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Liberty Advocate http://www.libertyadvocate.com
Todd Bentley Revival:
Rebellion Against God's Law
by
Karen Pansler-Lam, J.D.
June 2008
What's really happening at the Lakeland "Revival" with Todd Bentley?
The revival is a rebellion against God's Law.
Bentley and his barbarians want to invade and desecrate the Church of God and convert it into the synagogue of Satan.
This revival is a battle between two kingdoms – the kingdom of Satan and the kingdom of God.
In this great and terrible spiritual battle, Todd Bentley and his barbaric Christian warriors want to storm into the Church and rob it of piety.
They want to desecrate the sanctuary with profane reveling and call it “worship.”
If the rebellious fervor of these barbaric false Christians sweeps across the nation and around the world, it will plummet the Church into the abyss of spiritual darkness - the Christian Dark Ages.
My hometown is Lakeland, Florida, where the Todd Bentley “revival” is taking place. I went to the revival one night.
This is what I saw. . .
This is what I heard. . .
As I drove closer to the grass parking lot, I could hear the music blaring from the gigantic white tent where the revival was held. Of course, I couldn’t understand the words, but the beat was strong and the music was loud.
While walking from my car toward the tent, two men and I started talking. They were excited about the revival. One man spoke with an Irish accent and explained he came all the way from Ireland to be a part of the revival. He and others had been out witnessing that afternoon. And he went on to explain that there is a famine of the Word of God around the world.
“Yes,” I agreed. “ There is a great famine of the Word of God. But the Bible warns us to beware of false prophets. We must try the spirits to see if someone is preaching the Word of God.”
“Well,” he replied. “I don’t agree with all of Bentley’s theology, but I just take the good and throw out the bad.”
Needless to say, I was appalled. “Listen, the Bible warns that if someone doesn’t preach the whole truth according to the Word of God, he is a false prophet. Yes, we desperately need a revival; however, it must be a true revival.”
By this time, we had reached the tent. We politely bid each other goodbye and went our separate ways. That was the last time I saw him.
The music was deafening. After entering the tent, I walked all around to see who was attending. The audience was mixed: youth, middle-aged, and, surprisingly, elderly. At some point, a man on the stage said he felt “drunk.” I don’t recall his name or his purpose, but he was somehow connected with Bentley. I was appalled that a Christian would say he felt “drunk.”
The atmosphere was like a rock concert: loud music, loud singing, and some of the people were swaying and dancing. Many people were gathered around the stage. So, I decided to go up front and stand in the heart of the group. I got as close as I could at one side of the stage.
The speakers were blaring and the singer and audience kept repeating the same four lines over and over again. I can’t remember the words, but the song was shallow and superficial; and the beat overpowered the words and controlled the people. Clearly, the audience was driven by carnality. And, frankly, a lot of the audience’s behavior was theatrical, not spiritual. They knew Bentley expected them to be a part of the performance, and so they delighted in dancing and shouting and other reveling to please him. In other words, they participated in the show.
Standing in the midst of such carnal reveling, I thought to myself: “I have never been in such a wicked place.” As they shouted louder and louder, I prayed aloud: “I am covered by the blood of the Lamb.” Of course, no one could hear me over the roar of the revelry.
After looking around and observing those near me, I glanced up at the stage - there stood Todd Bentley. There was something about his spirit that caused a dark, still horror in my soul. During this time of “praise and worship,” he appeared to be chewing gum as he laughed and joked with his buddies seated on the stage. He showed no reverence for worship. He showed no respect for worship. He laughed as if it were a big joke.
Then Bentley began to strut back and forth across the stage and I could not get a good look at him. So, I started to walk to the other side of the tent.
