The Truth of God's Word

Sunday, October 26, 2025

The Biblical Word of Faith

There have been many criticisms of the Word of Faith movement, because of various abuses of what has become known as the “name it, claim it” theology, particularly the prosperity part of that teaching.

Let me give a brief history. An author named D.R. McConnell, in his book A Different Gospel, documented the historical link between word of faith theology and New Thought metaphysics. He documented irrefutable evidence that Kenneth Hagin plagiarized E.W. Kenyon (see link for details). In A Different Gospel, McConnel quotes earlier works of Kenyon in one column, and right beside it in another column he quotes works of Hagin, and they are identical, and there are a lot of them.

Meanwhile, Hagin is considered the father of the Word of Faith Movement, and others like Kenneth Copeland consider Hagin their spiritual father. We know of their heresies (eg., little gods and rhema word) and abuses, especially the prosperity part of their teaching, which I have written about in the links provided here and at the end of this article.

But at its core, there is actual truth to this word of faith teaching, which is based solidly upon the Word of God. It's important that we don't throw out the baby with the bath water. So let’s look and see what the Scripture says.

Profess your Faith

First of all, the apostle Paul taught in Rom 10:6-13 that we must profess our faith.

But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, "Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame." For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Rom 10:6-13)

Paul taught that this is the way to be saved and attain the righteousness that is by faith. But it is also the way to be healed, to operate in miracles, and to receive anything from God. In fact, it's the way to live life. You have to speak forth what you believe in your heart, in accordance with God's will, and it will surely happen. Don’t expect another to come do it. You are the one who must speak it.

The Word is in Your Mouth

In that same passage, Paul taught that the Word is near you, in your heart and in your mouth. He said, "That is the word of faith we are proclaiming" (Ro 10:8). So clearly the expression "word of faith" and the definition of it are found right there in the Word of God; therefore, it is biblical.

You need to activate God’s Word by quoting Scripture. Simply claim by faith those Bible verses out loud that pertain to your situation. And in some cases you can claim the Bible reference to those verses, as long as you know and believe the truths contained in those verses.

This is not magic, and God is not your trained seal that has to jump through all your hoops whenever you tell Him to; but if what you are claiming is His will, and you wait upon Him in faithful expectation without doubting, you will receive. That's biblical.

Speak from Faith

According to God's Word, you need to speak from faith. So you need to confess with your mouth what you believe in your heart. Paul wrote:

"It is written: 'I believed; therefore I have spoken.' Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak..." (2Co 4:13)

If you believe, then you should speak whatever you believe in your heart. In his epistle to the Corinthians, the apostle was quoting from Psalm 116:10, when he wrote: "I believed, therefore I have spoken." The KJV, NASB, NIV are essentially all the same, and all correctly quote the psalmist.

---- 2 Corinthians 4:13 ----

*KJV*	*NAS77*	NIV
13 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;	13 But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE," we also believe, therefore also we speak;	13 It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak,

Now I want to show you what Psalm 116:10 says. I am not a King-James-Only person, but in this case, the King James was the only version that correctly translated Psalm 116:10, as quoted in all three version of 2 Corinthians 4:13. The KJV is the only one that translated Psalm 116:10 the same way as the Septuagint (LXX), which is the Greek translation of the Old Testament, as I have shown in the table below.

---- Psalm 116:10 ----

*LXX*	*KJV*	*NAS77*	NIV
10 I believed, wherefore I have spoken: but I was greatly afflicted.	10 I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted:	10 I believed when I said, "I am greatly afflicted."	10 I trusted in the LORD when I said, "I am greatly afflicted";

It's interesting that the KJV correctly follows the Septuagint (LXX), since the KJV is based on the Masoretic text, and not the LXX. The LXX was based on earlier Hebrew manuscripts older than the Masoretic text. So score one point for the KJV for getting this one right. But amazingly, the NAS77 and NIV still both correctly translated Paul's quote of this passage in 2 Corinthians 4:13.

I would like to illustrate this point by sharing with you the testimony of a man named Steve Boyls, who was taken to heaven by an angel, while he was laying in an induced coma in the hospital. In heaven, he saw his father, who enjoyed working with wood during his earthly life, and was also doing wood carvings in heaven. When Steve asked his father what he does if he makes a mistake while carving wood, his father told him that in heaven, mistakes are corrected by words. They just speak to the mistake and command it to correct itself, and it does so. That is how we should also operate on earth using our faith in Jesus' name.

Speak to the Mountain

Jesus taught that you have to actually speak to the mountains.

"'Have faith in God,' Jesus answered. 'Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, "Go, throw yourself into the sea," and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.'" (Mar 11:22-24).

