“Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it. . . A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; he prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?” Jeremiah 5:1, 30-31.
So begins and ends a chapter from which I recall preaching in Lisbellaw Free Presbyterian Church, some 59 years ago.
Back then, the application of these words were not as pertinent as it is today.
The wickedness which brought judgment upon the nation to which Jeremiah ministers, was on the horizon of Ulster, as it were, but the terrible forebodings set forth by the prophets are on our doorstep now!
The other 28 verses of this chapter set forth the sins of the nation and the consequences of ignoring God’s merciful warnings.
I. THERE WAS A PUBLIC ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE LORD BUT THE LORD DECLARED IT FALSE.
“And though they say, The LORD liveth; surely they swear falsely,” verse 2.
There is a like deceit abroad today among God’s people. “Jehovah lives” is the confession of many but His law is increasingly set aside.
We in the Free Presbyterian Church are NOT in the place or following the path of our forefathers seventy five years ago.
The ecclesiastical separation established back then is no longer adhered to and such breaches are sanctioned by our Presbytery!
In a document on Separation, issued by our Presbytery this is stated:
9. Thus, God’s call to separate means that a particular church is to separate from all participation or co-operation in worship or ministry with churches, organisations or individuals that have apostatised through denial of the fundamental truths of the Christian faith, (see 2 Cor 6: 14-18, Eph 5: 11, 1 Tim 6: 3-5).
10. They are also called to separate from brethren who maintain fellowship with those who deny the faith, (2 Thess 3: 6, 14-15); to repudiate unscriptural ecumenism and ecumenical evangelism; and to refuse to compromise any essential truth of the gospel in an effort to pursue and gain visible church union with degenerate churches, (see Prov 23: 23, Amos 3: 3, 2 John 9-11).
Ministers of the Free Presbyterian Church have repeatedly violated those statements and Presbytery has sanctioned such unlawful actions!
II. AN EXHORTATION TO USE THE SENTIMENTS OF A PRAYER A PAPIST ‘SAINT’ APPEARED IN OUR CHURCH MAGAZINE.
I commented on this grave departure from the truth of God and the stand of the Free Presbyterian Church in an article I published in July of 2024 entitled:
Is encouraging the adoption of papist prayers official policy of the Free Presbyterian Church?
‘At the close of an article on prayer in the present ‘Vision’ magazine, the writer, Jonathan Storey, minister of Mt Merrion Free Presbyterian Church, recommends that we adopt the prayer of the Romanist ‘saint’ Thomas Aquinas, an Italian Dominican friar and priest.’
I challenged the Editor and this appeared in a later edition of the ‘Vision’.
In a further article on the matter, I called this apology:
An apology of an apology!
That is what it amounted to. Had this happened but a few years ago there would have been a strong outcry from Presbytery and both writer and editor would have been called to account and severely admonished at the very least. The suitability of the writer to occupy a pulpit in the Free Presbyterian Church would have been been most certainly questioned for who, with an ounce of Biblical and Protestant principle directing their thoughts and actions, could write such unscriptural nonsense.
There would not have been an accepting of the lame words of explanation offered by the Editor of the ‘Vision’ magazine, in reaction to this unspeakably erroneous exhortation.
To my knowledge, the matter was not even discussed in Presbytery! If it was, I know of no disciplinary action taken.
III. AN ELDER, WHO REMAINS IN GOOD STANDING WITHIN HIS SESSION AND IN THE EYES OF THE PRESBYTERY, WAS THE MEANS OF SODOMITE ORGANISATIONS RECEIVING FUNDING.
Back in January 2015, I published the following:
Mervyn Storey, Minister for Social Development in the Northern Ireland Executive, tried to distance himself from funding of sodomites
I reported in the article:
‘In answer to questions regarding the squandering of £3 million “on many undeserving projects” by the Department of Social Development, tabled by Mr Jim Allister MLA, an unnamed department official sought to shield Mr Storey from all blame regarding the funding of sodomites organisations.
