Ravi Zacharias ministry confirms apologist 'did indeed engage in sexual misconduct'

 By Sheryl Lynn, Christian Post Reporter

Ravi Zacharias International Ministries confirmed on Wednesday that its late founder “did indeed engage in sexual misconduct.”

Releasing an interim report by Miller & Martin PLLC, which the ministry hired to investigate allegations of misconduct that were made public months after Zacharias’ death, RZIM said, “Sadly, the interim investigation update indicates this assessment of Ravi’s behavior to be true.”

“This misconduct is deeply troubling and wholly inconsistent with the man Ravi Zacharias presented both publicly and privately to so many over more than four decades of public ministry,” it added, noting that it is devastated for those who “suffered from Ravi’s misconduct.”

Massage therapists at day spas co-owned by Zacharias, an influential apologist who died in May after a battle with cancer, alleged that he would come in regularly for back pain treatment.

Three women who spoke with Stephen Baughman, an attorney, and Christianity Today said during those treatments, he would expose himself, masturbate, and ask for explicit photos as well to have sex.

The Miller & Martin investigation team said it interviewed dozens of witnesses, including massage therapists who worked at the Touch of Eden and Jivan Wellness spas and reviewed numerous documents and electronic devices used by Zacharias.

“Combining those interviews with our review of documents and electronic data, we have found significant, credible evidence that Mr. Zacharias engaged in sexual misconduct over the course of many years. Some of that misconduct is consistent with and corroborative of that which is reported in the news recently, and some of the conduct we have uncovered is more serious,” it said.

The investigation is ongoing and is expected to conclude in January or February.

The team was given “broad discretion and authority to follow leads into other sexual misconduct that might arise” beyond the spa allegations.

“We are heartbroken at learning this but feel it necessary to be transparent and to inform our staff, donors, and supporters at this time, even while the investigation continues,” RZIM stated.

The interim report comes after an apologist with RZIM lamented how the ministry has handled allegations of sexual misconduct, including sexting allegations involving Lori Anne Thompson, a Canadian woman, in 2017.

Max Baker-Hytch, a senior tutor with the ministry's Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics, called on the leadership to make "meaningful reparations" to the alleged victims and radically change the culture of the ministry. 

RZIM has vowed to release the final report once the investigation is complete.

Big Pharma and Microsoft Are Teaming up in Something Called the ‘id2020 Alliance’

April 4, 2020/StevieRay Hansen





The ID2020 Alliance, as it’s being called, is a digital identity program that aims to “leverage immunization” as a means of inserting tiny microchips into people’s bodies. In collaboration with the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations, also known as GAVI, the government of Bangladesh and various other “partners in government, academia, and humanitarian relief,” the ID2020 Alliance hopes to usher in this mark of the beast as a way to keep tabs on every human being living on Earth.

On March 18, outspoken eugenicist Bill Gates participated in an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) event on Reddit entitled, “I’m Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. AMA about COVID-19.” And during this event, Gates openly admitted to the world that the agenda moving forward is to vaccinate every person on the planet with coronavirus vaccines as well as track them with Mark of the Beast-type “digital certificates.”

Taking place just five days after he conveniently stepped down from the public board of Microsoft to “dedicate more time to philanthropic priorities including global health and development, education, and climate change,” this AMA event with Bill Gates ended up revealing the blueprints of the globalist endgame for humanity, which includes tagging people like cattle and controlling what they’re allowed to do based on their vaccination status.

If you agree to get vaccinated with a Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine once it becomes available, in other words, then the government will grant you permission to join back up with society and resume at least some of the “normalcy” of your former life. If you don’t, however, then you’ll presumably be ostracized from the rest of the world and forced into permanent isolation, left to fend for yourself with no means to buy, sell, or conduct any type of business in order to make a living and survive.

This is the book of Revelation in action, and Bill Gates is laying it all out for you – assuming you’re paying attention. Everything he’s presenting as the “solution” to the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis was foretold long ago by the prophets, and now it’s coming to fruition under the guise of stopping a global pandemic and ensuring that everyone has a proper “digital identity.”

It was October 2019 when Bill Gates held his infamous Event 201 forum, which included discussions about a “hypothetical” coronavirus pandemic and how to handle it. Fast-forward a few months and here we are, exactly as Bill Gates and his globalist cronies “predicted” – or rather planned – it all to happen, along with their “solutions” waiting in the wings for a grand unveiling.

When asked, “What changes are we going to have to make to how businesses operate to maintain our economy while providing social distancing?” Bill Gates responded:

“The question of which businesses should keep going is tricky. Certainly the food supply and the health system. We still need water, electricity and the internet. Supply chains for critical things need to be maintained. Countries are still figuring out what to keep running.”

And here’s the real kicker at the conclusion of his answer:

“Eventually we will have some digital certificates to show who has recovered or been tested recently or when we have a vaccine, who has received it.”

Did you catch that? Bill Gates wants to digitally track everyone who contracts the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) and recovers from it, along with everyone who’s been tested for it. He also wants to know who takes the coronavirus vaccine once it becomes publicly available.

Listen below to The Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, talks about how the world economy has now come to an end due to the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19):



Bill Gates wants everyone to have a “quantum dot tattoo” microchip inserted in their bodies

It should be noted that the number-one up-voted response to this admission by Bill Gates was from a user who pointed out that it directly aligns with Revelation 13, which states, beginning in verse 16, concerning the Mark of the Beast:

“He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark of the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.”

Keep in mind that this all coincides with the ID2020 agenda, which aims to create a global digital identification system for every person on Earth. As we’ve reported in the past, ID2020 and vaccines are being used together to harvest the biometric identities of all mankind, and all for the purpose of creating the global system of tracking and control that was foretold in the book of Revelation.

They’ve already begun to test ID2020 in Bangladesh, inserting digital IDs in the bodies of newborn babies along with their vaccinations. And Bill Gates is now talking about how so-called “quantum dot tattoos” are the next wave of biometrics identification, also to be inserted in people’s bodies through vaccination.

“This short (and unexpected answer) opened a gigantic Pandora’s box of what could be in store in the near future: The inevitable mass vaccination campaign to eradicate COVID-19 would be the perfect opportunity to introduce a worldwide digital ID,” warns Vigilant Citizen.

To keep up with the latest Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) news, be sure to check out Pandemic.news.

A report from Futurism explains the quantum dot tattoo as “tiny semiconducting crystals that reflect light” and that “glows under infrared light.” This pattern, along with the vaccine it’s hidden in, gets “delivered into the skin using hi-tech dissolvable microneedles made of a mixture of polymers and sugar,” and is coming to a vaccine clinic near you in the very near future.

Sources for this article include: VigilantCitizen.com NaturalNews.com HNewsWire

 Big Brother, bill gates, China, Chinese Virus, coronavirus, coronavirus vaccine, covid-19, digital certificate, disease, eugenicist, eugenics, fascist, global emergency, Global Pandemic, health freedom, infection, medical fascism, novel coronavirus, Orwellian, outbreak, pandemic, Tyranny, vaccine wars, vaccines, virus, Wuhan, Wuhan coronavirus

Our social media platforms continue to hide the truth from the American people, by shadow banning. The blood of people are on their hands enjoy reprobates…

The New York Times has published dangerous misinformation about how to prepare for the coronavirus. The recent article said, “wash your hands, keep a supply of medicine, and GET A FLU SHOT.” This might be one of the most illogical pieces of medical advice ever doled out by the mainstream media. The article assures readers that getting a flu shot is a “practical tip” offered by “experts.” Meanwhile, the rest of the world rolls their eyes.

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the source of the fake news

The article cites Dr. Keith Klugman, director of the pneumonia program at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He says that infectious disease specialists strongly recommend flu vaccination for coronavirus and pneumonia. The best protection for older people against bacterial pneumonia, he says, is to “vaccinate children.”

According to David Brownstein, M.D., this is FAKE NEWS propaganda. “The flu vaccine has never been shown to protect against pneumonia,” he iterated. And obviously, the flu viruses used in the flu vaccine do not resemble coronaviruses and will not prepare the immune system in any way.

According to the CDC’s annual flu vaccine statistics, the flu vaccine is not effective at all for controlling the circulating flu strain each year. In fact, the flu shot has been found to cause mutations in flu viruses from the previous flu season, making people more susceptible to infection the following year. So, to think that inoculation with flu viruses is going to prepare the immune system for coronaviruses is illogical, to say the least. Even a coronavirus vaccine will be risky, as evidenced by previous attempts to develop a vaccine for SARS.

