one of us had an exit interview.
After receiving our letter, they did reach out to each grieved party attempting one-on-one discussions, but when we each responded thanking them for reaching out, we requested a group meeting. They initially promised such a meeting, but then refused to accept our invitations to meet and instead told us the board would investigate and get a response to us. Many months have passed and we still have not received any such response from the board.
How many times do they have to tell obvious lies before people stop implicitly trusting them? God will hold each of us accountable for how we conducted our lives, and when we are at the judgment seat, KP won’t be there with us.
KP is not a mediator between God and man, nor is any other Christian leader. Each staff member will be held responsible and judged for committing sin while doing something KP asks of them, including passive sins such as failing to love one’s wife as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for her, or failing to go where God asks.
Also, KP is not a prophet. Each one is accountable for one’s own decisions and not obligated to follow KP in all areas of life. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2:5).
This authority issue is the root of the false teaching at GFA. How we long for all to see the damage it causes! This is how KP manipulates his staff into doing his will, regardless of whether or not he is in step with God’s will.
We wonder if this is what KP has told the staff. But the truth is he hasn’t apologized to any of us for any of the specific sins we addressed in the letter. He gave generic blanket apologies for “hurting people” by some “mistakes” he’d made, but to this day he has refused to admit wrong on any of the points we raised or have any further discussion with us about it. He handed the process off to the board and they have not met with us or discussed these matters with us either.
Please consider examining leadership and the claims against them, instead of simply trusting they are right no matter what. How serious of a report would you have to hear before you felt obligated to examine the evidence on your own to see if they are speaking truth?
The scripture commends the Bereans as having noble character because they did NOT trust what Paul said but examined it themselves to see if it was true. “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” (Acts 17:11)
When you read the testimonies you will see that KP has lied to the staff many times. Even Troy’s recent testimony describes how KP fired him and then lied about it to staff saying it was Troy’s decision, due to family problems, when in reality it was entirely GFA’s decision. Pat also lied to his staff about the reasons why Tammy was at home. There is a pattern of lying among leadership, and that is a mark of unrepentant sin.
And as for steps GFA is taking, we welcome them, but we have not heard of any of them. Have they publicly repented to those they have hurt? Have they admitted their guilt publicly in these five areas of concern? Have they worked to inform the donors of the true nature of Believer’s Church, stating that they were wrong to deceive? All of these things would show real change, and we hope they are forthcoming.
We are not concerned about Bibles being printed in local languages. Our concern is that GFA is intentionally misrepresenting the nature of the churches planted on the field. For example, we have documented Photoshopped images of KP and the fact that GFA doesn’t mention anything Episcopal on gfa.org except on one well-hidden page about Believers Church, and yet the word Episcopal appears 45 times on the website intended for church members in India, believerschurch.com.
Another area of concern is fundraising for items the ministry has no intention of buying. That is also lying, and yes, other organizations do it too. Will GFA answer by saying it’s OK to deceive donors because everyone else does it and the Gospel was still preached? We hope not.
UPDATE: In the beginning of April, GFA added text about the Episcopal structure of Believer’s Church accessible in its FAQ section of its website.
When you read all the testimonies, you will see that the good we are accomplishing is preventing more of God’s precious children from being abused in similar ways. We are also helping donors see the nature of the organization they are funding so they may decide if they want to continue.
Many ex-staff have been seeing biblical counselors for years to recover from the lies, emotional abuse, false doctrine, self-guilt, and shunning they experienced as a result of GFA. In fact some have walked away from the faith and blame the hypocrisy of GFA’s leaders. Many have not been able to return to church for fear of being manipulated and hurt again by new leaders. We hope to spare others from the effects of spiritual abuse.
The end does not justify the means. Pointing to the fruit on the field does not justify abusing the staff or deceiving donors. In Matthew 15, after Jesus accused the Pharisees of worshiping God in vain, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men, His disciples asked him if He knew He had offended them. He told them that every plant not planted by His heavenly Father would be uprooted. The entire religious system of the day was uprooted by Jesus’ teachings and He was not concerned about the fruit of the ministry, but the filth that was coming from the hearts of those who were leading it. Jesus cares about both the end and the means.
Actually this is false. He has never met with us as a group, even though he promised us he would. When, at the last minute, he delegated it to the board, the board never arranged it. He did offer to meet individually with just JD, but JD desired accountability and a reasonable number of witnesses at the meeting, as it is our whole group who is bringing up these offenses, not just JD. KP agreed to that group meeting with representatives, but he never came through on it.
You can read phone conversation transcripts and email exchanges to get a full understanding of the communications between KP and this group on the Communications History page.
We have no evidence that KP has taken adequate steps to address our concerns. We do know, however, that the leadership has dismissed our concerns and has not admitted publicly to specific wrongdoing on any of the points we addressed. The few times they have apologized for “misunderstandings” or “hurts” are not adequate when we are dealing with specific sins that includes lies to raise money, false teaching, and shunning other believers.
If that grievance was an offense we had done to them, a busy schedule or important roles would never excuse accountability before God to obey the Scriptures and repent when confronted after sinning against someone. Jesus takes this so seriously, even for a “small” sin, that He says, “If another member of the Church sins against you, go and point out the fault … if the offender refuses to listen even to the Church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:15-17)
For leaders who sin, James says, “Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:19) and “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.” (James 3:1)
Having a bad day does not excuse sin. Everyone—leaders and laymen alike—are accountable before God and His Church for sin. God is holy, loves us, and desires that we repent.
KP’s abusive behavior has been documented in the testimonies and spans over a decade by our accounts alone. This length of time and pattern of behavior can not be attributed to simply having “bad days”.
James 4:11-12 speaks of not judging a brother. The context here is judging for the purpose of condemning a brother by speaking evil. But judging to cause correction and discipline is not evil speech, and is promoted by scripture.
Church leaders are not above reproach and can be accused of sin by another leader or fellow believer. See 1 Timothy 5:19-20: “Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.”
This passage says that charges against an elder or leader in the Church are admissible if there is evidence from at least two or three witnesses. We have brought charges against KP with seventy-five witnesses, and yet KP has dismissed us as wrong and misunderstanding, and persists in his sins. If he continues to persist then he ought to be rebuked by the other leaders in the presence of all, according to this passage. Oh that they would have the courage to do this.
If someone believes something to be biblical, it does not excuse them if it’s wrong. Would you say that leadership is excused from lying if they believe it’s biblical to lie to increase donations?
Many sins are committed out of ignorance. It doesn’t mean we don’t repent of them once we realize what we’ve done. Think of King Josiah in 2 Kings 22-23. All that time, Israel was living without the law, but when they found it and read it, Josiah tore his clothes. He grieved deeply. It didn’t matter that the nation of Israel had sinned out of ignorance. What mattered was that they had sinned, and now they needed to repent and fix it.
Also observe Jesus’s words in Matthew 20:25-28: “But Jesus called them to him and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’” And we are to submit to one another (Ephesians 5:21).
Even if the military chain of command and the way they “own” you 24/7 is analogous to Jesus’s total authority over our lives, it is not analogous to how elders and bishops (pastors) in the church are to lead.
“Biblical authority is limited by the commandments of Scripture. Your spiritual leaders have no authority over you beyond what the Bible demands. For example, if your leader demands that you and your spouse have only one child, or that you entrust to his care all of your possessions, or anything not commended in Scripture, you are free to respectfully decline. God, not man, decides the parameters of authority.” from Walter Henrichsen’s Thoughts from the Diary of a Desperate Man
Causing conflict and disunity among believers would indeed be sin if it is done contrary to biblical doctrine (Romans 16:17). In this case, you are blaming the victims of sin for causing conflict, not the one causing it. If KP is sinning (e.g. lying to donors or teaching damaging false doctrine) should not those who take notice of it biblically confront KP by approaching him privately and then if he doesn’t hear them, take him before witnesses and even the whole church? (Matthew 18:15-17) Are you saying we have not taken the biblical approach or are you saying that KP has indeed repented? We have not seen evidence for either position.
Also KP has instituted shunning at GFA. Does that not cause disunity among believers, especially when a wife is shunned and cut off from her husband’s ministry? This has been the case with the wife of a current GFA staff person for over a decade. Love in the body of Christ does not shun and divide, but seeks resolution and unity. This is our aim, but until the sin is dealt with, there will be conflict and disunity.
KP might think he can not resolve these issues, but he can! All he needs to do is repent of his sin and make a genuine apology that includes admission of the specific wrongdoing outlined in our initial letter. This will, of course, lead to much change in how the ministry conducts itself and how it communicates with donors.
KP could indeed quit or be fired, but there is another option: change.
“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to listen than the fat of rams.” -1 Sam. 15:22
We want Bro. K.P. to repent. That is our earnest desire. His senior leaders – Daniel P., Pat E., John B., and David C. – will also need to repent as they were complicit in carrying out these sins and abuses. And if he needs to quit or be fired in the process, that does not excuse him from his obligation to repent. God will take care of the details if we will simply obey Him. Please don’t make excuses for Bro. KP. He needs to face his sins, humble himself, and repent.
Whether or not KP repents at this late hour, whatever fallout comes to him and his ministry will be from his own sin. Had he been innocent he would have been able to make an adequate defense long ago. We, who have simply shined the light on it, will not be the cause.
We aren’t clear on the nature of this question, however, perhaps what is meant by a “cross-continent group get-together” is our request for a Skype type of meeting for the convenience of board members and others who do not live in the Dallas area. We thought this would save time and money in travel. The plan to record it was for accountability purposes and review, NOT for public distribution. Even so, if a person is telling the truth and has nothing to hide, he should not be afraid to speak and have it recorded. Those of us in the GFA Diaspora were not afraid.
