The Supreme Court uses logical tests to determine if something meets a certain standard. We The People, should do the same. This test, anyone can apply to any sort of policy, order, or legislation tests it’s support or opposition to freedom, and expands or contracts freedoms, for all or some people. Continue reading
Cessationsim is the idea that more tangible, visible, gifts of The Holy Spirit are no longer given to believers. That, after the completion of scripture, they are only reserved, by God, as He sees fit to use. The outbreak of COVID-19 seems to discredit just about all those who claim to have these such gifts. We will look at two predominate gifts, The Gift of Prophesy and the Gift of Healing, in the season of COVID-19.
The Greek word translated “prophesying” or “prophecy” in both passages properly means: to “speak forth” or declare the divine will, to interpret the purposes of God, or to make known in any way the truth of God. Predictive prophesy has been used in scripture on several occasions, most notably, all the prophecies about the coming messiah.
But false prophesying and false prophets exist too. Ezekiel 13:1-7 tells us they “prophesy out of their own imagination” and “who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!.. Even though the Lord has not sentp them, they say, “The Lord declares,” and expect him to fulfill their words.” Brutal.
Numbers 12:6 makes it clear that God will prove him true and anything the prophet claims will be in perfect alignment with the nature and character of God and His will. A true prophet does not validate himself, but will be validated by God. If a prophet claims that they “decided” to become one, or was “appointed by man” to be one, they are false (1 Corinthians 12:11; John 5:31-33). God alone decides who will speak for him and how (1 Samuel 19). To validate them and their message, God empowered them to do miracles (Acts 14:3), BUT the miracles are not to be solely relied on but the consistency and unity of the message with God’s nature, character, and will.
A false prophet will be known by their contradictions to Holy Scripture (Revelation 2:20-21). Which is why they HATE being questioned or tested. But, this also reveals them as false too because we are commanded, by God, to “test everything, hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22) and “do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1). They WILL produce spiritual fruit, good or bad. THEY will produce a fruit that is rotten and stinks of hypocrisy and contradictions. A fruit of disunity with God’s Word and will. And we CAN see it if we look (Matthew 7:19-20).
Thirdly, if the “prophesy” fails, the prophet is false. That means if the claim falls short in ANY WAY, its a lie, and the person is a liar (Deuteronomy 18:20-22). Signs and Wonders do NOT prove a prophet to be of God, even false prophets will be able to do them (Revelation 13:13-14; Matthew 7:22-23). We also look at the examples in scripture. They are specific. Very specific locations, persons, events, in such detail, they are undeniably true. Like, the birth place of the messiah, Micah 5:2. The virgin birth, Isaiah 7:14. Jesus’ return from Egypt to Nazareth as a child, Hosea 11:1. He will be betrayed by a friend for 30 pieces of silver! (Psalm 41:9; Zechariah 11:12).
A prophesy will cut so deep that it will effect the spirit of the hearers. We see all through scripture that true prophets were murdered because of the spiritual power of their words, from God. Jesus even points this out in Matthew 23:37. Jesus, himself, was murdered because his words are like a sword; and are divisive and offensive (Matthew 10:34-37). And we can go on and on about the amazing details of these prophesies, HUNDREDS of years before the events.
So, in keeping these four simple, biblical truths of discernment in mind, let’s look at validated true prophets.
Moses spoke forth God’s warnings about plagues (Exodus 9:14; 11:1; Leviticus 26:25). Deuteronomy 28:59 is brutal: “Then the Lord will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting.” Another predictive prophesy from Moses. Ezekiel 14:21, Jeremiah 14:12, 19:8, 24:10, 49:17; 2 Chronicles 7:13, all predictive prophesy about plagues. And there’s more.
All the prophesies about Jesus, fulfilled (see cited verses above).
Isaiah prophesied in 700 BC that the Kingdom of Babylon will be overthrown and never recover (Isaiah 13:19). This happened in 539 BC, and Babylon never recovered. But, he didn’t stop there. He also revealed it would be reduced not nothing more than a swampland (Isaiah 14:23). When archaeologists excavated Babylon during the 1800s, they discovered that some parts of the city could not be dug up because they were under a water table that had risen over the years.
Ezekiel prophesied in 587 BC that the city of Tyre will be sacked AND that it will be completely destroyed, dissembled, and thrown into the sea (Ezekiel 26:12). Alexander The Great, did exactly that. He took the rubble from Tyre’s mainland ruins and tossed it – stones, timber and soil – into the sea, to build the land bridge so he could attacked in 333-332 BC.
By far, one of the greatest prophesies of all time; Daniel 9:25. This gives the literal time frame from a certain point all the way to the appearance of The Messiah. Beginning year of the prophesy is 444 BC. Now, we must keep in mind that the Jewish prophetic year was composed of twelve 30 day months; that means the Jewish prophetic year had 360 days, not 365 days. Daniel states 69 weeks of seven years each, and each year has 360 days, the equation is as follows: 69 x 7 x 360 = 173,880 days. So, 173,880 days, or 476 years, from 444 BC brings us to… 33 AD… when Jesus publicly begins his ministry… Now THAT is a divine validation!
So, there lies the issue. IF the gift of prophesy is fully functional, the same way it was in the biblical era:
Here we have a Pastor, Marlon Bolton, of Praise Experience Church of North Lauderdale in Florida, claiming to have prophesied it “weeks before Chinese authorities even identified the novel coronavirus strain.” then stated, “We prophesied about the stock market crashing. We even prophesied about the shortage of food in this season. Very accurate.” BUT, his “prophesy” accompanied a call for donations and the heretical “Seed donations” idea. He then said God showed him that seven plagues are “destined for our land. If you give seed offerings, I believe you’ll be covered for these plagues,” There are other really wild heretical things he does too [1, 2].
So, how do we know this guy is a false prophet? He’s greedy (2 Corinthians 2:17, Titus 1:7, 1 Timothy 3:3) and demands money in exchange for “spiritual blessings” (1 Corinthians 3:5-7, 1 Corinthians 4:6-7, Acts 8:18-23). And, his nonspecific simple “claim” has been exposed as false. The stock market didn’t crash, in fact, it is still higher than it was 5 years ago. There isn’t a shortage of food really, I can go into Walmart, today, right now, and buy food. I may be limited to how much I can purchase at one time, but food is there for me to buy. Then comes the “seven plagues that are destined for our land.” Time will tell how true this is but given all the evidence, his disunity with God’s nature and character and poor accuracy reveals he is false when tested.
Then, you have the biggest heretic and fraud of our time, Kenneth Copeland. Prophesying that the end of COVID-19 was a last week. On April 2nd he stated: “It is finished. It is over. And the United States of America is healed and well again.” [3]. Welp, that failed. It is still spreading and people are still dying and today is April 11th. But, he even gets more blasphemous. He states: “In the name of Jesus, standing in the office of the prophet of God, I execute judgment on you COVID-19. I execute judgment on you, satan, you destroyer, you killer. You get out. I break your power. You get off this nation. I demand judgment on you. I demand. I demand.” That’s a bold statement. Let’s test that against scripture. “Yet Michael the archangel, when he was disputing with the Devil in a debate about Moses’ body, did not dare bring an abusive condemnation against him but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” Jude 1:9. Hu, so this authority is reserved for The Lord. James 4:12 says “There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy.” and Psalm 50:6 “The heavens declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge! Selah” And I’m guessing that ONE judge, isn’t Kenneth. He has ZERO authority to “execute judgment” on anything. This narcissistic, self-idolatry, God’s Word contradictions are the fruit of a false prophet. Also, notice, he hates God’s will and God’s just judgements on the world through his creation, such as COVID-19. So, he’s a false prophet and heretic.
Here’s the deal, Time Magazine [5] and some psychic named Sylvia Browne [4] seemed to have just as effectively predicted COVID-19 as all those who claim to be receiving prophesies from God. That brings shame on the name of the Lord. That belittles the majesty of our Holy God. Why are there no truly deep and detailed prophecies like the ones in the Bible, about COVID-19? Simple answer:
Because if they were, they failed miserably, invalidating themselves anyway. When you test these prophesies and the prophets against God’s Word, they fail. There is a reason why their prophesies can not rise above the level of a atheist psychic…
Okay, so the Gift of Prophesy and Office of Prophet are not functioning, as revealed by God’s ordained will through COVID-19. What about the Gift of Healing? Why not just heal everyone sick?
The spiritual gift of healing is the supernatural manifestation of the Spirit of God that miraculously brings healing and deliverance from disease and/or infirmity (Matthew 4:24; 15:30; Acts 5:15-16; 28:8-9). So what did true divine healing look like in the Bible?
Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law sick with a serious high fever (Luke 38:39). Jesus heals Leprosy (Luke 5:12-14, 17:11-19). Jesus heals people who are paralyzed (Luke 5:17-26, 7:1-10). Jesus heals the blind (Matthew 9:27-31; Mark 8:22-26; John 9:1-12; Luke 11:14-23, 18:35-43). Jesus instantly transforms physical deformities (Luke 6:6-11, 13:10-17, 22:50-51; John 5:1-15). Jesus literally raised people from the dead (Luke 7:11-17; 8:40-42, 49-56; John 11:1-45).
Now all that was done by Jesus. But what did the Apostles, or those with the gift of healing do? 1 Corinthians 12:28 gives a progression of church maturity. First, of course, the apostles, then prophets that speak fourth God’s word because The Bible wasn’t completed yet. Then, the disciples of the Apostles, the teachers. Miracles to validate the Apostles and prophets before the completion of scripture. Then, the gifts of healing, helping, church organizing and leading in all sorts or languages and cultures. And then what? That’s it. Everything is all set up, the church is made, Apostles are validated by God, and Holy Scripture written and complete.
So, the Apostles, the selected few, went around and healed the sick (Luke 9:2-6; Mark 6:13; Acts 4:30, 5:16, 19:11-12, 28:7-9) But not just the “sick,” these dudes were raising the DEAD and instantly curing obvious physical deformities and undeniable physical conditions! (Matthew 10:8; Acts 3:1-10, 8:7, 9:36-41, 14:8-10, 20:9-12).
It is important to first note that Matthew 10:1, Jesus only gives this “authority” to heal, to only his closest disciples. 1 Corinthians 12:9,30 also shows that gifts of healing were not given to everyone. But do you notice something: only the Apostles are described as doing all these healings, even stated in Acts 5:12: “by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders…” And again, in Acts 8:18: “saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given.” Then, in the writings of the Disciples of the Apostles, such as Clement of Rome, Papias, and the authentic writings of Ignatius; they are not performing miraculous healings. So, we can, in fact, conclude that the gift of healing was given only to a select few. And after they passed away, we stop seeing people being raised from the dead and instant physical deformities and conditions being instantly healed.
With the spread of COVID-19, Where did all the charismatic pastors with the gift of healing go?
Why would they need to quarantine themselves? The Apostles didn’t. They went TO the sick, not concerned about themselves becoming sick. Why don’t they, the modern healers, GO TO those who are sick with COVID-19 and heal them?
A prominent Northern California mega-church, Bethel Church, whose members believe their prayers heal the sick and raise the dead is advising the faithful to wash their hands, urging those who feel sick to stay home, canceling missionary trips and advising its faith healers to stay away from local hospitals [7]. And this quote from the church says it all: “Though we believe in a God who actively heals today, students are not being encouraged to visit healthcare settings at this time, and moreover, are taught that even under normal circumstances, they must receive permission from both the facility and the individual before engaging in prayer,” Why are they not being encouraged to heal those in need? The Apostles WENT TO WHERE the sick were if the sick weren’t brought to them. And WHY would they need “permission” to engage in prayer? Who is their master, Bethel Church, or God?
