Word of Faith
All stories related to the Worf of Faith movement. These may be part of series which have other pre-requisite posts for a full understanding of their content.
Apostasy! is Released (New Book)
 Apostasy! The Word-Faith Doctrinal Deception is released today on Amazon.com in print and Kindle editions.
Apostasy! is the result of several years of research and teaching concerning the doctrinal heritage of the Word of Faith movement. Numerous churches are finding themselves dealing with doctrines that have no biblical basis. They are, instead, the product of carefully corroborated and systematized “new” doctrinal distinctions that are aimed at the financial empowerment of the teachers of this movement.
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Apostasy! The Word-Faith Doctrinal Deception (Released Soon)
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Apostasy is creeping into the church from televisions, books and star-personality tours of rich and blasphemous self-proclaimed prophets of God; many of whom are the most famous pastors and teachers in the U.S. These counterfeit shepherds teach that faith is a material substance more powerful than God, accessible to all men, and capable of creating anything man’s heart can desire by the mere utterance of faith-filled-words. This doctrine has leached into all areas of the theological systems of what are known as “Word of Faith” churches. Virtually every major area of systematic theology in this movement has been taken captive by the repercussions of this primordial error. |
In this heresy, God is limited. Man is unlimited. Satan fills a necessary role in atonement for sin. Health, wealth, power and all means of temptation are heralded as virtues of the faith while millions empty their bank accounts for the promise of such ambition.
“The Storefront Saints Show” “Apostasy!” Interview
I was priviledged to have an extensive interview with Pastor David Catoe and Jeff Lege of Fresh Spring Baptist Church in Angleton, Texas concerning my upcoming book, Apostasy! on “The Storefront Saints Show.”
Apostasy!, which will be released soon, is a book concerning the turning from the true faith of the Word of Faith community. This book is aimed at people who are involved in the Word of Faith, yet know that something is wrong with what they are hearing from such pulpits. It is my hope that tonight’s interview will give a very brief introduction to the book for those who have been patiently awaiting its release.
Direct Link: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/18633140
(Video begins after about 20 seconds of opening graphic) (You must hit “play” after advertisement)
How We Got Here
The following is an excerpt from the author’s upcoming book, Apostasy! This book will be based largely on the resarch work in the Wolves in Wool series on this blog.
How We Got Here
The gospel message is – and always has been – by Christ, from Christ and for Christ. At any point this understanding is corrupted, apostasy is sure to follow. If salvation is not by Christ, then it is by some other means which will ultimately take Christ’s place as the author and sustainer of salvation. The most obvious example of this is the Roman Catholic Church, which after corrupting its gospel to a sacramental and sacerdotal system of works, became more important than Christ’s own work in the church’s now-corrupt doctrine of salvation. Continue reading
Apostasy!
The following is a public preview of the introductory chapter to the author’s upcoming book, Apostasy! This book will be based largely on the resarch work in the Wolves in Wool series on this blog.
A cancer is spreading at an alarming rate in the modern church. It expresses a heretical doctrine which exchanges the glory of the gospel of Christ for temporal gains that were once known as the very temptations of man. Heresy has become mainstream in an enormous population of Christendom. Sadly, much of the church today is too biblical illiterate to notice. The concept of orthodoxy has been given over to a competitive attitude by which doctrine is relegated to a local flavor. While heresy has always existed in the church, never has there been a time when “exotic and unfamiliar” were considered the creative virtues of preaching that they are today. The past few hundred years have been celebrated as times when enigmatic and incomprehensible creeds have been taken to task by a doctrinally savvy congregation and errors reproved by the biblical preaching of proven men of God. The tables seem to have turned entirely. In today’s religious circles it is old-school holdouts with the audacity to cling to the scriptures who are in the minority. It is a truly remnant church today which continues to preserve sound biblical fundamentals at the persistent ridicule of a new majority of doctrinal thrill-seekers.
