But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. -- Hebrews 5: 14 (ESV)
False prophetess Jennifer Leclaire is at it again. The link above is to her latest article on Charisma News, where she serves as an editor to promote her wild heresies. Jennifer is part of the false signs and lying wonders crowd, who embraces the New Apostolic Reformation and Seven Mountains Mandate heresies. She fancies herself a prophet who not only hears directly from God audibly but apparently has the throne room phone number on her speed dial. She often writes about hearing from God as casually as lay people speak about having a latte with a friend. Prophecy is big business to Jennifer as she relies on suckers to buy her books or even plunk down a few hundred dollars so she can teach them how to be their own false prophet at her "prophecy school." As such, she has a brand to protect and protect it she does; abusing her powers as editor of the popular but compromised Charisma News to defend her shtick. Thus every couple of months we can expect a full throated defense of the absurd from her and abusing the Bible to push back against those who would dare question her bogus credentials and inherent falseness.
The latest push back is entitled, "When Believers Crucify Each Other in the Name of Discernment." Within the title we see the disconnect Jennifer suffers from. Believers are not crucifying believers when they properly discern what is biblically true and what is false. Let me clarify. This devotional is warning the saints about a wolf named Jennifer Leclaire. She is not their sister in Christ. She is devouring the sheep of the Lord. The key verse reminds us that ultimately all discernment is distinguishing between good and evil. What is from God and what is not. Those that are false will always try to muddy the waters by offering up the notion that the differences are somehow minor and that all parties involved are just trying to serve the Lord, so can't we all just get along? No, we cannot. The Bible says there is no fellowship between light and darkness. None. There is nothing "lightly" heretical. Jesus offers two choices. You are either gathering to Him or scattering away from Him. There is no third option. So believers are not crucifying other believers in the name of discernment; they are discerning who is teaching believers falsely. Such as Jennifer Leclaire:
"Discernment is ever so vital in this hour, but discernment can turn into a critical spirit if it is not bound by love on both sides of the river banks. Indeed, whether you have a discerning heart or the gift of discerning spirits, there's always the danger of tapping into a faultfinding flow when you should be making intercession." -- Jennifer Leclaire
No Jennifer, just no. While it is true that discernment is vital in this hour the rest of this statement drowns in the sewage that is the imaginary river of Jennifer Leclaire's theology. Can discernment turn into a critical spirit? No it cannot because discernment is driven by the Holy Spirit and is held accountable by the very same principles that guide it. That means all discernment must stand the rigors of biblical truth, period. For example, if a discernment minister was to write that people should not follow Joel Osteen because he dresses funny that would not be discernment. Why? Because the Bible does not speak about false teaching based upon a dress code. It is unbiblical to declare someone is a false teacher because of the suits they wear. This is not to say there are not people who operate within extremely critical spirits. But they are not in the ministry of discernment. You can tell who they are the same way you tell who a false teacher is -- by holding a Bible up to what they are saying.
Secondly, discernment is not bound by love on both sides and there are no river banks. This is just more gobbledygook that always seems to infiltrate Leclaire's theology. There is always a river and a shifting of something, with a possible atmospheric disturbance. Anything to sound mystical without having any real substance. Discernment is actually bound by the truth of God's Word on both sides. Why? Because it is an impartial mediator. Unlike the concept of love that Jennifer espouses, which is not uncommon within the false teaching circles she makes her living in. Anyone who dares to speak against her is deemed as unloving and judgmental. They always need what she would refer to as a "deeper revelation" of the Holy Spirit. The problem is that is not the Holy Spirit that she traffics in. If it were, He would lead her into all truth within the Word of God. Beloved, when you use "love" as your guiding principle then you are leaving it up to your heart, which according to the Bible is not a good strategy:
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? -- Jeremiah 17: 9 (ESV)
The heart is wickedly deceitful beloved. Yours, mine, and Jennifer's. I do not trust my heart but I do trust my Bible. What Jennifer is seeking to do here is say it is unloving to discern. The Bible and God disagree with her. Then Jennifer tries to get cute. There is no such thing as a "faultfinding flow." What she is trying to do is undermine the entire concept of true biblical discernment. According to the key verse, by definition, discernment is not only distinguishing what is good but differentiating it from what is evil. You cannot merely find what is not at fault unless you are contrasting it with what is in fault. The cuteness however is Jennifer's implicit inference that instead of discerning, one ought to be interceding. So in other words, if I see a wolf tearing the sheep of the Lord apart, I should not wield the rod and staff the shepherd is equipped with but instead I should intercede in prayer for the wolf. Once again, this is completely unbiblical:
He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. -- Titus 1: 9 (ESV)
This verse cannot be clearer. If you call yourself a pastor you are required to rebuke what and who is false. You must do this, so that your sheep do not fall prey to false teachings. I have heard recently of entire congregations being eviscerated because the pastor allowed the oneness Pentecostal teachings to spread throughout his church until it was too late one day and half the people walked out. We are not called to pray for wolves beloved. We are not called to coddle them. We are not called to pet them. Jennifer now tries to double down:
"I've discovered it's easier to grumble and complain about people who behave wrongly than it is to hit my knees with a prayer burden and cry out to God for their freedom." -- Jennifer Leclaire
Let me be clear. If we see someone who is merely "behaving wrongly" we ought to not complain and grumble. We ought to pray for them. The problem is the context in which Jennifer is introducing this is within a discussion about discernment, which is once again distinguishing between what is good and what is evil. It is a masterful attempt by Jennifer to make herself appear more pious and spiritual than those mean, nasty discernment ministers who keep warning people to avoid her and her wild heresies. Leclaire continues to not understand discernment:
"My spiritual father, Ken Malone, once told me, 'People who walk in a high level of discernment need to walk in a higher level of humility. We all have issues and we don't need people to point them out. Those who feel compelled to point out other people's flaws constantly are elevating themselves and walking in pride.'" -- Jennifer Leclaire
We all need to walk with a high level of humility. It is what the Bible commands us. It is one of only three things God says he requires of us. But within this statement is the constant misunderstanding people like Jennifer Leclaire suffers from. The point of discernment is not to point out issues the false teacher has. If someone says that Joseph Prince has a ridiculous hairstyle that is not discernment. That is pointing "issues." If someone however says that Prince teaches antinomianism that leads people straight to hell; that is discernment. The latter example is distinguishing between what is good -- the Bible and what is evil -- antinomianism. Even that would not be enough. A true discernment minister will show you in God's Word why the position Prince espouses is so heretical. Either way, it is not "pointing out issues." Jennifer Leclaire and her "spiritual father" are trying to personalize the discernment. Discernment ministers do not point out the flaws of the false teacher but rather the flaws in what they are teaching. Rarely, should motive even be discussed. I can live with the thought that Joel Osteen thinks he is doing a great service and on a purely carnal level one can argue he is. I would actually expect no less from someone who clearly knows so little about the Bible. He cannot discern good from evil. He seems like a likable enough fellow though. I am sure he has done plenty of good works on this earth with the fortune he has amassed. None of that is relevant to the fact that his teachings of blatant word faith and prosperity are absolute heresies that will result in untold numbers of people standing before Jesus on the last day and saying, "Lord Lord."
On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.' -- Matthew 7: 22-23 (ESV)
