Paula White - Satanic Mistress

"Pastor" Paula White
showing off new clerical robes?

17 Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. 18 For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. (Romans 16:17-18)

Let me say this out at the beginning of the article so you are not shocked by the conclusions I raise: in my personal opinion I believe that Paula White is one of the most dangerous agent provocateurs that Satan has inserted into Jesus' church here on earth. 

For those not familiar with that term, be careful when looking up agent provocateur, there is a scanty woman's lingerie line by the same name. We should always be good Bereans and look up everything we are not already familiar with but sometimes there are traps. According to dictionary.com an agent provocateur is "a secret agent hired to incite suspected persons to some illegal action, outbreak, etc., that will make them liable to punishment"

Twice amicably divorced "Pastor" Paula White is now on husband #3, rock keyboardist for the glam band Journey Jonathan Cain who asked "Pastor" Paula to marry him on the same day his third divorce was finalized. If you question why I put the word Pastor in quotations when in conjunction with this woman it is because she doesn't fit the biblical requirements of being a pastor.

6 namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. 7 For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain (Titus 1:6-7)

2 An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money. (1 Timothy 3:2-3)

Both of these verses describe the qualifications of the overseer of a congregation, the Pastor. Both of these verses require the overseer to be the husband of one wife. I have heard of more than one godly man who stepped down from the pulpit when his wife died because he no longer fulfilled these qualifications of a pastor. Does "Pastor" White fulfill the biblical qualification of a pastor? If you look carefully at the attached photo, she doesn't look much like a husband, and being the mother of one son, I think am safe in assuming that she truly is a woman, but these days you never know...

Rick Joyner is Preparing for War

Not satisfied with a life of false prophesy and honoring himself with false titles, the Clown Prince of Prediction appears to be looking for a new title to adorn himself; self appointed NAR Super Apostle Generalissimo Joyner. Maybe his coveted 2016 False Teacher Of The Year award went to his head and he's aspiring to higher acclaim? Maybe he's looking for a second Golden Goat for his I Love Me wall?

All year long Rick Joyner has been itching for a fight, he opened 2019 with his "vision" - a call to war. In his vision Joyner claims that we didn't win the Revolutionary War because slavery still existed after the Revolutionary War. He really said that. This angel honestly played on Joyner's historical ignorance. Slavery was not an issue in the Revolutionary War, in fact the three proponents of the Revolutionary War (first Civil War if you're a Tory loyalist) England, France, and the Colonies all agreed that slavery was legal. The angel then told Rick that the Civil war didn't end successfully because if it had there would have been no need for a civil rights movement. The Civil War ended more successfully than most wars, the winner knew they won, the loser knew they lost, and both sides agreed that the war was over. What was not successful was the peace. The Democrats, the party of Jim Crowe, did everything they could to insure that a civil rights battle was going to happen. If it wasn't for JFK and the republican congress there would have been no Civil Rights act. 

Is Rick Joyner as clueless about American History as he is about the Holy Spirit? We haven't heard of it for a while, maybe it's faded away, maybe it's gone underground, but about 20 years ago there were congregations whose worship included "holy laughter" and mimicking of animals. I remember reading a "heavenly tourism" book about 10 years back where the choruses of angels laughed, not sang. I can't remember what the name of the book was, and it was fairly engaging to that part. Here's what Rick Joyner has to say about congregations laughing and making animal noises:

"One of the disconcerting aspects of this movement has been the animal sounds and mimics that some have felt compelled to make.  There are 'signs and wonders,, and almost everyone is wondering about this sign.  Some of it is demonic.  Some of it is mere human foolishness.  Some of it is really inspired by the Holy Spirit.  There will always be tares in the wheat, but this is something that the Holy Spirit is doing, and it is important. ((The Morning Star, Prophetic Bulletin, January 1995, p. 8.)

Did he just say that the Holy Spirit is mimicking satanic actions? He sure did. So now let's look at "Professor" Joyner's mad history skillz. While discussing his call to arms Rick drops this intellectual dud: 

Christian Witches: Blasphemy on Resurrection Sunday

Blasphemy on Resurrection Sunday 

Just when you think Satan's plan is all about sex, one of his oldest schemes of damnation crawls out from under a rock:

“The Bible is a huge book of sorcery. You literally can’t get around that. You can’t get around Jesus being a magician. There’s just no way,” - Calvin Witcher, self proclaimed prophet

10 There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord; and because of these detestable things the Lord your God will drive them out before you. (Deuteronomy 18:10-12)

Jesus was an sorcerer who 'performed alchemy' and the bible is really a 'book of magic' and that being a "Christian" Witch, or Wizard, or Mage is just ducky. There's actually people running around believing this, and (of course) there's someone out there to make money off their ignorance. So from April 15 to April 21 (Resurrection Sunday) in Salem Massachusetts (could they be more cliche?) attendees of the First Annual Christian Witches Convention will prance around in pointy hats, and gothic robes attending workshops (Tune Up Your Broom For Maximum Altitude? Boiling Children In Cauldrons Dos and Donts? Hummingbird Tongue - The Next Eye Of Newt?) all the while worshiping Satan and denying it through their teeth.

The advertisement for this upcoming detestable-fest breathlessly invites the spiritually confused to the "Covenant of Christian Witches Mystery School" from Monday through Friday, April 15-19 promising  "Bible Magick, Ritual, Spell Work and MORE for the Practicing Christian Witch" All of this taught by "Mystery School Head Mistress Rev. Valerie Love" and guest visiting professor "Prophet" Calvin Witcher.

Monday through Thursday the "Mystery School" will cover Demonology, "Magick, Magick & More Magick!" which is a dive into "Hoodoo, Bible Magick, Chaos Magick, an Introduction to Enochian Vision Magick and the Grimoires in the Solomonic Tradition" AND "An Intense Introduction to the POWER OF BIBLE MAGICK featuring the secret teachings of Gideon" And on Friday "Prophet" Calvin Witcher Medium & Spiritual Healer (oh naturally) will teach a class on... something. They haven't announced it yet. In fact they haven't announced the venue yet, but they will get one, the good people of Salem MA haven't seen a witch whose purse they couldn't empty.

And how much is this sinful extravaganza? It's a mere $1,100 - or the cost of books and lab fees for an entire quarter at a self respecting college. If that's a bit much then there's the American Horror Story Apocalypse Themed Witches Ball on Saturday Night for only $99 (get your best Witchy gear on!) and if that's still too pricey for you there's the Resurrection Sunday Gospel Brunch "celebrating Resurrection Sunday Christian Witch style" for only $55

WWUTT Wednesday - Modern Day Prophets?

A prophet is an inspired teacher or proclaimer of the will of God. Simply put if you say "Jesus died and rose from the dead" you are a prophet because you proclaimed God's words. If you say "Jesus died and went to Cleveland" or if you say that God told you "the Carolina Panthers are going to win Super Bowl 50" you are a False Prophet.

That's the thing - today God's will is there for everyone to view, read, discern, and share, we don't need special prophets. Ages ago God's will was hard to reach, one had to journey to the temple in Jerusalem or have a chance to listen to a local prophet (before he was killed). Later God's will was hidden by the Roman church, shared only in a language that the congregation didn't speak: Latin. Now God's will is everywhere and free - not only book form, but audio, video, and web page.

The Problem With Mr. Jones

By now you've heard of the left wing shut down of Alex Jones, bull horn of the InfoWars website. I am not a fan of Alec Jones, I've seen a total of maybe 10 minutes of his raucous bluster and came away feeling like I lost IQ points.

YouTube, Facebook, Apple podcast, and Spotify all removed Alex Jones' content from their sites stating that he violated "Community Standards". Oddly, Twitter who is the loudest liberal crybaby of social media sites did not shut him down stating that his content there, the same content on YouTube, Facebook, Apple podcast, and Spotify, did not violate their policies. Twitter shuts down conservatives constantly for posting far softer content that the bellicose clamor of Mr. Jones. Very interesting.

Alex Jones is not a conservative like you and I would consider a conservative, he calls himself a "paleo-conservative" a title which I claimed for myself about 1.4 seconds after the left coined the phrase "neo-conservative". Alex is actually a Ron Paul libertarian. If you've never heard of Alex Jones or heard his bellicose tirades, do not feel like you missed anything. Mr. Jones is loud and bold and quite often dead wrong and to be honest I'm thankful for the quiet on YouTube and can get back to things more important than his anger. I am a very strict strict constructionist so I don't have any first amendment concerns here, but I do have some serious freedom of speech concerns (they are two different things), but discussion of that is for a different forum.

WWUTT Wednesday - Upon Further Review

Your Team just scored the go-ahead touchdown! Then the official steps into camera range, clicks on his mic and utters those fateful words

"Upon further review..."

Your Star Receiver who hauls down a hefty seven digit annual salary stepped out of bounds when catching the winning pass. Oh well, it happens. False teachers step out of bounds too, but I'll bet you don't get as upset with those who are trying to ruin your salvation as you did with that guy who just ruined your Sunday afternoon. Heck, there's false teachers who do nothing but teach people how to be false teachers. You think you're immune to the whiles of a false teacher? Jesus Christ himself said 'not so fast mister...'

"For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. (Matthew 24:24)

I answered a question on this in another forum using Matthew 24:24 there too, but I had admitted I didn't look at the original Greek. Today I looked at the Greek. I pray that what we use is a very good translation because "if possible, even the elect" εἰ δυνατόν καὶ τοὺς ἐκλεκτούς can also be translated "if mighty, also the elect". Try reading this verse and end it with "if mighty, also the elect" It's terrifying! I have a friend or two who may be able to help with the translation here, but right now, let's use this as a warning not to step out of bounds;

Destiny Destiny No Escaping That's For Me

First of all, kudos to everyone that caught the Mel Brooks references in the title of this post and accompanying meme.

You can't read an article or listen to a homily from the Charismatic fringe without hearing the word "Destiny" being being beaten into your head. Not just false prophesy but falsely prophetic merchandise like Destiny Pants and Destiny Cards are being sold to the theologically gullible. This got me to thinking; where is all this Destiny nonsense coming from?

Destiny is not just a vacuous concept, it's a tired and overworked  Buzzword that the charismatics have been flinging at their followers like #4 birdshot at a flock of mallards. Destiny is defined as "the events that will necessarily happen to a particular person or thing in the future" AND "the hidden power believed to control what will happen in the future"

If you are a human being your destiny is the same as all other humans, when you die you will stand before the throne of judgement. If you are a Christian and truly believe that Jesus died for your sins and rose from the dead, He will stand as your advocate at your judgement. As for "the hidden power believed to control what will happen in the future" I'll get to that in a few moments, let''s look at the use of the word destiny first. 

The cool thing about a search engine is that you can search for something particular in one site if you want, so if I were to search my own blog for all the articles where I've used the word "UFO" I would enter this in the search engine:

site:https://wideawakechristian.blogspot.com UFO

False Teacher of the Year 2017

Once again it's that magical time of the year when the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock (extra points to whom ever can identify that quote WITHOUT using Google). I love this time of year, when I look to the west and see the mountains pointing upward toward God.

I love this time of year, the air is crisp, the harvest is over, the silos and store houses are filled to splitting and the bible study classes are in full swing. For me the study is Romans this year, and a valuable class it is! Paul was one of the greatest sheepdogs Jesus left to protect us. Even now, two millenia since his passing from this old rock, his words still echo down through the ages, warning us about false teachers and their bloodthirsty wiles. We need to stay on our guards Brothers and Sisters, because these wolves are attacking, dragging off members of our flock, the venom of their bite (wolf venom?) leaving them to think this was their own idea. I've seen some very venomous wolves, their attacks aren't marked with snarling and baring of teeth, it's marked by soft soothing words, a smile, and a bible verse twisted like a pipe cleaner in the hands of a two year old.

So onward with the presentation of the ignominious Golden Goat award; John Shore grabbed the Golden Goat in 2013, followed by Steven McSwain in 2014, Mark Sandlin in 2015, and last year God's own NFL bookie, Rick Joyner. I still want to nominate Gretta Vosper for this prize but in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians 5:12, he tells us that God instructs us not to judge those outside the church. Gretta is still a devout atheist and far outside of the church even though she is still seated in the West Hill United Church, Scarborough, Ont. The United Church of Canada is still unable to come up with the courage to remove this wolf from the remainder of their flock, If the rules of the Golden Goat nominating process didn't stipulate that the Golden Goat was awarded for individual merit the UC of C would be a shoe-in for their lack of guts and failure to protect their flock from the ravages of an outsider.

There were so many to chose from - Perry Noble has shown a remarked determination to lead his flock to hell, it was hard to turn our backs on him as he did to sound biblical teaching. Then there's the man that had a whole new word created just for his brand of teaching: Steven Furtick (and the word is 'narcigesis' of course) And speaking of narcigesis, Beth Moore comes to mind too, as does Paula White and the Phoenix of Falsehood Mark Driscoll.

False Prophets Be Like

Montanism - Nothing to do with Montana

St. Mary's Lake in Glacier National Park Montana

I've noticed that the word "Montanism" was appearing quite often in the WatchBlogosphere lately. When you see that happening it may be the Holy Spirit using Watchbloggers to spread a word that God needs spread, so I pay attention to these occurrences.

As I said,the word that I've seen being used is "Montanism" which at first I thought was an overly complex word that Christian theologians like to invent and smack about like a badminton shuttlecock. The next thing that came to mind was 'Montana' as in the state, or 'Montaña del Norte' which was the original Spanish name for the entire Rocky Mountain area (mountainous country of the north). But, of course, Montana and 'Montaña del Norte have nothing to do with Montanism. Nor is Montanism one of those 4+ syllable words that theologians love to invent, Montanism is actually a heretical form of Christianity and has been around for quite a while.

Montanism was known by its followers as the New Prophecy and to its adversaries as the Cataphrygian Heresy. It started as an early Christian movement in the late second century and was named after its founder, Montanus. Little is known about Montanus, and what documents that survive do not paint a complimentary picture. This is probably because the beliefs of Montanus and his followers contradict orthodox Christianity. Followers of Montanism unbiblically recognized women as bishops and presbyters (overseers and priests/elders) and also unbiblically claimed that apostles, prophets, bishops and presbyters had the the power to forgive sins. Even the Apostolic Church at the time realized that only God has the power to forgive sins (however confession has to be performed through a bishop or priest) But there's more, much more.

Spurgeon Thursday - Come out of her, my people!

How many people are turning to the lies and heresy of the of false teachers like Beth Moore and Joel Osteen? How many denominations are succumbing to the temptations of the seat filling goat chow that is shoveled out by the New Apostolic Reformation?  Are ye not entertained?  C.H. Spurgeon saw this heretical nightmare in his own time, one can only wonder what he would say if he saw the clown acts that pass for theologians today. He'd probably say what he said 150 years ago:

"Neither when we have chosen our way can we keep company with those who go the other way. There must come with decision for truth a corresponding protest against error." -- C.H.S., The Sword and the Trowel, September 1887.

"Avowed atheists are not a tenth as dangerous as those preachers who scatter doubt and stab at faith." -- C.H.S., The Sword and the Trowel, August 1887.

"Believers in Christ's atonement are now in declared union with those who make light of it; believers in Holy Scripture are in confederacy with those who deny plenary inspiration; those who hold evangelical doctrine are in open alliance with those who call the Fall a fable, who deny the personality of the Holy Ghost, who call justification by faith immoral, and hold that there is another probation after death ... Yes, we have before us the wretched spectacle of professedly orthodox Christians publicly avowing their union with those who deny the faith, and scarcely concealing their contempt for those who can not be guilty of such a gross disloyalty to Christ. To be very plain, we are unable to call these things Christian Unions; they begin to look like Confederacies in Evil ... It is our solemn conviction that where there can be no real spiritual communion there should be no pretense of fellowship. Fellowship with known and vital error is participation in sin." -- C.H.S., The Sword and the Trowel, November 1887.

WWUTT Wednesday - False Teachers Teaching Falsehoods

I had completely forgotten about about the annual false teacher of the year "award". I usually think about it for weeks and research for days looking for the one false teacher that epitomizes the falsehoods of the year. But recent health issues and work issues have really taken their toll on my time to blog, and even to read blogs. It completely slipped my mind.

Yet Monday morning I woke up knowing that this was the day that the world knew that Rick Joyner was the false teacher of the year. No, I did not hear a still small voice whispering in my ear as perennial false teacher Rick Warren advises us to listen for. I think I knew a year ago that Rick Joyner was going to be the winner of the obscure but sadly fitting title of False Teacher of the Year when he falsely claimed that God picked the Carolina Panthers would win Super Bowl 50. Proverbs 30:5-6 came crashing down on his head less than a month later. 

Is it just me, am I growing more aware? or is the number of false teachers among us growing? or are the false teachers among us growing more vocal? Sadly I believe the answer is "Yes" to all three questions. But what shocks me more than anything else are self styled "prophets" and "apostles" who spout utter bunk and people believe their claims that these are "extrabiblical revelations". Just the name alone tells us it's not in the bible, therefor it's clearly not from God. 

False Teacher of the Year 2016

It's that time of year, the time of caring and giving. As the nights grow longer and the days grow colder we retreat indoors to the warmth I pray you all are taking the opportunity to fend off the wrath of satan by studying the word of God. I am in two studies this year, John and Hebrews, and what a delight! I've always loved John, but this is my first study of Hebrews and I wish I had studied this a long time ago.

One of the greatest (read: most effective) tools Satan has is to drive a wedge between us and God through ignorance of God's word, His commands, His desires. And doing this is a very simple task, simply present a false version of God's word in a manner that is more palatable to the unaware than the true word of God. Some folks are very good at it. Tops in 2013 was John Shore, leader of the Not All There Like That "Christians", in 2014 it was Steven McSwain a self-professed "Christian Atheist", a title that he enjoys, and last year it was Mark Sandlin, a "pastor" in the "Christian" Left who believes that social justice takes presidence uber alles. 

Again I wanted to nominate Gretta Vosper, but prayerful reflection again eliminates her from the running. I can't consider her because of 1 Corinthians 5:12, where God tells us not to judge those outside the church. Gretta is an atheist therefore she's outside of the Church, even though she's conducting her self help seminars inside a church building - but that building became a tomb years ago, and her acolytes mere animated corpses shuffling off to hell.

This year's winner will come as no surprise to anyone, his efforts to stand front and center as the New Apostolic Reformation's False Teacher of choice are impressive and has achieved the "Second Peter Principle" to earn this recognition:

18 For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, 19 promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved. 20 For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. 21 For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them. (2 Peter 2:18-21) 

Emergent Monday - The NAR’s Infallible Prophet Rick Joyner (and the New Breed)

The controversial New Breed doctrine goes under many 

different names, although it is often called ‘Manifest Sons 

of God’ theology by discernment ministries in the 1980s.

This was posted on May 24, 2016 at Churchwatch Central, and I'm sure you'll agree with me that it is an excellent expose of narcissistic psudotheology gone wild. All emphasis is from the author, minor corrections in spelling and grammar have been made because I'm an English major with OCD.

The problem with cults is that it is hard to convince people that they actually teach really bizarre or far-fetched doctrines. It’s hard to reconcile that they push such illogical concepts on people contrary to human reason or biblical truths.

THE NEW BREED DOCTRINE

One such cult is the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) who believe they will raise raise up a generation known as the New Breed. This New Breed doctrine teaches that a generation of Christians will become “divine” or “God in human flesh” and will manifest Christ here on earth with powerful signs, wonders and judgments to cleanse the church and the world of all sin so Christ can return.

WHY SHOULD WE CARE ABOUT THIS NEW BREED NONSENSE?

The reason why it is important to familiarize yourself with this teaching is because it is EVERYWHERE. You will see this theology emerge again and again in NAR revivals or in their attempt to promote conferences. You can detect it behind the theology of very popular movements that try to hide their theological ties to the NAR:

Emergent Monday - Yes, Bethel Redding and Bill Johnson are part of the New Apostolic Reformation

Bill Johnson

Once again Holly Pivec at The Spirit of Error blog exposes more information on one of the most dangerous cults of all times, the New Apostolic Reformation. This time she exposes Bethel Redding and their leader Bill Johnson and their ties to the NAR. Bethel Redding is all about Matthew 24:24, when Bill Johnson took over in 1996 he changed the teaching of the church from Jesus to training people in prophecy, healing and other "supernatural gifts of God". Bethel is a Word of Faith movement that teaches that faith is a force through which anything can be done. The goats at bethel come not for the gospel but that warm fuzzy feel-good feeling and miracles. They come for signs and wonders like speaking in tongues, gold dust, diamonds, and angel feathers...

Yes, Bethel Redding and Bill Johnson are part of the New Apostolic Reformation

Following Christianity Today’s recent cover story on Bethel Church in Redding, California, I’ve been contacted by people wondering about Bill Johnson’s statements made in that article distancing himself from the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR). The two specific statements he made are that his church does not have any official ties to theNAR and that he’s “not completely clear on what it is.”

Despite Johnson’s distancing himself from the NAR, he very clearly is part of it. Let’s look at his two claims.

What makes the NAR the NAR?

One of Johnson’s claims is that he’s not completely clear on what the NAR is. Interestingly, the author of the Christianity Today article said he laughed with disbelief. I. too, find Johnson’s claim hard to believe because the NAR is all about apostles–and Johnson clearly sees himself as one. 

WWUTT Wednesday - The End Is Near!

What do the Christadelphians, the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Seventh Day Adventists, the Mormons, and Pat Robertson have in common (besides the obvious)? To these people the second coming of Christ has come and gone without anyone noticing. In some cases it was rescheduled but the predicted apocalypse was again a non-event.

The Christadelphians had some very interesting predictions. Their founder, Dr. John Thomas, predicted that the end times would start in 1866 with the resurrection of the prophet Daniel and come to a climax in 1911. Robert Roberts who took over after John Thomas' death went one better than Dr. John claiming that Christ would return in 1910. Charles P. Wauchope of Adelaide, South Australia noticed the complete lack of Christ's return in 1910 and 1911 and predicted Christ got delayed, but would be back in 1934 dressed in the tattered robe of a beggar and thief and come quietly into the British headquarters where he would establish His Kingdom. Again He failed to uphold their predictions. Their latest prediction would be Christ's return in 1988, and there's been no update to that.

Charles T. Russell founded the Jehovah's Witnesses and they STILL use the date that Russell set  as the second coming: 1914. When Christ didn't come, Russell claimed he was right, but that Christ came invisibly! Up until about 1996, Jehovah's Witnesses continued to teach that the world would end within one generation after 1914 AD. Even the May 15, 1984 Watchtower magazine echoed this false prediction. Like all cults and date setters, they quietly stopped making the prediction based upon one generation after 1914 and keep going door to door with their ever changing lies and deceptions.

Emergent Monday - Excuses Excuses

If you've been keeping track, the prophesy record for the NAR is pretty abysmal. Keep in mind that being a prophet isn't all about picking Super Bowl winners (am I right Rick Joyner?) but about speaking God's truth to others. The English word prophet comes from the Greek word prophetes, which can mean “one who speaks forth” or “advocate.”

More than 133 named prophets are mentioned in the Bible, including 16 women.These aren't folks who just woke up one day and thought to themselves "Hey, I'll be a prophet, the money's not good but the work is easy" True prophets are chosen by God to speak for Him

I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. (Deuteronomy 18:18)

True prophets of God aren't well loved in this sinful world, primarily because they are true prophets of God and say what God tells them to say. A shining example is Ahab, king of Israel. He had 400 false prophets telling him what he liked to hear, and one true prophet, Micaiah. The 400 predicted victory for Israel over that Arameans, but  Micaiah prophesied defeat and death, for which he was imprisoned. Of course Micaiah was right (2 Kings 22:1-40) Paul also has been known to prophesy, one of his most damning prophesies is found in his letter to the Romans where he tells of a world falling deeper into sin (Romans 1:20-32).

Enter the New Apostolic Reformation - it's not new, it's not apostolic, and the only thing they have reformed is the art of ear tickling - their false prophecy is staggering and nearly as creative as their excuses for spewing false prophecy in the first place. Let's look at a few. First is Dutch Sheets prophesying that the leaders of all governments will lead their nations righteously

Emergent Monday - IHOP and the Perils of Passion

Scott Pursley is the Senior Pastor at Lamb of God Fellowship in Livingston, NJ. He is a teacher who is well grounded in the Word. This article was originally presented in sermon form (mp3). Pastor Scott reformatted his notes for publication at BeyondGrace and are reposted here

The International House of Prayer, located in Kansas City Missouri is principally the vision of one man, its founder and chief doctrinal spokesman, Mike Bickle. Therefore a critique of IHOP is in the final analysis a critique of Mike Bickle’s teaching ministry. However, because of the unusual beginnings of Mr. Bickle’s ministry and rise to national prominence it is also necessary to focus on the teaching/preaching ministries of two alleged prophets, Paul Cain and Bob Jones. Their ministries are parallel developments and significantly influence and shape Mr. Bickle’s perception of IHOP’s divinely authorized origins.

