Gospel singer Marvin Sapp to release new song following viral offering controversy

CBS News

12-04-2025

Bishop Marvin Sapp has prepared his Easter sermon for Holy Week ... unless God changes it. He plans to address the recent controversy in his life.
"I was like, well, since they're capitalizing on it," Sapp said. "I'm going to capitalize on it as well. You know, on Easter Sunday, I'm preaching a message called 'Close the Door.'"
Sapp said his message would focus on Jesus Christ and Adam, the first man created by God, according to the Christian Holy Bible.
"Close the Door" has recently been associated with Sapp raising an offering at the end of a church service during a conference in Baltimore in July 2024. A clip from the Pentecostals of the World Conference went viral last month.
"I said, close them doors. Ushers, close the doors. Close the doors. Close the doors. We all going to lead together," Sapp said in the video.
Sapp explained that he was trying to maintain order for the offering. He said the implication was never to close the door and hold churchgoers hostage for $20. In the video, he asked 2,000 people to help raise $40,000 for the conference.
"Right outside the doors were vendors. So it was loud when the doors were opened," Sapp said. "And, of course, people can't hear that on the video. So they assumed that when I said, close the doors — not lock the doors — but close the doors, I was trying to keep people inside for the purpose of giving. The truth is, offering is a sacred moment."
Sapp, 58, said the conference did give him money, but the offering was not for that. He was unaware of complaints until a video of the conference offering targeting him surfaced.
The video quickly became social media content and news headlines. Some even claimed he held attendees hostage.
"I think it's the desire to believe the worst about the person," Sapp said. "People assume that the preacher is pimping people in the urban community. The saddest thing about that concept is that we're only considered being pimps when we're raising offerings, but not when we're paying light bills, gas bills, and feeding those in the community. The church does a lot of great work."
Sapp's team shared vile voice messages they said were called into his Fort Worth church, The Chosen Vessel, following the viral incident. CBS News Texas will not share the messages in their entirety. One message was filled with explosive racial slurs. Another wished death on anyone who respects Sapp. A third offered lewd places for Sapp to find $40,000.
"We gonna smoke you. I mean, just all kinds of crazy stuff to the point we had to increase our security here, police presence on the campus now on Sundays," Sapp said.
CBS News Texas contacted Fort Worth Police to see if they were investigating. Officers have not received a complaint. Sapp said he told his staff this would all blow over, but he did increase security.
The situation also prompted a lesson on social media responsibility.
"Everybody is an influencer. It's just, how are you influencing?" Pastor Erick Bowens said.
Bowens was in Baltimore the night of the conference. He believes a firestorm of opinions lit social media up without all the facts or context, which is risky.
"Sometimes instead of pumping the brakes saying, I will not play a part in this, we jump into it, and we hit one button," Bowens said.
Sapp said he's also laughed at many memes. The gospel singer is turning the controversy into a song. He said "Close the Door" was written and would be released on Good Friday.