It's important that you do not doubt, but believe in your heart that what you say will happen. When you do so, it will be done for you. This also applies to trees, storms, and virtually any obstacle that stands in the way of you being able to accomplish God's will. See Speak to the Storm.

Focus on the Other World

You need to focus on the other world, which is the spiritual world, and not on the natural world.

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." (2Co 4:18)

We live in two worlds simultaneously. There is the visible, natural realm, and also the invisible, spirit realm. We must focus on the real world-- the unseen one, which is eternal, not on the visible one, which is only a temporary shadow of the real world.

The Power of the Tongue

Scripture says that our tongue has great power.

"The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." (Pro 18:21)

Indeed the power of life and death is in the tongue. So we have the ability with it to either speak forth life or death, blessing or cursing. That's why we must be careful about saying anything negative. And that applies to what we say over ourselves, as well as others.

We also need to pray specifically and receive specific answers. The reason you do not have is because you do not ask God (Jas 4:2).

Doing Greater Works Than Jesus Did

Jesus promised that as long as we have faith in Him, we will do what He did, and even greater works than these!

"I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father." (Jn 14:12)

How do you think you are going to do the works that Jesus did and even greater works? You are going to do them by faith, in the name of Jesus, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, just as He and His apostles did. You are going to speak by faith to the storms of life, including literal storms, and watch them be calmed. You are going to speak by faith to the mountains, and watch them be moved.

Some Words of Caution

I want to give you some words of wisdom as a caution, in order to safeguard you from error as you put this biblical teaching into practice.

First of all, always remember that God is God and you are not. That's rule number one and it cannot be broken.

Secondly, you must be sure your faith is in the Word of God and in the name of Jesus, not in faith. We don't have faith in faith, we have faith in God.

Thirdly, you must be sure that you don't use this power for selfish, evil purposes, but only for godly ones to do His will and further His kingdom. Remember that Jesus resisted satan's temptation to use His power to turn a stone into bread.

Fourthly, you must always submit to God's will and wait for his timing. Timing is key for every miracle, as there is a correct time and procedure for everything. That requires waiting upon the Lord. Sometimes the miracle happens immediately, and other times there is a delay, whether short or long.

Last but not least, be sure you always forgive everyone from your heart, or else you won't see any answers to your prayers. Jesus taught this in the context of using your faith to speak to mountains and command them to move. He said, "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins." (Mar 11:25).

Closing Words

As we have just seen, there is a true, biblical word of faith. We have acknowledged and exposed the plagiarism, abuses, and heresies of Hagin and his followers, but that doesn't take away from the fact that the word of faith is still a true, biblical teaching.

The Word is in you heart and it must also be in your mouth. You must profess your faith, speak from faith, claim the promises of God, quote the Scriptures in order to activate them, use the power of your tongue to release life and not death, speak blessings and not curses, speak by faith in Jesus' name to mountains and troubles, commanding them to be removed, and it will be done, as long as you do not doubt. Now go and put this into practice. Ask the Lord to implement this in your life starting today.

Attribution notice: Except where otherwise noted, most Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible NIV, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.

Author's note: I also recommend reading EW Kenyon and New Thought Metaphysics, Are We Really Little gods?, Rhema vs. Logos – Is there truly a distinction in the word?, Does Being Saved Make All Your Troubles Disappear?, Personal Proclamations of Faith, Speak to the Storm, The Authority of the Believer, Link Between Two Realms, and What's Wrong with the Prosperity Gospel?. You may access more of my articles on the Main Directory of this blog, 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?"

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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.

Friday, October 24, 2025

EW Kenyon and New Thought Metaphysics

As I wrote about in my article on The Biblical Word of Faith, D.R. McConnell in his book, A Different Gospel, documented compelling and perhaps irrefutable evidence that Kenneth Hagin plagiarized E.W. Kenyon.

First I would like to show you what E.W. Kenyon taught, and then after that (at the end of the post), I would like to show some comments from an online discussion forum about Hagin's apparent plagiarism.

