“We have communicated to James that he needs to find a small group of godly brothers to restore him biblically in the spirit of gentleness. He needs an extended period of time away from ministry in order to focus on repentance and to seek relational reconciliation and restitution where it is possible. We are all in need of God’s grace. And we have implored James to humble himself and fully surrender to the Lord.”
(Julie Roys) The Elders at Harvest Bible Chapel today formally disqualified former pastor, James MacDonald, from ministry, saying his behavior did not meet the qualifications for an elder, according to Scripture. Elder Karl Jackson read the following letter to the congregation:
Dear Harvest Bible Chapel Family,
We come today before you with very heavy hearts, saddened by the necessity of this statement regarding Dr. James MacDonald. The content of this statement is going to be very difficult to hear.
We want to start by being clear that Harvest Bible Chapel is very thankful for the 30 years of ministry that James MacDonald served this church. There are countless stories of how God used James for His glory, and for His purpose in the lives of the people of this church and around the world. His example of teaching the Word of God as the final word of authority will remain in the fabric of this church moving forward.
On February 12, 2019 James MacDonald’s employment was terminated by our elder board as our Senior Pastor for not being “above reproach” and for having a “sinful pattern of inappropriate language, anger, and domineering behavior.” Since then, there was a full transition to the new Elder board. The Walk in the Word donor list was also informed about the termination of James’ employment and that Harvest was closing the Walk in the Word website and no longer accepting donations.
You may be wondering why we’re coming to you now, months after James’ dismissal. As we spent time with the congregation and visited all of our campuses, it became clear that there was confusion over the previous statements about our former Senior Pastor. We are here today to provide clarity to our church family and to those who listened to and supported Walk in the Word, a ministry of Harvest Bible Chapel. We understand the seriousness of these spiritual matters and desire to be wise and discerning as we seek the Lord to guide us through the Scriptures.
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