🏳️‍🌈✝️ The Watchman – A Good Shepherd Gone BAD…

Learn the signs that warn you when a “Good Shepherd” has gone BAD.

Rainbow Pastor David

12/28/2017 

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Learn the signs that warn you when a “Good Shepherd” has gone BAD.

Hopefully through prayer and the proper counsel they can see the error of their way and correct it. If they chose not to listen to the proper counsel then it is best to shake that dust off and get to moving.

It is best NOT to continue subjecting yourself to these people because they will wear on you until you begin to act like them. Surround yourself with positive, upbeat, God-fearing, Love exuding men and women of God.

If you are attending a church being run by a Control Freak Pastor or happen to wander into one, it is best to get up and run as far from them as you can. These men or women are NOT being the Good Shepherd God called them to be, and they will KILL your spirit, KILL your joy, Cause you to doubt your salvation, and pretty much drag you to hell with them.

Jesus made a point to call out the Pharisees*, Sadducee's* and Scribes*, every time there was a crowd of people who had been oppressed by them. In Matthew 23 {MSG} we find a great example of one of those times.

Now Jesus turned to address his disciples, along with the crowd that had gathered with them. “The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God’s Law. You won’t go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don’t live it. They don’t take it into their hearts and live it out in their behavior. It’s all spit-and-polish veneer. “Instead of giving you God’s Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn’t think of lifting a finger to help. Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next. They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called ‘Doctor’ and ‘Reverend.’“Don’t let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates. Don’t set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of ‘Father’; you have only one Father, and he’s in heaven. And don’t let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them—Christ“Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you’ll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you’re content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty. “I’ve had it with you! You’re hopeless, you religion scholars, you Pharisees! Frauds! Your lives are roadblocks to God’s kingdom. You refuse to enter, and won’t let anyone else in either.“You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You go halfway around the world to make a convert, but once you get him you make him into a replica of yourselves, double-damned. “You’re hopeless! What arrogant stupidity! You say, ‘If someone makes a promise with his fingers crossed, that’s nothing; but if he swears with his hand on the Bible, that’s serious.’ What ignorance! Does the leather on the Bible carry more weight than the skin on your hands? And what about this piece of trivia: ‘If you shake hands on a promise, that’s nothing; but if you raise your hand that God is your witness, that’s serious’? What ridiculous hairsplitting! What difference does it make whether you shake hands or raise hands? A promise is a promise. What difference does it make if you make your promise inside or outside a house of worship? A promise is a promise. God is present, watching and holding you to account regardless.“You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but on the meat of God’s Law, things like fairness and compassion and commitment—the absolute basics!—you carelessly take it or leave it. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required. Do you have any idea how silly you look, writing a life story that’s wrong from start to finish, nitpicking over commas and semicolons?“You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You burnish the surface of your cups and bowls so they sparkle in the sun, while the insides are maggoty with your greed and gluttony. Stupid Pharisee! Scour the insides, and then the gleaming surface will mean something.“You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You’re like manicured grave plots, grass clipped and the flowers bright, but six feet down it’s all rotting bones and worm-eaten flesh. People look at you and think you’re saints, but beneath the skin you’re total frauds.“You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You build granite tombs for your prophets and marble monuments for your saints. And you say that if you had lived in the days of your ancestors, no blood would have been on your hands. You protest too much! You’re cut from the same cloth as those murderers, and daily add to the death count.“Snakes! Reptilian sneaks! Do you think you can worm your way out of this? Never have to pay the piper? It’s on account of people like you that I send prophets and wise guides and scholars generation after generation—and generation after generation you treat them like dirt, greeting them with lynch mobs, hounding them with abuse.“You can’t squirm out of this: Every drop of righteous blood ever spilled on this earth, beginning with the blood of that good man Abel right down to the blood of Zechariah, Barachiah’s son, whom you murdered at his prayers, is on your head. All this, I’m telling you, is coming down on you, on your generation“Jerusalem! Jerusalem! Murderer of prophets! Killer of the ones who brought you God’s news! How often I’ve ached to embrace your children, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you wouldn’t let me. And now you’re so desolate, nothing but a ghost town. What is there left to say? Only this: I’m out of here soon. The next time you see me you’ll say, ‘Oh, God has blessed him! He’s come, bringing God’s rule!’”

