CCA Hawaii Conference / Pastor Teachings
Lloyd Pulley Teaches at CCA Hawaii Conference
Story by Jim Culhane
Photos by Tom Price
Follow Calvary Chapel Magazine as we publish summaries of pastors’ teachings at the CCA Pastors, Leaders, & Church Workers Conference held in August 2021 at Calvary Chapel Honolulu, HI. Click here to learn more about the conference.
In this installment, Lloyd Pulley, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Old Bridge, NJ, encouraged the pastors to spiritually feed their flocks well, even in times of challenges, persecution, and suffering.
A young man exalts after being baptized by Calvary Chapel Honolulu Assistant Pastor Kerry Taylor at the CCA Pastors, Leaders, & Church Workers Conference in August 2021.
Pastor Lloyd began his teaching of 1 Peter 5:1-4 by stating, “This is the time, I really believe, that we could see the coming of the Lord. What is the Lord looking for? To work in us as His ambassadors, whom He’s going to pull out. But again, ambassadors have a message, a purpose, and learning how to navigate these waters has been a real challenge for many. For me, I’ve seen some things as opportunities, like I’ve never seen before, though it has been challenging and heartbreaking [with] lots of pain and struggle.”
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Lloyd related that the apostle Peter was writing to a group of beleaguered individuals struggling with all kinds of persecution, and difficulties when writing the Book of 1 Peter.
The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. 1 Peter 5:1-4
The passage is a powerful message of shepherding, and here the emphasis is on pastors feeding their flocks. We need God to give us insight and wisdom to truly care about the souls entrusted to us: to be there for them, model for them, encourage them. “Peter’s role was especially to those who were really putting their lives on the line, facing persecution, and having to hide underground,” taught Lloyd. He sees a culture that is now a lot more “wolfish” than it has been. Most pastors have felt the tension and pressure from those outside the Church wanting Christians to conform to their agenda. He prays for those who are set against the church and sees how unbiblical they are.
Lloyd Pulley, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Old Bridge, NJ, encourages the pastors to spiritually feed their flocks well, even in times of challenges, persecution, and suffering. His teaching was based on 1 Peter 5:1-4.
Lloyd compared pastoring to rescuing people from a sinking ship. The drowning people are going to grab at you when you are trying to save them. We need to keep that perspective. Those decision-makers around us need our prayers: “The only thing that keeps me going is praying for their souls,” reflected Lloyd.
Peter took the leadership role, but then found he was trusting a little bit too much in that close relationship he had with Jesus, to the degree that he thought everyone else would leave Jesus in His time of need. But the Lord had to remind him, “Peter, you’re going to deny Me before the rooster crows.” And what a painful lesson it is in our hearts to learn just what the extent of our strength really is. Peter learns that it’s not about him. God mercifully raised him up. So in this passage, Peter refers to himself as a fellow elder, not the first pope.
Peter witnessed Jesus suffer, though he had rejected the truth that Christ was going to suffer. It’s hard for us to think about what the Lord might allow in our lives. Lloyd remembers the big fear he had growing up in church, that if he really believed in God and the Gospel message, that he was going to be in some God-forsaken place in the world, eating bugs the size of cats. He was terrified of what God would have him do.
Three women react with joyful tears after the woman in the center accepted Jesus as her Savior in the afterglow service following Pastor Lloyd’s teaching.
A large part of Peter’s encountering Jesus was all the “cool stuff,” the miracles. Peter was kind of a leader, and he even got to see the transfiguration of Jesus. But Peter didn’t hear. Sometimes we, too, get a little tone deaf when it comes to the message of suffering; but Peter looks at it in writing his letter and sees the whole point of the suffering, especially with the cross, because that was the hour for which Jesus had come.
“I love the partaker part,” explained Lloyd, “because everyone of us is a partaker of the divine nature through the Holy Spirit. He has grafted us in. We’ve encountered Him. You can’t give out what you don’t have. The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our salvation. One day we’re going to be in heaven in His presence, and all tears and sorrow will be gone, death no more.”
Shepherding the flock of God sometimes requires aggressiveness. Protecting them from the world requires telling parents not to sacrifice their children to the culture. Lloyd described how even masks are detrimental to health, and the fear of germs is not natural. Babies put dirt in their mouths and it improves their immune system. It happens all the time in Third World countries, and they don’t have the childhood diseases like asthma. “I think God knew what He was doing by letting kids eat dirt,” explained Lloyd. Some moms are really upset to hear this, but even doctors have said that.
A woman beautifully performs worship hula for conference attendees. The CC Honolulu worship team is in the background.
Satan is such a great liar. Lies are so prominent in our culture, you need to have discernment by reading the Word of God. You need a good mentor. You have to be careful of the culture allowing your children to be indoctrinated with false LGBTQ teachings. Lloyd described two lesbians who became Christians, and how one of them struggled for years with accepting that God made her a woman. She later acknowledged that her mom had been weak and abused in the marriage; that was why she wanted to be a boy.
The Bible says that the sins of the fathers will be visited on the third and fourth generations. Society really is messed up by the third generation and then requires a revolution or revival. Pastors see that there is so much abuse of children now.
Pastors should not “do church” but rather hand out the manna of the Word faithfully without other motivations or for dishonest gain. We all learn from each other. Lloyd doesn’t ever want to get to the point of thinking, I’ve got this, and believing he doesn’t need other Christians—he might be an arm of the Christian body, but he needs those who are other parts of the body. Pastors need to keep their flock well fed on Scripture so they can grow.
Two men pray together in the bleachers after the pastors hold a Q & A session.
During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Lloyd shut his church down for three months, hearing that the hospitals were overwhelmed and that people were dying. But then, he said, “The science was there until the science wasn’t there, and then they decided to make up science.” And his church opened up. During a second lockdown, the “mask theater” was getting to Lloyd, so he let people be adults and choose for themselves.
Shepherding is tough because there are detractors and mean emails, but when you remember that you are ministering to the people of God, they won’t dissuade you. During this time, Lloyd’s son died in a vehicle accident. Other pastors made encouraging calls amid the spiritual attacks, and later he was able to minister to others because of what he had been through.
Lloyd learned from his wrestling coach to “master the basics.” Jesus kept training his disciples over and over with the basics. “The lies of the world and this culture have so seduced people. We need to come back to the basics,” reminded Lloyd. “The ancient gods are all around us: Molech with abortion, Ba’al in education, Ashtoreth in sexuality. It’s all about children. Watch over those children and those babes in the Lord. I’ve had to tell a few people, ‘Put away those videos you’re watching.’ Pastors warn and instruct. Pray that God uses you in ministry.”
Women in traditional Hawaiian garb play the shofar, the ram’s horn, during a special worship session.
Visit the website of Pastor Lloyd Pulley's church at Calvary Chapel Old Bridge, NJ
Watch Lloyd Pulley's teaching in its entirety at: Lloyd Pulley / CCA Hawaii Conference
Follow summaries of pastors' teachings at CCA Hawaii Conference:
Ron Hindt, senior pastor of Calvary Houston, TX
Bud Stonebraker, senior pastor of South Shore Christian Fellowship, Waimanalo, HI
Jeff Johnson, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Downey, CA
Jack Abeelen, senior pastor of Morningstar Christian Chapel, Whittier, CA
Tony Clark, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Newport News, VA
Stay tuned for more teaching summaries in upcoming days.
Mark your calendar for the 2022 CCA Hawaii Conference: August 19-21 at Calvary Chapel Honolulu
(To learn more about U-Turn for Christ, visit their website)
All verses above are quoted from the New King James Version, unless otherwise noted.
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