Even Bill Johnson has subtle contradictions in his own statement: “Many visit Redding weekly, hoping that God will touch them. I am happy to report that many leave well and whole,” Johnson wrote. “But many others leave in the same condition in which they came. I refuse to blame God for this, as though He has a purpose in their disease. While Jesus did not heal everyone alive in His time, He did heal everyone who came to Him. His is the only standard worth following.” But, these people come to Jesus, through Bill Johnson, in faith, to be healed! He flat out admits that his gift of healing, fails. Is The Holy Spirit a failure? No! Therefore, their “gift” is not of the Holy Spirit, if it can fail. Then, he says this: “Healing happens, but it’s foolish to take unnecessary risks with your health and the health of others,” Hu, I guess the Apostles were foolish…
Considering the predominate church that claims to have the gift of healing, Bethel Church in Redding California; you would think they would be healing their community. Interestingly, As of April 9, 2020, there are a total of 19,472 positive cases and 541 deaths in California [9]. So… why aren’t these 19,472 infected being healed and why aren’t the 541 dead being raised back to life? In their very own county, there are 24 confirmed cases [10]. 18 people in isolation and 47 in quarantine, in their own region. Can they not send just one of their elders with the gift of healing to go heal those people? Apparently not.
Either their [Bethel Church] Holy Spirit is weaker than in the times of the Apostles, or it’s not the same thing. God’ doesn’t change, Holy Scripture is our guide and test; therefore, it’s not The Holy Spirit they claim to be “gifted” by. In fact, their own gifts seem to be powerless against a REAL TRUE health issue such as COVID-19.
Then we hear the excuse, “Well, there were things even the Apostles couldn’t do” referring to Matthew 17:16. But, Jesus didn’t say they couldn’t. Jesus first rebuked them for the lack of faith, and then flat out tells the Apostles it was due to their lack of faith (Matthew 17:17, 20). This sort of admission to justify why their gifts of healing fail is admitting they, themselves, don’t have enough faith in their own gifts; laughable.
The amazing amount of disunity and contradiction to God’s Word; and it become more clear the more you compare their actions and claims to Holy Scripture. God’s use of COVID-19 is a clear judgement on all these prophets and healers and their devoted followers. This seemingly “bad” virus is actually exposing the false prophets and false teachers. God is using it to shine light and expose evil deeds. And for those who continue in their faith in the false teachings and teachers, this is a judgment on them (Romans 1).
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John of God is a fairly well known spiritual healer based out of Brazil. He has been interviewed by Oprah and featured on ABC News, Newsweek, and other international news outlets. He is a medium and spiritual healer that performs odd ‘surgeries’ that heal the individuals illness and spirit. He claims to be possessed by ‘entities’ such as dead saints and doctors. He claims that all his spiritual encounters and healings are done by God’s will. Given his region of the world is predominately catholic and mentions the ‘saints’ it would seem that the God he is referring to is The God of The Bible. BUT is he serving God’s will? Is allowing himself to be possessed by ‘entities’ God’s doing? Is he OF God?
The first major problem for John of God, to be actually ‘of God’, is when we read in God’s actual word, Deut. 18:10-12,14; he straight up contradicts The God of The Bible. Within the nation of Israel, the offense of medium or necromancer was punishable by death. Although that physical consequence is no longer required thanks to Jesus and his mercy, the spiritual death remains without repentance (Lev. 20:27). Despite explicitly contradicting God’s own word, which exposes him as a false prophet and teacher, people flock to him.
DOES HE ACTUALLY HEAL?
According to testimonies on his website and on the websites of his followers, of course, he does in fact heal. To validate some healings, the Australian 60 Minutes, followed 40 Australians who traveled to see John of God to be healed. They went through the healing process. John of God channeled an entity who then healed them. He would stick forceps deep into the nose of some and scrape the eye for others. Though none of their illnesses related to the nose or eyes, the ‘operation’ seemed to be conducted carefully. BUT, as James Randi and Joe Nickell who are investigators of such type of supernatural healings point out, these are nothing more than shock and awe acts. It only SEEMS hardcore when he uses knife to scrape someones eyeball or to stick surgical forceps deep in someones nose. The most extreme act that can be done by anyone to seem professionally surgical. The Australian 60 Minutes followed up with the 40 Australians who went to John of God to be healed, and found out that none of them were. In his interview with Oprah he then states that the healing is up to God, implying that some people he tries to heal, even after channeling spirits and scraping their eyes, still may not get healed. That’s an easy cop out considering all the time, money, and actions spent- only to have nothing happen. ABC News Primetime had a biased program special of John of God. They limited the skeptics time to just 19 seconds while boosting the time of Dr. Oz who was more sympathetic to John of God. There were 5 noted attempted healings. A man’s brain tumor shrank. BUT he also had medical treatments before going to see John of God. Why couldn’t the God of the universe make his brain tumor vanish? A second “healing” is someone who felt as though they suffered from chronic fatigue; who, after visiting John of God, feels better. Really? A third is of a man who HAS ALS; and he had no change. A fourth, an actress who had breast cancer, had no effect. A fifth is a paralyzed woman, who “walked” using braces to hold her self up. She can still not walk but “feels” something is improving, except her ability to walk. NOW let us consider the healings of THE SON of GOD and the Apostles.
Jesus fully healed people close to death (John 4:47-50) and raised people form the dead (John 7:11-17, 8:40-42, 49-56, 11:1-45). He instantly drove out possessed people (Matthew 15:21-28, 17:14-20; Luke 4:33-34; John 8:26-39). He healed those with high fevers, but not just any fever, it was high enough for it to be obvious and everyone to be concerned; not just a feeling (Luke 4:38-39). And these weren’t hurt feelings Jesus was curing, they were obvious DISEASES (Mark 1:32-34), like Leprosy (John 5:12-14; Luke 17:11-19) and blood diseases (John 8:42-48). He without a doubt, at that moment, healed people who were paralyzed (John 5:17-26, 7:1-10), literally and obviously blind (Matthew 9:27-31, 12:22-23; Mark 8:22-26; Luke 18:35-43; John 9:1-12), mute (Matthew 9:32-34), deaf (Mark 7:31-37), and crippled (Luke 13:10-17). Other OBVIOUS physical deformities undeniably instantly healed (John 6:6-11). The Apostle Peter heals a crippled person (Acts 3:1-11), Palsy (Acts 9:33-34) and raises people from the dead (Acts 9:36-41). The Apostle Paul heals a crippled person (Acts 14:8-10), casts out demons (Acts 16:16-18) and raises the dead (Acts 20:9-12).
Now, simply comparing, we see that John of God is NOT healing in the same way THE SON of God is healing or the Apostles. Its difficult to tell if he is actually healing anyone at all. IF John of God IS OF God, then why is he not able to heal like the Apostles? NOTICE, that he claims his healing powers come from other ‘entities’ that enter him. The Apostles’ healing power came from God himself.
IS HE ACTUALLY POSSESSED BY OTHER ENTITIES?
It is interesting to note that he does not drive out demons or people possessed by other spirits. That may have something to do with the fact that he claims himself to be possessed by other spirits. As we see in God’s Word, spirit possession does and can occur. The question is DO people gifted with the supernatural gift of healing need to be possessed by other entities (besides The Holy Spirit) in order to heal? There is ZERO accounts of angels possessing believers to perform miracles. So we can rule out godly angel possession. What does that leave us with now? Have you ever stopped to wonder why God forbid mediums in the first place? See, when people come to faith, and know the true living God, they are filled by HIS Spirit (Romans 8:9-11; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19). Leaving no room for other spirit possession. Plus, why would you even need another spirit to enter you when you have GOD HIMSELF in you? BUT Hey, if John of God claims to be possessed by other entities besides The Holy Spirit (and can’t be godly angels either) than we can take his word for it because that is supported by God’s Word, just maybe not the kind of entities he thinks they are. In fact, we would concur that he is filled with non-godly entities because why else could he confidently contradict God’s Word and be deceived?
IS HE A CON-ARTIST?
There are some key points to consider. (1) He uses pseudo-medical operations unrelated to the area of issue and the same ‘operations’ used by previous exposed healing con-artists in the past. If he CAN heal AND is OF GOD, why not actually perform a real operation IF he is in fact OF GOD? The Apostles healed cripples and raised people from the dead; IF he is a supernatural healer of God, he should be able to as well? The major rhetorical question is, why doesn’t he? (2) He set up his own compound called the CASA where people from around the world spend thousands of dollars to go; if he is OF GOD, why doesn’t he heal from a distance like Jesus did or go to where the sick are, like hospitals? WHY does he have people spend thousands of dollars to travel and accept even more money from people once they get there (after spending thousands on traveling costs already)? Jesus not only healed while he was traveling but he ALSO went to places where the sick congregated; for free (same with the Apostles). Something interesting to point out here, there was a slave girl who told fortunes and made her master rich, but was possessed by demons (Acts 16:16-18). Have you heard of Simon Magus or Simon The Sorcerer? The people who followed this guy proclaimed “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God”, sounds familiar right? This guy was even baptized by Philip. BUT he did not have the Holy Spirit. Instead, he wanted to BUY the power and use it for material gain. But Peter sharply rebuked him (Acts 8:9-23). (3) The most obvious point to consider, if he is OF GOD, why does contradict God? (4) Satan, and demons have the abilities to do signs, wonders, and what seem to be miraculous things. Some who DID miracles in the name of Jesus, Jesus himself didn’t even know them (Matthew 7:21-23). Jesus warns us of false people who can do great signs and wonders (Matthew 24:11,24). Even in the Old Testament, the nation of Israel was warned about false people who can do amazing things (Deuteronomy 13:1-3). Thus, miracles are not proof that he is OF GOD.
WHAT MAKES HIM ANY DIFFERENT?
When considering the slave girl (Acts 16:16-18) and Simon Magus (Acts 8:9-23), what makes John of God any different? Nothing really. They all performed amazing acts and gained a following of believers that made them wealthy and they all were not OF GOD. Simply calling your self John of God does not make you of God. Well, maybe it does in a different way; it identifies him as of God and ruler of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 John 5:19; John 12:31). The god who masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). But being OF GOD, the eternal creator of the universe, that is clearly a big no. And all one has to do is study The Bible to see.
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Some people will claim God spoke to them directly, either verbally, in a vision, in a dream, on their private air plane, or they were lifted up to heaven and met God face to face. But are their claims true? If these claims are true, what are the implications? If they are not true, what does that mean for the person making that claim? How can we know the trustfulness of their claims? We need to seek God’s actual word to test these type of claims.
Face Value
Why are we not to take their claims at face value? The Apostles (The Holy Spirit) explain why in a very clear way. Paul (The Holy Spirit) encouraged and praised the Berean church when they tested what they were taught against Holy Scripture (Acts 17:11). John (The Holy Spirit) does not just suggest but commands us to test teachings and its teachers to determine if they are from God or not (1 John 4:1). People claiming the same things the Apostles claimed, personal encounters and experiences with the risen Jesus, are to be put to the test (Rev. 2:2). And we are called to have righteous judgement (John 7:24) because Jesus tells us that we CAN and WILL know them to be true or false (Matthew 7:16). When rightly judged, we are even called to refute and expose those who contradict God’s actual word (Titus 1:9; Eph. 5:11). THAT is why we do not take something at face value if it seems different from the true gospel message.
WHEN someone quotes God’s new (extra biblical) sayings:
When God spoke to the Prophets of the old Testament, they recorded exactly what God wanted them to record. When the Apostles spoke with Jesus and had visions from heaven, they recorded exactly what God wanted them to record. BUT somethings were not meant to be recorded (2 Cor. 12:2-4; John 20:30; Rev. 10:4). The point is that specific chosen individuals, The Prophets and Apostles, were tasked with writing Holy Scripture and the very Words of God.
Given the role of the offices of Prophet and Apostle, these men would then be Prophets and Apostles! Thus, they write Holy Scripture, apart from the bible! Or… at least that’s what the implications ARE for them to be true. All someone has to do is listen to their broadcasts and at some point they will tell a story about how they have seen the risen Lord and quote from him in some form or fashion.
If anyone says “The Lord told me…” and then they proceed to quote the Lord in their books or blogs, they are recording God’s Word, except its new, and not in God’s Word, the Bible. If we compiled all those quotes from these type of people, we could generate the Word of Faith Prosperity Bible and we could all have the new additional words of god. See, that’s the crux of it all. If you believe that these people actually heard God speak to them, how can you pick and choose which modern ‘prophet’ is of God?
