"Does Bill Johnson's teaching remain faithful to orthodox Christianity?
The way to find out is to check what is taught about the Bible and what is taught about Jesus. If the teaching regarding Jesus is contrary to the whole counsel of teaching about Him contained in the Bible then a person's teaching is not in accord with the Spirit of God and is not from God (1 John 4:1-6).
Sadly, this appears to be the case in the teaching of Bill Johnson, this is all the more surprising because it is so widely espoused.
In Summary
Philippians 2:7 teaches that Jesus restrained part of His divine nature at certain times during His ministry but used it at other times, but was at all times Divine.
We cannot deny that miracles can and do still occur, but are they something we should contend for, was Jesus a "miracle working pattern" that we should emulate, is this what it really means to grow in Christlikeness, don't miracles and healings occur according to the Holy Spirit's intentions and purposes?
Surely, the greatest miracle is when someone repents and believes on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus was born of the Spirit, He was and is and is to come. John 1 is clear that Jesus was in the beginning with God, so to say, as Johnson does, that, "He had no supernatural capabilities in Himself" is to deny and remove something from His person (see Colossians 1:15-20 and John 1).
He did choose to live with the same limitations as man, but He did not lose any part of His divinity in so doing.
Think about it, the supernatural miraculous power of God was evident when He swept back the sea as the Israelites fled Egypt (Exodus 14:21).
How did Israel respond to this great miracle?
"When Israel saw the great power which the Lord had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord,
and they believed in the Lord and in His servant Moses "
(Exodus 14:31).
Contrast this with Johnson's response to a miracle performed by God in the person of Jesus Christ,
What does this reveal about what Bill Johnson believes about Jesus? When he says that he is not compelled to follow Jesus if He performed miracles as God in other words, Jesus did not perform miracles as God - doesnt it necessarily follow that the only reason he follows Jesus is to be able to work miracles? Dont truly repentant sinners follow Christ because He is the way, the truth and the life and because they know they have been saved from their sin and Gods wrath?
Ask yourself, is Bill Johnson's response similar to that of the Israelites or that of Pharaoh, who refused to humble himself before God, Exodus 10:3, and never truly repented Ex 10:17?
Hasn't the focus changed from God to man and what man can achieve, thus de-deifying Christ and deifying man?
What other miracles fail to impress Bill Johnson? Is he not impressed with the incarnation, Jesus walking on water and calming the storm, the resurrection, saving those dead in their sins, etc, etc? To say that God's miracles are admirable but not compelling is dumbfounding. Is this how we should view God?
Bill Johnson's "doctrine of Christ" undermines the person and work of Christ and, as such, it is not a secondary issue.
This is not an issue about whether or not miracles are for today or whether we think gifts of healing and miracles have ceased or continue; it is an argument which directly relates to who Jesus is.
In order for the "supernatural to become the natural" you have to create a system which accommodates the power of God with the "so called" power of man.
In the case of Bill Johnson's teaching this is achieved by combining the false view of Christ emptying Himself with an equally false view of the Holy Spirits work in the life of Jesus, which should be mimicked by all true believers. ..."
Read FULL ARTICLE
The way to find out is to check what is taught about the Bible and what is taught about Jesus. If the teaching regarding Jesus is contrary to the whole counsel of teaching about Him contained in the Bible then a person's teaching is not in accord with the Spirit of God and is not from God (1 John 4:1-6).
Sadly, this appears to be the case in the teaching of Bill Johnson, this is all the more surprising because it is so widely espoused.
In Summary
Philippians 2:7 teaches that Jesus restrained part of His divine nature at certain times during His ministry but used it at other times, but was at all times Divine.
We cannot deny that miracles can and do still occur, but are they something we should contend for, was Jesus a "miracle working pattern" that we should emulate, is this what it really means to grow in Christlikeness, don't miracles and healings occur according to the Holy Spirit's intentions and purposes?
Surely, the greatest miracle is when someone repents and believes on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus was born of the Spirit, He was and is and is to come. John 1 is clear that Jesus was in the beginning with God, so to say, as Johnson does, that, "He had no supernatural capabilities in Himself" is to deny and remove something from His person (see Colossians 1:15-20 and John 1).
He did choose to live with the same limitations as man, but He did not lose any part of His divinity in so doing.
Think about it, the supernatural miraculous power of God was evident when He swept back the sea as the Israelites fled Egypt (Exodus 14:21).
How did Israel respond to this great miracle?
"When Israel saw the great power which the Lord had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord,
and they believed in the Lord and in His servant Moses "
(Exodus 14:31).
Contrast this with Johnson's response to a miracle performed by God in the person of Jesus Christ,
If he (Jesus) performed miracles as God, I am still impressed, but not compelled to follow. His example would be admirable, but unattainable.
What does this reveal about what Bill Johnson believes about Jesus? When he says that he is not compelled to follow Jesus if He performed miracles as God in other words, Jesus did not perform miracles as God - doesnt it necessarily follow that the only reason he follows Jesus is to be able to work miracles? Dont truly repentant sinners follow Christ because He is the way, the truth and the life and because they know they have been saved from their sin and Gods wrath?
Ask yourself, is Bill Johnson's response similar to that of the Israelites or that of Pharaoh, who refused to humble himself before God, Exodus 10:3, and never truly repented Ex 10:17?
Hasn't the focus changed from God to man and what man can achieve, thus de-deifying Christ and deifying man?
What other miracles fail to impress Bill Johnson? Is he not impressed with the incarnation, Jesus walking on water and calming the storm, the resurrection, saving those dead in their sins, etc, etc? To say that God's miracles are admirable but not compelling is dumbfounding. Is this how we should view God?
Bill Johnson's "doctrine of Christ" undermines the person and work of Christ and, as such, it is not a secondary issue.
This is not an issue about whether or not miracles are for today or whether we think gifts of healing and miracles have ceased or continue; it is an argument which directly relates to who Jesus is.
In order for the "supernatural to become the natural" you have to create a system which accommodates the power of God with the "so called" power of man.
In the case of Bill Johnson's teaching this is achieved by combining the false view of Christ emptying Himself with an equally false view of the Holy Spirits work in the life of Jesus, which should be mimicked by all true believers. ..."
Read FULL ARTICLE