AI Overview of Kenyon

Here is what AI results state about EW Kenyon:

E.W. Kenyon was influenced by and incorporated New Thought metaphysics into his teachings, creating a "metaphysical mixture" that blended New Thought's emphasis on the mind with evangelical Christianity. He drew from New Thought principles, like the power of positive thinking and confession, and adapted them into his own theological system, which influenced the later Word of Faith and prosperity gospel movements. While he explicitly fought against what he called "metaphysical cults," his work became a bridge for metaphysical concepts to enter mainstream Christianity. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Metaphysical influences: Kenyon studied New Thought and was influenced by teachers like Phineas Quimby. He also had a personal metaphysical library that included New Thought materials. [1, 2, 7]
Adaptation of concepts: He didn't adopt New Thought's philosophy wholesale, but instead, he "baptized" or adapted its principles. He integrated the power of thought and words into a Christian framework, teaching that believers could shape their circumstances through the "positive confession" of God's Word. [3, 4]
Creation of a new system: Kenyon's work is seen by many as a fusion of evangelical Christianity with New Thought ideas, resulting in a system of theology that emphasized the authority of believers to speak things into existence through faith. [3, 4]
Legacy: His teachings laid the groundwork for the modern Word of Faith movement, which was later popularized by figures like Kenneth Hagin. The "health and wealth" gospel is a direct descendant of this blend. [2, 4, 8]
Debate on his stance: Kenyon himself publicly opposed what he considered to be metaphysical "cults". However, critics argue that despite his opposition, his teachings adopted and re-packaged the very ideas he was fighting against. [2, 3, 5, 6]

Forum Discussion About Hagin's Plagiarism

Here are some comments on a discussion forum online regarding Kenneth Hagin Sr.'s apparent plagiarism of E.W. Kenyon, which ring true to me from what I remember reading over 30 years ago in the book, A Different Gospel:

Aug 3, 2005

M. Paul

Plagiarism, Kenyon and the Word Of Faith Movement

Kenneth Hagin apparently had no conscience about copying word for word his "revelations" of the Word of Faith from Kenyon's books, published some time earlier...

The original works are the rights of KENYON'S GOSPEL PUBLISHING SOCIETY.

E.W. Kenyon wrote:

"The twenty-second psalm gives a graphic picture of the crucifixion of Jesus. It is more vivid than that of John, Matthew or Mark who witnessed it. But he says the strangest words, 'But thou art holy.' What does that mean? He is becoming sin...." (quote taken from What Happened From the Cross to the Throne [Seattle: Kenyon's Gospel Publishing Society, 1969, 44-51])

Kenneth E. Hagin Sr. wrote:

"The 22nd psalm gives a graphic picture of the crucifixion of Jesus- more vivid than that of John, Matthew or Mark witnessed it. He utters the strangest words 'But thou are holy.' What does that mean? He is becoming sin..." (quote taken from "Christ our Substitute", The Word of Faith [March 1975]), pp.1,4,5,7)

As well, read what Kenyon's daughter has to say about this.

The eight books by Hagin stretch from 1973-81. Rhema Bible Training Center was founded in 1974.

August 3. 2005

ProAmericanVeteran

You would be surprised, though, of how many people are unaware of what has been documented concerning Hagin's apparent plagiarism.

Hagin did respond, though, and did not clear the problem when he had the chance. Looks like he swept the whole thing, as they say, 'under the rug'.

Kenneth Hagin wrote: "Kenyon's influence on my ministry has been minute. Only his teachings on the name of Jesus have much to do with my theology. I absolutely deny any metaphysical influences from Kenyon...." -- Vinson Synan, "The Faith of Kenneth Hagin", Charisma & Christian Faith, 15:11 (June 1990), 68)

Aug 5, 2005

M. Paul

Hagin's plagiarism is thoroughly documented. An above post [by ProAmericanVeteran] indicates Hagin did finally make some type of response to the charge, but why did he never respond to what has been documented?? Evidence is evidence--that must be answered point by point, not dismissed by some generalized statement.

A Different Gospel quotes earlier works of Kenyon in one column and works of Hagin in another, and they are identical and there are a lot of them. Only by addressing this evidence is there an effective answer to the charge.

However, I'm not saying we should condemn Hagin if there is no answer. I do say it changes the perspective of his teaching.

Regards,

Paul

[END OF DISCUSSION FORUM COMMENTS]

Closing Words

As I have just shown, clearly there is documented evidence of plagiarism on the part of Kenneth Hagin. And it was not just a little, but a lot, in eight of Hagin's books over a period of eight years. Moreover, it was not just any plagiarism, but the very things Hagin claimed to have received by direct revelation from Jesus Christ, were actually copied from Kenyon. And Hagin never admitted it or repented, but claimed that Kenyon had very little influence upon his teachings.

As for Kenyon, I am willing to assume the best of him, that he was not teaching heresy, but was teaching truths that he had discovered from New Thought Metaphysics, which aligned with Scripture. I do not condone metaphysics, and nor did Kenyon. I am not a follower of Hagin or Kenyon, nor am I a part of any Word of Faith church or movement. But if any cult, false religion, or false teacher happens to believe or teach anything that is true, that does not mean we should reject that teaching just because they hold to it. If it is biblical truth, then we must embrace it as such, regardless of who else believes it or teaches it.

Back to The Biblical Word of Faith article.