TRUE OR NOT
Their claims are either true and thus carry with them the authority of God because, after all, they are his words right? Or their claims are not the actual words of God and they are liars and deceivers, even if they believe their own claims. People who believe these teachers MUST then believe that God’s real Word, the complete bible, can be added to and supplemented. That is exactly what Kenneth Copeland, Cho, Paul Yonggi, Morris Cerullo, Oral Roberts, and all the others like them teach and DO. That is a slippery slope that leads only one way. Because, then, how could Word of Faith followers denounce Islam? or Mormonism? or Jehovah’s Witnesses?
THE HYPOCRISY
As Word of Faith teachers continue to have more visions and prophetic utterances of God’s actual Words or messages from angels, it is then hypocritical to say that Muhammad, Joseph Smith, or Charles Russell are false prophets. All of which claim special revelations from God and make claims of truth from God outside of the bible. If they deny Muhammad’s, Joseph Smith’s, or Charles Russell’s visions and prophecies than they are hypocrites, but if they accept them than they are in direct contradiction of what Jesus said in John 14:6.
THE IMPLICATIONS:
WHEN SOMEONE SAYS “THE LORD TOLD ME…”
When someone, anyone, claims that the Lord told them something, anything, we must ask them (1) how do they know Muhammad’s, Joseph Smith’s, or Charles Russell’s visions and prophecies aren’t from God either then. When someone, anyone, claims that the Lord told them something, anything, we must ask them (2) why it was not recorded in the Bible and why they should not write an addition to the bible with those new revelations. Yes the Bible does not specifically talk about Internet Pornography but we CAN understand how it is sin through what scripture has revealed. We must also ask (3) why John’s written testimony in The Bible is not sufficient (see John 20:31). We must ask why (4) all that was once delivered from the OT Prophets and NT Apostles is not enough (see Jude 1:3). We must ask them WHY because we are called to! To protect us from being deceived and believing a false teacher and false prophet.
Even if the prophetic utterance is so basic as to tell someone something personal like “God told me he wants you to be happy”. We must ask why The Holy Spirit did not reveal that to them already through The Bible (Heb. 4:12; 2 Tim. 3:16-17). They even say things like “God wants you to walk up to someone in jeans and a blue shirt and speak blessings over them”. The question is WHY you are not approaching people with the gospel to begin with as it has already been made know that it is your duty to as a follower of Jesus? Secondly, the details like that, are so general that eventually, it will fulfill itself even if it was not from God.
If Scripture (The Bible) is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work, than what else is lacking? That’s the point, God’s Word renders these additional revelations as pointless and unnecessary.
THE OBVIOUS FAILURE:
The most obvious failure is that people who believe in the Word of Faith teachers do not KNOW God’s Word well enough to TRUST IT completely; if they need these guys to make them feel as though it is more complete. They feel the need to hear these extra biblical messages because they are not satisfied with ALL that God has actually revealed in scripture already. These Word of Faith teachers would not have such a large audience if the people of God truly sought God’s Word already. But this could also be because it is a heart issue.
THE HEART ISSUE:
The Word of Faith teachers justify themselves through their own teachings which justifies their lifestyles of self happiness and wealth. Their audience desire the same thing. Its natural. They want to be happy in their lifestyles and desire wealth (blessings) as well. Taking it deeper, the ultimate reasoning is to be like God; and some Word of Faith teachers are not scared to admit it. The popular Word of Faith teachers even teach that they and their followers are like ‘little gods’ and thus can make themselves wealthy (blessed) because of their own divinity. Kenneth Hagin has asserted, “man…was created on terms of equality with God, and he could stand in God’s presence without any consciousness of inferiority (which is a blatant lie given what is revealed in actual Holy Scripture Gen. 18:27; Isaiah 6:5; Rev. 1:17)…. He made us the same class of being that He is Himself…. He lived on terms equal with God…. The believer is called Christ, that’s who we are; we’re Christ” (which again is a blatant lie: Matthew 24:23) (Zoe: The God Kind of Life, pp. 35-36, 41). Morris Cerillo says “the whole purpose of God was to reproduce Himself. …you’re not looking at Morris Cerillo, you’re looking at God, you’re looking at Jesus” (The End Time Manifestation of the Sons of God, Audio Tape 1, Sides 1 &;2). Kenneth Copeland’s remarks, “You are not a spiritual schizophrenic — half-God and half-Satan — you are all-God”(Ibid., 16-17.) and “You don’t have a God in you; you are one, When I read in the Bible where God tells Moses, ‘I AM,’ I say, ‘Yah, I am too!‘”(This is straight up blasphemy! see Isaiah 45:5) (Kenneth Copeland, The Force of Love (Fort Worth: Kenneth Copeland Ministries, 1987, audiotape #02-0028), side 1.). Welp there it is. THIS IS the very first temptation from Satan in Gen. 3:5. First he distorts God’s Word, like the Word of Faith teachers do, and then he tells them they will “be like God”; exactly as the Word of Faith teachers say. How ironic. Yet, they have followers who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ who think they are like God and little gods.
Conclusion
When someone claims that God literally told them something; test it! Do not automatically denounce it as false because who knows, maybe God did talk to them. BUT do not automatically believe it either! Do what The Holy Spirit instructs us to do and TEST them. See TEST OF PROPHECIES page for Biblical ways to test and rightly judge what which is from God or not. If we are to believe what they claim at face value, the implications are huge and can lead us to blaspheming God’s Holy name and truth and believe in heresies.
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Much like Apostles, there is the Office of The Prophet and gifts of prophecy; two separate things. We know both existed and used in the days of The Bible but did they continue on after all the Apostles of Christ died? The word itself, prophecy can mean various things. We need to see the biblical definitions and uses of the word, then analyze the character of its use in scripture, research church history and compare with modern claims.
The Office of Prophet
We can peice together the bibical definition of the Office of Prophet in the information put forth in Exodus 6:28-7:2, Numbers 12:1-8, and Deuteronomy 18:9-22. These verses make it clear that The Prophet is one who is chosen by God and speaks forth the message to people which God has revealed to him. Forthtelling and foretelling are two different types of messages. The later is less frequent. Forthtelling involved insight into the will of God; it was exhortative, challenging men to obey. On the other hand, foretelling entailed foresight into the plan of God; it was predictive, either encouraging the righteous in view of God’s promises or warning in view of coming judgment. The divinely chosen person would be charged with God’s message, proclaimed it in oral, visual, or written form to the people on God’s behalf. It was their duty to admonish, reprove, denounce sin, threaten with the terrors of judgment, call to repentance, and bring consolation and pardon (Jonah 3:4). Predicting the future was never intended merely to satisfy man’s curiosity, but was designed to demonstrate that God knows and controls the future, and to give purposeful revelation. The prediction given by a true prophet would be visibly fulfilled.
Old Testament History of Prophets
Now considering the historical perspective of this Office, it was rare. Noah was technically the first Prophet post Adam. God spoke directly to him and he attempted to relay the warnings of the coming judgement to the people of the world; but of course they didn’t listen to him. Him as prophet was validated by God flood. Then God spoke directly to Abraham and the was validated by God faithfully proving what he had revealed to Abraham (Genesis 12:2–3). Next was Jacob, whom God spoke to in visions and later foretold the future that also was faithfully validated (Genesis 49). Then there was Joseph which God spoke to him through visions of the future and allowed him to interpret dreams (Genesis 37, 40, 41). Then there is Moses. No doubt God spoke to him directly and validated him as a Prophet. God even made his brother, Aaron, a Prophet, and mouth peice of Moses (Exodus 7:1–7). Moses’ sister was also revealed to be a Prophet but nothing is recorded of what she declared besides the fact that eventually, her and Aaron spoke out of their own accord and not of God (Numbers 12). The office of Prophet was temporarily given to The seventy elders of Israel during Moses’ time as well (Numbers 11:25). Got not only allows people to temporarily fill the office but also allowed for evil men to be Prophets as well. Balaam was such a prophet (Numbers 22–24) who’s sin Jude warns about (Jude 1:11). After Moses died, Joshua took over and God spoke to him and validated him as well (Joshua 1:1–9). Then came Deborah, the only recorded female judge of Israel (Judges 4:4). In Judges 4:6–7, Deborah either passed on God’s message to the military commander Barak or enforced it; in Judges 4:9, she related a prophecy of future events. Then came Samuel. Samuel received his first message from God in 1 Samuel 3:4 when he was a small boy. He spent his life as God’s messenger; two of his most significant acts were anointing Saul (1 Samuel 9) and David (1 Samuel 1:13) to be king. Samuel’s words of God’s wisdom to Saul went mostly unheeded, and Samuel even returned from the grave to announce God’s punishment for Saul’s disobedience (1 Samuel 28:15–19). Again, another instance where God called another seventy prophets (1 Samuel 10:10). Gad was a prophet to received a message from God to give to David (1 Samuel 22:5). Nathan seems to have been David’s primary link to God’s words. In 2 Samuel 7:4–17, Nathan told David that Solomon would build the temple. In 2 Samuel 12:1–15, Nathan rebuked David for committing adultery with Bathsheba and killing her husband. God spoke to King David revealing details about the coming Messiah (Psalm 8; 22; 110). The Tabernacle musicians in First Chronicles 25:1–7 who were appointed by King David prophesied through their music. In 1 Kings 3, God asked Solomon in a dream if there was anything Solomon would like from Him. Solomon chose wisdom. Elijah was probably the most significant prophet who didn’t write his own book. He proclaimed God’s word in the northern kingdom of Israel at the time of the evil King Ahab. It was he who ensured a widow was always supplied with oil and flour (1 Kings 17:8–16), who had a showdown with the priests of Baal on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:17–40), and who was strengthened by God’s still voice in his fatigue and depression (2 Kings 2:1–11). At the end of his life, a chariot of fire took him to heaven, and his mantle fell to Elisha as his successor (2 Kings 2:1–12). Ahab had four hundred false prophets who told them God was with them, but Jehoshaphat insisted on a prophet who actually heard from God. Ahab knew of one, but was reluctant to call him, since he never had anything good to say. Micaiah revealed that God had sent a lying spirit to the four hundred prophets in order to lure Ahab to his death. Ahab went to battle anyway and was struck and killed by a random arrow (1 Kings 22:13–28). Elisha was Elijah’s successor and the second-most important prophet without a book. He spent seven or eight years as Elijah’s apprentice before Elijah was taken to heaven. He then helped wipe out organized Baal worship (2 Kings 10:28), brought a widow’s son back to life (2 Kings 4:18–37), and cured Naaman’s leprosy (2 Kings 5). His power and authority through God was so great that, when a dead man was thrown into Elisha’s grave, the man sprang back to life (2 Kings 13:2–21). After Judah’s crops were obliterated by a swarm of locusts, Joel compared the devastation to what God would do if the people didn’t return to Him. Joel also predicted the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Joel 2:28; cf. Acts 2:16–21). Amos was a Judean shepherd who was tasked with prophesying against Israel. His warnings were ignored, and Israel was taken into captivity by Assyria some time later. God had Hosea marry a prostitute who remained unfaithful after they married. To show how God longed to forgive His people, He told Hosea to take Gomer back. In addition to the message to Israel of God’s faithfulness, Hosea includes a prophecy that Gentiles would one day follow God (Hosea 2:23). Isaiah holds the record for being the prophet who is most quoted in the New Testament. He was an advisor to King Hezekiah of Judah but also had to walk barefoot and naked for three years as a portent against Egypt and Cush. His book contains prophecies of Jesus and John the Baptist, and Jesus used Isaiah 61:1–2 to begin His ministry in Nazareth. It’s possible that Isaiah was also a priest (Isaiah 6:4). Micah served as a prophet during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah. His message mixed condemnation of sin with the promise of the coming Messiah. His book contains the only mention of Bethlehem as the place of the Messiah’s birth. Jeremiah was one of the last prophets of the Kingdom of Judah and watched helplessly as it was picked apart by the Babylonians. Known as “the weeping prophet” because of how his words from God affected him, Jeremiah also gave the people a word of hope that they would return from captivity in 70 years. His counsel to submit to God’s judgment was ignored, and he was eventually taken to Egypt with the remnant of the royal family (2 Kings 25:26). Jeremiah also wrote the book of Lamentations, a lament for the fall of Jerusalem. Habakkuk covered a lot of ground in such a short book. He prophesied Assyria’s fall, the Babylonian exile, and the future victory of the Persians. His prophecies were revealed in the context of a conversation with God, wherein Habakkuk asked God questions, and God responded. In the visions and angelic encounters of Daniel 7–12, Daniel revealed more about the end times than any other book besides Revelation. Ezekiel’s book of prophecy appears somewhat psychedelic, with its strange visions. Ezekiel was a priest exiled to Babylon in the second wave of deportations and relayed God’s judgment to the rebellious people. He also made several prophesies about the future, including the coming of Jesus, the New Jerusalem (Ezekiel 48:30–35), and the millennial kingdom (Ezekiel 44). Ezekiel was one of the few prophets who eagerly spread God’s message no matter what the resistance he encountered—although that may have been because God told him if he didn’t prophesy he would be held accountable for the souls of those he didn’t warn (Ezekiel 33). Malachi was the last prophet to prophecy in Israel until an angel visited Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist. As such, Malachi’s message was a call to obedience and a promise of the coming Messiah. Following Malachi’s oracle were 400 years of divine silence. Not every single person who heard from God is named here but given the population of the world over these thousands of years, a Prophet of God was very rare. [1]
In the New Testament, there are only 24 named Prophets of God or gifted with prophesy and 4 named false prophets. Given the early church history; the 12 Apostles, 70 disciples, 500 eye witnesses of Jesus, and thousands of people who came to faith at Pentecost and thousands more during the ministries of the early church; again, a Prophet of God in the early church was also rare.
