Roundtable: Brown & Storms vs. Peters & Osman

 

Biblical scholars from different theological backgrounds engaged in a vigorous debate over the biblical definition of a "false teacher" and "false prophet" — and whether or not controversial evangelists like Benny Hinn, Mike Bickle and Sid Roth belong in such a category. 

In a four-hour roundtable discussion, Justin Peters, leader of Justin Peters Ministries and Jim Osman, author and pastor of Kootenai Community Church, debated the issue with Michael Brown, host of the “Line of Fire” podcast and Sam Storms, pastor emeritus of Bridgeway Church in Oklahoma City.

The first hour of the debate opened with a focus on the biblical criteria for labeling someone a false teacher or prophet, with all participants agreeing that a false teacher promotes heresies that are fundamentally at odds with the core doctrines of Christianity, such as the deity of Christ, salvation by grace through faith and the resurrection. 

However, the conversation quickly delved into more contentious territory, with the four men examining whether individuals who have made significant errors in their teachings but later repented could still be considered false teachers.

A significant portion of the discussion centered around Hinn, who has come under scrutiny for his adherence to prosperity theology, teachings on prophecy and supernatural healing.

Both Brown and Storms referred to Hinn as a “brother” they said had made significant errors in his teachings but later repented. The four men debated the effectiveness of such repentance, with Peters and Osman contending that true repentance must be accompanied by a complete cessation of ministry and restitution. Brown and Storms, however, suggested a more nuanced approach that allows for the possibility of genuine change and continued ministry under accountability.

“Speaking personally ... I am reluctant to pass judgment on the eternal state of an individual's soul so long as that individual does not overtly and explicitly deny foundational, biblical fundamental truths of the Gospel,” Storms said.

“They may be quirky in terms of their personality. They may be manipulative in terms of their ministry style. They may have distorted views of money. The whole prosperity gospel, I think we all agree, it's abominable. But many of those who affirm it believe they have biblical grounds for it; they actually believe in their heart and their soul that that is God's design for how Christians are to live. … I'm not going to consign [Hinn] to Hell until I see explicit unrepentant immorality, idolatry and denial of the foundations with faith.”

Osman pointed out that Hinn never publicly repented for teaching a “nine-member godhead” heresy several decades ago and continues to use the prosperity gospel to fleece the poor, which he said qualifies him as a false teacher. 

“You think that Benny Hinn is a man who loves Jesus, loves Christ,” Osman said, addressing Storms. “I would submit to you that any man who gives false prophecies, doesn't care enough about God to put words in His mouth that He does not say, bring reproach on God, who knowingly puts forth false miracles, fake signs and wonders, does that knowingly, intentionally, and for decades tells the poor and sick people, ‘Give me money and God will bless you’ — that's not someone in my book who loves Christ. That's someone who hates Christ. That's someone who hates the Christ of the Bible. He may love a Jesus that he's created out of his own image, but he doesn't love the Jesus of the Bible. Where is the conviction of the Holy Spirit in this man? Where's the correction?”

The conversation also touched on the dangers of extreme judgmentalism within the Christian community. Storms and Brown expressed concern that the term "false teacher" is sometimes applied too broadly, potentially condemning individuals who hold different but non-heretical views on secondary issues, such as eschatology or the operation of spiritual gifts. This, they argued, could lead to unnecessary division and hinder the church's mission.

Brown shifted the conversation to Martin Luther, the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation. Brown asked if Luther’s antisemitic writings and calls for harsh treatment against Jews, which were later used to fuel Nazi propaganda, could classify him as a false teacher despite his foundational contributions to Protestant theology.

“He promoted things that undermine the Gospel,” Brown said. “Many Jewish people think that Christianity is miserable and despicable because of Martin Luther … there is at least from our perspective ... a glaring double standard, an unequal weight measure and God hates unequal weights and measures.”

Peters replied that while he does not consider himself a “Luther apologist” and disagrees with the late theologian on a number of issues, he doesn’t believe he was a “false teacher.”

“Judging from the teachings that he gave concerning the Gospel, I can't on the basis of that and the things that he taught in those regards, call him a false teacher,” he said.

The discussion then turned to contemporary Christian leaders, including Mike Bickle of the International House of Prayer Kansas City (IHOPKC). Six months after this roundtable discussion was filmed, Bickle was accused of sexual abuse, an allegation Brown and Storms acknowledged in a joint statement shared in this video.

Bickle's claims of supernatural experiences and his association with controversial figures raised questions about discernment and the validation of prophetic experiences within the Christian community. Peters, Osman, Storms and Brown discussed the challenges of verifying such experiences and the importance of empirical evidence and biblical alignment in evaluating modern-day prophets and teachers.

“I believe that Mike Bickle has lied about a number of things. In fact, not the least of which he claims to have been to Heaven at least twice. I don't believe that,” Osman said.

Storms, defending Bickle, highlighted the complexity of discerning true from false teachings in the context of charismatic experiences. He pointed to instances where Bickle's prophetic experiences were said to be empirically verified, emphasizing the need for a careful and nuanced approach to discernment that considers both the content of the teachings and the character of the teacher.

“Mike Bickle is probably my best friend in this world,” Storms said. “When I hear people say they think Mike Bickle is a false teacher, it angers me. It really does, because I know the individual. We're not talking about just watching ministry. I know the man personally.”

The four also discussed the case of Roth, host of the "It's Supernatural" television program. Brown, while acknowledging his long-standing acquaintance with Roth, defended him against the accusations of being a false teacher, emphasizing Roth's personal integrity, lifestyle and commitment to outreach. 

“I've known Sid … for almost 40 years. He's never once even had an accusation of immorality, a single time, let alone lived in unrepentant sin. He's not enriched himself off of the Gospel over the decades. He has never denied a fundamental of the faith or taught a fundamental heresy, as far as I know, in all the years with him. He loves the Lord, is constantly doing outreach,” Brown said.

However, Osman and Peters raised concerns about Roth's platforming of individuals with questionable teachings and claims of supernatural experiences, suggesting that either Roth's discernment or his intentions were problematic.

“Roth has many many, many times said that God has told him things that theologically are untenable, and quite honestly just don't even pass the common sense test,” Osman said. “I don't doubt that Sid Roth is a nice guy, seems like a very personable guy, seems like he's kind of a funny guy at times. But I would say he is absolutely, completely unqualified to be in any kind of ministry.”

Despite disagreements, the four men expressed a shared commitment to discernment, biblical fidelity, and the pursuit of truth and demonstrated a willingness to engage in constructive dialogue. 

“Let's try to work together, see the good, and we can have our biblical differences,” Brown said. 

“I'll go toe to toe with anybody on the planet. … I'd love to have the conversations … to talk together rather than to be so put off by the differences. I'm not trying to be naive or overly simplistic, but I think there are things that we each have that we need, and I say in humility that there are things you brothers have that are important .. and I think it’s the same in the other direction, and the Body would be so helped by that.”

When Political Prophecies Don’t Come to Pass

The Bible includes false prophets and true prophets whose words turn out to be false.

CRAIG KEENER / NOVEMBER 11, 2020

Prophecy is saying what God says, which is more often about forth-telling than about foretelling.

Sometimes, however, prophecies do predict the future. In late October, Pat Robertson declared that he had heard from the Lord: “Without question, Trump is going to win the election.” To Robertson’s credit, Trump did far better than expected. With Donald Trump’s 70 million votes, reportedly the second-highest total in US history, we might think that Robertson indeed heard something. But did he get the whole story?

In some elections, prophecies are more than 50/50 guesses. In 2016, Jeremiah Johnson, a pastor, and prophet, accurately predicted Trump’s first term even before he emerged as a leader in the Republican primaries. Robertson was not alone in seeing another victory for the president in 2020. Most public prophecies, including those by Johnson, sided with Trump, sometimes mentioning a disputed election.

But even some who voted for Trump felt like God was saying that Biden would win this time. Ron Cantor, a Messianic leader based in Israel, said he twice heard from God that Biden would win because of the church’s idolization of Trump. He told followers, “Even if a miracle happened and [Trump] was, in fact, reelected, which seems less likely with each passing hour, proving the other prophets true, the warning here remains the same.”

If the election results hold despite recounts and court challenges, were all those others who predicted Trump’s victory false prophets?

Mistakes in prophecy do not make everyone who’s mistaken a false prophet, any more than mistakes in teaching make everyone who’s mistaken a false teacher. But false prophets exist—even cessationists, who do not believe that the genuine gift of prophecy is for today, agree that they do.

