Marvin Sapp’s Easter Sermon ‘Close the Door’ Confronts Viral Controversy, Urges Believers to Shut Out Sin

Bishop Marvin Sapp’s Easter 2025 sermon, “Close the Door,” tackled a viral fundraising controversy, urging believers to shut out sin with faith.

Written By Rebecca Johnson // EEW Magazine Online

Photo: Marvin Sapp Ministries

On Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025, Bishop Marvin Sapp—Grammy-nominated gospel singer and pastor of The Chosen Vessel Cathedral—stood before his congregation and delivered a fiery sermon titled “Close the Door.”

Rooted in Colossians 2:14–15 and Romans 5:12, the message doubled as a bold rebuttal to a viral controversy that has followed him since March. A nine-month-old clip from a July 2024 Pentecostal Assemblies of the World (P.A.W.) convention in Baltimore, where Sapp instructed ushers to “close the doors” while raising a $40,000 offering, resurfaced online, sparking accusations of manipulation and even hostage-taking.

Photo: Paras Griffin/Getty

On Resurrection Sunday, Sapp offered no apologies. Instead, he used the ordeal as a call for believers to shut the door on sin and embrace Christ’s redemptive victory.

The viral clip, which emerged in late March 2025, captured Sapp at the P.A.W.’s 109th International Summer Convention urging 1,000 in-person attendees and 1,000 online viewers to each donate $20 to meet a $40,000 budget goal. Social media erupted, with critics alleging he coerced congregants—some comparing the moment to a “sanctified shakedown.”

While memes proliferated, the backlash escalated beyond online mockery. Sapp reported receiving death threats, racial slurs in voicemails left at his church, and confrontations at The Chosen Vessel, prompting increased security measures.

Photo: Getty

Sapp, known for hits like “Never Would Have Made It,” addressed the firestorm head-on during his Easter sermon. “Four times in that clip, I said, ‘Close the doors,’” he told the congregation, his voice steady but charged. “I said it assertively but not abusively. I said it with clarity but not with cruelty. I said it to preserve the sanctity of the moment, not to manipulate the people. But nine months later, this very moment ended up going viral.”

He denounced the distorted narrative, noting that “a clip taken out of context was circulated widely on social media—not just on social media but on national news outlets as well. The narrative was twisted, the commentary was merciless.”

The accusation that he demanded personal payments, Sapp insisted, “could not be further from the truth.” He clarified that the funds supported the P.A.W. convention—not his church or personal coffers—a point echoed by P.A.W. Presiding Bishop Theodore L. Brooks Sr., who called the video’s portrayal a misrepresentation of both Sapp and the denomination.

The controversy highlights a broader clash between traditional church culture and social media’s rapid-fire judgments. In Pentecostal traditions, closing doors during offerings is a common security protocol, as P.A.W. clarified in a March 28, 2025, statement. Sapp echoed this on The Rickey Smiley Morning Show, saying, “I never said lock the doors. I said shut the doors… maybe I was a little more assertive than I should have been.” Critics, however, argued his tone felt coercive—a perception amplified by the clip’s lack of context.

Dr. Jamal Bryant, pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, offered a provocative defense in his April 10, 2025, sermon, “Shut the Door | What’s The Matter With Marvin Sapp?” Citing 2 Kings 4:4, where a widow is told to “shut the door” before God’s miracle, Bryant argued the backlash wasn’t about the $20 offering but the phrase “shut the door.” He suggested it triggered a “subconscious, psychological” reaction in Black men in particular, tied to historical trauma from slavery’s Middle Passage and solitary confinement. While his theory remains debated, it underscores how some believe cultural misunderstandings—more than the monetary appeal—fueled the uproar.

Sapp continued his Easter message, revealing that the criticism hurt even more because many of the harshest voices came from fellow believers. “What hurt me the most was realizing that all the attacks that came did not come from outside the Church,” he said. “Some of them came from within the very Body of Christ that I’ve faithfully loved and served.” He pointed to the hypocrisy of detractors who “rarely, if ever, step foot in the church unless they need food, financial assistance, or funeral support,” yet judged him based on “misinformation.”

Pivoting to Scripture, Sapp connected the controversy to his Easter message, urging believers to “close the door” on sin, just as Christ did through His death and resurrection. Citing Colossians 2:14–15, he preached that Jesus “canceled the record of debt that stood against us, nailing it to the cross,” triumphing over sin and death. Romans 5:12, he explained, shows how “sin entered the world through one man, but through Jesus, we have redemption.” He challenged the congregation: “The enemy wants to keep the door open to your past, your pain, your shame. But because of the cross, you have the power to close the door on anything that tries to hold you captive.”

Sapp invited worshippers to join him in closing the door on anything hindering their faith, leading into a powerful altar call where dozens came forward for prayer and rededication.

The sermon, livestreamed on The Chosen Vessel’s platforms, has since garnered over 150,000 views, with thousands of comments praising Sapp’s resilience and clarity. P.A.W. issued a statement apologizing for any offense caused by the convention clip but stood by Sapp’s character and leadership.

EEW Magazine readers also weighed in with a range of perspectives:

• Tamika J., 42, Atlanta, GA: “As a COGIC member, I get why Bishop Sapp said ‘close the doors.’ It’s about order, not control. His Easter sermon blessed me. Closing the door on sin is what Easter’s about. The haters need to stop twisting his words.”

• LaShonda R., 29, Dallas, TX: “I love Marvin’s music, but that clip rubbed me wrong. His sermon was powerful, but churches need to be transparent about money. I’m praying for him, though, because those threats were evil.”

• Vanessa K., 50, Houston, TX: “Sapp’s pain from ‘church folks’ attacking him hit home. I closed the door on gossip in my own life after hearing his message. God uses our trials to teach us!”

• Erica M., 35, Charlotte, NC: “The sermon was good. But I wish Sapp explained the offering better upfront. Still, his faith inspires me to keep going.”

As Sapp moves forward, he remains hopeful that the controversy can be transformed into a testimony of triumph through faith.