For the upright will inhabit the land, and those with integrity will remain in it,
but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the treacherous will be rooted out of it. (Proverbs 2:21-22)
Sarah Acott's experience with Howard Conder is indeed a very sad one, though it is not untypical of those who have challenged Revelation TV and their unorthodox fund raising tactics. Sarah wrote a report to the Trustees of the Revelation Foundation in 2012 that challenged the Conders claim that they received no financial benefit from Revelation TV. Below is an excerpt from that report:
"The issue I wish to raise is that donors to the channel are being mislead in the way that funds are raised and presented on the Building the Foundation programme. The programme leads the viewer to believe that the finances reported on the pie charts are a representation of the entire channels financial operation. This is not true and could be accused of being fraudulent. I am only bringing this to you because I believe that this is something that you as the legal overseers should be aware of.
but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the treacherous will be rooted out of it. (Proverbs 2:21-22)
Sarah Acott's experience with Howard Conder is indeed a very sad one, though it is not untypical of those who have challenged Revelation TV and their unorthodox fund raising tactics. Sarah wrote a report to the Trustees of the Revelation Foundation in 2012 that challenged the Conders claim that they received no financial benefit from Revelation TV. Below is an excerpt from that report:
"The issue I wish to raise is that donors to the channel are being mislead in the way that funds are raised and presented on the Building the Foundation programme. The programme leads the viewer to believe that the finances reported on the pie charts are a representation of the entire channels financial operation. This is not true and could be accused of being fraudulent. I am only bringing this to you because I believe that this is something that you as the legal overseers should be aware of.
It became obvious to me when I watched one of the first Building the Foundation programmes years ago. The income stated leaves out one of the largest income streams into the channel – airtime and advertising sales. Having worked in the office during the set up of the channel I know about the 21st Century television account and believe that the money from this huge source of income is going straight into this account. From what I can gather from the charities commission website 21stCentury Television makes donations to the Revelation Foundation....." {1}
Sarah went public three years later, and in May 2015 she began her blog GodvsChristianity which is an exposé of RTV.{1} As a whistle blower Sarah has been derided and persecuted for publicly revealing the misleading fund raising tactics of RTV, and both she and her family have been dragged through the mud. When she decided to go public, myself, Rob Thomas and Nev Stephens fully supported her. Nev's U-turn was inexplicable, but myself and Rob have continued to condemn RTV's unethical practices and false teaching.{2} I believe that Sarah has genuinely attempted to make amends with Howard Conder et al, but so far there has been no resolution. I personally was rather sceptical about the meetings she arranged with various Trustees from the Revelation Foundation. Nevertheless, it was Sarah's decision to have these talks, and I whilst disagreed and felt that the meetings were not scriptural, I respected her decision.
Howard Conder has stated publicly and repeatedly that he will not forgive his detractors. (Matthew 6:14-15). In addition, there is absolutely no sign of the false teachers being removed from RTV's programming, in fact just the reverse is the case. In my view, Conder's behaviour indicates that he is, in all probability, a reprobate, in which case meetings and attempted reconciliation are a pointless exercise. The Trustees have been challenged many times, and still RTV continue to air false teachers, rip off their viewers and abuse their detractors. The scriptural procedure for a fellow Christian who has sinned against us personally is very clear. Firstly we are to approach the person privately. If that fails, then we should take two or three others along, and if that also fails, then finally we should tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. In other words, an unrepentant Christian should be should be treated as a social pariah! (Matthew 18:15-17 cf. 2 Thessalonians 3:6, 14). Sarah has gone through all of the above stages with no result, and in my view she is being played by the Trustees.
Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. (Matthew 15:14).
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. (Ephesians 5:11).
Sarah believed that she had a friend and ally in Yemi Balogun. In fact, Balogun was not only a personal friend of Sarah's, he was also a trusted family friend. Balogun privately agreed with Sarah's concerns and made a number of assertions that he would publicly expose Howard Conder/RTV. I wondered why he wanted to delay, and once again I was sceptical. Nevertheless I decided to wait and see what he would do. I was not at all surprised when he failed to come forward and nothing happened. It appears now that he was playing both sides all along! Although Sarah and others have been hurt by Balogun's deception and slander, it is Balogun himself who should be concerned. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? (Hebrews 10:26-30).