Flu vaccines increase hospitalizations for flu-like illnesses three-fold
Furthermore, researchers from the American Thoracic Society have found damning evidence surrounding the flu vaccine that many people won’t want to hear. Instead of preventing influenza-related hospitalization in children, the trivalent inactivated flu vaccine actually increases hospitalizations three fold!

Children who are subjected to the flu vaccine year after year are at an increased risk for hospitalization when compared to children who are not subjected to the vaccine. Children with asthma suffer the worst. This research shows there’s no efficacy to the vaccine; in fact, the flu vaccine poses net harm to children. The research is to be presented on May 19, at the 105th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego.

“This study was aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the TIV in children overall, as well as the children with asthma, to prevent influenza-related hospitalization,” said Joshi, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

The study examined 263 children who were thoroughly examined at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, aged six months to 18 years. Each of the children had experienced laboratory-verified influenza infection at some point between 1996 and 2006. The Mayo Clinic evaluated each child, whether they were subjected to the flu vaccine, whether they had asthma and finally, whether they needed hospitalization for influenza-related illnesses.

The results are not what vaccine manufacturers want to hear: Children who don’t get the flu vaccine recover from flu and other infections more effectively, rarely requiring hospitalization. Children who are subjected to the annual flu vaccine are three times more likely to suffer complications to infection, more likely to be hospitalized, and put on breathing treatments and other drugs. The risk of hospitalization post-vaccination is even higher for children who already have inflamed airways and constricted breathing due to asthma.

This is partly due to the fact that flu vaccines contain thimerosal, a mercury compound that depletes intracellular glutathione production and causes oxidation of the mitochondria pathway of cells. Glutathione is the master antioxidant for the cells in the body. When it is depleted, a person’s immune system is weakened and they become more susceptible to complications from infections.

CDC fails to publish peer-reviewed science on how to strengthen the innate immune system
The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program all recommend the flu vaccine for all children six months to 18 years. To decrease influenza-related hospitalization in children, it’s time for these organizations to rescind their flu vaccine recommendations. It’s also time for public health authorities to provide information and effective resources that can help children overcome infections naturally. On the CDC’s page for preparing for coronavirus, there is no mention of practical solutions for preparing the immune system.

Tools that actually help a child’s immune system overcome infection include, but are not limited to: elderberry syrup, whole food zinc, and vitamin C supplements, proper hydration, no sugar or foods that generate mucus, a healthy fever response (not suppressed), sweet licorice root extracts, vitamin D supplements, colloidal silver, raw manuka honey, garlic-leek-onion-rich soups, and real fruit juices.

Not everyone’s immune system is the same and some children suffer from asthmatic conditions caused by environmental factors. Because asthmatic conditions are made worse, according to this study, by the annual flu vaccine, it’s important to learn how to reduce inflammation in the airways. Extracts of mullein herb, elecampane, turmeric root, marshmallow root, black cumin seed, and Schisandra berry, are effective anti-inflammatory solutions for the respiratory tract and beyond.

In order to avoid complications and hospitalizations from infections, families should avoid artificial perturbation of the immune system via flu vaccines and instead accentuate the body’s innate immune defenses.

Keep up with the latest on the coronavirus outbreak and Pandemic.news.

Sources include: HealthImpactNews.com NYTimes.com NaturalNews.com ScienceDaily.com Journal.Plos.org CDC.gov LivePureBodyCare.com ScienceDirect.com NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov LivePureBodyCare.com NaturalNews.com

Evangelist Todd Bentley Claims Shirtless 'Financial Angel' Visited Him in Hotel Room, Another Wrestled Him at Home Evangelist Todd Bentley Claims Shirtless 'Financial Angel' Visited Him in Hotel Room, Another Wrestled Him at Home By Leonardo Blair, Christian Post Reporter

By Leonardo Blair, Christian Post Reporter



Fresh Fire USA founder and healing evangelist Todd Bentley claimed during a "Supernatural Debt Forgiveness Jubilee Service" Sunday that he has had live encounters with angels during his ministry similar to those experienced by biblical figures, including a visit from a shirtless "financial angel" in a dingy hotel room and another in his home where the angel wrestled him in his bed.

"It (angel) appeared to me as a person. A man. So I'm not having a dream. It's not a trance. I'm wide awake. I'm in my bathroom. And I've never had an angelic encounter where it's like in this world. A messenger from Heaven," Bentley said in the service of his first encounter with an angel which he said happened in Albany, Oregon, around 2004 or 2005.

He explained that at the time he was an evangelist based in Canada and was invited by a group of churches in Oregon to minister due to his reputation as a "miracle healing guy."

During his American tour late one night inside the "dingy" and seedy hotel room where his hosts had booked him, Bentley said he encountered the "financial angel."

"I'm in my hotel and in my bathroom and it's the middle of the night. And I open my hotel room and turn the light on, and there's a man in there, in my bathroom. And I looked at this man, he didn't have his shirt on, so I thought he must've got into the wrong hotel room. First thought. You know 'you're in the wrong room bro.' ... And then realized he was wearing funny like white yoga pants, like really tight, white ballet-type pants and like Aladdin golden slippers. And I looked down at him and thought 'wow, this isn't a man. This is an angel,'" Bentley recounted.

He then pointed to Scripture to say that his experience had biblical precedent.

"You know this is where you may be entertaining strangers but you're entertaining angels Hebrews 13:5," he said. (The verse he was referring to is actually verse 2, which says: "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.")

"Literally this is like Abraham thought three men came to his tent and it turned out to be the Lord and two angels but he thought it was three men. He likes told his wife to go get the fattened calf and you know Genesis 18, he said three men are coming to have dinner with me, they were actually angels. That was what happened to me," he said.

Bentley then continued his testimony of angelic encounters.

4 Ways Antichrist Will Deceive Just as Solomon Did

4:00PM EDT 4/1/2019 MARK BILTZ

The Old Testament shows many shadows of the Messiah—Adam, Isaac, Moses, David—and most Christians would add Solomon to that list. Surely someone like him would unite both Christians and Jews, says author and pastor Mark Biltz.

But in his newest book, Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times: What the Bible Says and What the Future Holds, Biltz writes that typically our understanding of Solomon includes how wise he was, how famous he was, his incredible wealth and how Israel was at the top of its game during his reign.

"But if we look closer at the details within Scripture, we might find we have been deceived!" he says. "But didn't he bring peace to the Middle East? Yes. This peace enabled him to accomplish great things, such as the building of the temple. But then why has it gone downhill for Israel ever since? I believe it is because Solomon compromised the Word of God for peace.

"The Antichrist will be equally deceptive," Biltz continued. "The world will cry out for a messiah like King Solomon to solve the problems in the Middle East. But I believe the Antichrist will appear similar to King Solomon in many ways."

For example, Solomon had all the power, all the wealth and all the fame to advance the kingdom of God, but he chose to advance his own kingdom instead. He allowed his heart to be lifted up after he obtained riches for himself, as told in Ezekiel 28:1-7.

"God had given specific instructions in the Torah for Israel's king," Biltz said. "God held the king to a higher standard just so he would not think of himself as better than others and turn from God's commands as stated in Deuteronomy 17. Surely Solomon wouldn't think he was above the Law, would he?"

Biltz outlines some of the deceptions carried out by Solomon:

1. Solomon multiplied horses and was an international arms trader.

According to Deuteronomy 17:16, God demanded that the king was not to increase his number of horses or make the people return to Egypt to increase his horses. Yet we find in 1 Kings 4:26 that "Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand horsemen."

Then, verse 27 says that through their agents he exported these horses and chariots to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria. Solomon was acting as an arms merchant selling weapons directly to Israel's enemies.

2. Solomon had multiple wives and married foreign wives.

Deuteronomy 17:17 says the king was not to multiply wives for himself. Yet in 1 Kings 11:3, Solomon "had seven hundred wives who were princess and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away" (1 Kings 11:3).

Solomon also married foreign women, which God said not to do. According to his wisdom, what better way to secure peace than by marrying the daughters of foreign kings? But it was a direct affront to God's commands. He achieved peace at a very expensive cost. How will the Antichrist achieve peace? Will it be according to God's law or through political means?

