Rick Warren And The Problem With Celebrity Pastors

I wrote a post about Rick Warren and Saddleback Church directly following the news that Saddleback had ordained three female pastors. I posted what I knew about Saddleback and Rick Warren in the hope of warning believers. Instead, I had fixed a target on my back. Christians, as it turns out, don’t like when someone challenges their favorite pastor. I was shocked when comments and messages were filled with hate, name-calling, and hypocrisy. Apparently, when the choice is between the Bible and a celebrity pastor…the celebrity pastor wins.

What Is A Celebrity Pastor?

Celebrity pastor means exactly what it sounds like. The word celebrity is simply defined as “well-known; a famous person.” So, a celebrity pastor is a well-known or famous pastor. It ain’t rocket surgery, folks.

Is Being A Celebrity Pastor A Bad Thing?

My instinct is to say that being a celebrity pastor is a bad thing, but I don’t think we can define it so easily in black and white terms. Ultimately, I think it leans towards the negative, but we can’t deny the good, too.

Imagine an amazing pastor who faithfully shares the gospel, lives a life truly above reproach, knows the Bible, and cannot be bullied by the woke mob. Would you want to hide him away in a rural church with thirty members? Of course not! However, that is where many of these godly men reside and serve. But it certainly wouldn’t be terrible for some of them to become well-known.

A celebrity pastor firmly planted in God’s Word brings positive attention to the gospel and Jesus Christ. Christians who may lack biblical leadership are able to receive strong teaching.

All believers are ambassadors for Christ, but most of us have a very small sphere of influence. A celebrity pastor, on the other hand, has an opportunity to represent the Lord on a much grander scale.

However, what happens when a celebrity pastor fails to faithfully preach the gospel, gives in to unbiblical cultural norms, and twists Scripture? Rick Warren happens.

A Case Study Of A Celebrity Pastor: Rick Warren

In case you were introduced to Christianity in America an hour ago, let me give you an introduction to Rick Warren. The Saddleback Church website currently has what amounts to a Rick Warren fan page under the link “Our Pastor.” The website also presents its history in a timeline format. Saddleback’s history plays out like Rick Warren’s greatest hits. Rather than give God the glory, the timeline heavily focuses on Warren’s accomplishments. So, what did he accomplish?

Warren started Saddleback in 1979. He focused on building a church for people who didn’t like church. People who worked with Warren have shared stories from those early days. Allegedly, he knocked on doors to invite people to church. If the individual attended any kind of church already, Warren would say “thank you” and walk away. He just wanted unchurched people, not people who needed to be saved from false religions, I suppose.

Warren’s church launched Celebrate Recovery in the early 1990’s, and The Purpose Driven Church was published in 1995. The Purpose Driven Life was published in 2002. It was on the New York Times Bestseller list for over 90 weeks.

More recently, Rick Warren came under scrutiny when he ordained three women on May 6, 2021. Then, in June 2022, Warren announced he will be stepping down in September and Andy Wood from Echo Church will take over as lead pastor at Saddleback Church. Wood’s wife, Stacie Wood, has been a teaching pastor at Echo Church. She will continue that role at Saddleback.

Celebrity Pastor Problems

I want to add a caveat before I begin listing the red flags in the ministry of a fellow Christian. First, if you think I should not publicly speak against him, please read THIS. Second, this is not really about Rick Warren. There are many other celebrity pastors such as Mark Driscoll, Carl Lentz, Brian Houston, Bill Hybels, and Joel Osteen. I could have used any one of them as a case study. I chose Rick Warren because he is still considered a “good” man by most, and his following adores him. Most importantly, he is on evangelical Christians’ lips after the Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting this year.

All I’m trying to say is that this list applies to more than Warren. He just happens to be the man of the hour. Let’s dive in.

1. They are just like us.

Rick Warren based a whole church on the “come as you are” model. The message in a church like his is that all of us are welcome to be part of the church family. It’s friendly and casual. Warren doesn’t dress in any way that sets him apart, and he speaks like a regular guy. Warren could be a man you randomly strike up a conversation with while getting gas at Kwik Trip.

Celebrity pastors lean hard into the idea that they are regular people just like you and me. And it’s true. Pastors are sinners saved by grace. They aren’t perfect, and we can’t expect them to somehow be more Christian than any of us.

On the other hand, pastors have strict standards for qualification which we should expect them to display in their lives.

“This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.” (emphasis mine)

1 Timothy 3:1-7

At a quick glance we see pastors are supposed to be blameless, vigilant, not overly focused on financial gain, and humble. All Christians should strive to display godly character, as listed for pastors in First Timothy, but pastors are meant to shepherd the flock (i.e., teach and lead believers). Therefore, they should be demonstrating godly character for others to see.

