Who is Josh Buice, and what did he do? G3 ministry controversy explored as podcast host resigns over ‘divisive,’ ‘sinful’ actions

Pastor Josh Buice is currently trending after his church discovered that he ran several anonymous online accounts and reportedly used them to “slander” fellow Christian leaders, pastors, and church elders.

Buice is the leader of the Georgia-based church Pray’s Mill Baptist Church (PMBC) and the founder and president of the Reformed Baptist Ministry and National Conference, G3. He is also a podcaster.

On May 12, 2025, PMBC announced that they found “irrefutable evidence” that Josh secretly ran at least four social media accounts, two email addresses, and two Substack accounts, apart from his personal X account with over 59K followers. He seemingly used them to insult members of the religious community.

“These accounts were used to publicly and anonymously slander numerous Christian leaders, including faithful pastors (some of whom have spoken at G3 conferences), several [church] elders, and others,” the church wrote in a public statement.

They added, “These actions were not only sinful in nature but deeply divisive, causing unnecessary suspicion and strife within the body of Christ, and particularly within the eldership of PMBC.”

In the wake of the discovery, Josh Buice resigned from G3 and was placed on “indefinite leave” from Pray’s Mill Baptist until the church is “able to determine a more detailed path forward.” G3 has also called off its biennial conference.

Meanwhile, in a two-hour-long meeting with church elders on May 4, the pastor denied his connection to the anonymous online accounts, dating back at least two years, despite serious confrontations.

“Only after further evidence was presented and much pleading with him to walk in the light did Josh finally confess to his actions. Since then, Josh has acknowledged his sin, expressed sorrow, and asked for forgiveness,” the church shared in a statement.

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All you need to know about Josh Buice

Dr. Josh Buice is a pastor, podcast host, and assistant professor of preaching at Grace Bible Theological Seminary in Arkansas. He holds a Doctor of Ministry in expository preaching and a Master of Divinity from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

He has been the pastor of Pray’s Mill Baptist Church in Georgia for over 15 years and founded the G3 (Gospel, Grace, and Glory) Conference in 2013, serving as its President until recently stepping down.

It has now become one of the largest Christian conferences in North America that comes together biennially and attracts over 8,000 attendees. G3 also acts as a major church network and publishing branch of the Reformed Baptist community.

Apart from the national conferences, G3, under the leadership of Josh Buice, has hosted numerous workshops, study tours, helped in the development of local churches, and produced media resources. It launched G3 Ministries in 2020, which is noted for its “Dallas Statement” against social injustice.

Previously, Buice was part of the Southern Baptist Convention but left it in 2022, citing concerns around the organization’s race theory, social justice, women’s roles, and ecclesiology.

The pastor also writes a daily blog on the G3 website titled, Delivered by Grace and hosts The G3 Podcast with fellow members Virgil Walker and Scott Aniol. It focuses on the doctrinal and cultural issues faced by the church in recent times.

Josh Buice is married to his wife Kari, and the couple has four children: Karis, John Mark, Kalli, and Judson.

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More about the recent Josh Buice controversy

According to the recent allegations against Josh Buice, he seemingly targeted elders of his own congregation as well as members of the conservative Reformed movement in his alleged anonymous social media activity.

While Pray’s Mill Baptist Church hasn’t identified the accounts involved in the controversy, Buice’s personal Instagram and X accounts have been taken down.

Meanwhile, he was deemed “presently disqualified from serving as an elder” at the church and wished to “personally ask forgiveness of every person he has slandered or lied to.”

The church elders stated that they “are committed to walking alongside Josh in a long process of biblical counseling and discipline, seeking genuine fruit in keeping with repentance.”

“We grieve for the harm caused to the body of Christ and to those faithful ministers who were targeted. We are committed to walk in the light, to speak the truth in love, and to labor together for the building up of Christ’s church in holiness and unity,” they added.

Josh Buice also resigned as President of G3 on May 8 after board members urged him behind closed doors. According to Christianity Today, G3 will not be removing Josh’s blog posts and teachings from the website, as they do not believe that his “sin is necessarily permanently disqualifying.”

Texas pastor and G3 board member Tom Buck shared in a tweet that he is “deeply grieved” by the Josh Buice controversy. Likewise, Virgil Walker, vice president of ministry relations for G3, shared he was “heartbroken” by the news.

It comes a month after G3 faced backlash for high-priced tickets for the conference’s meet-and-greet section. While Josh Buice addressed the backlash on X, G3 apologized and took down the option. Now, amid the latest drama, the 2025 G3 Conference has been canceled, and tickets will be refunded.

It was scheduled to happen in Atlanta on September 11, 2025, with Paul Washer, Phil Johnson, and James White heading the list of attendees.

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Over the years, Josh Buice has denied his involvement in anonymous social media activity on multiple occasions.