They scream dissent from untold thousands of books, television networks and millions of websites. Entire supposedly “Christian” publishing houses have abandoned their former scriptural faith principles in favor of new proposals which, frankly, move more books off of store shelves. Christian bookstores, devoted more to their bottom line than the Lord’s, have likewise lifted not one finger in any measurable way to dissuade them. Countless modern congregations have jumped an entire generational cog; with an old-guard too tired or unwilling to fight for doctrinal purity and a new, younger work force that will only bother to show up if things are considered hip, novel, and decidedly not-too-biblical. Bereans are sparse; having been rapidly replaced by giddy, temperamental consumer-types who crave the latest “star” pastor’s deposition over the eyewitness testimonies of the apostles. The recipe for the modern pulpiteer calls for less scriptural content and more bizarre showmanship, to the extent of being positively juvenile.
Evangelicalism is in sincere trouble. Authentic Christians are relegated to a tireless search to find a church that preaches the Bible at all, as today’s pulpits more commonly stream self-help infomercials which refuse to mention, let alone offer remedy for man’s greatest issue: sin and man’s need for redemption. Churches have redefined ministry and missions in the image of public service fraternities. The gospel being proclaimed in so many supposedly “thriving” congregations is shallow enough to disappoint a Unitarian. Reminiscent are Jesus’ words to the church in Sardis, “You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.”[1]
Fueling these trends are a growing number of pastors who have committed themselves to unadulterated apostasy on the grounds that it produces the desired results. This new breed of pseudo-theologian teaches, through contrived and corrupt exegetical processes, things which in some cases completely reverse the truths of scripture. Man is instructed not on his depravity and need for salvation, but on his alleged posture of value before God’s grateful eye. Christ is presented not as the crucified lamb but the exemplary enabler of human potential. Scripture is not promoted as the inspired testimony of God by which men are convicted, redeemed and trained for His eternal service, but the means by which they can learn the secrets of acquiring their best life now.
While such a dire state of the church is heart breaking to those who love her, it is not something which has taken the student of God’s word by surprise. This emerging apostasy has been articulately forewarned in scripture; a word of caution to each generation that the roots of their faith will be challenged from within at a future juncture.
2 Timothy 4:3-4 (ESV)
3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
Surely such times are now at hand. Paul could not have more articulately portrayed the state of the modern church. The tested and proven methodology of starting new churches today is to send a group of surveyors into a neighborhood to determine the type of church that neighborhood would want to support. We are, in effect, asking the lost to dictate the function of the church. We may as well be determining which fast food franchise to inject into a business center. With the platform for church growth being the edification of everything people want to hear, the church has become nothing more than another consumer-oriented business. To the upwardly mobile, churches promise a leadership role in the renovation of culture. They are assured to be doing the work of Christ simply because they engage themselves in the types of things that Jesus did. To the poor and lowly is a promise of redemption; not from sin, but from the poverty which has stricken them due to their lack of “proper application” of God’s Word. To the ill is the promise of God’s full earthly reversal of their sicknesses, if only they will learn how to properly ask him. The church has become utterly user-friendly, offering carefully researched theological products which are in demand by the intended congregational target.
Numerous are the magical prayer books which give the correct formulas for invoking God’s response to one’s request, as if He were a cosmic genie who must only be suitably addressed for his magic to work. At the end of this process, man has taken the role of deity, dictating his will to an obedient subordinate; and God himself is that humble servant. With cleverly orchestrated theological arguments which attempt to make this doctrine seem biblical, these false teachers have relegated man to a place of power, success and great personal glory, while almighty God becomes nothing more than a grand enabler of man’s creative capacity. Shortly, even Shirley McClain will be pleased to join one of our mainstream mega-church congregations.
In the charismatic world, the “Word of Faith” movement represents the largest organized purveyor of these types of consumer-oriented doctrines. This work will focus specific attention to this movement in the hopes of illuminating the truths of scripture as a warning to the millions who are being systematically indoctrinated by this group. Through religious television networks and an increasing number of local congregations buying into the sheer hype, the Word of Faith movement has generated non-stop sensationalistic and un-verifiable claims that challenge everything the world has ever identified as orthodox faith. This work is not an attempt to engage heresy in debate, but to reveal it to individual readers for what it is. The true church must understand the nature of what she will battle in the coming days and years. These groups are steadily permeating the wheat field with tares while a lost and dying world is being cross-evangelized by false apostles utterly incapable of presenting the true gospel; for they do not know it themselves.