Now, listen very carefully, my dear friend: As I walked by an elderly couple, the woman glared at me and said in a husky voice just barely loud enough for me to hear over the loud reveling, “Leave!” I barely heard it. Earlier I noticed her glaring at me as I walked by. Was it because I was clutching the Bible close to my heart? Was it because I was dressed “traditionally”? Or, was it spiritual warfare? Listen, my dear friend, we are fighting spiritual wickedness in high places and we don’t fully understand the spiritual battle that we may walk into the midst of at times.
Let me repeat: she said to me in a husky voice, “Leave!” But I would not leave, not yet. I held my Bible a little closer to my heart and continued to pray. Then I walked to the other side of the tent. I looked up at Bentley on one of the huge projection screens. What a hellish figure: “Christian” tattoos, facial piercings, and large satanic rings! He wore blue jeans and a t-shirt that read on the back “Xtreme Torture” with a Celtic cross in the middle of wings. The message of the shirt seemed to revel in the “Xtreme Torture” of Jesus on the cross. It was as though Satan himself were strutting the stage.
As Bentley paced the stage, he was sweating profusely and shouting at the people to yell “Jesus” and other words. And he yelled, “We are going to spread this revival all around the world!" The people responded with thundering shouts of approval.
Then Bentley shouted a promise, “Tonight some of you will receive great power!” He promised this power through an “open portal that will never close.” Now, let me tell you, my dear friend, every time Bentley talked about receiving this power, I prayed aloud: “I am covered by the blood of the Lamb.” I wanted none of this power from an open portal. And then he talked about receiving a special anointing. And I wanted none of this anointing, so, again I prayed: “I am covered by the blood of the Lamb.”
I left.
The
Barbarian Invasion of the Church
It
is written:
And
upon this rock I will build by church;
and
the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Matthew 16:18
Todd Bentley and his fellow barbarians want to storm their way into the Old Christian world and turn Christian civilization into paganized Christianity. They want to rule the Church by Biblical ignorance and demonic supernaturalism. And they oppress true Christians to drive them out so they can capture Christendom. Even though they don’t have power enough to destroy the Church, they can desecrate it. And the revival is the battle cry of rebels to invade the Church and defile the sanctuary.
My dear friend, at no time during the revival did I feel the power of the Holy Spirit. Oh, yes, there was a spirit, but it was not holy. It was the spirit of rebellion.
Rebellion against sacredness.
Rebellion against reverence.
Rebellion against sound doctrine.
Rebellion against Biblical Law.
These rebels demand to intermarry heathenism with Christianity and still be accepted as true Christians. These rebels demand that Christianity be degraded into a primitive and barbaric blend of the unholy powers of darkness with carnal revelry and selected Scripture. The mission of these barbaric “Christian” warriors is to incite men, women and youth to spread this rebellion and destroy sanctity, reverence, and holiness throughout the Christian world. Their ultimate goal is to destroy the true Christian Church.
The revival is a spiritual battle between the holy and the unholy.
The revival is a spiritual battle between the darkness and the light.
The revival is a spiritual battle between true Christianity and false Christianity.
The revival is a spiritual battle between good and evil.
The revival is a battle between two kingdoms – the kingdom of Satan and the Kingdom of God.
In this great and terrible spiritual battle, these barbaric Christian warriors want to storm into the Church and rob it of piety. They want to desecrate the sanctuary with profane reveling and call it “worship.” They want to rebuild the Church of God into the synagogue of Satan.
If the rebellious fervor of these barbaric false Christians sweeps across the nation and around the world, it will plummet the Church into the abyss of spiritual darkness - the Christian Dark Ages.
Shame
on Evangelicals
It is written:
Then
the Lord said unto me,
The
prophets prophesy lies in my name:
I
sent them not,
neither
have I commanded them,
neither
spake unto them:
they
prophesy unto you a false vision and divination,
and
a thing of nought,
and
the deceit of their heart.