Sarah went public three years later, and in May 2015 she began her blog GodvsChristianity which is an exposé of RTV.{1} As a whistle blower Sarah has been derided and persecuted for publicly revealing the misleading fund raising tactics of RTV, and both she and her family have been dragged through the mud. When she decided to go public, myself, Rob Thomas and Nev Stephens fully supported her. Nev's U-turn was inexplicable, but myself and Rob have continued to condemn RTV's unethical practices and false teaching.{2} I believe that Sarah has genuinely attempted to make amends with Howard Conder et al, but so far there has been no resolution. I personally was rather sceptical about the meetings she arranged with various Trustees from the Revelation Foundation. Nevertheless, it was Sarah's decision to have these talks, and I whilst disagreed and felt that the meetings were not scriptural, I respected her decision.
Howard Conder has stated publicly and repeatedly that he will not forgive his detractors. (Matthew 6:14-15). In addition, there is absolutely no sign of the false teachers being removed from RTV's programming, in fact just the reverse is the case. In my view, Conder's behaviour indicates that he is, in all probability, a reprobate, in which case meetings and attempted reconciliation are a pointless exercise. The Trustees have been challenged many times, and still RTV continue to air false teachers, rip off their viewers and abuse their detractors. The scriptural procedure for a fellow Christian who has sinned against us personally is very clear. Firstly we are to approach the person privately. If that fails, then we should take two or three others along, and if that also fails, then finally we should tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. In other words, an unrepentant Christian should be should be treated as a social pariah! (Matthew 18:15-17 cf. 2 Thessalonians 3:6, 14). Sarah has gone through all of the above stages with no result, and in my view she is being played by the Trustees.
Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. (Matthew 15:14).
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. (Ephesians 5:11).
Sarah believed that she had a friend and ally in Yemi Balogun. In fact, Balogun was not only a personal friend of Sarah's, he was also a trusted family friend. Balogun privately agreed with Sarah's concerns and made a number of assertions that he would publicly expose Howard Conder/RTV. I wondered why he wanted to delay, and once again I was sceptical. Nevertheless I decided to wait and see what he would do. I was not at all surprised when he failed to come forward and nothing happened. It appears now that he was playing both sides all along! Although Sarah and others have been hurt by Balogun's deception and slander, it is Balogun himself who should be concerned. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? (Hebrews 10:26-30).
A Little About Yemi Bolugun:
RTV Presenter Yemi Balogun aka Omoyemi Hakeem Balogun.
RTV Presenter Yemi Balogun aka Omoyemi Hakeem Balogun.
Yemi Balogun left Revelation TV in June 2011 to set up his own TV station. He became a Director of The Kingdom TV which was dissolved in 2014.
The Kingdom TV Ltd 19 Netley Drive, Walton-On-Thames, Surrey, United Kingdom, KT12 3QX previously REVELATION TV (AFRICA) LIMITED Dissolved 13th May 2014. {3}
Director: Sylvia Sophia BANNERMAN-BALOGUN appointed 28 February 2011.
Secretary: Ian Gordon Pettie appointed 13th January 2011 - resigned 28th February 2011. In fact Pettie resigned the same day that Sylvia BANNERMAN-BALOGUN was appointed as Director and Secretary. {4}
I am not aware what exactly happened with Balogun's TV venture, other than that it was dissolved in 2014. During the time Balogun was absent from RTV, he communicated several
things to Sarah Acott and others about the mis-deeds of RTV and the
Conders. Much to our surprise, Balogun returned to RTV this year and is now
denying that he ever condemned the Conders. In fact his denials are
rather too loud! Having once escaped the worldly defilements of
RTV, he has become entangled
once again and allied himself with these apostates. (2 Peter 2:20). Balogun's realliance with RTV and his forceful, but false denouncements and
denials, are not only a betrayal of those who believed in his integrity, they are a betrayal of Christ Himself!
