The Failure Of The Word Of Faith Movement

I was once a proponent of the "faith movement." In a Baptist church, several ladies would travel to Tulsa OK to be a part of Kenneth Hagin's Word of Faith Campmeetings.

I've never attended one and I'm glad that I didn't go.

My wife and I applied to become students at Rhema Bible Training Center in 1984 but we were turned down. At first, we were disappointed, but looking back, I'm glad that we were turned down. Turned out that SOME of Tulsa OK was very poor and living in crime ridden areas was unacceptable. Downgrading from Brooklyn, NY to Tulsa OK was unacceptable. There wouldn't be any good paying jobs to sustain good housing and living conditions.

But it didn't stop me from listening to many of their teachings from these meetings. I would read their books and then I would start teaching some of these things in a Baptist church.

I would learn how to manipulate Scripture. Teaching extra Biblical things that weren't in Scripture. I would tell their stories and try to justify their stories with the same Scriptures. The intent would be to get people interested in me instead of the Word and the Lord.

Then when these preachers would come to NYC, we would be excited because perhaps, we would see what they were talking about. But to my disappointment, nothing notable happened.

It took years to understand that it was all a hoax. It wasn't real.

Television has a way of making someone bigger than they really are.

Here's some of the things that we were taught from the books that we've bought.

We were taught the gifts of the Spirit were today from 1 Corinthians chapters 12 and 14. We were taught that speaking in tongues was for today. We were taught that divine healing and divine authority were for today. We were taught that there's more to the Lord than what we were getting from the denominational churches. We were taught that the denominational churches were the enemy.

We were taught that speaking the Word of God as a confession of faith from Mark 11:23-24 were for today. We were taught that denominations were dead and without the Spirit.

It's true that some denominational churches were already left leaning. In most cases, you will have homosexual musicians and singers. Pastors were committing adultery with their church secretaries. Deacons were smoking and committing adultery with church members.

But sexual immorality was operating in WOF and pentecostal churches too.

We were also taught that denominational churches were full of Pharisees and Sadducees, and that they were legalistic. That denominational churches prohibited any thorough examination and testings of leaders in the Word of Faith and Charismatic movements.

We were taught that we were to tithe and give offerings above and beyond tithing.

However, after a robust examination of what they were teaching, it appears that they were lacking true consistent and contextual Biblical evidence.

Now just because they were lacking evidence, it doesn't mean that the Lord stopped manifesting His power when He wants to. It just meant that the proponents of the gifts of the Spirit and other things that's in Scripture were lacking substance, context, and evidence.

And when you challenge them in love, they become extremely defensive. If you're a true believer in Christ, you want the truth.

The proponents of the WOF (Word Of Faith) and Charismatic Movement would get defiant when you want answers to their questions. Their supporters would circle the wagons around their leaders and attack you for asking questions. Then when you see some of them get caught in money and sexual scandals, it exposes their real assignment.

Cases in point, many of Benny Hinn's, Kenneth Hagin's, T. D. Jakes', Kenneth Copeland's, Creflo Dollar's, Jessie Duplantis' meetings and others, were filled with controversy. Anytime some one would use "Fair Use" to describe their error, they would hire attorneys and command you to take down any criticism or face a lawsuit.

It gets to the point that someone is right and someone is wrong and all you want is the truth and you want true answers that make sense.

The people and leaders that remain with WOF have learned how to respond to anyone that would question their ministry, authority, and anointing.

Psalms 105:15 (NKJV)

"Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.”

Some of them would uses the story where Miriam and Aaron, Moses brother, would attack Moses (see Numbers chapter 12). To warn people not to "put your mouth on the prophet of God)."

They would "curse you" and do all sorts of things that come short of true Biblical love and leadership. Instead of being transparent, they would act like wolves and devour anyone that would expose them.

Like any movement, people desire to see God do miraculous things that's were seen during the days of the beginning of the (NT) New Testament.

Over the course of time, we see that the Lord never stopped doing the miraculous when He decides to do it at His pleasure and not with our permission. God isn't at our beckon and call. He does hear and answer prayer but He does so at His will, and not ours. The problem has always been man attempting to force the miraculous to happen. Also, that man does these things to get money out of you.

