By Michael Gryboski, Editor Tuesday, March 31, 2026

• Association of Certified Biblical Counselors removes Grace Community Church from training center list.
• Removal follows complaints regarding the church leadership's alleged misconduct.
• The Master's University and The Master's Seminary remain certified training centers.

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A prominent Christian counseling organization has removed Grace Community Church of Sun Valley, California, formerly led by the late Pastor John MacArthur, from its list of certified training centers.

The Association of Certified Biblical Counselors recently removed GCC from its list of approved training centers, after requests to reopen complaints filed by Jane Doe and former Grace elder Hohn Cho.

It also follows the filing of a lawsuit against GCC by Doe, claiming that church leadership aided and abetted a member of the congregation in his alleged abuse against Doe and their children.

Cho told The Christian Post in an emailed statement that he became aware of the decision in February, and that he considered the removal of GCC from the list “long overdue.”

“I commend ACBC for taking this action, and I pray it reflects (as I today choose to believe it does) a continuing commitment to genuine care for counselees, over institutional loyalty,” stated Cho.

“I do ask that they provide Jane, and their own membership, with more information concerning this removal, as additions and removals from their published certification lists are obviously public matters.”

The Master's University and The Master's Seminary, which are both affiliated with GCC, remain on the list of ACBC-certified training centers.

The Christian Post reached out to the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors and Grace Community Church for this story. However, both declined to provide comment.

In February 2023, Cho publicly shared his concerns about GCC leadership displaying an apparent pattern of siding with alleged abusers against their victims.

ACBC opened an investigation into the concerns, with the counseling organization hearing testimony from multiple women who alleged that GCC’s counseling ministry was protecting abusers and harming their victims.

One of the women shared with CP her testimony, which had been submitted to ACBC in April 2023, detailing her experiences with Grace’s counseling operations.

According to her testimony, the woman claimed that she had received marriage counseling with the church in 2009 while experiencing marital problems in her 22-year marriage.

She told Pastor Bill Shannon, who oversaw GCC’s biblical counseling ministry, about the alleged abuse from her husband and his suspicious behavior, which included missing family gatherings and wanting her to co-sign a second $50,000 loan without an adequate explanation.

Her testimony alleges that Shannon told her to sign the loan and allegedly refused to believe that the husband had been engaging in extramarital activity despite credible evidence.

Amid its investigation, ACBC removed Shannon from its list of approved counselors and scheduled breakout speakers for its annual conference held in October 2023.

News Source : https://www.christianpost.com/news/grace-community-church-cut-from-counseling-training-center-list.html