3. Solomon multiplied silver and gold.

In His warning in Deuteronomy 17, God also told the Israelites that their king must not "greatly multiply to himself silver and gold." However, 1 Kings 10:22 says Solomon had a fleet of ships, and every three years they brought in gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks.

1 Kings 10:25 says everything that came into Solomon's kingdom was at a specific rate. And the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents (verse 14)—a man associated with both wisdom and the number 666. The number 666 is found only twice in the Bible, once referring to Solomon's gold trade and wisdom and once referring to the Antichrist.

4. Solomon built pagan altars rather than destroying them.

Deuteronomy 7:5 highlights how the Israelites were commanded to destroy their enemy's altars, break down their sacred pillars, cut down their wooden images and burn their carved images. But in 1 Kings 11, we see that Solomon built a "high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is close to Jerusalem, and for Molek, the abomination of the children of Ammon" (v. 7). Verse 8 says he did this for all his foreign wives, "who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods."

"Solomon had obtained all the fame, riches and power, yet he considered all of his life's actions to be in vain, including the building of the temple," Biltz said. "This is because he felt it was all about himself! He had to be the 'narcissist in chief.'

"Is this the type of king the world is seeking to bring peace to the Middle East?" he continued. "No wonder many will be deceived. Instead of trying to figure out who the Antichrist will be, we need to study what he will be like. Solomon was a total narcissist, and the Antichrist will be as well. I believe historical patterns will also be repeated in other aspects. Someone who will seem to be wiser than everyone else will try to achieve a false peace by entering into ungodly covenants with all the foreign nations. He will try to achieve a land for peace agreement in Israel, thinking it wiser to cut the baby in half and create two nations as two people groups are claiming the land of Israel as their own. This will only result in killing the baby that is alive! We must not be deceived."

Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times takes an in-depth look at some of the deepest questions surrounding the Antichrist, such as the following:

What does the Bible say about the Antichrist's tactics and his motivation?

Will he be a Muslim, a Jew or a professed Christian—or something else?

Will the Antichrist work through modern technology to seize control?

Mark Biltz is founder of El Shaddai Ministries and a well-known and popular commentator on the feasts of the Lord. In fact, he has produced a series of DVDs on the feasts that have gone around the world. Biltz is also the author of Blood Moons and God's Day Timer. His research and theories have led to guest appearances on both radio and television as well as being featured on the covers of magazines.

Bridge-Building or Compromising with Heresy? - Michael Brown

In response to my article on my meeting with Pastor Joseph Prince, I was flooded with words of support and encouragement, commending us for getting together. Others were quite critical, posting comments like this: "I am so disappointed! Why are you cozying up to that cheap grace teacher Prince? Why?" (I imagine Pastor Prince heard from critics who were upset that he met with me, perhaps branding me a legalist or worse.)

An old friend wrote to me after reading the article and said, "it's so clear that God has put an anointing and even a mantle on your life to be a bridge-builder." Conversely, another old friend of mine was challenged by a supposed spiritual watchdog website (which I will not publicize here), urging him to confront me on my embrace of allegedly heretical preachers.

The comments on my Facebook page reflected polar perspectives as well, including posts like this, on the positive side: "As a Pentecostal/Charismatic Pastor I have to say that I was blessed by your article on your meeting with Pastor Prince. It was an amazing story of what can happen when we get together and share our hearts with each other." And, conversely, on the negative, posts like this: "The church cannot function properly in the context of the social issues we face today with people like Joseph Prince in its midst. He's a false teacher, and, as Paul did with false teachers in the New Testament, we need to place him outside godly fellowship if or until God grants him true repentance."

So, which is it? Was my meeting with Joseph Prince an act of godly bridge-building, for the glory of Jesus and the edification of His people, or was it an act of compromise?

When I wrote Hyper-Grace, I emphasized "that those I'm differing with in this book are brothers and sisters in the Lord—at least, to the best of my knowledge—and with rare exception, I find much in their writings and messages that thrills my soul and blesses me deeply. Often, as I would be reading their books, I would be shouting amen on one page, only to groan on the next page as a verse was misused or a key truth overlooked or a falsehood stated as if it were true."

When I mentioned Pastor Prince's book Unmerited Favor, I said that, "I found much in his book that was excellent." I also stated that, "He writes like a man who knows the Lord and has experienced God's goodness, like a man who takes delight in God's Word and who knows what it is to worship and love Jesus." And I affirmed that "My heart resonated with much of what he wrote."

So, even while expressing my strong differences with a number of Pastor Prince's positions, I did so recognizing him as a brother who loved the Lord and who had many good things to say. On the flip side, Pastor Prince always recognized me as a brother in the Lord.

This, then, begs the question: How can it possibly be wrong for two well-known leaders to sit face to face, in humility and respect, and discuss their theological differences? How can this be compromise (on either side), especially if we agree on the essentials of the faith?

To be perfectly clear, the last thing I'm looking for is human approval. (If you know me at all, that's self-evident.) Rather, I write this to help other believers (and especially leaders) who have differences to follow our lead and sit face to face for dialogue and discussion.

Perhaps, when you meet with that brother or sister, your views will be closer than you realize, or perhaps you'll discover there are some serious misunderstandings between you. Or maybe one of you can help the other see the light, or maybe one of you needs to be warned about major error.

This much is sure: It is better to come together with humble and open hearts before the Lord, talking face-to-face, than to ignore each other or attack each other from a distance.

If Pastor Prince does have some serious errors in his teaching, I'm now in a position to help him directly. Conversely, if I have some serious errors in my teaching, he's now in a position to help me directly. Again I ask, how can this be wrong before the Lord?

Ironically, some of those who criticized me for meeting with Pastor Prince and posting my article (which, again, was edited by him until we came to agreement on the final text) belong to camps whose leadership refuses to meet with me to have theological dialogue.

Not only so, but some of those attacking me for interacting with Pastor Prince hide behind anonymous websites and identities, so we have no idea who we're dealing with, no idea of whom they're submitted to (or with whom they're connected in the Body), no idea of their own spiritual and moral history.

As one who loves truth and has sought to confront error for decades, I find this anonymous, self-appointed spiritual policing to do more harm than good.

Some readers will say to me, "We have no issue with you getting together with Joseph Prince. We take issue with you embracing him as a brother and proclaiming your areas of agreement. That's where you're deceived."

The fact is that he is a brother, he does love the Lord, he is a serious student of the Word, he does have a burden for the lost, and he truly wants to confront counterfeit grace. (Note carefully that I chose the term "hyper-grace" in writing my book rather than "counterfeit grace," since I never believed that Joseph Prince or most of the leaders I critiqued in my book taught "counterfeit grace." I also chose the term because some of those I identified as hyper-grace preachers embraced the term, saying, "Yes, God's grace is hyper!")

In Hyper-Grace, I wrote, "Without a doubt, many believers have been transformed listening to Joseph Prince and others teach about grace, and it is because much of what they are saying is biblical. I affirm that part of the message wholeheartedly, and I wish I could recommend their material without reserve. The problem, I believe, is that he and other hyper-grace leaders sometimes teach about grace in exaggerated form or, worse still, mixed with serious errors, and that's why there are all too many casualties and divisions among the listeners and readers."

Pastor Prince stressed in our meeting (and in my article) that those who listened to his message and then lived in compromise and complacency had really not heard or understood the message of grace. I stressed my conviction that there were errors in his message that produced the bad fruit, while the biblically-accurate content of the rest of his message produced the good fruit. Which of us is right?

In my view, by emphasizing our very important areas of agreement, it will be more difficult for people to misunderstand either of us, and the door is now open for honest dialogue about key verses and truth, with both us expressing a desire to follow the Lord and His Word wherever that leads. And we both want to expose what we do agree on: the very real dangers of counterfeit grace, some of which is growing in the midst of the hyper-grace camp.

Again I ask: In our heavenly Father's sight, how can that be wrong?

I have no desire to placate my critics, nor do I have any interest in a broad-based, theologically-loose, skin-deep unity. I am running after God's heart and mind with all my might, and I know that truth-based unity is of great importance to Him. That requires honest dialogue and interaction with others in the body with whom we have differences.

Dr. Michael Brown (www.askdrbrown.org) is the host of the nationally syndicated Line of Fire radio program. His latest book is Breaking the Stronghold of Food. Connect with him on Facebook or Twitter.