The end result of this counterfeit ministry will be an ever increasing wake of souls who are either happily deceived and relegated to an eternity of death, or are so damaged from their failed foray into “religion” that they write off Christ entirely as a charlatan who must be of the same essence as his phony ministers. Too often the deceived think they have experienced the fullness of Christ’s grace and find it lacking. Sadly, many walk away from anything with the Name of Christ attached to it from that point forward.
To that end, the responsibility of identifying and preaching against false doctrines is of major importance to those who live to affirm and defend the teachings of scripture. While scripture clearly indicates that an apostasy waits the latter days, it nevertheless demands the faithful of Christ to contend earnestly for the truth which transcends all times and cultures.
As Jude warns,
Jude 1:3-4 (ESV)
3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
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Revelation 3:1
Finding Your Blessing
I do not remember the exact context, but several weeks ago one of the airy-voiced DJ’s on our local Christian radio station was speaking about a difficult week that she had recently experienced. She spoke of what I consider to be very standard worries involving widely normal life scenarios; akin to perhaps a broken washing machine. Let’s make sure we understand each other: no one was being martyred for the cause of Christ. No one was under intense persecution out of retribution for the preaching of the gospel. No one had been accosted, jailed, stoned, or hanged. It was just a “hard week” in the typical, American, “I was actually inconvenienced” sort of way. Continue reading
The Gospel Truth: Pt. 9 – Faith
(This is a continuation of The Gospel Truth video blog series. This post assumes the prerequisite watching of earlier videos in the series. Click the link above to watch the entire series up to this week’s installment.)
Understanding that Grace is the essential foundation upon which salvation is granted still leaves one to ponder the process by which such grace is applied to the sinner’s account. Ephesians, as noted in last week’s installment, states that this “salvation by grace” is installed “through faith.”
Sadly, pondering that conclusion will profoundly confuse many who live in the “new ecumenicism” of our modern culture, which defines “faith” as everything from God’s magic potion to man’s deeper intuition, depending on whether one gets their theology from “christian” (small C intended) television or modern liberal Jesus fad-books which teach a newer, milder variant of salvation in which one is truly not redeemed at all (for there is no true penalty for sins). Which of these “faith” definitions should one pursue to understand the gospel’s path of application?
Simply stated, theological truth is not democratically produced nor deconstructed in focus group meetings. The Bible’s own definition of faith is that which counts. Such will be the focus of today’s continued examination of The Gospel Truth.
The Mystical Theory of Atonement
(A continuation of the series, A Pastoral Soteriology.)
Continuing the historical foray into the waters of poorly constructed atonement theories leads us to what can only be understood as a truly heretical contribution known as the “Mystical Theory” of atonement. This theory has been contributed to by many philosophers and pseudo-theologians over the years. Central among them was Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834), who utterly denied any aspect of a vicarious atoning work of Christ.
Before diving into the nuts and bolts (loose as they are) of this theory, the nature of mysticism should first be defined clearly. By definition, that which is “mystic” is that which is “of the nature of or pertaining to mysteries known only to the initiated.” (“mystic.” Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 06 Jul. 2009.) Thus, if you are a participant in a mystic encounter can you “hear” from God. Such mysteries transcend ordinary human knowledge, by direct communication with the divine.
To be perfectly clear, a mystical element does indeed exist in the life of legitimate believers in Jesus Christ. Strictly speaking, any direct impartation of information from God to man is mystical by definition. If a man hears from God in his spirit, then he has participated in a legitimate mystical encounter. The Holy Spirit utters truths which are only revealed to the initiated- those who belong to him- through his own impartation.
John 14:26 (NIV)
26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
It must be clearly pointed out, however, that this legitimately mystical aspect of our walk with the Lord is the result of atonement, not the source of it. It must also be pointed out that such genuine mystical practices are taught in scripture to be subject to biblical testing, so that men are not misled.
With this understood, the mystical encounter defined by the Mystical Atonement Theory is not akin to the normal fellowship between the believer and the Holy Spirit. Rather, this theory presupposes a mystical union which is more akin to the panentheistic and demonic doctrines of Zen Buddhism and other predominantly “eastern” originated mystic practices.
The Mystical Theory shares one facet of its substance with the Moral Example Theory in that it presumes that the work of redemption stems from Christ’s influence rather than his substitutionary sacrifice. In this belief system, Christ’s incarnation is of more importance than his death on the cross. The idea is that Christ’s incarnation brought divinity to the human realm. By Christ entering the human sphere at his advent, he elevated man to his own divine plane, making access to God achievable. Salvation is attained through man’s entry into this open portal of access.