Whether from false prophets or not, very public mistaken prophecies risk great dishonor to God’s name and must be treated especially seriously. People already apt to mock Christians can find more grounds for ridicule. Deuteronomy 18 warns against mistaken prophecy, albeit prophesying “presumptuously”; the Hebrew word typically involves insolent rebellion (such as in Deuteronomy 1:43 and 17:13).

“If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken,” reads Deuteronomy 18:22. “That prophet has spoken presumptuously, so do not be alarmed.”

Hearing from God

Yet even true prophecy can be messier than many of us would like. In the Bible, true prophets often acted in ways that other people considered eccentric (Jer. 19:10; Acts 21:11), and their contemporaries sometimes deemed them mentally unstable (2 Kings 9:11; Jer. 29:26; John 10:20).

In contrast to prophecies about God’s long-range purposes, most prophecies in the Bible about his short-range purposes are conditional, whether stated as such or not. Thus Jonah’s “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown” (Jonah 3:4) was not fulfilled in Jonah’s generation because Nineveh repented.

Jeremiah explains this process plainly: “If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it” (Jer. 18:7–10). Perspectives on how conditional prophecy works vary. My own opinion is that God foreknows human choices or final outcomes, but he also accommodates time-bound people within time.

Similarly, God sometimes deferred promised outcomes. Elijah prophesied the destruction of Ahab’s line (1 Kings 21:20–24). Yet after Ahab humbled himself, God told Elijah privately that because Ahab humbled himself. I won’t bring this disaster while he is alive. Instead, I’ll bring it on his household in the time of his son (21:29). Likewise, God commissioned Elijah with three tasks (1 Kings 19:15–16). Elijah fulfilled directly one of these—calling Elisha. The other two were fulfilled by Elisha and by a prophet whom he in turn commissioned. Most of the mission was fulfilled by somebody else.

Often, biblical prophecies indicate more about what than about when. For example, the first two chapters of Joel depict an imminent locust invasion in terms of the day of the Lord, God’s time for judging. The last chapter, however, seems to depict a real invasion in an ultimate day of God’s judgment (3:9–17, especially verse 14). That is, in prophecies, nearer events may foreshadow later ones, without bothering to specify the time in between. Christians see Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah’s coming this way: No one recognized in advance that Jesus would come twice.

But were most prophecies about the US election conditional? Or were they simply wrong? After all, anybody can say, “The outcome of the election will be such-and-such—provided enough people vote for so-and-so.” (Given the odds against Trump, though, prophecies of his election were rather daring.)

Hearing our own echoes

But even godly people can sometimes misinterpret what they hear. Not everyone always hears God as clearly as Moses did, face to face (Num. 12:6–8). Nathan had to correct the assurance he had given to David after the Lord spoke to him (2 Sam. 7:3–5). Even godly court prophets like Nathan can make wrong assumptions in times of favor.

This problem is not, however, limited to court prophets. When John the Baptist heard that Jesus was healing people, he questioned his identity (Matt. 11:2–3; Luke 7:18–20). Probably John did so because he earlier heard from God that the coming one would baptize in the Spirit and in fire (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16). So far as John could tell, Jesus was not baptizing anybody in fire. What John heard from God was right, but John’s inference was wrong because he, like all prophets, had only a piece of the larger picture.

Not only are all prophecies partial, but, more dangerously, sometimes we may confuse our wrong interpretation with God’s message. Some of us might remember times of praying for the right spouse or job; the more emotionally involved we are personally in a decision, the harder it often is to think and hear clearly.

That may be why Luke refrains from calling the Spirit-led speech in Acts 21:4 “prophecy.” Paul’s friends told him “through the Spirit” not to go to Jerusalem. Yet God had already told Paul himself to go to Jerusalem (the probable meaning of Acts 19:21). Paul’s friends rightly heard that he would suffer in Jerusalem (20:23; 21:11) but wrongly inferred from this information that he should not go there (21:12–14; see also 2 Kings 2:3–5, 16–18). Subjectivity is messy, but so long as we need wisdom from the Lord, we have to live with some subjectivity.

This is the case because all prophecy is “in part,” just as teachers “know in part” (1 Cor. 13:9). Until Jesus returns, our knowing is limited and partial (vv. 9–12). Saying that all the prophecies that made it into the Bible are perfect doesn’t mean that none of God’s servants ever uttered imperfect prophecies. That’s why Paul insists that each prophecy must be evaluated (1 Cor. 14:29). He warns us not to quench the Spirit or despise prophecies; instead, we are to test them, keeping what is good and rejecting what is evil (1 Thess. 5:19–22).

Certain popular teachings have made many contemporary prophecies even more problematic. I believe that excesses in “positive confession” teaching have introduced a major source of potential error into prophesying. Even many circles today that repudiate “name it and claim it” theology now engage in “prophetic declarations.” Some of these declarations are intended as affirmations of faith. Jesus, after all, does invite us to command even mountains by our faith (Mark 11:23). But faith is only as good as its object, which Jesus in the previous verse specifies as God (v. 22). Prophetic “declarations” are empty unless authorized and led by God. As Lamentations says, “Who can command and have it done, if the Lord has not ordained it?” (Lam. 3:37, NRSV).

Hearing different things

The most prominent people who claim to speak for God are not always right, but that does not mean that God does not speak. In 2008, an Ethiopian minister who did not know anything about me prophesied accurately about my son and that I was writing two big books. What confused me was that he said that my second book would be larger than the first. I expected my Acts commentary to come out first; it turned out to be over 4,000 pages. Though partly impressed, I thought Mesfin had to be wrong about a larger book. But my miracles book, which turned out to be just 1,100 pages, ended up coming out before my Acts commentary. Mesfin was right, and I was wrong.

This year, many Christians have listened to leaders prophesy that Trump would again win the election. Some, such as Jeremiah Johnson, has continued to affirm that their prophecy will turn out to be true in the end. Others, such as Kris Vallotton, have publicly apologized. For now, many will decide that the prophecy was contingent, mistimed, or, more likely, mistaken.

Although I have not been a Trump supporter, I’m someone who wants to see godly prophecies proven true and can understand the disappointment.

I am not a prophet, but my own dreams gave me misgivings. For example, in March 2016, eight months before the election, I dreamed that Trump could be like the biblical Jehu (2 Kings 10:28–31) and needed repentance. In May 2016 I dreamed that God was angry about Trump’s (future) mistreatment of refugee children. Later I dreamed about his words provoking race riots. After the 2016 election, I wrote in my journal, “I wonder why, when I have had this nightmare dreams about him, many others are not seeing the same thing.” The next year I dreamed that I was warning Trump supporters about a coming backlash: “You have sown the wind and you will reap the whirlwind” (from Hosea 8:7).

I was unable to shake those dreams, even though many people I respected supported the president, and for reasons that I understood. Sometimes my own perspective has vacillated since I am pro-life and appreciate the president’s respect for evangelicals. In August this year, I dreamed that Trump lost the 2020 election. It was just a dream. I have all sorts of dreams, and even when some seem significant, I am not always sure how to interpret them. Some are probably influenced by surveying BBC news before I go to bed. The dreams do motivate me, at least, to pray.

Perspectives differ, and we each have just a piece of the larger puzzle. We can be sure of one thing: The Lord remains in control of history, and we can live by his certain Word in Scripture no matter what else happens.

If against all odds, Trump suddenly does become president, the prophecies will draw public attention to God’s work. Otherwise, it may instead be that God is drawing attention to needed housecleaning in many charismatic circles. The Spirit’s encouragement does not always translate in the words we want to hear; “prophetic declarations” can dull us to what God is really saying; and depending on what others say God has said can be risky business (see 1 Kings 13:11–32).

As a charismatic Christian myself, I like to see prophecies come true. But prophecies need to be evaluated. Whenever possible, before they go public. And, when necessary, afterward.

Craig Keener is F. M. and Ada Thompson Professor of Biblical Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary. He is the author of Christobiography: Memories, History, and the Reliability of the Gospels, which won a 2020 CT Book Award.

The Lord Will Expose Lying Prophets in Media

10:00AM EST 2/26/2019 WANDA ALGER



Just as the Lord has raised up watchmen and watchwomen in this hour to pray for this nation and report what they see in the distance, so are there secular prophets and watchmen who are broadcasting false information and biased predictions aimed at undermining the agenda of heaven. Many of these false prophets manipulate the facts and skew our perceptions in order to keep us from learning the truth.