Not to mention, pastors are held to a higher standard.

“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.”

James 3:1 (ESV)

So, the expectation from congregations should be that pastors are not just like us. These are a few men who have been called from many to preach, teach, lead the congregations, and live a Christ-centered life while everyone else watches. All the while, they know that their judgment will be more severe. We shouldn’t idolize pastors, but we should be able to turn to them for encouragement and as an example for our own walk with the Lord.

The Motivation

Why would a pastor want everyone to think he is just the same as everyone else? I imagine there are a lot of possible reasons. Maybe he doesn’t want to be held to a higher accountability. The pastor might not know any better. But I think it has more to do with relatability.

Possible church members will be much more comfortable in a church with a pastor who doesn’t seem so “judgy.” A more relatable pastor makes church feel like it’s all for you and me rather than for Jesus. And that gets the butts in the seats.

2. They become a brand.

Once upon a time, branding was for businesses – their products and services. Coke, Nickelodeon, and Pizza Hut are all popular brands most people know by name, jingle, and/or logo. We become loyal to the brands we use. You might have noticed this about yourself when you ordered a Coke at a restaurant that only serves Pepsi. Your server asks, “Is Pepsi, Ok?” You politely say, “Um, yeah, OK. That’s fine, I guess.” But the whole meal you’re thinking about that Coke you want.

At some point during my lifetime entertainment went all in on branding, but it was focused on people as the product. Famous names have been used to sell tickets and goods for as long as we’ve had celebrities, but now it’s on metaphorical steroids. One celebrity may have movies and shows, perfume, a clothing line, and a restaurant. It’s really smart, actually, because it brings in multiple streams of income while banking on name recognition.

Celebrity pastors are branding themselves, as well. They often become the pastor known for one specific thing. Instead of moving forward in their ministries, they double-down and on that special thing and find a way to monetize it to death. Enter Rick Warren and being purpose driven. That’s Warren now. He’s the Purpose Driven Pastor, and he hasn’t backed away from it. Even one of the roads on Saddleback property is called Purpose Dr.

Warren’s success with The Purpose Driven Life has catapulted him into name recognition and being “America’s Pastor.” If he were to deviate from his brand, it would be risky. Today, I found eleven “purpose driven” books I could buy from Rick Warren. Not to mention, I could also buy a “purpose driven” church program, too.

The Motivation

Like many other celebrity pastors, Rick Warren has held onto his celebrity status, in part, by staying true to his brand. The reason behind this is probably as simple as it seems. People are joining a celebrity pastor’s church for the pastor. They like the packaged product, and they expect him to deliver.

Would you be satisfied if you ordered a Big Mac and received chicken nuggets instead. Of course not! Well, it’s the same with celebrity pastors. We want the man we have seen online, at conferences, and read in books. Or we will find a different church.

3. They focus on the numbers.

Take a look at Saddleback Church’s website, and you’ll quickly find the church stats (i.e., baptisms, memberships, small groups, etc.). Saddleback’s leadership really wants you to know they are “successful,” and they are going to make it plain as day by showing you their big numbers.

Rick Warren just demonstrated this at the 2022 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting. As I understand it, each church can send no more than twelve “messengers” to the annual meeting to vote. Warren was not registered for this meeting, but he walked in off the street to defend himself. (Backstory: There was some conversation about possibly removing Saddleback from the SBC for ordaining women.)

In his approximately seven-minute speech, Warren listed off his accomplishments. He called it a love letter to the Southern Baptist Convention, but it was a love letter to himself.

If you want the highlights, the quote below does a good job summing up his points.

“I preached over 120 harvest crusades before I was 20…We baptized 56,631 new believers…sent 20,869 members overseas to 197 nations…78,157 members of our church signed our membership covenant…I had the privilege of training over 1.1 million pastors, sorry friends that’s more than all of our seminaries put together…”

Rick Warren (2022 SBC Annual Meeting)

Warren was questioned mocked for claiming to have trained 1.1 million pastors.  You see, most people assume personal contact is involved in training. If I learned how to cook by watching Martha Stewart on television, I wouldn’t say she trained me. Training would require personal one-on-one instruction. Warren, on the other hand, believes he is due personal credit for training every pastor who has used his training materials or read his books.

