PASTOR GREG LOCKE:
"ADULTERER IN GOD'S EYES"
MARRIES CHURCH SECRETARY
BY SETH DUNN
SEE: http://pulpitandpen.org/2018/08/07/pastor-greg-locke-adultery-in-gods-eyes-marries-church-secretary/; republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research purposes:
Greg Locke is the founder of Global Vision Bible Church (GVBC) in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. He is nationally known for his conservative, politically incorrect social media postings about politics and religion. Having been featured in the Tennessean, CNN, and on local news stations, Greg Locke has built a Facebook following of over 1 million. Using this following, Greg has been able to draw donations into GVBC from what the church calls its “internet members.” Greg is also a sought-after speaker on the revival circuit. Throughout his career in ministry, Greg has presented himself as a Bible-believing Christian pastor vehemently opposed to abortion, homosexuality, and the profaning of marriage. However, in reality, Greg Locke is a scheming, unrepentant adulterer. On January 8, 2018, Pulpit & Pen published an article entitled “Greg Locke Divorces Wife, Finds New Girlfriend” after it was reported to us by a disaffected church member that Greg’s wife, Melissa Locke, had disappeared from town and that Locke was romantically involved with his church secretary, Tai Cowan McGee. Shortly after our report was published, a Georgia pastor with knowledge of the situation contacted Pulpit & Pen with information about the whereabouts of Melissa. Melissa was living in a women’s shelter in Georgia, far away from her church and children. In an interview given to Pulpit & Pen, Melissa alleged physical abuse at the hands of Greg and revealed pages of vicious text messages her husband had sent to her during their separation. Despite this, Melissa Locke attempted to salvage her marriage. She ended divorce proceedings that she had initiated against her troubled husband. Despite this, Greg Locke published a video claiming that he was a “divorced pastor.” After this untruth was revealed, Locke filed divorce proceedings himself. Despite ongoing reports of Locke’s unfaithfulness and accounts from locals that Greg was dating his secretary, many of his followers and church members refused to believe that Greg Locke had disqualified himself for ministry. Today, Pulpit and Pen obtained a marriage license filed in the state of Tennessee which proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Greg Locke has indeed legally married his church secretary Tai Cowan McGee, less than three months** after divorcing his wife of twenty years.
This marriage certificate indicates that Greg and Tai were married on August 2nd. Interestingly enough, sources in Mt. Juliet have claimed that Locke was married as early as July 22nd at GVBC in a ceremony officiated by Jarrod Almond (GVBC Executive Pastor) and attended by church staff and elders. We received the following anonymous email on July 25th:
I am a recent member of Global Vision Bible Church. I would like to remain anonymous. I am very close with several members of the staff and can confirm that Greg Locke and Tai Cowan were “married” without legal permission or supervision by Jarrod Almond on Saturday evening, and he is keeping it a secret from the general congregation. They are not legally married, but living as a married couple. He doesn’t deserve our respect or privacy.
The understanding in Mount Juliet was that Greg and Tai were “married in God’s eyes.” Named sources have also verified a pre-August wedding. Whenever Greg legally married Tai, it is obvious that what Greg did was immoral. A church member who recently left GVBC, (name redacted)*** shared the following about GVBC:
I am a former member of GVBC. I had been a member for well over a year. I was raised in a Pentecostal church where my Dad was a pastor but this was the first time as an adult that I actually sat through a membership class. I went faithfully, twice a week, and tithed. My Mother & son became actively involved in the church also. I have watched this drama unfold. I was feet from Greg that Wednesdays when he got up there and tearfully informed us that Melissa was mentally ill and spiraling out of control (cutting herself, chopping off her hair, attacking him) and that she had abandoned him & the kids. Most in the room had tears in their eyes & we all felt so horrible for him…especially Tai, she seemed inconsolable over it, openly crying before anything was even announced. I now feel disgusted and manipulated over the way things have played out. I stopped going one week before he announced his feelings for Tai. By that point, it was pretty clear to most that they were more than friends, flirting like high school kids at the church BBQ on Memorial Day. My concern is for the people he is deceiving on social media, he is leading a double life & it needs to be exposed. I once defended this man & greatly disliked your website, now I am grateful for it.
(name redacted)***is rightfully disgusted with the behavior of the man who claimed to be her pastor however what does the Bible say about Locke’s behavior?
“It was said, ‘Whoever sends his wife away, let him give her a certificate of divorce’; but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” (Matthew 5)
Not only are Greg and Tai divorced from their previous spouses, Greg Locke actually officiated the wedding ceremony of Tai and her former husband. As if this matter could be any more heinous, the stress of her marriage caused Melissa Locke to talk of suicide. Tai, Melissa’s close friend, once said to her, “Well, what if you did die, wouldn’t you want it to be me?” Now, Tai is the stepmother to Melissa’s children. It is my opinion, from all the testimony I have heard coming out of Mt. Juliet, that Greg Locke and Tai want Melissa to kill herself. The evil that has been perpetrated on Melissa Locke is almost without compare. Despite their behavior, Greg and Tai continue to have support at GVBC and Greg’s internet following. This type of behavior would be condemned among non-Christians and yet it is winked at by those claiming to belong to Christ. Let the matter be clear: Greg Locke is not God’s anointed. Greg Locke is not like David, a man after God’s own heart who fell into sexual sin (David repented when he was confronted, Greg Locke doubled-down).
GVBC, in my opinion, is little more than a storefront which allows Greg and his partner “Pastor” Jarrod Almond to solicit funds in the name of Christian ministry. Church members have no voting authority in church governance and elders are such in name only. Thankfully, some of Greg’s ardent supporters, like Ms. Major, have left GVBC. Internet donations, however, continue to roll in to fill the ministry of the hate-filled, spouse-abusing man who goes by the name of “Pastor Greg Locke.” This should not be.
To the members of GVBC:
You are encouraged to contact Pulpit & Pen at talkback@pulpitandpen.org. We want to help you find a biblical church where you can be shepherded by a qualified servant of God. You haven’t had a biblical church. The stories we’ve heard of broken marriages and drug abuse coming out of GVBC have been heartbreaking. You all need a real church, not an “internet” one, and not one founded and administer by wicked men. We are here to help. Please reach out.
*Please note that the preceding is my personal opinion. It is not necessarily the opinion of any entity by which I am employed, any church at which I am a member, any church which I attend, or the educational institution at which I am enrolled. Any copyrighted material displayed or referenced is done under the doctrine of fair use.
** A previous version of this article indicated that Greg Locke married Tai “less than roughly 6 weeks” after his divorce. His divorce was finalized on or about May 23rd. A marriage ceremony is reported to have taken place at GVBC on July 22nd. Locke’s marriage certificate, filed with the state of Tennessee, indicates that Locke’s legal marriage took place on August 2nd.
***A GVBC church member who agreed to be quoted by Pulpit & Pen became fearful of local retribution after this story was originally published and requested that her name be redacted.
_______________________________________________________________
SEE OUR PREVIOUS POST:
