To: Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team: Chuck Pierce, Dutch Sheets, Lee Grady, Steve Strang, Ché Ahn, Jeff Beacham, David Cannistraci, Joseph Askins, Bill Johnson, John Arnott

From: C. Peter Wagner

Date: June 25, 2008

Subject: Personal Report of Lakeland Outpouring

As all of you know, what I believe to be God-orchestrated circumstances over the past three weeks or so have brought me mainstream into the Lakeland Outpouring and the controversies surrounding it.

I am writing this from Lakeland. The night before last Doris and I attended the meeting in the tent along with 10,000 others, the largest crowd yet since meeting in the tent. It was the 82nd day of the Outpouring. Todd Bentley used his speaking time in giving the most detailed testimony so far of the “dark night of the soul” that he experienced for 18 months 2005-2007. It was a very remarkable and transparent confession of his pride during the ten years previously and details of the wilderness that God took him through to break the pride. He was very clear about his lack of discipline, his emotions out of control, his rejection of God, his dislike of reading scripture, public meltdown on the platform, memories of childhood rejection, loneliness, sexual abuse, his marriage on the brink of divorce, etc. He was so burnt out he cried 4 hours per day for 21 days straight.

When it was over, God restored everything related to his staff, his marriage, his ministry, and his newly-refined personal character. This was a very remarkable and touching presentation. There was no hint of victimization or wanting a pity party. It was a confession of his own sin and the consequences he paid for disobedience. Doris and I were very touched by this, and we were thankful to God for a window on Todd’s character that we didn’t expect to be so wide open to us

Let me remind you that Doris and I have been very close to other similar outpourings, especially the John Wimber signs & wonders phenomenon of the late 70s and 80s and well as the Argentine Revival of the 80s and 90s. We believe we have paid our dues in terms of the ability to discern truth from error and also in receiving severe and often painful criticism for some of the judgments we made in supporting those two movements. As we observed and participated in the meeting in the tent, we became very nostalgic about Wimber and Argentina, even noting some physical resemblance between Todd and Wimber. His accuracy in words of knowledge reminded us of both John Wimber in the past and Robert Henderson in the present. The worship time was similar to the worship we experience in Freedom Church in Colorado Springs except on a larger and more exuberant scale. We saw or felt nothing that would cross the lines we have previously experienced in high-profile revival. We have learned that God-driven revival is often messy, tending to pull some out of their religious comfort zones, but at the same time opening gates for new seasons of the movement of God.

All this was in preparation for last night, June 23, when we held a ceremony of apostolic alignment for Todd Bentley. As you will see from the document I will attach, the gist was that Todd would be aligned with Ché Ahn, Bill Johnson and John Arnott, representing Revival Alliance, who would then commission him as the evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring. A few of us met with Todd personally before the service, and we found him to be a wonderful individual. Doris and I had never met him before. I explained to him what the ceremony would be like, and he agreed. I thought that it was interesting when he wanted to change one thing I had written in this document, because I could then run a quiet test of his humility and his respect for authority. Keep in mind that this was Todd’s ministry and Todd’s meeting. However, he had delegated the leadership of the ceremony to me. I suggested that his change was not wise, and he immediately accepted my decision. We were on the same page! In fact, we like each other!

The scenario was that I took the podium and called around me Todd, Ché, Bill and John. I then called to the platform a number of apostles whom I had chosen to stand behind us: Stephen Strader of Lakeland FL, Karl Strader of Lakeland FL, Jeff Beacham of Sydney, Australia, Rick Joyner of Ft. Mill SC, Doris Wagner of Colorado Springs CO, Sharon Stone of Burton, England, Paco Garcia of Chiclana, Spain, Clarice Fluitt of Monroe LA, Richard Maiden of Scottsdale AZ, Michael Maiden of Phoenix AZ, Joshua Fowler of Orlando FL, Barry Boucher of Ottawa, Canada, and Wesley Campbell of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. Unfortunately Bishop Bill Hamon had to cancel because of a travel problem. I then read the paper I am attaching and, despite several requests, I even desisted from telling a joke! When I finished, I handed the microphone to Ché and he was in charge.

Ché, Bill and John laid on hands and anointed Todd with a special new “Be Revived” oil that Chuck Pierce (who was in Africa) sent for the event. Todd went down under the power of the Spirit and the three prophesied over him, commissioning him as the evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring. Then most of the backup apostles prayed and prophesied as well. The power of the Holy Spirit was so heavy on that event that you could almost have cut it with a knife!

It was quite evident to those present that this was a groundbreaking event. A serious public problem had been growing in the body of Christ revolving around concerns about Lakeland from respected leaders. Even “schism” had been mentioned frequently. Because of the extensive media coverage through GOD TV, it was much more than a private or a trivial matter. Something was called for to set things in order, and this is the stated role of apostles. We are now in a place in what I see as the Second Apostolic Age that apostles can agree publicly to bring alignment. The seventeen apostles involved in this event represented three distinct apostolic streams: ICA (10 were ICA members), Revival Alliance, and Morningstar. Even though we are not networked formally, we believe in and support each other and we stand together when a crisis such as this one comes along. I may be wrong, but I cannot recall an event of this nature in the recent history of the church.

There was a notable prophetic dimension accompanying the event. Around a month ago, Bob Jones prophesied that on June 22 the outpouring would increase so much that it would appear that the revival would really begin at that time. Of course no one knew that June 23, the day after June 22, would be the date of Todd’s apostolic alignment which could well be the event to release increased spiritual power. Parenthetically both June 22 and June 23 broke previous attendance records in the 10,000-seat tent.

There is a great deal more to say, but I will leave it as it is for the moment. My paper, “Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Alignment,” which I am sending you will fill in many details. Although I am writing this primarily to you who are mentioned above, I will also send it to some others to whom I feel responsible for a report of Todd’s alignment and commissioning.

Blessings,

Peter

C. Peter Wagner

President, Global Harvest Ministries

Chancellor, Wagner Leadership Institute

CPW/jmc

P.S. on June 25. Last night was Todd’s day off, so Ché Ahn took the service. Among other things, he used Chuck Pierce’s “Be Revived” anointing oil to personally anoint the 1,000 or so pastors as “carriers of fire” to their churches. Forty-seven nations were represented in the meeting. He admonished them to receive it here in Lakeland and then give it away!

A Personal Note

from Chuck Pierce

in Africa Regarding Revival!

Dear Friends,

We have had several people write with great concerns about the current move of God that has been stirring in Lakeland, Atlanta, Dallas and other areas of our nation. Let me share some things with you. I actually believe this letter would be worth reading as you continue praying for us in Africa.

We have made our way into Northern Nigeria. Continue to pray for us. Life here is what you may have imagined in Africa: tin roofs, raining, hazy mountains in the distance and bugs buzzing. When we got five miles from the Compound in the rural area of Kafanchan at the Throne Room Trust Ministry, International Prayer Village, you could feel the tangible Presence of His Spirit. I love being here, even though the surroundings are not what I am normally accustomed to; the food is different, and well, yes, there are many different creatures. The main issue is this: in the midst of this environment, I am not afraid of being infected by malaria or getting dysentery because I am in a different land. The people here are some of the most gracious in all the world.

I see that some individuals view “moves of God” this way: they see all the dangers, they are afraid that they will have a demon transferred to them, they analyze every move and shake and scrutinize doctrinally everything that is happening. This may be the only way that some can process their relationship with the Lord and the Body of Christ. I know that many would not like to be here in northern Nigeria in this rural area, nor would they like to be wearing the kingly, African traditional clothing that I am wearing this evening. Some of us are more adventurous than others. Some need to fully test the water before they swim. Personally, I have found that there is great joy in watching God’s people express themselves, work through their issues, learn to discern both good and evil and continually mature in Him.

I was just in Zambia. We saw a great reconciliation of the nation and people with the ex-President. This man had a great reproach from his terms in office. However, God in His grace chose to bring him forth, humble him and forgive him, and use him to change a nation. From a political standpoint, many would have wished he would have stayed estranged from the Body. However, I chose to go with the Spirit of God above political party divisions and reconcile him back into God’s Kingdom plan.

We at Glory of Zion International have chosen to number ourselves in intercession with what is happening in Lakeland and other places throughout the world. Some have written asking me to reject Todd Bentley. GZI does not have a philosophy or mindset to reject anyone. We watch, pray, and then try to communicate what the Lord is saying to help the overall Body of Christ advance.

I have seen others get offended because key leaders commissioned Todd as a modern day evangelist. We at GZI have no problems with this. Please know that we are living in an age where the Apostolic gift in the Body has come into a new position and era of authority. I was very excited to read Peter Wagner’s report (you may go to our web site to read this) on the commissioning service in Lakeland. I admire Ché Ahn, Bill Johnson, and John Arnott. I can now rest in Him, knowing that if things get way out of sync, they can help Todd make adjustments so the Spirit can keep moving.

We will continue to pray that the Lord raise Evangelists all over the world who can reach the harvest fields today. Yes, they may look different than Billy Graham, and they may have experienced some unusual happenings that perhaps will be better communicated as they grow in the Lord. But overall they are stirring the Body of Christ, leading people to the Lord, and doing the works of Jesus.

Let me share with you a personal experience. When Pam and I were in the Baptist Church in the early ’80’s, we were in a “move of God.” The Fullness Movement had touched the Baptist Church in the late ’70s, led by Jim Hylton, Ras Robinson, Jack Taylor and others. We had had some incredible meetings at our church. Many had gotten saved, gotten right with the Lord and filled with the Spirit of God. I loved this time. Pam and I both reminisce over it and call it “the Glory Days”. Then James Robison had his annual meeting and invited John Wimber to minister. Many of you remember our story of Pam’s barrenness. You can read about it in two or three of the books that we have written. We were told by all of our leadership how this “move” had gotten way out of hand, and now that John Wimber (who had no Baptist roots), was invading James Robison’s meeting, we should all stay away from these gatherings. (You should know that John Wimber and Peter Wagner helped revive signs and wonders in the ’80s.) Well, I heard God very clearly tell Pam and me to go in January, 1984 to the James Robison meeting where John Wimber was speaking. While we were there, the Spirit of God fell on my wife and sovereignly filled her. His power knocked the clots out of her uterus and He dramatically healed her. When the Spirit of God fell on Pam she said, “You were right! There are demons everywhere, but I AM HEALED!”

This was not about John Wimber. This was not about Baptists. This was not about controversy. This test was ours! The situation was about us following God without fear so He could reward us with an incredible blessing. Pam became pregnant two weeks later and continued to be pregnant for the next 10 years of our life. We had six wonderful children. I’m so thankful I listened to the Spirit of God and did not let religious fear rule us. There were others with us that were not touched at all by the meetings. As a matter of fact, they did not appreciate at all the way John Wimber ministered. However, in the midst of his ministry, the Spirit of God ministered to us and changed the course of our lives.

I am honored that God brought me into alignment with Peter and Doris Wagner after I embraced the move of God that had been stirred by he and John Wimber. We have now been together for 17 years. During that time, I have continued to get the best God has to offer from the revivals in Argentina, Toronto, the “Laughter Movement”, Brownsville, and any other fresh breath of wind that blows. I have many friends who have great cautions over experiential manifestations and extra-Biblical sensational happenings. I heed those friends’ voices and listen carefully. This does not keep me from experiencing what God is doing. I love what Bishop Bill Hamon says, “Eat the meat and spit out the bones and you will find yourself nourished.”

Recently, I have been pondering the first several verses of Genesis. In the midst of a wreck and ruined, chaotic, without-form earth, the Spirit of God began to hover. Once the Spirit began to hover, God could speak into the earth realm and pull forth creativity. He did this for six straight days. But notice God’s order: He didn’t try and set in order the sixth day before the first day. He didn’t try to place the fourth day before the second day. Little by little, as the Spirit hovered, order came and man was offered a new position as a result. That is how I view every move of God.

What I would encourage you to do is to keep discerning by the Word and the Spirit, but to be open to see the Lord move in a new way. The disciples could not understand why the Lord would go to Samaria and visit with the woman at the well. However, because of His love and boldness to break a religious standard, a whole city was saved (John 4). The Lord is preparing to save entire cities today.

Thank God that Jesus talked to this woman – a person with a past, a Samaritan, and a woman. He was not afraid of His reputation being marred. Recently, a letter from one of the major Bible churches in Denton went out to leaders in our city on the doctrine of women and how they should have a subservient role in the Body of Christ in public ministry. Prior to this letter going out, I had invited Cindy Jacobs to minister at Glory of Zion on Sunday, July 6. I want you to know that I have been a champion for women ministers throughout the years. I am so very excited to have Cindy with us on July 6th because women are welcome to minister in Denton, Texas. I would never shut the door of ministry for her to come into this city because of man’s opinion.

Neither would I, Robert Heidler or any leader that is aligned with me, shut the door to Keith Miller or Todd Bentley to come to Denton to minister what the Spirit of God is doing in their lives. We consider it a privilege that God has opened the gate for Spirit-led ministry to come into Denton. We are glad that He “needs” to come to Denton just like He “needed” to go to Samaria. You are always welcome to come to Denton. As a matter of fact, you might “need” to come here to gain your next release from the Lord. You can go to Keith Miller’s meeting. You can come to our Firstfruits Gathering. You can come be with Cindy Jacobs on Sunday, July 6. You can come to Tuesday Morning Prayer. You are invited to come any time and you will not be rejected as you come into this city.

Keep praying for us. We will be home on Tuesday.

Blessings,

Chuck D. Pierce

YOUR WORSHIP, IS IT MERELY NOISE?

“Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold I stand at the door and knock, if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” (Rev 3:19-21)

There are many Scriptures that are commonly misquoted and taken out of context. There is a saying amongst those who seriously study the word ” a text without a context becomes a pretext.” This Scripture quoted above is one such Scripture. How many of us have shared the Scripture above in regard to the unsaved? This Scripture, in actual fact, pictures the Lord seeking entrance into His own church for the purpose of renewed fellowship.

How sad and tragic that our Lord Jesus would have to stand outside of our lives, outside of His own peoples heart and church and knock continually and be ignored, be left standing outside the door. How many times in the world have we been going about our business in our own houses and suddenly realize that there is someone standing on our doorstep?

If you have been in your own house and see someone standing at your door as you passed, you quickly open the door and apologize and ask the person how long they have been standing there. Would it not be tragic if there is the person of Jesus standing outside of the innermost parts of our hearts and His knocking goes unheard? How is it that we cannot hear Him? It clearly says that He is knocking. Perhaps the things of the world, the cares of the day have dulled our hearing?

It is interesting that in the very next chapter , actually two sentences later the letter continues and says “After these things I looked and behold a door standing open in Heaven.” This is the same door brothers and sisters. This is the door that the Lord wants you to open, come with me and see what the Scripture says lies beyond the door that the Lord wants you to open today, right now. ………..

“Immediately I was in the Spirit and behold a throne set in heaven and One sat on the Throne.
Oh brothers and sisters, we are in the very throne room of God, we have stepped into the innermost sanctuary of the mighty God of all creation. Can I suggest to you that in this place you will fall on your face? That the awe and the majesty and the trembling power of that place will completely take you over and you will cry “Holy holy holy . Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come.”

When we, as “living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever,” we will find ourselves “Casting down our crowns before the throne saying You are worthy Oh Lord to receive glory and honor and power for you created all things and by your will they exist and were created.”

For too long we, as people of God, as the called out people have only entered into “His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise.” And while there is great emphasis in ancient Israel for worship of joyful abandon and gladness, this was not the only “mood,” of worship. Even prior to Jesus manifesting Himself on the earth there was a worship of awe and of reverence where one could barely lift their heads. The power would fall, the shekinah glory of the living God would fall with such a “Holy heaviness,” that one could barely lift their heads.

If we are to move to a different place in God, as individuals and as a called out people, we must answer the knock at the door of our hearts. In order to hear that knocking we must abandon the “cares of the world. Instead of seeking the treasures of the world, we must turn our eyes to the treasures of heaven and its throne room. If we are to hear God, we must become silent before Him. We are moving into a time where it will be vital to be intimate with Him.

There is a time for shouting and praising God, but if we are ignoring the knocking, then we must stop shouting. If our lives are not reflecting the Glory of God, if we are not becoming like His Son, daily, then all of our shouting and praising God will just be so much noise. How tragic for the church of the living God if, when He looks down, He does not see praise but just a group of people making a noise.

Dear Lord and Father, in the name of our precious Lord and Savior Jesus, we repent this day and ask that you forgive us. We have had a form of Godliness, we have had a reputation of being alive, but now we want nothing more than to reflect the glory of the throne room of heaven.

We want to enter into this place, this place of most intimate worship that compels us, necessitates us to fall to the floor and cry Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy are you Lord in all the earth and we worship you. And when, for practical purposes, we get back to our feet, then let us be changed by the very presence of you in the most intimate parts of us.

And from the very core of our being let that change radiate outwards, let us take that change, that power, that presence back out into the world of darkness and let that light so shine before men who dwell in darkness that they run to you. Fire in our hearts from the throne room of heaven. Living coals received into supernatural hearts, hearts prepared to receive such coals.

No longer does the coals of fire burn our lips but it burns at the very center of our beings. Oh Lord I hear you knocking, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords is knocking on my door? I can scarcely believe how honored I am, how privileged I am that you would knock on the door of one such as I.

“2Sa 9:8 And he bowed himself and said, What is your servant, that you should look upon such a dead dog as I?” Lord you restored everything to Mephibosheth, a lame man in hiding, and invited him to dine with you every day, I ask that you would restore us, your people, to the banqueting table of your presence and I thank you that your banner over us is love.

On June 23, 2008, Todd Bentley was commissioned by apostolic group, Revival Alliance, and brought into formal affiliation with this group. Revival Alliance is an organization of revival leaders that includes Bill and Beni Johnson, Che and Sue Ahn, John and Carol Arnott, Georgian and Winnie Bannov, Randy and Deanne Clark and Roland and Heidi Baker. The video below is the first of four on You Tube showing the entire ceremony. Click on the video, go to You Tube and watch them all. C. Peter Wagner, head of Global Harvest, presided.

Bill Johnson explained the motives and discussion that lead up to this event in is his sermon Sunday, June 22, at Bethel Church in Redding, CA. The sermon is available here at the Bethel website as a video for the next few days and is entitled, The Loyalty of Bethel. It is also available on their podcast.

Revival Alliance is the result of a prophetic word that Bob Jones gave to Heidi Baker regarding an alliance of 12 revival leaders. Heidi contacted those Bob saw in the vision and Revival Alliance was born. The leaders of Revival Alliance is determined to give themselves away for the benefit of others. The goal of this group is to stand together, explore together, and stay accountable together; basically to live and die for each other.

In the original vision, Todd Bentley’s ministry was part of the alliance, but Bob said that at that time it was not the time yet to include Todd. When Bill Johnson asked Bob Jones if now was the time, Bob said, “It’s time because of his enemies.” Because of who is opposing Todd, it is important for them to rally around him.

Pastor Johnson makes it clear in his sermon that for him, when a man of God is being shot at, that is where he wants to be to stand with them. He wants to throw his hat in the ring with people who are making a mess of the kingdom of darkness. It is not the time to jump ship when someone is facing a hard time. That is when you rally around them and give the enemy multiple targets to shoot at.

Xtreme Encounters has been an Overflow Room for the Florida Outpouring since April 21. We have made a decision that, although we are a small ministry, we will stand with Fresh Fire Ministries and see this thing through. We want to see the good fruit that we see (people have been healed and saved in our ministry as a result of the encouragement we have received from the Outpouring) spread, not just in Lakeland, not just in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where we are, but all over the world.

This is a video of Heather Clark’s warfare dance at the Lakeland Outpouring on June 2, 2008, I believe it was. I cannot believe the uproar I have seen in the blogosphere and on You Tube over this. For the record, I believe it is an awesome piece of prophetic worship. Heather just released a new album of live worship from the Outpouring and you can find it here (it’s really good!)

Heather has offered an explanation of the meaning behind the dance for those who do not understand prophetic worship:

The fact is I left the key board with the single intent of just dancing before the Lord. I was on the STAGE cause I was leading worship. And as a matter of a fact I was wishing that the camera was not on me. At first I was trying to move around back and forth so that they couldn’t catch me. As I danced I felt in my heart a call to the body of Christ to rise up as the army of God and take hold of the promise land that is ours, standing against every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ.

So let’s break this down for a moment. I will watch on the video and go through. First part, dancing energetically around the stage, stomping and spinning. Here is my response to that
There are some scriptures that use the word “rejoice” (gul) that have the meaning – TO SPIN AROUND UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ANY VIOLENT EMOTION, USUALLY REJOICE OR FEAR, be glad, joy, to go around in a circle.

Psalm 9:14, “I will rejoice in Your salvation.”

Psalm 13:5 “But I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.”

Psalm 16:9 “Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will rest in hope.”

Psalm 21:1, 31:7, 32:11, 35:9, plus 35 more references.

PART 2 GOING BACK AND FORTH WITH MY HEAD DOWN. I have heard some complain that my head was down… that’s cause I didn’t actually want to be seen. I would have done the same dance before the Lord if I was at the back of the church. I felt an intercession and a warfare type dance forming in me.

PART 3: FEW ROBOTIC MOVES AND THEN SOME ARM SWINGING. This was was 2 things. um, well one I was catching my breath and trying to just wait on the Lord if I should go into what I was feeling which was to call the body to war. At THIS POINT, teh dance went from being me before the Lord to me before the people because there was a “message” to it. In order to receive that message, the people had to see it. The second thing was me transitioning into the prophetic part. A picture was coming to me of like being in a battle field.

PART 4: Robotic moves. I am a modern dancer and so for me those types of movements are very militant and “strong”. They require a lot physically and in my mind I am thinking of the armor of God, blocking the arrows of the enemy, shield of faith.

PART 5: Around 2:05. I do some grabbing motions. In my mind I am praying and speaking to the enemy with motions saying “give that back. That’s mine” There are places where the enemy has come like a lion seeking whom he may devour and there are things in our lives that have been robbed. As the body it’s time to take them back.

PART 6: Up to about 2:19 this is if you are watching the same youtube as me…I am doing some more grabbing. Very strong violent type motions. I am thinking “The Kingdom of God suffers violence and violent take it by force!”

PART 7: About 2:39. I hit my own wrists and then open my hands. I am praying for the chains to come off the body of Christ that they would be set free.

PART 8: from there i go into pulling motions again. I am pulling back that which the enemy has stollen and sometimes that’s a hard fight so I am doing it with tension in my arms.

PART 9: more robotic stuff, hide my head. i am thinking that when we fight we need to not only be offensive but defensive and remember the armor of God. The helmet of Salvation to protect our minds. I am doing shielding motions.

PART 10: I walk away and mean to end… you can believe this or not but when I turned around and put my hands together I THOUGHT I was going to do one more pulling motion and my hands came together in the shape of a gun and I felt the Lord “blessed be the Lord my God who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle!” Maybe if it would have been a sword motion it may have been less offensive. It was a modern way of saying/praying that the enemy will be taken down as we use the “sword” of the spirit (only I used a gun but meant the same thing)

I know my eyes look very intense but like I have said before I wasn’t out picking flowers. I felt like I was in a mime type word for the body of Christ saying we are in a very intense battle of light and dark. It IS a battle zone out there and we must be aware of the enemy’s schemes. I felt like I was “hunting” out the places where the enemy tries to hide and firing against them.

I meant it completely symbolically. I didn’t think I was shooting people. I didn’t “see” any demons. I didn’t even think that the motion was specifically pegging off some spirit. I just meant it like – this is the posture that we should have. To be aware of the enemy.

Then I go crazy and it’s like the victory after a war.. “the horse and rider thrown into the sea!” It was a celebration of our victory in Christ.

So sure, I’ll give you this… it’s not like your regular church dance. I am sorry that it offended you. I think with a little explanation it could have been better received by some of you. The bible says that when we speak in tongues in public there should be interpretation so that the body can be edified. Art can sometimes be like that. It’s a language that not everyone understands and with interpretation it can edify and without it… well you see the results.

I could have toned it down a bit and got the same message across and I will be more aware of this in the future.

And about it being on the stage and drawing attention… if someone had a prophetic word they would not stand in a room of 1000 people and whisper it. They would go to the mic and speak it loud so all could hear. If the word is visual, it would need to be seen.

My heart is never to draw attention to myself and off the Lord but my heart is to call the body to a place of greater awareness.

As for my doctrine and beliefs they are on my website for anyone to read. Do i agree with everything that people believe that I minister with? no. Not the pentecostals, the baptists, the methodists, the vineyard, the renewal churches…. we’re not going to find anywhere someone/something that we completely agree with. I think that Lakeland consists of very hungry people, desperate for God, seeking a touch a miracle a healing. They seem to be finding that in Lakeland.

I, for one, would hate to see you “tone it down.” It was great and there was a tremendous anointing in it. Rarely have I seen so many religious spirits manifest through one four minute dance. Heather has been called every name in the book on the internet over this. Thanks, guys, nothing like a little hatred to make the world just want to flock to the church.

Again, her response on another site:

Well, everyone…. Thanks for your thoughts. It’s interesting to listen to everyone sit on the seat of judgement yet NOT ONE of you has emailed me, contacted me, asked me a single question about the dance. Thanks for jumping to conclusions though!

Many people feel justified in what they are doing because they are contending for the faith or contending for doctrinal purity. But scripture is clear about some things. Jesus said, “If your brother sins AGAINST YOU, go and show him his fault, JUST BETWEEN THE TWO OF YOU.” (See Matt 18:15-17). Paul said in Gal 6:1, “If someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently.”

When Peter was in error and promoting false doctrine in the Galatian Church, Paul confronted him. He did not write letters about him to the apostles in Jerusalem, he did not publish his discernment of Peter’s doctrinal error abroad. He got in Peter’s face and solved the problem. He wrote about it after the fact that others might learn.

When there was a contention over Paul’s preaching to the Gentiles, which many Jewish believers believed to have been heresy, the Council at Jerusalem had a meeting with Paul and asked him to explain himself. They did not write to all the churches about Paul before they had spoken with him.

James writes about wisdom.

James 3:13-18

13Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

17But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

Think about what you have seen on the Internet. Think of the tone some of it has taken. What kind of wisdom is it demonstrating?

There is no license in scripture for the current Jump Shout Boogie – Jump to conclusions, Shout at the brethren and Boogie all over the Internet to share your “discernment.” The Body of Christ can do much better than this.

THE TRIBULATION IS AT THE DOOR

Here is a quote from Thomas a Kempis…………………..

“Jesus has many who love His kingdom in heaven, but few who bear His cross. He has many who desire comfort, but few who desire suffering. He finds many to share His feast, but few His fasting.All desire to rejoice with Him, but few are willing to suffer for His sake. Many follow Jesus to the breaking of the bread, but few to the drinking of the cup of His passion. Many admire the miracles, but few follow Him to the humiliation of the cross. Many love Jesus as long as no hardship touches them.”

Here is a quote from the Holy Spirit………………

“Only let your conduct be worthy of the Gospel of Christ, so that whether I come to you, or are absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one Spirit, with one mind, striving together for the faith of the Gospel, and not in any way terrified by your adversaries which is to them a proof of your perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God.For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, having the same conflict that you saw in me and now hear is in me.”(Phil 1:27-30)

Brothers and sisters, there is a coming tribulation. The church as we know it will change completely. It is almost at the door. The enemies of true and genuine Christians will not come from “without,” but will come from “within.” Many of you reading this will undoubtedly believe in a pre- tribulation rapture, I want you to put that aside for the moment, at best it is a non-essential. It only becomes an essential in regard to discernment. It has often been said in the world, and there is much wisdom in it, that one should hope for the best and prepare for the worse. Perhaps a pre-tribulation rapture is “hoping for the best,” yet if this is not true(and I do not believe it to be so) then you are unprepared for the worse.

In the coming months and short years, we will begin to see a sharp division amongst Christians of every persuasion. When it is all boiled down you will have two basic groups. Number one of the opposing doctrines is roughly this. God wants all of His people to be rich and successful. They are to prosper and acquire. Now there are degrees of this teaching, some extreme, some more moderate, but all the same teaching. One of the extreme views from this philosophy is that Jesus is not coming back until every believer has an actual mansion here on earth. Along with this view is that God does not want us to suffer in any way, that Jesus did all the suffering and therefore we do not have to. A more moderate view is that Christians should be employers, not employees. They should own a house not rent. They should run the Government, not be run by it. Men of this persuasion want to see a physical kingdom here on earth , which they run. They want to acquire lands and influence, secular power here on earth. This is the way that they will change the world, and we only have to believe to bring all of this to pass.

They claim that we Christians are destined for all of this and that we have to reach out and take our rightful place on earth. They say that we were called to have dominion over the earth and all of its treasures. And weaved through all of this is Biblical principals of sowing and reaping, testing God and seeing if He will not bless and so on. Now we also see the blending of this philosophy with a secular one called “The secret,” championed by people like Oprah Winfrey. Beware brothers and sisters, you may just get exactly what your heart desires, but the price may be a leanness of your soul.

The other view is a view of suffering. It is one of humiliation, one that believes that the Kingdom of God is not physical but that it lies within each believer. It believes that we are to join Christ on His road to Calvary(the proponents of the previous view would never deny many of these) This view believes that God will effect change, one life at a time.They also believe that there is a coming catastrophe, almost at the door, and that we must ready ourselves. In order to ready ourselves we must seek a closer walk with Jesus, we must abide in Him fully if we are to be strong in the coming days. Guys like Tony Evans, and David Wilkerson and Franklin Graham are proponents of this view.

I believe that we are living in exceedingly “lean ,” times in the church because the Lord is giving us over to the desires of our hearts, what a price to pay! In order to counteract the leanness, to fill the void that has been left by the departing of the corporate presence of God, places like Lakeland have sprung up. Most of the proponents of Lakeland and other such movements believe that no believer should be sick and that all should be wealthy, just another branch of the health and wealth movement. Of course this has universal appeal. What human, in any society or culture does not want health and wealth? True treasure is the presence of the Lord. True treasure is the gifts of the Lord in operation in our lives and in our Churches. Are you willing to give up everything for the cost of Christ? This pearl of great price, what are you willing to give for it? What will you sacrifice for it? This attitude has to be the cry of Christians. No matter what happens to us, as long as we are with Him, then we know that we will be OK. It is this attitude that will carry us through. When we are faced with great difficulties the Scripture tells us not to be “terrified,” an extremely strong word, derived from a “horse in full panic.”

When the world sees Christians react, and when the devil sees Christians react this way Scripture tells us that they see this as “proof of perdition, but to you of salvation.” The Greek word for “proof,” here is a legal term denoting evidence by an analysis of the facts. When you receive bad news , and the world analyses your reaction, would it see terror, panic, anxiousness, fear, and if it did, what would that prove? In the coming tribulation, those who follow the first philosophy, who spent there time acquiring or chasing after the riches of this earth, will react in terror to all that will unfold. You see, when you are taught that you should only be rich and that you should always be healthy, then there will come the day, when you get sick, or a loved one dies or you suffer financial loss. The people of the first persuasion are not equipped to deal with these naturally occurring events. They have never had their Gethsemane moment where they have cried out “Not my will but yours be done.” I might add, that this led to the death and humiliation of the Lord, and also to His victory and resurrection over the very things feared of in the garden. The people of the first persuasion cannot join brother Paul and say …

Philippians 4:11-12 (ASV) 1 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therein to be content. 12 I know how to be abased, and I know also how to abound: in everything and in all things have I learned the secret both to be filled and to be hungry, both to abound and to be in want. 13 I can do all things in him that strengtheneth me. 14 Howbeit ye did well that ye had fellowship with my affliction.

You see, it is impossible for them to know how to be content in poverty, or in sickness, or indeed to trust in the Lord and His promises, even when we cannot see Him or feel His presence. And so they will flock to people who will promise them all of their hearts desires. The world is always amazed at the peace someone has in the midst of trials and tribulations. They are not amazed that a rich man has no anxiety about paying his bills. They are not amazed that a healthy person is not worrying about their health, they are amazed at the person, who despite their circumstances, move in joy and peace and love. The world will be drawn to people who have this “knowledge.” The religious people will hate them. They will hate them because not only do they stand against everything that they believe and trust in, they will hate them because their “Christianity,” is exposed by the ones who walk in true peace, despite their circumstances. Paul had learned to draw closer to God because of his circumstances, he learned to be more dependant upon Him and therefore was able to “do all things in Him.”

And so brothers and sisters. The religious people, the people that run to Lakeland and other such movements and demand from God particular circumstances in order to worship Him, these are the people who will come after us in the days of the coming tribulation. With a Saul spirit they will pursue and hunt down all those who are in genuine relationship with the Lord. They will be the arm of the anti-Christ. They will be used to identify every true believer. Every true believer will walk as Paul walked, in the Spirit despite circumstances. Their faith will not founder on the rocks because of circumstances, and this will drive the religious people (dead denominations, legalists, false professors, “Lakeland people,” word of faithers and many others) crazy, just as Saul could not handle David coming into the presence of the Lord. Saul hunted David down. The man who once prophesied, hunted David down because he was so “troubled,” by him.

This troubling spirit is a spirit that will be widespread. Those who are not sold out to Jesus, in spite of their circumstances, will find no peace and rest from anywhere. This is why they will so viciously hunt down and expose every true believer in the coming time of tribulation. The world nor Satan is impressed or bothered by men who love Gods kingdom but refuse to bear His cross, who love comfort but detest suffering, who willingly shares His feast, but refuse to share His fast, who only love rejoicing but who will not rejoice in His suffering, who will break His bread but not fully drink of His passion, who love to run after miracles, but will run away at a gallop from His humiliation. Use your discernment brothers and sisters, follow the way of the Lord and you will not go wrong in this world of many voices. Acknowledge Him, in ALL OF HIS WAYS and He will direct your paths

The video is of Jeff Lewis conducting Power Evangelism Training at Ignited Church. Jeff is the guy doing the street evangelism at the Florida Outpouring. Jeff leads City Taker Ministries and is a maniac for Jesus.

Jeff has trained 6,400 people so far in Power Evangelism. He really, REALLY believes in the need to preach hell to people. The Law brings with it the knowledge of sin necessary for true conviction and life-changing repentance. The anemic gospel that much of the church has been preaching produces a true conversion rate of 10 – 15% (I personally think he’s being rather generous with those numbers) and produces anemic, carnal converts.

These guys are out on the streets six days a week in Lakeland. They are committed to seeing the city touched. The City Takers website has some really good training materials and materials to use in evangelism. Their college campus survey is awesome! The premise for the campus is to engage the student in the survey by offering them 5 bucks if they can name all ten of the commandments. You can talk to a college student all day on that one! They will bring ALL their friends to you (just make sure you bring lots of CASH for this one!)

Here’s a video of Jeff showing what practical ministry on the streets of Lakeland looks like.

This is really good stuff. If you have a desire to impact your city, go through the training on Jeff’s site, print up some surveys, grab some tracts and go for it!

]]> http://rahabsplace.wordpress.com/2008/06/20/great-florida-outpouring-teenager-back-from-dead/ Sat, 21 Jun 2008 06:07:00 +0000 rahabsplace http://rahabsplace.wordpress.com/2008/06/20/great-florida-outpouring-teenager-back-from-dead/ The Outpouring in Florida is spreading! In the early days of this revival, five pastors from Ireland came to the Outpouring to “get some” and take it back to Ireland with them. The Lord has been answering their cries for “MORE!” Elim Christian Center in Belfast has been in extended meetings since their pastor, Brian Madden returned from Lakeland. Now, this church is claiming that they, too, are seeing people raised from the dead.

This is from the June 20, 2008 edition of the Belfast News Letter, which claims to be the oldest existing English language newspaper in the world. You can see the entire article here.

AN ELIM Church in Belfast is claiming that a teenager came “back from the dead” after a serious car crash.

The case is being linked into an international Pentecostalist healing phenomenon, which began in Florida.

Dozens of people are now flocking nightly to services at the church in Tigers Bay, north Belfast.

Members say that 18-year-old Andrew Duffin was dead for 16 minutes on a hospital operating table, but revived after his father, who is a Christian, sent out a prayer appeal through American preacher Todd Bentley

This is Andrew Duffin. He said that at the time of the accident he did not believe in God. He has since changed his opinion on that.

He told the News Letter:

“When I was taken to theatre the doctors opened me up and I had a heart attack. The doctors then told me I died for 16 minutes on the table.

“I had a heart attack, my lungs collapsed, my kidneys stopped and then my organs all stopped I was told. They had given up on me.

“The first thing I remember is the feeling of sinking into black. I suppose that was me dying. Then I remember hearing one of the doctors saying ‘he is alive’.”

He said: “I was in hospital a total of six weeks. I am now totally healed, have no brain injury which is pretty unheard of for what I have come through.”

Here is another case of the secular media (and pretty unbelieving secular media, at that) reporting on what God is doing in the current move of His Spirit.

There are currently meetings going on in:

1. Belfast, Northern Ireland
2. Dudley, England
3. Albany, Oregon
4. Morningstar Ministries, Charlotte, North Carolina
5. Glaglow, Scottland
6. Atlanta, Georgia
7. Medford, Oregon

I am sure that there are other places where the fires of revival are starting to break out. These are just the places that I am aware of. If your ministry is in extended meetings, please let me know. There is now a website for all those churches who are acting as Overflow Rooms. This is a new site and there are a ton of ministries listed. If your church is acting as an Overflow Room, you can list it here.

Anyway, back to the photo. This is a photo of Bill Johnson ministering at Impact Christian Fellowship on December 18, 2006. He was praying for the release of miracles and this photo was taken by Max Greiner, Jr. Notice the orbs visible in the photo. Max has done an article on this phenomenon on his site and you can read the entire article here. He is an artist (take some time and browse his site – he’s good!) and has taken many thousands of photographs that have this phenomenon in them.

One of the things I found interesting in this article is the date that these orbs were first being notices in photos, which was in 1996-1997. This was about the same time that the “gold dust” started appearing in churches. Some of these orbs have faces (notice the lion-looking one in the lower right corner of this photo). Others appear to be covered with eyes (like the living creatures Ezekiel speaks of in his vision).

I have seen orbs in photos I have taken and in photos friends of mine have taken. I actually saw an angel a few months ago standing in the doorway of the place we are meeting as an Overflow Room for the Florida Outpouring. You could feel the presence and when one of my guys drug out a camera phone, it was clearly visible as a human figure of blue light. Unfortunately, I do not own an iPhone and so the resulting photo was not as clear as what we saw on the screen.

I personally get tickled at the manifestations like gold dust, diamonds, feathers and such. I see them as just more proof of the interest the Father takes in his children. He cares enough to come and play with us (which is how humans build deep relationships, through play). By the way, I love Joshua Mills’ comment on feathers falling in his meetings. A guy came up to him and said, “I have a problem with the feathers,” to which Joshua replied, “If you have problems with the feathers, what are you going to do with the whole angel?

These type of phenomenon fascinate those in the New Age movement and those who are spiritually hungry for the reality of the spiritual realm.  Unfortunately, many of these people have tried the church and found us seriously lacking in spiritual reality.  Why on earth would you come and hear about supernatural experiences from an ancient book that the people believe tells about what once was but is no more, when you can experience supernatural things through your spirit-guide?

We have unlimited access to the God of creation and all that He has given us.  Part of our inheritance in the Kingdom is interaction with His house and all that is in it.  Do you seriously believe that what the writer of Hebrews calls an inferior covenant (the Old Covenant that God made with the children of Israel) is supposed to produce superior blessings to what we have in the Kingdom of God?  They were given covenant promises of health, healing and blessing.  They walked under a cloud by day and fire by night.  Their shoes did not wear out the entire 40 years they were  in the desert.  An angel was visibly present with them.  THEY HEARD THE AUDIBLE VOICE OF GOD, the entire nation of them did.  God fed them daily for 40 years.  The supernatural was a way of life for them.

The same is true of the ministry of Jesus.  His disciples walked in the continuous presence of God.  Think about it.  God was literally with them 24/7 in the person of Jesus.  He has told us that He is with us always.   He spent three years showing us how the Kingdom of God works and then told us to continue His work, doing the things He did and more.

The presence of our supernatural God doing His works through us is what will attract the lost.  The church has become more and more of an irrelevancy in American life.  Alternative religions are making a huge impact in this country.  Why?  They offer people a supernatural reality that the church has denied.  Again, why do we accept that an inferior revelation (the revelation that the evil one offers people of the supernatural) can produce supernatural results,  but deny that the church can and should be walking in the supernatural power of God?

One of the things that I though was very good in the article was one of Max’s comments on those who do not believe in the miraculous. Max, by the way, spent the first 40 years of his life as a Southern Baptist, which is not an organization noted for it’s flow in the supernatural power of God.

In fact, if you are a Christian with an “anti-supernatural” worldview, understand this: It will take a supernatural, unexplainable miracle of God, to take you to Heaven when you die! Just because you don’t believe miracles are still happening, doesn’t mean they are not happening. It just means you don’t believe they are happening. Jesus said you must have faith and believe first, before you get to see.

Read the article (it’s 3 pages long) and tell me what you think. I am looking forward to the the feedback.

A VISION AND A WORD FROM GOD

This is a vision that I had as I stood on a terrace in Croatia. My wife and I went there last year on our 25th anniverary. Before I went the Lord had shown me that I would meet someone there and that it would be significant, just did not know that He was talking about Himself. The whole piece was my vision, He gave me a new way of writing my testimony and of coming into His presence, then the Word that He gave me for the church, I wrote in red at the end. I pray that this will challenge and convict you………….

Comment by Gary S. Greig

Thursday 12 June, 2008 @ 11:28 pm

Peter,
It is Dr. Gary Greig here: I too am an Anglican, and I appreciate so much your gentle wisdom web-site. Thank you for your outline of my paper here. I think you may have missed my point in the first section of the paper. The point was that one need only watch the meetings to see raw, empirical data that cannot be explained away as somehow “not really real”–so many miracles such as people getting out of wheelchairs, the blind seeing, the deaf hearing, children born with cross-eyed conditions who are clearly not cross-eyed any more with parents who attest to their children’s former condition. It is impossible that all these hundreds, thousands of people who claimed to have been healed are ALL deceived, lying, or making it up. The point, then is that empirical evidence that is observable before our very eyes is available to the world through God TV and the internet and cannot be explained away like Ahmadinajad tried to deny the clear reality of the Holocaust. The critics are ignoring the forest for the trees. They did the same thing back in the Vineyard revival of the 1980’s and 1990’s when John Wimber received the same criticism. That is why Kevin Springer and I published “The Kingdom and the Power,” a compilation of chapters from 15 evangelical scholars and church leaders, including J. I. Packer, Wayne Grudem, Don Williams, Charles Kraft, etc., laying out the biblical and practical foundations of power evangelism. Chapter 13 of that book by Dr. David Lewis, a cultural anthropologist and research associate of Cambridge University, UK, statistically documents, as thoroughly as anyone would want or desire, mutiple verified healings from the Vineyard revival that are similar in every way to the current Lakeland healings (healing resulted when people were prayed for in Jesus’ name, bringing Him glory and making people want to follow Jesus even more). Lewis also cited medical doctor, Dr. Rex Gardner’s similar verifications of reported Christian healings in the “British Medical Journal” (vol 287, 1983) and in Gardner’s book “Healing Miracles: A Doctor Investigates” (Darton, Longman & Todd, 1986) The bottom-line is: I’ve seen the critics make the same false claims about healings not being real before, Peter. They weren’t right about the Vineyard healings and they are certainly not right about the current Lakeland healings. Especially given the fact that I myself have been healed of sleep apnea (a condition where the tongue blocks the throat so that one cannot breathe during sleep–people often have heart attacks and die from sleep apnea), two weeks ago while watching the Lakeland meetings. (And, no, I cannot agree with critics who will certainly claim that my healing is of the devil–why would the devil make me love and praise Jesus more, which is what this healing has done for me? And no, I cannot agree with critics who will argue that my healing from sleep apnea is really not real–My wife would adamantly disagree: I used to stop breathing hundreds of times per night and snore loudly waking and scaring my wife half to death; and I used to have to wear various paraphernalia around my head and in my mouth to keep my tongue from blocking my throat at night so I could breathe at all–but NOW I DO NOT WEAR THEM ANY MORE and I SLEEP LIKE A BABY: I couldn’t possibly have made this up for the past 14 nights!) So I conclude from the empirical evidence of my own healing, from the empirical evidence of miraculous healings that bear good fruit (people loving Jesus more) that I see every night in the Lakeland meetings, and from the biblical evidence presented in my paper, and from the independent witness of mainstream Old and New Testament scholars about the significance of the biblical evidence, that what is happening at Lakeland IS INDEED from God.

Empirical evidence matters. The truth matters. We cannot make reality go away because we refuse to acknowledge what is real. That is why I see the critics no different than Ahmadinajad’s denying the abundant empirical evidence that the Holocaust really did happen, just as there is abundant empirical evidence in the Lakeland meetings that people really are being healed (like I was) for all who have eyes that can see.

Blessings upon you and thank you again for your peaceable tone on this web-site. Please forgive me if my tone doesn’t sound peaceable. I really want to be. But I see a clear denial of reality in the way the critics are reasoning. And their thinking is not worthy of the Lord. He expects more of His people. He expects us to bind the enemy, to humble ourselves and our thinking before Him, and to ask His Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth (John 16:13-15; James 4:7-8; John 10:27-28; Prov. 2:1-10). Anything less is unworthy of our Lord. He is calling the Body to deliberate, Spirit-led standards of scholarship and theological research and education. And that is how I came to my conclusions about Lakeland–I asked Him to lead me, I bound the enemy from interfering, and I consciously listened to the Holy Spirit as I studied the passages and the research of biblical scholars on those passages. Anything less is not worthy of His Holy Name, Jesus.

—————————————-

Thank you, Dr. Greig, for sharing about your healing and for sharing how you went about your research for the paper that you have given to the Body.

If you have not read Dr. Grieg’s paper, I would strongly urge you to do so. The link is at the top of this article. It is a very thorough examination of various objections that have been expressed regarding the Outpouring.

I saw another great statement from Bill Johnson regarding Todd Bentley. This is from his ministry site.

Recent response to the above answer:”How in God’s name can you endorse Todd Bentley?” This is my response:

Have you spent time with Todd? Do you know him? Have you watched him with his wife? Or have you seen how he treats his kids? Have you spent any time with his staff? Have you been to his ministry? Has he been to yours? Have you laid hands on him and prayed? Has he laid hands on you and prayed? Have you grieved over tragedy together? Have you celebrated victory together? Has he sought your counsel? Has he traveled a great distance just to meet with you privately for advice? Have you ever received his counsel? Have you been in the room when God has showed up on him, and used him in stunning miracles? Have you seen him operate in the word of knowledge or the prophetic? Have you met with his counsel of elders? Have you personally benefited from his gift? Has he benefited from your gift and ministry? Has he ever honored you for who you are in God? Has he partnered with you as a friend? Have you sacrificed for his welfare, or that of his family? Have you sought God with him? Have you ever worshipped the Lord with him?

I didn’t think so. I have. And I’ll continue to support those who I have walked with in life and ministry. He’s my friend. More importantly, God calls him friend. And if you and I were ever friends in that level, and people hated you and turned against you, and started web pages to tear down your ministry, and criticized you to your friends, and wrote against you in Christian magazines, and criticized you on the radio and wrote emails to other conference speakers and authors, I’d still be your friend.

By the way – criticism in the form of a question is not a question. But to respond to your statement, “How in God’s name can you endorse Todd Bentley?” It’s easy. I do it in God’s name.

Bill

One thing that I admire about Bill Johnson is the fact that he makes no apologies for his friendship with Todd. He focuses on what God is doing, not what God is not.

Thank you, Bill Johnson, for being a man of integrity.

James 1:21-27 states:

22Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. 27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

What was it that Jesus told us to do?

Matt 28:17-20

17When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in^[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Mark 16:17-18

17“And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

John 14:12-14:

12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

Scripture makes it clear that we are not to just talk about the Kingdom; we are to demonstrate it. Jesus demonstrated the superiority of His Kingdom by overcoming darkness every time He encountered it. When faced with sickness, He healed it. When faced with demonic oppression, He set the captive free. When faced with death, He brought life. When faced with lack, He supplied what was needed.

How many of those in the blogosphere are looking after the widow and the orphan? Patricia King is. Todd Bentley is. Heidi Baker is. How many of them are demonstrating the superiority of the Kingdom of God to the kingdom of darkness by their works? Todd Bentley has been praying for the sick and seeing people healed for years. Heidi Baker has planted 10,000 churches, I think it is, in Africa after healing the blind and sick in the villages she ministers in. Patricia King is out on the streets praying for deliverance and healing on a regular basis. Are you?

It is very easy to get online and say, “Oh, beware of this because it doesn’t line up with my understanding of the Word.” What works do you have to show to authenticate your message? Is the Father backing up your verbal vomit of condemnation of everyone and everything with signs, wonders and miracles? Show me the people claiming to have been healed in your ministry (and I won’t even ask you for doctor’s verification). Show me a single media report of someone who was dead or near dead who has come back to life, such as Val Thomas has.

What is it that you are DOING to destroy the works of the evil one? Come out of your deception and become a doer of the Word.

Does he? Does the Bible say that he does?

Actually, the Bible does not. Healing is an activity that the Lord has reserved for Himself. There is not a single scripture anywhere showing that satan has the power to heal a human (Revelation 13 talks about the healing of the beast, but the beast represents an economic system – when was the last time you saw a seven-headed human?) Likewise with raising people from the dead. Satan does not have life within himself, so he cannot bestow life on anyone else.

I did some Google research on healing by witchdoctors and shamans. I can find where they successfully use herbal medicines to bring about healing. I can find where they chase off evil spirits by their magic. I cannot find where they perform the kind of miraculous healings that I have seen in the meetings I lead and have seen in Lakeland. Research it for yourself. It’s not there.

Exodus gives the account of Moses’ interaction with the court magicians of Pharaoh who were able to duplicate some of the miracles that Moses performed. They were able to transform their staff into a snake, but Aaron’s staff ate theirs. However, they were unable to heal the plagues that the Lord poured out on the Egyptians. Exodus 9:10-11 states, “So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on men and animals. The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians.”

The powerful court magicians were unable to heal even themselves, let alone Pharaoh or the other Egyptians.

Exodus 15:26 gives a partial revelation into the nature and character of God with these words, “I am the LORD, who heals you.”

One of the powerful covenant promises that God made to the children of Israel was that, if they fully obeyed the Lord, “I will take away sickness from among you, and none will miscarry or be barren in your land” (Exodus 23:25-26).

Naaman was unable to find healing in Aram for his leprosy and went to the prophet of God, Elisha, who told him to dip 7 times in the Jordan and be cleansed. When he had done so, he said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel” (2 Kings 5:15).

Forgiveness of sins and healing are linked all throughout scripture. Ps 103:2-4 carries this theme further

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-

3 who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,

The life of Jesus fully bears this out. He linked the preaching of the Kingdom, the forgiveness of sins and healing. In John 5:14 he tells the man whom he had healed at the pool, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.”

In John 9, the man born blind that Jesus healed told the Pharisees, “The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” (John 9:30-33) The Pharisees could not refute this argument, instead they threw him out.

The Jews were familiar with all kinds of lying wonders, but this man said, “Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind.” This was not a miracle that the charlatans could duplicate.

Jesus told the woman begging Him to heal her daughter that it would not be right for Him to give the children’s bread (healing) to dogs. Her response of faith so moved Him that He healed her daughter.

Jesus said that the Father would not give you a stone if you ask for bread. In the context, He was speaking of the Holy Spirit, but the concept applies to healing as well. The Lord is not going to give you a demonic deception if you come to Him asking for healing.

The Pharisees accused Jesus of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub. Nowhere did they accuse Him of healing by the power of the evil one, because they knew that only God can heal.

In Matthew 10, Jesus “called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil^[a] spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.” He told them to, “preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,^[b]drive out demons.” These were marks of the kingdom that cannot be duplicated by the enemy.

Jesus gave these things as authenticating His message and His Messiahship in Matthew 11:2-6:

2When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples 3to ask him, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?”

4Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy^[b]are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. 6Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”

The things that pointed to His identity are things that the devil CANNOT duplicate.

Satan can do things like turning water into wine, levitation and all kinds of flashy signs and wonders. He cannot create. He cannot heal. He cannot bring life. The enemy comes to steal, to kill and to destroy. Jesus came that you might have life and that more abundantly.

Jesus sent all of His followers out with the same mandate that He had:

11Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. 12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. (John 14:11-14)

There is a great deal of lying wonders going on regarding the Lakeland Outpouring. The lie is that satan has the power to heal and raise the dead. This lie has been fed to the church and the wonder is that she has accepted it in the light of scriptures.

CASTING YOUR TREASURES INTO THE FIRE

Exodus 32:1-4 (ASV)
1 And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him.
2 And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden rings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me.
3 And all the people brake off the golden rings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
4 And he received it at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf: and they said, These are thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

In Lakeland, where there is an “outpouring,” going on, it is led by a man called Todd Bentley. His ministry is called “Fresh fire.” I am going to agree with many and say that there is a fire going on in Lakeland. I am not sure if it is fresh, but there is certainly a fire going on. Many people have called Todd Bentley a Prophet, indeed he calls himself that(almost all people who pronounce themselves to be Prophets these days are almost always not). There are just as many people who call him a false prophet. I am not really concerned with that. In fact, the piece that I posted below really only addresses the fact that he claims that he, as a born-again , Spirit filled believer was demon possessed. Also he claimed that if you came forward for “ministry,” you would receive ten years worth of sanctification. Both claims are preposterous and are anti-Biblical.

In Exodus 32 we see one of the saddest episodes of the Israelites in the desert. Moses has been gone, not too long, up into the mountains. Yet even although it has been a relatively short time(all told he would be gone 40 days) the people start to get restless. Can I suggest to you that the rain of the Holy Spirit has been withheld from the church in America.

1Ki 8:35 When the heavens are restrained, and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, if they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin when You afflict them,
then hear in Heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants, and of Your people Israel, for You shall teach them the good way in which they should walk, and give rain on Your land which You have given to Your people for an inheritance.

You can read the whole word the Lord gave to me in regard to the holding back of the rain here…….  http://scottishwarriors.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/revival-is-at-the-doorcan-you-see-the-cloud/

Now, since the rain is being held back, since the corporate presence of the Lord has been withheld for a time and a purpose, how should we react? Should we examine ourselves and see why the rain was withheld in the first place? Should we look to our worldliness , our prosperity, our lack of dependence upon God , our materialism? Should we look to the fact that we received the desires of our hearts but also received leanness in our souls? Should we, who are called by His name not gather together and humble ourselves and turn from our wicked ways. Should we indeed not gather together , as they are in Lakeland, but cry tears of brokenness and repentance. Would Christians flock to that kind of gathering? Would they come from all over the States to weep and cry over the dire state of Christianity? Would they fly in from all over the world to repent? Would they come together and throw their own worldliness into a fire that produced humility and weeping and gnashing of teeth? No, sadly, as of yet, they would not.

They will gather together and throw in their gold and rise up and play, or in this case, fall down and play. You see the people are without leadership, and the Lord has with-held His rain. So the people have demanded gods to go before them, listen to what they said to Aaron…”make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him. “

First of all, Moses did not bring them out of Egypt, God did. And as He brought them out, did He not enrich them with the gold of the Egyptians? Now that very gold was taken up, and thrown into the fire. And all this at the instructions of Aaron, Moses brother. So you see, it really does not matter if Todd Bentley is a prophet or a false prophet, if he is indeed a Christian or a false professor, a man of God or a peddler of the Gospel. What we do know is that he is leading men and woman, who willingly, and gladly , throw their treasures into the “fresh fires.” Aaron molded and crafted a golden calf. He would later deny this, lie, and say that is just came out that way. And he molded it out of gold melted in a fire of their own making. The results of the this? The people rose up and played. Most theologians agree that this involved dancing and debauchery.

So, in the very days that we should be on our faces, waiting patiently in humility and repentance, with tears of agony at the state we have allowed the Church to fall into, we see a portion of the church “dancing in the desert.” Even after Moses and Joshua returned, Godly men and leaders, many still ignored them. Moses makes a stand. “Whoever is on the Lord’s side, come to me.And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.”(Ex 32:26) Brothers and sisters, its the priests that came forward to the call from the man of God. And the priests exercised the judgment of the Lord and three thousand was slain. Can I just encourage all Royal priests to step forward and stand by the Word of God. The rain is coming, it is coming to those who wait upon the Lord. We know that the Scriptures teach us …Mat 24:24 For false Christ’s and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders; so much so that, if it were possible, they would deceive even the elect.

So stand firm and exercise patience brothers and sisters. There is a purpose in the with-holding of the rain. Do not be distracted by the Lakeland events and get all self-righteous. All of us brought about the cessation of the rain, and we must look to ourselves and compare ourselves to the Word of God if we are to see an end to the drought and be drenched by His rain once again. It is to easy to compare ourselves to those who are dancing in the desert, compared to that, most of us would look pretty good. Yet this is still a tiny fraction of Christendom…………………….Lord, may the Royal Priesthood stand firm in the midst of chaos. May we keep our eyes upon you oh Lord. May we join with the true Prophet of God and cry ” Woe unto us, for we are men and woman undone, and have unclean lips and dwell amongst a people of unclean lips.” Then oh Lord, a true fire from heaven, live coals from the heavenly alter, will consume us and create true, genuine “Fresh Fire”

This video is from Geraldo at Large on Fox News. Todd was interviewed 6/14/08 live from the revival. Patricia King is preaching for him while he does the interview.

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Lifting Jesus High!

Bringing Biblical Light to Your Questions
about the Lakeland Outpouring & Todd Bentley

June 8, 2008

Dear Friends,

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and for hearing my heart on some of the issues that seems to be causing division and some confusion in the Body of Christ. Throughout the Old and New Testaments and in every age following, as far as I can determine, the Lord has given His people dreams and visions, signs and wonders, heavenly encounters and divine supernatural experiences that, for the most part, we cannot understand with our intellect. In the spiritual realm, God isn’t limited by our thinking!
God’s ways of communicating with us hasn’t changed from the beginning of time, although the Bible is the mainstay of His communication to us in today’s Church. Sometimes pictures say a lot, though, and the Lord does speak to us through visions and dreams, just as He spoke that way to the people of ancient days and just as He has promised us that He would in the Last Days. God says, “I am the LORD, I change not” (Malachi 3:6).
Whenever God pours out His Spirit, dreams and visions become integral to the move of God and are especially a Last Days phenomena according to Joel 2:28 and Acts 2:17. God-given dreams and visions are often because of the gracious outpouring of the Holy Spirit. They fall into the category of the miraculous when supernatural revelations are imparted. Ezekiel, the prophet operated in a continuous miracle ministry in the revelatory realm.
Some people desire Scripture for every manifestation of God – for every detail of every God-given, Holy Spirit inspired vision, dream, encounter, or demonstration of the supernatural realm of God manifested on the earth. While I firmly believe that we’re to defend the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I don’t believe we’re to defend divine manifestations of God, because they are proof within themselves of the Gospel, wherever the Word of God is sent forth. Discern yes, but defend, no. Consider that many of the “greater” things that Christ said we would do hadn’t even been done yet and weren’t recorded in the Bible.

On Visions

While it’s good and right and biblical to test the spirits to see if they are of God, it’s vital to realize that just because a type of vision or a sign is not listed in Scripture, that it’s unscriptural, to be discounted, or false. For instance: If you dream of Jesus visiting you, and in your dream, Jesus, the Man, was the most handsome man you’d ever seen, would the fact that the Bible described Him as having no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him, nothing in His appearance that we should desire Him (Is. 53:2b), discount your dream as being scriptural or genuine, relative, and of God?
Just as no two people are alike, no two experiences are alike. Guaranteed, the Bible doesn’t list the details of each dream, each encounter, or everything that God has, does, and will eventually reveal to His people. It doesn’t record every detail of every dream, or everything someone has seen in the spirit realm, or on earth for that matter. Nor does it record every possible miracle, but it does say that nothing is impossible with God (see Luke 1:37; Matt. 17:20). We have no account of miracles like amputated limbs growing back, but the absence of this is Scripture doesn’t mean that such a miracle unbiblical.
If a person is of the mind-set that everything spiritual that happens or manifests in our lives has to be found in Scripture to be divine and of God, then that standard or belief would have to be applied to every area of one’s life. God responds to each one of us in different ways so the specific way He speaks to any of His children should not become a doctrine of correctness.
Someone once said that limiting revelation is like trying to fit an ocean into a cup. God is continually restoring truth and light to His Church. Therefore, we should place no limit on further revelation. To have a view that everything that happens in someone’s life because of God’s loving response to us as His children should be listed in the Bible or else it’s wrong or evil, is like saying that Jesus, who is the Word represents a list of do’s and don’ts. Jesus is a Person who, through intimacy and relationship, we perceive and understand by the Holy Spirit what is good and what is evil. If Jesus listed for us everything that we needed to know, then knowing Him would have become an option. It’s in knowing Him, who is The Word that we enter into what He has prepared for us.
To apply doctrine to the response of God in our lives is wrong. For someone to assume that something that happens to us isn’t of God because it’s not in his or her doctrine or knowledge of Jesus is, in my opinion, to grieve the precious Holy Spirit. I believe each experience is unique and tailored to the individual’s background, experiences, circumstances, capacity to receive, and personal relationship with Jesus. The experience is usually one that a person can relate to. The Lord meets us where we’re at and often shows us things in a way that gets our attention, in a way that we, as individuals, uniquely understand and relate to.
Some are questioning the soundness of my visitation from Jesus while I was in Redding, California. I stated in an interview that it was as though He came into this realm and I saw Him as I would imagine Jesus would be with the disciples on the Earth, as the Son of man, a humble servant as He walked the earth, not in His resurrection glory. The purpose of this experience was for God to impart to me His supernatural peace in my life. God chooses, in His infinite wisdom, to reveal Himself in different ways, and in various aspects so that people can understand, relate, and even receive Him. Why do some think it so bad if God wills to come in His grace and reveal Himself to us in whatever manner He chooses?

Focus on the Revelation

This can be drastically different from one person to another. What’s important, however, are not the details of, for instance, a vision, but how it points to Jesus, the revelation gleaned, what we learn from the experience, how we apply it to our life, and/or speak it into the life of another, and how it draws us closer to Him, for His name’s sake. Because one person may not be able to relate to a dream, vision, or experience of another, he or she may attribute this to the devil or to the flesh, or hallucinations, for example. I’m sure many have seen strange things happen in our meetings – things that puzzle, things that aren’t normal to them, but understand – God doesn’t seek approval for how He manifests through His people or in signs and wonders.
The Bible is full of visions, encounters, signs, wonders, miracles, and manifestations that people have experienced, some of which may be downright hard for many to wrap their minds around, let alone believe it could happen today. Again, it’s all relative to each individual, their experiences, and backgrounds, and with what they have learned through intimacy with Christ Jesus, and what they have received as a love response from God. I spend hours and hours at the feet of Jesus and perhaps the next person doesn’t.
As I can recall, Smith Wigglesworth once had a vision of Satan. He’d been sleeping in bed during a thunderstorm that had rattled the windows and made the lights flicker. Suddenly he saw a vision of Satan standing at the foot of his bed. However, he wasn’t in the least bit disturbed because he had first-hand knowledge and experience of God’s protective nature and understood the power of the name of Jesus. “Oh, it’s just you,” he said to the devil, and turned over and went back to sleep.
If this were a new, breaking story today, how would people receive or respond to the account of what he saw? It would all be relative to what you know or have experienced relating to demons, or the knowledge that you have about the authority that you have as a blood-bought child of God, even to the church climate. If you’ve never cast out a demon from your life and seen him run at the mere mention of the blood of Christ Jesus, you wouldn’t understand.

Angels

Likewise, if I say that I had a vision of an angel, or encountered one or even spoke with one, but you haven’t doctrinally or experientially, come to terms with the reality of angels being in our midst, then you may not attribute it as valid. You may even tag me as someone who worships angels, seeks them for counsel, ministers under the power of, or misrepresents them in some way. In the case of the angel called “Emma,” who I described as having mother-like nurturing qualities, some have automatically assumed that my doctrine is that I believe in female angels. This has never been the case! For whatever reason God chose to show me this angel in a female persona, He did. This isn’t to say that the angel was female. Angels are spirit and appear in many forms. Perhaps that’s the form God chose this angel to take for the purpose of the revelation He gave me. They are spirit beings of light, created out of God’s glory, without gender, and appear in whatever form God chooses to send them to us.
Let me throw this out there for you to think about. If someone encounters an angel on earth that has come in the form of a female human being, and even refers to the angel as a “she,” it doesn’t raise eyebrows. We know they must sometimes appear to us in human form because the Bible tells us not to forget to entertain strangers, “for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels” (Hebrews 13:2). There is biblical precedent for angels appearing in human form in the example of the two angels who came to Sodom to warn Lot before the destruction of the city in Genesis 19. They visited, had a meal, and even spent the night. Their human “form” even fooled those who tried to accost them and the angels struck them blind.
Even though they appeared as men, they are still genderless. Emma appeared to me in angelic form appearing feminine, which is not to say Emma was female or had a gender. This was the first angel I’d ever seen in feminine-like form, in this motherly nurturing type of persona that opened up a well of healings and breakthrough.
Mary, Paul, Peter, Jesus, the shepherds, and several disciples, and many Old Testament folk like Abraham, Hagar, Daniel, and others had angelic encounters and some interacted with them in conversation. That doesn’t suppose they worshiped these angelic beings or sought them out for revelation apart from God. I never summon angels directly. I do ask God to send angels to encamp around me, and others. Let it be said, that I seek only God for revelation and should He send an angel to me to impart revelation, get my attention, or open wells of revival and healing, so be it. I’ll echo Mary’s words when the angel Gabriel visited and conversed with her “You see before you the Lord’s servant, let it happen to me as you have said.” And the angel left her (Luke 1:26-38).
Christ paid the price for our spiritual blessings and access to heavenly things – angels included. Where I would be concerned about angelic revelation as being deceptive or as angels actually being demonic spirits, is where not-yet Christians claim angelic revelation while rejecting the cross of Christ.
Angels have a purpose in God’s plan. It shouldn’t come as a surprise to the Body of Christ that an angel, called the “Winds of Change” should usher in a new move of God.
Of the angels we learn, “He makes His angels winds and His servants flames of fire” (Heb. 1:7, NAS; see also Psalm 104:3, 4). If God has chosen to send them to us, it behooves us to welcome their presence as we usher in the presence and move of the Lord.
We see a manifestation of God’s presence and power by means of “wind and fire” in the New Testament on the day of Pentecost “when suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:1-4).
Angels are messengers from God in heaven to His church on earth, and they seem to appear at the most critical points in the history of salvation. We get the sense also that they observe what’s happening here on earth at least in the life of the Church. Christ ended two of His parables saying “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:7,10, NKJV). They are also reapers in the great harvest, “…the reapers are the angels” (Matt. 13:39). Described as “ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation” (Heb. 1:14, italics mine).

Encounters/Visitations

Some people have even ventured to say that my visions and visitations are false. That’s like telling someone who’s just told you about a dream they had in their sleep that they didn’t really dream it.
In the case of my encounter with Paul the apostle, just as Paul didn’t know if he was in his body or out of his body when he was taken into the third heaven, I don’t know whether my encounter was in a vision or an actual encounter. I do know that it was not of the adversary. God had reason for this experience and for the revelation that transpired from it. These things I cannot refute.
It’s not that far out there when you consider that the apostle Peter beheld Jesus, Moses, and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration and was actually commissioned while in a visionary trance, to preach to the Gentiles (see Matt. 17:9, Acts 10:19).
Some may not find my experience doctrinally sound, and liken it to speaking to the dead, and unbiblical, citing the apostle Paul’s warnings in Galatians 1:8, and 2 Corinthians 11:14, of which I’m very aware. My accountability team and I, through careful examination, determined that this vision was not outside of God’s realm. God had a purpose and a plan for the revelation He gave me and it all pointed to Christ.
In visions and encounters that I share, I emphasize that it boils down to Jesus Christ who is the essence of everything and is the All in All. It’s all about Him, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. An encounter with heaven is an encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Many people don’t see what’s happening in the spirit realm, viewing things only from the physical realm. This is one reason why there’s so much division right now. I have found that many are judging things by what they see or hear in the natural, by their natural senses, to feelings, or without having relevant supernatural experiences themselves.

No Prototype for Revival

One of my colleagues told me of a pastor and his wife visiting Lakeland from Las Vegas last week. They pastor a church of over 5,000 people. They shared that they had to repent for believing in their hearts some of the concerns that they’d heard or read about, without first seeking the Lord about it or attending the outpouring, and experiencing first hand what God was doing here. They were amazed by the power and the glory of God there, and have headed back to Nevada with good reports!
This seems to be what I hear from many attending, and from what I read on blogs from people who’ve experienced the fire of God at our meetings. Every night we see hundreds of pastors and leaders all hungry for the fire of God to touch their churches, to disarm the religious paradigms that keep God in a box, quenching the work of the Spirit.
People may see me or others sprawled out on the floor, or in heavenly laughter, or shaking because of the glory and presence of God, but try to look beyond and understand that something’s happening in the spirit, trusting that there’s that other realm that you may not see.
Revival is often messy because there’s a lot happening and sometimes it’s hard for people to take in everything they see in the natural. Many come and some do manifest fleshly things, but for the most part, everyone is sincere and of good intention at a revival. Trust it’s better to be full of life with a little untidiness than to be dead. Also, trust that God is big. He can handle it and can separate the tares from the wheat.
Revival shakes paradigms. It doesn’t fit the mainstream Church’s way of thinking. Revival is an upstream move of God that breaks away from the stagnant pools of religion and tradition. Those bound by tradition and inside a paradigm of do’s and don’ts who give way to an upward stream, find transformation, and a new supernatural, empowering paradigm for their lives.
Moves of God like this are never normal. Do you think what happened in Acts looked normal to the disciples, or even to the onlookers? Pentecost was way, way out there, pretty far out, and must have caused much talk. No one had ever seen anything like it before. Revival is about new things happening, so it’s important not to be quick to judge. There’s no prototype for revival. It’s not a cookie cutter thing. We’re only in our baby stages – and there’s a lot to learn, but what we need now is the support of the Church because unity is crucial.
If you cannot understand the supernatural things of God, or even if you disagree or choose to discount or discredit me in any way, then I urge you to look at the fruit. Every day we’re seeing salvations. Every day people are being healed, not only physically, but emotionally too! Every day, people who thought they knew Christ are discovering Him in a fresh and powerful new way. Every day, we’re teaching people how to use their gifts to evangelize. We’re equipping and sending hundreds into the streets and marketplaces to talk about Jesus.
It’s not even limited to this region. We’re seeing this move of God as exponential growth because people carry the anointing and glory of God home to their churches and regions, empowered to “do the same stuff” and ignite more fires.

Before You Pick Apart the Worker…

Please examine the fruit before you pick apart the worker. People are being saved! Certainly this is common ground with every believer – our hearts should always be for the lost. Can we not come together and make this our mission, understanding that our theologies may be different but that we agree on this very important and vital commission. We serve the same God. God is the Father of all of us. We are His children. We are all in the same family. We are all running the same race but at different paces. The Word planted on good soil bears good fruit!

Salvation of the Lost

If you’re watching out a window from a distance and see a child running around a busy street and in obvious danger of being hit, but see someone close-by who could help, what would you do? Would you first judge the person to determine if he or she is “fit” enough or qualified to lend assistance, in your eyes? Would you check to see that the person is wearing an “S” for “Superman” on his shirt? Would you wait for the right person to come along that fits your mold, or would you throw open the window and yell, “That child – save that child!”
Please. Our mission is to save the lost. Period. Everything that is happening at Lakeland is to that end. God is good. People are being saved. That should be the priority of every believer. You may not understand some of the things that you see. It may be out of your paradigm or traditional way of thinking, but trust that if God didn’t want this to happen that He is more than capable of shutting it down single-handedly without the help of man.
Jumping into rivers of condemnation, disapproval, even censure before experiencing things for yourself could make you responsible for the loss of the one who may have come to the Lord but for quick judgments or criticisms. God is doing new things! Church history should never be used as a blueprint for experiences or beliefs, that’s what the Word of God is for.

New Wineskins and New Garments

This move of God may not fit your perception of revival, especially if you are basing it on previous revivals, or even on the traditions of the Church. So too, I likely don’t fit the mold of the traditional evangelist. Jesus used the Pharisees’ disapproval as an opportunity to teach why it was important that He didn’t fit into their mold. First, He used the metaphor of the patched garments and said “No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old” (Luke 5:36). To try to attach a new, unshrunk garment to the old will not only tear and destroy the new but also the old won’t look right and will eventually tear again. Jesus contrasted the old and new again with a parable about new wine and old, saying that if a person pours new wine into old wineskins the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out, and the wineskins would ruin (Luke 5:37, 38).
What could possibly be so new in Jesus’ day as to be ruined by being attached to the old? The radical Gospel! Man-made rules and tradition would hinder the work. Jesus wanted them to see that the dead Pharisaical traditions didn’t result in heart transformations. It would be easier for them to clasp onto and justify what was familiar and comfortable, than to be led by the Holy Spirit but the two can’t be combined. Jesus wasn’t throwing out the law or discounting it but came to fulfill it. The Gospel needed to be free of the confines of tradition and religious comfort zones to work its power. Jesus wanted to restore the hearts of the people, to restore life to the core of the Hebrew faith. Those external things, as Paul wrote in Colossians 2:23, “have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.” Their system of laws had lost Christ who was their substance. They had the shadows but not the substance of Christ. Pride pretended to penetrate heaven but hadn’t.
Signs, wonders, and miracles should be proof of the Gospel. However, Jesus said there would be false signs and wonders in the last days that were not done by Him (Matt. 7:21-23). Of this, I am well aware. Some people may do these things in His name and yet never really have a relationship of love and fellowship with Jesus. Salvation is knowing Jesus and being known by Him – it’s much more than spiritual works or a verbal confession. I understand that lofty places in this visible kingdom are no proof of anyone’s acceptance with God, and neither are the mighty works, even done in Jesus’ name. However, the condition of the heart is what truly allies us with Him. This I’ve stressed repeatedly in my ministry. The heart changes when someone spends much time with the Lord. This is the foundation of my ministry and my walk with Jesus. From the outset of my salvation, my ministry, and even today, I spend hours in the secret place of His presence. I seek Him and His will for every meeting. My team here at Lakeland knows that several hours of every afternoon; before every meeting, I’m not to be disturbed as I spend time with Jesus. Signs, wonders, miracles, dreams, and visions I believe are His loving response – the fruit of fellowship.
Spend time in His presence and you won’t be as resistant to change. You won’t be afraid to be a new wineskin, God’s present wineskin. You won’t even be the same wineskin as tomorrow, because with God wineskins are new and newer. New wineskins won’t limit God or what He can do.

When Did the Devil Change His Plan?

From what I’ve been hearing, my heart is saddened because critical people are bringing more attention to the supposed “works of the devil” in my life, and here in Lakeland than to the very real and wondrous works of God. Too much credit is being given to the devil and to man to the detriment of God’s sovereignty and power. Some are even attributing good and wonderful manifestations of God’s loving response to His children, to the devil! But this exalts no one but themselves when they choose to make a ministry out of their judgments and criticisms in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Since when did the devil come to heal the sick, raise the dead, open deaf ears and eyes, lead people to salvation in Jesus, or preach that the Kingdom of God is at hand? Just when did the devil change his plan? Jesus promised life and life more abundantly, and that’s the fruit that we’re seeing in Lakeland.
For this reason, I asked my staff to remove from our website, articles that are causing such strife and division and deterring the Body from the very real and pressing focus of these last days. Jesus wept when people missed the purpose. Every blessing flowed and people received, but they missed the purpose. Don’t miss the purpose!
Again I emphasize, it’s good and right to search out the Truth and to discern the spirits, God expects us to do so. Nevertheless, it’s also important to do so outside of one’s comfortable box, not mistaking discomfort for discernment, and realizing that God is not only a God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever, but also a God of new things. Realize also, that if you spend time in His presence, in fellowship with Him, and if daily, you put on the full armor of God and spend time in His Word; you’ll be more comfortable erring on the side of extravagance rather than quench the Spirit. A body of believers without the Holy Spirit is a breathless, lifeless body.

Accountability

I am accountable to God, and to those who He has sent to me to speak wisdom into my life and ministry – (I submit to an accountability team that comprises my pastor and spiritual overseers from varying backgrounds and denominations). They have not discounted the things that the Lord has shown me just because they don’t fit the mold of tradition or the old wineskins that some are carrying. The dreams, visions, and experiences that I’ve brought forth have been solely for ministering to the Body of Christ. My experiences have made me even hungrier and more zealous for God. That hunger transfers into a hunger to see others experience what I know to be true. They’ve been substantiated through the Word of God in principle, and accepted and given the go-ahead by my accountability team.
I also have an entire department of our ministry devoted to intercession, to coordinating and administering prayer covering over my life and family, over the ministry, and to those to whom we minister. We have an email list called The Firewall that comprises hundreds of intercessors from around the world who keep us covered in prayer.

Steadfast Word of God

Certainly, some people may not understand the visions God has given me, just as I may not understand theirs, but I’ll always hold and stand firm on the truths and the promises He’s given me because He lines them up in my life with the Word. What eternally matters is His Word, which is steadfast and true. My visions may fade away but God’s Word never will. As long as I have the Word, I don’t even need manifestations to prove to me that God is God.
However, God has promised that it shall come to pass in the last days that He will pour out His Spirit upon all flesh: that “your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions” (Joel 2:28). God is raising up an Ezekiel company empowered with the gifts of faith and the working of miracles, with voices like trumpets commanding and heralding the miraculous power of God. Effectiveness and power isn’t limited to clergy. God will pour out His Spirit upon all flesh.
We have to be immersed people. I want to be saturated with everything that God has for me – including dreams, visions, miracles, signs, wonders, and everything accessible to me as a child of God in the supernatural realm of His kingdom. I want the same for you, and so does God.

Go the Distance

People may criticize me for my boldness and zeal, for my methods and ways, for my intensity and urgency, but when we follow the Holy Spirit, He often leads us to do bold and even unexpected things – even outside of our norm. Samuel prophesied to King Saul that the Spirit of the Lord would come upon him and that he would prophesy and be turned “into another man” (1 Sam. 10:6). I am another man. Try to look beyond my paunch and the tattoos, and see how God has used me, and see how He can use you, and is using others.
Christianity shouldn’t be a dead religion but full of life, vim, and strength! Supernatural signs and wonders so often lead people to the saving power of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whether people know it or not, no matter which way a person comes to Christ, the supernatural is involved.
It’s vital for us to go the distance with God if the world is ever going to experience the might of who He really is! Walking in communion with God and in the reality of heaven on earth is the distance to aim and reach for but you have to be open to the impossible happening, even if it bursts your wineskin. The realities of heaven that have happened in my life, and that are happening here at Lakeland are to glorify God so that the lost would come into right relationship with Him, for He is mighty to save.

Take Part in the Feast

God uses the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. For some reason, He’s chosen a bald-headed, red-bearded, tattooed, pierced, imperfect man as an agent for revival. I understand why I would come as a shock to the religious camp. Nevertheless, trust that if what I’m doing is of the flesh or of the devil, I will fail, but if what’s happening is from God, nothing and no one can quench this blazing revival fire unless God wills it.
We’re throwing a feast and we’re inviting the sick, the poor in spirit, the oppressed, and those bound in old wineskins. We’re going out to find and minister to those that no one else can touch to bring them in, and we’re seeing an outpouring of God’s blessings such that we cannot contain. Is it the work of the devil?
Spend time praying for souls. I pray you can see past my imperfections and gaze at the perfection of Christ Jesus. Break through your old wineskin and into the present one. Trust the wisdom of God and His hand in all of this.
I’m thankful that people are being watchful in these last days, just as I am watchful. Questions are good when we’re uncertain of things. Trust too what a respected Pharisee advised in Acts 5:38, 39: “And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it – lest you even be found to fight against God.”
I understand that people have questions, and God understands too! I invite you to come to Lakeland to see what God has for you, and to see for yourself the mighty and wondrous things that God is doing here. Thanks again for hearing my heart. It is my heart that we can bring unity to the Body of Christ to see a great harvest.

Fresh Fire to you,

Todd Bentley

PS: Just as I was wrapping up this letter to you, I received an unsolicited email from Dr. Gary S. Greig, PhD., a former Associate Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Regent University School of Divinity, and Senior Editor, Theology and Acquisitions for the Regal Publishing Group. In his letter, this biblical scholar and theologian shared that the Lord had healed him of sleep apnea while entering into worship while watching a telecast of the Lakeland Outpouring. He wrote that the Lord prompted him to write and send us an independent theological witness to help as many leaders and believers as possible understand that the Lakeland outpouring is from God. That by writing this theological response to questions and criticisms in: Biblical Reasons to Receive God’s Glory and Give it Away in Power Evangelism, that as many as possible would receive “biblical permission” to get on board and fully commit to receiving the Lord’s glory and anointing, and to give it away in power evangelism.

This paper is written at a high level of scholarship for pastors, church leaders, and theologians yet is understandable to the layperson. The Lord told Dr. Greig to “sow into the revival,” not by publishing this 55 page booklet in a conventional way, but by donating it to Fresh Fire Ministries to use as we will, even if it’s just as an encouragement to the ministry. He has granted us permission to post or distribute this paper free of charge and advised that the Lord told him to suggest a donation of $3-$5 to go to Fresh Fire Ministries to help cover the costs for ushering in the outpouring in Lakeland, though to remain free for those who cannot afford the cost of the booklet. [Click here to donate] If you are unable to donate at this time, we invite you to download the paper anyway. [Click here to download the booklet]

Dr. Greig writes: “(God’s) desire is to help every potential reader know that what God is releasing through Lakeland and through the Fresh Fire Ministries team is indeed squarely biblical and is not New Age or outside the clear teaching of Scripture and historic Christianity.”

According to the Lord’s leading, and our examination of the booklet’s contents, we are in agreement with his theological assessment. Our accountability team has made this very informative document available to you on our website in PDF format for download, and will have print copies available as soon as possible. Our heartfelt thanks go out to Dr. Greig and to the Lord for this timely and vital theological response to concerns and criticisms. Please click here to download the PDF of Biblical Reasons to Receive God’s Glory and Give it Away in Power Evangelism, by Dr. Gary Greig.

____________________________________

Todd is being very transparent in his motives. I like the guy and have since I first saw him in 2004. Is he doing everything right? Probably not. Is he doing the best that he can? I believe so. I have every confidence in the Lord’s ability to correct my brother in those places where he is missing the mark. He is growing, just like the rest of us.

It is not easy to ride heard over the cats that make up this revival. There is a fine line to walk between giving the Holy Spirit free reign to do what he wants and trying to keep people from fleshing out. I think Todd and his team are doing a good job. It cannot be easy to learn on the fly as they are doing in this with the entire world watching and able to comment on every single move they make.

This is a very scholarly, researched piece. It is 55 pages long and is fairly thorough in its treatment of the subject. I strongly urge people to read the entire piece and thoughtfully pray through it. For those who are excited about the revival, it gives strong biblical support for this being a move of God. For those who are struggling with things they see or who have questions about various teachings, this document provides a very thorough explanation.

Here is an excerpt from the section on false prophets:

Characteristics of false prophets in the OT: Deuteronomy 13 and 18

The Old Testament gives criteria for God’s people to distinguish false prophets in Deuteronomy 13:1-5 and 18:14-22. We know from Deuteronomy 13:1-2 that false prophets may announce a miraculous sign or wonder—and it may take place—to entice God’s people to follow other gods. But Deut. 18:22 makes it clear that false prophets will be less accurate in their prophetic predictions than a true prophet of the Lord:

Deut. 18:22 (NIV) If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.

One must be careful how this criterion is applied to discern false prophets, becausethere are many cases in Scripture where true prophets of God spoke prophetic words that were not fulfilled for other reasons than that they were false prophets. Jonah’s prophetic word, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned” (Jonah 3:4), did not come true, because Nineveh repented. Nathan’s inaccurate word encouraging King David to build the temple,108 “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you” (2 Sam. 7:3), was later corrected by God in 2 Sam. 7:4 David’s own prophetic word about Solomon, “I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side” (1 Chron. 22:9), was ultimately not fulfilled. Because of Solomon’s sins against the Lord, 1 Kings 11:14-25 makes it clear that the Lord raised up enemies against Solomon on several sides. Elisha was led by God in 2 Kings 8:10 to give an inaccurate word to Hazael to report to Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, that the king would recover from illness, so that God could tell Hazael through Elisha that he would be the next king of Aram. Huldah’s prophecy in 2 Kings 22:20 (and 2 Chronicles 34:28) that King Josiah would “be buried in peace” did not come true: Josiah died and was buried in war not in peace. Scholars recognize that the text of Chronicles emphasizes in 2 Chronicles 35:22 that Josiah died an early violent death—the text clearly asserts that Josiah involved himself in a war God never told him to fight. Josiah “would not listen to what Neco [king of Egypt] had said at God’s command but went to fight him on the plain of Megiddo” (2 Chron. 35:22).

In such examples, we are dealing, in part, with the kind of contingency in prophecy that Jeremiah prophesies about in Jeremiah 18:7-10:

Jer. 18:7-10 (NIV) If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it. [boldface and italics mine]

This is just a small part of the total section on False Teachers and False Prophets contained in the document.

The boy has got some credentials to him. Here is a picture and some further biographical information on the author.

GARY GREIG

Gary is the Founder and President of Kingdom Training Network, a ministry called to “move on universities in revival fire with signs and wonders.” He is Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at King’s Seminary at Church On The Way in Van Nuys, CA. Gary received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. From 1995 to 1998 he was an Associate Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament at Regent University, School of Divinity. He also served for a season as the Educational Advisor for the Apostolic Council for Educational Accountability, founded by Dr. C. Peter Wagner, which networks new apostolic ministry schools with one another. At that time he was also a Professor and Coordinator of Biblical Languages and Old Testament concentrations for Wagner Leadership Institute. His book, The Kingdom and the Power: A Biblical Look at How to Bring the Gospel to the World with Power, is a compendium that lays out the biblical foundations of power evangelism and power ministry.

FRUIT!!!!

The biggest thing that Dr. Greig hammers on is the fruit. What is the fruit? Who or what are the people involved focusing on? That is the true biblical test of whether anything has its origin in the Lord, in the flesh or in the demonic.

One of the things I want to point out about the doctrine police is that they are the ones who are focused on everything but Jesus. They post about all the strange manifestations. They post about the angels and go on ad nauseum about how these things can’t be scriptural and then post all kinds of demonic literature trying to prove that the manifestations and teachings in Lakeland match these demonically inspired practices. I would like to point out that the leaders in Lakeland are giving no such time to the devil or his teachings. They are consistently lifting up the name of Jesus and giving him the glory for what is happening there.

Read the document and tell me what you think.

The ones that really crack me up are the ones where the blogger goes off on Todd for his visions or prophetic experiences where he received some form of revelation or other that isn’t contained in scripture, such as a name of an angel or a vision of the Ministry of Finance in heaven. They will proceed to trounce this as demonic because it is not in the Bible. But then, they will relate how they had a dream that they KNOW is from the Lord showing them the blackness of Todd’s heart or the wrongness of his motivation or how he is a charlatan. Their revelation is then offered as further proof of Todd’s iniquity.

Does anyone else see a problem with this behavior?

The attitude of “your revelation is wrong, but mine is spot on” really bothers me. In the scenario above, both revelations are extra-biblical. There is no place in scripture where the motives of Todd Bentley are spoken of. And I really don’t think there is any place in scripture that gives Christians leave to air their “revelations” about the character and motives of their brothers publicly. We are to take our concerns to our brother, then go back with witnesses and finally to bring it before the church. Bringing matters before the church involves bringing it before the governmental structure that the one in error belongs to. There is also an implication that those bringing the correction are part of the same body. In other words, there can be no correction where there is no relationship.

It seems to me that the heart of the Lord and the preponderance of scripture is that God’s desire is for healing and transformation in the lives of individuals rather than judgment and condemnation. He desires for His children to be transformed into the image of Jesus. Jesus laid his life down for the flock and so should we.

I have seen every kind of objection to what is happening in Lakeland on the internet. Some of it is absolutely hilarious. There are people who object to the fact that worship sometimes goes on for 2 1/2 hours. They say it is setting the stage for mass hypnosis. Never mind the fact that King David established 24/7 worship in tabernacle. These same people also complain that the name of Jesus is never involved in the meetings. Of course not. We just spend 2 1/2 hours contemplating air.

Worship, in the context of “River” people, follows the definition John Wimber gave of worship in the Vineyard. True worship is TO Jesus, not about Jesus. It is the difference between saying, “God is awesome,” and “You are an awesome God.” Worship, in this context, is an intimate event where we pour our love out to Jesus. Jesus IS the focus of true worship. Roy Fields recently said, “We are desperate, passionate, raging lunatics for God.” I think that is a really fair assessment of worship.

One of the results of the powerlessness of the Western church is that we no longer do the stuff, we just talk about when Jesus did the stuff. The church has no expectation of the sick being healed, the possessed being delivered or the dead being raised. We no longer do those things, we just talk about when Jesus did those things. We don’t have a context of what to do when the stuff is being done around us (kudos to John Wimber from whom I first heard the term “Doin’ the Stuff” in reference to doing the works of Jesus.)

Jesus didn’t just talk about the Kingdom of God, he demonstrated it to the people.

People object to the fact that Todd doesn’t talk about Jesus and what Jesus did. He doesn’t do 3 point sermons. He’s too busy encouraging people to do the stuff to talk about when the stuff used to be done. He is demonstrating the Kingdom of God.

The Kingdom of God, scripture says, is not a matter of words but of a demonstration of the power of God. That is because the Kingdom is supposed to be a demonstration of the defeat of satan in this world. The Kingdom is ALWAYS superior to the rule of satan. 1 Johns says that Jesus was made manifest to destroy the works of the devil. When he returned to heaven, he left that mandate with his church. The works of satan are poverty, sickness, disease. The Kingdom brings provision, healing and deliverance.

And I have news for the Doctrine Police: Todd Bentley’s motives do not matter. You think he is evil to the bone, a charlatan, a liar and out to skin the flock. Even if he is, that doesn’t matter.

