Showing posts with label Heresy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Heresy. Show all posts

Saturday, January 5, 2013

KIM WALKER-SMITH and the JESUS CULTURE CONTROVERSY

from Part I of "Discerning a Gnostic conference called "Passion 2013," Louie Giglio "
Kim Walker-Smith [Notice her hyphenated name, and readGenesis 2:24] is a part of the Jesus Culture Band. She is part of a home church called Bethel Church in Redding CA. Smith is a worship leader and/or a "worship pastor" at that same church, whichteaches heresies. On her church page she is listed as as "a passionate worship leader with an anointing to bring an entire generation into an encounter with God." I'm impressed. The Apostles didn't even have such an anointing.

At a conference called 'Awakening 2011' Smith shared with the audience a vision she said she had. It was an experience of cuddling with Jesus [glorified, in Heaven, for that is where Christ now resides], and God [also in Heaven] was nearby too. She said her vision buoyed her and she lives off it, explaining, "I live off of the encounter ... until the next one." Yet the bible says “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4). This means we don't live just in the flesh and for the flesh (having adrenaline rushed encounters) but we live by His word.

The problem that comes from living from encounter to encounter is three-fold: first, we live by His word as the bible commands, not by experiences. Second, human nature requires ever bigger rushes. The last one has to be topped. It is the Law of Diminishing returns for an adrenaline junkie. Adrenaline junkies seek encounters or experiences in which a high is produced by epinephrine released by the adrenal gland. It produces a fight-or-flight response (one which Ms Smith admits she felt during each of the encounters she described). The problem is that each 'high' has to be succeeded by one with more oomph in order to achieve the same effect. It seems like it would be an upward spiral but it is really a downward one. Third, what happens when the encounters stop? They do and they will. After each high, there is a low. What will sustain her faith then? If you live by the word, it will never pass away. (Matthew 24:35).

Here is a bit of what Mrs Smith said regarding her encounter with Jesus and God:

"This is not a normal thing for me, to have these encounters." But then later she said "I live off of the encounter ... until the next one." We know from the bible that several righteous men encountered Jesus as He is glorified, but they are few. Few. Isaiah, Ezekiel, Paul, and John were lifted up and saw Him in heaven. Of those four, three were allowed to relate a small bit of what they saw and Paul was commanded not to speak of it at all. Peter saw a transfigured Christ on earth, Paul encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus and Moses encountered God atop Mt Sinai.

In comparing her experience with the ones above from the bible, the two experiences are dramatically different. I'll summarize what Mrs Walker-Smith has said in her video testimony. Then we will compare her experience to those who experienced God from the bible's record:

In her vision, she said she saw Jesus and God behind Him. God beckoned for her to come closer. When she did, two questions popped into her mind that she wanted to ask Jesus. One was "How much do you love me, and the other was "What were you thinking when you created me?"

In answering her question as to how much Jesus loved her, Smith said he started stretching out his arms, and it looked like Stretch Armstrong, the superhero cartoon character "whose arms and legs could stretch out like spaghetti noodles. And He's laughing hysterically."

A person entering the presence of God and Jesus would become immediately insensate & insensible. But Mrs Smith remained conscious enough in her own flesh to ask Jesus to 'tell me about me.' Then she likens him to a cartoon character, and says he laughed hysterically. Hysterical laughter is out-of-control laughter, and Jesus is never out of control.

The bible tells us that if you were one of the FEW men to have seen heaven while still alive that what you see is unlawful to express. (2 Corinthians 12:4). But if directed to tell, the visionary must use many symbols and metaphors to try and get the point across because the scene is so incomprehensible. The writer uses exalted metaphors to convey the inexpressible beauty and holiness of the scene. The writers did not use everyday toys and cartoon characters to convey the scene, in no way is that appropriate. The metaphors themselves that John or Ezekiel used for example were 'hair white like wool, eyes like a flame, feet like bronze', (Revelation 1) 'a brightness all around Him...like a bow in the sky.' (Ezekiel 1:27-28).

