Issues and Concerns with Deeper Life

Dear brethren, 

I'd like to share with you some issues and concerns I have with the Nigerian megachurch known as Deeper Christian Life (aka Deeper Life, and Deeper Life Bible Church), led by its pastor and General Superintendent, Dr. William F. Kumuyi. Perhaps the best way to summarize those issues and concerns is to simply quote an email I received recently from a sister in Christ I know in Kenya, who will remain anonymous for privacy reasons. Here is what she wrote:

"Dear brother Len

I wanted to share with you some of the reasons I left Deeper Life. Paul told the Galatians that he brought his gospel to the apostles in Jerusalem just to be sure he had not run in vain. I want to share with you just for transparency.

I joined Deeper Life on the first Sunday of October last year (2023) and left the last Sunday of September (2024), exactly one year.

When I joined, if you remember, I was really struggling on whether to join, and I decided to do so, because it was the only holiness-preaching church I knew in Kenya, including the matter of of modest dressing. My first Sunday there I was overcome by a deep spirit of slumber, so heavy. I had never experienced that before, even in the few Pentecostal churches I had attended before briefly. I was just sleeping and couldn't stay awake and heard nothing of the sermon. I knew it was an attack, but assumed the devil didn't want me to be there. That night I had a dream where pastor Kumuyi was my supervisor, and I was introducing him to my family, and I took it as confirmation and stayed. 

It was a good church with sound Bible preaching and no sin or dishonesty. Anyone in it with the intention to make heaven can do so, if they are sincere, but there were a few issues that bothered me:

1. New people never stay. The church is mainly made of up of people who joined many years ago, and their families. 

2. There isn't much love. Because I had been delivered out of sin, I was pretty much self-driven, but most people feel lack of love there and leave. There isn't much concern for one another.

3. The Bible study on Mondays is pastor Kumuyi all over the world and streamed in English on Video screens in every Deeper Life branch. This means anyone who doesn't speak English -- even in Kenya  -- can't fit into Deeper Life.

4. The local pastors hence can never teach bible study to their members. Every last Sunday of the month is a combined service where a live service from Nigeria is streamed with pastor Kumuyi.

5. One Sunday is the overseer of east Africa whose message is live streamed to all Kenya branches. 

6. This leaves any local pastor with only 2 Sundays a month to preach from inspiration. And even that can be affected if he is given sermon notes of pastor Kumuyi message to preach.

7. Sunday morning Sunday school called "search the scriptures" is from pastor Kumuyi books. That means all youth and women teachers and children teachers have to use this book and can't preach from inspiration.

8. Every month pastor Kumuyi has a global crusade and it must be televised in all Deeper Life churches, so we would go outdoors, put up a video screen, and show that crusade to Kenyans. This was odd to me, because it should be the locals going out to do crusades

9. Baptism manuals, discipleship manuals, church doctrine manuals are all by Kumuyi. Again a teacher cannot teach from inspiration.

10. Only hymns are sung. There is no praise and worship. This means any person with a gift to write songs or music can't have a place in Deeper Life or their gift will be buried. 

11. We only had holy communion twice in that year that I attended. This struck me as off. It's done rarely, unlike other churches I was used to where it was monthly.

12. People don't pray in tongues in church. I never heard tongues mentioned once. 

13. There is no talk of the gifts of Holy Spirit, except marveling at pastor Kumuyi healing the sick in his crusades.

14. Prophecy is not accepted. Word only.

15. The only ministries people can join are teaching, ushering, or things like cleaning; and even teaching [in this church is just] using Kumuyi's books, so you're not actually teaching.

16. There are too many meetings, and I found this cumbersome to spiritual growth, even though they encourage evangelism. But there is no time for it, if one has a full time job, and still has to attend Monday Bible study, Thursday meeting, Saturday workers meeting in the afternoon till night, and Sunday service. 

I found if one has a ministry from the Lord, it would not work in Deeper Life, because there is no room for it. If you wrote books they would not be welcome, as only Kumuyi's books are sold. If you wrote music, or were called as a pastor, or had the gift of tongues, or prophesy, etc., you can't use it in this church.

As a result, the church has a spectator-like atmosphere, where everyone is just watching Kumuyi in the ring, unless one is very determined and self aware, or has a relationship with Jesus. Most are just church attendees, following holiness to go to heaven, but their gifts and life are dead. You see it in the quiet prayers and dead looks. People are dead, and sadly witches have infiltrated because of this. I was shocked to be told while I was new that there are witches in the church, and people know them, but they just let them be, hoping one day the Word will change them

I also just felt aloofness from the pastors and lack of love and a lot of "criticism".

I know it is [supposed to be] a Pentecostal church, but for me I felt such a coldness the time I was there, but the people are genuine and fear God and strive to live holy. The verse came to me that the letter kills but the Spirit gives life. They began very well, and I do not know what happened.

Deeper Life had the Word of God and balanced teaching, and it's a great church, but they don't allow the gifts of the Holy Spirit to operate, which also became a problem for me to bear, because I feel people's gifts get killed in that church. And also Pastor Kumuyi is highly exalted until the pastors in that ministry cannot truly shepherd by inspiration, because it's only Pastor Kumuyi who can do certain things (e.g., write books. his books are used in everything and his sermons leaving no room for the pastors or teachers to by inspiration teach the Word). Prophets or anyone with revelatory gifts cannot operate in that church, and that to me is a problem, because they will be accountable to God for burying their gifts for a church. Speaking in tongues is not encouraged in meetings, and I found the place to be dead with very little to no prayer, which allows witches to infiltrate the church.

The final thing that happened that made me feel I must leave was that pastor Kumuyi in August began a program called Change Makers International, where he is trying to bring change in Nigeria by bringing leaders together: religious, political, and tribal. This program had people give speeches on driving social change, and pastor Kumuyi also used the Bible to inspire. And what shocked me was to see a Muslim cleric stand up and pray to Allah, and give his message, too. I was shocked and felt grieved and put off. We had been told to tune in while in church and listen to this program. It is not meant to be a regular thing. but that's the day I began to feel something was off. How could pastor Kumuyi invite Muslims and non believers, and even people worshipping ancestors, together to drive social change with him as a pioneer being a man of God? When people questioned him, he said this program was not a gospel one but a social one. yet he used church funds and had it televised in all Deeper Life branches."

[END OF EMAIL FROM KENYAN SISTER]

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I hope this has helped to show the true state of things within Deeper Life. This is not the true life of the Body of Christ that we read about in Scripture, where all Members of the Body are healthy, functioning, and encouraged to do their part, operating in their gifts and calling by the power of the Holy Spirit with Christ as their head, rather than man. I trust this has helped provide you with some things to prayerfully consider, if you are considering joining Deeper Life in any country around the world. Let the Lord lead you.

Attribution notice: Image may be subject to copyright and are used per the Fair Use Act for commentary and education purposes only.

Author's note:  I also recommend reading HOREMOW's Linda Rika "Knows" Whose Names Are in Book of Life, HOREMOW Issues and Concerns, Exposing the Darkness within HOREMOW, HOREMOW Descends to New Low, Holding Fast the Faithful Word, Avoid Becoming a Corrupted Christian, and Exposing Heresy.  You can access the Home page of this blog for more articles on Truth and heresy, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

HOREMOW Issues and Concerns

Regretfully I need to publicize some issues and concerns that I have with the Holiness Revival Movement Worldwide (HOREMOW), based in Nigeria. Brother Paul Rika, who is the International Director, and whom I had considered to be a friend, leads it. He is married to sister Linda Paul Rika, formerly Linda Ngaujah, who is originally from Sierra Leone. I had previously published her testimony of heaven and hell, but have since removed that article due to my concerns.

Linda Paul Rika

The Scripture says not to receive an accusation against an elder, except by the testimony of two or three witnesses. So I have confirmed the following details through interviews with Michael Thomas Sambo and Jeff Zanni, who is a retired Air Commodore with the Nigerian military.

False Prophecies
Since Linda received her original revelation, she has taken to prophesying future events that do not come to pass. For example, she falsely prophesied the winner of the Nigerian presidential election. The person she prophesied would be the next president was not the person who won the election. While I have known about this for quite some time, I have chosen to remain silent about it until now. But I can no longer remain silent, because she has given many other prophecies that did not come true.

She also prophesied about a certain governor of a Nigerian state, who was seriously wounded in a plane crash. After the crash he was airlifted to the US where he received medical care and later returned to Nigeria to govern the state. A meeting was arranged with the Governor to be prayed for by a team of ministers from HOREMOW with Paul Rika in attendance. During the meeting she prophesied that he would recover from his injuries and go back to his job as governor. However, to this day he has not gone back. His term of office ended while he was still sick, and another person was elected in his place. To this day he is unable to hold office.

