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Spiritual Abuse Within the Church

...there is a lust for power in the hearts of many in Christian leadership. When this is combined with pride, an insecurity that needs to control, and a constituency that is willing to follow blindly, the conditions are all present for an abusive leadership and cultic church to emerge. It is not a new problem. When the mother of James and John asked Jesus to give her sons places of honor in his coming Kingdom, Jesus used the opportunity to warn his disciples about such sinful attitudes:

Jesus called them together and said,

You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave ­ just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.
(Matt. 20:25-28 NIV)....