If the question was why we created this website cataloging all our communications with KP and shared it across the continent with you, indeed its purpose is to bring into the light all of these hidden things to cause godly sorrow leading to repentance (2 Cor. 7:9-10).
Also, it is not our intention to have our efforts please Satan but to please God. We know God is pleased when we bring our deeds into the light, that they may be clearly seen to have been done in God (John 3:21). God desires that we walk in the light as He is in the light so that we can have fellowship with one another (I John 1:7).
Sometimes the end is good, but not the means. God desires truth in the inward parts (Psalm 51:6), and though it’s easy to fear what will happen if these deeds are exposed, we know He has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). We serve a God who is able to redeem, but if we make decisions based on fear of what the Enemy might do, we are not walking closely with our powerful God.
If indeed KP is at fault, then his primary concern should be repentance, not the damage it might do to his reputation. Let God deal with the fallout. KP’s responsibility is simply to humble himself and repent. In fact, that is KP’s best chance of leaving a good legacy — repenting publicly for the record and implementing real reform in all five areas of sin that we raised in the letter.
As leadership has often said, “God doesn’t need us!” People don’t need money to be saved, but they do need the Holy Spirit.
GFA and Believers Church may be a vessel the Lord uses, but it is elitist to think that without GFA, the gospel will not get out. There are many healthy mission organizations doing God’s work. How much more effective could GFA be if they repented and began walking in the light and freedom?
This is not ammunition we have created, but rather the lies and deception that have come from GFA itself. Find out for yourself if donors and supporting pastors are OK with the photos and information on www.believerschurch.com.
One of the Diaspora ex staff says, “The four pastors I spoke to about [the Episcopal identity of GFA] were very troubled that GFA did not let them know about it. When I first started at GFA in 2010, I was instructed to tell Calvary Chapel pastors that the churches we were planting in Asia were like little Calvary Chapels. Now that has changed. Those Calvary Chapels—and all supporters for that matter—have a right to know and GFA has a responsibility to tell them so they can decide if they want to continue supporting the work. Not only is GFA not telling them, but GFA takes measures to conceal it. This clearly is deceptive. Core value number two, ‘Being a people of integrity and excellence’ needs to be removed or changed.”
These measures of concealment are well-documented in Joe and Cari’s testimony.
When people lie, it catches up with them and their reputations are destroyed. How many lives are we putting at risk by not taking this issue of integrity seriously? If GFA would admit they have a problem, slow down and do whatever they need to fix it, they would be showing the world that integrity is important to them. They might suffer by admitting their faults, but it would be less painful than having others expose it to their supporters.
We are not making demands. We are simply following the biblical model of dealing with sin in the Church. If GFA leaders refuse to repent, we are not excused from continuing to follow the process to deal with the unrepentant sinner. In the case of institutional sin among the elders of a church (or leaders of an organization that acts like a church and calls itself a church), we have an obligation to warn others in the Church and expose the sin before all. If we fail in this, we will be held accountable for that by God.
We have spent many months waiting for KP to do what he has promised. Eventually we have realized that we need to give deadlines so we know when it is time to take the next step. None of the timelines we set were unreasonable, especially when a one-sentence acknowledgment to say he would get back to us would have sufficed. The deadlines were given so that we ourselves could know whether KP intended to respond to these very serious accusations or not.
The last contact JD had from KP was in October of 2014. KP and a Gayle Erwin said they would contact JD, but that never happened. On February 2, 2015, KP contacted another member of Diaspora to say he would be getting back to JD “shortly.” As of this writing, that was nearly two months ago.
Employee turnover rate may give us the percentage of employees who stay or leave, but it does not tell us anything about why they stay or leave. The leaders at GFA teach that your calling to GFA is for life and then warn about the bad things that happen to people spiritually when they leave. They imply they have “lost their call” and have stopped serving the Lord (as though GFA is the only place, or at least the very best place, one can serve the Lord). With all this pressure, it’s no wonder people have such a difficult time leaving, even if they have their own concerns.
Also it should be noted that GFA has seen a number of mass exoduses over the years, with the largest ones having occurred in the 1990s, 2004 and 2015. Nearly 50 staff left Gospel for Asia in 2015 alone.
His busy schedule does not excuse him from following the scriptures and responding to the accusations brought against him by repenting of sin. He responded by dismissing our claims and pointing to misunderstanding, while failing to repent of the accusations we brought before him, proven by a great number of witnesses.
We have been very patient, at times waiting weeks and months for a response. And the access has always been on KP’s terms, not ours. In addition, he has repeatedly lied to us about what he would do next (well documented in the Communications History) and then ignored us for long periods of time while we awaited word and never received what was promised.