Now considering the history from Noah, all the way to John, there were only a couple hundred prophets in scripture over the thousands of years. The Office of The Prophet was every exclusive and rare; even after The Holy Spirit descended upon the church.
Did The Office of Prophet Continue?
In Ephesians 4:11 Paul notes the designations of Apostles and Prophets. Some jump to the conclusion that because he notes this after Pentecost that this must mean they continued. But considering the history and time of his statement, we see that many of the Apostles and Prophets in the NT were still alive; thus the chosen office holders were still alive, still holding the office. Those positions were still in present tense at the time of his writing. This does not say anyone will be following after them. Also, The Office of Prophet is not the same as the gift of prophecy.
The Gift of Prophecy
Paul then explains how the gift is different from the office. In 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 he addresses the gift. 1 Corinthians 12:3 opens up and states “…no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.” Does this then make every professing Christian hold the office of Prophet? No. He then reveals the ‘gift’ rather than the office when he states “Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit.” in the next verse. 1 Corinthians 12:10 notes the gift of prophecy which is more specific and different than just professing simply Jesus is Lord. In 1 Corinthians 14:1-3 he elaborates on this gift. “Pursue love and desire spiritual gifts, and above all that you may prophesy. 2 For the person who speaks in another language is not speaking to men but to God, since no one understands him; however, he speaks mysteries in the Spirit. 3 But the person who prophesies speaks to people for edification, encouragement, and consolation.” He then continues “I wish all of you spoke in other languages, but even more that you prophesied. The person who prophesies is greater than the person who speaks in languages, unless he interprets so that the church may be built up.“. Why is this kind of prophecy greater than speaking and interpreting languages? He then goes in into 1 Corinthians 12:22-25 “But prophecy is not for unbelievers but for believers. 23 Therefore, if the whole church assembles together and all are speaking in other languages and people who are uninformed or unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your minds? 24 But if all are prophesying and some unbeliever or uninformed person comes in, he is convicted by all and is judged by all. 25 The secrets of his heart will be revealed, and as a result he will fall facedown and worship God, proclaiming, “God is really among you.”. The big question here WHAT is being prophesied and what makes it greater than being able to translate and speak other langauges? We see that The Prophets spoke the word of God to the people. Paul declares in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness“. Hebrews 4:12 declares “For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the ideas and thoughts of the heart.“.
And there it is. The Gift of Prophecy declares The Word of God; and THAT is greater than knowing more than one language. The Word of God is for believers in that it teaches, rebukes, corrects, and trains in righteousness. The Word of God convicts and judges the hearts of unbelievers and when it penetrates their soul, they fall facedown and worship God! REMEMBER the time period. In most cases, during this time, not all the writings of the New Testament have been written. The Apostles did a lot of traveling and were not always present at the churches. How then did these early churches hear God’s Word? Through those who were gifted with prophecy in the absence of The Apostles. Just as in the Old Testament, those who were gifted with prophecy could also be validated by those whom were gifted with miracles and healing; just as the Apostles themselves were validated. This is why the gift of prophecy existed in the early church, during the time of the Apostles as Paul noted. The big question is:
Where there gifts of prophecy in the church post-apostolic age?
Again, we must take into consideration the time. By that time, after John, all the Apostles wrote Holy Scripture. We can then look at the writings of the generations of the disciples of the Apostles to see if they record a continuance of the gift of prophecy. Clement of Rome, appointed by Peter and disciple of John wrote pointing to the previous writings as his authority and did not exorcise any gift of prophecy. Papias of Hierapolis, a disciple of John and friend of Polycarp who was also a disciple of John also did not note any continuance of the gift. Ignatius of Antioch, appointed by Peter and a disciple of John, who was also friends with Polycarp does not note a continuance of the gift. Polycarp of Smyrna, a friend of Papias and Ignatius, and disciple of John also does not in any of his writings note a continuance of the gift. Irenaeus of Lyon, who was a disciple of Polycarp wrote extensively against heresies in his day, always referred back to what had been written by The Apostles and does not note any true continuance of the gift.
Irenaeus does however give an account of a Marcus who claims to prophesy. It is very interesting how this self proclaimed prophet teaches another woman to prophesy, because it sounds very familiar to the efforts of Word of Faith and Charismatic people now. “It appears probable enough that this man possesses a demon as his familiar spirit, by means of whom he seems able to prophesy, and also enables as many as he counts worthy to be partakers of his Charis themselves to prophesy… he frequently seeks to draw after him, by addressing them in such seductive words as these: “I am eager to make thee a partaker of my Charis, since the Father of all doth continually behold thy angel before His face. Now the place of thy angel is among us: it behoves us to become one. Receive first from me and by me [the gift of] Charis. Adorn thyself as a bride who is expecting her bridegroom, that thou mayest be what I am, and I what thou art. Establish the germ of light in thy nuptial chamber. Receive from me a spouse, and become receptive of him, while thou art received by him. Behold Charis has descended upon thee; open thy mouth and prophesy.” On the woman replying, “I have never at any time prophesied, nor do I know how to prophesy;” then engaging, for the second time, in certain invocations, so as to astound his deluded victim, he says to her, “Open thy mouth, speak whatsoever occurs to thee, and thou shalt prophesy.” She then, vainly puffed up and elated by these words, and greatly excited in soul by the expectation that it is herself who is to prophesy, her heart beating violently [from emotion], reaches the requisite pitch of audacity, and idly as well as impudently utters some nonsense as it happens to occur to her, such as might be expected from one heated by an empty spirit. (Referring to this, one superior to me has observed, that the soul is both audacious and impudent when heated with empty air.) Henceforth she reckons herself a prophetess, and expresses her thanks to Marcus for having imparted to her of his own Charis. She then makes the effort to reward him, not only by the gift of her possessions (in which way he has collected a very large fortune), but also by yielding up to him her person, desiring in every way to be united to him, that she may become altogether one with him.” (Against Heresies: Book I, Chapter XIII).
How does Irenaeus know that this prophet and the gift of prophecy is false? He is dedicated to the teachings of the Apostles “read with earnest care that Gospel which has been conveyed to us by the apostles, and read with earnest care the prophets, and you will find that the whole conduct, and all the doctrine, and all the sufferings of our Lord, were predicted through them.” (Against Heresies: Book IV, Chapter XXXIV)
In 314AD, Miltiades, bishiop of Rome, wrote about the Montanist movement and their inability to validate their claims. He paraphrases their claims: “For if after Quadratus and Ammia in Philadelphia, as they assert, the women with Montanus received the prophetic gift, let them show who among them received it from Montanus and the women. [they claim] For the apostle thought it necessary that the prophetic gift should continue in all the Church until the final coming. But they cannot show it [in scripture], though this is the fourteenth year since the death of Maximilla.” Only 14 years after one of Montanist’s prophetess passes away and they still can not validate their claims. Eusebius then adds “Miltiades to whom he refers has left other monuments of his own zeal for the Divine Scriptures“. Miltiades is focused on scripture and seeks to only validate claims through divine scripture; of which Montanist’s can not.
The early church tests the prophets of Montanus of the mid 2nd centery and expose it. Eusebius records Apollonius’ writings of the 2nd century refuting them. It is again ironic, how it seems as though he is describing the Word of Faith movement now. He is quoted “[Montanus] to be making additions to the doctrines or precepts of the Gospel of the New Testament, which it is impossible for one who has chosen to live according to the Gospel, either to increase or to diminish.“
Already knowing Holy Scripture, Apollonius points out that these new prophets are “making additions” to the gospel. Something Paul and John both warned about (Galatians 1:8; 2 Corinthians 11:4; Rev. 22:19).
“... he [Montanus] became beside himself, and being suddenly in a sort of frenzy and ecstasy, he raved, and began to babble and utter strange things, prophesying in a manner contrary to the constant custom of the Church handed down by tradition from the beginning… Some of those who heard his spurious utterances at that time were indignant, and they rebuked him as one that was possessed, and that was under the control of a demon, and was led by a deceitful spirit, and was distracting the multitude; and they forbade him to talk, remembering the distinction drawn by the Lord and his warning to guard watchfully against the coming of false prophets. But others imagining themselves possessed of the Holy Spirit and of a prophetic gift, were elated and not a little puffed up; and forgetting the distinction of the Lord, they challenged the mad and insidious and seducing spirit, and were cheated and deceived by him… secretly excited and inflamed their understandings which had already become estranged from the true faith… and filled them with the false spirit, so that they talked wildly and unreasonably and strangely, like the person already mentioned….“
Very interesting how these prophets, who violate what the Apostles taught, act like those who claim to be “slain in the spirit” or how they phrase ‘in the spirit’ now. The church even met to consider their claims and actions to determine if they are in fact true or not. When tested against Holy Scripture, it is easy to determine that they were not, but false prophets.
For the faithful in Asia met often in many places throughout Asia to consider this matter, and examined the novel utterances and pronounced them profane, and rejected the heresy…
Just as Paul encouraged (Acts 17:11) and John required (1 John 4:1). They remained faithful the Word of God and rightly judged these prophets as heretics.
His [Montanus] actions and his teaching show who this new teacher is. This is he who taught the dissolution of marriage; who made laws for fasting; who named Pepuza and Tymion, small towns in Phrygia, Jerusalem, wishing to gather people to them from all directions; who appointed collectors of money; who contrived the receiving of gifts under the name of offerings; who provided salaries for those who preached his doctrine, that its teaching might prevail through gluttony… We show that these first prophetesses themselves, as soon as they were filled with the Spirit, abandoned their husbands…Does not all Scripture seem to you to forbid a prophet to receive gifts and money? When therefore I see the prophetess receiving gold and silver and costly garments, how can I avoid reproving her?…For although the Lord said, ‘Provide neither gold, nor silver, neither two coats,’(Matthew 10:9) these men, in complete opposition, transgress in respect to the possession of the forbidden things. For we will show that those whom they call prophets and martyrs gather their gain not only from rich men, but also from the poor, and orphans, and widows…But if they are confident, let them stand up and discuss these matters, that if convicted they may hereafter cease transgressing. For the fruits of the prophet must be tried; ‘for the tree is known by its fruit.’ (Luke 6:43-45)… Exposing him, through him we expose also the pretense of the prophet [Montanus]. We could show the same thing of many others. But if they are confident, let them endure the test… when Maximilla was pretending to prophesy in Pepuza, resisted her and endeavored to refute the spirit that was working in her; but was prevented by those who agreed with her.” (Book V).
Is it ironic that the Word of Faith movement and the Prosperity Gospel seem to go hand and hand? Interestingly here, we see the same thing, only 1,830 years earlier. What the Word of Faith and prosperity teachers claim now, is nothing new. They claim to see visions, prophesy, and ask for monetary blessings as they live in mansions, wear expensive clothing, drive luxury cars, and brag about owning private jets and luxury boats. All the while misquote, twist, and add to Holy Scripture and profit off of doing so.