There was another case where a Nigerian governor actually died in a plane crash, who had been a Christian. His deputy, a Muslim took over in line with the Nigerian Constitution. Linda prophesied that a Christian governor would replace him. However, another Muslim succeeded him, not a Christian, so once again Linda’s prophecy never came to pass.

At a HOREMOW event in Bauchi State, Nigeria in 2013, where Linda was a guest speaker, she also prophesied that the Boko Haram terrorist group in Nigeria would end that year. She prophesied that the Lord said He would take out Boko Haram Himself. In fact, Jeff Zanni was also a guest speaker at that same program and heard her prophecy. However, Boko Haram did not end after that, so her prophecy did not come to pass. In fact that group has gotten worse, and is still killing people. They are still there and have even sworn allegiance to ISIS.

Although I am not saying Linda's original testimony was not true or genuine, all of these false prophecies she has been giving call into question anything she now says or has ever said in the name of the Lord. Therefore, the warning of our Lord Jesus to beware of false prophets applies to her in this case:

"Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. "So then, you will know them by their fruits. Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'" (Mat 7:15-23)

Ungodly Treatment of Michael Sambo
Moreover, she has attacked my friend, brother Michael Thomas Sambo. She has attacked his calling, his family, his ministry, and his revelation that he had of heaven and hell. In fact, she had said it's the spirit of Allah using brother Michael. Her husband, Paul Rika, had been brother Michael’s spiritual father. In fact, he transcribed Michael’s testimony from a video recording and published it as a book, called Divine Revelation of God's Holiness and Judgment. When it was initially published, he seized control of it by giving Michael a legally binding statement drafted by a lawyer to sign, which stated that Michael gave up all rights to royalties from the book to Paul Rika, and that Michael would only have the content of the book to defend. At that time, Michael was young and did not fully understand the implication of what he was signing. Now Paul Rika has informed him that the 300 free books he initially gave him to hand out for evangelism were his full share in the royalties, and that he has no rights to the book. Paul says the book belongs to him. This is amazing, since the book contains Michael’s own testimony as given by Michael himself. While I do not know his motives for claiming exclusive rights to the book, I do know that selfishness, greed, and covetousness have no part in the kingdom of God. Moreover, the revelations the Lord has given us are not for sale, as I have written in my article, The Sale of Christian Music and Art -- A Robbers' Den?

Paul Rika, pastor and International Director of HOREMOW

Furthermore, Paul Rika has now gone so far as to tell Michael that he is backslidden, his name is not written in the Book of Life, and he is under God’s judgment. He told Mike that he does not even have any future ministry in HOREMOW. Subsequently in a private meeting with Jeff Zanni, Paul told Jeff that Mike was backslidden, that he had abandoned ministry, and that a prophecy was given through Linda his wife that Mike’s name was no longer written in the Book of Life. This seems like an abuse of spiritual gifts, since prophecy is not meant to be used to judge people, but to edify, encourage, and comfort the Body of Christ (1 Cor 14:3-4). Paul said that Mike loved the things of this world and had gone after money by establishing a poultry farm. The implication was that it was not right for a preacher to own a poultry farm. Jeff responded by saying that he did not see thing anything in the Bible to prohibit a preacher from owning property. During that meeting, the two men also prayed together.

Subsequently Michael received two invitations to speaking engagements that were independent of HOREMOW. But he felt that he needed to clear it with his spiritual father before going to those engagements. Mike felt that no preacher who is backslidden or whose name was no longer in the Book of Life should be speaking for the Lord, so he wanted to know if Paul would authorize him to go and speak. In an email he sent to Paul about this, he said in part, "...In my understanding, I think I am on discipline. I have been praying before the Lord on all that was discussed and feel that as a son in the Lord, I need a clearance on my state before I am engaged to preach. Please sir, I am confused." However, all of his attempts to reach Paul went unanswered up to the dates of these engagements and Mike did not go to either one. He did not see any reason that he should do so, since Paul considered him to be a backslider.

Michael Thomas Sambo

Afterward, on 22nd  September 2015, Paul convened a meeting of HOREMOW leaders as a sort of council or hearing, so that Paul could decide Mike’s case. According to Mike, the meeting lasted nearly five hours. Paul reviewed the matter of Mike’s failure to fulfill his two speaking engagements, and characterized his actions as "evil". Then he asked Mike what he had to say in defense of himself.

Mike responded in part by saying, "Before I go on to explain why I acted that way, I still want to apologize again before I explain. I'm very, very sorry. I'm not going to defend myself." Then in his detailed explanation of his actions, he said something like this: “Sir, you told me my name is not in the Book of Life, that I am backslidden, and that I don’t even have any more future in HOREMOW to do any ministry, and that I should go and pray." And Mike continued, "Sir, you did not confirm to me in response to my email that I should go and speak. I called you on the phone, but you did not answer. I texted you, but still received no response. I emailed you, but you did not answer me. The day came and went, and since I did not receive any answer from you, I did not go to speak.”

In a short, fifteen-minute clip of the meeting that I watched, Mike got down on his knees facing Paul, who was seated, and said he was deeply sorry. He made it clear that his intention was not to run away from Paul, to hurt him, or to compete with him. He pleaded for forgiveness for any way in which he had offended anyone. He said once again, "I'm very sorry."

In response to this, Paul said that he himself had moved very slowly on this matter for months, wondering, "What do I do?" He said he had continued that way until the day before the present meeting was held. He said he had been given "two verdicts" for Mike, but he only elaborated on one of them initially, which was the one that would apply if Mike felt he had finished apprenticeship and wanted to have his own ministry. He said if that was what Mike wanted, they would pray for him and give him all the support he needed. Mike could still be a minister in HOREMOW. They would use him any time they wanted, but he would be on his own. "Whatever assistance we want to give you or you need from the movement, fine. The materials you need you have access to those. You have access to me for any help you need. You have your liberty. I think this is a good option, if you consider it so." He indicated that Mike could come and go any time he wanted and would be one of the HOREMOW leaders. He asked Mike how he would like to proceed.

There was a long pause for a couple minutes as Mike knelt before the group. Then Mike said he was not in a position to make a choice at that moment. He needed time to go and pray about it before he would make a decision, since it was very serious.

He asked Paul whether his apology was accepted. However, while all this was being video recorded, Paul said, "As for apology, right from the beginning [I have said that] it's only...the act is before the Lord. I have said it. The act is before the Lord. So you are not making apology [to me]. You are making apology to the house and before the Lord." As Paul paused to wait for Mike's decision on which verdict he would choose, Mike replied, "I don't have the answer, sir. I don't have the answer."

Then Paul, pressed for a response, saying, "Do you choose so or do you not choose so." He had given Mike a choice: Mike could either go and have his own ministry with the possibility of speaking at HOREMOW events, or else he could stay in HOREMOW and only do whatever Paul says he must do. He reiterated that the second option was that if Mike chose to remain in HOREMOW, he would be saying to Paul, "I want to remain with you, as a minister under your command." He also said that the first option was that Mike would not be under his command. He once again repeated that the second option was, "You are under my command! Then I will take decision on you as a minister under my command."  He gave examples of what that would mean, saying he would be managing Mike's activities each step of the way, saying, "Back again. Go here before you go. Do this before you do it." He asked Mike if that is what he wanted or if he wanted to be able to go and conduct his ministry without such restrictions.

Mike simply replied, "I want the will of God, sir."

Paul replied, "You want the will of God. You have a right to the will of God for you."

Mike responded, "I want us to pray."

Paul replied, "Then I will take this decision. You are now on discipline. You will stop all ministry and go to pray to recover your Christian life, because this thing you did offended the Lord. That the Lord's people were crying out and just your stubbornness -- stubbornness, just because you would not submit. You allowed the name of the Lord to suffer shame. You allowed the Lord to be grieved over the message the Lord has given you. You offended God. So you will go and have your time to recover, [his words after this were inaudible]. I want to make sure I walk with a holy man, a righteous man. I will journey very far. And the eyes of God are upon Holiness Revival Movement, and we must give God the best. You are coming short of the best. Your life has to be improved. You must attend to righteousness and holiness. You've behaved badly. So I have placed you on discipline indefinitely until such time as God has finished working in your life." He also told him he needed to go take care of his communications, remain where he is there, and “be faithful to fellowship, being careful to attend all meetings, but no ministry."

When Jeff heard this, he later challenged Paul’s decision publicly, since it seemed quite harsh. Paul replied by asking Jeff whether he would have challenged Moses’ decision, if he had been present when Moses consulted with God about a certain man who had sinned, whom God said should be stoned to death. In saying this, he implied that the Lord told him to discipline Mike indefinitely. It's interesting that Paul related himself to Moses, rather than the Lord Jesus, who said, "Neither do I condemn you," when those gathered around Him were ready to stone the woman caught in adultery, and asked Him what He thought should be done with her (Joh 8:11). The Law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ (Joh 1:17).