Let’s look at the words Jesus used to describe the “HOLIER than THOU” bunch of HIS day that worked so hard to oppress the people with LAWS.

1.      Competent teachers in God’s Law – BUT – they are ALL TALK

2.      They package the Law with a bunch of rules to weigh you down instead of giving you the food from the word you need to be a better follower of God.

3.      They take pleasure in watching you struggle under the load of the rules.

4.      Their lives are a perpetual fashion show with embroidered prayer shawls and flowery prayers.

5.      They always want to sit at the HEAD of the table basking in the most prominent positions.

6.      They love being publicly flattered

7.      They love their “honorary” degrees so they can be called ‘Doctor’ and they expect to be called ‘Reverend’. 

8.      Jesus said they are hopeless frauds

9.      Their lives were roadblocks to God’s kingdom.

10.  Because they refuse to enter they hinder others from entering also.

11.  They go half way around the world to make a convert only to make them a replica of themselves double-damning them.

12.  They are arrogantly stupid {blind guides} by saying if someone makes a promise with his fingers crossed, that’s nothing; but if he swears with his hand on the Bible, that’s serious.

13.  He chastised them for hairsplitting over the trivial matters that their RELIGION made out to be something spectacular.

14.  {Self-righteous} You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but on the meat of God’s Law, things like fairness and compassion and commitment—the absolute basics!—you carelessly take it or leave it. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required.

15.  {Spiritually blind} You burnish the surface of your cups and bowls so they sparkle in the sun, while the insides are maggoty with your greed and gluttony. Stupid Pharisee! Scour the insides, and then the gleaming surface will mean something.

16.  You’re like manicured grave plots, grass clipped and the flowers bright, but six feet down it’s all rotting bones and worm-eaten flesh. People look at you and think you’re saints, but beneath the skin you’re total frauds. “You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You build granite tombs for your prophets and marble monuments for your saints. And you say that if you had lived in the days of your ancestors, no blood would have been on your hands.

17.  You protest too much! You’re cut from the same cloth as those murderers, and daily add to the death count. “Snakes! Reptilian sneaks! Do you think you can worm your way out of this? Never have to pay the piper? It’s on account of people like you that I send prophets and wise guides and scholars generation after generation—and generation after generation you treat them like dirt, greeting them with lynch mobs, hounding them with abuse. “You can’t squirm out of this: Every drop of righteous blood ever spilled on this earth, beginning with the blood of that good man Abel right down to the blood of Zechariah, Barachiah’s son, whom you murdered at his prayers, is on your head.

18.  Murderer of prophets! Killer of the ones who brought you God’s news!

Jesus made it even more clear just how {Spiritual Blind} the Pharisees, Sadducee's and Scribes were in John 9:39-41 {AMP}

Then Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment [to separate those who believe in Me from those who reject Me—to declare judgment on those who choose to be separated from God], so that the sightless would see, and those who see would become blind.” Some Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “Are we also blind?”Jesus said to them, “If you were blind [to spiritual things], you would have no sin [and would not be blamed for your unbelief]; but since you claim to have [spiritual] sight, [you have no excuse so] your sin and guilt remain.

In Luke 18:9-14 {AMP} Jesus tells the story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.

He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves and were confident that they were righteous [posing outwardly as upright and in right standing with God], and who viewed others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple [enclosure] to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood [ostentatiously] and began praying to himself [in a self-righteous way, saying]: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like the rest of men—swindlers, unjust (dishonest), adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing at a distance, would not even raise his eyes toward heaven, but was striking his chest [in humility and repentance], saying, ‘God, be merciful and gracious to me, the [especially wicked] sinner [that I am]!’ I tell you, this man went to his home justified [forgiven of the guilt of sin and placed in right standing with God] rather than the other man; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself [forsaking self-righteous pride] will be exalted.”

To Jesus as it should be to all His followers, the House of the Lord is to be a Holy Place designated for pray and teaching of the Word of God only. Jesus got very angry when He went to Jerusalem for Passover and saw what was happening in the Temple of God. In John 2:13-17 (AMP) we read what the disciples got to see firsthand.