Footnotes for AI Overview:

[1] https://www.graceful-truth.com/word-of-faith-origins

[2] https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/context/masters/article/1051/viewcontent/Smith_Kevin_OP.pdf

[3] https://www.reddit.com/r/Reformed/comments/ix0rhs/new_thought_the_pagan_religion_that_gave_us_the/

[4] https://www.facebook.com/DoreenVirtueForJesus/posts/new-thought-and-word-of-faith-similarities-differences-and-the-deeper-historymos/1289967682490217/

[5] https://www.equip.org/articles/whats-wrong-with-the-word-faith-movement-part-one/

[6] https://www.kenyons.org/metaphysical-cults.html

[7] https://thecultishshow.com/podcast/word-of-faith-amp-new-thought-a-modern-assessment

[8] https://www.gotquestions.org/Word-Faith.html

Attribution notice: Except where otherwise noted, most Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible NIV, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.

Author's note: I also recommend reading The Biblical Word of Faith. You may access more of my articles on the Main Directory of this blog, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master.

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Thursday, October 23, 2025

Ten Commandments: Protestant vs. Catholic

Did you know that the Catholics have a different version of the Ten Commandments than Protestants? I am a former devout Catholic, who never knew this until today, so this is news to me, but is certainly no surprise.

	*Protestant*	Catholic
1.	You shall have no other gods before me.	I am the Lord thy God. Thou shall not have strange gods before Me.
2.	You shall not make for yourselves an idol or a graven image.	Thou shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
3.	You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God.	Remember to keep holy the Lord's day.
4.	Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.	Honor thy father and mother.
5.	Honor your father and your mother.	Thou shall not kill.
6.	You shall not murder.	Thou shall not commit adultery.
7.	You shall not commit adultery.	Thou shall not steal.
8.	You shall not steal.	Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
9.	You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.	Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife.
10.	You shall not covet.	Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's goods.

Please note that the Catholics removed the second commandment against making an idol or a graven image, and they split the tenth commandment into two commandments about coveting, which is completely unnecessary, since God forbids coveting in all forms. It’s no wonder they have all those graven images that they bow down to, because they removed the commandment prohibiting that practice.

Ten Commandments Passage in Scripture

Here is what the Bible actually says in the King James version (I have added the commandment numbers beside the Bible verses below):

I. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. (Exo 20:3)

II. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. (Exo 20:4-6)

III. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. (Exo 20:7)

IV. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. (Exo 20:8-11)

V. Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. (Exo 20:12)

VI. Thou shalt not kill. (Exo 20:13)

VII. Thou shalt not commit adultery. (Exo 20:14)

VIII. Thou shalt not steal. (Exo 20:15)

IX. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. (Exo 20:16)

X. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's. (Exo 20:17)

Catholic Ten Commandments Bible Passage

Here is what it says in the Catholic Douay-Rheims version, in which they have added a footnote justifying graven images, as long as they are not adored or served as divine:

1 And the Lord spoke all these words: 2 I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3 Thou shalt not have strange gods before me. 4 Thou shalt not make to thyself a graven thing, nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, nor of those things that are in the waters under the earth. 5 Thou shalt not adore them, nor serve them: I am the Lord thy God, mighty, jealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me:

[4] "A graven thing, nor the likeness of any thing": All such images, or likenesses, are forbidden by this commandment, as are made to be adored and served; according to that which immediately follows, thou shalt not adore them, nor serve them. That is, all such as are designed for idols or image-gods, or are worshipped with divine honour. But otherwise images, pictures, or representations, even in the house of God, and in the very sanctuary so far from being forbidden, are expressly authorized by the word of God. See Ex. 25. 15, and etc.; chap. 38. 7; Num. 21. 8, 9; 1 Chron. or Paralip. 28. 18, 19; 2 Chron. or Paralip. 3. 10.

6 And shewing mercy unto thousands to them that love me, and keep my commandments. 7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that shall take the name of the Lord his God in vain. 8 Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and shalt do all thy works. 10 But on the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: thou shalt do no work on it, thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy beast, nor the stranger that is within thy gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all things that are in them, and rested on the seventh day: therefore the Lord blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it. 12 Honour thy father and thy mother, that thou mayest be longlived upon the land which the Lord thy God will give thee. 13 Thou shalt not kill. 14 Thou shalt not commit adultery. 15 Thou shalt not steal. 16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. 17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house: neither shalt thou desire his wife, nor his servant, nor his handmaid, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is his. [End of Bible quote].