Man surely lacks the ability to pull it off.

The evidence isn't there.

Preachers from the WOF movement make all sorts of excuses when it doesn't manifest.

YOU LACK FAITH.

GOD WILL HEAL YOU ONE OF THESE DAYS.

YOU'RE LIVING IN SIN.

JUST KEEP BELIEVING GOD.

IT'S YOUR FAULT, NOT GOD'S.

KEEP PRAYING, IT'LL MANIFEST SOON.

GO THROUGH A SEASON OF FASTING AND PRAYER.

GO READ MY BOOKS UNTIL FAITH RISES IN YOUR HEART.

SOW A SEED OF WHATEVER THE AMOUNT AND GOD WILL HEAL YOU.

YOU ATE YOUR TITHE OR YOU'RE NOT TITHING.

IT WORKED FOR OTHERS AND IT'LL WORK FOR YOU.

Then it hits you like a ton of bricks.

DISAPPOINTMENT!

Their excuses takes control in your mind, so you double down on your efforts to receivce what they were offering but the results are the same. You're so obsessed with their excuses that you come to your wit's end.

You don't know what to believe and some of them walk away from the Lord, never to return.

This is exactly what satan intended.

Shipwrecking your faith in Christ.

2 Timothy 2:16-18 (NKJV)

"But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. And their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort, who have strayed concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some."

But while all of this is going on, someone is praying for you.

It's gotten worse. Music is now masking the lack of evidence of the miraculous and false doctrine has replaced sound doctrine. Many promising ministers are now propagating the same teachings. Music is used as an emotional mask to give the appearance that the presence of the Lord is here.

Music, when it's used rightly, expresses the believers heart to the Lord. But it's no subsititute for His presence. When you walk holy before the Lord, in psirit (life) and tgruth (see John 4:1-24) and obey His Word, whether you're in service or not, you're living in the presence of the Lord.

Africa and other continents have picked up the evil habits of the evil preachers in America.

The false teaching from centuries ago is just repackaged in young up and coming ministers. The emotional hype is fueled by world class music. The atmosphere is filled with professional sound, expensive musicians, and high end instruments.

Rarely do you see anyone with their Bibles opened and rarely will you see anyone challenge their teachings.

What we're seeing today fits in with what the Lord said through Paul.

1 Timothy 4:1-2 (NKJV)

"Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron..."

These "ministries" are tares among wheat.

Matthew 13:37-40 (NKJV)

"He answered and said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one.

The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age."

The WOF/Charismatic Movement is now known as NAR or New Apostolic Reformation where women are pastors and apostles, where men are apostles and prophets.

The Lord warned us of them.

Matthew 7:15-20 (NKJV)

(Matt. 12:33; Luke 6:43–45)

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?

Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them."

Elasticity or extra Biblical teaching is rampant. What they're teaching can't be found in Scripture, and if they use Scripture, they're twisting the Word of God.

2 Peter 3:14-16 (NKJV)

"Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul,

according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures."

Music has dominated the church world where they mask their false teaching behind it. It's where in some of these places, everything behind the scenes is a den of thieves, full of money schemes and sexual immorality.

Where even if sexual immorality isn't going on, bad doctrine is normal.

Here's the solution.

1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 (NKJV)

"Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil."

Ephesians 5:11-13 (NKJV)

"And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light."

1 John 4:1-3 (NKJV)

"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God:

Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world."

2 John 1:7-11 (NKJV)

"For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward.

Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds."

2 Corinthians 6:14-16 (NKJV)

"Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God.

As God has said:

“I will dwell in them

And walk among them.

I will be their God,

And they shall be My people.”

Test them.

Avoid them.

Expose them.

Warn others of them.

Come out from among them and be separate.

Don't be afraid to confront them in love and gentleness to pull them out of the fire. But also know that if they don't want to depart, don't hate them in the same way that they may hate you. Pray for them and walk in love.

Never be satisfied with their answers or excuses unless the answer is from the correct teaching of the Scriptures.