There are two extremely important factors here: (1) None of the disciples of the apostles, and their disciples, note the real continuation of the gift of prophecy, and (2) those who did claim be gifted with prophecy after the apostolic age fail when tested against Holy Scripture. We CAN come to the conclusion that the gift of prophecy was not existent in the same fashion from the Apostles after they passed. And that is just a fact of early church History.
It is CRITICAL to note what Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23:
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.“
He also states in Matthew 24:11,24:
“and many false prophets will arise and mislead many.… False messiahs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”
Even Deuteronomy 13:1-3 makes known that false prophets can give signs and wonders THAT CAN COME TRUE. That still does not make them a true prophet of God though. A True prophet is seen in the message. They make know the Will and Word’s of God that will NEVER contradict each other or purposefully lead anyone to idolize anything. Their message is supremely the Glory of God alone and no other Gospel than the one the Apostles preached.
CAN There be a gifted prophet in our time?
All the discussion above is about history up to this point. CAN God gift someone prophecy ? OF COURSE! God does as he pleases for his divine will. Can a missionary go to a far away land where there is no source of scripture, and boom, the Holy Spirit grants him the gift of prophecy to deliver to them God’s Word? OF COURSE! The issue at hand is, are there CURRENT prophets or people who have the gift of prophesy? Given the scriptural and historical evidences and testing the claims of popular modern teachers who claim it; not so far. Current Prophets and those who have claimed the gift of prophesy have been nothing more than modern Montanists who either add to God’s Word and/or flat out contradict it. Who knows, there very well may be very humble faithful believers who are gifted with prophesy who are not widely known.
What About Acts 2:17-18?
“In the last days, God said, ‘I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.‘” This is a fun verse that Word of Faith and Charismatic people love to point to. Here, Peter is quoting from Joel 2:28-32. Keep in mind, prophesying can mean simply proclaiming God’s truths. Notice after quoting Joel, Peter then gives them the Gospel message. A message that can not be believed without having the The Holy Spirit in you. So, God pours out his spirit and empowers anyone to receive and believe the gospel message, then, enabling them to prophesy the truth of the gospel message. The Apostles and all the disciples were doing signs and wonders that validated their prophesying this gospel message; just as Joel stated hundreds of years before. In the FULL CONTEXT of Acts 2:14-41, we see that Peter is pointing out that the time that Joel is predicting is for their age (“in those days”) in history and does not say “for the rest of history” or “in all the days to come” or “until the end of the age”. Do not forget that preaching the gospel message, is, in a simple sense, prophesying. It would be wrong to read into what is not said. Peter and Joel do not say this continues but it also does not say it will stop. It DOES however say that “in those days” of Peter, the Spirit pours out on “all people” (Jews and gentiles) and they will prophesy; exactly as recorded in Acts and in the age of the Apostles. Using this verse to justify modern day prophesy is dishonest and implying what is not stated.
Conclusion
The Office of Prophet is chosen by God, ordained by God, in direct communication with God, the claims are in harmony with God, and validated by God. The gift of prophecy was given by The Holy Spirit to those to proclaim God’s Word in the absence of the Apostles before the completion of Holy Scripture. After the passing of all the Apostles, there is no evidence outside of scripture of any Disciple of an Apostle or their disciples, in their own writings, prophesying or stating the continuation of the gift or office. Any claim or attempted of post-apostolic prophesy has been disproven by the false prophets own contradictory claims or their contradictions of God’s Word. It is a historical and modern fact that the gift or prophesy does not exist the same way it did in the age of Apostles; or at least the known self proclaimed gifted prophets are not the same. However, God, if he so chooses, could grant anyone at any time the gift. Proof of the true gift is the prophesies faithfulness to all that God has already declared and consistency within itself. There may be true gifted prophets out in the world but the ones on TV selling New York Times Best Sellers books are nothing more than modern Montanists for the digital age.
Because we can not state that the gift of prophesy has fully and completely ceased or that God will never gift it in the future, here is a biblical test to determine if prophetic claims are of God – The Eight point Prophecy Test
1. https://www.gotquestions.org/prophets-in-the-Bible.html
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When a person is chosen by God to be God’s Prophet to the people they have unique characteristics that support their claims. There are 4 key elements that reveal a true Prophet of God which can be used to test and see if this individual is from God. Was Muhammad a true Prophet of God?
It is true that Muhammad made his prophetship a priority. For 23 years he revealed messages that he claimed was from God. But this element alone does not prove that he was. We must also consider all the key elements of a Prophet together. Because anyone can devote their whole life and even sacrifice their lives for something the believe to be true- even if it is actually untrue.
Element 2 reveals a major problem for Muhammad.
“Now the apostle was anxious for the welfare of his people, wishing to attract them as far as he could. . . . When the apostle saw that his people turned their backs on him and he was pained by their estrangement from what he brought them from God he longed that there should come to him from God a message that would reconcile his people to him. Because of his love for his people and his anxiety over them it would delight him if the obstacle that made his task so difficult could be removed. . . . Then God sent down “By the star when it sets your comrade errs not and is not deceived, he speaks not from his own desire,” and when he reached His words “Have you thought of al-Lat and al-Uzza and Manat the third, the other”, Satan, when he was meditating upon it, and desiring to bring it to his people, put upon his tongue “these are the exalted Gharaniq [Numidian cranes] whose intercession is approved.” When the Quraysh heard that, they were delighted and greatly pleased at the way in which he spoke of their gods and they listened to him; while the believers were holding that what their prophet brought them from their Lord was true, not suspecting a mistake or a vain desire or a slip, and when he reached the prostration and the end of the Sura in which he prostrated himself the Muslims prostrated themselves when their prophet prostrated confirming what he brought and obeying his command, and the polytheists of Quraysh and others who were in the mosque prostrated when they heard the mention of their gods, so that everyone in the mosque believer and unbeliever prostrated . . . Then the people dispersed and the Quraysh went out, delighted at what had been said about their gods, saying, “Muhammad has spoken of our gods in splendid fashion. He alleged in what he read that they are the exalted Gharaniq whose intercession is approved…”
Muhammad approved of other gods speaking on God’s behalf.
“The news reached the prophet’s companions who were in Abyssinia, it being reported that Quraysh had accepted Islam, so some men started to return while others remained behind. Then Gabriel came to the apostle and said, “What have you done, Muhammad? You have read to these people something I did not bring you from God and you have said what He did not say to you.” The apostle was bitterly grieved and was greatly in fear of God. So God sent down (a revelation), for He was merciful to him, comforting him and making light of the affair and telling him that every prophet and apostle before him desired as he desired and wanted what he wanted and Satan interjected something into his desires as he had on his tongue. So God annulled what Satan had suggested and God established His verses, i.e. you are just like the prophets and apostles. Then God sent down: “We have not sent a prophet or apostle before you but when he longed Satan cast suggestions in his longing. But God will annul what Satan has suggested. Then God will establish his verses, God being knowing and wise.” (Ibn Ishaq, pp. 165-166)
But wait, that wasn’t from God. Muhammad spoke from his own desires and listened to Satan. Now of course to explain away this huge error, Muhammad then claims God just simply made “light of the affair” and “annulled” the false prophecy.
This still does not negate the fact that Muhammad failed two major elements of being a true prophet. Firstly, why couldn’t he recognize the difference between God and Satan? Does He not know God’s will? Did God not make himself clear enough for Muhammad to know it was God speaking? Obviously God is not at fault so it is not an issue of God’s clarity. The first major issue is Muhammad did not know the difference. Secondly, it is impossible to escape the fact that Muhammad falsely prophesied. This is the major and clearest test of a true prophet of God. This was not a failed future prophesy of something that did not come to pass, this was a flat out lie (even if Muhammad did not purposefully lie). This also impacts the 3rd element of a true Prophet.
Aside from God not making himself known to Muhammad in that example above, his wife even testifies to an incident(s) where Muhammad was influenced by Satan again.
Aisha narrated: “Once the Prophet was bewitched so that he began to imagine that he had done a thing which in fact, he had not done.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari 3175)
Aisha narrated: Magic was worked on Allah’s Apostle so that he used to think that he had had sexual relations with his wives while he actually had not. Then one day he said, “O Aisha, do you know that Allah has instructed me concerning the matter I asked Him about? Two men came to me and one of them sat near my head and the other sat near my feet. The one near my head asked the other: ‘What is wrong with this man?’ The latter replied, ‘He is under the effect of magic.’ The first one asked, ‘Who has worked magic on him?’ The other replied, ‘Labid bin Al-Asam, a man from Bani Zuraiq who was an ally of the Jews and was a hypocrite.’ The first one asked, ‘What material did he use?’ The other replied, ‘A comb and the hair stuck to it.'” (Sahih Al-Bukhari 5765)
But according the Quran, magic is from Satan (Qur’an 2:102) and Satan has no authority over those who know God (Qur’an 16:98-100). How can Muhammad have been under the power of magic if he was THE Prophet of God? We must discredit his wife’s testimony as unreliable but then that leads to other issues about understanding Muhammad because she is a source in Islam for how Muhammad lived. Despite the major issues above, we will continue on for the sake of argument to the 4th element of a test of a true Prophet of God.
When God delivers messages about the future, they contain key details that make them undeniable when they come to pass. Any one can make a vague prophetic statement: Here’s mine: A powerful nation will fall with in a few generations time. Boom. Am I now a prophet? My prophetic statement is vague in its details that when related events take place, it can easily be applied. Therefore, when we see God make himself known, he gives key details that make his statement of future events clear when they happen. Lets look at a prophesy from Muhammad.
“The Roman Empire has been defeated – in a land close by: But they, (even) after (this) defeat of theirs, will soon be victorious – within a few years.”(Q 30:2-4).
We already see the vague-ness of this prophetic statement. “in a land close by”, which land? How far is “close by”? Then we see the usage of “defeat” and “victorious”. By who’s expectation is the event a defeat and or victory? Some times, those who lose feel as though they were still victorious. Other times those who are actually defeated feel as though in some way they were victorious. With that said, the only true reliable detail is the time frame stated, “within a few years”. According to Yusuf Ali the Arabic word for “a few years,” Bidh’un, can mean a period of three to nine years. So what was the the event that took place within the 3 to 9 year period? nothing.
The details matter. That is clearly God’s command to discern a false prophet from a true Prophet; examine the details.
The Persians defeated the Byzantines and took Jerusalem at about 614 or 615 AD. The Byzantine counter-offensive did not begin until 622 AD and the victory was not complete until 628 AD, making it a period between thirteen to fourteen years. Renowned historian and Muslim commentator, al-Tabari, places the Roman victory in 628 A.D. (6 A.H.), right after the signing of Hudaiybiya. And that’s a problem. That is 13 to 14 years later, not 3 to 9 years. The one key detail in Muhammad’s prophecy fails.
Some can argue “but it happened as Muhammad said it was going to” but referring back to my prophet statement, at some point, at any point, in history, yes, any vague prophecy can occur and that only proves that God makes himself known through the details of actual occurrences verses non divine prophetic statements. Any human can make any kind of vague prophetic statement. And when the vagueness can be matched up with some event in history; that does not prove anything still. The details prove if it is of God or not. The single key detail provided by Muhammad fails still.
Other Major Issues
If Muhammad was receiving truth from God than the statements he claims must be true. Aside from the blunders listed above, there are other areas where Muhammad failed in stating what was true.
Muhammad misunderstood what Christianity taught in regards to the Trinity. He did not understand this concept AND assumed that the sources for his information about Christianity is what was actually believed by the early church.
And [beware the Day] when Allah will say, “O Jesus, Son of Mary, did you say to the people, ‘Take me and my mother as deities besides Allah ?‘” He will say, “Exalted are You! It was not for me to say that to which I have no right. If I had said it, You would have known it. (Quran 5:116)
O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: Nor say of Allah aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) a messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in Allah and His messengers. Say not “Trinity”: desist: it will be better for you: for Allah is one Allah: Glory be to Him: (far exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belong all things in the heavens and on earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer of affairs. (4:171, Yusif Ali)
Why would Muhammad argue for monotheism in reference to Christian beliefs? Christianity has always believed in ONE God. His understanding of Christianity is that they believed there were three gods and one of them was taught to be Mary. This is a false assumption. Did God not understand what Christianity taught? Of course not. Did Muhammad not understand what Christianity taught, clearly. BUT Muhammad gets his truth from God? This can not be so given the misunderstanding of what Christians believe.