 

Now the Passover of the Jews was approaching, so Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And in the temple [enclosure] He found the people who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers sitting at their tables. He made a whip of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables; then to those who sold the doves He said, “Take these things away! Stop making My Father’s House a place of commerce!” His disciples remembered that it is written [in the Scriptures], “Zeal (love, concern) for Your house [and its honor] will consume Me.”

Jesus was not the only one to have called out the Pharisees and Sadducee's. John the Baptist got his chance to call them out when they decided to come visit him at the river to be baptized when they thought it was the “IN” thing to do. Read Matthew 3:7-10 {MSG} below to see how John handled these “Showy Religious People”.

When John realized that a lot of Pharisees and Sadducee's were showing up for a baptismal experience because it was becoming the popular thing to do, he exploded: “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to make any difference? It’s your life that must change, not your skin! And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a descendant of Abraham is neither here nor there. Descendants of Abraham are a dime a dozen. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? If it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.

Let us look at just a few signs you might be in the presence of a CONTROL FREAK PASTOR brought to you by Les Parrott, Ph.D., who is an ordained minister and co-founder (with his wife, Leslie) of the Center for Relationship Development at Seattle Pacific University {SPU}, he is a professor of psychology at SPU and is the author of the award-winning The Control Freak and the book Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda. For more information, visit https://www.lesandleslie.com/:

The most obvious characteristic of a controlling pastor is, of course, the desperate desire to be in control. But there's more to this desire than meets the eye. See if any of these traits make you a little nervous:

1. Obnoxious. Control freaks can be characterized as people who are offensive, injuring nearly every relationship they have with their controlling and pernicious ways.

2. Tenacious. It's part of the "Control Freak Code": "Don't ever, ever, ever, give in." The "control freak" pastor could easily spend several minutes correcting a story he is being told. No matter that the detail he's concerned about makes absolutely no difference to the story, he wants to be right.

3. Invasive. Some controlling pastors exhibit an invasive quality by poking around in their parishioners' private lives--in a "ministerial" sort of way. "Saintly" control freaks will cloak their invasiveness in religious garb. "Why has the Lord put you on my heart?" they may ask as a way of getting their gossip fix.

4. Obsessive. Control freaks obsess about anything and everything, from a person's offhanded remark to where people are seated around a conference table. Anything can become their obsession, causing them to lose perspective and neglect the big picture.

5. Perfectionist. Listen carefully, and you will hear controlling ministers say under their breath, "I can't believe I did that, what a jerk." They will berate themselves for not having everything go exactly the way they wanted it to. We all get frustrated from time to time because something throws a chink in the works, but the typical control freak can't let it go.

6. Critical. Everyone knows control freaks can be some of the most painfully critical people you'll ever meet. It seems they can't keep their critical comments in check. They blurt out their critiques as easily as a professional reviewer gives a "thumbs down" to a movie.

7. Irritable. Cranky and contentious. Touchy and testy. Those who work closely with the control freak know to walk on eggshells if they don't want to set him or her off. The tiniest of things can ruin the control freak's day.

8. Demanding. This is a mainstay for control freaks. To get their way, they often resort to making demands. Like a kidnapper who is trying to secure a ransom, they order people around at their whim and fancy.

9. Rigid. In the hugely successful TV hit Seinfeld, one of the most popular episodes was based on a real-life situation titled "The Soup Nazi." It centered around a feisty man running a small eatery where New Yorkers stood outside in long lines to enjoy takeout orders of this guy's delicious soup creations.

The catch? Customers had to put up with this control freak's rigid rules. Only one customer in the store at a time. Place your order immediately. Do not point. Don't ask questions. Pay and leave. If you wanted to feast on these tasty soups, you did as the man said. And if you didn't? "No soup for you," the Soup Nazi would snap. "Come back three months."

The episode struck a chord with viewers because we all know control freaks who live by rigid rules and expect us to do the same.

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Controlling pastors believe they are to be obeyed simply because of the office they hold. They conveniently use scriptures such as Hebrews 13:17{AMP}, which says, "Obey your [spiritual] leaders and submit to them [recognizing their authority over you], for they are keeping watch over your souls and continually guarding your spiritual welfare as those who will give an account [of their stewardship of you]. Let them do this with joy and not with grief and groans, for this would be of no benefit to you.”