The Great Ecclesiastical Conspiracy

by George Davis, Michael Clark, & Kirk Pearson

Introduction

This book was written as an expose' of an 1800 year old conspiracy. It is intended to define the conspiracy, leaving you to judge for yourself. Consider it a primer, covering only the basic elements of the subject. It is not intended to be exhaustive, since the total truth of this matter could not be told in such brevity. It is written with the utmost confidence that its readers will be its perfecters. It is the result of a million prayers, asking, "Why? Why Lord, is the Church before me so unlike the one I read about in the Bible? Why O God is there so much failure and defeat in what is supposed to be the representation of you in the earth?" This book may present more questions than answers, but questions are not to be feared.  God is not like the haggard parent who resents the seemingly unending barrage of questions proceeding from the inquisitive child. God is eager and attentive to them all.

While not written for everyone, this book is dedicated to those analytical ones who have dared to ask the forbidden question, "What is wrong with the church?" It is dedicated to all those who are willing to pay the price to see Christ's Ekklesia restored. The reformation is not over. In fact it is just begun, and this book is dedicated to all reformers everywhere. It is dedicated, as we are, to the restoration of all things. It is written to those who willingly suffer the loss of all things for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ. It is written in the deepest respect and honor for those of whom the world is not worthy, who laid down their very lives to expose this conspiracy. What qualifies us to write such a work? Nothing, except perhaps an indescribable burden, a passion that can only be characterized by the heart of a Father yearning to see His children set free from their oppressors, and a desire for the final deliverance of His family from the conspirators’ hands.

George Davis and Michael Clark

Continue reading The Great Ecclesiastical Conspiracy

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.

Are We Headed Toward Revival or Retribution?

DAVID RAVENHILL



Within the last three days I've received two very different YouTube messages from two senior charismatic prophetic leaders. The first leader, Rick Joyner, was citing a very vivid and frightening dream he recently had of terrorists coming across our southern border and carrying out unimaginable acts of brutality. So horrendous were these acts that Joyner stated he was not even going to describe them due to their violent and barbaric nature. (Only today we learned of the beheading of an Oklahoma woman by a recent convert to Islam.)

The other video centered around the "Appeal To Heaven" movement. Dutch Sheets, a well-known teacher and prophetic minister, was relating how our nation's first flag was that of a green pine tree on a white background bearing the words "Appeal to Heaven."

America during its first fledgling years knew the people's only hope for existence as a nation was sole dependency upon God. The point of the message was that several people through dreams, etc., believed that God was once again bringing us back to this place of absolute dependency upon Him; and that as we sought Him, He would bring about a Third Great Awakening in our nation.

My first reaction to these very different prophetic words was one of confusion. On one hand was the possibility of retribution while on the other, that of revival.

What was I to believe? As I pondered over these words I came to the realization that both were correct and that one was not necessarily in opposition to the other.        

Let me see if I can explain myself. I believe it's all a matter of timing or order.

Imagine if you were one of the many hundreds of missionaries who had given their lives to serve God in China prior to the Cultural Revolution under Chairman Mao Zedong. Once the revolution had begun, you were forced to leave—no doubt wondering in your mind what on earth was going to happen now that all the missionaries had been forced out. Fast-forward to the present, and we are now witnessing one of the greatest moves of God in recent history. What at first appeared to be a major disaster turned into mighty testimony to the power and grace of God.

The prophet Isaiah declared, "When the earth experiences Thy judgments the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness." He went on to say, "Though the wicked is shown favor he does not learn righteousness" (Is. 26:9-10). It is my personal belief that America is in for a time of judgment and that to be shown favor now would only delay God's ultimate purpose.

That said, I believe we are going to see an increase in violence, terrorism and natural calamities. God will use this to separate the carnal from the consecrated and in turn, produce a church that is truly Christ-centered. It would not surprise me in the least to see an underground church in America in the not-too-distant future—a church where every member functions in their God-given gifting and where everyone depends not only on each other but also holds fast to Christ their Lord and Head.

I truly believe that God wants to send revival to our nation, but revival now would simply cause the vast majority of believers to go on with business as usual.

I well recall during the first year of our ministry working with Brother David Wilkerson in Teen Challenge in Brooklyn, New York. One cold winter's day two drug addicts came in seeking shelter. Bro. David talked to them for a while and then I saw them leave. Bro. David said to me after they had left that he couldn't help them because they were not desperate enough to give up their drugs. He went on to say that all they really wanted was a bed for the night and a good hot meal. I somehow think that is what the church is looking for in revival—a good sermon, some great music, followed by some carpet time.

But I believe God's plans are radically different. He's looking for a pure, passionate, powerful people whose only desire is to extend His kingdom. A people who will love not their lives unto death, and whose first love is not the NFL, NBA, MLB or NHL, but Christ Himself.

We are nowhere near to having Christ as our first love. God must first produce a real CRY in His people. We cry when we are in pain and not until. King David said, "Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now I have kept Thy word" (Ps. 119:67, KJV). Or to put it another way, "Spare the rod and spoil the child."

The shakings have begun. Watch out for more. But remember, that while "no chastening seems to be joyful for the present ... afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness" (Heb. 12:11, NKJV, emphasis added).

I see Joyner's dream coming to pass first, and then followed by a great awakening.

That's my opinion, and time will prove me right or wrong.

David Ravenhill has served the Lord for more than 40 years as a missionary, pastor, teacher and itinerant minister, having worked with the late evangelist David Wilkerson, Youth With A Mission, pastor Mike Bickle and the late evangelist Steve Hill. He is the author of several books, including For God's Sake, Grow Up! and Welcome Home.

The Osteen Predicament: Mere Happiness Cannot Bear the Weight of the Gospel

The evangelical world, joined by no shortage of secular observers, has been abuzz about the latest soundbite of note from the Pastors Osteen—this time offered by Victoria Osteen as her husband Joel beamed in the background. It is a hard video to watch.

In her message, Victoria Osteen tells their massive congregation to realize that their devotion to God is not really about God, but about themselves. "I just want to encourage every one of us to realize when we obey God, we're not doing it for God—I mean, that's one way to look at it—we're doing it for ourselves, because God takes pleasure when we are happy. ... That's the thing that gives Him the greatest joy."

She continued: "So, I want you to know this morning—Just do good for your own self. Do good because God wants you to be happy. ... When you come to church, when you worship Him, you're not doing it for God really. You're doing it for yourself, because that's what makes God happy. Amen?"

As you might predict, the congregation responded with a loud "Amen."

America deserves the Osteens. The consumer culture, the cult of the therapeutic, the marketing impulse and the sheer superficiality of American cultural Christianity probably made the Osteens inevitable. The Osteens are phenomenally successful because they are the exaggerated fulfillment of the self-help movement and the cult of celebrity rolled into one massive megachurch media empire. And, to cap it all off, they give Americans what Americans crave—reassurance delivered with a smile.

Judged in theological terms, the Osteen message is the latest and slickest version of Prosperity Theology. That American heresy has now spread throughout much of the world, but it began in the context of American Pentecostalism in the early 20th century. Prosperity theology, promising that God rewards faith with health and wealth, first appealed to those described as "the dispossessed"—the very poor.

Now, its updated version appeals to the aspirational class of the suburbs. Whereas the early devotees of prosperity theology prayed for a roof over their heads that did not leak, the devotees of prosperity theology in the Age of Osteen pray for ever bigger houses. The story of how the Osteens exercised faith for a big house comes early in Joel Osteen's best-seller, Your Best Life Now.

According to Osteen, God wants to pour out his "immeasurable favor" on his human creatures, and this requires a fundamental re-ordering of our thinking. "To experience this immeasurable favor," Osteen writes, "you must rid yourself of that small-minded thinking and start expecting God's blessings, start anticipating promotion and supernatural increase. You must conceive it in your heart before you can receive it. In other words, you must make increase in your own thinking, then God will bring those things to pass."

There is nothing really new in this message. Anyone familiar with the New Thought movement and later books such as Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich will see a persistent theme. The important issue is this: Prosperity theology is a false gospel. The problem with prosperity theology is not that it promises too much but that it aims for so little. What God promises us in Christ is far above anything that can be measured in earthly wealth—and believers are not promised earthly wealth nor the gift of health.

But to talk of the promises of God to believers is actually to jump outside the Osteen audience. The Osteen message does not differentiate between believers and unbelievers—certainly not in terms of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In their sermons, writings and media appearances, the Osteens insist that God is well-disposed to all people and wills that all flourish, but there is virtually no mention of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. No reference to sin as the fundamental issue. No explanation of atonement and resurrection as God's saving acts; no clarity of any sort on the need for faith in Christ and repentance of sin.

Instead, they focus on happiness and God's "immeasurable favor" to be poured out on all people, if they will only correct their thinking.

As a thought exercise, let's just limit the consideration to those people who have identified as Christians throughout the centuries. Does the Osteen message come close to their experience? Would it even make sense?

Just consider the fact that most Christians throughout the history of the church have been poor, and often desperately poor. They were not hoping to move into a suburban mini-mansion, they hoped to be able to feed their children one more day. That picture is still true for millions upon millions of Christians around the world today.

And that is just the start of it. What about all those who are even now suffering persecution for their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? What about the loved ones of the martyrs in Mosul? What about the Christians forced out of their homes and threatened with genocide by the Islamic State terrorists? What about the children of Christians slain in Iraq and Syria just in recent weeks, or those martyred by Boko Haram in Africa? How does prosperity theology work for them? Can anyone look them in the eye and say that God's plan for believers in this life is to know "Your Best Life Now"?

In her recent work on prosperity theology, historian Kate Bowler traces the shift from what she calls the "hard prosperity" message of the early Pentecostals to the "soft prosperity" message of modern preachers like Joel Osteen. As Bowler explains, the new "softer" version of the prosperity message has "become the foremost Christian theology of modern living."

Well, maybe. Prosperity theology certainly sells books and draws crowds in the United States, but what does it possibly say to a grieving Christian wife and mother in Iraq? How can it possibly be squared with the actual message of the New Testament? How can any sinner be saved, without a clear presentation of sin, redemption, the cross, the empty tomb, and the call to faith and repentance? Prosperity theology fails every test, and fails every test miserably. It is a false gospel, and one that must be repudiated, not merely reformatted.

Victoria Osteen's comments fit naturally within the worldview and message she and her husband have carefully cultivated. The divine-human relationship is just turned upside down, and God's greatest desire is said to be our happiness. But what is happiness? It is a word that cannot bear much weight. As writers from C.S. Lewis to the apostle Paul have made clear, happiness is no substitute for joy. Happiness, in the smiling version assured in the Age of Osteen, doesn't last, cannot satisfy, and often is not even real.

Furthermore, God's pleasure in his human creatures centers in his desire and will that they come to faith in Jesus Christ and be saved. The great dividing line in humanity is not between the rich and the poor, the sick and the well, or even the happy and the unhappy. The great divide is between those who, in Christ, have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God's glorious light.

Mere happiness cannot bear the weight of the gospel. The message of the real gospel is found in John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." That is a message that can be preached with a straight face, a courageous spirit, and an urgent heart in Munich, in Miami or in Mosul.

If our message cannot be preached with credibility in Mosul, it should not be preached in Houston. That is the Osteen Predicament.

The Rev. Albert Mohler Jr. is president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. You can write to him at mail@albertmohler.com or follow him on Twitter at @albertmohler.

Unless otherwise specified, the opinions expressed are solely the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of Charisma Media.

AN ANALYSIS INTO THE WEALTH OF CITY HARVEST CHURCH (Part 1)

by Think free and fair

Although I am aware that City Harvest is one of the richest churches in Singapore, I am still shocked that it is rich enough to pay $310 million dollars for a stake in Suntec City. Nevertheless, an entity which is able to amass such wealth is certainly worth studying. I was determined to understand the secrets to the church’s wealth.

I apologize upfront if the points raised give offense to loyal followers of City Harvest Church. Please regard this article as a business analysis of the factors that contribute to the wealth of City Harvest Church, not as an insinuation that the Church got rich through questionable means. The fact is that CHC is very rich and this makes for a fascinating academic exercise to examine its sources of wealth. Just treat it as a business case study. I have tried my best to stick to the facts. Please correct me if there are factual mistakes. However, if there are differences in opinions, please disagree with courtesy.

1. Clever packaging of Sunday services

The income of a church is dependent on the tithes collected (10% of income from church-members). Therefore, the earning power of a church is highly dependent on its ability to retain its existing church members and attract new ones. The larger the church membership, the greater its earnings.

I watched a sample of CHC weekend service on its website.  Compared to the boring Sunday classes I attended as a kid, CHC church service was most refreshing (Watch “The 10 Laws Of The Harvest”). The beginning part resembles a rock concert with good singing and enthusiastic audience. It is an entertaining way to enjoy your Sunday mornings. Going to church becomes a weekly event to look forward to rather than a chore to attend to.

With church services so well packaged for its customers, its customer retention rate and new customer acquisition figures should look good.

2. Extra revenue in the form of advertisements, sales of CDs

This church is unlike the other churches I know. It generates extra revenue through advertisements during its Sunday service (watch the videos). It sells audio CDs on its website. There is an online shopping cart for convenience to those who want to buy online.

3. Efficient collection of tithes

Church-members can pay their tithe online via credit card, eNets or even Giro!! Once members started donating using Giro, the earnings quality of the church improves. Donation collected via Giro tend to be more stable.

With a globalised economy, people travel round the world a lot and may miss Sunday services. In the past, the churches will lose income when these members fail to turn up to pay their tithe. Now, with online payment, they can continue collecting the tithe even when the church-member is working overseas for an extended period of time. With Giro, the church can continue collecting tithes for a few more months even when the member leaves the church as people have a habit of forgetting what they pay on Giro.

4. 30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold returns on your church donations

This is where the genius of CHC lies and the secret to its superior earning power. In fact, I have yet to encounter any public-listed company on SGX, HKSE, NYSE, Nasdaq that demonstrates better potential.

The pastor preaches that God will give 30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold returns on your tithe. But, you have to be generous in your donations first so that you will receive in harvest proportions. I guess that is the origin of the name City Harvest. Please watch the video ”The 10 Laws Of The Harvest” yourself in its entirety and interpret for yourself.

It is a message that cleverly uses an astute understanding of human nature to maximize profits. If I were a CHC member, I will be tempted to increase my tithe as much as possible. Not mincing my words, I am doing it out of pure greed. I do not think I will be alone. It is perfectly fine if members of CHC strongly disagree and thinks that I am not representative for most of them. After all, I can only speak for myself.

5. Quality of customers

With the 100-fold return message, the kind of church members attracted will be most conducive to profit-making. Money-minded people will be attracted to the church. These money-minded people tend to be ambitious and have a great desire to make lots of money. Millionaire minds have a higher chance to become rich. Hence, the quality of customers that CHC attracts are of the highest quality. The richer the church-member, the higher is the church’s tithe per member.

Customer quality will be enhanced through the passage of time due to survivor bias. Suppose out of this pool of Millionaire-Mind Christians, 50% become satisfactorily rich and the remaining 50% still unsatisfactorily middle-class. The 50% who got rich will donate even more because they think their source of wealth comes from their donations. It is most unlikely they will cut back on their tithes  because they will be afraid God will punish them by cutting back the returns. If they are not afraid, the church will be there to warn them not to do so. The remaining 50% who did not get rich will be disillusioned and probably leave the church. The loss is of little significance to the church. These people are not rich and their tithes will not amount to much.

Many Christians will be disgusted with the concept of using tithes to get rich. These people will probably leave the church after attending a few Sunday services. Again, the loss is of little significance to CHC. These people will not be highly profitable to the church even if they are rich because they are not going to tithe as much as the others who believe their tithes is the way to wealth.

To the credit of the Pastor, I think he has devised a wonderful process of filtering out non-profitable customers and sucking in the lucrative ones. There is only so much physical space that a church can have to service its church-members. To maximize profits, the church has to ensure that each unit of space is used for servicing lucrative customers.

6. Kill off competition

CHC has tremendous economic moat that kills off competition. In the video “The 10 Laws of The Harvest”, the Pastor cited Law #5 “Your Seed must be planted in Good Ground” which is an effective weapon in killing off his competition – the smaller churches. Many Christians feel that they ought to donate to the needy, smaller churches rather than rich mega-churches like CHC. The Pastor’s argument is that you do not get good returns like 100-fold in the small churches. You have to donate to mega-churches to maximize returns on your tithe because they have a track record (rich church members). In other words, the seed is not planted in good ground when you donate to the small churches. In his own words, ”I don’t always give to the neediest but to the ground that will give the greatest yield”. To illustrate his point, he used an analogy on weak banks and strong banks. You do not deposit your money in a weak bank because it desperately needs fresh funds to survive. You deposit your money in a strong bank which invests your money wisely and yields good returns.

The church has an iron-grip on its members who believe its message. As illustrated previously, its customer base is of the highest quality. This is its track record. Existing church-members will definitely not move to another smaller, needier church with poorer track record.

It has a very strong economic moat as it is very hard for its competitors to get its customers to switch over.

7. Providing a place where the rich can network

As the Pastor said, his church provides a good ground on which you can grow your riches. Rightly so, indeed. For property agents or insurance agents trying to hit their sales quota, City Harvest Church will be an ideal place to hunt for lucrative clients. This church concentrates several rich and money-minded people into a single location. The church offers a unique advantage to sell things. In a religious setting, people tend less to be on their guard and can be more easily persuaded to part with their money.

Businessmen also like to network in places where there are rich and powerful people who will come in handy in future. The Pastor has done a good job in gathering such people in his church and it makes good sense to make use of this advantage by joining the church.

The rich will attract more rich and the gathering moss snowballs to provide an ever-rising pool of donation to the church.

8. Preach what people like to hear. 

As a teenager, I was discouraged when I read Bible verses like Matthew 19:23-24 “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” and Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

It seems like if I become rich, I will be condemned to hell.

In the video ”Rich God? Poor God?”, the Pastor preaches that it is absolutely ok to be rich. Some prophets of God were very rich. (Abraham, David, Solomon)

There is nothing more musical to a money-minded person than to hear that God is on your side in your pursuit of money. The church-members who are more money-minded will love this and donate even more.

9. God pays for the returns, not the church.

The church collects the money, but God pays for the returns. The church does not need to pay a single cent for the 30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold returns on the donations.

This is as good as you do the work for me, but not only do I not pay you, I shall also collect your salary. You toil and sweat, but I shall eat your bread. God must surely be a miracle worker and people will pay handsomely for his service. I cannot think of a more advantageous economic position to be in to be able to collect money rendered by a miracle worker.

10. Social pressure to conform in church settings and ease of influence

If everyone around you donates, it is hard not to. When everyone else makes sacrifice, the one who does not will look like an outcast. There is tremendous pressure to conform in such a herd setting.

11. Tremendous future earning power

Take a look at the congregation and you will notice the large number of young people. The income growth of young people is the fastest in the population. In the Pastor’s words, “You may be poor today, but you will not be poor all your life”. That is a long-term business plan in cultivating its customers.

Therefore, if CHC can be viewed as a growth stock, its prospects are very bright as its young customers will accelerate its earnings.

12. Stable earnings in times of depression

Besides being a growth stock, CHC can also be viewed as a defensive and safe stock. People pray hardest when they fall in hard times. Strangely, some people have an urge to tithe when they are in financial troubles.

In fact, in the video (The 10 Laws Of The Harvest), a couple came on stage. They talked about the dire straits they were in when they started out. Things change when God challenged them to GIVE themselves out of poverty (exact words from the speaker). Despite not having any money, they still pledged $250 to the building fund. In his own words again, “we often emptied our savings to give to the House of God knowing that this will be the answer to our financial problems”. Hence, not only will the church earnings be stable in times of depression, it may even grow.

13. Using Prosperity as a theme to appeal to customers

The Pastor preaches Prosperity Gospel which resolves around money. His business genius lies in choosing this theme for his church. Money has universal appeal. Everyone worships money regardless of race, culture, age, gender, sexual orientation. In one fell swoop, he has enlarged his market to cover the entire world. It is much easier to convert people to your belief by dangling money and promising great prosperity. After all, who does not love money?

By enlarging his potential market catchment with a greater chance of increasing membership, more donations will flow in.

14. Tax benefits as church is registered as a charity

This creates a huge, unfair advantage compared to all other businesses. This is what landed CHC in controversy. Enough has been said.

If one day the Pastor switches to become a businessman, I will definitely consider investing in the company that he heads and founds.

If City Harvest Church is listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange, I will certainly buy it. It will be one stock that I am confident of hitting a return of 30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold returns.

PS: People tend not to question critically when it comes to religion. A charming smooth talker can easily sway minds with his interpretation of the Bible. In the final analysis, Faith is about simply believing. You cannot approach it scientifically because there is no way to test religious theories using the scientific method. We will only know the real truth when judgment day comes.

The danger is that there is no accountability on the part of the preacher on whether his teachings are true or not. Even he himself cannot be sure that his interpretations is 100% correct. Given human nature, the interpretations will tend to be self-serving. In fact, it is not only dangerous to the students but to the teacher as well. People will believe their own lies if it yields tempting benefits. That was how Wall Street drank its own Kool-Aid.

While I respect the Pastor for his business savvy, I cannot agree with his interpretations of the Bible. I pray for good health, peace and harmony for my family. Money-minded as I am, I am not comfortable with commercializing my relationship with God by asking for money. The Christian God that I know from my own reading of the Bible is not 财神爷. Of course, if God wants to drop money from heaven on me, I will be more than happy to embrace it.

City Harvest Saga continues. Analysis into the wealth of City Harvest Church (part 2)

City Harvest trial: 5 things about controversial China Wine song

BY LYN CHAN

China Wine has resurfaced. Not the alcoholic beverage but the English single by Ms Ho Yeow Sun. You know the one: The video has images of her gyrating furiously to the music in a low-cut, midriff-baring top and nothing shorts.

When the video made its rounds on social media in 2012 after news of the fund-misuse charges against City Harvest Church founder Kong Hee - Ho's husband - and five other church leaders broke, the local netizen community went wild. But not in a good way. Horror, scorn and disdain were the primary reactions; at their mildest, puzzlement and scepticism at how such a song could help spread the gospel.

On Aug 12, Kong, who faces three charges of criminal breach of trust for allegedly misusing church funds, took the stand. While outlining the plan to break Ms Ho into the US music market as part of a church effort to evangelise using her pop music, revelations about the provocative China Wine single surfaced:

1. In 2006, Wyclef Jean, a Haitian hip-hop recording artiste, was roped in to help Ms Ho. He suggested doing away with the songs that had already been recorded for her debut English album. The reason? They sounded "too white, Caucasian", and she would not stand out from other singers also trying to make a mark in the United States.


Ms Ho Yeow Sun in the music video for China Wine. -- PHOTO: XTRON

2. Jean recommended that Ms Ho go for a new Asian-Reggae fusion sound. This eventually led to the making of China Wine. The noted music producer had earlier created a similar Latino-Reggae sound with pop star Shakira. The explosive hit Hips Don't Lie was the result of the collaboration.

3. China Wine was not the only song Jean recorded with Ms Ho. It was just one in a series of 12 to 13 songs.

4. According to Kong, both he and Ms Ho were both "uncomfortable" with China Wine, even though it was deemed a success and the brainchild of Wyclef Jean, as it did not fit the image Ms Ho wanted as a pop artiste. Jean left the project in 2008 after negotiations over his asking price broke down.

5. The album which featured China Wine was supposed to have been publicised on popular TV shows such as Gossip Girl, CSI and Dancing With The Stars if its big launch had taken place as originally planned.

- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/chc-funds-case/story/city-harvest-trial-5-things-about-controversial-china-wine-song-2#sthash.4GdEN5G7.dpuf

"The Reproach of the Solemn Assembly" by David Wilkerson (Urgent)

(Transcribed from a audio tape recording of a Message at Times Square Church)

Zephaniah 3:18 - "I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn assembly who are of thee, to whom the reproach of it was a burden. "

This is a dual prophecy by Zephaniah. It has to do with the children of Israel . . and also with spiritual Zion (which is the church of Jesus Christ of the last day). First of all, he was speaking to Jews - that God was going to gather together the dispersed . . . but He was only going to bring back those who had a broken heart for the sad condition of Israel. . . . . He would remember all who carried the reproach. . . all of the horrible things that were going on in God's House. Those who carried the burden of it, He said, "I am going to gather you". He made great promises to these. . .

This prophecy is also to the Church of Jesus Christ in the Last Day. In the Old Testament, the children of Israel were called to their festivals for seven days. On the eighth day - it was called an Solemn Assembly. That was when they met especially together - putting everything aside in focused worship and praise to the Heavenly Father. The scripture says, "On the eighth day you shall have a Solemn Assembly". This Solemn Assembly is all through the Old Testament representing the congregation that is separated unto God needing to meet the Lord.