Jeremiah 14:14
If
ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
And
ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:31, 32
For
the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine;
but
after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers,
having
itching ears;
And
they shall turn away their ears from the truth,
and
shall be turned unto fables. II Timothy 4:3, 4
The weak Church empowered these barbaric false Christians to storm into the sanctuary. Evangelicals have allowed the heretical teachings of Rick Warren, televangelists, and other high profile preachers of false gospels to weaken sound doctrine and pave the way for doctrines of devils and rebellious worship. Even though Rick Warren’s false doctrines are subtle, they still paved the way for these barbarians to thunder into the Church and demand to take it over. False preaching and false teaching have created so much confusion and doubt about Biblical truths that many professing Christians are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. In order to prevail over the barbarian invasion of Christendom, church officials must take a stand. They must protect the Kingdom of God from enemies of the Church.
I applaud Dr. George O. Wood, General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God, for issuing a statement providing Scriptural guidelines for discerning true revival. However, it’s a shame that Assemblies of God members are so ignorant of Scripture that Wood has to issue a statement giving Scriptural guidelines. Sadly, this is true of many evangelical denominations. Shame on evangelicals!
And,
of course, lay Christians are to blame for allowing barbarians to invade
Christendom because we refuse to study the Word of God to know the truth.
Jesus said, “If
ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And
ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John
8:31, 32).
Shame on us! We are rebellious children who desire to be deceived. We desire to hear lies, not the truth. We want religious leaders to prophesy deceits. “That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits” (Isaiah 30:9, 10).
Look, my dear friend, this is important. People will go to hell if they are taken captive by these lies. People will go to hell for rebelling against God's Law. People will go to hell!
Money and souls are the plunder that Bentley and these barbarians will seize by invading and desecrating the Church. They are deceivers and robbers.
The revival is a rebellion against God’s Law.
Defiling
Our Body; Defiling the Temple
It
is written:
Ye
shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead,
nor
print any marks upon you:
I
am the Lord. Leviticus 19:28
Abstain
from all appearance of evil. I Thessalonians 5:22
Barbaric Christians are hostile to a higher state of Christianity. So, they rebel by mutilating the body with tattoos and piercing.
Ritual cutting and puncturing was practiced in the Old Testament pagan world. When God delivered the Hebrews out of Egypt, He gave them laws: health laws, personal laws, sacrificial laws, and so forth. These laws were given by God to prepare the Hebrews for founding the nation of Israel. They had been living under heathen laws in Egypt, and God gave them laws to raise them up from the depths of barbaric paganism to the heights of civilized monotheism.
One of the personal laws concerned cutting the flesh or printing marks on the body: “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord.” Some argue that Leviticus merely forbids us to tattoo ourselves in memory of the dead. But tattooing has always been connected with idolatrous practices. Often, it is believed that the wearer of an image calls the spirit of that image.
Clearly, the barbaric practice of tattooing or piercing is unbecoming to the dignity of God’s people. We must never mar our bodies - His creation - with permanent marking, deliberate scarring, piercing, and other mutilation. Besides tattoos and other mutilations are generally associated with gangs, criminals, and heathen tribes.
Digressing for a moment, do you remember the night I attended the revival Bentley wore a black t-shirt that read on the back “Xtreme Torture” with a Celtic cross in the middle of wings? As I stated before, the shirt's message seemed to revel in the “Xtreme Torture” of Jesus on the cross. Bentley’s shirt seemed to revel in the nail pierced hands and feet of Jesus. It reveled in the torture and mutilation of Jesus’ body.
Furthermore, we know that Jesus died and arose so that we may be filled with the Holy Ghost. Paul declares that our body is the temple of the Holy Ghost:
15 Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ?
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 or ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. (I Corinthians 6:15-20)
Look at it this way: If you went to your church on Sunday morning and saw someone had painted “Christian” graffiti on the church building, wouldn’t you be angry? Yes! So, why shouldn’t you be angry when rebellious and barbaric false Christians demand to mutilate their bodies with tattoos and piercing that defile their body – the temple of the Holy Ghost?
