Writing as “Tom Smith,” disgraced G3 Ministries Founder and President Josh Buice emailed The Roys Report (TRR) last December with allegations of financial misconduct against well-known author and pastor Voddie Baucham, TRR has learned.
The email was sent from the address [email protected]. This is one of two anonymous email addresses Buice used over the past three years, elders at Pray’s Mill Baptist Church (PMBC) in Douglasville, Georgia, confirmed today with TRR.
On Monday, PMBC placed Buice on indefinite leave, after uncovering “irrefutable evidence” Buice had operated the fake email addresses, as well as two Substack platforms, and at least four anonymous social media accounts. PMBC said Buice used the accounts “to publicly and anonymously slander numerous Christian leaders, including faithful pastors (some of whom have spoken at G3 conferences), several PMBC elders, and others.”
Buice also resigned as president of G3 at the request of some members of G3’s board.
In the email to TRR, Buice questioned how $1.4 million raised through a GoFundMe campaign to cover medical expenses for Baucham were spent.
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In 2021, Baucham announced he was battling heart failure, was uninsured, and would “have to cover everything out of pocket.” So, Tom Ascol, a Southern Baptist pastor and president of Founders Ministries, set up the GoFundMe page to help Baucham. (Founders Ministries is a Reformed Baptist group within the Southern Baptist Convention focusing on returning Baptists to their roots).
Buice claimed in the email to TRR that Baucham’s operation would have cost only about $300,000.
“The real question remains. Where is the $1.1 million dollars?” the email stated, noting that Baucham was moving to Florida soon and partnering with Ascol’s Founders Ministries.
“People should know where the money is if they gave it for an emergency operation and it’s being used for something else,” Buice wrote. “That’s deceitful.” TRR replied to the email from “Tom Smith,” asking if he had “firsthand knowledge that the $1.1 million is being misused” but no one replied.
In the past two days, TRR has reached out repeatedly to both Baucham and Ascol, asking for an account of how the GoFundMe money was spent but did not hear back from either of them.
We also reached out repeatedly to Buice, but he did not respond.
According to Founders Ministries’ 990 tax forms, Baucham joined the organization’s board in 2020. He also speaks at Founders Ministries conferences, is a Founders Ministries author, and has appeared on numerous Founders Ministries’ podcasts. Baucham also is a founding faculty member of Founders Seminary in Cape Coral, Florida.
Both Ascol and Baucham were nominated for top leadership roles in the Southern Baptist Convention in 2022, after claiming the denomination was becoming too liberal.
Earlier this week, Founders Ministries posted a statement on its website, acknowledging it had been informed by the G3 board, Pray’s Mill Baptist Church elders, and Buice about Buice’s “slanderous activities.”
“A large percentage of his wicked words and actions were directed at Founders Ministries, our President, Tom Ascol, and his family,” the statement reads. “Many who are aware have reached out to express their concern and support, for which we are grateful.”
Founders Ministries has removed Buice’s content from its website because “his actions demonstrate his disqualification for spiritual leadership,” according to the statement. It also claimed that Founders Ministries harbors “no animosity” toward Buice.
Initially, G3 Ministries announced it would keep Buice’s content online. However, it reversed course the following day and removed them.
“Due to the public and egregious nature of the sin, we believe Josh Buice has stained the mission and character of G3 Ministries,” G3 stated May 13. “After further consideration and godly counsel, we have made the decision to remove all of Josh Buice’s content from every platform. This will take some time to accomplish.”
The G3 board also clarified its decision to cancel its annual conference, which was set for Sept. 11 to 13 in Atlanta.
“While the conference and ministry could continue without Josh’s leadership, we chose to cancel this year’s event primarily because several of the scheduled speakers had been sinfully targeted by him through anonymous accounts,” the board stated. “Even though he will not be leading the conference moving forward, we did not want to put these brothers in the difficult position of deciding whether to participate in an event so closely tied to someone who had maligned them.”
Baucham and Ascol have also spoken at G3 conferences. Several of Baucham’s and Ascol’s presentations are offered as resources on G3’s website. G3 refers to gospel, grace and glory.’