Here is what was disclosed in an article in the Belfast Newsletter in its report of the Department of Social Development’s reply to Mr. Allister.
“The answers received revealed that amongst the spend: £1,064,546.17 was spent on GAA clubs, with £273,000 spent on one club alone in Strabane, Strabane Sigerson’s Club; £1,134,100.33 was spent on Irish language groups; £138,997.78 was spent on a republican ex-prisoners group, Tar Anall; £83,176.18 was spent on the Bloody Sunday Trust; £259,087.93 was spent on Carrick Hill Residents Association; and £231,681.00 was spent on LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transexual) projects, including £170,000 to support the Strabane & Lifford LGBT group alone, and annual subventions to Belfast Pride.” (See a full news report here)
We want to emphasise the fact that “£231,681.00 was spent on LGBT projects, including £170,000 to support the Strabane & Lifford LGBT group alone, and annual subventions to Belfast Pride.”
Persistence
Mr Storey went on to further act in complete disobedience to the Word of God, when he wished the ecumenical ‘Corrymeela Community’ well for its anniversary events. This article was published back on 25th February 2015.
Principles abandoned – God’s Truth Betrayed
Here is an extract.
‘In one word CORRYMEELA means ECUMENISM with its old objective of REUNION with ROME. From its inception it was seen by the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster as such. Now we have a Free Presbyterian elder wishing “the Corrymeela Community well for its upcoming 50th anniversary celebrations.” The text under the photographs published on the Northern Ireland Executive website, reads: Social Development Minister, Mervyn Storey MLA pictured with Pádraig Ó Tuama, Corrymeela Community Leader as the Minister wished the Corrymeela Community well for its upcoming 50th anniversary celebrations.’
Endorsed
Despite his repeated departures from the principles he solemnly avowed, Mr Storey has been endorsed and supported by the Session of Ballymoney Free Presbyterian Church and by the leaders of the Presbytery!
I could add the antics of the minister of Antrim Free Presbyterian Church, Rev Paul Thompson in recent times as a further example of a setting aside of the Word of God and the Standards of the Free Presbyterian Church.
A report of the events at Antrim may be found at:
The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth
Again, there was no follow-up to this betrayal of our stand. Indeed, it seems clear that he was being endorsed until the fact that the participation of a supporter of republican terror was planned was shared with the Clerk Of Presbytery!
I am sure I have not touched upon all the examples of sin unchallenged and unopposed within our ranks of late.
However, these serve to illustrate a wilful negligence on the part of those who, one day, will have to give an account to the King and Head of the Church for these failures!
“Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you,” Hebrews 13:17.
The apostasy of Judah, which Jeremiah witnessed against, ended in the judgment of the Babylonian captivity.
I believe that we are seeing the first pages of the final chapter of mankind’s rebellion against God, which began with Adam’s sin. We have entered upon the beginnings of that spoken of in 2 Timothy 3:1 by Paul as the “perilous times” of the “last days”. That will result in the manifestation of “the Antichrist”, whose short-lived rebellion of three and a half years will end with the Saviour’s return in Glory and great power and he and the false prophet being “cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone,” Revelation 19:20.
If the Free Presbyterian Church is not to be sucked into this final rebellion, even as the main denominations here and throughout Christendom have been entangled, then we must act now and rebuild the walls of separation between us and the ecumenical apostasy.
A great danger
That is why the foolish and sinful fellowshipping of some of our ministers with disobedient ‘evangelicals’ within that apostasy is so wrong and so dangerous!
Paul said to the Galatians, “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?” Galatians 5:7. We are being hindered or being ‘checked’ in our way, by the departure that has been taken place UNCHECKED by our Presbytery leaders.
If there is not a heeding of the warnings of God’s Word and a turning again to the “old paths, where is the good way” (Jeremiah 6:16) then we will end as did Judah as depicted in the last verses of this chapter 3.
“A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?”
May the Lord stir our people to reject the present complacency and disobedience and revert back to the zeal and submission to the Lord of former times.
Rev Ivan. Foster (Rtd)
10th July 2026