What do you do when your church is falling apart and everyone is leaving and the pastor just keeps doing things his way and the pastoral committee has left with most of the people?

Answer 1

You should probably find another church, esp. if the pastor is just doing his own thing and not paying attention to what's going on.

I have personally seen this happen several times. If it is a Bible church then the pastor, by such behavior is disqualified to be pastor. However, some are so proud and stubborn they may cling to power and also claim legal authority to do so. It depends how the church is constituted and what provisions, if any are made for this type of situation, specifically relating to the position of the pastor.

Even if there is legal authority in a constitution it still may be better to walk away since we are 'called to peace'. If a pastor is that proud and stubborn (without knowing the situation) then even if there is legal authority it may still be better to 'go'. The exception here is what is best for the name of Christ. If the church is a 'landmark' and many are, that does even not necessarily mean that it must be kept at all costs. The church is really people and the early church grew like wildfire without a building.

The decision is really a personal one which can only be made in light of the clear word of God. What needs to be borne in mind is that there needs to be a committed core of praying, Godly, men (presuming you are following The Bible model of male church leadership) who are humbly prepared to take the issue head on. If not, then walking away is the only option anyway. If such a group exists within the church, make sure that everything is done both biblicaly and constitionaly, the former being the most important.