Also read The Quran: Who Wrote It?
A Better Prophet
Islam itself points to a greater prophet than Muhammad, unintentionally. Muhammad was obviously an imperfect sinner. When he died, his body began to decompose and stink.
Al-Abbas, the paternal uncle of Prophet Muhammad, entered Muhammad’s room three after his death, before his burial, as his body remained there for three days as the people were too busy to bury him, as all of them were engaged in debates of Al-Thaqeefa Council of choosing a ruler/caliph of Yathreb to succeed him. Once Al-Abbas entered the room, he put his hands at once at his nose, and said to the gathered men outside: “Bury your friend Muhammad fast, for his body began decomposition just like the rest of human beings“
Of course, there are those in Islam that believe the later created Hadiths from Al-Nisaa’i, Abou Dawood, and Ibn Maja that claim that Prophet’s bodies to not decompose and claim that the Hadith above was a fabrication. But the Quran itself supports the Hadith above.
“We did not send before you except men, whom We inspired. Ask the people of knowledge, if you do not know. We did not make them mere bodies that ate no food, nor were they immortal.” (21:7-8)
They said, “You are only humans like us; you want to turn us away from what our ancestors worshiped; so bring us a clear proof.”(14:10-11)
Each prophet asserted his being a mortal human creature; God has commanded Muhammad in the Quran to say this to his people: “Say, “I am only a human being like you…” (41:6). “Say, “I am only a human being like you…” (18:110).
With that said, Muhammad was a sinner and “only a human being like you” who died and was buried. YET, we see a different existence of Jesus in the Quran.
Jesus did not sin.
Hardly a single descendant of Adam is born without Satan touching him at the moment of his birth. A baby who is touched like that gives a cry. The only exceptions are Mary and her son“ [cf. Q 3: 36].
Jesus performed Miracles
We have made some of these messengers to excel the others among them are they to whom Allah spoke, and some of them He exalted by (many degrees of) rank; and We gave clear miracles to Isa (Jesus) son of Marium, and strengthened him with the holy spirit. (2:253, Shakir)
Jesus’ body did not see decay.
Behold! Allah said: “O Jesus! I will take thee and raise thee to Myself and clear thee (of the falsehoods) of those who blaspheme; I will make those who follow thee superior to those who reject faith, to the Day of Resurrection: Then shall ye all return unto me, and I will judge between you of the matters wherein ye dispute. (3:55, Yusif Ali)
Jesus was a Prophet of God who received messages from God just like Muhammad. BUT he was more. Jesus was sinless and performed miracles THEN was taken up my God instead of being buried.
Even the Quran unintentionally validates Jesus as The Greatest Prophet. He did not speak falsehoods or have failed prophecies. He was not like all other men who were sinners. He performed miracles and Muhammad didn’t. Muhammad died and was buried, but Jesus was taken up by God (according to the Quran).
Read Jesus and Islam
Conclusion
We can see from the Quran itself and his followers that he was a failed prophet according to God’s tests for us of a true prophet. Tests that even Islam says is from God (The Torah). He failed to distinguish God’s revealings from Satan’s. He spoke prophetically that contradicted God. His prophecies failed to make God known and the prophecy itself failed to come true when he said it would. But when genuinely seeking a true Prophet of God in the Quran, we can even see that Jesus is true and greater Prophet.
If you have any questions or comments about this article please contact us or join our discussion forms
There are many subgroups of the Christian faith. These subgroups tailor their teachings and focuses in different ways. That is exactly how the Body of Christ functions BUT there are some groups that claim to be ‘Christian’ when in fact, they are not. Some deny being ‘Christian’ but claim to have similar beliefs and ‘more correct’ views than that of orthodox Christianity; but how can you identify a cult?
The Teachings
Cults proclaim a NEW teaching or a more correct teaching revealed by a NEW prophet or writing. Regardless of the source for their teaching, it is new a part from Christian orthodox. They may even teaching an old teaching that was NEW in prior history but which is still outside of orthodox Christianity. New writings are generated by the new prophet or group and followers are obligated to rely on the new writing along with or instead of The Bible. Essentially, Cults teach that The Bible is not enough, cherry picked sections are only ones correct, or over all incomplete.
The Rituals
Cults push followers to focus on their works by adhering to certain rituals or even abstaining from certain Christian orthodox acts such as communion and baptism. Some even morph these acts and teachings of the acts to fit their new or more correct revelations. Some rituals include financial indebtedness and status gains. Essentially, they become controlling, isolating, and works based.
Verifiable
Their revelations and teachings tend to be non-verifiable and use circular reasoning to justify them. A prophet is a prophet because it was revealed to him that he was. Or the writings are divine because they were written by someone who said his writings are divine. Some claim that they were given revelations in visions or by angels, and that’s that. Essentially, the founder and their writings are unverifiable and have to be believed simply based on claim alone.
Morality
Cults typically strive to be ‘good’ and do good. They attempt to satisfy psychological, emotional, and intellectual issues of their followers. They make their followers feel accepted and feel as though they have a purpose. Some even provide financial security and promises of material and spiritual rewards. But, this begins to fall apart once someone starts to question the groups teachings and wants to leave the group for what ever reason. Those who question and desire to leave are guilt tripped, become more isolated, and more controlled by the group and its leadership. The threat of destruction from God or their version of holy judgement is often deployed. Those who do leave are shunned, and persecuted. Those who remain in the group are caused to be depend greatly on the group.
Limit Learning
Cults often limit the source of their followers studies. The groups that use the bible as part of their system discourage studying the bible alone and require the use of their writings. This indoctrination allows for the cult to interpret how they want the bible to be interpreted to match their new teachings while at the same time allow the follower to feel as though they are learning what the bible says; even when they are not. This is another form of manipulation and control.
If you have any questions or comments about this article please contact us or join our discussion forms
In the age of TV Evangelism, Podcast sermons, and everything we ever need at home, some people question why bother attend church. They hangout with their Christian friends at times and get a sermon Sunday morning in their bedroom on TV. What does the Lord say about being actively involved in a local Christian community? First we will look at specific verses and then we will look at the actions and expectations of the foundational church. Then we can address the excuses and hit at the real problem.
THE STRAIGHT FORWARD
Hebrews 10:23-25
23 Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, 25 not staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
Explicitly stated here to NOT avoid ‘worship meetings’. These meetings was when the local christian community would gather and worship God together with music, teaching, sharing resources, and prayer; all together. Sitting at home watching a Televangelist is not this.
Ephesians 1:22
22 And He put everything under His feet and appointed Him as head over everything for the church,
Colossians 1:18a
He is also the head of the body, the church;
Christ Jesus is head of the church; Avoiding church is like avoiding a meeting organized by Christ himself.
Acts 2:41-42
41 So those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about 3,000 people were added to them. 42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers.
Here we see the early church were devoted to each other. Devoted to attending ‘worship meetings’ and obey what Christ instructed them with the Lords supper as well. Which, can not be done or obeyed by avoiding the meetings.
1 John 1:3
what we have seen and heard
we also declare to you,
so that you may have fellowship along with us;
and indeed our fellowship is with the Father
and with His Son Jesus Christ.
John boldly says that all the things they have seen and heard and declared to the church, so to enable, and for the purpose of, allowing fellowship to take place!
Romans 12:9-18
9 Love must be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good. 10 Show family affection to one another with brotherly love. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not lack diligence; be fervent in spirit; serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. 13 Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. 16 Be in agreement with one another. Do not be proud; instead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Try to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. 18 If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone.
Paul drops the mic in Romans 12 when he makes it absolutely clear that the community of believers, and local body of Christ is family and focused on each other! Sharing, serving, rejoicing, weeping, showing honor, and just about everything that makes up a community is what believers are CALLED to BE. All of which can not be done when sitting at home watching TV sermons.
Also read Me, Myself, And I and “Doing Me”
ACTIONS OF THE CHURCH
There are actions and events that is meant for the body of Christ alone. People who do not attend church fail to serve the Lord through the opportunities the Lord gives the church. They miss out on spiritual fellowship and service.
Acts 14:27
27 After they arrived and gathered the church together, they reported everything God had done with them and that He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.
Those who chose not to gather with the rest of the church were left out of the loop in regards to God’s Will.
2 Timothy 2:2
2 And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
Another statement that those who do not attend church fail to abide by here. They are uncommitted to any local body and thus are not being taught or grow in fellowship and faith.
Hebrews 13:7
7 Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith.
It is impossible to ‘carefully observe’ and ‘imitate’ someone’s faith if ‘church avoiders‘ are not in fellowship with them on a regular basis. Thus, another request from the Apostles that non church goers won’t benefit from.
Acts 2:44-47
44 Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. 45 They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need. 46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple complex, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with a joyful and humble attitude, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.
The early church met EVERY DAY! they met in the temple to hear the teaching of scripture and went privately, more like small groups, to houses to do what Jesus commanded them to do; communion. They were joyful and humble and helped each other! Their common attitude and meeting together everyday built family like relationships! They grew in faith and matured together. All of which, can not be done by avoiding attending modern christian community gatherings.
1 Peter 4:10
10 Based on the gift each one has received, use it to serve others, as good managers of the varied grace of God.
Every believer is given gifts for the sole purpose of building up the church. The gifts purpose is to be used to serve others! What a waste of a gift if people never attend church.
1 Corinthians 12:12, 14-27
12 For as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ… 14 So the body is not one part but many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has placed each one of the parts in one body just as He wanted. 19 And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? 20 Now there are many parts, yet one body. 21 So the eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 But even more, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary. 23 And those parts of the body that we think to be less honorable, we clothe these with greater honor, and our unpresentable parts have a better presentation. 24 But our presentable parts have no need of clothing. Instead, God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, 25 so that there would be no division in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other. 26 So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it.
So how effective is the eye without the brain… or the arms without the heart… If you left to go out to eat and left your stomach at home; how well are you going to eat? So, how effective are you for the Lord if you are not part of a local community of believers? How effective are you for the Lord if you are not part of His body? How do other believers benefit from your testimony, resources, knowledge, and gift if you do not fellowship with them?
Also read An Inconsiderate Faith
THE LORDS SUPPER
1 Corinthians 11:23-26,
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: On the night when He was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, 24 gave thanks, broke it, and said, “This is My body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same way, after supper He also took the cup and said, “This cup is the new covenant established by My blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.
Luke 22:19
19 And He took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said, “This is My body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.”
If Christians don’t attend a christian community meeting, how are they faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ in sharing with him His communion? He said “Do this”; are you?
THE GREAT COMMISSION
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
This is known as The Great Commission because it is stated for ALL believers. It is not a suggestion but an expectation; Go, disciple, baptize, and teach. Are you being faithful to the Lord by following this commission? It is impossible to follow Jesus in this regard if Christians do not regularly meet with a local Christian community.
Ephesians 4:12
12 for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ,
Another example of how not attending church makes it impossible to be a faithful servant to the Lord; seeing how a ‘church avoiders‘ can’t train or build up the body of Christ, if they’re not in fellowship with it.
Acts 20:28
28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock that the Holy Spirit has appointed you to as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.
No one can help guard and protect local believers if they don’t fellowship with the local church.
1 Peter 5:2-4
2 Shepherd God’s flock among you, not overseeing out of compulsion but freely, according to God’s will; not for the money but eagerly; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
Some people may think their wise and trained in the bible, but by not being in fellowship with a local Christian community, they fail to be a shepherd and are actually being an example of the wrong sort for the local body of Christ. This also exposes how ignorant they are in regards to scripture and how selfish they are in regards to The Body of Christ. Ultimately their issue isn’t with the local church but with the One who is head of the church- Christ Jesus.
Thus, being an individual and not associating or being in fellowship with a local Christian community that meets regularly, is actually being unfaithful to the Lord and failing the Body of Christ.
Also read All Christians Are Missionaries
THE EXCUSES
What If I don’t Like Any Local Churches?