Those who are being used of the Lord to sound the alarm are often ridiculed, mocked or totally ignored by the mainstream media. The challenge we have faced is to see through the confusion in order to see God's plan at work. As believers continue to pray for those who report the news in the secular arena, we can be encouraged by a story in the Old Testament that sheds light on God's higher purpose and strategy.

In 1 Kings 22:13-37, the story is told of how God placed a lying spirit into the prophets of King Ahab's court, specifically so he would be "enticed" to listen—and thus be destroyed. Ahab had continually ignored the voice of the Lord and was rebellious in his heart. Because God saw the force of Ahab's false prophets at work, He used their own self-interest and greed against them. The king's ego led him to believe the false narrative, and he went into battle without the Lord's blessing.

Only one prophet, Micaiah, discerned the true voice of the Lord and warned Ahab not to go. Going against all the other false prophets, he risked his life to be faithful to God's word. It so enraged Ahab, he sided with his court and marched straight into a death trap. Just one word from a true prophet of God was all that was needed to institute God's plan, and those who opposed Him were destroyed.

Scriptures tell us that God hardens hearts in order that His power might be seen (Rom. 9:17). Even as we pray for hearts to be softened towards the Father's will and heaven's plan, God sees those whose hearts are unregenerate and fixed against Him. He uses their own self-inflated importance and pride to accomplish His purposes.

We can take courage in this because God's enemies will be destroyed. As only He can do, His strategy draws them right into a corner with no way out. Those who speak truth will be vindicated, and God's plans will succeed. It doesn't matter how big the secular media giants are; God's Word is bigger. Even as we watch the false prophets of the day lie and manipulate the facts for their own gain, a trap is being set. God is pulling the strings and determining the outcome. Our part is to continue to pray and intercede for truth to be heard and God's will to be done.

To the watchmen of the hour, God says, "Declare My Word! Report the truth! Do not fear the enemy or those who prophesy against Me. Do not retaliate, but let My Word accomplish its purposes. Yours is to sound the alarm and trust My plan."

God wrote the playbook, and He is making His moves. The enemies of God will not prevail. Though their reports may be outrageous and their godless rants filled with contempt, it is the prayers and proclamations of God's prophetic people that will signal heaven's response for justice.

The strategy is simple: Trust in God. Declare His Word and watch His enemies fall. Their own deception will take them down.

For this reason, God sends them a powerful delusion so they will believe the lie and so all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in unrighteousness (see 2 Thess. 2:11-12).

Wanda Alger is a field correspondent with Intercessors for America. She ministers with her husband in Winchester, Virginia. Follow her blog at wandaalger.me.

'Stop Apologizing!': A Prophetic Word for Authentic Prophets

10:00AM EST 3/5/2019 DAWN HILL



Over the past few days, I keep hearing this stirring in my spirit. It began on Sunday morning when the Lord started speaking to me during a time of worship. I heard Him say, "Stop apologizing." I wrote the things down He was speaking to me, and I want to share them with the body of Christ. I truly believe that God is searching for those who will not apologize to the world for the power of His holy Word and the ferocity of His everlasting love yearning to set them free from the entanglement of sin.

As the body of Christ, we have been established as a city on a hill that cannot be hidden. We are the light of the world (Matt. 5:14). If we are the light, why are we apologizing for letting the light shine? You see, His light pushes back the darkness. Jesus doesn't apologize for pushing back the darkness; He simply overcomes it making His ways known. We are to make His ways known by demonstration of His kingdom in word and deed. Resist putting a dimmer switch on the light within you. There can be a temptation to dim the light of Christ from our lamps so as not to offend. Bright light is offensive to those whose vision is not accustomed to it. We inadvertently apologize for preaching more of the Word than our opinion. We apologize away the penalty of sin and the call to righteousness before God. This is good news, beloved! Let it shine!

The word apologize means to express regret for something that one has done wrong. Standing on the Word of God and the truth of His Word needs no apology. No matter how difficult it may be to hear the truth, He changes not. He has no shifting shadow in Him (James 1:17). Be encouraged to stand upon the infallible Word of God in this hour, unashamed and unapologetic. First Peter 3:13 -17 says,

"Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil."

This passage charges us to make a defense with gentleness and respect for our relationship and the hope we have in Christ. This sounds like it would be unobtrusive and without revile before others, but this is not the case. If our personal version of the gospel is edited for content so that it is suitable for the carnal nature of a person, then it is not authentic but rather apologetic. I am increasingly aware of the heart of the Father drawing us back to what truly matters, and every facet of Him matters. Stop apologizing, church. The authentic gospel and presence of the Holy Spirit offends, brings persecution and multiplies the church. Reformation is not satisfied with warm corpses shrouded in bondage, and reformation does not apologize for being mindful of another's eternity. Wake up, church! Arise and shine!

Prophet, Stop Apologizing

I want to speak to the authentic prophetic mouthpieces in this hour. Stop apologizing for a concentrated word. There is a hesitation to release a word that is difficult and not well-received. This is not a statement to usher in rebellion or dissension. This is a rally to all the authentic voices of God to stop apologizing for wielding the sword of the Spirit. The Lord woke me up the other morning to Jeremiah 23, and I wept as I read it. It is past time for a healthy dose of salt to penetrate the body. Sugar is in abundance, and exhortation comes on the winds of loving warnings so that we do not lose our flavor. Contend to be one standing in the council of the Lord, proclaiming His words to His people (Jer. 23:22). Stop apologizing for ministering purity and for refusing to flow with dead fish. Stop apologizing for calling a spade a spade. If it is perversion, then it is perversion. If it is murder, then it is murder. Do not come off the wall, watchmen. Do not relent in sounding the alarm. I know it is hard, but the reward is not the roaring approval of the crowd. The reward is Jesus. I fully believe that God is cleaning house in this hour, and those who will declare the truth of His infallible nature and His infallible Word will be given a voice to those willing to listen because genuine hunger desires substantial sustenance.

Areas where the body of Christ has been spiritually ill will be healed by authenticity only found in Him. I am so encouraged by what I sense in the Spirit because we are on the precipice of something of astronomical proportions. It does not come with bowing to the culture in the world. It comes when the church takes its place and without apology establishes the counterculture originating from the throne room. This is a church without apology.

Dawn Hill is a Christ-follower and a freelance writer. She writes a blog called "Lovesick Scribe."

This article originally appeared at lovesickscribe.com.

Derek Prince - Prophetic Guide to the End Times - 1&2&3

Touch Not God's Anointed By George Davis

Once in my early years in the institution called "the Church," I approached a minister regarding something questionable that he had previously shared with the local assembly. I was somewhat shocked by his response. He obviously perceived this to be a challenge to his authority, and feeling that he was above such inquiry, he hastened to preface the conversation with these words, "Are you about to touch God's anointed?"

In calling into question something he had previously said, I was touching God's anointed? How is it that in the asking of a simple question, I had become God's enemy? How did this brother view himself? And how did he arrive at such conclusions? How did he come to see himself as the recipient of an anointing that set him apart from the rest of God's children? How did these anointed ones come to be defined by such a special anointing--an anointing that makes them incapable of erring?

This mentality is clearly a holdover from the papacy. Pius IX (1846-78) gave it to us. The papacy was loosing power, but she would not go down without a fight. This was the birth of "ultramontanism," a movement to argue the right of the papacy to rule globally. It is clear that Pius IX saw that the quickest way to win this argument was to declare an edict stating that, as God's delegated authority, he cannot be wrong. Since this religious system cannot withstand the eye of scrutiny, he also declared that the origin and ceremonies of the papal church could not be called into question either. Case closed. By taking the Old Testament anointing of kings and mixing it with their own definition of priesthood, which was an amalgamation of the old Levitical priesthood, the pagan priesthood, and the autocratic government of the Roman state, they came up with the divine right of kings and clergy to rule.

Considering man's desire for conquest, due to the fall, should we be surprised that when given 1900 years to do so, he should devise an elaborate, systematic, and yes, lest I forget, Biblical justification of his divine right and responsibility to rule? The counsels of bishops and kings concluded that to challenge them and their pronouncements is to assault heaven itself, since they are "God's anointed." History records the long and sordid story of the folly of such men. Kings have subdued and controlled entire nations through their train of puppet cardinals and bishops. And the lie that frightened the masses into compliance is the lie that God would have it so, and the fear of displeasing God in displeasing "His anointed." The lie that God Himself had raised them up as the redeemer, benefactor, the friend of the people.

Jesus was clear on this. In fact, He was emphatic. "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But you shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that does serve" (Luke 22:25-26).

