Pastor John Gray delivered a fiery sermon to his congregants Sunday, taking aim at fellow church leaders who urge their flock to “give and give” while they cash in and live life high on the hog.
Gray, who heads Relentless Church in Greenville, S.C., encouraged needy congregants to help themselves to money in the collection plates, arguing that’s what tithes and offerings are intended for.
Pastor John Gray argued that tithes and offerings are supposed to back to the church community to help those in need. (YouTube video screenshot)
“Are there any single mothers in here? You had an orange light in your gas tank when you pulled up, where are you? Come to the altar. Hurry. Single mothers,” the pastor implored. “Are there any single fathers and you had less than a quarter tank of gas, where are you? Come to the altar, come to the altar.”
Gray explained that “The role of the church, elder, is not only to receive from the people of God but to meet the needs of the people of God. But the role of church is also to meet the needs of the people in the house.”
During his “emotional” message, the reverend criticized some of his fellow Christian leaders as “pulpit pimps” who are only in it to “get fat off” their followers.
“For too long people have stood in a pulpit and told you to give, give, give,” Gray said in a sermon aptly titled “Leftovers.” “Very rarely have I seen churches stop and said ‘leave the baskets out, let the people get what they need’. We’ve got too many pulpit pimps who want to get fat off people but don’t want to meet the needs of the poor people.”
At one point, the pastor set the collection plates before parishioners who’d approached the altar and told them to grab what they needed. For those who disagreed with his message, Gray said they were more than welcomed to withhold their donations.
” I asked you to hold your offering until something in your spirit connected with the Word. Did you all hear me when I said that?” he told churchgoers.
Gray, a former associate pastor for televangelist Joel Osteen, faced backlash earlier this year when he and several other Black clergy members met with President Donald Trump. Gray insisted the meeting was only to discuss prison reform.
Watch more in the video below.