After Daniel's visions of the Ancient of Days, he became "distressed, alarmed and dismayed." (Daniel 7:15). That sounds bad enough, but the Hebrew says the word alarmed means active suffering and piercing grief. (Strong's). Yet in Mrs Smith's visions she giggled like a schoolgirl and cuddled in Jesus' arms while God roamed around nearby.

Mrs Smith said that she had wanted to ask Jesus two questions but in that first vision had only asked one. She continued in her sharing of her now second vision in which the unasked question was answered: "What were you thinking when you made me". She said that a few months later she was watching the sun come up early in the morning. "I like to watch the sun come up, which is a miracle in itself ... because I am not a morning person." Oh wait, I thought she was going to praise the creator. 

"Again, I felt the presence of the Lord, and I felt like He wanted me to ask that question. Jesus is like, 'Please, please ask me that question.' And again he said, 'Please, please ask me that question."

The scene she describes here is of a begging Jesus. It continues: 

Smith said she's now standing with Jesus. In front of her is God the father. Jesus's got a table, and He reaches into His body and clutches his heart and rips a chunk off His heart and throws it on the table... he fashions her out of a clay or play-dough like substance, puts her into a ballerina music box where she begins dancing, and then Jesus begins shouting "who hooooo" while running around with his arms up, continually going around, "woo hoo!" in circles, running around a bunch of times. Smith said he looked like a jack in the box.

"Then I'm in the palm of the Father's hand...and I see His heart and the outline of his heart and the outline is the chunk he ripped out and he slides me into His heart like a puzzle piece and it's a perfect fit. Smith said Jesus told her, "I made you because you make me happy." 

A few days ago, I wrote about the Therapeutic Gospel. I noted how the Gnostic changes the emphasis of the Gospel from the work of Jesus to our own worth. I'd said:
The Therapeutic Gospel does something else that's devastating. It leads us to believe that it is our worth that motivates God's action to save us. The thinking is, Jesus came to save us because we are so valuable to God. ... A good example comes from comparing two parables.
Pastor Wax compares the subtle shift in a counterfeit Gospel from being Christ-centered to man-centered, by comparing the parable of the sheep as they are presented in Luke and in the false Gospel of Thomas. Here is the Gospel of Luke:

“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. (Luke 15:4-7)

The other is from the non-canonical, false Gospel of Thomas.

"Jesus said, "The kingdom is like a shepherd who had a hundred sheep. One of them, the largest, went astray. He left the ninety-nine sheep and looked for that one until he found it. When he had gone to such trouble, he said to the sheep, 'I care for you more than the ninety-nine.'" (FALSE, NON-CANONICAL “Gospel of Thomas”)

What has happened here, said Pr. Wax, is that in the counterfeit Gnostic gospel the point of the parable in the counterfeit is about the worth of the sheep, instead of the work of the Shepherd.
Jesus did not create us because it made Him happy. He made humans so as to bring HIM glory. (Romans 11:36). Do you see the exact Gnostic emphasis that is present in the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas is also in Smith's vision? It was the worth of Kim Walker-Smith that caused Jesus to make her? And in so doing brought Jesus a measure of happiness he had not had before?

This is not possible. It does not line up with the scriptures and if it does not line up with scripture, it is false.

In looking at the biblical record of people who were lifted to heaven or saw Jesus glorified, we compare their reactions with Kim Walker-Smith's. For example, Isaiah- 

Isaiah said, "And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!" (Isaiah 6:5)

"Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking." (Ezekiel 1:28b)
FULL ARTICLE HERE

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Bill Johnson, IHOP, & Ancient Heresy Reborn


Bill Johnson, IHOP, & Ancient Heresy Reborn

This discussion is based on an article tha that Bob Dewaay wrote for Critical Issues Commentary that he hasn’t yet published entitled “An Invasion of Error: A Review of Bill Johnson – When Heaven Invades Earth“. Johnson is closely associated with IHOP in Kansus City. Much of what Johnson teaches is also promoted by IHOP.