Now benefactor was a title of honor, conferred on those who had done their country a service. It means a friend of the people. The cruel joke is that they exercise dominion and authority under the guise of being the friend of the people. They suffer all those sorrowful kingly duties and benefits, just for the people. They became king just so they could help the people. Makes you want to cry, doesn't it? What a noble way to lay down your life! Oh what venerable sacrifice of one's own desires and interests. Eat your heart out, Sister Teresa.

But the real test comes when the people touch their crowns, and then the heads of the ones they claim to serve will roll. Then the true kingly motivations surface. I tell you most assuredly that I have witnessed this same scenario in the institution called "the church" many times. They were just there to serve the people. Oh, they loved them so much. If the little people touched their throne, or in some way treated them in an un-kingly manner, they responded with such treachery as has not been seen since the Herodian dynasty. The offenders were treated in a manner tantamount to execution. They were verbally executed or banished to the outer realm. They were called heretics. And in the proud tradition of Diotrephes they were thrown out of the church (3 John 9-10).

When it comes to government over God's children, we must remember that the idea of an anointed king was man's choice, not God's. The true nature of that choice was to reject the rule of God, opting for the kind of government wielded over the nations. "...Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations" (1 Samuel 8:5). God warned the people of Israel of the consequences of the kind of leadership they chose. And when reduced to few words God's warning to them was, "He (King Saul) will take what is yours and give it to himself" (see 1 Samuel 8:4-22). This is the nature of kings, to take what belongs to God and his children and give it to themselves. They do all of this under the guise of being friends of the people, as though it was their divine right. There are many such Saul-like kings reigning the traditional church today. They take the ministry from the body of Christ, and sit them in neat little rows staring at the backs of each other's heads. They resist God's sovereignty over the believers individually by functioning as intermediaries between God and His children. They claim to hear God's voice for the whole church, and in this way they take the guidance of the Holy Spirit from the believers. They replace Holy Spirit guidance with their counsel--and all this without a twinge of conscience. Why? It is simple. They believe this to be their divine right. They have been anointed in the tradition of Saul, with an authority like that of the kings of the nations. Accordingly they see themselves as God's anointed, and in their minds they stand head and shoulders above the rest.

Who Are the true Anointed Ones?

I believe that God does have anointed ones, and that very few in our day are afraid to touch them. Acts 2:17 speaks of the anointing of these servants. Those regarding whom Joel had prophesied that God would anoint with His Spirit, and they would prophesy, see visions and dreams. Who are these anointed priest and prophets? They are the all Flesh of Acts 2:17. They are sons, daughters, the young, and elderly. They are the entire community of Christ. God has poured out His Spirit upon all flesh, not a select caste of super-saints referred to as Ministers, Pastors, Elders, etc. "Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams." The anointing that was once poured out on a select few is now poured out on all flesh. This new priesthood consists of all the saints of God.

These are the ones Peter referred to when he wrote, "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9). There is a new priesthood, the priesthood of all believers, and this priesthood represents a better covenant. Under this covenant, God puts His laws into our minds, and writes them in our hearts. Under this covenant there is no need for mediators to say, "Know the Lord." Why? For all shall know Him, from the least to the greatest (see Hebrews 8:10-11). All shall enter beyond the rent veil into the presence of God. They shall be taught of God there. In this new covenant, they "shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother," for all shall know firsthand through the anointing of the Spirit that God has poured upon them.

According to the author of Hebrews, the old, first covenant "had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary" (Hebrews 9:1). However, this new priesthood is not concerned with earthly sanctuaries and ceremonies. They minister beyond the veil in the heavenly tabernacle, which the lord has pitched, and not man (Hebrews 8:2). They function in the realities of heaven, not in the shadow realm of religion. (see Hebrews 9:1-) This new priesthood are also the lively stones that are built up into a spiritual house. They are collectively both the holy priesthood and temple of the Lord. This priesthood "offers up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 2:5).

John said regarding God's anointed, "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.... But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him" (John.2:20-21, 27).

The word anointing here refers to the inaugural ceremony for priests. It was the ceremony where the Old Testament priests were anointed with oil, which represents the Holy Spirit. It speaks of being set aside for divine service. The gift of the Holy Spirit is the anointing of Priests, and that anointing was poured out upon all in this new royal priesthood. In the new covenant there was a change of the priesthood, from the Levitical priesthood to that royal priesthood, after the order of Melchisedec (Hebrews 7:11).

The so-called anointed that stand in a kingly hierarchic authority do not hesitate to touch God's true anointed ones--the royal priesthood. Their brash and meddling hands have stoned the prophets, and have subjected the true anointed priesthood to the worst torture imaginable--those intolerable weekly sit-a-thons they refer to as the "service."

David saw the entire nation of Israel to be God's anointed.

When they [Israel] went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people; He [God] suffered no man to do them wrong: yea, he reproved kings for their sakes; Saying, Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm. (Psalm 105:13-15)
David , the anointed king of Israel, saw in a prophetic glance the whole of Israel as God's anointed. David had a heart after God, which expressed itself in his incessant desire to make God king. It was David's passion to restore the rule of God. It was expressed in his life, words, and songs. "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King" (Psalm 48:2). The great King to whom David refers is not David, but God. When he brought up the ark with singing and dancing, David knew he was bringing the true King of Zion through those gates. He was overcome with joy, he could not hold still; he leapt before the ark with all of his might. David knew that an earthly king was not God's original intention, so he gladly discarded his kingly robes and crown to dance in only a loincloth before his King--the great King. David had a heart after God, not God's crown. Oh that God's children were as zealous for the reign of God today!

God reluctantly anointed a king, but he gladly anointed a kingdom of priests. In fact God first expressed this desire right after Israel passed through the Red Sea, long before they entered the land. "And you shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words, which you shall speak unto the children of Israel" (Exodus 19:6). This is the exact scripture to which Peter refers in 1Peter 2:9. God would finally realize His plan for a royal priesthood, and a holy nation, in the priesthood of all believers.

These are the anointed of God. They have no need for intermediary teachers. Now I must ask, why is no one terrified to touch God's anointed? Why don't they hesitate to cast a murderous glance toward the prophetic community of God--that holy nation? Why do they gag and bind them to the pew?

I say to all that contend for the supposed right of kings and clergy to rule over God's heritage, Touch not God's anointed, and do his prophets no harm. God has poured out His Spirit on these, and has anointed them for service as priests so that each of them might go forth serving God, declaring His glory. In coming into His presence, and standing in His glory, their very faces will radiate Him. This is the heritage of the servant of the Lord. It is their right and responsibility as priests. All may come into His presence.

All are His priests. All are His anointed. Touch not God's anointed. Do not consign them to passivity. Do not supplant their priestly roles. Do not silence them through liturgy and sermonizing. Do not disrespect them by supposing that they are in need of any intermediary other than the one true mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5). Although they may not look like it, these peculiar people are priests. Don't let their common appearance fool you; they are not your average garden-variety priests. They are royal priests. They are the priests and children of the King of kings. These are noble creatures called to true greatness. They are empowered from on high. Why would they need a teacher, for they can come right into the presence of God? They have an anointing that teaches them. God himself teaches them. Now God is calling for the true anointed ones to rise from the pew to power.


Suddenly I am overcome with an overwhelming desire to say, "Don't touch God's anointed!"

Systematized Deception By George Davis and Michael Clark

According to Jesus, everyone who is born of the Spirit is like the wind (John 3:8), not subject to systematic control, but into the flow of the Spirit. In countless verbal and practical ways, religion daily declares Christ's teaching here to be false, instead teaching that adherence to rigid denominational teaching is the only safe way to avoid deception.

Growing Up Into Him vs the Systematizing of Deception

In Ephesians 4:14 and 15, Paul sets forth a contrast of truth and deception. Truth is represented by the following words, "...[that] you may grow up into [eis] him in all things." Deception is described by the words, "…tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, by which they lie in wait to deceive." The words, "by which they lie in wait to deceive" take on an entirely different meaning in the Wescott-Hort Interlinear.

[TOWARD] [THE] [WITH-WAY (systematizing)] [OF-THE] [STRAYING (deception)] (Ephesians 4:14 Westcott-Hort)

Ephesians 4:14 would more correctly read, "so that we may no longer be minors, tossed to and fro and being carried about by every wind of teaching, by human caprice, by craftiness with a view to the systematizing of the deception."

Darby translates this passage similarly.

