Now under the banner of Elevate, this address apparently was the former home of various ministries such as Church of God Middletown, Victory Worship Center, Covenant Community Church, and Life Pointe Church.



My wife and I were seeking a non-denominational, grace-based church. We were initially told Elevate was a church plant backed by an organization. We later learned they report to a Kentucky Church of God State Administrative Bishop in Lexington.



The preaching style was a thematic approach based on topics (God in the Movies, Ghost Stories, etc.) as opposed to biblical chapter-by-chapter, verse-by-verse expository methods. They offered a contemporary style “worship experience” with an upscale sound and lighting system including a smoke machine. No doubt they have talented musicians and vocalists along with the necessary gear to produce very chic, “feel good” type performances.



At first Elevate didn’t appear to be especially legalistic, and we thought we had found that “special” grace-based, non-judgmental church that was truly different. Then in January 2015 we began to hear those Malachi 3-4 based tithe sermons (non-tithers are God robbers under a curse, etc.). Take a minute to read Mal 1-2 and learn to whom this was addressed for proper context. The answer will probably surprise you. Also read about Christ redeeming us from the curse in Galatians. I questioned Elevate extensively on this topic. I even offered a $500 challenge if they could substantiate their belief, only utilizing scripture in context, that tithing is mandated by God for Christians. None – NONE – could meet this challenge!



At the end of most worship experiences, a period was devoted to preaching about bringing tithes and offerings unto God. At times it would be preached that the first 10% of one’s income didn’t belong to the utility company, etc., it belonged to God and the church would offer a money back guarantee for anyone who tithed and later wasn’t satisfied.



Instead of offering plates being passed around the church, members of the congregation would bring their tithes and offerings to the front of the church and place them in a bag. Other times there would be offerings taken up for missionaries and the needy, but with the instruction that this must be above the tithe.



We look for church leaders to debate differences in theology using scripture as a solid basis for correction (2 Tim 3:16-17). In our opinion, for leaders to simply state they will not debate, hurl insults (stupid, chubby, enemy of the church, etc.), and get angry suggests a lack of legitimate arguments to defend their position. We believe this is at the best ignorance of scripture and at worst is possibly indicative of false teachers.



In closing, we are not implying that there is not proper place for money in ministries. Furthermore, we certainly believe in generous giving per 2 Cor Ch 9 “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” However, this scripture also states: “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Our main issue with Elevate is, like with so many ministries, the method in which money is raised and church leaders judging the hearts of others on what they give.



For those who may believe tithing applies to Christians, I strongly suggest you look up Dr. Russell E. Kelly’s articles on this topic and conduct an in depth study. As with any teachings, you should verify for yourself it lines up with scripture - 2 Timothy 2:15. Other good studies are at http://www.tentmaker.org/books/TheTitheIsAbolished.html and http://www.bibleresearch.org/lawbook4/b4w8.html.



Legal Disclaimer: This review was posted in good faith based upon the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and is correct to the best of our knowledge.