Steven Furtick, the honcho/pastor/barker of Elevation Church, finds his rear in a sling today, after Stuart Watson and of WCNC broke a story that reveals details of Furtick’s new house. It turns out that the pastor, whose church has eight different locations in four counties and takes in around $400,000 a week in collections, is building a 16,000-square-foot gated home on a 19-acre wooded lot in Waxhaw.
The property’s tax value is $1.6 million, but before you start thinking Furtick is fleecing church members, remember that the 33-year-old quasi-hipster pastor’s lawyer told the O that just a measly 8,400 square feet of the house will be heated. The attorney also says Furtick is using money he has made, and hopes to make, from sales of his books to purchase the property “and it’s not tied to the church in any way.” Except, of course, that without the church, nobody would buy Furtick’s books.
OK, some are saying, doesn’t Furtick have every right to spend his money the way he wants as long as it’s legal? Of course he does. BUT, here’s the problem, which neither Furtick nor his lawyer are addressing: When you are a self-professed “man of God,” you are assumed to have a higher calling then, say, an investment banker – particularly if you’re an ostensibly Christian pastor, since Jesus made kind of a big deal about helping the poor and not being a show-off and the like. There’s also the little matter of this city’s history, namely it was the home of Jim and Tammy Bakker’s PTL Club, which went to ruin – and prison – during the organization’s money-and-sex scandals of the late 1980s. I am not saying Furtick is as big a sleazebag as Bakker was – for one thing, Elevation Church did give away $2.5 million to various philanthropic groups last year – but one would think that a smart clergyman, or at least a non-narcissistic one, would be more aware of the critical importance of appearances for someone in his profession.
Protestant mega-churches are a distinctly American invention, the place where the nation’s church-going ways have intersected with its go-go striving for wealth. The funny thing is that they’ve now come to resemble the Roman Catholic Church during the Renaissance – lavish digs, plenty of money, visual tackiness, even sex scandals. There was a justifiable revolt against the excesses of the Catholic Church back then – it’s called Protestantism. You would hope that a similar revolt is in the works for those who run the mega-churches, merchandise their founders’ message of helping “the least of these,” and brag during sermons about their upcoming Hawaii vacations. Or who browbeat their churchgoers for more and more money. Take a look at this video of Lead Barker, er, Pastor Furtick making it clear how badly he wants his churchgoers to cough up a lot of money for his church, telling them, “That’s God money, it’s not your money, big boy.” You tell ’em, Steve.
This story has been updated to include the following information: Stuart Watson of WCNC broke the story, not the Charlotte Observer, as was previously reported in the piece.
This article appears in Oct 23-29, 2013.
Analyzing mega-church unseemliness is shooting fish in a barrel, but God what a bloated stinker.
Mr. Grooms, I’m curious as to why you chose to omit the following point from the source article by The Observer…
“In 2012, the church’s personnel costs, for about 100 employees, totaled nearly $6 million, according to Elevation’s annual report. …(Chunks Corbett, CFO) said Elevation pays out about 29 percent of its income on personnel, while the national average is more like 40 percent.”
I don’t see how you can logically make a comparison that Furtick is any way similar to Bakker when the entire staff of Elevation, including Furtick, is already operating at 11% below the national average. A church can’t be selfishly using money for personal gain if they’re already more cost-efficient with their budget than the average.
Furthermore, the concept of tithing – giving God your first 10% – is fundamental to all Christians and Jews, Furtick is just delivering the message in his typical style and is consistently that passionate about every sermon that I’ve ever seen. And no, if you’re curious, I’m not even a member of Elevation but I do watch their services online somewhat frequently.
oh, good god…oh, wait…
Thanks Tyler Morrison for the comments. And thank you for using your name, unlike too many online commenters. Yes, I should have included the percentage spent by Elevation on personnel, but not for the reason you give. Where you see cost-efficiency, I see yet another big organization that doesn’t pay its employees enough. As for tithing and Furtick’s “style,” yes, tithing has a long history going back to the Old Testament (it is notably absent from the NT, however), but Furtick’s style, if that’s what you want to call it, is about as obnoxious a demand for money from churchgoers as I’ve ever heard anywhere, anytime and any place, including, yes, Jim Bakker. I’m sometimes astonished at what some churchgoers will put up with from a minister.
This Pastor has his own LLC or C Corp that charges Elevation Church for literally everything he does, buys and/or incurs in any regard be it personal, corporate, professional or ‘other’. Apparently, he even charges for book related marketing, travel and related expenses that go towards building his book income. The charges over the last several years have gotten so out of hand that they had to change the internal accounting so as not to reflect such an enormous account or line item/s. They now apparently ‘wash’ his ‘expenses’ through various accounts to offset the impact and spread his expenses throughout the statement. I am not a tax accountant but from what I understand it is all very legal. In fact, some business owners would say it is very efficient and to be admired. But, I, for on don’t at all believe it is ethical or biblical….Of course, all of us, pastors, evangelists, ministry leaders or others should be rightly paid for our work. But, this ‘set up’ (not just the house but charging the church for EVERYTHING) is excessive. — In fact, Elevation, with all the good works and all the great folks, is essentially a cash machine for the Pastor. Of course, I am sure he — and several of the Elevators — would say the end justifies the means…I just hope they don’t forget to stand when he enters the room or fail to sit up straight and take copious notes when he speaks…After all they don’t want to get on the wrong side of ‘Pastor’.