…in order that we may be no longer babes, tossed and carried about by every wind of *that* teaching which is in the sleight of men, in unprincipled cunning with a view to systematized error. (Ephesians 4:14 Darby)
Vincent's Word Studies captures the entire thought in two words, "Error organizes." The King James rendition, "lie in wait," is represented in the Greek text by the compound word methodeia, which means "a deliberate planning or system." Our word "method" comes from this Greek word.

Kittel comments, "It first has the sense 'to treat methodically, to handle according to plan. . .'" Through 1900 years of ecclesiastical conditioning, we have come to view order as a key component of truth. Along with the extra-biblical axiom of "cleanliness is next to godliness" we have placed "orderliness is next to godliness." We often hear that God is not the author of confusion, but error and deception are not random or chaotic. In fact, organization is the chief power of deception.

According to Jesus, everyone who is born of the Spirit is like the wind (John 3:8), not subject to systematic control, but into the flow of the Spirit. In countless verbal and practical ways, religion daily declares Christ's teaching here to be false, instead teaching that adherence to rigid denominational teaching is the only safe way to avoid deception.

Order is no indicator of truth. In fact, deception is more structured than truth. Russia under Stalin and Germany under Hitler had rigid order and systematic teaching under the systems of Communism and Nazism. Both claimed to exist for the good of the collective masses.

Error always organizes and the greater the deception the more systematized it becomes. It is no wonder that as we near the end of all things, a global government is emerging that by all appearances will make Hitler and Stalin look like choir boys. Phrases like global sustainability, global economy, and global warming are driven into our heads by the controlled media.

Carnal men take the dynamics of the Spirit and make a static, systematic organization out of it. What starts out as a dynamic life force becomes a hollow form of godliness. This sham displaces the power of God to bring about a true inward change in the individual, the only starting place. You cannot force men to make moral decisions by writ of law. It is in our Adamic nature to systematize legal structures so that we can cast off the restraint of the Spirit of God!  David wrote, "But you have cast off and abhorred, you have been angry with your anointed. You have made void the covenant of your servant: you have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground" (Psalms 89:38-39 KJ2000). Hosea wrote, "Israel has cast off the thing that is good: the enemy shall pursue him. They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them idols that they may be cut off" (Hosea 8:3-4 KJ2000). This is why the living word of God is constantly cutting away the soulish counterfeit life that seeks to replace the true life of the Spirit.

Which will it be--the soulish counterfeit or the true life of the Spirit? One will displace the other.

The Underlying Misconception
The foundational misconception behind all systemic deception is the idea that order brings life. We see this lived out all around us in religious circles today. You can hear it in virtually every sermon. If you do the right things passionately enough and long enough God will see your faithfulness and bless you. Everything is about achieving the proper God-pleasing form—building according to the pattern, yet they reject the one Pattern that the Father as set before us. Jesus is the Pattern! Order does not bring life. Divine life brings God-pleasing form and functionality that is consistent with His nature.

John put it this way, "In him was life, and the life was the light of men" (John 1:4 RSV). The life is in Him and that Life is the only Light that men can accurately see by! Out of Life comes light. He has been made unto us wisdom (1 Corinthians 1: 29). True wisdom and knowledge flows, moment by moment, from divine life. There is no other source for it. All so-called "wisdom" that does not proceed from the Father of light is not light but is artificial, earthly, sensual and ultimately, devilish (see James 3:13-15).

Source determines everything. If the source is the souls of men the best you can have is a poor counterfeit of the Real. "Figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush" (Luke 6:44 NRSV). Or as Gerhard Kittel succinctly put it, "Life stands always under the question of its origin and goal."

The Soulish Counterfeit
The Pharisees give us a clear example of the cause and effect of the soulish counterfeit.

Under the old dispensation the law was binding but it was not binding enough to suit the Pharisees. No. They set themselves to give the demands of the law an even greater structure and definition as it applied to the daily life of Israel. At the heart of this effort was the twofold lust to distinguish themselves and control the people in the name of God. Soon they had written volumes of commentaries that they placed on the shoulders of the people—heavy burdens that they refused to remove—systematized error. What was the end of this error? Error always results in one thing—shutting up the kingdom of heaven against men. Jesus addressed this deception head on. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you shut the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those who would enter to go in" (Matthew 23:13 RSV).

What this deception amounts to is simply the replacing of one order with another—the replacing of divine order (the rule of God) with human order— the true life and leading of the Spirit vs. the soulish counterfeit enforced by men. Human order always has the affect of shutting people away from God's rule through intermediary interference. Thought the Bible has much to say about the necessity of living by and walking in the Spirit, these self-appointed mediators will not permit something so haphazard to occur on their watch. They are not going into God's kingdom and neither is anyone else! Though they speak of God and His kingdom in glowing terms they are the enemies of the direct rule of God.

Everything that man does in the name of religion is diabolically designed to supplant the order of God's Spirit, to replace the order of life with another system, order and head. In this carnal order all things are held together organizationally, by ecclesiastical heads in a diocese system governed by a religious hierarchy. Judaism and Islam have their own counterparts as well and are equally as hateful in their orthodox form to all who do not believe as they do. The wars that are being waged on the earth today are powered by systematized deception. The very definition of the word religion—to rebind—is what drives these religious sects.

The early church lived by a different order altogether. In God's order Paul wrote, "And he [Jesus] is before all things, and by him all things are held together (Colossians 1:15-17 KJ2000). The whole universe is held or bound together by Jesus alone, not men. Carnal men seek to rebind them to another, the master of systematized deception.

God's Respect for the Human Will
At the heart of God's order is a respect for the human will. God does not impose or force his will upon anyone. The height of the human will is willingness, not reluctance, not begrudging-ness but a voluntary response to His love. Through sharing His perspective and communicating His passion by His Spirit, He seeks to bring believers into His viewpoint until both wills become one. "Come now let us reason together says the Lord." In short, He works in us both to will and do of His good pleasure and when His work in us is finished, His good pleasure is our good pleasure. The order of God is based on union ("Emanuel - God with us") and revelation, not a mindless objective obedience. We will know if we press on to know the Lord (see Hosea 6:3). In other words, if we know the Lord, we know all we need to know. Truly the gospel of the New Testament is God introducing Himself through His Son. It is through contact with Him that we learn Him and come to know our Father in a greater and living way. As we are in union with Him we are taught by Him. Anything else is deception because it leads people to think that they have a relationship with God when they do not. They have a purely platonic understanding of God—not founded in reality. So much of what goes on in the name of preaching and teaching is nothing more that theorizing what God is like and what His will is. Instead it should be encouraging people to seek our Father with all their hearts. Jesus taught the disciples to pray, "Our Father," not "Great God in heaven." All through the gospels the orthodox Jews used the phrases "our father David, our father Abraham, our father Jacob," but in their deception they could not conceive of the God of the universe as their Father. And because Jesus referred to God as His Father they wanted to kill Him.

The order of the kosmos (the rudimentary principles of the world) is designed to manipulate and bypass human volition. Though God holds the human will in the highest regard, man does not. In man's mind the bottom line is always the chief consideration. Therefore the end justifies the means. He wants results and so tends to despise what God values, running rough shod over the wills of his fellow men.

The point we want to make here is simply this, methodology and systematizing are not "next to godliness" but rather man's soulish substitutes for life and growth—growing up into Him. We say substitutes because methodology and Divine Life are intrinsically opposed to one another because of their entirely different origins and births. You cannot mix the two. The former is of the world and is controlled by its mode of government--the rudimentary principles of this world. The later is of a heavenly origin and is exclusively born and guided from heaven through God's Spirit. We see this dependency upon the Spirit lived out by the early Church in the Book of Acts. Before long, though, they began to leave the divine order and turn again to the rudimentary principles of the world. Remember the Greek word for world is kosmos which means a system. Paul addressed this carnal tendency to leave the divine order and return to the governing principles of the world in virtually every one of his letters. He asked the foolish Galatians, "Who has bewitched you. . . Having begun in the Spirit, are you now completed in the flesh?" (See Galatians 3). These foolish Galatians were trading life for systematized error, the overtly rigid order of the Judaizers.

We get an even clearer perspective from Paul's warning to the Colossians. Please note the contrast.

"Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding firmly to the Head, from whom all the body, being supplied and knit together through the joints and ligaments, grows with God's growth. If you died with Christ from the elements of the world, [kosmos – system] why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to ordinances, (21) "Don't handle, nor taste, nor touch" (all of which perish with use), according to the precepts and doctrines of men? Which things indeed appear like wisdom in self-imposed worship, and humility, and severity to the body; but aren't of any value against the indulgence of the flesh." (Colossians 2:18-23 WEB)
The general direction of error is always toward rigidity, captivity, tyranny and loss. It is diabolically designed to keep you from something—to shut up the kingdom of God from you. Hence Paul's exhortation, "Let no one rob you of your prize." He goes on to say what the prize is and the method that the thief (Satan) uses to rob believers of that it. The prize is Christ and involvement in His Body. His Body is divinely knit together and as a result, grows with God's growth. What does the prince of this world use to rob believers? He tries to separate us from divine life by subjugating us to ordnances and in doing so he entices us onto earthly, unholy ground controlled by men in league with Satan. He deceives us into living by our soul-life (psuchikos) and attempting to finish what God has started in us by means of the flesh.

How is this deceptive order promoted? What is the mechanism for its advancement? Error organizes and it does so by teaching. It is "according to the precepts and doctrines of men."

As with the Galatians, the errors taught among the Colossians did not promote loose living. On the contrary, it called for greater holiness of life, abstinence, separation from the unclean thing, "Don't handle, nor taste, nor touch." On the surface, this certainly looks like wisdom, but the wise recognize that it is antagonistic to God's growth. God's growth is of an entirely different order. Though these legalistic teachings attempt to restrain the body and its carnal cravings, this self-imposed order strengthens the flesh.

In the nineteenth century, Andrew Murray understood this, unlike thousands of Bible teachers since him. He wrote in his Book, "The Two Covenants":

The two great lessons God would teach us by it [the Old and New Covenants] are very simple. The one is the lesson of SIN, the other the lesson of HOLINESS. The Old Covenant attains its object only as it brings men to a sense of their utter sinfulness and their hopeless impotence to deliver themselves. As long as they have not learnt this, no offer of the New Covenant life can lay hold of them. As long as an intense longing for deliverance from sinning has not been wrought, they will naturally fall back into the power of the law and the flesh. The holiness which the New Covenant offers will rather terrify than attract them; the life in the spirit of bondage appears to make more allowance for sin, because obedience is declared to be impossible.
The other is the lesson of Holiness. In the New Covenant the Triune God engages to do all. He undertakes to give and keep the new heart, to give His own Spirit in it, to give the will and the power to obey and do His will. As the one demand of the first Covenant was the sense of sin, the one great demand of the New is faith that that need, created by the discipline of God's law, will be met in a Divine and supernatural way. The law cannot work out its purpose, except as it brings a man to lie guilty and helpless before the holiness of God. There the New finds him, and reveals that same God, in His grace accepting him and making him partaker of His holiness.
It is winds of doctrine and adherence to the Old Covenant that keep Abba's Children from growing up into Him. It is teaching that tosses them to and fro. It is teaching that carries them about here and there, prohibiting them from taking root and maturing. It is teaching—this one saying this and another saying that—that keeps believers confused, uncertain and dependent upon teachers—"ever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth." Though the teachings may contain some objective truths, they yet leave the hearer dependent on teaching and the teacher rather than the Wind of God's Spirit.

Often believers are not pointed to reality but to theory, ideas, principles, and techniques that strangely never leave the realm of supposition. Being dependent on teachers, believers never get enough teaching. Beware when teaching becomes an end unto itself. Then what is incorrectly taught is no longer the problem. The real problem is that believers are subdued by the process of endless teachings that replace the voice of the Spirit in their lives. At such time, teaching itself becomes the wind that blows against the mast. Remember, apostate people "heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears" (2 Timothy 4:3 KJV).

On the other hand, truth is ordered by an entirely different principle—life and growth. Growing up into Him is not helped along by winds of doctrine. How many contradictory sermons must we sit through before we get this point? Jesus promised the Holy Spirit, who now leads all who will follow Him into all truth—spiritual reality. Anything less than this is simply organization begging for life. Remember, according to Paul, another indicator of apostasy is powerless form (morpho¯sis - outward semblance, as distinguished from the essential reality – Vincent). "…having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!" (2 Timothy 3:5 NKJV)

So what is our safeguard against such a well-ordered and seemingly legitimate deception? We must learn to distinguish the outward semblance from the essential reality.

"You cannot make something to carry the testimony of the Lord. You cannot make people carry the testimony of the Lord. You cannot gather them into Bible institutions and make them vessels of testimony. Only God can make spiritual men and women, living men and women, men wrought for this purpose. We must take our hands off one another, and leave them to the Lord. If it were something else we could get together and take counsel together, and we could arrange a scheme, an enterprise, and get beautifully organized, and launch it, and carry it on; but that is like a Philistine cart, and in the testimony of Jesus that cannot be done with the guarantee that God will sponsor it and take responsibility for it. God must constitute us a vessel on the basis of life and knowledge of Himself, and no man can do that, no man can make that sort of thing, only God.

So we stand back from one another and let the Lord do it. Much as we would like to help we can do very little; we have to let the Lord do it, and make men and make women, and when the Lord has made them there is the power of the Name. You cannot fit men to bear the Name, only God can fit men for that. It is a matter of the testimony of the Name in mighty energy and power being borne by men and women who are alive unto the Lord, and in intelligent fellowship with Him. Anything other is bound to break down, to go wrong, and what is more to come under the judgment of God sooner or later."

Addressing the Default Argument
Some might ask, "Didn't Paul write, 'Let all things be done decently and in order' (1 Corinthians 14:40)? Doesn't this mean that we should order our gathering? And that if there's going to be order there must be a director?"

Yes, Paul did write that, and yes, there is a Director. Paul wrote this qualifying statement right after he informed the Corinthian believers who that Director is. Divine order comes directly from God by His Spirit. Divine order is in the Spirit. Therefore Paul references, "speaking by the Spirit of God...diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit...there are diversities of workings, but it is the same God who works all in all...the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man...given by the Spirit...by the same Spirit...by the same Spirit...in all these works that one and same Spirit, dividing to every man individually as he will...by one Spirit...drink into one Spirit...God set the members every one of them in the body...God has arranged the body." We could site many more such references. There's the order! Without this order any attempt to organize in the name of Christ is error and because it is thought to be right and true, it is deception. This is an either/or situation. There is no solution in compromise. To compromise is to settle for lukewarm mediocrity. Or to borrow the words of Michael McDonald in his hit song, No More Prayin':

"We are lost between faith and hope
Between heart and mind, between love and pride."
So which will it be, truth or outward semblance, as distinguished from the essential reality? Growing into the fullness of the stature of Christ, or being tossed to and fro by the teachings of men? Following the Wind of God's Spirit or being blown about by every wind of doctrine? Will we return to the order that flows from divine life or continue to scheme, enterprise and get beautifully organized? Will we be taught of God as was prophesied by the prophets of old or will we continue to deceive ourselves and heap up teachers?

But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, says the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, says the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. (Jeremiah 31:33-34 KJ2000)
Let no one rob you of your prize!


This article is part of The Kingdom or the Kosmos and is available in book form. Please see our Books In Print page.

Official or Functional Prophets? By Michael Clark and George Davis

A prophet marches to a different drum. A true prophet is not concerned with his image, nor how well he is received. It is God who holds people accountable for receiving the messenger and the message. The prophet's single focus is on speaking and writing the message that God has given him to deliver.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word "official" as; "1. Of or relating to an office or a post of authority. 2. Authorized by a proper authority; authoritative. 3. Holding office or serving in a public capacity."

There is a great stir in some Christian circles regarding the supposed restoration of the "Office" of Prophet back to the church. (We use the word "office" in quotes because it is not found in the original text of the New Testament referring to ministry gifts.) This has resulted in forum after forum dedicated to the recovery of this office. There is teaching on the subject at gatherings and prophetic conferences throughout the world, which bring the would-be prophets out in droves. Many are sincere and seeking God's will in their lives, but there are many that are seeking recognition and approval by the so-called "official" or "recognized" prophets.

If you look at the prophets in the scriptures, you will realize that the ambition to be accepted or approved of by men is alien to the calling of a true prophet. Acceptance and approval by the authorities of their day abounded only for false prophets. The most vivid case is the court of Ahab and Jezebel. They had 850 false prophets and persecuted God's true prophets including Elijah.