When Paul had finished placing Mike on indefinite discipline, he said, "Everybody will pray with you to help that you recover. And I want to ensure that all the nuances that are going around, 'Pastor Rika is in trouble.' or "Pastor Rika and Michael Sambo are in conflict.' Those nuances must be stopped! All people forming cliques everywhere. I see there's two cliques now -- one for Pastor Rika, one for Michael Sambo. It must disappear! You will come back as a son walking with his father. And we must walk in righteousness and holiness." He said all of this while remaining seated in his chair and while Mike remained kneeling on the floor in front of him in the middle of the room.

Incidentally, in that meeting, Paul denied that he ever told Mike that his name was not written in the Book of Life. Jeff Zanni was there in the meeting, as one of the people Paul considered a HOREMOW leader. He knew that Paul had told him privately that Mike’s name was not in the Book of Life, but he did not want to embarrass Paul publicly, so he did not say anything at the leaders’ meeting. He assumed that perhaps Paul had forgotten, so he held his peace.

However, a few days later, Jeff spoke to Paul privately. He told him in no uncertain terms that he wasn’t happy with Paul’s handling of Mike and his case. Jeff reminded him of the private meeting they previously had together, in which Paul told him that Mike’s name was not in the Book of Life, and he also reminded Paul of other details of that meeting. However, Paul was speechless. Jeff told him to apologize to Mike, but he did not. Instead he began telling false stories about Mike and even about Jeff himself. In doing so, Paul is acting as if he is does not need to be accountable to anybody, including the elders within his own organization. For example, one of the claims Paul has made several times is that Mike did not apologize to him. However, I have seen the video recording, showing Mike apologizing multiple times, which I have documented in this article. Both Mike and Jeff have released Paul in their hearts and they have peace inside, because the Lord knows and sees what is happening.

Revelations Equal to the Bible
Another issue I have with HOREMOW is that Paul Rika says that when a revelation is given and it is confirmed to be from God, that revelation is equal to the Bible. So his wife Linda gives dreams and revelations on people, and he believes them and acts on them based on whatever she says. This is an unbiblical practice that is very dangerous. It leads to all kinds of error, both doctrinal and practical. It has been and is being used to manipulate, abuse, and hurt people seriously, as has been done to brother Michael.

As we have already seen, people can make false prophecies that do not come to pass, as with Linda's prophecies. If those are considered equal to Scripture, then many people will be led astray. That would mean these messages are inerrant and become elevated to the level of Scripture. In other words, each prophecy would hold the same authority as Scripture. Or else it is regarded as another rule that Christians must obey, besides the Bible. The end result is that such prophecies and revelations end up superseding Scripture, because they are regarded as authoritative and binding upon all Christians, even if they contradict the Bible. This essentially nullifies the Word of God. The fact is that no prophecy carries the same authority as Scripture, and must either conform to the Word of God or be ignored.

The apostle Paul said, "For we know in part and we prophesy in part." (1Co 13:9). Our sole rule of faith is the Bible, and prophesies are meant to strengthen, edify, and encourage the Body of Christ (1 Cor 14:3).

Also see my article Scripture Alone.

Use of the Title "Daddy"
Another issue I have with HOREMOW is people calling Paul Rika by the title "Daddy." Jesus commanded, "And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven." (Mt 23:9, NIV). In light of what our Lord commanded, I once asked Paul in February 2014 why he allows people to call him "Daddy," since it means father. However, he never replied to me. Daddy and father are two synonymous words. If we are not to call any man by this title, we should also not let any man address us that way, since it would be sin. There is absolutely no Scriptural basis at all for calling any man Father or Daddy.

Remarrying Your First Spouse
Likewise, I do not see any Scriptural basis for the teaching of Paul Rika and HOREMOW, regarding remarrying one's first spouse. They teach that if someone has been remarried after divorce, they must return to their first spouse.

First of all, as I stated in my article, Divorce -- Two Divine Revelations, I agree that the ideal situation is to be reconciled with your first spouse and get remarried to that person. Simply repenting for committing the sin of divorce and not going back to your spouse is not enough. You must make restitution!

However, if your first spouse has already been remarried, I do not see any Scripture that allows you to remarry that person. Even if their second spouse divorces them or dies, the Bible teaches that it is an abomination for you to remarry your first spouse once they have been married to someone else.

"When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house, and she leaves his house and goes and becomes another man's wife, and if the latter husband turns against her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her to be his wife, then her former husband who sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife, since she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before the LORD, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance.” (Deu 24:1-4).

Likewise, the Lord declared through the prophet Jeremiah, "If a husband divorces his wife And she goes from him And belongs to another man, Will he still return to her? Will not that land be completely polluted?" (Jer 3:1)

Therefore, the only scenario in which Scripture allows you to remarry your first spouse, in my opinion, is when neither of you have been remarried after divorcing.  In fact, if you have been divorced and neither you nor your spouse have been remarried, you should certainly repent and remarry your spouse if he or she is willing to do so. However, there is no biblical basis for remarriage to one's first spouse after divorce and remarriage has already occurred. Doing so would violate the Word of God, and teaching people to do so would nullify one of God's commandments.

Our Lord said, "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. "For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven." (Mat 5:17-20)

In July 2015, I brought all of this to the attention of Paul Rika by sending him my article on Divorce, which contains the section above on remarrying your first spouse that I have just quoted from (except for a couple, recent, minor revisions), and asking for his input. However, he never responded to me.

For more on this topic, please see Adultery According to Jesus.

Putting it All Together
All of this needs to be evaluated based on the Word of God. First of all, we are not to listen to a false prophet, but rather expose them. If someone is giving prophetic predictions that do not come true, then they have proven to be a false prophet. We should not listen to anything else they say. Secondly, if someone is using prophecy to judge or control people, they are abusing the gift of the Holy Spirit, and are in need of church discipline. Thirdly, we must not make any prophecy or revelation equal to Scripture, since that is not the purpose of the prophetic, and we only prophesy in part (1 Cor 13:9). Fourthly, there is to be no division in the Body of Christ (1 Cor 1:10), and we must love one another from the heart (Joh 13:34; 1 Pe 1:22; 4:8; Rom 12:9). If a brother repents, we are to forgive him and comfort him (Lk 17:3-4), so that he is not overwhelmed by excessive sorrow, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes (2 Cor 2:7,11). If we do not forgive others, then our Father in heaven will not forgive us (Mt 6:14-15). The way that Paul and Linda Rika have treated brother Michael is hurtful, unforgiving, and controlling. Whatever they have done to Mike, they have done it unto Jesus (Mt 25:40). Fifthly, Paul has told false stories about Mike and Jeff, and we are commanded not to bear false witness against our brother (Ex 20:16). We are supposed to speak the truth in love (Eph 4:15), for all liars will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur (Rev 21:8).

Sixth, the way Paul has seized control and claimed exclusive rights to the book containing Mike's testimony is not right. Seventh, there is no Scripture that says anyone should be denied forgiveness or disciplined indefinitely. This is an abuse of spiritual authority and a form of mind control. The Lord does not accuse forever, nor will He always be angry. He is with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit (Is 57:15-16). "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." (Jam 4:6). Eighth, Paul seems to be lacking accountability, since he is acting unilaterally without regard for what one of his own elders is telling him. Ninth, he allows people to call him "Daddy," contrary to what Jesus taught. Tenth, there is the unbiblical teaching on remarriage to one's first spouse after divorce and remarriage. Eleventh, Linda accuses Michael of being used by the spirit of Allah, and Paul has been echoing that same thing. People who say such things to those who are operating by the Spirit of God should beware of blaspheming the Holy Spirit (Mar 3:28-30). Finally, Paul’s heavy-handed, domineering behavior is not the way a pastor is supposed to care for the flock. The Scripture says that an elder is not supposed to lord it over others like that.

The Lord said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called 'Benefactors.' But it is not this way with you, but the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant.” (Luk 22:25-26). Likewise, the apostle Peter said, “Nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.” (1Pe 5:3).

Sadly, based on these bad fruit, we can say for sure that this couple is no longer operating in the Holy Spirit. This is not the fruit of the Spirit. Since Jesus said you would know them by their fruit, we have now identified who they are. They are bad trees, and bad trees cannot bear good fruit, neither can a good tree bear bad fruit. I do not judge them, but I have identified them based on the fruit test, as I have written in my article, Testing the Spirits of False Prophets.

