A viral video of pastor Greg Locke destroying a dollhouse doesn’t tell the full story, says a spokesperson for the Tennessee-based minister.
The video, posted on social media on Aug. 17, has nearly 2 million views and alleges that Locke demolished a “Barbie Dream House with a Bible attached to a baseball bat” ahead of the release of the blockbuster Barbie movie. The 16-second clip shows Locke, pastor of Global Vision Bible Church in Mt. Juliet, Tenn., reference the subject of demons and strongholds before he destroys the dollhouse. A popular post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, even says “the movie would go on to gross over $1 BILLION dollars.”
But a spokesperson for Locke told Christian Headlines that the dollhouse was a Rainbow High House – not Barbie and not made by Mattel – and that Locke’s sermon had nothing to do with Barbie or the film. Locke used the Rainbow High House “with no thought of Barbie or the actual brand,” the spokesperson told Christian Headlines.
Locke never mentioned Barbie, Mattel or the movie in the sermon. He delivered it on June 14; the movie released in theaters on July 21.
He destroyed the dollhouse toward the end of a sermon on destroying strongholds in a Christian’s life.
“If you don't teach the person to break down the stronghold that the enemy built, and they have no discipline, they're always going to feel like they have a demon when really what they need to do is just control their flesh,” Locke said.
He read from 2 Corinthians 10:4: “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.”
“You ought to pay attention to what the Greek word for ‘pulling down’ means. It's the word ‘demolition.’ … It means you demolish the house that the evil spirit left when you kicked it out,” Locke said.
Moments later, Locke destroyed the dollhouse with what he said was a Bible duct taped and zip-tied to an Easton baseball bat.
Too many Christians, he said, falsely blame demons for their problems when their actual struggle is against fleshly desires – sin.
“Do I believe in deliverance? Yes,” he said. “But I'm done with repeat customers for 20 years. … As a pastor, I've gotta teach you how to be disciplined. You gotta get into the Word. You got to say no to stuff. You got to say yes to stuff. You got to learn to pray. Mark 9:29 – you got to learn to fast. … Everything's not a demon. Sometimes you just need to have some discipline. … If you don't get forceful, and start tearing down those strongholds in your life, they're gonna get worse. … There are people in this room, people online and people that you know, and people that you love that have gone through deliverance, and still have an addiction. … You've got to change their mindset, you got to change their lifestyle. They have to be renewed in the spirit of the mind. They have to learn – ‘Now the demon is gone, now I gotta say no to my flesh,’ which is just as dastardly as a demon.”
Related:
Greg Locke Destroys Dollhouse with a Bible Duct Taped to a Baseball Bat
Interview: Greg Locke Talks Changing His Ministry Strategy, Approaching It with Humility
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/People Images
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