Play
An Outline of the Discussion
  • Much of what was discussed revolves around a book by Bill Johnson, a pastor in Redding, California, called “When Heaven Invades Earth.” The book details formulas for performing miracles. Bob contends that once a miracle becomes the outcome of a prescribed formula, it is no longer a miracle, but a natural phenomenon.
  • Jesus as portrayed as a person that could only do miracles in His Earthly ministry because He learned all of the proper formulas.
  • A heretical view of Jesus is taught that says that He laid aside His divinity while on Earth. This is heretical because divinity, by definition, is not a quality that can be laid aside. If ever there was a time that Jesus was not divine, He never was divine to begin with, nor ever will be.
  • Bill Johnson professes a teaching that is shared with IHOP (International House of Prayer) of an “Elijah Generation”, or an elite group of Christians that shows up at the end of the age, is greater than any other group of Christians in history, and do greater miracles than Jesus. Such teaching has its roots in the long-discredited Latter Rain movement that began in the 1940s.
  • The ancient heresy of Kenosis is taught. Kenosis doctrine is based on a misinterpretation of Philippians 2, and teaches that Jesus “emptied Himself of diety”, and was merely a man during His Earthly ministry.
    • Deity cannot be gained, lost, laid down, or set aside. It either is or it isn’t.
    • Deity is defined as: non-contingent eternal existence.
  • Johnson, et. al. operate under an anti-scholastic bias that downplays the importance of scripture in favor of spiritual experience. He states “The letter kills, but the spirit gives life”.
  • The promotion of spiritual experience and special knowledge not found in scripture is a form of gnosticism, a heresy that dates back to the days of the Apostle Paul.
  • The letter kills in that the letter is the law, and the law kills in that it points to Christ, but it is Christ that saves, not the law. The law is a schoolmaster as Paul says in Galatians 3:24
  • Paul warned about gnosticism in his Corinthian letters, Colossians, and elsewhere.
  • Gnosis is the Greek word for knowledge, and gnosticism refers to a special knowledge, not found in scriptures, nor available to all Christians.
  • Gnosticism leads to a strange form of panentheistic worldview.
  • Bob likes to say that “There are no extraordinary Christians, but being an ordinary Christian is an extraordinary thing.”
  • The teaching that there are “elite” Christians parallels the Catholic teaching of super-irrigation, or works that go above an beyond that which is required by ordinary Christians.

  • “Those who feel safe because of their intellectual grasp of Scriptures enjoy a false sense of security. None of us has a full grasp of Scripture, but we all have the Holy Spirit. He is our common denominator who will always lead us into truth. But to follow Him, we must be willing to follow off the map—to go beyond what we know.” (Johnson: 76)
  • Docetism is a heresy that says that Christ only seemed to have a body.
  • People who follow false teaching, especially of the sort that Bill Johnson teaches, often decry the “cognitive” as antithetical to “walking in the spirit”. However, they don’t realize that they make their own decisions and form their own beliefs based on a “cognitive” understanding of the world that they like. They merely use a different “cognitive” standard than that of Bible-believing Christians. Gnosticism uses a subjective cognitive standard, as opposed to the objective standard of the Scriptures.
  • Johnson claims that reaction to error often leads to more error. This stands in contrast to much of the New Testament in which Paul, and other New Testament writers, wrote epistles meant to correct error (Galatians, Colossians, Hebrews, etc.)
  • We don’t question a false teacher’s motives or sincerity, we question their doctrine in light of Scripture.
  • Elitism is a heretical view that some Christians are more spiritual than others, and somehow better Christians.
  • Pietism is a reaction to “dead orthodoxy,” and has a heavy emphasis on experience.
  • Fideism teaches faith for the sake of faith. It de-emphasizes the object of faith and replaces it with faith itself.
  • Panentheism is often mistakenly adopted by Christians who misunderstand omnipresence. It teaches that God is in everything (as opposed to Pantheism that teaches that God is everything and everything is God.)
  • The Emergent Church movement is largely panentheistic, and they don’t necessarily deny it.
  • Bill Johnson’s similarities to IHOP (International House of Prayer) in Kansas City include:
    • Common roots in Latter Rain theology
    • Both target young people
    • Elitism – The “Elijah Generation”
    • Manifested Sons of God
    • Bridal paradigm. A sensual relationship between Christ and believers.
    • “Deeper Life.” A gnostic idea that there is a secret that will lead you to a deeper life with Christ.
  • Bill Johnson’s connection to IHOP appears to be informal, though he has spoken at many conferences held by IHOP.
Scripture References

