II Timothy 4:3 & 4 “For the time will come when men will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.” Dear Prayer Warriors, I often reflect that we are living in an upside-down-and-backwards era of the Church and Christianity. Is it no wonder that, among Pentecostals, Charismatics and evangelical mystics, doctrine is viewed with disdain and considered “cold,” while mystical/spiritist experiences of any kind are viewed as vibrant, alive and “spiritual.” I have been reminded of this once again while I am ministering in Cameroon--not that Cameroon is unique in this area, for these trends spring from Pentecostal/Charismatic media-driven teachings in the U.S. and spread throughout the Christian community. Their disdain for doctrine, however, is problematic, given the number of times God the Holy Spirit exhorts to sound doctrine and warns against the dark days when men will turn away from sound doctrine. God the Holy Spirit uses the ability to exhort according to sound doctrine as a qualification for an elder in the church – Titus 1:9 “holding fast the faithful word which in accordance with the teaching so that he will be able to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.” Again we are exhorted by God the Holy Spirit in Titus 2:1 “But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine.” In Titus 2:7, the young men in the church are commanded, “in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds with purity of doctrine…” Thus the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement has the whole thing “upside down.” By this I mean that they have the whole thing backwards, reversed, completely opposite than what is taught in the Bible. They deride as cold and lifeless the teaching and holding to doctrine in the church (which is specifically commanded by God the Holy Spirit,) while lifting up as spirit-filled that which God the Holy Spirit specifically warns against – the abandoning of the teaching of sound doctrines in the church. Here are a few examples of “upside down” Christianity being imported from the media outlets of the Charismatic and Pentecostal movements to Cameroon… “Cold Doctrine” – What could be further from the truth? The Apostle Paul in Holy Scriptures constantly attacks teachings which spring not from the sound doctrines of God the Holy Spirit but, instead, the feelings and mystical experiences of men. I often ask those who decry “cold doctrine” as a sign of weakness in the Church, “Which doctrines do you find cold? The virgin birth? The blood of Christ? Grace? Mercy? The second coming? Eternal security? The Holy Trinity? (It should be noted that the United Pentecostal Church openly denies both the doctrines of the Holy Trinity and eternal security on their website.) The inspiration of the written Word of God? Tell me, which of these doctrines do you find cold and lifeless?” This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. “Where’s Jesus?” The modern church has historically known only one type of mass meeting, that being an evangelistic meeting. This became known, through the ministries of modern evangelists such as Billy Sunday and Billy Graham, as the “evangelistic crusade” --as well as from groups such as Crusade, Campus Crusade for Christ. In addition, local church crusades were organized, where an evangelist presents the gospel over a weekend or a week. These meetings centered upon the proclamation of Jesus and were about a saving knowledge of Jesus. This follows the model of the Apostles, where both the teaching and the examples given in Acts are always about the public proclamation of Jesus for salvation. As I say over and over in my messages, “It is all about Jesus.” We live in a day, though, when mysticism and spiritism abound. Even though alien to holy Scripture and even though not a single example is given in the book of Acts, I am constantly barraged by posters here in Cameroon and Nigeria of “Holy Spirit Crusades,” “Miracle Crusades,” “Deliverance Crusades” – you see “fire from heaven,” “signs and wonders,” “get your miracle,” “power,” “whirlwind” -- but no mention of Jesus. You see larger-than-life photos of false teachers but no Jesus. This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. Healing vs. Heaven – In these so called “miracle crusades,” people are taught that the only reason they are sick is because of a lack of faith--that by faith (and a faith offering) the false apostle or prophet or miracle worker promises there will be healing. This, of course, is upside down. If, by faith, all illnesses are healed, then the only people populating heaven are those with no faith or weak faith. All others are healed. It is by organ failure that we go to heaven – either trauma (auto accident) or by disease (cancer) or by wear and tear (simple organ failure.) No one goes to heaven by getting well. Are we to believe that only the weak in faith go to heaven and the strong in faith populate the earth? That to die is a mark of shame and lack of faith for both the living and the dying? This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. Babies – These false apostles, false prophets and false miracle workers will often persecute women in the church by telling them that the reason they do not have a baby is because of lack of faith. This is despite the clear doctrinal teaching in the holy Scriptures in Psalms 127:3 . Babies are “a” gift of God, not “the” gift of God. Nowhere in holy Scriptures are we taught that women do not have babies because of lack of faith. In fact, the exact opposite is true. Child-bearing is a universal gift given to all mankind (Genesis 1:27 & 28). Any Muslim woman can have multiple babies, any drug addict/prostitute can get pregnant, any demon-possessed satan worshiper can have a baby. Are we to tell the dear saints of God who labor so selfishly in the church that they are not pregnant because of a lack of faith and that, instead, God is honoring the prayers of Hindus, Mormons, Muslims, demon worshipers and worse? This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. Money and Miracles – In all instances of taking money for miracles, God condemns and judges, yet these false prophets, false apostles and false teachers continue to set aside the Word of God for their own teachings. I hear of examples in America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Often people are exhorted to come forward and place their money in the open Bible of the false prophet to get their miracle. Others are exhorted to give “seed gifts” to the false teacher to insure their miracle. I have actually heard false teachers exhort people to give money designated for electric bills, food, clothing and other necessities, so that by faith God may grant them their miracle. This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. Faith in Belief Rather than Faith in Jesus – Again, the false teachers, prophets and so-called apostles have it upside down. Rather than exhorting Christians to place their faith in Jesus and obey Him as revealed in His holy, eternal, inerrant written Word, they, instead, exhort man to place his faith in belief. If he only believes hard enough, then the storehouses of heaven will open to him. Not surprisingly, “seed gifts” of money will help augment any lack of belief. Holy Scripture never teaches us to place our faith in belief in order for God to act on our behalf. Instead, Christians are to place their faith in Christ and then act on His behalf in accordance with the written Word of God. This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. Giving vs. Taking Orders in Prayer – this second error tracks the “faith in belief” teaching. Think about it for a moment--who is the one in charge? The one giving the order or the one taking the order? Yet these false prophets and so-called apostles openly teach that if you only have enough faith to believe strongly, God will act according to your prayers. This is completely opposite from the teachings of holy Scripture. Faith is not the ability to get God to get off His throne and run around the world doing our bidding. Rather, by faith in Christ and in obedience to His holy written Word, we get up off our pews and run around the world doing His bidding. Nowhere in holy Scripture is man given the power to compel God to act on man’s behalf - This is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. God Keeping Us Happy vs. Us Making God Happy – When I ask the question, “God wants me to be happy doesn’t He?” The universal response is “Yes!” This is just what is taught by false prophets, false apostles and “miracle” workers. It is God’s job to keep us happy and by faith God will do just that, they teach. There is a problem, however. If God is responsible to keep us happy, then who is in charge? God never promises to keep us happy. God promises to make us holy, fruitful, fulfilled and set apart for His service and His glory. This may entail times of happiness but it will also entail times of trial, persecution and sadness. God the Holy Spirit makes this clear in Hebrews 12:11 “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful, yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” The teaching that, through faith, we will be kept constantly happy by God, is alien to holy Scripture. This teaching is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. Testing God with Miracles vs. God Testing Us – These false teachers call upon Christians to test God through “fleeces,” through miracles, through false spiritual equations for blessings which, always, call for their receiving more and more “seed gifts of faith” in monetary form. This is completely upside down. Who is in charge, the one presenting the test or the one being tested? We do not test God, rather God tests us – our faith and our obedience. The teaching that man can and should test God is opposed to holy Scripture. This teaching is completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. It is time for the church, for Christians teachers, for pastors, elders and deacons to stand up and oppose the false teachings of the Charismatic/Pentecostal mystics and spiritists in the church and in the Christian community as a whole. I realize that there is a lot of money to be made in these false teachings – yet we have been prepared for this by God the Holy Spirit in II Timothy 4:3 & 4 --“For the time will come when men will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.” The next time you hear someone speak of “cold doctrine,” speak up! The next time you hear of or see a promotion of some type of miracle/spiritist crusade that does not mention Jesus, speak up! The next time you hear of universal healing, of so-called “seed gifts” for prosperity, of putting down “fleeces” to test God, of faith in a belief that God will do our bidding – speak up! These teachings are completely upside down and should be opposed openly in our churches. By His mercy, II Corinthians 4: Rev. John S. Mahon – teaching sound doctrine and opposing the false teachings of mystics and spiritists wherever and whenever they occur – in Russia, in Cameroon, in Kenya and throughout the harvest fields of the world.
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