You will notice that in their footnote, they had to add to the Word of God, since any thinking Catholic person reading this would otherwise wonder how they could have so many images in their churches and homes that they bow down to, when the Word of God clearly forbids it. In their footnote, they say, “All such images, or likenesses, are forbidden by this commandment, as are made to be adored and served; according to that which immediately follows, thou shalt not adore them, nor serve them. That is, all such as are designed for idols or image-gods, or are worshipped with divine honour. But otherwise images, pictures, or representations, even in the house of God, and in the very sanctuary so far from being forbidden, are expressly authorized by the word of God.”

Grave Errors or Intentionally Misleading

I want to draw your attention to three grave errors they have made in this Bible. Or are they intentionally misleading people?

First, they teach in this footnote that all graven images are forbidden that are “made to be adored and served; according to that which immediately follows, thou shalt not adore them, nor serve them. That is, all such as are designed for idols or image-gods, or are worshipped with divine honour.” They are teaching here that a graven image is only forbidden if it is “made to be adored and served…such as those that are designed for idols or image-gods, or are to be worshiped with divine honour.” In saying this, they teach here that only graven images designed as such are forbidden, and only if you adore them and serve them, but that is not what the Word of God says. God said, “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them.” God did not make exceptions to this commandment.

Secondly, not only did they add a misleading footnote to the Word of God, they also changed a word in verse 5 and in their footnote about it. They changed the expression “bow down” to “adore”, and by doing so, they allow people to bow down before graven images, as long as they don’t adore them. But the original Hebrew language of Scripture uses the word “shâchâh” (pronounced shaw-khaw'), a primitive root meaning “to depress, that is, prostrate; bow (self) down, crouch, fall down (flat), humbly beseech, do (make) obeisance, do reverence, make to stoop, worship.” The Hebrew word “shâchâh” clearly means to bow down, as it is correctly translated in the King James version. But the Catholic Bible changes that to be “adore” instead. Adore means “worship; venerate.” So the Catholic Bible only forbids the worship or veneration of graven images in certain cases, such as those that are designed to be idol-gods, for example. It’s no wonder many Catholics kiss icons, such as statues of Mary and Jesus, as well as Jesus on the cross. In fact, during Catholic mass on Good Friday, venerating (kissing) the feet of Jesus on the cross is an actual ceremony they practice.

Thirdly, they teach in the footnote that using certain types of graven images in worship is expressly authorized by God in Scripture. They use references to verses that actually do NOT authorize any such thing, like Exodus 25:15, which states: "The poles are to remain in the rings of this ark; they are not to be removed." Another verse they falsely claim authorizes such things is Exodus 38:7, which says: "They inserted the poles into the rings so they would be on the sides of the altar for carrying it. They made it hollow, out of boards."

Another verse they cited is Numbers 21:8-9, which says, "The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived." As Google AI correctly says of this: "God did not command the creation of an idol, but a symbol for healing that was not meant to be worshipped, thus it did not violate the second commandment. The bronze serpent was a specific, divinely appointed tool for a temporary situation, meant to be a symbol of faith and healing, not a deity. Looking at the serpent was an act of faith, not idolatry...The problem arose later, when the people began to worship the bronze serpent as an idol. King Hezekiah eventually destroyed it to correct this misuse. This later misuse does not make the original command a violation of the commandment."

They also cite 1Ch 28:18-19 in the footnote, which in no way violates the second commandment, but speaks of the gold cherubim over the ark of the covenant. While there were gold cherubim that God directed Moses to make over the atonement cover of the ark, they were not to be bowed down to, worshiped, or served in any way. They were simply made after the pattern in heaven, whereby there are actual cherubim around the throne of God, since the ark of the covenant represented the presence of the Lord. It's atonement cover had what was called a mercy seat where the glory of God would appear when God would speak to Moses, and this is where the high priest would sprinkle blood once a year to make atonement for his own sins and the sins of the people.

Of course, most people would not bother to look up those verses to see that in no way do they authorize the practice of anything that God has forbidden in the second commandment, which forbids bowing down to graven images. Those verses don't even have anything to do with what God forbids in the second commandment.

Scriptures

"But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." (Rev 21:8)

"Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood." (Rev 22:15)

"Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1Co 6:9-11).

"But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people." (1Co 5:11)

"Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: 'The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.'" (1Co 10:7)

"Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry." (1Co 10:14)

"What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: 'I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.'" (2Co 6:16)

"The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." (Gal 5:19-21)

"Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed." (Rev 13:14-15)

"Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar." (Pro 30:5-6)

Closing Words

As I have proven in this article, the Roman Catholic Church is not based on the solid foundation of God's Word. Rather, it has literally changed the Word of God to make it say what they want it to say, in order to allow people to commit blatant idolatry in violation of God's commandments. They've also added a footnote into the text of the Bible to justify certain forms of idolatry, by saying that such practices are not idolatry and are not forbidden. They've even deleted one of the Ten Commandments (the second one) in their catechism that is used to teach Catholics their beliefs.