Get over your self and don’t hypocritically judge. Recognizing flaws in a local body PROVES that YOU need to serve and help that local body. Unless the church is teaching and pursuing heresies and things that which God hates; they need your service and gifts.
What If I Don’t Like Their Worship Music Style?
Get over your self and worship God! There are no modern churches that sing the same songs in the same ways that the earliest church did. Period. Classical hymns, modern hymns, contemporary, gospel choir, WHATEVER! Go, serve, and worship that God that has saved your soul!
But There Are No Local Churches That Have Ministries For My Family/life stage Needs?
Get over your self and start them! Clearly you have recognized a need and you have the experience and knowledge of that need… sounds like that local church NEEDS YOU. Children, elderly, women, teens, college students, single adults, married couples groups, whatever, “GO and MAKE and TEACH” just as Jesus has commissioned you to do.
But I Don’t Know Anyone?
Informal communication is the easiest for those who are just not outgoing. Email people at the local church listed on their website or facebook message them from their facebook page. Introduce yourself and tell them that you want to get connected! boom. If you are out going, just show up one Sunday and introduce yourself to a greeter and ask to be introduced to someone who runs the ministry you want to be part of. OR just bring a close and willing friend; but make sure they encourage you to meet someone there and get connected at that church.
But They Will Harshly Judge Me and Make Me Feel Unwelcome!
You just hypocritically and harshly judged them. They are sinners just as much as you are! Remember, Christ Jesus is head of HIS church and will deal with the members of his body as he sees fit. You are not the judge and jury of what belongs to Him. If this does happen, you call it out, and report it to elders and deacons of the church just as holy scripture calls us to do. Christ Jesus is a far better judge than you and I when it comes to sinners.
What If It Is Too Far?
Visit our Church Finder page; I’m sure you can get yourself to a local church, especially if Jesus, the Apostles, their disciples, and the early church could do all their travels in ancient leather flipflops.
But Their Meetings Do Not Fit My Schedule
Search around, Churches meet at different times throughout the week as well. Go to bed early so you can wake up early. If your current working hours prevent you from being faithful to Christ Jesus and His body, you may want to re-evaluate your life priorities.
THE REAL PROBLEM
Ever wonder where all these excuses and failed justifications for avoiding church come from? Its simple. Our Hearts and our Sinful Nature. In just about every case it is flat out selfish thinking and self-centeredness. In reality, in the eyes of Christ, there are no justifications for not being part of his body, especially when he has called you and enables you through the power of the Holy Spirit. Those who cling to these excuses need to truly examine themselves and ask: Do I Truly Love Jesus Christ? In some cases these people may not really be saved but just wanting to act and feel like they belong to a religion. Are you just trying to be faithful to a religion by watching a person of the same religion preach on TV or do you desire to be faithful to Jesus Christ as your LORD and Savior by worshiping him through your service in His Body?
When you find a church to get involved with; make sure it is a healthy, gospel-centered, Christ-focused Church body. There are a lot of meetings of people that claim to be ‘christian‘ but WHAT they worship and WHAT they teach can expose their man-centered worldly-focused worship. Please see our Health Church test and Teachings test to be secure in that you are being taught by and involved with those who truly love AND KNOW Jesus Christ as LORD GOD and Savior as revealed in God’s Holy Word. Confessional churches tend to be more gospel-centered, Christ-focused Churches in that no matter who their current pastor or church leadership is, they have firm understandings of what they hold to be true and are grounded in what has always been taught in the faith. They do not have to be of a specific denomination and not all of them are. Be careful of churches that focus on material gains and wealth– those tend to be man-centered worldly-focused in their core. In the same way, be cautious with the more charismatic churches who can also lean man-centered worldly-focused disguised as ‘spiritual’. Keep in mind, ‘non-denominations’ are a type of denomination of its self. Don’t focus on any type of denomination or lack of, but focus on finding a healthy, gospel-centered, Christ-focused church first and foremost.
If you have any questions or comments about this article please contact us or join our discussion forms
Everything we are taught about the Holy Scripture needs to be tested against Holy Scripture. We do not blindly believe everything every preacher or religious teacher states; but why? God calls us to test everything and rightly judge. This leads us to truth and emboldens our faith; but how? This article will go over all the who, what, when, where, and why of testing, discerning, and rightly judging.
What is testing, discerning, and rightly judging?
This is where Christians are given the liberty to come to understand what is right and wrong, truth and lie, when compared to what God has declared. Matthew 7:1 is the most abused out of context verse in modern culture. It is used to silence people to appease other people living in sin and teaching things that contradict what God has declared. We have all heard the phrase “don’t judge me”. In its entire context, it is about hypocritically judging (Matthew 6:2, 5, 16; 7:3–5). Where you place yourself in a righteous seat over someone else when both are sinners before God in a particular situation. That would be like a Christian pointing out someone is in the wrong for getting drunk, when they themselves get drunk. That’s hypocritical judgement. But what if that Christian is a recovering alcoholic who does not drink anymore?
In that same chapter, Jesus goes on to tell us to discern ‘dogs’, ‘pigs’, and false prophets. How can we do that if we can not make a judgement call? Clearly we are called to make a right judgement and not a hypocritical judgement. If that does not make sense, Jesus declares in John 7:24 to not judge hypocritically but to judge rightly. The correct way to judge is to compare the subject against what God declares and not by yours or anyone else standards.
Essentially, when not judging hypocritically, all we are called to do is compare the worlds teachings and actions against God’s Word. We are not inventing a standard but only agreeing and reiterating what God has already declared.
Also read Don’t Judge Me | God’s Truths are Not a Matter of Opinions | Your Feelings Do Not Determine Truth | Follow Your Heart?
How do we rightly and correctly test, discern, and judge?
First, we do not judge based on appearance (John 7:24). God judges the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). We may not be able to see the heart but Jesus makes it clear that we can still recognize a heart for the Lord, or a heart not for the Lord. The heart produces good or bad fruit. Jesus declares we can recognize the fruit produced by the heart (Matthew 7:16).
To recognize the fruit, we must test and investigate and not jump to ignorant prejudice conclusions and assumptions (Proverbs 18:13). We look at the whole counsel of God which is the completeness of Holy Scripture (Acts 20:27; 2 Timothy 4:2). We must understand that good fruit of the spirit are the characteristics of God and reflections of Christ Jesus; forgiving, merciful, selfless love, abundant giving, kindness, gracious, honest, peace seeking, patience, self control, and faithful (Galatians 5:22-23). In contrast are bad fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:19-21). To rightly judge is to compare what is being tested against God and his Word.
The recovering alcoholic who quit drinking simply reiterates what God has already declared about getting drunk. The point is to address the heart problem of why some feel the need to get drunk and not the drinking itself. Getting drunk is the bad fruit of the heart and like a double edged sword, God’s word can pierce the heart (Hebrews 4:12). The standard of a righteous judgement is God’s Word and the motives for the judgement is heart change, love, and God’s Glory.
Also read Can Someone Come to Faith by Apologetics? | The Test of Visions and Dreams | How “Love is Love” is Unloving.
Why do we rightly and correctly test, discern, and judge?
To restore those whom we love and for spiritual growth, maturity, and soundness in teachings. In gentleness we are to confront and restore (Galatians 6:1). Jesus himself lays out a disciplinary process for trying to restore someone who is in sin (Matthew 18:15–17). In everything we do in our Christian lives, truth must always be present. Whether we are showing truth with love (Ephesians 4:15) or when we see truth and Grace (John 1:17). Even when we worship God, it is in truth and spirit (John 4:24). We see that in EVERY situation in life, truth must be there because Christ is truth (John 14:6). Truth is the absolute necessity in all reality. This is why we must test claims, discern it, judge it so we can rightly know truth. In the process of rightly discerning truth; we expose lies (Ephesians 5:11).
Also read Hyper Spiritualism | Spiritual Legalism | Guard Your Heart | Repentance | Hyper-Grace theology | The Errors of The Modern Prosperity Gospel | If Your Not Fighting Sin, Your Living It. | The Joy of TRUTH
Disputable matters
When an issues is tested and scripture is silent on that issue, than the right judgement is to agree to disagree and to follow your own conscious. It would be wrong to judge other people over a disputable matter because you would be using YOUR standard and not God’s. But if scripture is explicit and the issue can be known in scripture, than it is not disputable and we can rightly judge what God has declared and desires.
Also read Disputable Matters | The “Jesus didn’t say it” Reasoning
Where do we rightly and correctly test, discern, and judge?
We DO NOT test and rightly judge to humiliate or belittle people! We do not do it to shame them. The humiliation and shaming will come from God in his time and by his will. After testing the issue and determining it to be contrary to Holy Scripture, the person should be gently and lovingly approached privately. If the person is not a believer than just a gospel presentation is needed. We can not expect nonbelievers to understand spiritual truths when they are spiritually blind. We must always remember they are victims of sin. This is why we do not apply spiritual disciplines to non-believers (1 Corinthians 5:12). If they profess to be a believer in Jesus Christ, than Jesus himself lays out what he expects for Church Discipline.
When a believer is found to contradict Holy Scripture and in sin Jesus gives the following process for an absolute attempt at repentance and restoration (Matthew 18:15-20):
Paul applied this church discipline and due to continued sexual sin in a member of the Corinthian church and their rejection of the efforts of Paul and church members they were ultimately excommunicated (1 Corinthians 5:1–13). Just as Jesus instructed (Matthew 18:17). BUT the excommunication then ultimately lead to his repentance and Paul encouraged the church to bring him back in (2 Corinthians 2:5–8). In our society this seems ‘harsh’ and is labeled ‘unloving’ but remember, this comes from our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ.
The purpose of these steps of discipline is to lead sinners to repentance in a tangible way accompanied by the convictions of the Holy Spirit. It is NOT hateful or unloving. Rebuking, correcting, and excommunication done in truth and love Glorifies God. It is not easy, and does not always look pretty, but neither did Jesus hanging on the cross. Yet, that is the greatest display of love. It really comes down to if you fear the opinions of man and let your feelings and emotions lead you; or if you stand by the principles and truths in Holy Scripture despite how you feel and others opinions.
Also read The Absolute Greatest Message To Tell Everyone
When Truth Hurts
When we test, discern, and rightly judge something that is contrary to truth; sometimes people’s feelings get hurt. You may expose the fact they have been believing a lie or maybe they even enjoy living in the lie. And no matter your efforts to be loving and gentle, they will still get hurt or offended. Is that wrong? No. In 1 Kings 19:10 and Nehemiah 9:26 it is recorded that the prophets were murdered because they were calling out the people for believing in lies. Jeremiah was sought to be put to death for making people feel guilty (Jeremiah 38:4). The absolute most loving person, Jesus, was murdered by his own people. Only one Apostle died at an old age, the rest were murdered. All of this because of truth. When we can avoid offending someone, we should (Matthew 17:27); but when it comes to righteous judgements and truth, some times it is unavoidable (Matthew 6:60-66). Hurt feelings and feelings of being offended are not because of your righteous judgement but are actually because of their rejection of God’s truths. Those who righteously judge will be hated and persecuted (Matthew 10:22, 24:9) because the truth of Jesus came as a sword that divides (Matthew 10:34-35).
Also read Negative Name Dropping and Calling Out | The Beauty of Accountability | The Other Side of The Real Jesus
The Process of Righteous Judgement;
Also read What is ‘Doctrine’ and does it matter? | Correctly Interpret and Understand The Bible | Why The Disciples of The Apostles Matter Today | How To Fight Your Sin | Scripture Alone
The Systematic Tests to help lead people to rightly judge truth:
There has been, and will be, people to claim they have had experiences, visions, and dreams from God. How would you know if this is true or false? This is why we are commanded to test everything with Holy Scripture (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22; Acts 17:11; 1 John 4:1). These simple questions help reveal the truth in any of these type of claims:
What Would An Authentic Vision From God Sound Like?
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There are all kinds of popular books and movies based on ‘true stories’ of people who have claimed to been to Heaven or Hell and returned to earth to tell people about it. All claims must be compared to what God has made known in His Word. What does scripture say about these claims? Through this we can determine a if these experiences and visions are true or hallucinations and vivid imagination.