Philippians 1:17-19:

17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.^[ 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.

I personally do not believe Todd is in this for the money. Revivals are a pain in the neck. Conferences are a lot easier to do and pay well. Todd has preached 50 some odd nights since 4/2/08. That is a lot of work. It is not easy to run 6 hours or more a night under tv lights, especially in Florida in the summer with little air conditioning. But even if it was just about the money, the scripture above says it doesn’t matter. As long as Christ is being preached, that is what is important.

And Christ is being preached. People are coming to Jesus daily, both in the meetings and on the streets. I have heard it said that they are not really getting saved and all sorts of bogus garbage. The people getting saved in Lakeland are just as saved and have just as much chance of growing in Christ as if they had been saved in a Billy Graham crusade. Billy, in case you were unaware, only has a 5% retention rate. Only 5% of those converted under his ministry continue on to become mature Christians.

I don’t know how many have claimed to have been born again in Lakeland. I know that in one 48 hour period of time, teams reported leading 510 people to Jesus on the streets. One girl I talked to on May 2nd, said that she had led over 1,000 people to Jesus. I believe her because I have never seen a city where people were so open to the gospel.

I actually feel sorry for the Doctrine Police. They are straining gnats and swallowing camels. They freak out about things that really don’t matter and are missing what God is doing in this hour. God will always meet with desperate, hungry people; people who want him more than anything and he doesn’t care about the vessel he uses to reach them. I think that is what the doctrine police are missing. They aren’t desperate and hungry for the person and presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. They are letting their desire for doctrinal purity block their relationship with the Lord, not realizing that it is our intimacy with Jesus that purifies our understanding of the Kingdom of God. Doctrine has never and will never produce intimacy with the Lord, but intimacy with Jesus and fellowship with the Holy Spirit will produce doctrinal purity.

People have gone out of their way to dig up Todd’s past – his before Jesus, unsaved past – and claim that his actions as a SINNER disqualify him from holding any type of ministry position. Never mind that Paul was a murderer. In their world, he wouldn’t be qualified for ministry either. For the record, Todd has always been honest about the fact that he has a horrendous past and managed to cram a lot of sin into his 17 years before he was apprehended by the Holy Spirit. That is part of the beauty of his testimony, that God would take such a foul sinner and transform him into a minister of the gospel of grace.

This is one of the things that is truly bothering me about the current onslaught from the doctrine police – their total lack of grace. They do not, by their accusations and words, leave any room in their theological world for the grace of God to transform a sinner into a saint. Or maybe there is no room in their theological world for the transformation of Todd Bentley.

Todd has built his ministry on the fact that God saved and transformed his life, and He will do the same for anyone. Maybe the problem with the doctrine police is that God never transformed their lives. Maybe they have never experienced the grace of the Lord or experienced His love. Maybe they are just like the Pharisee that said, “I thank you, God, that I am not like that foul publican over there,” not realizing they are in just as much need of the grace of God as Todd Bentley ever was.

I found a quote on a BeenUp2 site from Bill Johnson about Todd Bentley:

It is foolish to judge another mans experience by your own lack of experience. To critique a meal you’ve not eaten is another activity of the religious spirit. Todd is a personal friend, and more importantly a friend of God. He has an unusual passion for God, and gives Him first place in everything. God trusts him, and has entrusted him with this extraordinary move. God has heard the cries of the church in America for revival – He’s now seeing how bad we want it by putting it in a package that is different than we’re accustomed to. He’s found someone who is not embarrassed to talk about the unusual experiences that God gives. God will not contradict the Scriptures, but He will gladly contradict my understanding of Scripture.

Pastor Johnson says, “Todd is my friend, but more importantly, he is a friend of God.” Those are two very important statements. Todd Bentley is not a man out doing the Lone Ranger thing. He is in relationship with godly men and women who speak truth into his life. He has a board who hold him accountable. He has a leadership team who hold him accountable.

I think that is one of the things that sets this apart from the Voice of Healing movement of the ’40′s and ’50′s. Todd is in relationship with other parts of the five-fold ministry. He is working closely with a pastor in this outpouring. Stephen Strader is working on how to pastor what is going on. He is working on how to disciple the new converts and train them up in sound biblical principles. Todd is in relationship with more mature prophetic voices who give him feedback on his prophetic revelations.

The other thing Pastor Johnson said that was important was that Todd, “was a friend of God.” Todd isn’t just God’s friend. He is a child of the King, a son of the Most High. The problem with abusing a child is that eventually you will find yourself having to deal with the angry parent of that child. I would seriously consider that if I were you, Doctrine Police.

People have problems with the package that is Todd Bentley. They don’t like his tattoos. They say they are unbiblical. That particular prohibition was part of the Law. If you don’t want to uphold every part of the law, then don’t try to force Todd to follow that one scripture. They don’t like his theology. They don’t like his angels. They don’t like the way he prays. They don’t like the way he takes an offering at 11 pm after people have started leaving. Fine. DON’T WATCH HIM!

What I would ask the doctrine police is: What’s your motive? Why are you so hate filled in your denunciations of Todd? Why are you posting a zillion pages about what a horrible person he is without ever having met him? Many of you are posting these things without ever having even watched a broadcast of the Florida Outpouring.

Here are the motives that come through these posts like a halogen light.

1. Jealousy – Todd’s ministry is world wide and he has seen well over a million souls saved. He is successful in ministry. Most of those who are bashing him on the net don’t even have a ministry in their local church. If they did, they wouldn’t have time to post their zillions of posts.
2. A Religious Spirit – Many of those posting deny that the power of God and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit are available to believers today. They hold to a form of godliness, a form that totally depends on their own ability to maintain it, thus giving them a basis for feeling superior, but they deny the power thereof. Paul says that the true church of Jesus Christ is to have nothing to do with such people.
3. Hatred – The hatred for the person of Todd Bentley radiates in these posts. They don’t just disagree with him, they hate him. They would cheerfully burn him at the stake if they could.

I have another quote from Bill Johnson that totally illustrates the difference in the heart attitudes of the two groups.

Revival Critics – Neither Bob Jones nor Todd Bentley would get information about you and then repeat it. If they had dirt on you, they would never use a public forum to criticize you. Be careful, because “reaping and sowing” are still in effect. You will eat from the seeds you have planted. Pray you don’t get famous, because then it will be a BIG meal.

Don’t worry, Pastor Johnson, about the majority becoming famous. Most of these critics are only legends in their own minds.

 THE MIRACLE IS IN THE TIMING

Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble. Verse 5 “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God shall help her at the turning of the morning.
 
We all know and have heard that God is never late, roughly translated that really means “God, why do you seem to make me wait until the last second?”
 
In the early and mid-nineteenth century, there came a diverse group of people who came to be known as “higher critics.” These people would take a “scientific,” look at Scriptures and study it in the “cold light of day.” What really happened was that these men attempted to take the “super,” out of the supernatural so that they would be left with nothing more than a historical document judged on what could be explained. If it could not be explained, it was rejected as fable. One classic example of this was the crossing of the River Jordan by the Israelites. We all know that God commanded the priests to put their foot into a spring swollen river with the Ark  on their shoulders. 

 
Higher critics discovered that some miles up river from the point at which the Israelites crossed, that there had been, at one point, possibly even in that time frame, a massive landslide which would have dammed up the river for a period of time. These Godless men, in their own act of faith, would cry “ah ha, we have our natural explanation.” Isn’t it amazing that in their zeal to discount a miracle working God that they missed the obvious. The miracle of the timing. Even it if is true that there was a massive landslide up the river that dammed it up, what are the odds that all this took place to perfectly coincide with the priests putting their foot in the water? What about the walls of Jericho? An earthquake? Perhaps. What are the odds of an earthquake occurring at the exact second the Israelites, under exact instructions from God, gave a great shout?
 
Last year, a handicapped friend of mine, a brother in Christ, was in the midst of an emotional and financial crisis. A few of us got together and decided that we would all chip in some money, it amounted to several hundred dollars. The real problem was going to be how to get the money to him without knowing that it came from us. So we decided that his best friend should take the money over in an envelope and put it in his letterbox. If he happened to be in, there would be no need for an explanation as to why he was there. Well, he was not in and the money was put in the letterbox. Day after day I waited for a call or a reaction from my friend. We believed that this provision from God could perhaps snap him out of his depression. Well, I had several conversations with him, and a couple of breakfasts and nothing. I was quite disappointed that God could bless him and that he would say nothing about it. About three weeks after the money was put in the letterbox, I got a call from my friend. The first thing he asked me was if I knew anything about money in his bookbag, to which I honestly said no. He then went on to explain that the previous night, about four in the morning, he had gotten up and cried out to God. He was in a desperate financial position and told God if He could not do something for Him, then he was lost.
 
My friend then told me that for a couple of months now, he had not been opening his mail, it was too depressing. He would grab the mail (he walks on crutches) and throw it into his bookbag and not open them. That morning , spurred on by his prayer, he decided to open his mail and face the “bad news.” What he got instead was a blessing that blew him away. He just kept saying “Frank, I just prayed the prayer a few hours before and here is this envelope with hundreds of dollars in it.” My reply was “praise God What really struck me was two elements of the story. His reaching the end of himself and crying out, and the timing. Three weeks earlier would have been too early, that morning(although it can be explained in natural terms) was right on time by the grace and miracle of a loving God.
 
Several weeks ago my family and I were in St Louis for a weekend getaway. On the Saturday night we decided to go to the Symphony and as we drove there I got a phone call. It was from “Mary,” (not her real name) This is a lady that works at one of the Doctors offices I go to. She works behind the desk and is a Christian woman. Her husband does not keep very well and they struggle because of that. Over the years I always visit with her as I check out. We talk about the Lord and what is going on in our lives. I had been in a few weeks before my St Louis weekend and as usual, had asked her how things were. She sighed and told me things were just the same. I tried to encourage her as I always do and made her laugh before I left.
 
 She was now on the phone (she has never called me before) telling me that she was convicted. The last time I was in she told me that things were just the same, well, she said, that was not true. She had been given a washing machine for free , blessed by the Lord, and had not told me about that. The Holy Spirit had convicted her to call and tell me that and put it right. Now, most people in the world would think that this was weird(including my wife) but I perfectly understood, having came under conviction myself many times and knowing how it feels until you do as your told.
 
When she hung up, the Lord said to me “Frank, I want you to give her $200.” I thought, fine, I can do that. When I got back from the weekend, I thought about how I could give her the money without her knowing it was from me. I had a plan, but for whatever reason it did not work out. Well, about four weeks had passed since my weekend and still I had not given her the money. I thought about just walking in there and giving it to her, but in the back of my mind I was not sure how she would receive it, there was every possibility that she would be offended.
 
 Well, my high blood pressure medication ran out. I tried to call in my refill but found out that my six months supply was up and I would now have to visit the Doctor to renew the prescription(something that I usually complain about) My appointment was set for that day at 4.00. I went to the bank and got the money and put it in an envelope. I got there punctually(five minutes early) and “Mary,” was not there. I asked the other lady where Mary was and she told me that I must have just missed her as she knocks of at 4.00. My spirit dropped a little but then she came walking out of the back door on her way out. I said hi and asked her if I could talk to her for a minute outside in the hallway. She went out and sat down and I signed in. I went out and joined her. I asked her if she remembered the phone call she made and the conviction that she told me about, she smiled and said “of course.” Well, I said to Mary, you will understand me when I tell you that I am under a similar conviction, the Lord wants you to have this , and I handed her the envelope.
 
She peeked into the envelope and her eyes filled up and she began to cry. She just kept shaking her head. With difficulty she told me that the previous evening, her and her husband had sat at their table and had to decide which bill not to pay. She barely had the gas money that morning to get to work. Her and her husband prayed fervently, for the first time in a long time, about their situation.
 
She put her head back against the wall and looking upwards told me that she was in no position to even try and refuse this. She was blown away that God had answered her and her husbands prayer so immediately (she did not know that I had messed around for several week) She could not wait to get home and share this with her husband. Higher critics could explain this in the natural, but the supernatural is God talking to His people, directing them and of course, His perfect timing.
 
Has God told you to do something ? Are you holding back for some reason? Is it possible your holding back the blessing of God? The last two stories rely upon two things, Gods people following His instruction to the letter, and their complete dependence upon Him. Perhaps you have reached a crisis point today? Will you call upon the Lord who is your refuge and strength and who is a very present help in time of trouble? Do you know that God is in your midst and you shall not be moved? God will help you at the “turning of the morning.” This means “at the break of Dawn.” You have heard the phrase “things are always darkest just before the dawn,” then praise the Lord we serve a God that brings the light into the darkest of situations. No matter what you face today, no matter how dark your situation, there is a God who cares and is working behind the scenes. Cry out to Him today, trust Him today and if the Lord has called you to do something, please do it no matter if it makes sense or not, trust in Him, He is the morning sun that rises in the heart of even the darkest of circumstances. Put your foot in the water with the Lord Jesus elevated above your circumstances and see if your river will not dry up, just test Him and see if He will not make a way where there seems to be no way. ……………..In the beauty of Holiness………………..Frank