http://www.gofundme.com/hj69t0
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” — Micah 6:8
Despite many appeals to Mars Hill Church leadership to address several grievances, it now appears that it will be necessary to take legal action to see that these grievances are addressed – since the leaders of Mars Hill have unilaterally announced their intention to dissolve the church by the end of the year and divide the assets amongst themselves with no apparent accounting or transparency. Donors, ex-members and members are preparing to pursue this alternative only because all other avenues for resolution of grievances have been futile. These donors, ex-members, and members are setting up a fund which would be used to pay for the legal costs of such a pursuit.
Mars Hill Church has also used non-disclosure agreements to silence ex-employees with valid grievances. This fund would also be used to defend any ex-employee that is sued by Mars Hill Church for violating the terms of their non-disclosure agreement.
Once all matters are settled, the balance of this fund, if any, will be shared between the advertised recipients of the Mars Hill Global Fund (Ethiopian and Indian pastors) and with Agathos International. That portion of any donor’s gift to this legal fund will be tax-deductible.
We are attempting to schedule a meeting with Mars Hill representatives in an effort to avoid litigation, and it appears that this meeting may take place.
In discussion with former Mars Hill Church member Brian Jacobson regarding those times when Matthew 18 fails to settle matters, or when the offending party insists that the offended party should agree to be defrauded, as Mars Hill Church leadership has insisted thus far, Brian offered the following thoughts:
There will be much pushback from the Christian community regarding the lawsuit. The following are several responses to this.
First, I would point out that when Jesus saw religious leaders harming His people or leading them astray, He did not gently lead anyone to vague conclusions. He entered full-on attack mode and spoke His mind very clearly. We are to have the mind of Christ and His empathy toward those who are abused.
Second, in Galatians 1:8-9, Paul said if anyone preaches a different gospel, let him be accursed. Mark Driscoll perverted the gospel of Christ by making Mars Hill all about him. He used bullying and slander to maintain control of the church and he misappropriated resources for personal gain.
Third, it is possible that criminal acts occurred at Mars Hill that will only be revealed by a lawsuit such as this.
Fourth, there is a God-given role for civil authorities to play. They exist for the benefit of society – to protect the general public by maintaining good order. Romans 13 speaks to this. Summarizing the first few verses of that chapter, the Westminster Confession states, “God ordained civil magistrates for the defense and encouragement of them that are good, and for the punishment of evil doers.” The actions of the Mars Hill Church leadership put them in the category of “evil doers.”
Fifth, regarding 1 Corinthians 6, this scripture is related to settling personal disputes – disputes between individuals. The lawsuit would be against the Mars Hill Church corporation and its officers.
The following paragraphs are from Larry Burkett’s website:
Since there were no corporations in existence when the Bible was written, the best we can do is relate the principle to the closest parallel of that time: a government agency.
It seems clear from the book of Acts that Paul recognized both the authority and the responsibility of the government of Rome. Twice, when he was falsely arrested, he relied on application of Roman law to regain his freedom. He also clearly used the implied threat of that law to punish his antagonists (Acts 16:37).
When he was falsely accused by the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem and jailed by the Roman authorities, he appealed to the law of Rome to defend himself. The Roman government was an entity, not a person, so Paul felt he was clearly within his rights to use Roman law against that entity.
A corporation or a business is also an entity, not a person. Although the entity may be controlled and often is solely owned by a person, it appears that a corporation or a business has no rights under biblical guidelines, except the rights of prevailing law. Therefore, to sue a corporation in order to require that it meet its legal responsibilities is not unbiblical.
Musings from under the bus. 
…..It’s a shame when a church claims to recognize Biblical Doctrine and acts worse than the world.
Dear Brother,
Once the church organization that claims to love the “Word” and throws out Orthodox Biblical Doctrine, it cannot throw that in another’s face, especially in the light of using the sheep Yahweh had entrusted in their care as sacrifices to the modern American evangelical alter of Baal. This is especially in the light where you and your brothers and sisters in Christ have tried everything else.
From Washington State to New York State, narcissist church leaders have grieved the Holy Spirit with using people to serve them and their agendas while not fulfilling the required Biblical mandate of being a servant leader. They are acting like Pharisees that Yeshua rebuked in Mathew 23, rather than Brothers in Christ are suppose to act in Matthew 18:15-17.
Matthew 23:3-4 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. 4 They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. (NASB)
“You have to step back and ask, is this minister serving the people or are the people serving the minister?” Dr Stephen Arterburm, author of “Toxic Faith”
And it is not the world vs the church. It is the true church trying to reclaim what was stolen from the wolves. The leadership of Mars Hill Church and my church take a siege mentality and feel they can do anything falsely “in the name” of the One most High in the form of an apostate leader. We have created idols, especially in my genre of the Evangelicalism in the Pentecostal movement. The leaders in their “siege mentality” take on a martyr complex while the observers in the true church and even “in the world” are shocked. When a church goes bad due to failed leadership, even “the world” knows it is sin. But not the ones in their siege mentality.
I hope you don’t mind, I use “Mark Driscoll” as a tag to my last post in my blog. I think I will explain why using the “Under the Bus” Recording in the next post, as many as my brothers and sisters in my church who are either banished or left can relate to it. (Feel free to admonish me if I offend.)
Bless you Brother. We in the Hudson Valley are praying for you and the exiled brothers and sisters in Washington State.
Shalom in Christ,
Frank
Sheep and Recovering Pentecostal
Wow, I was not sure how MORE unbiblical you could possibly get but you have proved you are not at the bottom yet.
Because your foundation is 100% off, everything you try to build on it will fall. Mars Hill is not the True Church and Driscoll is not a pastor and from the “fruit” of your writing I would say that only false sheep follow false shepherds. If I could come over and have a cup of coffee with you and pray with you I certainly would. The justification of this action is more than a slippery slope.
Ok, so people got deceived: ripped off emotionally, spiritually, financially because they were all following a man who said he was a pastor and then following a system that is as old as the temple system under the law. What did you expect? Really? Walk away, cut your losses, ask God to forgive you for being so gullible thus leading once again to deception. Ask God to forgive you for calling that Babylonian System of merchants, Jezebels, Ahabs; powered by witchcraft, greed, lust the love of money…the church,
So let me get this straight: Your organization – the one you founded and run – Agathos International, will be profiting from your fundraising efforts to sue Mars Hill?
There is shame here, but the shame is on Mars Hill leaders for insisting it go this far.
That said, it would seem…questionable that your nonprofit would benefit if the lawsuit is successful.
Since you are seeking and accepting donations from people, I would like to ask you for the same level of transparency you are seeking from Mars Hill.
Please disclose your personal income for tax year 2013; projected income for 2014;
Please disclose the current value of your personal assets;
Please disclose total funds received by all organizations who’s board you currently serve on;
Please disclose your total charitable giving amount for the tax year 2013; projected giving for 2014;
Please disclose any trusts or foundations you are a part of along with the net worth of trusts/foundations.
Allen, what a great idea. I will certainly consider your request… When you contribute, just leave your name and email. You will hear from me at that time.
Rob, Your Mars Hill DNA is showing….
Exactly. The whole edifice was so detached from Biblical reality that even its detractors are abusers. How about giving some money to support Christian lawyers fighting for land rights in Africa if justice is their big thing?