This is the Church of Jesus Christ in the Last Day. According to Zephaniah, the House of God in the Last Days is going to be under reproach. The Hebrew word hear means "shame and disgrace".

There is going to be shame and disgrace in the House of God. We are not talking about the backslidden, liberal modern church. . . . The Lord said on the Judgment Day, He will deal with that Church. We can pray for them, but we are not spend any of our grief on that which is not really the Church.

God is looking for a people who will sorrow and grieve over the reproach that is being fostered on the Church of Jesus Christ in these last days. I am talking about the Church that was born at Pentecost. I am talking about the Church that was born in the teaching of the Apostle Paul and the Apostles. The Church born in the doctrine of the Godhead of Jesus Christ. That born-again Church is under attack. That Church is suffering reproach.

It has been prophesied that in this day of reproach, shame and disgrace, God is going to raise up a holy remnant who are going grieve and weep over this defilement. . .

God will have a remnant that will not sit idly by while all of these things invade the Church. God says, "I will have a people that are not going to be satisfied to go their merry way and just ignore what is happening as Charlatans and money-mad false prophets are coming into the House of God and destroying everything in sight."

God is going to gather a people who grieve over this. . . . If you truly love the Lord and you love His Church, you can not look honestly at what is happening today (and I am going to name these reproaches this morning). If after you hear what I have to say about this reproach, and you can walk out of this Church and you can say, "I just stand on Matthew 18 'the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church', I am not going to worry about, God has everything under control".

That is not enough. God uses people. God uses people to perform His work. He does not send angels. Angels weep over it, but God does not use angels to accomplish His purposes. He uses burdened broken-hearted weeping men and women. . . . . Judgment is at the door, Jesus is coming. The Day of the Lord is at hand.

Wake up elders. Wake up pastors. Wake up shepherds. Take a look at the Church. Get the burden. Carry it. Why should we take on the burden of the reproach of the Solemn Assembly? Joel said, "because there is a rotten seed being planted."

A gospel is being preached that is withering everything that is in sight. Everything that is green and Godly and pure is being withered. The seed is rotten . . . . . there is a famine of hearing the pure Word of the Lord. . . . there is no pasture. The flocks are desolate and hungry. The rivers are drying up. A strange fire is devouring the pastors. Ezekiel says that Shepherds are trampling down the good pasture and eating the best for themselves. What are the shameful disgraceful things that are happening in the Church of Jesus Christ today?

First of all it is the rotten seed that is being preached by covetous Shepherds. This is known as the PROSPERITY GOSPEL.

This is one of the greatest reproaches that the Church of Jesus Christ ever perpetrated since Christ.

This perverted gospel is poisoning multitudes - even in China, Africa and all over the world. It is an American gospel invented and spread by rich American evangelists and pastors. Rich!

It alarms me that so many people can hear the tapes and see videos that are coming out of these prosperity conferences and not weep over them. This poison has spread all over the world. Cuba is about to open and they are itching to get in there right now with their Prosperity gospel to tell them, "you have been poor enough now, God wants all Cubans to be rich."

This past week I was given a video tape recently recorded in Kenneth Copeland's meetings. I listened to the speakers and I was dumbfounded.

Folks, you read the New Testament, you will find that Paul the Apostle named those who he believed were false prophets. He warned and he named their names. I am telling you now that if you can listen to what I am about to tell you, and not be grieved, then you are blind. You are spiritually blind. You have a hard heart. A heart with a shield on it so that the pure gospel can not penetrate it. The mind has been so saturated with this unbalanced gospel that you can not come to many of them. You can not preach the truth. You can not show them anything else in the scripture because they have a shield over their hearts. Hard hearted.

Some of you will not receive it. If you have been feeding your soul on Copeland or Hagin's tapes, you are not going to like what you hear. Folks, I am a Shepherd, I've been called by God. I made this church a promise. As long as we are in this pulpit, if we saw wolves in sheep's clothing coming to rob the flock, we would stand up and cry out against it. It is up to you to do something about it.

I sat this week and listened to the speakers at this conference and I was so shocked and hurt. The burden of the Lord came on me. That is why I am preaching this message. Grieve over it.

I quote word for word what was said. All the speakers could hardly get by because all of the people were running up stuffing their pockets with money. The reason they do that is a new doctrine that has just come out that says, "if you want to be blessed, you have to find the most blessed evangelist or pastor you can find because he that has been given much receiveth much, he that has little, even that which he has will be taken from him. If you find the most blessed prosperous preacher and give him money, then you will be blessed. The more blessed he is, if you give you to those that are most blessed. . . ". it is a pyramid scheme. If these men were in the secular world, they would be in jail. Ponzie schemes. Pyramid schemes. The man at the top who appears to be the holiest and speaks the loudest. Hundreds of people were running up until the pockets were bulging. The sinner says, "is this the free gospel? Dollar bills?"

Listen to what was said. The speaker got up and he said, "if a poor widow on welfare hands you $5.00, you better take it. Elijah took the widow's last meal. You are the anointed one, you deserve it, you take it."

The same speaker said, "I live in a 8,000 square foot house. I am going to build a bigger one now. One that King Solomon would be proud of. I just paid $15,000 for a dog. You see this gorgeous ring on my finger, I was in Jamaica and just paid $32,000 for it. I want you know that when the people in my town come past my mansion and they see my Rolls Royce sitting in the driveway, they know there is a God in heaven."

Now, you tell me, that is the gospel? You tell me that you can't weep over that.

One of the speakers got up and said, "We made a covenant along with Brother Copeland that for the next 365 days none of us are going to suffer for a single day. We will not know a moment of discouragement. We will never be sick or in need. We are going to enjoy all the blessings. We reject all suffering, all pain, all financial problems." That is fine if you are on the top of the heap.

Here is what grieves me most. This was preached. "The Holy Spirit can't be poured out upon you until first you are in the money flow. Until you are prospering, the Holy Ghost cannot do His work."

Think of it! How does this affect you? What does it do to your spirit when you see poor people who are living from pay check to pay check and suddenly he says, "run for the money" and people are running wildly everywhere and they say as they run, "they are claiming the riches".

Then I see people withering like snakes out of their seats onto the floor. I see the evangelist going up and hissing like a snake and people falling everywhere. Folks, what is going on?

The Reproach of the Solemn Assembly! The prophet called them "greedy dogs, ungodly watchmen". Folks, if you had the heart of God and the burden of the Lord you would be crying out with Isaiah, "they are blind watchmen, ignorant, dumb dogs, sleeping, loving to slumber, yea, greedy dogs which can never have enough."

"I've got 8,000 square foot but I am going to sell it and I'm going to make one now that King Solomon could live in...." Never getting enough.

He said, "Shepherds that cannot understand, they all look to their own way, every one for his own gain from his quarter". Jeremiah spared no words. He said, "My people are lost sheep. Their Shepherds have caused them to go astray. " You say, "Pastor, you have no right to speak so strongly on this subject." If you think I'm strong, listen to Ezekiel 34:1-10. [read this scripture]

You take $5.00 from the widow and you buy a $15,000 dog. You take the pay check from the widow and the poor and you tell them that they do not have enough faith - that is why they are prospering. You take the very wool from off the back of the sheep. You are not out for souls, you are out for money.


"The Shepherds fed themselves and fed not the flock, therefore O you Shepherds, hear the Word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God, Behold I am against the Shepherds and I will require my flock at their hand and cause them to cease from feeding the flock. Neither shall the Shepherds feed themselves any more, for I will deliver my flock from mouth that they may not be meat for them anymore".

I am going to deliver my flock from the teeth of these men. My God, help us.

Second, the misrepresentation of the blessed Holy Ghost. This is the worst reproach. It should make us fall on our faces. The way and the manner in which the Holy Ghost is being represented to the whole world.

Sad to say, there is so little discernment left in the church among so many pastors and even church leaders. They don't even know when the Holy Ghost is being misrepresented or blasphemed. There are thousands of Christians that go to crusades and they see things that they think is the Holy Ghost and they don't even know what they are sitting under. They are clapping and praising God while a man stands up there blaspheming and misrepresenting the Holy Ghost and they don't even know it.

