Elevation Honors Pastor Furtick with Music Video

The Charlotte Observer ^ | October 31, 2015 | Tim Funk

[Cecily]

October is Pastor Appreciation Month and most churches mark it by honoring their spiritual leader with, say, a dinner or maybe a gift.

At Charlotte’s Elevation Church, they did a rap video.

Clocking in at nearly three minutes, the rap-and-dance music tribute to Pastor Steven Furtick has a cast of maybe 100, including recognizable church staffers such as Chunks Corbett, Elevation’s chief financial officer. His unsmiling face is the video’s first image.

“Pastor Appreciation 2015,” which is taking off on Twitter, is modeled after “Downtown,” a rap video from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. In that video, the rapper is looking for a moped; in Elevation’s version, the search is for a church.

[Cecily]

Abba Father and Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ don't rate a mention in the video, but "Holly Spirit" (Furtick's wife's name is Holly) does.

I have never heard of Pastor Appreciation Month. Maybe Creflo Dollar fleeced the sheep of enough money during this appreciation month to buy that new Gulfstream.

[gcraig]

We go to Elevation church in Charlotte and the Holly Spirit thing is kind of a play on words they do, just lighthearted humor. The message every week in church is very focused on Jesus Christ and hopefully brings those that are far from God to a relationship with our savior.

[Cecily]

Please do yourself a favor and focus completely on God’s Word and your relationship with Jesus Christ. You and your family have no specific need for Elevation Church or Steven Furtick and you should not hero worship any man.

[Swanks]

Celebrity worship at the church who’s celebrity pastor lives in a 16,000 sq. ft. house.

[gcraig]

I don’t hero worship pastor Furtick. He does a very good job and I like going to church there. It’s much better than the church we used to go to. I do understand what you are saying and I have noticed some people are just too much.

[Cecily]

My URL link is incorrect. The article from The Charlotte Observer is at:

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/religion/article41969652.html

[fishtank]

Why is Steven Furtick Acting Like a Cult Leader?

http://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/christian-trends/why-is-steve-furtick-acting-like-a-cult-leader.html

[Swanks]

Well if you don’t worship him, there is a cult following there that does. You see, he’s a celeb. 16,000 sq. ft. home, top of the org in a 10,000 member church, you see. And he allows even 5 minutes work or 5 cents in funds spent on ‘honoring’ him you are in the wrong church.

[cport]

I'd rather he get the money than the government. Listen, I've heard a few of his sermons on line, and they are very Word and Jesus oriented, and adhering to biblical doctrine on issues such as homosexuality and abortion. He is by no means touchy-feely or success-gospel, nor is he judgmental. He is human, and has fallen prey to some of the temptations (mainly pride-related) that go along with success, and I have seen him apologize to another pastor for that very sin.

My church is fairly large (but not a mega-church) and gets a sizeable amount from tithes and offerings. There is no debt, half the money goes to mission work both here and abroad, and the rest pays the staff. Our pastor lives better than I do, better than many, but I don't begrudge him that. He reaches many, is very Christ-centric, and I think deserves the compensation. They aren't monks, for crying out loud. If you are good at something, and you earn it by doing what you say you are doing and not cheating or embezzling, then what is the problem, conservative? No one asks them to take a poverty vow

[Swanks]

Church has children’s coloring books with pictures to color of dear leader , er, Pastor Furtick. And he allows it I am sure due to a large ego. Kind of creepy when is the last time you saw coloring books with a churches Pastor in it. Not is a church in a cult for sure.

[soycd]

Let me toss in an Amen . . .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPaa1NPJMB4

[Swanks]

If you are good at something, and you earn it by doing what you say you are doing ..., then what is the problem

The problem is: he is not an entertainer nor a gifted writer or singer. If that is the case have at it and make $10M a year. He has no right in his role as church leader he should step down and go make his millions and be worshiped elsewhere. What harm, the Duggers? Let em make millions on their show right? Well they went ahead representing Christianity, with pedophile skeletons in the closet. And caused enormous damage to the cause of Christ. This guy will fall he is way to young in already into 16,000 ft house and Sunday School coloring books of pictures of himself. A mature Christian leader would forbid it, he accepts it. Pretty kewl, Bro...

[Arlis]

Hmmmmm......wondering why there is no evangelist appreciation month, prophet appreciation month, teacher appreciation month, apostle appreciaton month.

Ok, some groups believe there are no more prophets and apostles. I’ll confess I believe there are.

Ok then. What about evangelists and teachers? Oh.

Only pastors are significant.

Wondering what scripture supports this view.

[PAR35]

Don’t you have a ping list for outfits like this?

[Swanks]

Hey what's up next after Pastor coloring books; has the music ministry caught up yet in the Pastor worship? Maybe 2016.

"We...worship Steve...in Him, we believe..."

[gcraig]

You evidently don’t like Furtick. Have you actually ever listened to what he says,or are you stuck on his house? I’m a conservative so I could care less about the size of his house or his bank account. Try listening to a few sermons, I think he’s pretty good. The dude that preached last week was good too.

[Swanks]

I don't need to listen to him. To say that the quality of his sermons should equate to a level of acceptability in cult-leader worship is wrong. If he's really, really good, we should allow for more and more relaxation of standards expected of a church leader. Why, he's really good [so don't criticize his 16,000 ft house]. You don't understand, he's really good [so while maybe coloring books with dear leader in it makes us feel a little queasy, we look the other way], cause he's good. He is NOT good, because his responsibilities go FAR beyond making you feel good post sermon or drawing a lot of people in off the street.

If you google his name you don't exactly find a lot of material referring to the gospel message, or bible passages, do you? Actually all you find is his side business of writing, building 16,000 ft houses. He doesn't seem to lose much sleep at night about his name tied to these things, vs. his name tied to the work of the Lord.

From your own church literature:
1. We SERVE a Lead Pastor who seeks and hears from God. 3. We SERVE a Lead Pastor we can trust. 7. We SERVE a Lead Pastor who pours into us spiritually and professionally. 16. We SERVE a Lead Pastor who goes first.

Y'all serve Him ? You might not be a cult member but you rub shoulders on Sunday with those who do. Worse, your 'Leader' is quite fine with it.

[gcraig]

Huh? I serve no one but Jesus Christ. Please post the link to the quotes you cite, I am unfamiliar with them. The belief page is oriented towards Jesus: http://elevationchurch.org/beliefs/.

[cport]

Forget it gcraig, he only hears his own gospel. I don't slam Osteen, because I've never listened to his sermons, so I don't know. There is something about him that I just don't trust, which is why I don't listen; my point is, I don't slam him because I have not listened.

I have listened to Steve's, and have never heard anything that wasn't based in scripture, and I've never heard him be scared to identify and discourage sin. I don't attend, so I cannot attest to the coloring books, but I have yet to see any images on the internet that are controversial. The only image I found of the "Unity" one that has everyone shouting "cult leader" was removed by the person hosting it, so it kind of makes you wonder. This same host did have another image of the coloring book describing "Honor", but it showed Steve honoring another pastor for his work with Billy Graham, it wasn't calling the kids to honor him. See for yourself.

It seems like a good message to teach kids, to show honor and respect. Isn't that what everyone rails about on here?

[Swanks]

“We serve, you Steve [c’mon, sing it with me] we serve you, Steve..”