Tattoos and piercing mutilate the body.
Tattoos and piercing are barbaric and pagan.
Mutilating the body with tattoos or piercing is rebellion against God.
Bentley
and his barbarians not only want to defile the Church, they want us to
defile our body – the temple of the Holy Ghost
The revival is a rebellion against God’s Law.
Revelry,
or Rebellious Worship
It
is written:
Ye
shall keep my sabbaths,
and
reverence my sanctuary:
I
am the Lord. Leviticus 19:30
Give
unto the Lord the glory due his name;
worship
the Lord in the beauty of holiness. Psalm 29:2
My
house shall be called the house of prayer. Matthew 21:13
Rebellious Christians demand carnal worship to satisfy the flesh. Rebellious Christians want unclean worship, including unclean music. The music at the revival was loud. The music was banal. The music was primitive. The music was carnal reveling. And reveling is rebellion against sacred worship. Reveling means a noisy festivity. It comes from Old French reveler, to make noise, “to rebel,” from Latin rebelare. And it is one of the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:16-21). Reveling and worshipping are not the same. “Christian” rock music revels in the carnal. “Christian” rock music is heathen. “Christian” rock music is rebellion.
The
main purpose of Christian rock music is to act as a popular medium for
false Christians to advance their rebellion against established
Biblical doctrines. Christian rock is really rebellion against the
established Biblical doctrines of reverence and sanctity and holiness.
The real message in Christian rock is a contempt and hatred and
fierceness toward true worship.
And that is what pervades the revelry of Bentley’s revival – the spirit of rebellion. Bentley uses Christian rock music to rebel against the Biblical doctrines of reverence and sanctity and holiness. These barbaric false Christians refuse to separate from the world, and they want the Church to be part of the world. But Paul tells us in his second letter to the Corinthians (6:14-18) to come out from among unbelievers and touch not the unclean thing: 14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15
And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that
believeth with an infidel? 16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Rebellious false Christians refuse to obey Scripture. They demand to intermarry paganism and Christianity.
Listen, friend, we cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the devil’s table: “But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils” (I Corinthians 10:20, 21).
The violent ranting, loud chanting, wild raving, deafening harsh and clamorous music, and other barbaric revelry of Bentley’s revival conjure up a nightmare of the warfare of primitive and savage heathens. For example, John King writes in The Kingdom of the Celts that ancient Celtic battles were noisy. Their peculiarly barbaric battle trumpets produced a harsh sound which suited the tumult of war’ In addition, the battle cries, the howling from women and the hurling of insults from the men, and perhaps war drums, pipes, and rattles may have contributed to the battle din.
And that is a pretty good description of Bentley’s revival. The whole atmosphere was barbaric reveling! The music was loud and harsh! Bentley was urging the audience to shout as loud as they could similar to the battle cries of the ancient Celts! He was yelling, "We are going to spread this revival around the world!" And the carnal revelry of men and women contributed to the battle din of barbaric spiritual warfare!
The revival is rebellion against true worship. The revival is a battle of spiritual warfare to overpower and destroy sanctity and reverence and holiness.
The revival is a rebellion against God’s Law.
Doctrines
of Devils, Seducing Spirits
It
is written:
Beware of false prophets,
which come to you in
sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Matthew
7:15
For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel;
for
Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. II Corinthians 11:14
But
though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than
that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. Galatians 1:8
Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
I
John 4:1
During the time that I attended the revival, Bentley did not mention his “angel” encounters. But this is so important it must be briefly discussed. The apostle Paul admonishes us in Galatians1:6-9:
6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: 7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
9
As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other
gospel unto you than ye have received, let him be accursed.
Bentley boasts about
encounters with Emma, his financial angel, and other doctrines of devils.