Entire Charismatic denominations, including the Assemblies of God, are being torn apart, literally torn apart by pseudo revivals. All kinds of things that are happening - there is something new being introduced almost every week. The leaders don't whether to embrace it or to curse it. They don't know what to do. We get letters from hundreds and hundreds of pastors from all over the world. They say, "what is right and what is wrong?" Where are the leaders? Where is somebody to tell us?

Folks, what we are seeing today in what is called so many revivals and things that are happening attributed to the Holy Ghost can not be found in the Scripture. Anything that can not be found in this Book has to be rejected outright. Totally rejected!

I weep when I see these videos that are sent to me from all over the country. Whole groups of bodies jerking out of control, falling on the floor, laughing hysterically, staggering around like drunkards, writhing like snakes, howling like wild animals. We have evangelists that stand and blow on people to knock them down, as if the breath of the Holy Ghost is now incarnated him. Throws his "designer" jacket at people and says that is the "hand of the Lord".

Now a new Gospel has just hit South America. Folks, it is rude and crude, but I have to tell you. When you get away from the parameters of Scripture, when you get up and say: "Oh, it is a New Thing, God is doing a New Thing? I don't understand it, it is not in the Scripture, but I don't want to stand against the Holy Ghost".

Folks, if it is not in this Book, you must stand up against it. Now the New Thing is that you can't enter the Kingdom of God except you come as a little babe. The people come with diapers under their outer clothing so that they can defecate and urinate in the meetings. This is the New Thing. Folks, where does it end?

A pastor said, "Is it come down to this, that one day some evangelist stands up and says, 'I've got a revelation from the Lord, it is time to add Mary to your worship". That is what it is going to come to.

Another evangelist calls himself the Holy Ghost Bartender. [Rodney Howard Browne] He says, "Belly up to the bar and take a drink of the Holy Ghost." They call that drinking the new wine. I hear ringing in my ears the prophet that said, "The day of the Lord is at hand. Wickedness abounds. Weep between the porch and the altar. Put on sackcloth. Fast and mourn for the backsliding of my people."

Jesus is about to come. The masses are unreached. When I see Christians belly up to what is called the "Holy Ghost Bar", staggering like drunkards, Joel's words come to me loud and clear, "Awake you drunkards and weep all you who drink new wine because the harvest in the field is perished."

Souls are dying by the thousands, what are you laughing about? Anything of the Holy Ghost has to work anywhere on the face of the earth. You have to be able to take it into the most vile wicked places. You have to take it into poverty nations. You have to take it to the dregs of humanity and it has to work there. It can't work just in prosperous America. It has to work everywhere on the face of the earth.

I dare these men take this gospel, the laughing gospel into the Balkans now. Go into the refugee camps where wives are crying because they saw their husbands shot. Their daughters have been raped. Their children are hungry. They have lost their homes and go in there and ask them to "belly up to the bar" - the Holy Ghost wants you to laugh. This so-called revival is coming to Madison Square Gardens this summer. Knowing what you know about the Scripture, carrying the grief and the burden for the Solemn Assembly, how can you even conceive of embracing such a doctrine?

Let me tell you who is laughing. The world. The ungodly, the heathen. It has become a spectacle. In a time so close to the coming of the Lord when the Church of Jesus Christ ought to be shut away in a secret closet of prayer. Where it ought to be weeping for the lost. Where it ought to have the desire to forsake all and follow Jesus. Where there should never be a mention of the dollar bill. The American god. The American idolatry. We have the world looking at this foolishness and do you know what they are thinking now - that the Holy Ghost is a Ringmaster. It is a Charismatic Circus.

I don't care what anybody thinks any more. I don't care if people drop off the mailing list. I care for their souls and the fact that many are into this blindness. I have a duty before God to stand before the congregation that He has called me to minister to and warn you and tell you that these are reproaches of the Solemn Assembly and the Bible says that you are to be sorrowful about it. The elders are to be sorrowful. The congregation, the Pastors, the Ministers, the Evangelists, We should be praying down these strongholds.

Finally, the reproach of downgrading depravity in the Church. Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil - that put darkness for light and light for darkness. They put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. (Jer. 23:15).


I've seen in the prophets a horrible thing. They commit adultery, they walk in lies, they strengthen also the hands of evil doer and non returns from his wickedness."

I received a letter this past week from an irate Christian woman. She said, "My husband, who is supposed to be a Christian, is a big time gambler, in the millions." She said, "I've been so concerned with the crowd and the danger he is in". I thought, "I'll urge him to go to the pastor."

She said, "Brother Wilkerson, you will not believe what happened. I am so angry, hurt and confused. I sent my multi-million dollar gambling husband to my pastor."

He said, "I have searched the scriptures from Genesis to Revelation and I can't find one thing in the scripture against gambling. I see no sin in it, enjoy yourself." She was dumbfounded, "How can a man of God say such a thing to my husband?"

This is exactly what Jeremiah meant, "the pastors strengthen the hands of evildoers that none doth return from his wickedness." He explains why they have downgraded depravity in their congregation and why they are calling evil good and good evil and bitter sweet and sweet bitter.

He said, "The prophets have committed adultery and are walking in lies." Any man that has sin in his life is not going to get up and talk about sin in the camp. He is convicted by his own adultery, his own sin and his own evil mind.

I am not painting every minister in the country with this brush. The majority of ministers are on fire for God. There young ministers so clean and so pure in this wicked day and age. I've met many of them and I thank God for them. Even in this City I've met some of the most righteous preachers I've ever met in my lifetime.

Multitudes of ministers feel just like I feel this morning and they are looking and waiting for voices to expose that which is evil. "If they had stood in my council and had caused my people to heard my words. . if they were speaking what I really have in my heart. If they were speaking the mind of God, they should have turned the people away from their evil ways and from the evil of their doings"

You can tell if a man knows the Lord. God says of the others, "I didn't send them, I didn't speak to them. They speak their own mind out of their own imagination. Out of the evil of their own hearts."


"They speak of vision of their own heart, I sent them not. I have not spoken to them. They say unto them that despise me, 'the Lord said, you shall have peace' and they say unto every one that walks after the imagination of his own heart, 'no evil shall come upon there.'"

The reproach upon the Solemn Assembly should be the greatest sorrow to every one who loves Christ and His Church. This should be the greatest sorrow in our heart - these reproaches on His name and on His Church. Weep over the condition of the Church.

When you take your stand and when you take on the burden of the Lord, by fasting and prayer. Every child of God needs to be praying that everyone in this snare will be delivered. Don't touch it, don't go near it, if you go in just out of curiosity it will grab you because it appeals to everything of the flesh.

Until you know how to deal with the flesh with the power of the Holy Ghost, stay away from it. Jeremiah said, "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is Mighty. He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy. He will rest in His love. He will joy over thee with singing."

Why? Because He has found a people who are sorrowful over the things that sorrow His heart. Who carry the burden that He carries, the Reproach of the Solemn Assembly.

This is going to become a "love-trap" . You will hear this: "We love everybody. It doesn't matter what you preach. It doesn't matter if you are in prosperity. It doesn't matter what your gospel is - or anything else. God is love. Let us all just get together and embrace one another."

How can two walk together unless they be agreed. How can you walk with those when you don't agree with the unscriptural practices, you can not. That is a love trap. They say, "Don't condemn anybody. Don't judge anybody."

That is not what the Bible says. It says that we are to judge righteous judgement. Reprove and rebuke with all longsuffering. I am not on a soapbox, I am on a Rock. God is trying to save you, Church.

What are the riches of God in Christ Jesus? The peace of God, the wisdom of God, the nearness of Christ, all that is in Christ is ours. . . . .

Folks, beware! Beware! Have I scared you? Are you ready to take on the burden of the Lord.
You can't do that in your own flesh. Get alone with God!

The time has come to call a Solemn Assembly. If you have any of these tapes or books, get them out of your house. Don't give them away, burn them. If somebody invites you to go to these things, say, "I'm sorry, I don't want a famine of the Word and I don't my heart to whither and dry. I want the pure Word of the Lord that will cause me to grow. I don't want any message that is going to appeal to my flesh or to foster covetousness in my spirit."

God does supply needs and He is a miracle working God, but He does it only His way. Not by misappropriating and not mis-using the scripture.

Abraham was not looking at things on earth, He was looking for a City whose Builder and Maker is God.


The late David Wilkerson's sermons can be heard and downloaded here: http://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/viewcat.php?cid=27