True or Hallucinations; Must be Tested
First of all, we are commanded by God to test everything, even these claims (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22). The Berean people were praised by Paul for testing his claims with scripture (Acts 17:11). If any of those who make these claims tell you that testing them is wrong, they are incorrect from the start. To know if these are true claims or confused hallucinations, vivid imaginative dreams, or even malicious false stories or exaggerations to sell books and make movies; we simply compare them to the truths revealed by God in scripture. All true claims must be in agreement with scripture. Also, the visions themselves could not contradict each other if true. The first and most important test, is the need for the test itself. If the claim is untestable, it goes against God’s Word as God commands us to test everything. If anyone who is making the claims belittles testing of their claims, they are going against scripture.
Also read Scripture Alone
Visions of Heaven
God has given visions of heaven (Isaiah, John). Paul even reveals that he was ‘caught up to Heaven’ but he makes it clear he does not know if it was in the body or just in the spirit (vision). He was humble when telling people about it, he did not mention it was himself. So we see that God can, if he so wills it, give visions of Heaven to people who he chooses. But what these people in modern times are claiming is that they did in fact experience direct divine things. Keep in mind, Muhammad, Joseph Smith, and others also claim to have had direct experiences with divine things. Is it true by face value because it is about Jesus? of course not, and Joseph Smith is the example of why it is not true by default by its subject. A claim of an afterlife experience or divine vision is not by default true or false; which is why it must be tested against an objective source; God’s Word. There is no evidence in Scripture that states people will no longer be given visions. God can and will give visions and experiences as he sees fit according to his good and glorious will. The danger is believing a claimed divine vision that which is not from God but of sinful man or of another unholy spirit.
Disclosures of The Experience
God did not allow everyone who he gave visions to, to disclose everything they saw and heard. Paul stated “he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter” (2 Corinthians 12:4). John was commanded by God not to write everything he heard in his massive vision (Revelation 10:4). Even Daniel was told to seal up things he saw and heard (Daniel 8:26; 9:24; 12:4). So we see that when it comes to visions it is contradictory for a ‘greater’ modern vision to suddenly happen in full disclosure when in scripture God did not allow for full disclosure. The Holy Spirit, through Paul, made it explicitly clear that there are some things that “cannot be told” and that “man may not utter”. And those who experience this Almighty command, comply. When Paul stated ‘man’ he was not only speaking of himself but of everyone. The major problem for these more recent visions is that there is no holding back as they attempt to describe everything they heard and saw.
Major Dilemma
Jesus makes some statements that cause for a major dilemma in the claims of those who have been to heaven and seen God. He states explicitly, no one has seen The Father at any time (John 3:13; 1:18). That would include our time. These claims then put their witness of God The Father equal to Jesus as the closest to God The Father. But, there is only one person closest to God The Father, that is his Son. Did God make them an equally qualified witness to that of his Son Jesus Christ? Was the faith ‘once delivered from the saints [The Apostles and eyewitnesses of Jesus]” now delivered again? This statement by Jude, via The Holy Spirit (Jude 3), now null and void? Paul’s experience even had to be validated by the Apostles (Galatians 1:18-24). We see in Holy Scripture that the only qualified and true eyewitnesses of divine revelations were those of the Prophets, Jesus, and The Apostles, Paul included. But, still, only Jesus has seen God the Father. The Prophets and The Apostles were the only ones qualified to validate witnesses of the The Angel of The Lord, The Risen Glorified Christ. The major problem for these more recent visions is that they are not qualified and are not verifiable.
Also read The Beauty of Accountability
Nothing Lacking
Another problem with these claims is that they came from people who have complete access to scripture that lacks nothing for their faith. Seemingly, God’s holy word does not seem to be enough for the adherents of those who make these claims. They ‘feel’ more uplifted by these claims; which means Holy Scripture wasn’t enough to make them ‘feel’ spiritually enlightened.
John makes it explicitly clear that only the things he has written is enough for faith and he admits he did not record everything (John 20:31); why not? because it wasn’t necessary. Everything that was written, is enough for saving faith and spiritual enlightenment (2 Timothy 3:16). Holy Scripture is sufficient for saving faith; rendering additional extra visions irreverent. God may still use visions to reveal what is already revealed in Scripture to people who do not have access to Holy Scripture. God may use visions to reveal the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who have never heard the gospel message. No matter the situation, there is nothing lacking or missing in Holy Scripture. The Holy Spirit, through David, declared the sufficiency of Holy Scripture in Psalm 19:7–9. Peter also makes a statement in 2 Peter 3:16 even saying that some things in Holy Scripture are hard to understand that get distorted. People in modern societies have the internet and complete access to Holy Scripture. The average American family own 2 bibles.
Subjectivity
God validated His promises. Jesus proved His claims. The Apostles healed and raised people from the dead as proof of their claims, which were of God. Paul’s claims were reviewed and approved by The Apostles themselves. The Berean people reviewed Paul’s claims and proved them with Holy Scripture. Those who claim to have these visions and travel to heaven or hell are only claims and are subjective in their support. The Holy Spirit guided these validated people to record what was of God (2 Peter 1:16; 2 Timothy 3:16). The objective validator of spiritual truth is The Holy Spirit through Holy Scripture.
Is Colton Burpo an absolute source of spiritual truth like Jesus and the Apostles? Is his visions of the future on par with John’s vision in Revelations? Did he see the risen Lord and Savior like Paul did? If so, he must be equally authoritative as An Apostle. If not, he his claims of divine revelation are untrue. There is no middle ground. We must either believe his claims are equal to Holy Scripture or not.
Colton Burpo also reveals that Christ’s Second coming is within his fathers life time. A time that Jesus did not even give when asked by the Apostles (Matthew. 24:35-37). This would make Colton more informed than The Apostles themselves. Even the angels in heaven did not even know this information. Jesus himself was not willing to disclose it. Yet, Colton is more than willing to disclose a time. But that’s not it, Colton’s father will participate in the final battle of Armageddon. These extra biblical claims are not validated by The Holy Spirit through Holy Scripture.
Also read What is ‘Doctrine’ and does it matter? | Correctly Interpret and Understand The Bible | Why The Disciples of The Apostles Matter Today
Contradictions
Interestingly, each claim has a different view of the travel to wherever they imagined they went. Mary Neal in Incredible Journeys and Eden Alexander in Proof of Heaven both describe something contradictory to each other and even their statements contradict Scripture. Were Mary Neal describes a final opportunity to choose God. But scripture is explicitly clear, God does the choosing before the foundations of the world (Ephesians 1:4). Eden Alexander states that there is nothing you can do wrong and that he experienced an emotional truth (Romans 3:10, 23). Again, emotionalism does not validate truth and there is something we can do wrong; we are sinners. Colton Burpo claims that Heaven has pearly gates but John states that these gates came down from heaven and not in heaven because they will be in the new earth (Revelation 21:21). Colton either misunderstood this or misspoke; but misunderstanding or misspeaking can not be divine; The Holy Spirit did not allow for mistakes because He can not make mistakes when guiding the words of those who were qualified to pen divine truths.
Also read Does Heaven have Pearly Gates with Gold Streets? | Your Feelings Do Not Determine Truth
Near Death is not Absolute Death
Those who make claims of dying do not actually experience absolute death and separation from their flesh. They may be announced as clinically dead by limited human understanding of death; but clearly and obviously they do not experience the moment when we go to our “eternal home”, the “silver cord is severed”, and “the dust returns to the ground” (Eccl. 12:5-7). Eternally returning home is not a temporary event; it is eternal. Though our home that awaits may be a place of eternity, going there is not a temporary event. According to scripture, they were not actually dead. They ‘returned’ and their silver cord of life in this world was not severed.
That brings up a good question, why couldn’t those who claim to experience the after life been raised from absolute death to explain how they have returned. A counter question is, why didn’t the Apostles raise themselves from absolute death? The Apostles claims were validated before their death and they didn’t attempt to raise each other from the dead either. Paul never claimed to have actually died when he was given his vision he was unwilling to speak of in 2 Corinthians 12:2-5. So near-death experiences are not people who were raised from the dead because they were never actually absolutely dead. They may have been clinically declared ‘dead’ by our biological understanding of death, but there is no scriptural support for them being raised from actual absolute death. If they claim to have actually died, they are in error and have no biblical support for their claim.
What about Lazarus? Jesus raised him from the dead, right? But do you also notice that Lazarus does not make a single claim of what he saw, if he saw anything at all. For all we know, he just felt like he was asleep. He closed his eyes, and boom, woke back up at the sound of Jesus’ commanding voice. Lazarus was defiantly clinically dead. There was nothing more in this natural world that could be done to revive him. He was wrapped, spiced, and oiled. Then his body was taken to the tomb and was laid to rest. In this supernatural event, he obviously did not go on into eternity; he was woken back up four days later. His body did not see decay or return to the earth either; the Pharisees wanted to kill him still (John 12:10). Therefore, we can see that his “silver cord” from this world was not severed. Purposely to show the power of Jesus over death, which defeats death and prevents death. Also, notice, Lazarus was not raised in his Glorified eternal body.
Lazarus died before Jesus, but Jesus was the first to be raised from absolute death (Rom. 8:29; Col. 1:18; Rev. 1:5) leaving behind his worldly body; unlike Lazarus. That means that Lazarus was not raised from eternal bodily death but a clinical death as an example of Jesus’ power and authority over death and the natural world. Power over clinical death is a tangible and visual example Jesus’ power over spiritual death to give spiritual life; much like healing the physically blind to see spiritual truths. A physical example to teach a spiritual truth. That truth is that there is spiritual eternal life in Jesus Christ. Those who claim to have actually died and come back would then also be comparing themselves to Lazarus; but ignorantly validating a clinical death and not absolute bodily death and resurrection.
There were resurrections before Jesus’ Resurrection (1 Kings 17:17–24; 2 Kings 4:18–37; 13:20–21; Luke 7:11–17; 8:52–56; John 11; Matthew 27:50–53) BUT Jesus was the FIRST born of the DEAD (Rom. 8:29; Col. 1:18; Rev. 1:5). Thus, they were raised from a clinical death where no natural force could keep them from absolute death, except by a supernatural force. Jesus was raised from absolute death. He gave up his spirit and returned in a supernatural glorified state. Near-death experiences are just that, near death, and are not resurrections from absolute death.
Also read How Holy is God?
The Verdict
After testing the modern afterlife claims with themselves and scripture it becomes clear that these claims can not be absolutely truth in and of themselves. Though visions are given to people, these major motion pictures and best selling books of after life experiences can not be of divine origins due to the contradictions and fallacies they contain. We are commanded to test everything with Holy Scripture so that we remain completely dependent on God and not lead astray to trust in other people making all kinds of false claims.
What is most commonly lost in these claims is the acceptance and understanding of Prophet and Apostle Authority. The Bereans tested Paul’s claims with the Prophets (Holy Scripture). The Apostles claims were validated by God himself through healing and raising clinically dead people; along with support of the Prophets. The Apostles tested Paul’s claims with what they had witnessed; given their unique position as eye witnesses of the Risen and Glorified Christ. This is because only the Prophets and The Apostles have this unique authority, and it was by this authority their claims were validated so that we can use their claims to test everything by them. Holy Scripture contains all the claims of the Prophets and Apostles that have been absolutely validated by God through The Holy Spirit. Colton Burpo, Mary Neal, Eden Alexander, Joseph Smith, Muhammad, and many others do not have Prophetic and Apostolic Authority in their claims. It is a natural self-seeking self-righteous desire to associate true or false experiences with a self-validating authoritative position; of which only God has previously granted to The Prophets and The Apostles. Of Whom were lead by The Holy Spirit to record Holy Scripture to guide us to real spiritual truths now.
Is it possible they experienced seeing amazing things? Of course. Does that mean they were of divine origin? Of course not. Hallucinations, vivid imaginations, and vivid dreams can be very real and impact the lives of people that experienced them. This is why they must be tested so that people who are truly seeking God are not lead by false claims of divine spiritual truths. We see this sad reality in evangelical Spiritual Legalists, Mormonism, and Islam.
Also read Hyper Spiritualism | What Happens When We Die | The Joy of TRUTH | Spiritual Legalism
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