In his December 2024 email to TRR, Buice also claimed he had “compelling evidence from sources” that major sections of Baucham’s book “Fault Lines” were written by a ghost writer who took material from anti-critical race theory activist James Lindsay.
The book’s publisher addressed the plagiarism claims in 2021, describing them as unfounded.
Lindsay responded that he would comment later on Buice’s allegations.
Update: A day after this article published, G3 posted a statement by Buice apologizing for his “unsubstantiated and sinful remarks,” calling into question the “good reputation of my brother, Voddie Baucham.” Buice said the “details originally shared with me were without merit” and “proved to be unfounded.”
TRR has repeatedly asked Ascol and Baucham for documentation showing how the more than $1.4 million from GoFundMe were spent but has not received a reply.
Julie Roys is a veteran investigative reporter and founder of The Roys Report. Ann Marie Shambaugh has reported as a print journalist in multiple states, including currently in Carmel, Indiana.
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23 Responses
Voddie Baucham is hardly a man I’d agree with on matters of spirituality or men/women’s roles. But lying about him doesn’t help bring the truth to light.
Yes, Voddie is himself problematic, but, that doesn’t excuse lying about him.
What “lying” are you referring to?
There is a chance that this wasn’t aimed at Baucham, but at the Roys report itself.
20 years ago during the election for George W. Bush, a document was given to Dan Rather at CBS in 2004 suggesting that GW Bush had shirked his duty in the Air National Guard. CBS and Rather ran with it, but it was soon shown to be false. This forced a backdown by CBS and the resignation of Dan Rather. The reason for the original leakers was to punish members of the media by accepting a false document.
Some time during the 1st Trump administration, Rachel Maddow at MSNBC received information showing some corrupt activity by Trump and his advisors. Maddow and her staff looked into the information closely, and determined that it was fake. So they didn’t report it. Again the reason for the leakers was as a way to catch the media out spreading false news.
Given the history of the Reformed Baptists against Julie Roys for her reporting on John Macarthur, it seems possible that Buice wasn’t aiming the criticism at Baucham, but upon getting Christian media sources to run with it, thus discrediting the Christian media.
That thought crossed my mind, as well. But good journalism practices protect us from those who would want to lead us astray. We always check our sources and verify our information.
Aside from the gossip and slander, I do find it interesting that a man of Baucham’s popularity does not have insurance. I’m not sure about Baucham’s personal wealth, but I can’t imagine he is hurting too bad financially. Not only that, but with the number of organizations this man is a part of, why didn’t they band together and pay (if in fact all of that is true)? Just some curious questions, even if the allegations are meritless. One wonders what would make a guy go out of his way to harm other believers in such a manner.
I agree that Buice’s actions were wrong; but where DID the rest of the money go?
when all this began I thought the same thing , why not band together and cover his cost, since he has no insurance, why beg? Plus the secrecy of the heart procedure? I actually never heard what he had done, but knowing enough to be dangerous about heart issues, I could not tell what was going on, except excessive begging and giving. I did not give to the cause, Because I like Boice thought something was stinky in Denmark on that one . Subsequently Bachman built a nice house in Africa and sold it for quite a profit (so alluded too by his own words)
Why not be forthright and tell exactly where all the money went, prove what the bills at the hospital and doctors were, when you ask people to donate to a cause they should be entitled to know where the money went.
Incorrect information here. Baucham’s house in Africa was not built ‘subsequent’ to the GoFundMe campaign. It was built well before.
“This above all: To thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not be false to any man.”
Self respect (respect for the One Who created us In Him Image) is a virtue. William Shakespeare knew.
I have to wonder if all of this by Buice is a Game of Thrones power grab for influence/prestige/etc from the other Neo-Cal dudebros? But rather than openly challenging for the Iron Throne, he hides like Mark Driscoll (William Wallace) and snipes from shadows in his best Grima Wormtongue impersonation.