After documenting these issues, I humbly submitted the document to Paul Rika via email to read and respond. His assistant, brother Ande, replied to say he would print my document and give it to Paul once he returned from a trip he was currently on in Sierre Leone. His email was sent from "Holiness Revival Movement Headquarters Abuja," displaying Paul Rika's name and profile picture on it, so he was officially representing that movement and its International Director. Underneath Ande's name in his email was a caption stating, "Holiness; the only requirement for Heaven" (emphasis mine). This is not to pick on brother Ande, but this slogan helps to reveal an underlying assumption within HOREMOW that is being taught, which is not biblical. I replied back to him, asking what Scripture he bases that slogan upon, but he did not answer me.

Holiness is certainly one of the requirements for heaven (Heb 12:14), but our Lord Jesus said that the greatest commandments are to love. You are commanded to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself (Mt 22:37; Mk 12:30; Lk 10:27). These are even greater than the command to be holy, as important as holiness is. Jesus said, "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (Joh 13:35, NIV). We do not want to be a holy people without love. If we attain the very highest level of holiness in our lives, but have not love, we are nothing (1 Cor 13:1-3). Let's not forget that! May the Lord help us all to be a holy people who love the Lord with all our being and love one another deeply from the heart. This whole matter should cause us all to go before the Lord, asking Him to evaluate us and reveal to us anything that is hidden that must go.

I do not relish or enjoy writing an article such as this, and I wish I did not have to do so. This article is not meant to condemn Paul and Linda Rika. I myself am just a man who has not yet attained to perfection. But I also have a responsibility to my readers to warn them of things like this, especially since I had previously written a favorable article about Linda, and other articles associated with HOREMOW. As the apostle Paul instructed Timothy, "Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning." (1 Tim 5:20). And he instructed the Ephesians, "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them." (Eph 5:11, NIV).

Epilogue
As I mentioned in the article, I sent an email about this matter to brother Paul Rika, but he never replied to me. There has been no repentance, no apologies, no brokenness in response to this matter being publicized. I also sent this article to the US Coordinator for HOREMOW, brother Johnson Tata, but he never replied to me either. And I know that brother Jeff Zanni has also spoken to the HOREMOW Coordinator for Europe in London, as well.

I received a comment to this article on 29 August 2019 from a reader who stated that he was presently attending a HOREMOW Ministers' Conference, where Paul Rika presented revelations proclaiming himself as the General Overseer of all churches in the world. This occurred after he declared the previous day that HOREMOW is superior to all churches in the world.

Just a few days later on 10 September 2019, I also received a comment from one of my readers stating that just the previous day a video titled God's Choice of Pastor Paul Rika was posted by Holiness Revival Movement where Linda Rika stated her latest revelation. She referred to her husband Paul Rika as the "Messiah" of our generation!

We have listened to that video, which is mostly incomprehensible, and noticed that it has been heavily edited with many cuts and splices, which sometimes occur in mid-sentence, apparently to go back and alter what she said during the first take. However, we confirmed that she does in fact make such a false claim about Paul Rika near the end of the video during the last two minutes or so (29:17-29:56). She claims she was shown that a certain group of white people in an unknown country were shown Paul Rika in a revelation during their daily prayers. She claims, "These white people, they are waiting for this messiah. Because God told them, 'I’m going to send the messiah for your generation, that if you listen to him, and anybody that follows him is the one I’m going to carry you, and I will be protecting you people.' So they have been praying that God send [this messiah] -- and God has told them that, 'I have sent the person.' "

Let me remind you of the warning that our Lord Jesus gave us two thousand years ago about the last days before His return. Jesus said, "At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Messiah!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time." (Mat 24:23-25, NIV).

Moreover, in this video Linda claims God told her, "Anybody that I send to this [HOREMOW] movement must submit to my son Pastor Paul Rika." She claims that people will be following him and he will "overshadow this generation." She even said that satan has deleted the Bible, that there is no true Bible any more, and that the Bible which people are reading has blinded their eyes (9:29-10:07). Then she claimed satan told her that Paul Rika is cleaning up the Bible and bringing the true Bible to mankind. The last time I checked, the Word of the Lord is still flawless, like silver purified in a crucible, like gold refined seven times (Ps 12:6; 18:30; 19:7). Therefore, beware of anyone who claims they have the only true Bible.

During the first fifteen minutes of the video, she also makes critical statements about other African brothers who have received revelations from the Lord, claiming satan told her that they have been compromised by him, such as brothers Ezekiel Moses and Michael Sambo. Since we know satan is a liar and the father of lies (Jn 8:44), and that he is the accuser of the brethren (Rev 12:10), why is she listening to him, accepting what he says, and proclaiming that to the world, rather than rebuking the devil? She is not prophesying for God here, but by her own admission, she is receiving a message from the devil and prophesying for him. In doing so, she is acting as the devil's prophetess, publicly casting slanderous accusations on the brethren that she has received from him.

I know Michael Sambo personally and certainly do not think he is under satan's control. He cares for the brethren who are under these delusions and considers them eternal souls who have been brainwashed to partake in these deceptions. He is alarmed that the church has been subjected to such a wine of deception and many have partaken of it, which has led many followers of HOREMOW to become confused while a large number of others have been deceived. Therefore, he is calling for us to rise up in prayer for them. He states, "I pray the Lord himself with bring salvation and deliverance to as many as desire it in Jesus' name." Amen.

A dear Nigerian pastor I know and love, who lives abroad but recently visited his native Nigeria, told me that the conditions in the Church there have gotten worse since he left the country. He said there is human worship, pastors are prideful and unaccountable, and people worship them as God, as if they cannot fall. This very practice is setting these pastors up for a fall, because instead of helping to bring about repentance for ungodly behavior, these people are encouraging pastors to continue in it. This should be a wake up call not only for the Church in Nigeria, but throughout the world, to stop worshiping men and making idols out of them. Stop treating them as if they are not accountable to any man. I suggest you repent for the way you have contributed to this sad state of affairs.

If this article does not appall you and grieve you, and if you are more interested in keeping your idol from toppling, then you are part of the problem I have just described. This message should cause you to grieve, lament, and pray. However, many readers have chosen to attack the messenger instead. If you plan to use the comments section for that purpose, then please don't bother, because your comments will not be published. If you are going to leave a comment that disagrees with what has been presented in this article, then please provide factual evidence to support your view, as well as any witnesses you are able to cite, if you want your comment to be published.

Finally, as for my views on holiness, they haven't changed one bit because of this matter, because they are based on the Bible and not on any man's revelation. You can still find my articles on holiness, such as Holy Living in a Perverted World, Garments of Godliness, and Godly Attire & Adornment -- Seven Divine Revelations, along with revelations about God's holy standards on Eternal Destinations, such as Michael Thomas Sambo's Revelation of Heaven and Hell, Ezekiel Moses Testimony of Heaven and Hell, Eudoxia Varga's Testimony of Heaven and Hell, and Baptized by Blazing Fire -- a Korean church's testimony.

Part II - Exposing the Darkness within HOREMOW
Part III - HOREMOW Descends to a New Low

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB,except where noted otherwise. Other Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®, where noted.

Author's Note: I also recommend reading Exposing the Darkness within HOREMOW, More Accusations Against Paul and Linda Rika, Judging Revelations, Visions, and Prophecies, Grieve and Lament for the Church, The Nature of False Prophets, Leadership Approach Reveals View of God, Michael Thomas Sambo's Revelation of Heaven and Hell, A Tale of Two Kings, Testing the Spirits of False Prophets, Accountable, correctable, and teachable, Loving Deeply, Filled Up to All the Fullness of God, Angelic Escape from Terrorist Assassins, Interview with Brother Michael Thomas Sambo, The Wardrobe of the Saints, Whatever You Do, Do All Like This, How to Treat Leaders, Our Senior Pastor, The Shepherding Role of Elders, Exposing Heresy, Divorce -- Two Divine Revelations, Adultery According to Jesus, Holy Living in a Perverted World, Purge the Evil from Among You, and The Rise of Antichrists. You can access the Home page of this blog for more articles on Truth and heresy, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master.

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

TGRM Issues and Concerns

People have been directing me to a certain website of a Christian movement in Nigeria, known as True Gospel Revival Movement (TGRM) Worldwide. Until now I kept saying that I did not feel led to go and look at it. But recently I did take a look and evaluated some of the things I read. Here are some issues I discovered that are cause for serious concern:

World Domination
On the TGRM website, it states: In the very words of Jesus Christ, He said, “I, Jesus Christ of Nazareth set up ‘True Gospel Revival movement’ to dominate the world.”

I don’t see that in the Bible where any group of believers is supposed to dominate the world in this present age. This sounds more like “Dominion theology” or “Kingdom Now” theology, which are false. The reign of Christ and the saints on earth does not occur until after His visible return to earth to set up His kingdom.