TM — Pastor Furtick’s company/ies charge Elevation Church for everything!!! — His salary — if it is even included (as he is not an employee of Elevation) is not even the ‘tip of the iceberg’….So, the statistics or benchmarks you/they reference are not applicable to the real facts at hand.
For the pastors that make a good salary, create the environment for a successful church that spiritually takes care of its congregation and then invests in real estate or other strategies, God bless him. I hope he makes millions. I have been a Christian for a long time and I still have a problem with pastors who creates a megachurch, receives inspiration from the Holy Spirit to write books and record CD packages with spiritual messages, will take the proceeds from the sale of those books and CD’s as compensation for themselves. However, the sales pitch is that the these messages are inspired by the Holy Spirit. To me, they lose their spiritual authority to preach.
Billy Graham lives in the same little house his whole adult life and has never taken more than $85,000 a year in compensation. I don’t expect every pastor to have that same ethic, but it would be a wonderful thing for the Kingdom. Today, us Christians spend half our time trying to explain these kinds of pastors and then we have the reality TV show, “Preachers of LA” I believe its called. Perhaps the most disgusting representation of Christianity in the history of mankind.
The Bible talks about the power of money and the hold it can have on human beings. But we are in the End Days and people are seeking to see the power of God and real truth, and I am ashamed to admit that these are in short supply in the Church right now. Young people need spiritual guidance in these terrible times more than at any other time in history and they know an imposter when they see it and they know the real deal when they feel it.
I’ve been there a few times. My first impression was. Wow! Look at all the stuff. Literally 10’s of 1000, if not 100’s of 1000’s of dollars worth of sound and lighting gear, video equipment and staging. And then there is the music rock show to sit through too. I get that “worship” is part of church but really, this all just seems a bit overboard doesn’t it. I couldn’t help but think to myself while watching the rock and roll show. How many people could have been fed or clothed with what it must have cost to get all that stuff. Mr. Preacher does a good job at getting the word out there. I believe he has a definite talent for doing so. But I also believe that the general public has been shammed and slammed into submission by a church run by board members and dollar hungry business strategy types. They have led this good man and his family down a dark path. Shame on them for taking control of his soul. What they have done is the devils work. No matter how the PR agents for the church spin it now. It is obvious that the finances are backwards and twisted up by the same business leaders that have damn near ruined this economy and for their own benefit first. Get back to your home town churches people, the pews and the choirs are waiting.
I’m curious. After he collects all of “God’s money”, how does he get it to God? If it’s God’s money, what makes the slick minister think he can keep it and use it for his own purposes?
An average of 390,000+ dollars in tithings come into that church a week. Thats right at about 20M a year. When you have a pie that large to parse out, someone is gonna end up with a big house or two right? I’d be curious to see what the invoice ledgers from the other “principles” that are involved with Elevation look like. Yea. The mega Church “Hillsong” comes to mind and I’m sure Elevation is or has been following in their footsteps for quite some time. Did’t Brian Houston from “Hillsong” just come in for a special service last night. See here about their business model.—-> http://m.dailytelegraph.com.au/taxpayers-support-lavish-hillsong-lifestyle/story-e6frewt0-1225896526584. You can cut a pie up into a million pieces but when it comes to churches it better make sense for the community first. IMO with this much cash flow there shouldn’t be a single hungry / homeless person in Charlotte.
Is it OK for a pastor to use his own money to build a 16,000 square foot home? Absolutely, its his money he can do what he wants with it. Do I reserve the right to question the spiritual leadership of a pastor who builds a 16,000 square foot home? You betcha.
The Elevation church 2012 annual statement I’ve seen is selective with numbers but does not publish the CPA audited financial statements with notes. Until someone unbiased who understands these things gets to see these and ask a lot of questions and examine the ledgers, its very hard to know what is really going on. Lots of assumptions and guess work at this point, but I smell lots of smoke.
Cost of Furtick’s house: $1.6 million
Annual cost of a soldier in Afghanistan: $2.1 million
Cost of a Predator drone: $4.5 million
Cost of a Reaper drone: $28 million
Which of the four does President Peace Prize not force me to pay for?
Pretending to speak for an imaginary deity is a very lucrative business in the USA. If people are stupid enough to give their hard earned money to him I guess he is entitled to spend it any way he likes. But it shouldn’t be tax exempt.