When insecure leaders are challenged regarding any type of dishonesty or hypocrisy, they often quote 1 Chronicles 16:22: “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.” Because of their interpretation of this verse, many pastors and leaders claim to have some form of "diplomatic immunity" from the biblical standards to which the rest of the body of Christ is held. 

David Wilkerson was a great Prophet of God in our time that exposed FAKE MINISTRIES who did NOT STAND UP to the TEST OF THE BIBLE. One of those FAKE MINISTRIES is still going strong because the ministry is FUELED by hungry people wanting to see great signs and wonders; however they are witnessing the WORKS of SATAN right before their eye. Satan is more than happy to use one of his FALSE PROPHETS to perform FAKE MIRACLES to lead as many people as he can to the pit of hell with him.

Gods anointed would NEVER CURSE anyone. Only someone operating by a demonic spirit would dare try to put a curse on GOD’S PEOPLE!!! Witness a demonic controlled ministry in action below.
 

This is Benny Hinn for those who do not know him.

Another example of a Modern Day Evangelical Minister showing his true colors is when Kenneth Copeland was confronted by a reporter about his opulent lifestyle.

Here Copeland interrupts Jesse Duplantis to remind people that GOD has given them the planes they own for use in their ministries:

This spirit of control is not new to our generation. It has been operating in religious leaders for thousands of years. The prophet Ezekiel boldly declared the Lord's rebuke concerning the religious leaders of his day, saying:

"'The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them'" (Ezekiel 34:4).

God was accusing the spiritual leaders in Ezekiel's day of ignoring the needs of the people, and of using their positions of authority to beat down the people of God with their own set of rules and regulations.

God the Father describes the priests as shepherds who have selfishly neglected the needs of the sheep in order to satisfy their own needs.

The word "cruelty" in this verse can also be translated "harshness." In other words, according to the Lord, it was with a strong harshness that the religious leaders beat down and abused the people of Israel.

The book of Matthew records how Jesus viewed the people of His day. "When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion and pity for them, because they were dispirited and distressed, like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:36).

The word "weary" is the Greek word skullo, and it literally means "to be harassed." Jesus saw the people as innocent sheep that were being harassed and abused by the Pharisees.

Obviously what was happening in the time of Ezekiel was still going on in Jesus' day--and it is still happening today.

Remember this - People can claim to be leaders, but they might be false leaders!

Erroneous leaders display several characteristics. Sadly, many people are fooled into following these so-called leaders only to eventually be rattled. Here is a handful I’ve noticed over the years from Religious Leaders and from working in retail management for over 25 years. Let these characteristics be signals to recognize false leaders or when you might be acting like one.

1.      USES DECEPTION. False leaders practice the art of deception. These are the people you might know that are masqueraders. Misrepresentation is displayed in everything they say. What they do is the exact opposite of what is said. To avoid falling under the spell of this type of false leader, listen with your eyes not your ears.

2.       ADORNS A FANCY TITLE. Brian Tracy wrote, “Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily; even if you had no title or position.” A leader that relies on title and not on performance is not a true leader. A real leader knows that he is only as good as his last performance. A fancy title should not gain trust. Many organizations assign big fancy titles to employees so that customers will deem them as important people to follow. False leaders ordain themselves with a shiny title to persuade you that they are worthy of your followership.

3.      BLAME PEOPLE AND CIRCUMSTANCES. True leaders take responsibility while false leaders continually blame. Pointing the finger at others is a sure sign of a false leader. Solution oriented people are the real leaders in life.  Blame if you want to be lame.

            "Don't find fault, find a remedy." Henry Ford

4.       ATTEMPTS TO CONTROL. False leaders think that people need to be controlled; that you need to force them to do something. Dwight D. Eisenhower shared, “Leadership is the art of getting someone to do something you want done because he wants to do it.” False leaders destroy people by attempting to control them. You can recognize a true leader because he wants to help you lead your own life.

5.       DISPARAGES OTHERS. False leaders like to boast about how great they are, and how everyone else is below average. The only time a true leader looks down on anyone is to lend a hand to help another person up. Sam Walton was a true leader in action and in his words when he said, “Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.”