Dominionism aims to reform all sectors of society, or bring about the renewal of all things, in order to establish Christ’s kingdom on earth before He comes.  However, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”  (Mt 19:28).  He taught that the renewal of all things would occur “when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne.” He also taught that He will sit on His glorious throne when He returns, not before He returns: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne.” (Mt 25:31).  So it is presumptuous to attempt to renew all things in this world before He comes and sits on His glorious throne. (Also see Sequence of Signs Preceding the Coming of Christ).

Salvation by Church Membership
The TGRM website states: “Again Jesus Christ said that anybody who wants to see Him on the last day should join this movement He has founded by Himself. Whatever religious or secular position held by any person, if he or she does not join and assist ‘True Gospel Revival Movement’ and pattern his/her life and religion according to all the truth He is revealing through this movement, that person is doomed.”

The apostle Paul reproved the Corinthians for this kind of sectarianism when he said, " What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?"  (1 Cor. 1:12-13). This prohibits divisions in the Body. Yet TGRM is creating divisions by saying they are the only true movement of God on the earth, excluding all others that do not join them.

It literally says, “Jesus Christ said that anybody who wants to see Him on the last day should join this movement… if he or she does not join and assist ‘True Gospel Revival Movement’…that person is doomed.” This means that we must join a movement in order to be saved, and that goes against the Scripture. We are saved by faith in Christ, not by Church membership, or being part of a religion, or group. (Eph 2:8-9).

Working for the Lord vs. Working with Him
The site also says: “I, Jesus Christ raised ‘True Gospel Revival Movement’ to work with me. Others are working for me. The danger in working for me is that they will end up in destruction.”

So this site claims that if we work “for” the Lord we will end up in destruction. But the Scripture says, “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,” (Col 3:23). The Greek word is “tō” meaning “to” the Lord. If it was “with” then the Greek word would be “pros”. The better translation says, “as unto the Lord and not unto men”.  “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; (Col 3:23, KJV). Elsewhere Paul said, “With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men,” (Eph 6:7)

It also states on the TGRM site: “Jesus Christ said that all other people are working for Him but only this movement is working with Him. Any other project or support or assistance governments and people are giving in His name, outside this movement is on a wrong foundation. He, Jesus Christ does not accept it. Therefore whatever project, support or assistance given to this movement 'True Gospel Revival Movement’ is directly to Him, Jesus Christ of Nazareth."

To summarize, TGRM is saying: “only this movement is working with Him” and “Any other project or support or assistance governments and people are giving in His name, outside this movement is on a wrong foundation. He, Jesus Christ does not accept it.”

Husbands are Little gods?
TGRM also states that the Lord said, “When a woman is married, the first father that she has to obey as a little god other than her biological father is her husband…A woman is free to call her husband lord because he is a small god to her.” This prophecy does not even say a husband is "like" a small god, which would have been bad enough, but that he "is" a small god. However, there is no Scriptural basis for any man being a little god. See Are We Really Little gods?

The Authority of the Only Begotten Son of God
TGRM states that the Lord said, “When I came before, I spoke like a child who has no authority. I gave a message to the world before now, that I am not the only son of my father. Adam was a son, Satan was a son.”

However, this has two issues: 1) the Bible says that when Jesus came, “He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.” (Mat 7:29). Also see Mk 1:22 and Lk 4:32. And 2) the Scripture says that Jesus was the only Son of God. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (Joh 3:16).

All throughout the New Testament, the Lord Jesus is referred to as “the Son of God” (Mat. 26:63; 27:40,43,54; Mark 1:1; 3:11; 15:39; Luke 1:35; 3:38; 4:41; 22:70; John 1:34,49; 5:25; 10:36; 11:4,27; 19:7; 20:31; Acts 8:37; 9:20; Rom. 1:4; 2Co. 1:19; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 4:13; Heb. 4:14; 6:6; 7:3; 10:29; 1Jn. 3:8; 4:15; 5:5,10,12,13,20; Rev. 2:18), as well as "His Son" in the singular form (Rom. 1:3,9; 5:10; 8:29; 1Co. 1:9; Gal. 1:16; 4:4,6; 1Th. 1:10; Heb. 1:2). He is not referred to in Scripture as merely “a son of God” or “one of the sons of God,” but “THE Son of God.” His disciples attested to it (Mat 14:33). It was His position as the only Son of God that satan challenged when he tempted the Lord in the wilderness (Mat. 4:3,6). But even the demons, whenever they saw Him, cried out that He was the Son of God (Mk 3:11). And the reason the Jews crucified Him was that He claimed to be the Son of God. “They all said, ‘Are You the Son of God, then?’ And He said to them, ‘Yes, I am.’” (Luk 22:70). This was such a significant claim that they considered it to be blasphemy. By calling God His Father, He was making Himself equal to God (Joh 5:18).

TGRM is teaching that satan was a son, too. It says, “Satan was a son.” Why would Jesus say such a thing? Granted, one might find Scriptural basis to say that satan was one of the many “sons of God” in the sense that he was originally an angel, and angels were direct creations of God, known as “sons of God” (Gen. 6:2,4; Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7). But that does not put satan on the same level as the only begotten Son of God, nor does it make him the brother of Jesus as some cults teach. When TGRM says that Jesus is not the only son of His Father, and that satan was also a son of His Father, it puts Jesus and satan on the same level as brothers, which is false. Satan is a created being. Jesus Christ is the Creator -- God, not a created being (Col 1:16)! Also see Is Jesus God?, The Eternal Firstborn of All Creation, Jesus is Yehova, The Origin of Sin, Satan, and Secular Music and The Rise and Fall of Lucifer the Musician.

Property Ownership
About ownership, TGRM states the Lord said:

“The idea of ownership is from hell. In heaven there is no claim of ownership. I and my father and the Holy Spirit are one. I made this world in such a way that anywhere somebody finds suitable he can build and live. I want to tell the world that this world was created before man was created. My programme for man is to replenish the earth and not to claim ownership of it. I have come to tell those who claim ownership of land that, right as I am speaking now, no man should own more than a flat. Every document of land ownership is fake. These are things Satan is using to confuse the world. Nobody in the world is qualified to own more than a flat. As I’m giving this order the governments of the world should adopt it. If they cannot, I will achieve it with True Gospel Revival Movement. That is why I said, this is the only movement I have raised to dominate the world… Those who claim they own lands are working against me, for this reason, I declare to the world that my plan for the whole earth is that any where people find space they should build and live… Tell the world that I, Jesus Christ of Nazareth said that even the car owner seat, people sit on, is a seat of pride. So, tell my children who really want to obey me that they should avoid the car owner seat because it is the seat of pride.”

On the one hand, the Lord did say in His Word, “So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.” (Luk 14:33). But is all ownership evil? This prophecy says that “the idea of ownership is from hell,” which effectively means all ownership is evil, except for owning a flat (apartment), which TGRM says that believers are allowed to own.

It says, “my children who really want to obey me that they should avoid the car owner seat.” This means that it is disobedience to own a car.

It also says, “Any where people find space they should build and live.” So if a believer builds and lives in a place, does he not then own what he built? Is it not a house, rather than a flat? Does this mean that he can build on property that someone else claims to own? It seems to imply this, because it says, “Every document of land ownership is fake.” So if a TGRM member finds space and builds on it, and the owner of that space (another private citizen, corporation, or government) claims ownership of it, what will be the deciding factor to settle the dispute? If the owner produces their ownership documents, perhaps the TGRM member will claim that the documents are fake and he has right to live there.

This means that in the Bible, when God told the prophet Jeremiah to buy land, that was a sin (Jer 32:6-15). In that same passage, the Lord commanded the use of property deeds to prove ownership. Were those deeds fake or illegitimate? What about when Boaz bought the field of Naomi (Ruth 4:1-10)? What about the field he already owned before he bought that one (Ruth 2:3)?

In the New Testament, the disciples all had their own homes. It says, “So the disciples went away again to their own homes. “ (Joh 20:10). Peter and Andrew owned a house, in which it appears that Peter’s mother-in-law also lived, so it could not have been too small (Mk 1:29-30; Mt 8:14). Martha welcomed Jesus into her own home (Lk 10:38). Jesus ate at the house of Matthew (Mt 9:10), and He said to Zaccheus, "I must stay at your house today" (Lk 19:5). He was anointed at the home of Simon the Leper (Mt 26:6). In making arrangements to eat the Last Supper, He instructed His disciples to ask permission from the "owner" of a house to use a guest room (Lk 22:11). He sent out His disciples with instructions to stay in the home of a worthy person, whenever they entered a town or village (Mt 10:11). He referred to a prophet having his own home (Mt 13:57; Mk 6:4). John took Mary into His own home (Jn 19:27). Peter once stayed at the home of another disciple named Simon the tanner, who owned a house by the sea in Joppa (Acts 9:43; 10:6,32). Paul once stayed at the house of a disciple named Judas on Straight Street in Damascus (Ac 9:11). The saints gathered together and prayed at the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark (Ac 12:12). Yet not a word of condemnation is spoken against any of these disciples for owning homes.