I am struggling to deal with the wreckage of evangelicalism in my life. I was heavily, crazily involved years ago when different greedy people were doing the same things Furtick’s doing now (“Elmer Gantry” should be required, cautionary reading at seminaries–though some of those folks might take it as a “how to” manual). Since 1990, however, I’ve been forced to see, and even more grudgingly admit, that it is not the truth of scripture or the truth about scripture that animates these ministries. It is rather ‘just’ a largely groundless and warped view of the Bible. This is, of course, nearly impossible for adherents to accept because they’re regularly overwhelmed with Bible verses and they in turn regularly overwhelm others with the same. This was me, both overwhelmed and overwhelming. But you wake up one day and you realize you’re the same person you’ve always been, good and bad. You realize miracles aren’t happening. You come to understand that gay people really do fall in love, and you struggle with trying to distinguish their desires for a home and quiet life from your own. When you try to reason through these things with your (conservative) evangelical friends, they “unfriend” you.
“The bible says . . . ”
I wish they knew.
I wish there were places like Elevation where thousands of people could come together and honestly, with open minds and hearts, examine the scriptures and worship God. I wish above all that church leaders were more comfortable with unanswered, unanswerable questions (“Why is even one child anywhere seriously ill?”) I wish the longing for truth was stronger than the need for self-help, which is what most popular evangelical preaching boils down to (and, dear Jesus, pop Christian music is even more whiny and tiny in its focus). I wish churches as large as Elevation would welcome critical thought about its messages. If such a church existed and were led by someone who was brave enough to go where the path of truth led, I might not even mind helping that guy/gal build a big house. Of course, as has been said, that person wouldn’t want me to.
Pastor Steven has bought countless souls to Jesus, he has saved them from an eternity of damnation.
Think about that, and think about how much that is worth…what is the monetary value spending eternity in God’s Kingdom? If he was compensated properly for his good works and all the money he has given away to help others, he would own Dilworth. Not a house, but the entire neighborhood of Dilworth, and it still wouldn’t be enough.
Also, this is a nation that venerates wealth and success above all other things. That’s just the way it is. Pastor Steven’s home, even though it seems like a nice house, is part of the necessary tools he needs to reach young Americans. If he wants to do that, then the big home is just part of his toolbox. Trust me, if he wasn’t trying to spread the word of Christ, he’d be living in a much more modest house – he is not a materialist, but a servant of God.
– Grace
He is disgusting.
James 4:11
Mathew 7:1-6
King James Version of Matthew 21:12
Matthew 19-23
I normally don’t get involved in little debates like this, and I want to preface my statement by saying it is not my place to judge someone’s heart before God. Furtick will have to answer to the Lord IF he has mishandled what was entrusted to him by the LORD. But no where in Scripture is a big house a sin. Actually when you read through most of the Old Testament, there were many leaders who were very rich! As you read through Proverbs and Psalms, it speaks of the riches that belong to the righteous. From my understanding, Furtick is a very, very generous person. Not only does there church give away millions, but he personally is known to give well above 10% of his finances and has been tithing ever since he was a poor kid in high school. Could it be that the Lord has fulfilled his promise of Malachi 3? To compare Furtick to Grahm is not right. And if Furtick is seeking the praise of men, then that will be his reward as Jesus himself spoke of. I have listened to just about everyone of Furticks message series at the end of the year where he collects an expansion offering for the church. And I have never heard him beat anyone up for not giving, but have only heard him encourage people with the freedom they will receive from being generous, and the blessings that come with giving. I have never felt like he has preached a prosperity gospel. I do think it is jacked up to take a 1 minute clip of a message and draw an entire conclusion. Isn’t that what most false teachers do? Listen to the whole message in order to get the context, don’t just jump to conclusions based on a clip. The last question I will ask to all those who are upset with Furticks house, and criticize his finances: Are you Biblically giving to the local church and handling your finances perfectly the way God has commanded? If you are perfectly handling your finances, then as a Believer, help others handle theirs, instead of criticizing. If your not perfect with your finances, then maybe look inwardly, before making accusations outwardly. Thanks for letting me be apart of this convo!!
I loved reading all the comments and opinions. Personally, Pastor Furtick has encouraged my faith and belief that a personal merciful loving and at times chastising but always truthful restorative healing God loves me . Let God be the judge of his secret heart.
Wow, this is insane. …”2Timothy:4 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears from the truth, and be turned unto fables.” Where do you see fables? Where do you see Steven turning them away from the truth of Almighty God? Jesus Christ— The image of God from the Bible is lifted up. It breaks my heart that this is what the world sees in our family. We all need to keep our eyes on Jesus and pray for each other. Jesus, I pray that Stevens ways get more refined by You. That his heart would truly want more of You and less of him and that would reflect in his bringing Your word to others. I pray for Your humility and encouragement to bless him. So many times, I turned on the tv and felt You through his words when I was so numb. Thank You. And, Jesus I pray for Your church that we all make up. Remind us that You are the judge and humble us in speaking the way Your Word needs to be heard. I thank You for John and his preaching of Your word. His preaching is very fundamental and precise-I pray for You to shape him into the name You gave him. It is life for life and it cost You all of us— keep us right sized and in the palm of Your hand. Please keep the Pharisees heart far from us. I am just another sinner saved by Your precious Son because of who You are. God be true or every man a liar. I love You Lord, in Jesus name I pray, Amen.