Revival

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Hello Watchman! Regarding these two, I don't know if it's the same in New Zealand but here I noticed a trend of going away from expository bible/gospel preaching into other areas in Charismatic/Pentecostal churches. I remember one meeting I attended in AOG the speaker spoke about his trip to heaven and what he saw, the part that sticks in my mind was about a Samurai sword lying in a stream that he picked up. Either we're breaking new ground or going off on a tangent. I also remember that he did not share anything from the bible during his sermon. God Bless

You are right. The modern Charismatic churches are going away from expository preaching of the Word and moving toward putting faith in experiences. What this means is that there is a lot of teaching coming out of it that is not found in the Bible. They justify this by saying that God is giving them "new revelation" directly from the Holy Spirit. My view is that because the Holy Spirit inspired the Bible, He is not going to contradict what He has already said in it.

Concerning people's trip to heaven. They are lying. Have a look at the different people who say they have been to heaven. All their stories are totally different, yet it is the same heaven they are supposed to have gone to. If their stories all matched they might be a bit believable. Notice that when Paul was caught up into the third heaven he heard things that a man shouldn't utter, yet these people who say they have been to heaven are blabbing all around about what they saw and heard. When people really go to heaven, they never come back, therefore those who say they have been to heaven were either dreaming, or they are flat out lying. If your pastor is preaching stuff that is not found in the Bible, and encouraging experiences and manifestations not found in the New Testament, and telling lies about going to heaven, then get out of there and find a church that does preach the word, even though it might not be Charismatic. Don't be a partaker of his lies and false teaching by remaining under his leadership. Flee away, so that you may not be caught up in the wrath that is to come on false teachers and liars.

 

[lismore]

If your pastor is preaching stuff that is not found in the Bible, and encouraging experiences and manifestations not found in the New Testament, and telling lies about going to heaven, then get out of there and find a church that does preach the word, even though it might not be Charismatic. Don't be a partaker of his lies and false teaching by remaining under his leadership. Flee away, so that you may not be caught up in the wrath that is to come on false teachers and liars.

Thanks Watchman for your interesting post. I left AOG in 2007 for that very reason. God Bless

 

[lismore]

Concerning people's trip to heaven. They are lying. Have a look at the different people who say they have been to heaven. All their stories are totally different, yet it is the same heaven they are supposed to have gone to. If their stories all matched they might be a bit believable.

Hello Watchman! I'm not sure if all these reports are from liars, some may indeed be genuine. The issue may be that false teaching multiplies like food poisoning bacteria, if proper procedures are not followed in a kitchen the bacteria multiply. If proper procedures are not followed in the church false teaching multiplies. The bible says:

Test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22)

It seems to be clear in today's church that testing is not taking place. Forms of evil are permitted in the church and not abstained from. The example you gave, even if a person who said they were in heaven was proved to be a liar it would not impact their celebrity, they would still be promoted in churches and in Christian media. Fame and fortune seem to be the test. God Bless

 

[jiminpa]

You are right. The modern Charismatic churches are going away from expository preaching of the Word and moving toward putting faith in experiences.

The cessationists have been making that false claim for decades, but in reality it's the Spirit-filled believers relying on God's word, and cessationists whose full faith is in man. It's also the cessationist who have this love affair with not studying everything that the Bible says on a specific topic and calling that approach superior, you call that expository, but I consider it to more concealing than exposing.

 

[brainstormer]

I wrote and published a book on revivalin 2016. I was laughed at when I brought up the subject, many times.

Andrew Wommack has the same reaction to the idea that if we lived righteously, and had the wisdom to win souls, we would create the conditions for revival.

Asking God to send revival is like asking God to make everyone righteous.

1) A Key to Understanding Revival

1) God always desires revival.
2) The problem of not having a revival can only be solved at a higher level than it was created at.
3) Revival does not happen because we do not have the wisdom to cause it (He who wins souls is wise).
4) Revival will happen when we can find new bottles to put the new wine in -- you cannot expect the present leadership to cause revival, they can only encourage those who are in revival, and understand what the Lord needs to do in those who are in the population that are not actively involved in church service and attendance.
5) It is a ministry to go to church, and this is a predominant theme of the new revival. A revival should not focus on replacing existing pastors, but instead supporting them. The present leadership can only encourage a new revival, and they should for their churches to remain prosperous, or even active in the Western world due to low attendance in some areas and in particular in some churches.

I'd be happy to send a link to a free pdf to anyone interested.

 

[ARBITER01]

Acts 2 is the blueprint for a so-called revival.