“Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die,” Revelation 3:2.
The role and duty of those in the position of leadership within the Church of Christ are clearly set forth throughout Holy Scripture, and nowhere more succinctly than in the words set down by Moses.
“Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment,” Deuteronomy 16:18.
The outcome of the special Presbytery in Dungannon, 20th June, convened to hear the report of the ‘Commission of Inquiry’ set up after Revs R Johnstone and M Lecky were permitted to make statements of complaint before the Presbytery against Rev David Linden and myself on May 1st, has left a lot of questions unanswered and probably aroused many more!!
From the very beginning of the process, fairness and proper procedure were set aside and it was indicated, for any with eyes to see, that there was something very wrong within our ranks!
The whole episode has highlighted for many Free Presbyterians that there has been a drift away from the position, principles and philosophy of the witness and stand of our church as it was first formed, by God’s grace, in 1951.
It appears that there are those amongst our ministers and elders who are opposed to the command of Scripture to denounce sin, but who are prepared to misuse and misapply Holy Scripture to support their position.
Yet such denunciation of sin and backsliding is what the Free Presbyterian Church was brought into existence to do, irrespective of who is the guilty party.
Was it not the custom for the following verses to be read out, if not preached upon, at every minister’s ordination?
It would appear that of late few have heeded the words or noted their significance!
“I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables,” 2 Timothy 4:1-4.
On the day of my ordination, some fifty-eight years ago, Dr Ian Paisley preached on Jeremiah chapter 1.
There you find a definition of that prophet’s call and it embraces every minister’s calling, as was pressed home upon my soul that night!
“But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD. Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth. See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant,” Jeremiah 1:7-10.
Paul echoed these sentiments:
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; and having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled,” 2 Corinthians 10:3-6.
NO CHARGES
Whatever some might have desired as the outcome of this Commission, it would appear that no disciplinary proceedings will be taken against myself and Rev Linden.
It must be stated that there never were any grounds for proceeding against us since what we did was fully supported by the Word of God.
Only someone who is in rebellion against the truth of God would have thought that there were grounds for disciplining us!
Whatever the ambiguous outcome of the ‘Commission’ means, I will be continuing to use whatever time is left to me, to preach, write and witness in submission to the Word of God, irrespective of who it displeases!
“But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts,” 1 Thessalonians 2:4.
What follows is my evaluation of the whole procedure from the time when the Presbytery Officers met with Revs R Johnstone and M Lecky and granted them permission to make statements of complaint at the Presbytery meeting on May 1st of this year.
I believe both these ministers acted contrary to the Word of God and to their obligations as Free Presbyterian ministers of the gospel of Christ and were rightly rebuked.
The tomfoolery of those leading the ‘Investigative Commission’, set up on May 1st, does not alter that facts and the only King and Head of the Church will hold these two ministers responsible for their folly. He will also require answers from the Officers of Presbytery whose duty it is to safeguard the honour and glory of the Lord Jesus and punish transgressors.
Final Word
This is my final word on this issue at this time. I am too old to continue the battle as it ought to be fought. I believe that I have sought to fulfil the duties of a ‘watchman’. I have sought to sound the alarm as clearly as I could for quite some time now.
The matter is now in the hands of the ministers, elders, deacons and people of the Free Presbyterian Church to respond and obey the Lord and be like Eleazar and David at Pasdammim, who “set themselves in the midst of that parcel, and delivered it, and slew the Philistines; and the LORD saved them by a great deliverance,” 1 Chronicles 11:13-14.
They “stood firm”, that is what is called for today.
Jude said, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ,” Jude 1:3-4.
Unless the present generation of Free Presbyterians rise up and contend with those who occupy our pulpits and who use their position to bring about an abandoning of the truths which the Lord raised up the Free Presbyterian Church to preach and protect, then the immorality that Jude warned of will overwhelm and destroy our Church.
We have reached a day akin to that mentioned in Judges 2:10.
“And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.”
Something of that ignorance is abroad today, especially regarding “the works which he had done” for the Free Presbyterian Church.
