Glory Thieves

 I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.

-       Isaiah 42:8

Rant time. Yay. I’m tired of seeing pastors, authors, and Christian leaders saturating their ministry with self-promotion. I see it more now than I ever have before. Big shot pastors and evangelists and authors can easily become consumed more so with themselves than they seem to realize. One in particular stands out to me. His name is plastered all over everything that his church does. The books written, the curriculum created, the church planting they do, the music they create, and even Sunday morning service are infused with self-advancement and glory robbing.

Sure, the Gospel is preached. Worship music is played. God is worshipped. But all of the God and all of the good are poisoned by men attempting to rob God of his glory. Example time: In one church service I was at recently, after the worship through music, the pastor took the stage and announced the tour dates for his book, which he encouraged all the members to buy and tell their friends about. On the church website, the pastors name is plastered all over the place. His books, radio program, and blog are advertised like beer during the Super Bowl. This particular pastor is not the only one by any means. I am tired of seeing pastors attempt to steal the spotlight away from the Creator of the universe. The Lord God is His name, and he does not yield or share his glory with another.

Don’t misunderstand me. If you’ve written a book or have a website or speak for a living then by all means continue to make a living and support yourself and your family and so on. Even promote your own name and network and things like that. I have no problem with that. When I have a problem with it is when it steals glory from God. Don’t use church, the house of the Lord, to make money or promote yourself. That’s exactly why Jesus tossed tables in the temple and threw people out of his house. The Lord does not share his glory with another and he will not tolerate the self-promotion of Christian leaders who try to steal his glory and praise, whether or not they realize it.