Many asked HOW to train 1.1 million pastors
1 Take 43 yrs
2 Take 20 yrs to write the Courses
3 Translate into the 18 largest languages
4 Send 26,869 members to 197 nations
5 Recruit & train 1000s of local trainers
6 Use large stadiums & small huts everywhere
2 Tim 2:2=exponential pic.twitter.com/sKtMmILL89

— Rick Warren (@RickWarren) June 21, 2022

“Many asked HOW to train 1.1 million pastors

1 Take 43 yrs

2 Take 20 yrs to write the Courses

3 Translate into the 18 largest languages

4 Send 26,869 members to 197 nations

5 Recruit & train 1000s of local trainers

6 Use large stadiums & small huts everywhere

2 Tim 2:2=exponential”

Rick Warren (Twitter, June 20, 2022)

The Motivation

Why would a celebrity pastor focus so much on numbers? Simple. Numbers are an easy way to gauge success. Look at a church with ten cars in the parking lot and another one with two hundred cars. Which one is more successful? If you answered the lot with more cars, you’re wrong. If you said the one with fewer cars, you’re wrong, too.

We can’t measure a church’s success by counting the people inside. Matthew 7 gives us an unexpected picture of numbers.

“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

Matthew 7:13-14

A lot of people are going to Hell while the number headed to eternity with the Lord are far fewer. That doesn’t mean large churches are damned, but it certainly does not confirm that big crowds equal ministry success.

Celebrity pastors can’t show you successful spiritual growth in their membership because of the sheer number of congregants or the logistical nightmare. So, they turn to the math.

But the numbers don’t tell us anything other than how many people are there. It’s a tricky little lie to prove they are successful in their Kingdom work.

4. They compromise.

The fastest way to prevent celebrity is to take a strong biblical stand for Jesus and against sin. Scriptural fidelity is not a great way to win people over and ensure church growth. Eventually, a celebrity pastor must compromise biblical standards or risk losing everything.

Rick Warren does this by leaving sin out of most conversations. Generally, his preaching is a motivational speech. I must admit, however, that I have heard way worse sermons. (I’m looking at you, Joel Osteen.) His church, and others like it, have simply become social clubs that build people up and affirm them just as they are rather than point out their sin nature and the damnation that results as a consequence of that nature. I guess there’s no way to reword that and create an Instagram-friendly image, eh?

Some compromises, though, can be unthinkable. Yes, even more so than lightening up the gospel. For example, Rick Warren and his inappropriate relationship with the Muslim community is quite jarring.

Warren has reached out to Muslims, but he has done it in the worst way possible. He has not chosen to evangelize to them. Nah, instead he has yoked with them for social good. Remember The Purpose Driven Life? In the end, the lesson is that our purpose is to make the world a better place. In order to do that, Rick Warren focused on building bridges with Muslims and validating their faith. He has publicly said multiple times that Christians and Muslims can work together for the common good without having to compromise their beliefs. Believer, don’t be fooled. Christians are the ones compromising their faith when they affirm Islam.

Here’s a video from 2009 of Rick Warren speaking at the Islamic Society of North America’s annual convention. Did he share the gospel with those lost souls? No. Instead, he said it is time to focus on the common good and urged the Muslims to work with Christians to better people’s lives here on Earth. Well, Pastor Warren, maybe you should spend more time concerned about people’s eternities.

The Motivation

Celebrity pastors need to make themselves as likeable and accessible as possible. You can’t do that by telling people that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). So, they walk the middle road, trying to be moderates – a pastor for all people. Sadly, they just become a pastor for unbelievers and the undiscerning.

How Do Celebrity Pastors Get Off Track?

O.K., I’m going to say something controversial. I don’t think all celebrity pastors fall away from sound biblical teaching. I just don’t think there are very many that avoid the pitfalls of celebrity pastoral life. Most people consider Voddie Baucham and John MacArthur to be celebrity pastors because of how well-known they are, but I believe that they are (as of today) faithful to God’s Word, too. It makes me wonder how they stayed out of trouble unlike so many others.

It Boils Down To One Thing

I could list out and analyze a bunch of issues with which celebrity pastors wrestle. For instance, they deal with increasing greed, lust and the ease of sexual conquest, arrogance, the lure of fame, and the pressure to keep up the momentum. A conversation about any of these, though, ends with the same conclusion. It all boils down to pride.

Often celebrity pastors believe that they are successful because of themselves. We can’t blame them entirely for their fall into pride because the people around them usually build them up. Leadership, congregants, podcasts, and whatnot feed a pastor’s ego until a true celebrity is born.

God has a lot to say about pride. Below is just a small sampling. Quickly, we can see the general message about pride…it doesn’t please God.  Shouldn’t a pastor, even a celebrity pastor, live a life which aims to please Him?

“When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.”

Proverbs 11:2

“Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.”

Proverbs 18:12

“But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”

James 4:6

“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.”