There is an ignorance today amongst the present generation which is the sad result of an absence of a right and proper teaching of the children and those preparing for the Gospel ministry. It is not uncommon for ministerial students to be told that ‘the day of protest is over’!
That is the devil’s lie and it accounts for the change in the attitude of some today towards ecumenism.
Nothing more destructive to the continuation of a faithful witness amongst us could be taught to students for the ministry!
Sin and sinners have not changed, neither has the devil! Since the Lord has declared “I am the LORD, I change not” His response to sin and the devil’s antics have not and will not change and it is the duty of God’s servant to maintain the ‘PROTEST’ that the Lord has instituted against the kingdom of darkness!
1. The Office Bearers of Presbytery met with Revs R Johnstone and Marcus Lecky some five days before the Presbytery of May 1st and acceded to their request to make statements at the next Presbytery against myself and Rev David Linden.
This permission was granted in contravention of the required seven days’ notice as set down in the Book of Church Order, 10.5.
That item should have been put on the agenda 7 days before the Presbytery met, Rule 10.5.
2. On May 1st, Revs R Johnstone and Marcus Lecky were permitted to make statements in defiance of the rule governing such an event. An objection was raised from the floor but this was dismissed by the Moderator, Rev Ian Brown.
Instead, discussion took place following the statements by the two men which persuaded some to support a Commission being set up as we were deemed to have acted in a fashion worthy of such a response.
This was all done without either of us being informed, as we should have been if the BOCO was followed. This took place behind our backs with the approval of the Clerk and Moderator. We were thus prevented from responding to the complaints of Revs R Johnstone and Marcus Lecky on that night.
Is not this contrary to common justice, and more importantly, to the principle Paul appealed to?
“To whom I answered, It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he which is accused have the accusers face to face, and have license to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him,” Acts 25:16.
3. Thus a decision was made to set up a Commission to examine the claims made by Revs R Johnstone and Marcus Lecky without myself or Rev Linden being given the opportunity to give a response. Indeed, it was all arranged so that we would not know until a Commission was set up and its business begun!
It was some three weeks before we were informed of the ‘complaints’ that were made about us before Presbytery.
This is unjust and contrary to civil court procedure and our own Presbytery rules of conduct!
What is even more reprehensible is the fact that Rev Marcus Lecky spoke to both myself and Rev Linden on the telephone just a short time before the Presbytery meeting but he made no mention that he and Rev R Johnstone were going to be making reference to us both in statements of complaint.
He was either ignorant of his acting in breach of rule 10.5, or deliberately and dishonourably concealing from us what was planned.
4. One member appointed to the Commission had already decided and declared his opinion of our guilt during the debate which followed the statements by Revs R Johnstone and Marcus Lecky, by calling for the immediate disbarring of myself and Rev Linden from the pulpit.
This was rejected as being unfair, but the person who made the proposal, Rev Thomas Murray, was still appointed to the Commission despite his obvious bias!
He and those who voted for his appointment to the Commission are guilty of most unjust actions. It would be impossible for anyone to be appointed to a civil court jury who had publicly declared that the person on trial was guilty and should be punished, yet it is acceptable procedure in our Presbytery!
In a civil court, such behaviour would be deemed biased and their judgment considered prejudicial to a fair hearing for the defendant!
5. Both Rev Linden and myself were informed by email that a Commission had been set up.
My copy of the email from Nigel S Campbell, Commission Secretary read:
“5th May 2026
Dear Rev I Foster,
At its meeting in Banbridge on 1st May 2026, Presbytery heard from Rev R Johnstone, who referenced accusations made against him by you on an internet platform. While no charges were laid against you by Rev Johnstone, Presbytery has set up an Investigative Commission to examine this whole matter with Rev C Mercer as its chair. . . .”
Since Rev R Johnstone had levelled no charges of wrong-doing against me, one wonders why was a Commission ever set up to examine that about which no complaint had been made?
It would appear that there were some most anxious to invent a reason to ‘examine’ my stand for the old truths of God’s Word!
6. It was 21 days before I received any record of what Rev R Johnstone had said about me before the Presbytery, and that only after requesting a copy of the statement.