Friday, March 23, 2012

Part 1: False Spirits in the Church


This video is Produced by charismatic commentator Andrew Strom. 

It contains disturbing footage of one of the worst "invasions" of false spirits that the church has ever seen: strong evidence that She has been invaded by counterfeit spirits on a worldwide scale. This is Part One of a documentary tracing this massive invasion - and showing the terrible impact it has had. Please share it with your friends.

Leaders and movements involved:Prophetic; Apostolic; Signs & Wonders; Bill Johnson, Kris Valloton, Kim Walker-Smith, Chris Quilala (Bethel Church/Jesus Culture); Vineyard Fellowship; Todd Bentley (Fresh Fire), Lakeland Revival, Rick Joyner (IHOP), Bob Jones (Morningstar), Toronto Blessing, John Crowder) john crowder, Mike Bickle, Patricia King, the River, New Apostolic Reformation, Word of Faith, New Breed Revivalists, Healing Rooms, John Paul Jackson, Sid Roth, Chuck Pierce, Randy Clark, Peter Wagner, Dutch Sheets, Charismatic. (partial list)

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Jesus Culture Theology - Christ not God - Heresy


Bill Johnson’s Christology Explained

In essence, Bill Johnson, Senior Pastor of Bethel Church in Redding, CA, a recognized “apostle” by some, teaches that at conception, or at least prior to the Virgin Birth, Jesus divested Himself of all His divine attributes thereby living a sinless earthly existence by being totally reliant upon the Holy Spirit while receiving the power to do miracles at His baptism.  
This divine self-emptying is known as the kenosis doctrine as discussed here.  The quotes used in this section are taken from six different books by Bill Johnson (and one sermon) to illustrate that this teaching undergirds his entire theology. 
Jesus did everything as a man, laying aside His divinity in order to become a model for us.8           
…Jesus did everything in His earthly ministry as a man who had set aside all His divine privileges and power in order to model the Christian life for us.9 
..Jesus set aside His divinity, choosing instead to live as a man completely dependent on God.10 
…He laid his [sic] divinity aside as He sought to fulfill the assignment given to Him by the Father: to live life as a man without sin…11 
The above quotes can be construed such that Jesus retained all His divine attributes yet chose not to exercise them; however, the following illustrates that He no longer had inherent deity:12 
Jesus Christ said of Himself, ‘The Son can do nothing.’…He had NO supernatural capabilities whatsoever!…He performed miracles, wonders, and signs, as a man in right relationship to God…not as God.13 
…Jesus had no ability to heal the sick.  He couldn’t cast out devils, and He had no ability to raise the dead.  He said of Himself in John 5:19, ‘the Son can do nothing of Himself.’  He had set aside His divinity.  He did miracles as man in right relationship with God because He was setting forth a model for us, something for us to follow….Jesus so emptied Himself that He was incapable of doing what was required of Him by the Father – without the Father’s help…14 
Given that deity is by very definition supernatural, Johnson has, in effect, reduced Jesus to less than God.  
With Johnson’s claim that Jesus had no inherent ability to perform miracles in and of Himself, it is clear that Johnson means Jesus no longer had his divine attributes to utilize even if He so desired.  He “had NO supernatural capabilities”; He was totally and completely a man but “in right relationship to God” by the Holy Spirit

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Jesus Culture Awakening || The False Teachings of Bill Johnson, Bethel Church

This is an excellent resource on the false teachings of Bill Johnson by Bob Dewaay, in his review of Johnson's book, When Heaven Invades Earth.