The multi-million dollar ministry that is IHOP has it roots in the modest beginnings of the Kansas City Fellowship of the early 1980’s. According to Mr. Bickle, IHOP is a direct fulfillment of prophecies delivered to him by Bob Jones and Paul Cain. Repeatedly Mr. Bickle has declared that no one has been more integral to establishing the prophetic in his ministry than Bob Jones. Part of the mythology of Mr. Jones legendary status as a prophet are numerous false prophecies, now largely forgotten. These include claims of California being destroyed, nuclear weapons being detonated on the East and West Coast, and an oft repeated story of a drought confirming special ‘divine’ authorization on Mr. Bickle’s ministry.

From the very early days of Mr. Bickle’s ministry he adapted his own version of the so called ‘Latter Rain’ teaching of the late 1940’s made popular principally through the writing of George Warnock’s ‘Feast of Tabernacles’ (As well as a hand full of other, now obscure Pentecostal heretics). This parallel has been pointed out to Mr. Bickle on numerous occasions necessitating a public denial of IHOP’s dependance on Latter Rain teaching. However, no actual substantive explanation has ensued from Mr. Bickle regarding this allegation. The false teacher and Latter Rain proponent William Branham was very influential in the theological formation of the disgraced prophet Paul Cain. Paul Cain in turn influenced greatly both Bob Jones (who frequently referred to Mr. Cain as the greatest prophet of God on the earth) and Mike Bickle who often appeared with Mr. Cain in large venues around the U.S.

Emergent Monday: IHOP - Feeding the Undiscerning

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in  sheep's
clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
(Matthew 7:15)

Once upon a time, Joseph Smith said that God sent him a message, so he started the Mormon Church. Ellen G. White also claimed a message from God and she started the Seventh Day Adventists. Mary Eddy Baker believes she got a message from God and she started the Christian Scientist church. Sun Myung Moon said he got a message from God and he started the Unification church. Muhammed claims to have received a message from God and started Islam.

Then there's Mike Bickle. In the 1980's Mike was a preacher in a small church St. Louis when a man named "Augustine told him that he had heard an audible voice that told him to prophesy "by the spirit of truth" to Bickle's congregation. Bickle allowed him to do this and was impressed by the seeming accuracy with which he described the condition of his church. In September of that same year Mike claims that while visiting Cairo, Egypt a mysterious, audible voice told him:

I am inviting you to raise up a work that will touch the ends of the earth. I have invited many people to do this thing and many people have said yes, but very few have done my will. (Source, page 60)

In 1999 Mike Bickle started the International House Of Prayer known for it's 24/7 prayer ministry. It has since grown to establish international ties, its own seminary, and an undergraduate program along with tying itself to the New Apostolic Reformation. And when I say it's a 24/7 prayer ministry, I mean it's really, really, Really 24/7. Nonstop praying 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is true that there's no such thing as praying too much, so the idea of a ministry dedicated to non-stop prayer is a good one. But what worries Christians is the type of prayer they use. IHOP is dedicated to contemplative prayer. Here are a few quotes on contemplative prayer by Mike Bickle. 

Emergent Monday - The Occultic Roots of the NAR

This is the gravestone of William Branham, the man whose strange teachings fuel the strange fire of the New Apostolic Reformation. Every Easter, many of Branham’s followers visit his grave in Jeffersonville, IN expecting to see his resurrection. They believe that his rising from the grave will be the sign that Jesus’ Second Coming is at hand. Branham’s grave attracts hundreds of domestic and international visitors who believe, as Branham prophesied, that he was the messenger of the Last Days.

This occult Masonic pyramid gravestone is adorned with an eagle, Branham stated many times that the Bible compared God's prophets to eagles, however, he never provided one scriptural example of where this was the case. This grave marker Lists the seven churches of Revelation on one side, and a list of seven men whom Branham believed signifigantly impacted the church. They are Paul, Irenaeus, Martin, Columbia, Luther, Westley, and Branham himself. This stone is eerily similar to the Watchtower Memorial marking the grave of Charles Taze Russell, the founder of the Jehovah's witnesses. 

William Branham was a false prophet and major heretic who taught false doctrines and promoted occultism. Even with his outlandish teachings and proven false prophecies, there are many poor souls who still believe in him, promote his teachings, and are basing their ministries on his ranting.