Church Disrupted

People throw the term "cult" around a lot these days, but what does that really mean? What is a cult or high-control environment? What are the markers to look out for? What is the difference between churches and cults? And how do you know if a church is starting to act like a cult? In today's episode of the Church Disrupted Podcast, Jeff Cochran is joined by Jacob and Sarai to discuss high-control environments, their dangers, and how to spot the red flags of a cult-like organization. THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share!

Marketing in Churches is a touchy subject. Should churches market themselves? If so, how far is too far? What are the right ways and wrong ways to do it? We answer these questions and more on this episode of the Church Disrupted Podcast as we continue our series on the Church that Business Built. Like most practices that churches have borrowed from the business world, marketing has both positives and negatives to it. But things have gone far too far when people become just another number, or we see them as just another dollar added to the bottom line! Join Jeff Cochran, Shawn Reece, and Abby Flemming for this episode on the marketing machine in ministry. THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share!

This podcast challenges misconceptions about tithing in churches, exploring its historical roots and biblical teachings. It delves into topics like tithing money, healing from church hurt, and reexamining tithing in a biblical context. The speakers promote New Testament generosity over rigid tithing percentages, advocating for cheerful giving and community outreach.

Exploring misconceptions about tithing, the podcast challenges traditional beliefs, delves into the emotional complexities of giving in churches, rejects fear and guilt tactics, discusses tithing challenges in relation to faith, emphasizes spiritual warfare through giving, underscores the importance of generosity and transparency in church finances, advocates for respectful behavior on social media, and delves into the historical context of tithing practices.

In this final installment of the Church Disrupted Docuseries on NDAs in church, we spill all the tea! We’ll look at how Hillsong Church used NDAs to keep people quiet. We’ll also break down how pastors spin the narrative about NDAs by looking at a recent town hall meeting with embattled pastor Albert Tate. And finally, we’ll actually SHOW you REAL NDAs that churches have used to hide impropriety and silence people. We don’t hold anything back as we shine a bright light on the dark practice of NDA use in churches! THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share! TIME STAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 05:09 - NDAs at Hillsong Church 34:26 - Famous pastor spins NDAs 01:21:15 - Sham elder boards with NO authority 01:42:20 - SEE real NDAs 02:22:17 - How to do your part to end NDAs 02:24:25 - Outro

Should churches use NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements)? Is there ever a good use for NDAs in a church? Why do churches use NDAs in the first place? We answer these questions and MORE in the second part of our docu-series "The Secrets Churches Keep!" We break down the most common reasons churches use NDAs, as well as share the most popular arguments both FOR and AGAINST their use. We also hear the consensus opinions about NDAs in the Church from leading secular voices, the Christian community, and the Bible. So, should a church EVER ask you to sign an NDA? Find out in this episode of the Church Disrupted Podcast! THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially?https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share! TIME STAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 01:38 - Recapping Last Episode & Looking Ahead 04:59 - Reasons Churches Use NDAs 20:47 - Arguments FOR using NDAs in Churches 39:57 - Arguments AGAINST using NDAs in Churches 01:14:28 - The Secular Consensus on NDAs in Churches 01:16:52 - The Christian Opinion on NDAs in Churches 01:41:27 - The BIBLE on NDAs 01:55:24 - Who Says YES?! 01:56:43 - Previewing Part 3: Real NDAs, Pastors Caught Lying, and Elders Doing the Anti-Accountability Dance!

NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements) have no place in the Church. Yet, they have somehow become mainstays in the evangelical world that are used to cover up sin, abuse, scandals, and the mistreatment of people. For hush money payments ranging from a few weeks salary to hundreds of thousands of dollars, Christians in these flocks are forced into lifelong silence. And since these bad leaders get by with moral and ethical failures, the vicious cycle just continues. In this Docuseries, we shine a light on these dark secrets and sinful tools in the church. We break down what NDAs are, how they are used in churches, and even show you real-life NDAs that churches have used. In part 1 of this three-part series, we do a deep dive into NDAs, churches that use them, and their hidden dangers. We also hear from secular and Christian attorneys about the problems these agreements cause! THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share!

Are churches really just businesses that want my money? Well, the answer depends on the church! Healthy churches are far from businesses. They are full of love and grace and love people like Jesus. These churches are part of the Church that Jesus built! But in the West, there are also churches that celebrity built, churches that religion built, and perhaps most dangerous of all, there are churches that business built! When a church becomes a business, everything becomes about numbers, like attendance, money, and the brand. A church that's become a business cares primarily about geting bigger and better at all costs. And unfortunately, the cost is often the people these churches chew up, spit out, and discard in their systems. In this episode of the Church Disrupted Podcast, Jeff Cochran is joined by Ken Arrington to talk about the church that business built, how to recognize when a church has become a business, and what Christians can do about it. MANY churches are incredible!!! And we want to help you recognize them and find them! Support Ken and their work in Puerto Rico here! : https://www.awaketodream.com/puerto-rico/ Find out more about Ken Here: - https://taplink.cc/ken.arrington - https://www.tiktok.com/@ken.arrington?lang=en THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share!

Nobody likes a bully. But the worst kind of bullies are the bullies we find inside the walls of the church! These bullies go by the titles of pastor, brother, sister, and friend. The church is supposed to be the safest place on the planet. The church is supposed to be a place where we experience the unconditional love of Jesus, community, and family with brothers and sisters in Christ. But what happens when we experience spiritual bullies instead? The damage it causes can be severe and lasting. It can cause irreparable harm. In this episode of the Church Disrupted Podcast, we break from the series we've been in (the church that business built,) and we're going to talk about what it looks like when the bullies are in the church and how we can protect people not only from other bullies, but how we can make sure that we don't accidentally become the bullies ourselves. THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share!

Mega churches, money manipulation, and miracle offerings are just a few of the things we talk about in this episode. It's miracle offering season in the church world, and in this episode of the Church Disrupted Podcast, Jeff Cochran, Shawn Reece, and Buck Flemming discuss our Documentary on Miracle Offerings and share their insights and takeaways from the documentary. It's time to bring back transparency into the church, especially around finances! In this episode, we'll share questions you can ask about special offerings to find out if they are legit and what you can do if you encounter an offering or giving campaign that you are unsure about. THANK YOU to our podcast partner, The Forgiveness Link!!! Schedule your free consultation with Rob here and let him know we sent you to get a special Church Disrupted rate! https://theforgivenesslink.com/churchdisruptedcommunity ANOTHER BIG THANK YOU to the East TN Mentorship Association! Find out more information about what they do or connect with them at https://earnyoursanctuary.com/ . TELL THEM WE SENT YOU for a special rate that is ONLY for Church Disrupted Podcast listeners. Find out MORE about our podcast partners here: https://www.disrupted.church/sponsors. Want to support Church Disrupted financially? https://www.disrupted.church/give Find out more about the Church Disrupted Podcast at https://www.disrupted.church/. Please Subscribe and Share! Follow us on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/church_disrupted Follow us on TikTok here: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeff.a.cochran TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 03:04 - Partner Spotlight and Testimonial 08:02 - Our Experiences with Miracle Offerings 13:14 - The Cost of Discipleship? 17:40 - Wasting Tithing Dollars 19:35 -Trustworthy and Transparent? 21:59 - Generosity done right 23:24 - Masterful Manipulation 26:36 - What's at Stake if You Buck the System 29:03 - Big Money Pastors? 32:28 - Best Sellers List and Dusty Books 37:15 - It's Affecting Real People 39:26 - Tithing VS the New Testament? 46:05 - Good Questions to Ask