There are many who seek their own glory in prophetic circles today, speaking words that satisfy itching ears. There seems to be a "good ol' boys' club" these prophets use to promote each other. Consider Jesus' words:

"If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. . .Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved." (John 5:31,34)

"He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him." (John 7:18)

Elijah and Elisha pointillism copyright 2001 by Dorothy ClarkA prophet marches to a different drum. A true prophet is not concerned with his image, nor how well he is received. It is God who holds people accountable for receiving the messenger and the message. The prophet's single focus is on speaking and writing the message that God has given him to deliver. God puts these men through whatever is necessary to harden them to the inevitable opposition that they must face. God has one desire for them, that they speak His word to those in error and in trouble without changing a word of it. They must never alter His words in order to be received and accepted by the hearer. They must never use their gift for worldly and financial gain. Remember what happened to Gehazi?

Now regarding the idea of the "office" of prophet or the "official prophet." True prophets were not found lounging in king's courts. They did not hang out with the aristocracy. If they did end up before a king, they were usually either killed or imprisoned. Their ears were not scanning the crowds for cheers of approval, adjusting their delivery until they got it. No, their ears were directed toward heaven. They sought the approval of God, not man. These men were so regularly rejected that Jesus asked the Pharisees, "What one of the prophets did your forefathers not kill?" It seems that few living prophets were approved. Generally only dead prophets were acceptable and their tombs were decorated.

You cannot determine if a person is speaking the truth by whether the message is in line with the consensus of popular thought. Most often those who come speaking the truth are out of sync with what is currently held dear by the majority. This is true in the world and in many cases, it is true in today's Church. Be prepared to go cross-grain to many beliefs that are currently being taught in Christian circles if you want to be God's prophet. As Soren Kierkegaard observed in his book Purity of Heart:

For many fools do not make a wise man, and the crowd is doubtful recommendation for the cause. Yes, the larger the crowd, the more probable that that which it praises is folly, and the more improbable that it is any truth, and the most improbable of all that it is any eternal truth.

There is a big difference between a functional prophet and an official prophet. Somewhere along the way from the early church until now we have been sold the bill of goods that only those that are approved by the ecclesiastical structures of men are "official." They are AAA approved, guaranteed to be predictable, manageable and unlikely to embarrass everyone or go against the power structures of men. How religious man hates the unpredictable and the unmanageable! Didn't Jesus say that those who move in the Spirit are like the wind? Now that is unpredictable and unmanageable by mere men.

We do believe that God is restoring the functional prophet back to His Church! On the other hand, the official pre-approved prophets who gather around the ecclesiarchs who rule over the Church are like so many soothsayers sitting in a king's court waiting to bring an affirming word to the status quo. May God restore to the earth those who, without concern for their own welfare, dare to call God's people to repentance and a right heart and speak to what is out of order in the Church today.

Yes, Father, restore this endangered species, the true prophet, back to the earth once again. Don't let the spirits of the Great False Prophet get the last word. Bring forth those who weep and mourn over the fallen state of your Church. Amen.

Beware of Superstar, Self-Appointed Church Personalities

BERT M. FARIAS



Are these popular ministerial personalities great in the sight of the Lord or only in the sight of man? Are they really known in heaven or only on the Earth? Are they God-anointed or self-appointed? Is it ministry they deliver or some subtle form of hype?

"Many who are great in the sight of the Lord are living in cottages and hovels, and are scarcely known, unless to a few neighbors equally obscure," said William Jay.

Believers, especially Christian ministers, need a baptism of clear seeing and holy discerning. Our ministry marketing budget may be soaring high, but our perception can sometimes be so low. Our motives need refinement. The refiner's fire is near the door. Will you open it? Can you see the narrow way to holiness? Or is all the smoke blocking your view?

Before me now I see the impression I saw months ago. There are two scenes. One is of a clear and sunny horizon lined with an endless row of people. The other is of a vast forest. Dense fog covers the forest, and out of the fog comes the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ, for the most part, is not found among the general populace. People have to really look to recognize Him.

Think about it. Our Savior was not born in a big metropolis, but in the small town of Bethlehem. And He grew up in the despised region of Galilee. He was not born in a palace where kings are, but in a lowly stable. The wise men had to really search and diligently follow the star to find Him. When Jesus entered into ministry, it is written that He had no place to lay His head (Luke 9:58). He did not have a ministry headquarters. He died a criminal's death on a cross, naked and nearly alone. His grave was a borrowed tomb. His throne was an invisible one hidden from the multitudes of those who were healed and delivered through His ministry. He was called meek and lowly; certainly not the description fitting for a king. But today, ministry is so different.

A church brings in a special speaker. He's known all over, so the people flock to hear him. They come from everywhere, every night. At the meetings they jump, sing and shout. They hear the newest revelation proclaimed with jubilation. The people are saying of the special speaker:

He's on TV,
I love his personality.
His ministry is so big,
His clothes I really dig.
He's so wonderful!
And his wife looks so smart,
Her latest hit song
Is at the top of the chart.
Oh, I love to hear him speak,
And I hate to see him go.
Maybe he'll stay another week,
Or speak again on his daily show.

The same church brings in a name unknown. The people stay away by the droves. A few faithful gather to hear the Word of God. They long for holiness and a vision of Jesus. With a broken heart, the little "no-name" preacher weeps for lost souls as he delivers a word from God.

The big personality was sent by man. The little "no-name" was sent by God. The crowds who came from miles away came to hear a man. The smaller group came seeking Jesus. One set of meetings produced much excitement but no fruit of holiness. The other smaller meetings generated far less excitement but resulted in a brokenness and a lasting work of holiness in those who came. This may seem like an extreme example, but it makes the point.

Just because someone or something is big doesn't mean it's godly (and it is also understood that bigness is not tantamount to ungodliness either). In fact, it's a greater test of our devotion to be big (whatever "big" means to us) and yet remain holy, than it is to be small (whatever "small" means to us) and holy. And let's not forget that smallness is not equivalent to godliness either. Discerning the difference between hype and holiness is what's important. But we are so often fooled by the "big" while being unaware and undiscerning of the "small."

Holiness is not only sought but bought: "Buy of Me gold tried in the fire that you may be rich" (Rev 3:17). Have you been tried in the fire? Have you tested your teachings? Have you experienced and even suffered for the truth you believe? Truth is to be bought, not sold. We sell the truth when we sell our souls to pleasure, profit and earthly popularity. We buy the truth when we are tried and found true, when we suffer with godly sorrow the pains of our personal Gethsemanes, and yet remain private about them. When we allow God to strip us of all glory-seeking and subtle pride, we are buying the truth.

Too many today are selling messages they never bought. When we minister forth from what we've personally experienced or suffered, the Spirit will produce a far greater effect of holiness in the hearers. The deeper the suffering is—or has been—usually the more perfect the obedience. The more fiery the trials, and the deeper the burning, the purer and richer the vessel becomes.

This is what we must understand: God's measuring gauge and standard of holiness is so different from man's. Bigness and smallness are terms not found in Christ. Here is the criterion for holiness: Is Christ made visible? Is He seen and heard? Is the ministration of Christ being imparted? Is His Word being made manifest? Are the people changed more into His likeness? Is it producing a spirit of holiness and an increase in the fruits of righteousness? Are they paying less credence to men and personalities and reverencing God?

The problem with today's generation is that we elevate the teachings of popular Christian teachers and we have a tendency to place greater value on them than the Scriptures. We elevate their charisma, their eloquence, their humor and wit, their style, and even their cuteness and good looks. We even sow our finances into the same.

Beware of hype. Beware of those who glory in appearance void of substance. Beware of emotional excitement that lacks depth. Beware of hypnotic smoke with no holy fire.

Hype fakes the happening while delaying true holiness. Hype is infinitely more dangerous than we can ever imagine, because it lies to us and tells us that something great is happening, when in fact, very little is going on.

Bert M. Farias, revivalist and founder of Holy Fire Ministries, is the author of several books, including the newly released My Son, My Son, which he co-wrote with his son Daniel for the purpose of training up a holy generation. He is also co-host of the New England Holy Ghost Forum, a school of the Spirit. Follow him at Bert Farias on Facebook or at @Bertfarias1 on Twitter.

When Prophets and Pastors Are Blind as Bats by JENNIFER LECLAIRE

As the blind lead the blind into apostasy, we must remember Who makes blind men see and sets the captives free. (FreeImages.com)

"Brethren, our preaching will bear its legitimate fruits. If immorality prevails in the land, the fault is ours in a great degree. If there is a decay of conscience, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the public press lacks moral discrimination, the pulpit is responsible for it.

"If the church is degenerate and worldly, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the world loses its interest in religion, the pulpit is responsible for it. If Satan rules in our halls of legislation, the pulpit is responsible for it. If our politics become so corrupt that the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away, the pulpit is responsible for it."