All of this is a cover or excuse for the fact that they can’t resist falling down before a statue. The devil loves idolatry, because he wants to take as many people to hell with him as possible, and he knows that no idolater will enter the kingdom of God (1Co 6:9-10; Rev 21:8;22:15). He also knows how prone man is to worshiping images that he can see. His demons get into those idols and steal worship from God. In fact, this is going to be one of the ways the antichrist will rule the world by compelling everyone in the world to commit idolatry. His false prophet will force everyone, except those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life, to worship his image or be killed if they refuse to do so (Rev 13:14-15).

I close with the words of the apostle John in the New Testament, with which he closes his first epistle. "Dear children, keep yourselves from idols." (1Jn 5:21).

Attribution notice: Except where otherwise noted, most Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible NIV, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.

Author's note: I also recommend reading Messages from the Lord for Catholics Worshipping Idols, The Truth About the Roman Catholic Church, Unbiblical Practices of the Catholic Church, and Michael Thomas Sambo's Revelation of Heaven and Hell. You may access more of my articles on the Main Directory of this blog, 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?"

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Wednesday, December 4, 2024

The Eth Cepher "Bible"?

Today I want to examine and expose the Eth Cepher so-called "Bible". It is not a translation, but a modified King James Version first published in 2015 with many dangerous issues. The word "eth" is a Hebrew word meaning "divine", and the word "cepher" is an intentional misspelling of the Hebrew word "sefer" or "sepher", meaning "book" or "scroll". So Eth Cepher means "divine book". That is how this so-called Bible is presented to the public.

Please watch the following short videos and check out the articles:

A Warning Regarding the Cepher “Scriptures.” (video)

5 Reasons to Avoid the “את Cepher” Bible (video)

The Cepher - A Follow Up - A Few Questions Answered (video)

A Review of the "Eth Cepher" - Part 1

What is the Cepher Bible?

The author of the Eth Cepher "Bible" is Dr. Stephen Pidgeon, a political scientist and active attorney with a Doctorate in Philosophy and a Juris Doctorate (law degree), who pastors a Hebrew Roots Church in Washington state. In this "Bible", he has added many extra books, chapters, and phrases, including a 29th chapter of Acts, in which Paul the apostle blesses the Druid priests, which is ridiculous. Here are some quotes (not from the Cepher) regarding the Druids: "Druids were a high-ranking priestly class in ancient Celtic cultures." "Druidism is considered a nature-based religion with a focus on reverence for the natural world and Celtic spirituality, often incorporating elements of paganism and New Age beliefs." "Druids revere the earth, the human body, and the rest of the physical world as part of the spiritual Divine." Obviously the apostle would not bless the Druid priests.

When someone claims that all 81 books of the Cepher are inspired, which is what they have done, that is false. They claim it is the Ethiopian Bible, which is also false. Adding fake chapters to the existing Bible like Acts 29 with Paul blessing pagan Druids, who sacrifice humans, is dangerous. The Apocryphal books are not the only thing Pidgeon has added in there. The Cepher also contains the "pseudepigrapha", which are works falsely attributed to the patriarchs, that clearly were not and could not have been written by them, since the earliest manuscripts are only from the era 100-200 BC. For example, the book of Jubiliees claims to be written by Moses. As for these uninspired books included in this so-called Bible, the authors of the Apocrypha and pseudepigrapha never claimed to be inspired and nobody in any inspired book of the Bible acknowledged them as Scripture.

If you own a copy of the Eth Cepher, the best thing you can do is throw it out and read the actual Bible, the Word of God. Nobody should be putting uninspired Bible books inside the same cover as Bible books and then calling those the Bible. That is very misleading.

And they are selling the Third Edition of the Eth Cepher (2018 Revision) for $332 USD on Amazon. What a waste of people's money! What profiteering!

A Harmless Book or Dangerous Book?

Someone has defended the Eth Cepher saying, "I don't necessarily think that merely reading it will cause a person to be in a cult, as long as anything they do agree with in the Apocrypha isn't contradictory to the Canon and is supported by the Canon." First this person incorrectly assumes that this is simply a Bible with the Apocrypha added. As I've already mentioned, it also contains many other additions like the pseudepigrapha and extra chapters. Here is my rebuttal to this person's defense of the Eth Cepher as a harmless book:

The Hebrew Roots Movement, which is what's behind this corrupted Bible, is heretical. It is a cult. This is not my opinion, but a fact. The Hebrew Roots may sound good, but it is teaching falsely, as I have explained in my article called The Heretical Hebrew Roots Movement.

