For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach--and that for the sake of dishonest gain. - Titus 1: 10-11 (NIV)
Most would agree that we are living in the end times. The signs Jesus warned us about are all around us and the birth pains grow. One of the most discussed topics in the New Testament is the proliferation of false teachers and prophets as this age draws to a close. Christ is coming again beloved and God does not wish for any to perish but all to come to repentance. There are battle lines drawn and on one side stands those who would stand up for sound doctrine and on the other side stands those that would pervert the true Gospel into myths. Realize that intent does not matter. Many on the wrong side may feel perfectly justified in what they do and what they teach. It is not a matter of discerning someone's heart; only their teaching. As Paul once taught his protege Timothy, sound doctrine will literally save those that hear you; thus false doctrine might well condemn you. These are not small insignificant matters.
Those that stand opposed to the true Gospel have enough co-laborers to prop up their efforts. It does not surprise me that someone like Pastor Carl Lentz believes Joel Osteen is a "pioneer who paved the way for younger guys like me." It does not surprise me that the heretical New Apostolic Reformation, the Kansas City Prophets (IHOP) and Bill Johnson from Bethel Church in California all believe in one another. Their false beliefs are what bind them. Whether they all marvel at the false signs and wonders or share stories of waking visitations from God and Jesus, they are bound by the lies they propagate, even if those lies have truly deceived them as well. Whether they claim angel feathers fall from the heavens or glory clouds fill their sanctuaries, it matters not. The only thing that matters is the eternal destination of those that would follow them in deception.
As such, it is imperative that the battle lines not be blurred and one of the greatest mistakes made by those who stand on correct doctrine is to share the stage with those who do not. It props up false doctrine to stand next to it in endorsement when it is clearly in error. I have heard the notion that one man of God should not criticize another and that is a flawed argument straight from hell. We are not all on the same team beloved. We all may have the same intentions. We all may have the same wickedly deceptive hearts as the Bible says. We are not however; all on the same team. There are those who preach the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ and those who do not. I have heard all of the arguments against this. The "I can't judge their heart" argument false flat in light of Scripture. We are to test everything! Stop trying to judge a man's heart and instead measure what he says versus Scripture! The "I am not perfect so who am I to call out someone by name" argument false flat in light of Scripture:
Avoid worthless, foolish talk that only leads to more godless behavior. This kind of talk spreads like cancer, as in the case of Hymenaeus and Philetus. They have left the path of truth, claiming that the resurrection of the dead has already occurred; in this way, they have turned some people away from the faith. - 2Timothy 2: 16-18 (NLT)
Paul here has no problem naming names beloved because the only thing he is concerned about is that they had started to turn some people away from the faith. The "He is just my brother in error" argument false flat in light of Scripture. An error is a mistake. Once that error has been pointed out and the person refuses to correct it they have left the realm of error and entered into the realm of false teaching.
Yet it is this "Kumbya Christianity" that is furthering the cause of false teaching. Where seemingly solid preachers and teachers not only refuse to call out that which is false but actually lend credibility to the false by standing with them. Enter Pastor Francis Chan. Let me say that I have not seen anything preached by Pastor Chan that has not been Biblical, accurate and usually quite edifying. He does not pull punches. He does not ascribe to the modern day heresies we see infiltrating the church on so many levels. He has always struck me as a solid preacher. Which is why it was so disheartening to hear that he accepted an invitation to speak at the recent International House of Prayer Onething Conference. From what I have read he preached on the wrath of God and he preached up a storm.
The problem is that in order to do this he had to share the stage with such renowned false teachers as Mike Bickle, Banning Liebscher, and the cult like pseudo worship outfit known as Jesus Culture. Liebscher, who is part of Jesus Culture preaches a dominionist theology that teaches we must prepare the earth for the coming of Christ. I have seen him instruct an entire stadium of kids to start laying hands on each other. Jesus Culture was founded and taught at the heretical Bethel Church in California, which has a school to teach you how to manifest the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The church pastor, Bill Johnson has sworn to almost every known false sign and wonder including gemstones, gold dust, angel feathers and glory clouds. Their primary worship leader has a personal testimony that makes it abundantly clear that she has been visited by demonic forces and she cannot tell the difference between that and God Himself.
Then there is the host of the Onething conference, Mike Bickle. Part of the Kansas City Prophets, which are false prophets along with the likes of Rick Joyner and Lou Engle; Bickle has a long history of claiming divine visitations from God Himself, including one where God made him ride in a golden chariot, hallelujah. These self-proclaimed apostles and prophets insist that God told them He was putting the apostles back together and lo and behold - it was them! Of course they are also on record as saying that a 65% accuracy record for prophets is the best we can expect despite the Bible being clear that one false prophecy disqualifies someone as a prophet. They all claim to have visited heaven or met God despite the Bible being clear that no man may see God lest he die. Perhaps instead of pretending to be a prophet they should have read some of the Prophets already in the Bible:
"Therefore," says the Lord , "I am against these prophets who steal messages from each other and claim they are from me. I am against these smooth-tongued prophets who say, "This prophecy is from the Lord !' I am against these false prophets. Their imaginary dreams are flagrant lies that lead my people into sin. I did not send or appoint them, and they have no message at all for my people. I, the Lord, have spoken! - Jeremiah 23: 30-32 (NLT)
To further the problem of merely appearing at the conference, Chan was quoted as saying, " There's people who told me not to hang out with [Mike Bickle]. Words like "creepy' came up. " I love his heart. I just want to publicly say I love Mike Bickle."
To which I want to say publicly that you have made a mistake Pastor Chan and your position as a serious divider of the Word of Truth is worth too much to make similar mistakes in the future. You should have listened to the counsel you received regarding whom you sing kumbya with. Because the key verses today point out that our responsibility as ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ does not end with what we say but also with what we do not say. It is our responsibility as ministers of the Gospel to silence those who would teach what they ought not teach. Not share the stage with them and give them credibility they have neither earned nor deserved.
Rev. Anthony.