If ownership were evil, then stealing would not be a sin. Yet the Lord commands us not to steal (Eph. 4:28). This means that there is such a thing as people owning property.

TGRM says in this prophecy that “Nobody in the world is qualified to own more than a flat. As I’m giving this order the governments of the world should adopt it. If they cannot, I will achieve it with True Gospel Revival Movement.” This means TGRM is claiming divine authority to defy the governments with regard to property ownership. However, this seems to contradict the Scripture that says, “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities.” (Rom 13:1ff)

One last thing I would like to say about ownership is this. If a married man and his wife have a large family together, a flat (apartment) may not be big enough for them to live in. If so, then what are they to do? Since TGRM says they are not qualified to own anything more than a flat, does that mean their only recourse is to squeeze into a flat that is too small for them? Or if they must move into a home, does it mean that they are only allowed to rent a home, even though it may be more expensive than for them to own one?

Financial Support of TGRM
It is interesting to note that the matter of ownership presented in this last TGRM prophecy is directly connected with financial support of their ministry. The obvious implication is that to be a member in this movement, you must sell everything you have and bring the money to them.

About financial support of TGRM, TGRM states the Lord said: “Tell the world that I, Jesus Christ of Nazareth said, since I announced to people to bring their resources into True Gospel Revival Movement and use it to achieve my project, they are finding it difficult because Satan has filled them with the idea of ownership. But I want to tell them that if they keep it to themselves because of their plans to build, own lands, train their children and so on, I will come and do it myself but they will end up in hell fire. Thus, said Jesus Christ of Nazareth. So I am calling them to unite and do as I commanded them for their own good. Tell them that with this movement I will introduce my own money which will not have the head of Caesar, when I said “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar”, the money of the world has the head of human beings on them. With this movement I will introduce my own money which will not possess the heart of my children. Thus, said Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Who has ear let him hear what Jesus Christ of Nazareth said.” 
   
These statements have several issues with them: 1) First of all they imply that anyone who does not support TGRM financially is going to hell. 2) It also states that there will be a currency especially for those in TGRM that is not one of the currencies produced by any government. When Jesus was on earth, He did recognize the Roman denarius and Caesar’s image on it, and He said to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s (Mat. 22:19; Mark 12:15; Luke 20:24). There is no place in Scripture where it says the Lord will introduce a new worldwide currency for the saints. 3) If ownership is from hell, then wouldn't the Lord want to abolish it completely?  Why then would He want to generate another new currency to help support the practice of ownership?  One would think He would want a world where everyone just shared everything they had and there was no need for currency.

Moreover, after Barnabas sold his tract of land and gave the full proceeds to the apostles (Act 4:36-37), another disciple named Ananias sought to imitate it, while secretly and deceptively keeping some of the proceeds for himself (Ac 5:1-2). Peter told Ananias, "While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control?" (Act 5:4a). He said the field remained the property of Ananias until it was sold, so he acknowledged that Ananias was the rightful owner of it. Moreover, he said that after it was sold, the proceeds from the sale remained under the control of Ananias. Peter did not say it was evil for Ananias to own the property, or that the Lord required him to sell it and give the resources to the projects the apostles were working on. Yet TGRM states the Lord is announcing to the world that people should “bring their resources into True Gospel Revival Movement and use it to achieve my project.”

King James Version Only
On their website, it also says, “MESSAGE OF JESUS CHRIST ABOUT THE HOLY BIBLE. I, Jesus Christ of Nazareth tell the world that they should not go with or interpret my word from any other version of the Bible except King James Version (KJV), both English and any other language. Other translations are arranged by the kingdoms of darkness, to water down my word. All who buy and use those other version are partakers of the harm those versions are doing to my word and they will perish with the translators. I tell those who join me in TGRM not to go with any other version except KJV.”

This is a major concern for a few reasons:

1) The King James Bible has undergone three revisions since its inception in 1611, incorporating more than 100,000 changes. So which King James Bible is inspired?

2) TGRM prophesies that Jesus Christ of Nazareth said, "tell the world that they should not go with or interpret my word from any other version of the Bible except King James Version (KJV), both English and any other language." The problem with this statement is that Bible translations into non-English languages are not the King James Version. Moreover, there are no translations into non-English languages based on the KJV that I am aware of. Just to be sure of this, I asked Wycliffe Bible Translators, and their contact person replied to me after researching it, saying, "I didn't find any non English translations that said they were translations of the KJV." If any such foreign translation exists that is based on the KJV, it must be very rare. If so, that means most nations are using a Bible that is arranged by the kingdom of darkness, and the people who read it are doomed, according to TGRM.

3) The KJV Preface asks, “How shall men meditate on that which they do not understand?” They sought to put it into the language that common people used every day, so that they could understand the Bible. However, what was common language 400 years ago, has become outdated and difficult to understand for most English-speaking people today.

4) In his Critical Analysis of the King James Version, Al Maxey points out that for all its flowery language and other positive characteristics, the KJV has doctrinal problems, textual manipulation, lack of uniformity, archaeological inaccuracies, textual inaccuracies, and paraphrasing.

5) Factual evidence reveals that the KJV is not the most accurate and easy to understand version of the Bible.

6) Other English versions existed before the KJV, such as Tyndale's New Testament, the Rheims New Testament, the Great Bible, the Bishop's Bible, and the Geneva Bible, so it is not the original English version. The Geneva Bible was the Bible of the Protestant Reformers; it was the people's choice for seventy-five years before the King James Bible was produced, and was the preferred Bible of the common Christian household. In fact, it was the Bible used by the Puritans who migrated to America. However, based on the prophecy above from TGRM, we would have to conclude that the Geneva Bible translation was arranged by the kingdom of darkness and all those who read it perished with the translators.

7) The KJV translators used more than just the original Greek and Hebrew texts of Scripture to produce the English text found in that version. They also used the Bishop's Bible as their source text, as well as the Geneva Bible, along with other versions already in existence. So it is a real hybrid of many sources.

I can understand if some individual or some church prefers the King James Version over all others, but it is wrong to require its use by prophecy as a commandment of the Lord, under penalty of hell fire. That's what TGRM has done, making this a requirement for salvation, thereby condemning billions of people who cannot read the King James Version or prefer not to do so.

Dietary Laws
Another major concern with this movement is that they teach that Christians should not eat foods that were forbidden in the Law of Moses. They claim that Jesus Christ of Nazareth has now released to the world the message that anyone who eats such foods is condemned to hell. However, these are dietary laws, and Christians are not under any dietary laws, (except for the ones decreed by the apostles in Acts 15:28-29). Jesus declared all foods clean (Mk 7:19), and Paul did, too (Rom 14:14,20). Anyone who puts Christians under dietary laws, beyond what the apostles decreed at the Jerusalem council, is preaching another gospel and is eternally accursed according to the apostle Paul (Gal 1:9).

Paul warned us about teachings like this in his letter to Timothy: “But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.” (1Ti 4:1-5)

To use Paul’s words, TGRM advocates abstaining from certain foods, which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. Paul said these are doctrines of demons. Based on what he wrote, as well as the Lord's own teaching, we can be assured that nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude.

Observing the Law
Not only does TGRM want to bring the Gentile disciples of Christ back to the dietary laws of Moses, but they teach that we must obey the entire Law of Moses. In the context of the message about dietary laws, they prophesy, "I have come to tell the world that this message I am giving now, is with heaviness of heart.... Every law My Father instituted must be obeyed...No commandment of My Father should be disobeyed." (capitalization and underlining added by editor for emphasis). This means that in the name of the Lord they are requiring Christians to obey all dietary, ceremonial, ritual, and sacrificial laws. That includes circumcision, wearing tassels on their clothing, and observing all Jewish days, months and years.

I can assure you that the Lord is not calling the Gentiles to come under the Law of Moses. This fact was firmly established in the first century, when certain Judaizers insisted that the Gentile Christians must be circumcised and observe the Law of Moses. The apostles and elders in Jerusalem discussed this, and Peter asked, "Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.” (Ac 15:10-11). James concluded, "Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood. For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.” (Ac 15:19-21).

We are not justified by observing the Law (Rom 3:20; Gal 2:16). Paul said, "For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.'" (Gal 3:10, NIV). He said that every man who lets himself be circumcised is obligated to obey the whole Law (Gal 5:3). Brethren, we are not seeking to keep up the Law of Moses in conjunction with the gospel. Please see my articles What Then Must We Observe? and Righteousness by Faith not Law. 