(Matthew 26:69-75) He has failed a critical test! (2 Corinthians 13:5). The apostle Paul was willing to work with his own hands in order to support himself. It is shameful that many so called "pastors" are not willing to do the same. (Acts 18:3; 1 Corinthians 4:12; 1 Timothy 6:10). The "hireling" mentality is prevalent amongst those who make a show of godliness as a way to become wealthy, those who in reality care nothing for the sheep. (1 Timothy 6:5; John 10:13). My advice to Yemi Balogun: If you have not been successful in your so called "ministry", then earn your living honestly and do not seek your living from those who fleece the sheep for dishonest gain by the promotion of false teaching. The price will be ultimately very high for false teachers: For them the gloom of utter darkness (blackest hell) has been reserved. (2 Peter 2:17-18).Two or Three Witnesses
The principle of two or three witnesses is extremely important if we are making accusations against a fellow Christian. The principle is repeated so many times in both the Old and New Testaments that I think we must take it seriously. (Matthew 18:16; cf. Numbers 35:30; Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15; 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19). I do believe Sarah's word alone is a truthful narrative of Balogun's betrayal, but in addition, there are further witnesses. This is in fact a double betrayal for Sarah, since it adds further pain to the original betrayal she suffered at the hands of RTV.
Balogun gained the confidence of Sheila, Sarah and Chris. That is three witnesses who communicated with him directly about the conduct of Howard and Leslie Conder. (2 Corinthians 13:1). Sheila left a comment publicly on Sarah Acott's blog in 2015:
18th June 2015
Sheila: “Yemi
balogun who once worked at REV TV is a witness to one lot of
abuse/ridicule from Leslie which she said in his presence.I had
finished with them totally. Never even thought of putting them on TV
ever. “ {5}
Both Sarah Acott and Chris have given me permission to publish the emails I have received from them concerning Balogun. Below are some of the communications I have received from them both:
11th June 2015:
Both Sarah Acott and Chris have given me permission to publish the emails I have received from them concerning Balogun. Below are some of the communications I have received from them both:
11th June 2015:
Sarah:"Yemi is
popping down to the diner tomorrow afternoon. When I spoke to him
before he said that he has been waiting for the right time to expose
Howard, if now isn't it, I honestly don't know when would be.
Please
pray that it will be a good meeting and that he will join us in this.
He's a good man and a family friend. He's also very proud of what we
have achieved, so it will be good to talk to him even if he only gives
advice."12th June 2015:
Sarah: "I'm meeting with Yemi later on today, so will give you all an update as soon as I can....."
13th June 2015:
Sarah: "Not so great
news re Yemi... he didn't make it! Unfortunately, he got held up, but
will hopefully reschedule soon. He's still really positive on what we
are doing so hopefully will see him next week."
My reason for contacting Yemi was that on air Leslie was he usual condescending self towards me, insulting me and being sarcastic, calling me Mrs xxxxx, Yemi and Sylvia had no idea of the history of her and Howards abusve ways towards me and they joined in and laughed, when I enlightened him as to the whole story and of the disgusting things I had learned about the Conder children via their various social media sights , he apologised profoundly on behalf of himself and Sylvia, he also confided in me that he was about to leave and told me al about how howard had upset many people including himself and Sylvia and was always too proud to aplogise. I imagine you had some interesting conversation with him at your diner Sarah."
15th December 2015
Sarah: "Yemi came to my diner last week. He’s one of the good ones. Just sad that Howard saw him as 'competition'”. {6}
Anonymous: "Now there is a very humble Man , Nice he came to see you. Yemi, he told me about Howards refusing to share a studio with him as it
would be competition to him, I was astounded as I thought all Christian
TV had the common goal of saving souls , I was not aware that
competition came into it at all."My reason for contacting Yemi was that on air Leslie was he usual condescending self towards me, insulting me and being sarcastic, calling me Mrs xxxxx, Yemi and Sylvia had no idea of the history of her and Howards abusve ways towards me and they joined in and laughed, when I enlightened him as to the whole story and of the disgusting things I had learned about the Conder children via their various social media sights , he apologised profoundly on behalf of himself and Sylvia, he also confided in me that he was about to leave and told me al about how howard had upset many people including himself and Sylvia and was always too proud to aplogise. I imagine you had some interesting conversation with him at your diner Sarah."
Sarah: Yes Yemi is a good and humble man. He will hopefully pop down to the diner and see Chris over the next few weeks too." {6}
14th October 2016:
Sarah: "Off the record...
Sarah: "Chris told Howard about Yemi giving him the information regarding
21st Century TV Ltd. Yemi has denounced our evidence as “gossip” and
“innuendo”. He lied about various things and even named my father who
has actively distanced himself from the situation. 14th October 2016:
Yes...
it's complicated and I'm confused about the situation to be honest.