Of course, the knee-jerk answer will be, “money,” but I wonder what deeper psychological and spiritual reasons compelled a man in Buice’s position to use fake email accounts to slander a fellow leader like Baucham. It is almost as if Buice does not actually trust God to right wrongs or doesn’t believe in himself enough to confront a brother in Christ whom he suspects of some sort of wrongdoing. Kudos to Pray’s Mill Baptist Church, G3 and Founders for sidelining Buice and pulling his content. Kudos to TRR for running this story.
Although I disagree with Buice’s actions, asking questions about the use of funds meant to pay for surgery was not out of line. Too bad Buice wasn’t secure enough in himself to openly question it.
I can’t help but comment. It’s amazing to me that this man slanders other men, and they immediately take him out of position, remove all his material from the internet and cancel a conference. But other known pastors ravage their sheep through clergy sexual abuse and they are replatformed, applauded and thrown confetti. I can’t help but see the continued misogyny in this. Men that hold power respond when it’s them, but when it’s others, specifically women, they aren’t so quick to “see”.
I agree with you. I am new to Voddie Baucham. I just started listening to him preaching on YouTube. I find him very questionable as a pastor. I think his opinion on women in the church not being biblical is in fact proven as biblical with all of the women leaders in the early church. Many things he says in the pulpit makes me question if he is actually reading the Bible or just the confessions.
Good point. The contrast is indeed striking.
And it is altogether possible that Buice was addressing a real issue, but shouldn’t he have started by approaching the man personally first, or at least addressing the questions to the Elder Board of Baucham’s church?
And thanks to the Roys Report for covering this whole story (or rather, stories).
The end justifying any means is a value of this world and in the context of the Kingdom of God it will eventually come to nothing.
And if anyone doesn’t know that ends and means entails ethical thinking and behaviour, they don’t need a pastor, but rather a faithful missionary.
This is just a case of a group of narcissistic leaders sniping at each other within a heretical legalistic cult. Paul condemns them from their own Bible. Legalism saves no one and it creates no holiness, just a bunch of hypocrisy of the type Jesus most loudly condemned. This is just a symptom of Jesus Christ not being involved with this group.
Something is very fishy about all this and what I have seen coming from the Calvinist camp and the Charismatic camps. The Charismatics have always had their frauds but Calvinists too? Steve Lawson and now this guy. Obviously we cannot know whether those people have been actually saved or not, but looking at this objectively, it seems possible they never were. I’m speaking of these specific people, not all people. I would have considered myself something of a Calvinist and did so for a number of years now. But lately I’m questioning that. I actually thought that my conversion was probably all done by God alone and I had no part to play in it due to my reading Reformed literatures. But now I think I probably did have a part to play in that I really did believe and then God saved me. I realise that God does the drawing and the saving, but I also did believe too.
If Josh Buice shows up in any public ministry for the next five years, it will ruin all credibility G3 has. As well as Pray’s Mill Baptist Church. It seems that those in authority at those two places are taking serious steps to remove him and put him under serious accountability and restriction. Let’s hope they follow through.
If Josh Buice had mishandled abuse or abused women himself, he might have gotten away with it…. but he dared to slander high ranking reformed hero’s…..so he must go!! Buice is a highly problematic character and slander is always unacceptable but it is interesting to observe what is rebuked and what is brushed under the rug. The questions of why a man( Voddie Baucham) who has a net worth of 2.1 million and reportedly commands fees of 20,000 per speaking engagement needs a go fund me for surgery, or why he doesn’t have health insurance, or how much the surgery actually cost, are valid. Financial accountability doesn’t just apply to prosperity gospel TV preachers. Having health insurance, especially if you can easily afford it, is a matter of wisdom, prudence, and making sure your family is taken care of….something Voddie lectures on quite a bit.
As a person who was very athletic most of his life and then out nowhere began to have heart issues which precipitated two cardiac ablations and one open heart surgery procedure. I can say with certainty, that the 1.4 million that Vondie received is not only going to be spent on the surgery, but continued cardiac care and medications. My open heart surgery alone was billed at over $880 K… Stop asking about “where the money went” and do your research on the cost of and continued care after heart surgeries.
$880K? Where? Someone I know had the same surgery (CABG coronary bypass) as Baucham a few years ago and the cash cost without discount was $50K