The Return of Christ
TGRM states the Lord said, “This is why my word says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Does not the world see my wisdom in these mysteries? Therefore, I, hereby announce to the world that I have returned, to rule and to destroy whatever the idiot has done all this time. I have come to take back to my kingdom that which belongs to me. Thus said the Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth.”

TGRM states the Lord said, “Satan devised another means of using a Roman emperor to merge Christianity and the world together in order to stop my own vision. Since then I allowed him and he started introducing a lot of things into Christianity through churches and their founders. I have been warning people but they would not understand me. So, I have come again by myself to re-establish my standard.”

TGRM states the Lord said, “No body has the power to kill my own people again. I am coming like a king to claim what belongs to me. If a king goes on a long journey that will take him many years away from his domain, his coming back will be announced so that things will be put in order before his arrival. Now I am announcing my return, so that things that are not in order will be put in order.”

“So, my children who obey me and do what I command, I am coming to reign. As I promised Israel of giving them a land which was not their own, so I promise to give you a land flowing with milk and honey. Thus said the Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth.”

These statements have three main issues:

1) They state that the Lord has returned by using the expressions, “I have returned;” “I have come,” and “I have come again.” Then they contradict those statements by putting it in the future tense with expressions like “I am coming” and “I am announcing my return;” So has He come again or is He announcing His return? Which one?

2) They state that the Lord said, “No body has the power to kill my own people again.” This means there will be no more martyrs from this time onward. Yet we know that Christians are still dying for Christ around the world, and in the Bible we see that martyrdom will continue until the end, when His angels gather His elect from the four winds. Jesus Himself said persecution of the saints is one of the signs of the times before His return. “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.” (Mat 24:9). The book of Revelation has much to say about End Time Saints being killed, and even says it is the destiny of some to be killed (Rev 13:10). The Lord requires faithfulness until death (Rev 2:10). Anyone who will not worship the beast will be killed, including saints (Rev 13:15; cf., 14:11; Rev 20:4). See my articles The Glory of Martyrdom for Christ and The End Time Saints.

3) They state that Jesus called satan an “idiot”. Yet we find no place in Scripture where Jesus ever called satan or any demon an “idiot.” He called the devil “satan” (Mat. 4:10; 12:26; 16:23; Mark 3:23,26; 4:15; 8:33; Luke 10:18; 11:18; 13:16; 22:31). In Revelation, he is referred to as “the great dragon,” “the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan” (Rev 12:9). He is also called “the accuser of the brethren” (Rev 12:10). Jesus called the demons “unclean spirits” (Mk 5:8) or simply demons (Mat. 7:22; 10:8; 12:27,28; Mark 16:17; Luke 11:18,19,20; 13:32). And when speaking to His enemies, the Lord may have called them by names of beasts like fox or viper (Mat. 12:34; 23:33), but He never called anyone an idiot. In fact, it says in Jude, “Yet in the same way these men, also by dreaming, defile the flesh, and reject authority, and revile angelic majesties. But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed.” (Jud 1:8-10)

About the statements that the Lord has already returned, we have the following Scriptural warnings against such claims:

The apostle Paul said, “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.” (2Th 2:1-4). Paul warned the Thessalonians not to believe any spirit or message or letter as if from him to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. In Paul’s concluding remarks to that epistle, he states, “If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he will be put to shame. Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.” (2Th 3:14-15)

The Lord Himself also said, “Then if anyone says to you, 'Behold, here is the Christ,' or 'There He is,' do not believe him. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance. So if they say to you, 'Behold, He is in the wilderness,' do not go out, or, 'Behold, He is in the inner rooms,' do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.” (Mat 24:23-28). You will know it when the Lord has returned, just as a flash of lightning in the sky cannot be kept secret from those on the earth. But when you see a lot of vultures circling in the sky above, rather than a flash of lightning, that should tell you something. You may not be able to see what they are all gathering around for, but you know it is some body that is sick or dead. Beware of anyone who says the Lord has come back and any group that gathers around such claims. See Sequence of Signs Preceding the Coming of Christ and Synching Up the Seven Seals with the Gospels.

Confusion
There is confusion in this movement, and confusion is not of God. "For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints." (1 Cor 14:33, KJV).

For example, TGRM contradicts itself. On the one hand, they prophesy that it is disobedience to own a car. On the other hand, they prophesy that the car was made with wisdom, and that those who say it is useless will suffer for their foolishness, since their travels will become more difficult. They state that the Lord asked, "Can an African tell the white man that the wisdom he used in making a car is useless? If he avoids him, his movement becomes difficult and he will suffer because of his own foolishness."

Another example that I have already mentioned is the matter of the Lord having already returned on the one hand, yet on the other hand He is coming to reign.

Another example is the matter of working for the Lord versus working with the Lord, as I have also  mentioned. On the one hand they prophesy, "The danger in working for Me is that they will end up in destruction.” On the other hand they prophesy, "...the matter is that after working for me, they get their reward in heaven.” This is confusing. Do people working for the Lord get their reward in heaven or do they end up in destruction?

To further emphasize my point about confusion, here is an email I received from a brother named John A. from Nigeria, which I received over a year and half after I posted this article. He stated:

"I started reading the doctrines of True Gospel Revival Movement, and I contacted them through my phone and introduced myself to them. And the next thing they told me was to start a fellowship wherever I am, and teach the doctrines on their website. I began to wonder when they later called me and told me that my name is not supposed to be John, that my name is Yahchana. I accepted the name [initially], but I later began to question myself and I became confused. In the process of visiting their site, I saw your article that pointed out certain things that caused me to [contact] a pastor to pray for me to renounce the name I accepted without knowing the source or the meaning. And I became afraid from that moment. What confuses me most is that their teaching sounds like true teaching, so I am still confused even till this moment. "

As you can see, this group is causing confusion, and they need to be held accountable for what they are doing to people like this man John in Nigeria, which brings me to my next point.

Lack of Accountability and Directive Prophecies
TGRM seems to lack accountability. What I mean by that is that they are primarily issuing directives via prophecy, which nobody is allowed to challenge or question. Over and over again you see prophecy after prophecy setting forth these new rules, new standards, new commandments, usually ending with the phrase, “Thus said the Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth.” We need to be careful of directive prophecy, since the biblical purpose of prophecy is to edify, comfort, and encourage us (1 Cor 14:3), not to direct us.

The TGRM site states, "In True Gospel Revival Movement the Lord Jesus Christ speaks direct to men and not through his spirit alone. He speaks through his chosen mouth piece and his ordained oracle." This is talking about the person who initiated this movement. It also states that  "...nobody ever attempts to doctor or amend his messages before releasing them to the world, but they are handed raw to the world."

This is leading by prophecy, which is dangerous. Many cults have been created this way. Things may start off seeming to be fairly innocent with only a few, apparently minor deviations from the Word, but then it can gradually become more and more obvious that it is unbiblical. The problem is that by then it is too late, because you have been completely deceived, and you cannot get yourself out.

No matter who gives a prophecy, it must always be tested and judged, not only by the individual who gives it, but also by others. Yet these TGRM prophecies are being "handed raw to the world" without anyone being allowed to judge or amend them. Paul said, “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment.” (1Co 14:29). He also said, “Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.” (1Th 5:19-22). In fact, Paul himself, who wrote half the New Testament, went up to Jerusalem to submit himself to the apostles there and ensure that his gospel message to the Gentiles was valid. He wanted to ensure that he had not been running in vain. He said, “Then after an interval of fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along also. It was because of a revelation that I went up; and I submitted to them the gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but I did so in private to those who were of reputation, for fear that I might be running, or had run, in vain.” (Gal 2:1-2)

The apostle John warned us, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1Jn 4:1). The Berean disciples were commended for seeking to find out if Paul’s messages were Scriptural. It says, “Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” (Act 17:11). We must always be free to examine everything carefully, test it, and pass judgment on every single prophecy. If anyone puts themselves above that process, threatening anyone who attempts to do so with hellfire, then that is dangerous. That person is not accountable to others in the Body of Christ.

Prophecy is not the only gift and prophets are not the only ones the Lord uses to prepare the Body for works of service. “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.” (Eph 4:11-13). There needs to be these others, such as apostles, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, in order to maintain accountability and keep the Church from error. But when a group relies mainly on prophecy to equip the saints, and defies any challenges to these prophecies, the enemy can easily get in and bring deception. Please see Judging Revelations, Visions, and Prophecies, Testing the Spirits of False Prophets, and Accountable, correctable, and teachable.

The core members of this movement, who are giving these prophecies, seem to be rather young in the Lord and spiritually immature. They need to submit to authority and make themselves accountable to others in the Body of Christ. They must also be correctable and teachable. But who will correct them or teach them if all other churches and movements are deemed by prophecy to be apostate or illegitimate?

