Dr. E.C. Fulcher, Jr.

Splits, Cliques, Division and Congregation Perception

From the day a ministry is conceived, a lot of preparation and thought goes into how it should be run. The Pastor that wants to preach the True Word of God without tradition, will have to fight against the traditions and false doctrines that have made many traditional churches pits of hypocrisy, compromise, and make-believe worship.  The Pastor that strives to preach the Bible as it is written will have to preach out or expunge the human mindset that gives rise to splits, cliques, and divisions within a congregation. 

The human mindset that gives rise to splits, cliques and divisions within a congregation stems from the fact that the traditional way most churches are run does not mirror God’s order of things in the Bible.  I Corinthians 14:40 says, “Let all things be done decently and in order.”  But what is that order?  According to 1 Corinthians 11:3 “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God”.  A Pastor that wants to preach the Bible as it is written will be intolerant of cliques and divisions in any church he pastors. 

For a congregation to be Bible-like, it must be of one mind and one accord.  Cliques keep that from happening.  Cliques instill division, an us-against-them mentality, that eventually leads them to erroneous assumptions that they know more than their pastor.   Dr. Fulcher is a Pastor that chooses to preach the Bible as it is written, without traditional false-hoods. During the beginning of his ministry he had to show the people that it was their traditions that were out of control and false, not God. 

One of the first things Dr. Fulcher and Pastors like him have to do is preach out tradition to rebellious congregations and teach them who the Bible puts in charge of the congregation.  The Pastor is the shepherd and the congregation are the sheep and sheep do not tell the shepherd what to do, where to take them or what to feed them.  In the Bible order of things, the pastor is the one who is supposed to be in control.  And many people do not like that.  People’s egos can be so strong that they can become unwilling to accept their position as sheep to follow and not to lead.  Because of their lack of knowledge of bible order, they become the blind leading the blind and are not able to admit it or understand their error. The Bible says that people must “learn of Him”.  Those not willing to learn will be driven out by the continued preaching of the Bible.

Another problem that Pastors have to deal with behind the scenes is one of perception from the congregation and others.  Many times, things a Pastor says will be misinterpreted by those listening because they are not steeped in as much Bible knowledge as he is and they judge him by human standards and not Biblical ones.

Dr. Fulcher founded his church Truth House Ministries Inc on the teaching from Luke 4:4 which states that “And Jesus answered him saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.”  For Dr. Fulcher and other Pastors like him, that means for every Bible question, there is a Bible answer.  There will be times that Dr. Fulcher and other Pastors will do or say something for a completely Biblical reason, but people listening may react based on their human understanding before that reason has been explained to them or the reason is manifested. A lot of congregations believe they know better.  They forget that the Bible also tells them in Ecc12:13 ‘Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” So they should do that before making a decision.  They forget that God’s ways are higher than man’s ways as the bible states in Isa 55:8-9, “ 8“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord, 9“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” and that needs to be taught to them.

A Pastor that is teaching the bible way without tradition will teach that God is in control and God’s word is right, Dr. Fulcher is one of those Pastors. Pastors like him strive to bring dignity, honor and respect back to God’s word simply because it is God’s word.  Some people will listen and some will not.  Dr. Fulcher and Pastors like him want to be sure that those who choose to listen understand the great gift they are being given.

                                                   Written by Eric B. Ruark and Tanya J. Tillman