He's a family friend and it's not what I expected from him.
I
texted Yemi about it and apparently they contacted him. He prayed about
it and felt to go back. That decision is between him and God, but what
concerns me is that he is endorsing the channel. He's by no means
ignorant so his position is odd.
He
might pop down to the diner over the next few weeks. I'm trying to be
positive as the timing is interesting as my meeting with the two Alans
were productive and this could be the start of a change from within.
If
I do get to see Yemi I do intend to be straight with him that I don't
object to his return necessarily, but I do object to him endorsing
them."
Chris: "Yes, I saw him appear on Time for Revelation last Wednesday (Oct 5th) and I was livid. Yemi is supposed to be coming to England for a few weeks. Sarah and I
are going to try to get him over to her diner so that we can catch up!"
Chris: "Yes, he is being two-faced at the moment but Sarah and I will try to fix him :-)
Chris: "Yes, he is being two-faced at the moment but Sarah and I will try to fix him :-)
He's just made a huge error of judgement."
14th December 2016:
14th December 2016:
I’m really saddened. As you know, I considered Yemi a friend and he knows that my mum has recently had a heart attack and yet told outright lies including that I have tried to blackmail him. I asked him to meet and explain himself to Chris, but he’s ignored me.
Yemi made it look like he has not given any information of significance to Chris or others, but I know he even told you some very serious things before he left RTV."
22nd December 2016:
Chris: "Hi Treena,
There
have been so many members of staff and volunteers who knew what
was going on. They just left quietly. It strikes me that none of them
have any Christian-integrity or even normal professional-integrity.
I'm not sure what to say about Yemi... On that programme, 10 days ago, he
was grossly understating his involvement in the situation. He knows
exactly what the evidence is and that it is not just "gossip and
innuendo."
I
think that he is having some-kind of mid-life crisis and feels
desperately sorry that his own attempt at a Christian TV station failed.
But, returning to Revelation TV has seriously compromised his integrity and he knows it.
Is Yemi just a weak man who cannot carry through his convictions ?? He obviously does know that things are not right with RTV and yet he has crawled back."
As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain
at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any
different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, desiring
to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are
saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.
Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, understanding
this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless
and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and
profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted. (1 Timothy 1:3-11)
The Charity Commission's statutory inquiry into the Revelation Foundation:
"In March 2014 complaints were received from members of the public alleging the charity was being used for private advantage. A subsequent scrutiny of the charity’s accounts by the commission identified regulatory concerns which include potential significant loss of charitable funds, trustee benefits, conflicts of interest and connected party transactions. These concerns are primarily in relation to the production and broadcasting of television programmes from Spain as well as the trustees’ decisions to transfer significant charitable assets and funds from the UK to Spain." {7}
The Charity Commission's statutory inquiry into the Revelation Foundation:
"In March 2014 complaints were received from members of the public alleging the charity was being used for private advantage. A subsequent scrutiny of the charity’s accounts by the commission identified regulatory concerns which include potential significant loss of charitable funds, trustee benefits, conflicts of interest and connected party transactions. These concerns are primarily in relation to the production and broadcasting of television programmes from Spain as well as the trustees’ decisions to transfer significant charitable assets and funds from the UK to Spain." {7}
{1} https://godvschristianity.wordpress.com/
{2} http://watchman4wales.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Revelation%20TV
{3} https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/07491279
{4} https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/07491279/officers
{5} https://godvschristianity.wordpress.com/2015/06/16/revelation-tv-cleared-by-charity-commission
{6} https://godvschristianity.wordpress.com/2015/05/14/why-i-think-revelation-tv-is-being-investigated-by-the-charity-commission/#comments
{7} https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-charity-investigation-revelation-foundation
{2} http://watchman4wales.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Revelation%20TV
{3} https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/07491279
{4} https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/07491279/officers
{5} https://godvschristianity.wordpress.com/2015/06/16/revelation-tv-cleared-by-charity-commission
{6} https://godvschristianity.wordpress.com/2015/05/14/why-i-think-revelation-tv-is-being-investigated-by-the-charity-commission/#comments
{7} https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-charity-investigation-revelation-foundation