Extra-biblical Writings
If these prophecies cannot be challenged, judged, or tested by other disciples using the Word of God, then that means these messages are inerrant and become elevated to the level of Scripture. This means each prophecy posted on the website becomes like another book of the Bible and holds the same authority as Scripture. Or else it is regarded as another book that Christians must obey, besides the Bible. The end result is that such a book or such extra-biblical writings on the web end up superseding Scripture, because they are regarded as authoritative and binding upon all Christians, even if they contradict the Bible. This essentially nullifies the Word of God, as TGRM is doing with their laws that contradict Scripture. The fact is that no prophecy or extra-biblical writing carries the same authority as Scripture, and must either conform to the Word of God or be ignored.

Also see my articles Scripture Alone and The Bible is the Word of God.

One Group with All Truth 
TGRM states that the Lord "has decided to reveal all truth and mystery of Heaven through this movement." They also state that the Lord said He "will reveal all mysteries through this movement." Those are the exact words from their website. That also presents a problem, since it is unbiblical.

The apostle Paul said, "We know in part and we prophesy in part." (1 Cor 13:9). That means none of us have the whole, but only a part. None of us, except the Lord, have all knowledge. The Lord does not reveal all mysteries to one individual or group, but only some. That is the way a healthy body functions. Otherwise one part of the body could say to another part, "I don't need you." As we all function together in unity, each one doing their part, then we receive the fullness of all that the Lord reveals to the Church. As the whole body is fitted and held together in Christ "by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part," then He causes the growth of the body (Eph 4:16).

As the apostle John said, "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie is of the truth." (1Jn 2:20-21). Every true disciple has an anointing from the Spirit of grace, and by this unction we all know the truth, as well as discern the lies.

If the Lord gave all knowledge to one individual or group, and everyone looked solely to them for guidance, then the enemy could easily deceive billions of people at once, simply by deceiving that single individual or movement. So if the enemy has already deceived the founder of TGRM and introduced error into this movement, as I have proven in this article, then the potential for mass deception not only exists, but is already happening at some level internationally!

Condition for TGRM Membership
The ten rules that all TGRM members must obey are listed on the home page of their website, which are basically like the new, Ten Commandments. Of course, as usual, they claim these rules were set by Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

The ninth rule states: "Membership is by believing every bit of these messages of our Lord Jesus Christ and joining in our fellowships and programmes to both do and teach others nothing but this truth." They said you can do nor teach nothing but what they claim is "truth." So if you are a part of that organization, you must do and teach others only what they teach, including all the heresies I have highlighted above, and others I have not yet discovered. In other words, you are not allowed to teach others anything else, except what TGRM dictates. This essentially means you are not allowed to teach anything found in the Bible that they do not teach.

And their tenth commandment states, "membership of this movement is one of the unavoidable conditions for seeing God at last." This means that their ninth rule that I just mentioned is a condition for salvation, along with all their other conditions.

If you are a member of TGRM, I call upon you to repent, because in order to be a member of it, you must do and teach everything they say. That requires that you embrace doctrines that I have just proven to be false, according to the Word of God. And you will have to teach others that they will burn in hell, unless they embrace these false teachings.

Mind Control
In case you did not already reach this conclusion yourself, the practices of TGRM resemble the mind control techniques commonly used by cults to control their members. If you would like to educate yourself about that, please see the article by Cult Watch entitled "How Cults Work."

Similarities to Armstrongism
Based on what I have seen thus far of TGRM, it is similar in many ways to Armstrongism, which refers to the beliefs of a cult formed by Herbert W. Armstrong in 1934 that eventually came to be known as the Worldwide Church of God. According to Wikipedia, he taught that "God had restored the full Gospel message of the Kingdom of God...to the Church through him (Armstrong) by opening his mind to the plain truth of scripture. He taught that all other churches calling themselves 'Christian' were not merely apostate, but actually counterfeits..." His worldwide church was supposedly the one group with all truth. He taught that Christians must observe the dietary laws of Moses, celebration of high Sabbaths, and annual Jewish festivals. He claimed that these and other teachings of his were the true gospel restored. Therefore, I think that the True Gospel Revival Movement Worldwide bears many resemblances to the Worldwide Church of God.

Unable to Refute this Article
One last thing I would like to say is that shortly after writing this article, I sent it  to TGRM, and asked them to respond to it. They initially requested phone contact, which I refused. They deleted my comment from their site and said they were preparing a response to this article, but they never followed through with it.

Then five months after writing this article, in July 2016, a sister in the Philippines began to read their website, and when she asked if they had a branch congregation in her country, they wanted her to establish one. They even gave her a prophecy that they claimed was directly from the Lord that He wanted her to start such a group. However, she wanted to make sure she was not being misled or deceived, so she read this present article of mine. Then she brought it to their attention, to which they replied with another prophecy supposedly from the Lord Jesus to her. In this prophecy, they quoted the Lord saying that when they were making arrangements to answer my article, He stopped them, saying that He would answer me by Myself, and He said that He has already answered me.

She wrote to me to find out if in fact the Lord did answer me about TGRM after writing this article. I responded by saying that I have received no such message from the Lord that would validate this movement, and that in fact I have received further information that only validates what I have written.  Therefore, let it be known that I stand by what I have written in this article.

Two weeks after that sister in the Philippines corresponded with me and I added this new section to my article, here is what happened. On July 17, 2016, TGRM sent me a prophecy allegedly from the Lord to me personally, and they copied 59 other people on the email. The only way they had my email address was from when I left a comment on their website five months ago, but I never gave them permission to copy other people on an email to me, since I do not want my email address publicized. When I received their email, I did not read the attachment with the prophecy, since I assumed it was not favorable toward me unless I agree with their doctrines. They also sent attachments with their revised calendar that all Christians are supposed to use now, which seems to be part of what they have supposedly been commissioned to do. 

As they told the Filipino sister recently, the Lord advised them NOT to answer me regarding this article, because He Himself would do so and I had supposedly already received His message. Yet now they have in fact responded to my article by sending the following to me personally and copying others whom I do not know: 1) the supposed prophecy they believe the Lord has for me, which I was supposed to have already received; 2) a document they have written justifying their KJV-only position; and 3) a document they have written supporting their revised calendar with new names for the months of the year and days of the week. That action on their part completely contradicts what they previously claimed the Lord commanded them. Now it seems they are going against what they claim He commanded them, and they are responding to me. It is confusion.

Finally, to further validate a point I made earlier in this article about directive prophecy, please note that in this instance, TGRM used a directive prophecy to tell the Filipino sister to start a church for them in the Philippines, then they used directive prophecy to tell her why they never responded to this article of mine when she asked about it, and finally they apparently used a directive prophecy to me to respond to this article.

Putting it All Together
I tried to keep an open mind about the True Gospel Revival Movement (TGRM), and was willing to believe they were genuinely from the Lord. However, my conscience is bound to the Word of God, and it is neither wise nor safe to go against conscience. We must prove all things from the Word and confirm that they are truly so.

As I have examined the Scriptures to see if these things are so that TGRM is claiming, I have found numerous issues, including the following: claims of world domination, sole possession of all truth and revelation of all mysteries, Christian currency, property ownership, cessation of martyrdom, salvation by membership in a movement, lack of accountability, confusion, claims that Christ has already come back, working for the Lord vs. working with Him, husbands being little gods, the authority of the only begotten Son of God during His earthly ministry, satan being referred to as an idiot as well as a son of God, King-James-Version-only, and observing the Law of Moses, including dietary laws beyond the ones decreed by the first-century apostles.

Therefore, I would caution anyone who is considering joining this movement, or who is listening to its prophecies. According to the Word of God that I have just presented to you, some of their teachings are doctrines of demons. Please do not be deceived by them. You have been warned. And I have warned you not via my own prophecy or opinion, but via the Word of God, which is our sole rule of faith.

"I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as His anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in Him." (1Jn 2:26-27, NIV)

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB,except where noted otherwise. Other Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®, where noted.

Author's Note: I also recommend reading What Then Must We Observe?, Are We Really Little gods?, Scripture Alone, Judging Revelations, Visions, and Prophecies, Testing the Spirits of False Prophets, The Nature of False Prophets, A Tale of Two Kings, Is Jesus God?, Accountable, correctable, and teachable, Accurately Handling the Word of Truth, Exposing Heresy, The Rise of Antichrists, The Origin of Sin, Satan, and Secular Music, The Rise and Fall of Lucifer the Musician, Michael Thomas Sambo's Revelation of Heaven and Hell, Scripture Alone, By Grace Alone, Righteousness by Faith not Law, No Flesh Will Be Justified by Works, In Defense of the NIV, Sequence of Signs Preceding the Coming of Christ, The End Time Saints, and The Glory of Martyrdom for Christ. You can access the Home page of this blog for more articles on Truth and heresy, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master.

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.