Additionally, according to this theory, Christ – being human in nature – possessed all of the inherent corruption and sinful tendencies of man, yet without allowing such predisposition to lead him into actually engaging in sin. He was in effect, one who successfully navigated the inborn sin nature, yet without succumbing to it. At the moment of Christ’s death, then, he officially conquered and eradicated his original sin nature, thus completing his victory over sin.
As this theory has evolved into its modern form, a panentheistic (all is in God) element has been more clearly defined. In essence, it is understood by many today that “God became man so that man could become God.” The redeemed are elevated to the status of “God-men” through participation in the divine nature which Christ opened up to them. Man is no longer subservient to God, but participants with him while sharing his attributes. Those holding to this view today indicate that man’s real issue is not with his sin, but with his inability to connect to his “god-consciousness” and be thus freed from his human limitations.
(Please excuse me while I go throw up and take a shower.)
There are simply too many issues with this theory to take them all to task in a singular post. More is wrong with the theory than is right. In fact, nothing at all is right with it.
To begin with, Christ did not have a propensity to sin. He was not born with a sin nature. Rather, his nature was utterly contrary to sin from his advent by merit of his being the God who defines what sin is. Perhaps oversimplified, one functional definition of sin is “disobedience to God.” How can one be disobedient to his own nature? Christ was God incarnate. To that end, sin was not his propensity, but the exact antithesis of his will.
Indeed, scripture does note that Christ was tempted:
Hebrews 4:15 (NIV)
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet was without sin.
However, to be tempted does not equate with one having a sinful propensity. Jesus himself stated,
John 14:30-31 (NIV)
30 I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, 31 but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.
And, the very same author of Hebrews notes,
Hebrews 7:26 (NIV)
26 Such a high priest meets our need–one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.
While being tempted on this earth, perhaps for the benefit of man’s recognition of his righteousness, scripture teaches entirely contrary to the idea that Christ had an inclination toward sin.
Secondly, the Bible unwaveringly attests to the work of redemption as having been carried out on the cross rather than through Jesus’ completion of a sinless human life. While the sinless attribute of Christ’s life was essential, redemption came not from the fact that the Son of God never sinned. Redemption came from the fact that He who never sinned offered himself on a cross as payment for those who had sinned. As Paul notes,
2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)
21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
And Isaiah prophesied,
Isaiah 53:6 (NIV)
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Certainly Jesus’ sinless life was a requirement of his ability to atone for the sins of man, but it was not the functional substance of that work. The actual application of his righteousness to sinner’s account came from his death on the cross. Paul notes,
Colossians 1:19-20 (NIV)
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Make no mistake, redemption was attained through Jesus’ death on the cross. Had he only lived a righteous life- and had not died for man’s sins- there would be no salvation for man. God’s wrath against sin would remain.
This ultimately leads to the next major failure of this heritical theory, which is the annoying tendency of humanistic philosophies to attempt to relegate the atonement to something which enables man to overcome his sin through properly guided human efforts. According to this theory, sin is not atoned for by Christ at all. Rather, Christ grants man an opportunity to somehow “rise above” his sin by his mystical union with the deity. (How can one purport to define an “atonement theory” for which there is no atonement??) If Christ’s death were not vicarious – in man’s place – how then is man to pay for the sins committed before his magical elevation? Does not the scripture say,
Romans 3:25 (NIV)
25 God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished–
Even if man were enabled (through mystical union with Christ) to utterly conquer his sinful nature from the moment of conversion throughout the remainder of his life, who pays for the sins he committed prior to that magical encounter? If one becomes righteous through a mystical communion with God after a life of sin, does his previous sin no longer count against him? This theory makes no provision for such payment. Yet, even proponents of this seriously flawed theory recognize and admit that man is infected with a sinful nature from birth. How does a mystical elevation eliminate the sins of one’s previous existence if Christ’s death was not substitutionary in nature?