Here is an example of a Leader that should never have been proving how OBNOXIOUS someone sounds who BRAGS EXCESSIVELY ABOUT THEMSELVES: 

6.       TAKES THE CREDIT. False leaders gobble up all the credit. A true leader acknowledges friends, peers and followers when they do a great job. Too often people don’t compliment others for their contributions. It takes only a few seconds to offer an accolade or a few kind words of appreciation. You are practicing solid leadership when you give credit when credit is due. A deep sense of admiration and respect is built when a person gives credit and compliments others. The opposite occurs when a person claims all the credit for him or herself.

                             Trump Taking Credit For Christmas

            “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Isaac Newton

7.      RENEGE’S OBLIGATIONS. False leaders break promises. This usually happens because of over commitments or by purposely deceiving followers. True leaders do whatever it takes to make commitments happen. The best and strongest leaders don’t weasel out of promises. Here is an Old Chinese proverb to live by, “Rule a kingdom as though you were cooking a small fish; don’t overdo it.”

8.       MAKES EXCUSES. This is a glaring sign of a false leader. True leaders never offer excuses because they realize there is no use for an excuse. A hallmark of great leadership is taking accountability. Set yourself apart. Be responsible for your actions and your performance. Benjamin Franklin eloquently echoed, “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.”

“He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” Benjamin Franklin

9.       ALWAYS LEADS. False leaders proclaim to have all the answers. True leaders listen. True leaders listen to other leaders, and listen to followers too! The practice of a true leader is a balance of when to lead and when to follow. Aristotle, who was taught by Plato, shared, “He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander.”

10.   DISRESPECTS FOLLOWERS. As a leader, the only reason to look down on a person is when you are helping them up. True leaders appreciate their followers and hold them in the highest esteem. False leaders practice incivility, rudeness and insolence. How does it make you feel when someone disrespects you? Famous baseball player Jackie Robinson eventually gained respect and created a massive following that still lives on today. He did so by showing respect when he was disrespected. The only way to get respect is to give it.

Here is an example of a Leader who degrades people constantly:

11.   DENIES SUCCESSION. Ralph Nader explains, “The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not followers. To grow organizations current leaders much target and mentor people to succeed them. False leaders rarely engage succession planning for fear of no longer being seen as the leader.

12.   WASTES TIME ON PERSONAL VENDETTAS. Using a leadership position to iron out a score or to get back at someone is an abuse of power. Time is best used solving issues and breaking through the challenges that concern your followers. Set aside your personal negative emotions if you want to be a true leader.

You can now better identify when someone is practicing false leadership and not fall prey to it. You may now realize when you might be employing these practices so you can eliminate them from your own habits.

 

Let me give you one more scripture to think about,  pray about and apply to your life so you may become a shining example of what it means to be a Child of the Most High God.

Galatians 5:22-24 {AMP}

But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature together with its passions and appetites.

Galatians 5:22-24 {MSG}

But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely. Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for good—crucified.

Hopefully I have given you enough to think about and put into practice in your own life. I pray that God will continue to lead you and guide you into all TRUTH of the Word of God.

I pray God will give ears to hear and eyes to see those who are Fake and leading God’s people astray.

In my next lesson I will be sharing about what to look for in a Good Shepherd. Look for the title “The Watchman – Good Shepherd…Responsibilities, expectations, discipline and rewards.”

Blessings and Peace be with you,

Rainbow Pastor David

***The Pharisees identified with the common people and had control over them. They were prominent legalistic leaders in Judaism who were experts in Mosaic Law and its rituals and traditions. They believed in the resurrection of the dead, immortality of the soul and in the existence of angels and spirits.

***The Sadducee's were aristocratic members of a priestly group (religious party) who controlled the temple. They denied the possibility of a resurrection and the existence of any spiritual beings apart from God. Although the Sadducee's were in the minority, they were leaders of the Sanhedrin, controlling the Jewish High Court.

*** The Scribes were the ones who drew up legal documents. They also copied the Old Testament Scripture. They also devoted themselves to the study of the law, and the determination of its applications on daily life. They also studied the Scripture with respect to doctrinal and historical matters. Noted scribes had their own disciples. Many of the scribes were members of the Jewish council.