His conclusion:
The invasion of heaven promoted by When Heaven Invades Earth is in reality an invasion of theological error. Johnson says there is no sickness or poverty in heaven, which is true. However, there is also no falsehood or error in heaven. Johnson’s potpourri of error is astounding in is breadth. His is a classic case of zeal for a cause divorced from theological truth. In his thinking, zeal for signs and wonders (and the resultant end-time revival) baptize any theological errors, including his heretical Christology.

My conclusion is not overly harsh: that this movement is not really from heaven, as it is claimed to be. Many young people are targeted and deceived by it. Powerful experiences in a Christian context form a potent elixir that dulls ones theological senses. I know because when I was young, I was drawn into a similar movement based on experiences that I allowed to trump sound Biblical exegesis. Thankfully God saved me out of that and led me, through Scripture, to the true gospel. May many who are in the clutches of this false revivalism be spared as I was.
Read Full Article Here:

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Bill Johnson, Apostle of the New Apostolic Reformation



"...Bill Johnson, another New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) "apostle" and pastor of Bethel church in Redding, California, says in his book When Heaven Invades Earth, "It has been written into our spiritual DNA to hunger for the impossibilities around us to bow at the name of Jesus."

This mystical statement sounds lofty, but what does it mean? Could the NAR's Kingdom-Now theology be synonymous with this "new" view below, taken from a book (coincidently titled Creating Heaven on Earth) by Asa Wulfe?
We have been used to thinking of ascension in terms of leaving the Earth to enter a higher plane of being or to reach "heaven." But many now feel...that ascension in our time is really about creating Heaven on Earth, right here and now....This process can be started by activating additional strands of DNA-the spiritual DNA.
Exactly how does one "activate" one's spiritual DNA? By an "inner awakening" experience of some kind-such as yoga, centering prayer, reiki, drum circles, trance dancing, eastern meditation, etc. Even professing Christians are being guided by dozens of "prophetic evangelists" who promise (and deliver) techniques for creating "third heaven visions" and "angelic encounters." Grievously, these spirits are too often untested.



In fact, the pursuit of a tangible manifestation of "God" on earth has become a pre-eminent focus for multitudes of spiritually "hungry" believers who have grown impatient waiting for "the blessed hope." Today, increasing numbers are forsaking our Savior's promise to "catch us up" to be with Him, and are instead determined to forge a "golden calf" religion that promises a false rapture of ecstatic encounters "here and now."..."' Read FULL ARTICLE




Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Dutch Sheets (Jesus Culture Awakening Speaker) New Signs and Wonders to Replace Jesus

....Sheets is comparing this “Presence Movement” to the birth of Moses! He is essentially declaring that they are giving birth to a ruler, deliver and redeemer who will work signs and wonders! They are to hide this newly birthed baby from the world for 90 days which is to correspond to the 90 days of “hosting his presence”.    Then, when Sheets and company can no longer hide what they have birthed, they will set the newly birthed movement adrift to be discovered by the world in the hopes that those who accept “Moses” and love him will give him a place of prominence and influence in the world. 
 
If the hairs on the back of your neck are not standing up by now – they should be.
 
