At my church growing up, near Fort Meade, Maryland, there was a regular evangelist I will never forget by the name of Dr. Bill Behrens. As a “retired” Marine who fought in the Vietnam war, he had powerful messages and personal testimonies about the reality of being “a soldier for Jesus Christ,” so much so that I can even hear his voice saying that phrase a decade later. Every year, he preached at our Bible camp during the summer, covering topics that ranged from children obeying and honoring their parents, to the brevity of life, purity before marriage, and the importance of serving God with our lives. He also preached revival meetings every year at our church, and I have never forgotten his message about getting back to the basics of the Christian walk and “taking some spiritual Lysol” to your Christian life. Dr. Behrens would usually have us rolling in laughter from the beginning, but by the end, the convicting power of the Holy Spirit usually left the auditorium so quiet one could hear a pin drop. There were a few other evangelists that also came over the years, one of which even offered financial advice on the side for those who desired it, but always began with the principle of “Seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God and his righteousness….” as the baseline for financial stability. These men were not perfect, just as those at my church had shortcomings as well, but they still allowed God to use them and countless lives were changed.
At Antioch Baptist Church in Tennessee, Douglas Stauffer was esteemed for his time as an evangelist, but as I became more familiar with his work, I started to question if an evangelist was limited to the mental picture I had grown up with. Probably not, but what is an evangelist supposed to do? What are his goals supposed to be according to Scripture? I believe the answer is that an evangelist, essentially a state-side missionary, should have his eyes set on the furtherance of the kingdom of God, for souls to be saved, and the people of God to be encouraged and lifted up in their walks. Looking at Stauffer’s work as an evangelist, one could assume that evangelism includes staying back at one’s home church for months at a time in order to write and promote one’s own books as an “internationally recognized authority” on the end times. Although one could argue that Stauffer’s campaigning of his abilities is necessary for the support of a traveling family in evangelism, just as Paul used his skills as a tent maker to support himself at various points along his missionary journeys, Stauffer took these accomplishments a step further when he referenced his own travels and conferences on the end times.
Sadly, instead of speaking of souls recently saved, lives changed, or of those still in need of a Savior, Doug Stauffer regularly focused his remarks on the number of pages he had written or slides he had created for his presentations from the vast quantity of information he discerned Scripturally or was able to provide because of his own personal, in-depth study of the King James Bible. Seemingly insignificant portions of these boastings would even commonly spring up across his Facebook pages (see examples below), but they appeared to go unnoticed as “a man who loved numbers.” In between these conferences, Stauffer also participated in multiple debates on Revelation and the end times, but upon returning to his home church (Antioch Baptist Church), he would commonly boast of winning, even if public opinions online speculated drastically different results. Both online and in person, we feel that Stauffer’s words portrayed a man who cared more about his own accomplishments and the results of those accomplishments than about the souls and edification of those he came into contact with at various churches around the country. To put it bluntly, I have yet to find a verse that states going around the country attempting to win debates about Revelation is what Paul meant when he instructed Timothy to “Do the work of an evangelist” (1 Timothy 4:5). Christ clearly commanded us to “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”
- Douglas Stauffer (February 2, 2019): “Gotta say, I am R_E_A_D_Y .…we produced a special 200 page booklet for the conference and an additional 40-page powerpoint presentation outline.” (Link)
- Douglas Stauffer (February 8, 2019): “Tonight is the final Revelation study service that began last Sunday PM. We studied 3 chapters on both Sunday and Wednesday and 4 chapters on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday with 4 more tonight. Jesus is coming back “tonight”–chapter 19 and onward to the millennium and new heaven and new earth. Glory!!!! . . . Getting through Revelation in a mere 12 hours was a challenge…but with the help of God, we did it!!!” (Link)
- Douglas Stauffer (February 12, 2019): “I wrote three chapters in ‘One Book One Authority’ on God’s witness of Himself in the Chinese language. Last week in Naples, I met with a Chinese couple who pointed me to this video that covers much more than my book. Wow!!! Everyone needs to watch this and realize how God has had a witness in the Chinese language for 4500 years. Pray for us as we leave for China in about 30 days!” (LINK)
- Douglas Stauffer (October 4, 2019):“Just finished my 20th book…I expanded my 200-page book that sold out in a day to 245 pages–a study on the book of Revelation. This also will be a limited printing and it will contain the treatise on ‘How a Tribulation Saint Gets Saved.’ God is soooo good. You can read about salvation in Daniel’s Seventieth week on my blog www.DougStaffer.com” (LINK)
In this series I share my thoughts and opinions concerning these ministers and the events which led to my departure. Click here to continue reading: “Blindsided: Douglas Stauffer- Pride He Can Count On” or click on the link below.
For a list of the complete series, click here.
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