It's not safe to assume that most people picking up the Cepher are mature enough spiritually to discern what things in the false writings, books, and chapters do not align with the rest of Scripture. That is not a valid assumption. Most Christians are not well-versed in the Bible in the first place, and even if they had read the Bible through once entirely, they would probably not be able to discern false teachings in the Apocrypha, pseudepigrapha, and false chapters like Acts 29. That is why it is so dangerous. I can vouch personally for this since, before I was saved, I grew up reading the Apocrypha, which was in my Bible, not knowing it was not the Word of God.

Let me give you an analogy to show how dangerous it is to present these 81 books as the divinely inspired Word of God.

Imagine holding an egg hunt for little children in a back yard, in which the children go hunting for hollow, plastic eggs containing chocolate and other candy. The children are very excited to find the eggs, but what you didn't tell them is that you have also hidden deadly explosives inside many of the plastic eggs, instead of candy, which will explode when the children pick them up and open them. The deadly plastic eggs look just like the ones containing candy, and the children cannot tell the difference. Who would ever do such a thing?

Only an evil person would do that! But that is exactly what they have done by publishing all of these extra books and chapters in the Eth Cepher and claiming that they are inspired. For most Christians, this is a very dangerous situation, in which they lack the knowledge, discernment, and expertise to distinguish between that which is the inspired Word of God and what is not.

The reason this is so important is that the Word of God is our sole rule of faith, so we must put it into practice (Mt 7:24-27) and be doers of the Word, not just hearers (James 1:22-25). But we are not to live by extrabiblical books that are not inspired. Therefore, it is necessary to know which books are inspired and which ones are not, so that we know which ones to live by and which ones not to live by.

Interesting Confirmation of the Canon

The Church held councils that confirmed centuries ago which books were inspired and which ones were not. The ones that were determined to be the inspired Word of God were included in the Bible. This is known as the canon, a word that means "measuring stick". In other words, the canon has a very finite beginning and end from Genesis to Revelation. The entire Hebrew canon (our Old Testament, as we now know it) was already complete by four hundred years before Christ! No changes have been made to it since then, except to the grouping and arrangement of the books, but not to the content.

Moreover, the New Testament canon has been firmly established since the fourth century AD! By that time, the entire New Testament canon had been collected and organized as we now now it, and was accepted by the Church as the authoritative Word of God in 367 AD. At that time, Athanasius, the Bishop of Alexandria, wrote in his Easter letter the first known complete list of the 27 books, which was later ratified by several councils, "including the Synod of Hippo Regius in 393, the Councils of Carthage in 397 and 419, and Pope Innocent I in 405." (Google AI). No additional books have been added to the canon since that time. For more on this, see the video teaching on Six Proofs of Inspiration on this page.

Here is an interesting numerical coincidence that, in my opinion, confirms the canon and demonstrates how God oversaw the canonization of Scripture to ensure that only His Word would be included.

I am quoting from my article on Numerical Patterns in Scripture:

There are sixty-six books in the Bible, thirty-nine in the Old Testament and twenty-seven in the New Testament. There is an amazingly similar pattern found in the book of Isaiah the prophet, which contains sixty-six chapters. Interestingly the first thirty-nine chapters of Isaiah reflect the same tone and message as the first thirty-nine books of the Bible! Likewise, the last twenty-seven chapters of Isaiah reflect the tone and message of the gospel recorded in the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. In the first thirty-nine chapters of Isaiah, one main theme is God’s judgment against sin. In the final twenty-seven chapters, there is the hope of redemption and forgiveness.

Isaiah begins the last twenty-seven chapters of that book in chapter 40 with these words:

"Comfort, O comfort My people," says your God. "Speak kindly to Jerusalem; And call out to her, that her warfare has ended, That her iniquity has been removed, That she has received of the LORD'S hand Double for all her sins." A voice is calling, "Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.” (Isa 40:1-3)

And Mark’s gospel begins with these words:

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way; the voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.'" (Mar 1:1-3).

So when Mark began his gospel, he called it “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,” quoting in Mark 1:3 from Isaiah 40:3. This gives further support to the fact that Isaiah 40 is the beginning of the gospel message found in the final twenty-seven chapters of that book. Also see The Bible is the Word of God.

Not a Cool Book

Before I close, I would like to include here some comments made by my sister in Christ, Prema Sankarsingh Pelletier, after she viewed the videos featured in this article, as her comments reflect my own concerns as well. She wrote:

"I looked at Tim Nichol's video as he talked about the writings of Dr. Pidgeon and the 'cepher scriptures'. I was concerned that he thinks it is a good idea to have a copy of that book in his library. I think if I really needed some of the material from that book, certainly there would be a way to find them. Personally, I wouldn't want to keep a copy of the cepher scriptures, no matter how 'useful' it may seem.