So these next 90 days at Freedom Church is for the brooding of the Holy Spirit, the birthing of “the baby Moses Movement” and the maturation of the “baby” until he can no longer be hidden from the world. But at the end of the three months, this movement will have to be exposed to the main stream of humanity who needs deliverance from Egypt’s bondage and old religious wineskins. Millions will soon be exposed to this movement on the earth. Mainstream religious and civil governments will see this new movement as the ARK of God is carried downstream to mainstream media and religious circles. (Sheets' site here: http://www.etpv.org/2008/becons.html
 
Have you even heard Jesus mentioned so far? Moses was merely a type and shadow of Christ but he represented the Old covenant and the law. Moses delivered his people out of slavery even as Jesus delivers us from the slavery of sin. Since Jesus was the yes and amen why are we looking to yet another deliverer? This is blasphemy in the highest form. It is essentially making what Christ did on the cross null and void. It is laughable to me that they claim that this will release us out from bondage. And what is the bondage we are being released from; Biblical Christianity, of course! The law (which Moses represents) can neither save nor deliver us from anything let alone our “old religious wineskins”. This is ludicrous!  
 
 
....Look folks, the plans that the New Apostolic Reformation has to unite us into one religious system under another gospel and another Christ are well documented. It is the same Dominionist heresy and I need not expound on it here. However, what is extra chilling to me is that they are announcing the birth of “their” redeemer in this new “Presence Movement”. 
 
Do you not know that these people believe they are building a new foundation for the global church and want to establish the Kingdom of God here on earth? Although they loosely veil it, they consider themselves divine, gods, and equal to Christ!  They teach that we can attain perfection here on earth. How much more “in your face” does this need to be before the church wakes from her slumber? WAKE UP! WAKE UP! We are being destroyed from within by another Christ and another gospel. 
 
The coming “Presence Movement” is the great and final Trojan horse not an ark! Even as the New-Agers await the “Christ consciousness” which will indwell them and lead them to the next level in their evolution toward godhood, the New Apostolic Reformation adherents are looking to the “Baby Moses Movement” to lead them out of the bondage of religion and into world domination. Of course we know that they are serving the same warmed over dish of arsenic that the New Agers have tried to make us eat. They have just sprinkled a bit of cheese on top to make it look a little more harmless to the undiscerning.
 

Friday, April 8, 2011

Bill Johnson at Jesus Culture Awakening | False Teacher - Another Christ, Another Gospel

"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,

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

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Bill Johnson Denies Christ's Divinity?

I have 4 of Bill Johnson’s books; and, I’ve seen videos, heard audio online, read parts of his blog so I have read quite a bit of Bill Johnson yet none show Jesus to be Christ at the Incarnation but rather Jesus received the “title” of Christ “in an experience.”

This is CLEARLY not what Scripture indicates.

What is obvious in Johnson’s work is Jesus was a mere man empowered by “the anointing.” In that, he is VERY consistent.

The stakes ARE high regarding false teaching. There are real souls at stake. When a false teacher is teaching a different Jesus, a different gospel, then the end result is no salvation from this teaching. And, a little leaven [Matthew 16:6, 11-12; Mark 8:15; Luke 12:1] leavens the whole [1 Cor 5:6; Galatians 5:19].
Read:
FULL ARTICLE, Part 1
FULL ARTICLE, Part 2

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Idolatry in Bill Johson's Teaching--Pt 1: Signs and Wonders

Thus, in Johnson's zeal for making supernatural signs and wonders an everyday Christian thing he tosses the Divine nature of Christ making Him our entirely imitatable example. As previously stated, this actually reveals the idolatrous centrality of signs and wonders in much of the Charismatic movement. My personal observation of this reality was what caused me to break with the movement years ago. My own parting with the movement came as I realized that the Charismatic church I attended literally never preached the simple gospel, the gospel was always a peripheral thing, I recall it even being described as a stepping stone to greater things. Again, don't take my word for it, Johnson himself says in his book:

"Salvation was not the ultimate goal of Christ’s coming… [The ultimate goal] was to fill each born again person with the Holy Spirit.” (WHE p.71)

“The present day understanding of preaching the gospel of the Kingdom means to preach a message that will bring as many people to conversion as possible. But what did preaching the kingdom mean to Jesus? Every instance in which He either did it or commanded it, miracles followed.” (WHE p.185)
Read FULL ARTICLE

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