I responded to another blog post which a brother entitled "A great read! The Blessing of the Lord Maketh Rich and He Adds No Sorrow to It by Kenneth Copeland." Amazingly, after I provided two messages with ample evidence that the late Kenneth Hagin, founder of the word-faith movement, and Kenneth Copeland, his disciple, are false prophets, those messages were deleted from that blog.
Odd that a Christian would want to suppress the truth. Jesus Christ said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no man cometh to the Father but by Me," and indeed He is. And the Bible tells us that the Father draws men to Christ by the Holy Spirit. What is dangerous is that many young Christians, seeking to have deeply spiritual experiences, often do not test the spirits, and gladly accept any wind that blows their way. As a result false revivals like "the Toronto blessing" or "the Brownsville (Florida) revival" -- or, more recently, Todd Bentley's short-lived mania, also in Florida --- have wreaked havoc amongst the charismatic community. Anything that has people twitching like they have a nervous disorder, barking like dogs, clucking like chickens, or behaving like drunkards is obviously demonic.
I say this, being a Spirit-filled, Spirit-led believer. The baptism of the Holy Ghost is very real and wonderful. I was saved in childhood, backslid from 18 - 25 (thank God for praying mothers!), and was baptized in the Holy Ghost in 1993 with the initial evidence of speaking with tongues. I was alone in prayer in my bedroom and the Lord met me wonderfully, and I have subsequently been more sensitive to His presence than ever before. Signs and wonders do follow those who believe in Christ, according to His Word. They follow us; we shouldn't chase after them. Keep your eyes on Jesus. They only confirm the work of the Holy Spirit in the midst of believers. God is not weird; He is astonishingly powerful and astonishingly humble. No one else deserves all of our praise, and yet so much of what He does and has done is taken for granted by believers, especially in the western world.
So much of what I see in the charismatic world is fueled by sensuality. They'll never say it, but many are thinking, "Why should I read my Bible and obey the parts that are most unpleasant to my self-blessing agenda (like denying self, mortifying the deeds of the flesh by the Spirit, etc.) when I can just go to the meeting and get 'zapped' by the latest traveling 'evangelist'?" And so they do, and it opens them up to the demonic. Rodney Howard-Browne, a white African known in the '90s as the 'Holy Ghost Bartender' (itself a blasphemous title), was only one of many who preyed upon the many unstable souls in charismatic and pentecostal circles, making them 'fall out', laugh uncontrollably, etc. At the end of the day, there was NO CHANGE OF HEART, NO INCREASED CLOSENESS TO JESUS, NO DEALING WITH THE SIN NATURE. Instead, the flesh was worked up, and the people wanted more. They were hooked. Same with Benny Hinn and others of that ilk (and they often teamed up, these types, but not for too long; clashing egos ended that).
Here is video footage of Rodney Howard-Browne and Kenneth Copeland, joking with each other in tongues. It is a disgusting parody of the genuine and holy gift:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixOr_bT0mOk
Kenneth Copeland's teachings are so obviously heretical that it boggles the mind that any real born again believers in Christ could read his work, but some do. Here are just a few examples of his false teachings:
http://www.cephasministry.com/kenneth_copeland.html
We shouldn't feed on poison, or it will indeed harm us, and frustrate the grace of God in our lives. So many counterfeits and mixtures are out there. Is any man perfect? No---only Jesus. However, those who wilfully err, and teach others to do so also, should be avoided. The Bible is our guide in these matters, and the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth as we prayerfully read.
Dr. Joseph Chambers, an old-time Pentecostal preacher, put this excellent documentary together, "Kenneth Hagin and the Spirit of the Serpent", which exposes the word-faith movement, using the Scriptures as counterpoint to actual footage from Hagin's meetings (where Copeland was also present):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdzSseghu58
I love our Lord Jesus Christ with all my heart and bear malice to no man---but, like Jesus, I hate sin, as it is a spiritual cancer that is fatal to those who do not destroy it by laying hold of Christ's victory wrought for us at Calvary's cross where His broken body and shed blood paid the price for our sins, and where His atonement provides not only salvation, but a COVERING against every wind of doctrine and against every lying spirit (there is the Spirit of truth, and the spirit of error, the Bible tells us).
We must not be afraid to stand for truth, no matter how unpopular it may make us.
In Jesus' love,
Alec Stevens