On 8th May I emailed Nigel Campbell:
“Is it not strange for a Commission to ‘invite’ someone to presumably give an account of what was alleged by a member of Presbytery, while that person is totally unaware of just what it was said ‘about’ them?
Neither the Presbytery Officers nor the members of Commission have deigned it proper or necessary to let me know what it is I am required to give an answer to.”
Not until 22nd May was I given a copy of the statement made by Rev R Johnstone on 1st May. It was given me toward the end of a meeting, requested by Revs Colin Mercer and John Greer, for I had refused to meet the Commission until I was given a copy of what was said against me and also an explanation as to why rule 10.5, which requires that those about whom a statement is to be made in Presbytery be informed before the statement is permitted to be made, was dismissed by the Moderator as irrelevant.
I was asked questions in the meeting in my home on May 22nd about the matter raised by Rev R Johnstone, in what I considered an illegally permitted statement in presbytery, before I was given a copy of Rev R Johnstone’s statement by Rev Colin Mercer, Chairman of the Commission.
This was neither courteous, proper nor fair. But that is how matters are conducted in our Presbytery today!
7. At the meeting in my home on May 22nd, Rev John Greer repeated what had been said by Nigel Campbell in an email dated 8th May, in response to my email of May 8th.
For the Secretary to reply on the very day I sent my questions indicates that an explanation for the ignoring of Rule 10.5 had already been worked out by those leading the Commission, for a Secretary would not answer without consulting the Commission members.
The explanation for ignoring rule 10.5 given by Nigel Campbell was:
“The Commissioners do not believe that the Commission to which you are invited, was set up in disregard of rule 10.5 of the Book of Church Order.
There was nothing on the agenda for the May Presbytery concerning the formation of a commission to look into these matters. You were named during the Presbytery meeting and a proposal from the floor of Presbytery was made to set up an Investigative Commission to look at relevant matters. This proposal was seconded. Before a vote was taken, the matter of BCO 10.5 was raised and an explanation given by the Clerk of Presbytery which noted that since there was nothing on the agenda concerning the formation of a commission, it would have been impossible to inform you of a commission prior to the Presbytery meeting.”
Rev John Greer duly repeated this explanation in my home on May 22nd. It was what the Moderator had said in Presbytery when the procedure of men making statements about other ministers was objected to on the basis of Rule 10.5.
I told Rev Greer to his face that what he was saying was specious and false, as was the Moderator’s response to the objection in Presbytery.
The issue was not Rev Linden and myself being informed of a ‘Commission’ being set up, but of the fact that we were to be named before the Presbytery by Revs R Johnstone and Marcus Lecky.
It had been POSSIBLE to inform us of this planned item on the agenda for the Office Bearers had known of it for at least five days before the May Presbytery meeting.
I would have expected more of the Clerk of the Presbytery than such an obvious ‘red herring’ !!
8. To this day, I have never been given a satisfactory answer to the questions in the email I sent to Nigel Campbell on 8th May, and quoted above in section 6.
And yet the Commission went ahead and formed an opinion and declared that opinion at the special Presbytery meeting in Dungannon on June 20th.
That decision has NOT been officially conveyed to me as yet by the Presbytery Officers or the Chairman of the Commission. I therefore do NOT KNOW exactly was reported by the Commission Chairman, Rev Colin Mercer.
This is the justice practised within our church today — violation of ordination oaths, extolling of that which is condemned by our own standards, a setting aside of the Book of Church Order when its rules get in the way, threatening men who obey God and condemn sin and, above all, misapplying God’s Word in order to give the appearance of Biblical support for the drift away from the ‘old paths’!
I am reminded of the Saviour’s Words:
“Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God,” Revelation 3:2.
It is clear that churches may die and that but a short time after enjoying the mighty blessing of God! The church in Sardis, born in the midst of true Pentecostal blessing, and but some 35 years old, was told by the Saviour that it had “a name that thou livest, and art dead,” verse 1.
It is no exaggeration to say that if the Lord does not intervene in the affairs of the Free Presbyterian Church, it is doomed and it is very evident that there are clear signs that it is “ready to die”!
Rev Ivan Foster (Rtd)
22nd June 2026