These issues alone identify the Mystical Theory as an utterly unbiblical – and ineffective- remedy for man’s problem of sin. Yet, one cannot possibly give this theory a serious theological once-over without also pointing out the gross error of its message of mystical elevation. The underlying postulate of such will ultimately lead back to a panentheistic view of God. If taken to its logical conclusion, all who are redeemed – according to this theory – become participants in the overarching fellowship that is God. Such false elevation promises in this theory relegate man back to his most base sinful tendency: the desire to be (his own) God.
There was, and will only ever be ONE God-man. He was and is the person of Jesus Christ. The atonement is not a means to elevate man to God’s level of consciousness, insight or authority. it certainly was not the means by which God would share his glory with His creation. Such aspirations, in no uncertain terms, are a demonic pursuit.
Isaiah 14:12-14 (NIV)
12 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. 14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”
Most faithful readers of ReturningKing.com would quickly have relegated this flawed theory to the heresy that it is. One may even wonder why time was taken to write against such an obviously erroneous postulate. Sadly, the answer to that question is that it is very necessary in the body of Christ to reveal the error of this particular theory; for it is being reconstituted, rebranded and diligently served before our very eyes as daily table fare of several modern neo-Christian movements.
The Word of Faith movement is seriously committed to the idea that man becomes a “little God” through the atonement. They do not subscribe to the Mystical Theory, per ‘se, but the god-man element of this theory fits perfectly into the theology of Hinn, Hagin, Copeland, Crouch and the rest of the high-roller preachers club. The mystical elevation of man according to their (false) gospel includes man’s full power over the very elements of nature through his properly utilized “word of faith.”
More frightening is the Emergent movement, perhaps the fastest growing subculture in the church today, which seems to have a literal disdain for valid atonement theory. From the outside, Emergent congregations seem merely a post-modern “trendy-church” model by which the next generation may be reached. From the inside, their mentors and un-official leaders are teaching doctrines which are actually defining the cutting edge of Mystical Atonement Theory. They teach that atonement is not substitutional in nature. They whole-heartedly affirm and teach a mysticism which is consistent with the views of the Mystical Theory. As panentheism will tend to lead to, they have furthermore attempted to erase the lines between Christianity and other world religions, claiming that Christ is anything but exclusive in his work of atonement.
The Mystical Theory of Atonement is one which will unconditionally lead to an apostasy which misrepresents God’s character, purpose and glory. As obviously flawed as it is, this theory is being adopted at alarming rates – right from within the church itself.
May the reader be inspired to contend for the faith that was once and for all entrusted to the saints. We have been warned in scripture that apostasy will come. We have been challenged to accurately handle the Word of truth.
2 Timothy 4:3 (NIV)
3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
Unsound Theories of Atonement
(A continuation of the series, A Pastoral Soteriology.)
Understanding that sin carries the penalty of death, separation and God’s extended wrath toward the sinner brings one to the natural yearning to understand the nature of the provision God has made for the restoration of man from this condition. Obviously, this series is concerned with such illumination; God has made atonement available. The details concerning God’s provision of atonement is both something so simple that a child can grasp it, yet so complicated than a man can spend his entire life attempting to systematize it fully. The child can understand that “Jesus died for my sins,” yet the theologian may spend years trying to fully understand how exactly the provision of Christ was applied to the account of the sinner. Continue reading
Wolves in Wool Conclusion: From Christ to Antichrist
From Christ to Antichrist
(NOTE: This is a continuation of the Wolves in Wool Series. This post assumes the prerequisite reading of earlier posts)
As it has been demonstrated that an apostasy must precede the tribulation, and an utter “anti-gospel” is to be the characteristic of a singular religious system during the great tribulation, it only stands to reason that one may trace the roots of the former apostasy to the latter full-fledged abomination which is spawned from it. As noted, I cannot positively contend that our current growing apostasy in Christendom is indeed the apostasy which scripture warns will precede the day of the Lord. Yet, I am compelled to examine such possibilities.
If a man, for example, sincerely believes his life to be in danger by one of his associates, he would surely watch for signs of such growing antagonism toward himself. He may become quite paranoid, in fact, and pre-occupied with an investigation concerning the possible playing out of his fears. I do not desire to become paranoid nor to anxiously accuse every false theological principle as a precursor to the coming worship of Antichrist. Yet, I do wish to heed Jesus’ own warnings concerning our need to be watching for the proper signs of such coming events. Continue reading