Those were the words of Charles G. Finney, a leader in America's Second Great Awakening, recorded on Dec. 4, 1843. Those words were true then but are especially prophetic for our generation. Immorality is prevailing in the land. There is a decay of conscience. The media lacks moral discrimination. The church is degenerate and worldly. The world has lost its interest in religion. Satan rules in our halls of legislation. Politics are corrupt, and the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away.

History Repeats Itself

Yes, those words are true today, they were true 171 years ago—and they were true thousands of years before that in Isaiah's day. Indeed, history continues to repeat itself as spiritual leaders are struck blind in their disobedience to God's Word. Many are hearers—and preachers—of the Word but have deceived themselves by not walking in truth (see James 1:22).

The spirit of the world has invaded our church—but some pastors embrace carnal Christianity and are unwilling to confront sin for fear of losing tithes to an ear-tickling church. Their conscience is seared with a hot iron (see 1 Tim. 4:1) so they can't see how their compromise is affecting the flock—leading them down a broad path that leads to destruction (see Matt. 7:13). I sometimes wonder if God has given some pastors and prophets over to a reprobate mind (see Rom. 1:28)—or at least left them in their blindness and slumber. Isaiah put it this way:

"Pause and wonder! Blind yourselves and be blind! They are drunk, but not with wine; They stagger, but not with intoxicating drink. For the Lord has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets; and He has covered your heads, namely, the seers" (Isa. 29:9-10).

Although many in prophetic ministry are sounding the alarm, blowing the trumpet and stirring souls to wake up and understand the signs of the times, many in pulpits are blind watchman who are just out for greedy gain. Isaiah prophesied to the irresponsible leaders in his day:

"All you beasts of the field, come to devour, all you beasts in the forest. His watchmen are blind, they are all ignorant; they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; Sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber. Yes, they are greedy dogs which never have enough. And they are shepherds who cannot understand; They all look to their own way, every one for his own gain, from his own territory" (Isa. 56:9-11).

Will History Repeat Itself Again?

Saints, immorality is prevailing in the land. There is a decay of conscience. The media lacks moral discrimination. The church is degenerate and worldly. The world has lost its interest in religion. Satan rules in our halls of legislation. Politics are corrupt—and the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away.

But here's the good news. History repeats itself. Just before the first two Great Awakenings, people thought the church was done for. Many thought there was no hope. But with God there is always hope. God is a God of hope (Rom. 15:13). I am hoping—I am believing—for another Great Awakening in this land. I am hoping—I am believing—that the pastors and prophets will repent from their ear-tickling messages. I am hoping—I am believing—that the remnant will rise up in intercession for this land so that God will intervene.

I've been called a false prophet for hoping and believing. So be it. If we cannot hope for another Great Awakening, then we may as well give up. We have Christ in us, the hope of glory (see Col. 1:27). Church, it's time for us to wake up as individuals and begin hoping and praying again despite the darkness we see all around us. It's time to walk by faith and not by sight (see 2 Cor. 5:7). It's time for us to release believing prayers, because our intercession is what can turn this around.

"Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine" (Psalm 33:18-19). Amen.

 Jennifer LeClaire is news editor at Charisma. She is also director of IHOP Fort Lauderdale and author of several books, including The Making of a Prophet and The Spiritual Warrior's Guide to Defeating Jezebel. You can email Jennifer at jennifer.leclaire@charismamedia.com or visit her website here. You can also join Jennifer on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.

Pastor Paula White Claims July Is 'Prophetically Designated for Victory Over Enemies;' Suggests $229 'Breakthrough Seed' Donation

BY NICOLA MENZIE , CHRISTIAN POST

In a newsletter emailed to supporters this week, Florida pastor Paula White claims that God has shown her that "this is a season of victory for His people." The Christian minister also reveals a strong feeling "that a seed of $229 in accordance with 1 Chronicles 22:9 is a breakthrough seed for the month of July," and declares to recipients of her newsletter, "Do not hesitate to follow a prophetic instruction!"

White, who formerly led Without Walls Church International with ex-husband Randy White, is senior pastor of New Destiny Christian Center in Apopka, Florida.

In a newsletter emailed on Thursday to Paula White Ministries supporters, and titled "This Email Will Change Your Life!" White asserts: "YOU are on the verge of complete breakthrough in every area of your life. Spiritually, Financially, and Relationally God has shown me that this is a season of victory for His people."

"As I went deeper in the Spirit the Lord revealed that before the breakthrough comes, certain things must be dealt with. Specifically, there must be a complete defeat of your enemies! I need to explain the importance of this to you, so do not let this email go unread," the newsletter signed "Paula" adds.

White goes on to suggest that 1 Chronicles 22:7-8 reveals that King David was unable to fully realize his dream of building the Temple because "he only secured complete victory over his enemies at an age too old to build!"

"This is why God told me to specifically address the area of defeat over enemies," White declares, continuing in all caps: "JULY IS PROPHETICALLY DESIGNATED FOR VICTORY OVER ENEMIES FOR THOSE WHO ALIGN THEMSELVES WITH ME IN THIS SEASON! DO NOT HESITATE!" It was not clear if the "me" in the minister's newsletter refers to herself, or if she is claiming to speak on behalf of God.

After breaking down what she says are the "7 principles" recipients of the newsletter "must know," White insists that they also "must know" how to "legally engage the enemy" in their life "for his unconditional defeat."

"Part of the legal engagement is in your following prophetic instruction," explains the newsletter. "July is YOUR month of deliverance from your enemy. After July, you will enter your season of rest that you may accomplish your dreams."

White goes on to insist that she has a special teaching that will help supporters attain deliverance from their enemies.

"But first you must get what I have to teach you," writes White.

"I feel strongly that a seed of $229 in accordance with 1 Chronicles 22:9 is a breakthrough seed for the month of July. It is a turnaround, God ordained, demon slaying, abundance bringing seed. Not only will this seed defeat your enemies, but I believe it will bring about an unexpected abundance of miracles. Do not hesitate to follow a prophetic instruction!"

In 1 Chronicles 22:9, King David tells his son Solomon of the message he received from God: "But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. His name will be Solomon, and I will grant Israel peace and quiet during his reign."

If recipients of the Paula White Ministries newsletter are unable to "produce" the 1 Chronicles-inspired $229 "seed" or "offering," then, they are told, "get a seed of $31 or more for the 31 days in July and 1 Chronicles 22:9 (22+9=31)."

On the product pages at paulawhite.org, the monetary figures for White's "Defeating Your Enemy Package" are labeled as "gifts" and "donations," as Paula White Ministries is a nonprofit, or charitable organization.

In exchange for their donations of either $229 or $31, supporters receive White's three-part teaching series, "The Depths of Satan" on how to "overcome and defeat" the devil's tactics; and also a book titled Binding The Strong Man by Archbishop N. Duncan-Williams, described on his official Facebook page as "a pioneer of the charismatic movement in Ghana."

While it is common for Christian ministries to solicit financial donations from supporters, oftentimes providing free resources as a token of gratitude, it is rare for the solicitation to be packaged as prophecy, or with such unction as special revelation from God.

Evangelist Benny Hinn made a similar appeal to supporters last month, encouraging them to step up to "higher seed-level giving" by donating $1,000 to his ministry. The televangelist suggested that supporters would enter a "new dimension of favor and increase" if they took on the challenge.

White, who is described on her ministry website as a "pastor, teacher, author, international evangelist, inspirational figure, popular TV personality…woman of God," has been engaged in Christian ministry since the late '80s. She claims to support through her ministry "hundreds of local and international outreaches." Her list of accolades and official recognitions include the 2011 Impact Leadership Award during the 5th Annual International Financial and Leadership Summit, the 2009 Humanitarian Award by the Trumpet Award Foundation, the 2007 Behind the Bench "Mind, Body Spirit Award" from the NBA Wives Organization, and many others.

White, dubbed a prosperity preacher by some Christians, was among six televangelists, including Hinn, targeted in 2007 by the Senate Committee on Finance for possible abuse of her ministry's nonprofit status. While the minister submitted a financial report to the committee, she failed to disclose her full financial dealings with her church and related ministry.

White, 48, and former husband Randy White grew Without Walls International Church into a mega-ministry in the late 1990s, making it one of the top 10 largest churches in Tampa, Florida. White eventually cut all ties with WWIC, and after the 2011 death of Zachery Tims, was installed, with much controversy, as his successor at New Destiny Christian Center.