A Denver megachurch is reaping the whirlwind after closing its doors during the majority of the pandemic, with the end result of having to sell its $12.2 million dollar, 137,000 square foot building and move the entire operations completely and permanently online, in a bid to stay afloat.
The Potter’s House of Denver, led by husband and wife team Touré Roberts and Sarah Jakes Roberts (yes, she is the daughter and he the son-in-law of the notorious Trinity-denier T.D. Jakes an they are one of his “plants” of sorts) announced to the congregation that their building would be sold and they were moving to online-only service- an ignoble move precipitated by an extended season of sowing during the pandemic.
Rather than remain open and be a beacon of light to its people while also being obedient to the Lord, the church gleefully encouraged everyone to watch them on zoom, resulting in no one watching and donations drying up, because ‘online-church’ is a damnable misnomer and about the stupidest thing ever.
Roberts explained to the Denver post:
COVID-19 forced every church in America to rethink how to best serve their parishioners and the broader community. Due to the inability to gather and the economic instability of the pandemic, our church, like many other churches in the nation, experienced declining donations. We decided that the best way forward would be to sell the property, continue our online offering that had proven a successful alternative and maintain our hands-on community outreach operations, which includes our food bank that feeds thousands of families per year.”
Given that this church is “under the covering of The Potter’s House (Dallas) with Bishop T.D. Jakes and Serita Jakes” we can’t say we’re sad to see them dry up and wither, and only hope the virtual services goes just as terrible as the last two years have been.
Richard Roberts, the CEO of Oral Roberts Ministry, wrote an article for Charisma News where he lauded and praised the famous modalist for his “powerful words” and “wisdom and insight” on the topic of “communicating to breakthrough in relationships” during an appearance on his podcast Expect a Miracle.
Unless an orthodox Trinitarian, T. D. Jakes has gone on record as saying he doesn’t believe that Jesus is the second person of the Trinity, but rather is just a “manifestation” of God. In fact, even now his church website reads “There is one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in three manifestations: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”
Despite not being a Christian even a little, Roberts gave Jakes free reign to discuss a host of topics, as well as promote his new book “Don’t Drop The Mic,” all while describing the encounter and conversation with Jakes as “Spirit-filled.”
Unfortunately, this is not the first time the purveyor of theological poison known as Charisma has promoted and endorsed Jakes. They have a long history of it, showing again why they have no discernment, and no regard for the love of truth or foundational Christian doctrine.
Pastors Judah and Chelsea Smith of Churchome, a hip-to-be-cool, celebrity-endorsed 10,000 member megachurch, further cemented their theological obliviousness by bringing on Trinity-denying Modalist T. D. Jakes as a Board Member of their congregation, effective January 1, 2021.
The Seattle-based church, spread across its five locations in Washington State and California, joins other celebrity preachers like now-disgraced Carl Lentz and Elevation Church’s Steven Futick in having very close ties with the “Jesus is a manifestion of God” Pentecostal Bishop. They made the announcement on their website, writing:
Bishop TD Jakes has been in church leadership for more than 40 years, and is the founder and senior pastor of The Potter’s House Church. He has been in relationship with Churchome since 2006.
One of the world’s most revered faith leaders, his passion to bring people together is evident over his decades of ministry. He is an inspiration in matters of reconciliation and racial diversity. The wisdom of his collective experience leading people to Jesus, and instinct to serve others in areas beyond the church brings invaluable leadership to the Churchome board.
It is not a supremely surprising move, given that both men have had close ties for years, speaking at conferences together and even at each other’s churches.
By way of a brief profile, the Smiths are about as seeker-sensitive and biblically compromised as they come. They live in a multi-million dollar home and have a penchant for Gucci luxury clothes, where a single outfit can cost upwards of $ 5000$. They count Justin Bieber as one of their members and let him occasionally lead worship, with theoerotic songs like Reckless Love being a mainstay.
He frequently tweets stupid, unbiblical things like this, clearly having no knowledge of Acts 10:38, 2 Corinthians 5:10, John 5:22, 27, and other scriptures.
He is, by all accounts, emblematic of the skinny-jeans-wearing soyboy pastors that breed effemininity and are a blight on the church today.
As for where the couple stands on abortion and LGBT issues, more unbiblical, cagey, waffling garbage abounds. In a long-form article in Marie Claire that is worth the read, writer Jennifer Swann quickly zeroes in on the ethos of the couple.
Regarding his 2005 comments on abortion, (where he preached against it) Judah says (through his publicist), ‘We have grown significantly in the past 15 years. I wouldn’t agree with my approach when I was a young pastor on many issues and understand that no life decision is easy. We hope to be a loving home for humanity, no matter what someone has experienced.’
When I ask Chelsea what she would say to a member of her congregation considering an abortion, she is quick to clarify that, unlike a priest, a pastor—at least at Churchome—isn’t meant to provide counsel. ‘We know what we’re good at, which is the Bible and Jesus and telling His story. And we know what we’re not good at. There are amazing trained professional psychologists and counselors [for that].’
That’s why, on the Churchome Global app, the Smiths titled a section of videos ‘Question and Response’ rather than ‘Question and Answer.’
Throughout the two days we spend together, Chelsea has few answers for me. So I call her up a few weeks later to ask more questions: What is Churchome’s position on LGBTQ members, for example? ‘Every individual is entitled to their own persuasion, and it’s not our job to persuade. It’s just our job to proclaim. They feel just as loved and welcome and a part of our community,’ Chelsea says.
Have Judah’s views on homosexuality changed since 2005? ‘We are a church who love and welcome people regardless of their beliefs or background,’ he says. Would Churchome be open to having a gay pastor? After a long pause, Chelsea says, ‘We are very much in the category of “We love everybody. God is for everybody. And God’s heart is for people.” So our hearts are for people, and that is where we land, absolutely.’
Having TD Jakes on their church board, as bad as that is, is clearly the least of their problems.