And both Todd Bentley and his false prophet
mentor Bob Jones credit an angel that carries the “Winds of Change”
for the current revival – an angel that they say is still driving it. My
dear friend, it is the power of the Holy Spirit that draws us to Christ,
not a wind carried by an angel! If
Bentley is encountering these angels, they are angels of darkness, or
seducing spirits. The apostle Paul declares that angels or men who pervert
the gospel of Christ are cursed!
Furthermore, Bentley uses demonic supernatural powers to perform signs and wonders. To illustrate, let’s examine Bentley’s use of the word “bam” to manifest supernatural power. “Bam” is short for “bamboozle.” It means a trick or a hoax (The New Century Dictionary, 1948). Satan can perform miracles to lead us away from the truth and follow his lies. Now, don’t you suppose the devil laughs every time Bentley bamboozles professing Christians into believing he is actually performing godly signs and wonders?
We must stand fast
in the Word of God so that we will not be carried away by every wind of
doctrine of deceivers:
That we
henceforth be no more children,
tossed to and
fro,
and carried
about with every wind of doctrine,
by the sleight
of men,
and cunning
craftiness,
whereby they lie
in wait to deceive. Ephesians 4:14
We must know the truth of the Gospel so that we will not be bewitched by Bentley’s doctrines of devils. Like it or not, we are engaged in a spiritual battle, and the wiles of the devil are tricks to bewitch us into worshipping him. Doctrines of devils, seducing spirits, and demonic powers are found in the synagogue of Satan, not the House of God. The revival is a rebellion against God's Law.
Defenders of the Faith It is written: Earnestly contend for the faith which was once
delivered unto
the saints. Jude 3
Therefore,
brethren, stand fast,
and hold the
traditions which ye have been taught,
whether by word,
or our epistle. II Thessalonians 2:15 As I said earlier, Todd Bentley and his fellow barbarians want to storm their way into the Old Christian world and turn Christian civilization into paganized Christianity. They want to rule the Church by Biblical ignorance and demonic supernaturalism. And they oppress true Christians to drive them out so that they can capture Christendom.
We must become Christian soldiers and defend the faith once delivered to the saints. We must put on the whole armor of God to keep these barbaric false Christians from invading and destroying Christendom.
For
we wrestle not against flesh and blood,
but
against principalities,
against
powers,
against
the rulers of the darkness of this world,
against
spiritual wickedness in high
places. Ephesians 6:12
We must girt our loins with truth, put on the breastplate of righteousness; shod our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, take up the shield of faith with which we are able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And we must take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
And we must pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.
My dear friend, put on the whole armor of God! Onward, Christian soldier!
If the rebellious fervor of these barbaric false Christians sweeps across the nation and around the world, it will plummet the Church into the abyss of spiritual darkness - the Christian Dark Ages.
Faithfully
serving our Lord Jesus Christ,
Karen
Pansler Lam, J.D.
Liberty
Advocate http://www.libertyadvocate.com
______________________________
Even though I do not endorse all views expressed on the following Web sites, they are worth reading: 1) Assemblies of God Statement on Revival, Dr. George O. Wood, General Superintendent http://ag.org/top/General_Superintendent/Statement_on_Revival.cfm
2) "Tattoo. . . Ye
Worship Ye Know Not What "Ye worship ye know not what. .
." http://www.biblebelievers.com/watkins_tattoos/pagan.html
3) http://www.scribd.com/doc/2909690/AN-ANGEL-CALLED-EMMA
4) "Examining Bob Jones’ Shepherd’s Rod," Cephas Ministry. http://www.cephasministry.com/joels_army_shepherds_rod.html
Bob Jones is one of Todd Bentley’s mentors.
Bob Jones is one of the Kansas City Prophets. Seen by some as the most controversial of the Kansas City Prophets. Was removed from the Vineyard Anaheim because of sexual improprieties, which consisted of encouraging women to undress in his office so they could stand "naked before the Lord" in order to receive a "word." Still active today, with the abundant support of Rick Joyner. Jones is a major proponent of Latter Rain and Manifest Sons theology.
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