Philippians 2:3

“Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

Matthew 23:12 (ESV)

The Dangers Celebrity Pastors Bring To The Church

Maybe you think I’m being nitpicky. So, some pastors are famous and a lot of those pastors are prideful and aren’t exemplary leaders. Who cares? I do, and you should, too. The damage celebrity pastors cause reaches far beyond their local congregations.

1. Celebrity pastors create unrealistic expectations.

The problem here is twofold. First, believers see celebrity pastors and expect their own local pastors to produce similar results. They want to see memberships grow exponentially, huge outreach ministries, professional caliber Vacation Bible School performances, and more.

Most pastors are just average men serving the Lord in their local church through preaching and teaching God’s Word. They don’t have a team to work on branding, endless funds, celebrity good looks, and hopefully, they are more concerned with serving the local church than with expansion plans.

Second, pastors, themselves, compare their ministries with celebrity pastors’ ministries. As if imposter syndrome wasn’t already a problem for pastors, now they feel like failures compared to men with churches 10-20x their size.

As I said earlier, though, church size is not the measure of success as a pastor. In fact, the number of ministries, books sold, and sermon downloads is not either. Is the pastor teaching the Bible without compromise, lovingly leading, and serving his local church body? Is he obedient to God? If yes, then he is a successful pastor.

2. Celebrity pastors don’t encourage Berean Christianity.

The Bereans are recorded in the Book of Acts. Paul and Silas ministered to them, and the Bereans were faithful to not only hear Paul and Silas’s teaching but to search the Scriptures, as well (Acts 17:11).

No Christian should take what a pastor says as infallible. Pastors are just men, and they are able to make mistakes just like anyone else. Celebrity pastors seem to get a pass on biblical accuracy. For example, Celebrate Recovery is based on the Beatitudes, but the verses are twisted to fit the program. If Rick Warren were not Rick Warren, then people might be more apt to check the Bible for his accuracy.

It’s a common problem which makes itself evident when I engage with celebrity pastor “fans.” They ignore biblical arguments against the man’s teaching, and they just tell me more about him rather than God.

3. Celebrity pastors become the focus of worship.

Does the pastor encourage his congregants to idolize him, or do they idolize him and then he comes to enjoy it? I don’t know. But I do know that there are Christians who only follow a celebrity pastor and have forsaken local fellowship. Moreover, there are Christians who go to church and tell the pastor how he didn’t preach as well as (insert celebrity pastor here) did last month on that topic.

Church is meant to be a place to worship God, but celebrity pastors turn it into a personality cult. I won’t say these men purposefully make church that way, but it seems to be an inevitable result.

4. Celebrity pastors give a false picture of what a pastor looks like.

If I came to faith in a church with a celebrity pastor, then I would think that “good” pastors would be men who are famous, rich, and powerful. First Timothy 3 would never come to mind.

My husband is not a celebrity pastor, but he is a man who loves to serve others and loves Jesus. I have seen him restock church bathrooms, volunteer to clean the church when we couldn’t afford to hire someone, mop after fellowship gatherings, and stay late after outreach events to make sure tables, chairs, and dishes are put away. He doesn’t brag about it or make a big show of it. Simply said, my husband doesn’t see himself as any better or more deserving than anyone else in our church or outside of it.

A pastor doesn’t put on a show and become a spectacle. He preaches, teaches, and serves as needed. Sometimes what he does is in the “spotlight,” but so often what a pastor does is without notice or thanks. There’s nothing “celebrity” about it.

5. Celebrity pastors are the only pastors most unchurched people see.

Bigger than life personalities with swarms of followers, loads of money, and pep talk sermons.

Ask an unchurched person about pastors, and she will tell you about someone who fits the description above. Is that the representation of Christianity we really want the world to see? Not to mention, the fallout every time a celebrity pastor has a moral failing does irreparable harm to the image of Christ. Essentially, the world looks at these celebrity pastors and sees nothing different than what the world has to offer. This is the picture of Christianity many celebrity pastors give the world.

The world needs to see pastors who demonstrate humility, a servant’s heart, and fearless love for the gospel. Braggadocious, unteachable, biblically compromised men need not apply.

Final Thought

Is being a famous pastor a problem in and of itself? Not really. The problem is that so many celebrity pastors appear to be chasing after us, not Jesus.

The pastor you should be most concerned with is the one in your local congregation. He is your pastor. So, follow his lead, serve in his church, love him and his family, and pray for him. He needs it…especially with celebrity pastors added to the mix.

Which celebrity pastors have you listened to? Were they solid teachers?

Image courtesy of Matthew Ball via Unsplash.