Brother Nichols is well-read but I personally believe he is making an error in judgment by keeping this book in his library. He even said it is a 'cool book'. I believe he means well, but I don't see anything 'cool' about it. We must separate the wheat from the chaff. A little leaven corrupts the whole lump.

A new or weak Christian can get a hold of that book while visiting brother Nichols and fall into the enemy's trap."

Closing Words

The apostle Paul warned, "Do not go beyond what is written" (1 Cor 4:6). Unfortunately, Dr. Pidgeon didn't pay attention to that verse. Likewise, the apostle Peter warned about those who distort the Scriptures to their own destruction, as Dr. Pidgeon has done (2 Pe 3:16).

Moreover, Jesus warned in Revelation 22: "I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book." (Rev 22:18-19).

The Church has already established the canon of Scripture, and the Lord has warned that if you add anything to the Book of Revelation (the final book of the Bible) that He will add to you the plagues described in the scroll. He also warns that if anyone takes words away from it, He will take away that person's share in the tree of life and in the Holy City. Since that warning was given in the last chapter of the last book of the Bible to be written -- the final book in the canon, I also believe that this warning from our Lord applies to anyone who would add extra books, chapters, or phrases to the Bible that were not originally in it, and are not the inspired Word of God, as the heretical author of the Eth Cepher has done.

Therefore, I believe you have now been adequately forewarned against the Eth Cepher, a book written by a heretical movement that adds to the Word of God that which is not God's Word. It should be considered a Bible perversion, rather than a Bible version. If you know anyone who is reading or promoting this dangerous book, please share this article with them to prayerfully consider.

Disclaimer: Use of videos about the Cepher by David Wilber and others in this article should not be construed in any way to imply that I share the same views on other topics held by these men.

Attribution notice: Scripture taken from the Holy Bible NIV, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, I recommend The Heretical Hebrew Roots Movement, The Bible is the Word of God, and Scripture Alone. You may access more of my articles on the Main Directory of this blog, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

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The Heretical Hebrew Roots Movement

Dear saints,

I'd like to talk to you today about the Hebrew Roots Movement (HRM) that has become very popular around the world these days. This may sound like a good thing on the surface, for Christians to go back to our Hebrew roots, since Jesus was Hebrew, the entire New Testament was written by Jews, and the Church in the first century was comprised of Jewish believers in Jesus for the first ten years, until the Gentile household of Cornelius got saved (Ac 10).

However, the Hebrew Roots Movement is not a good thing. It's a heretical movement with the same roots as Church of God (Seventh Day), the heretical SDA Church, and the Millerites of the 1800's, as well as the Judaizers of the first century, whose false gospel the very first Church Council rejected in the first century, and which Paul always preached against.

This is connected in with lots of false teachings, including keeping Torah (i.e., following Jewish dietary laws, keeping the Jewish Sabbath on Saturdays, keeping the Jewish feasts, etc). That is going back to the law, following Jewish customs, which the cross set us free from, and if any Gentile does this, they have made the cross of no affect, alienated themselves from Christ, and fallen away from grace (Gal 5:4). The Word of God clearly says that all foods are clean (Mk 7:19; Ac 10:15; 11:9; Rom 14:20).

The people in the Hebrew Roots Movement believe that the reason the Father is angry with the lukewarm church and the reason it is lukewarm is that they are not properly keeping Torah and not keeping the Jewish Sabbath.

As I mentioned, the first Church Council convened in the first century to address the Judaizers' heresy and decided against it (Acts 15). The apostle Paul also soundly condemned it once and for all in his epistles under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Here are some examples of what he wrote:

"I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to that which you received, let him be accursed." (Gal 1:6-9)

"But it was because of the false brethren who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage. But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you." (Gal 2:4-5)

"How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?" (Gal 2:14b)

"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.' Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because 'the righteous will live by faith.' The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, 'The person who does these things will live by them.'" (Gal 3:10-12; cf., Rom 10:5)

That means that if a Gentile wants to go back to observing the law and Jewish customs, they have to obey the whole law.

"You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?" (Gal 3:1-3)

"But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable forces? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you." (Gal 4:9-11)

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 'A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.' I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty." (Gal 5:1-10)

"'Are you so dull?' [Jesus] asked. 'Don't you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn't go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.' (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)" (Mar 7:18-19)

"The voice spoke to him a second time, 'Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.'" (Act 10:15)

"Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble." (Rom 14:20)

"They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order." (Heb 9:10)

"For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain." (Tit 1:10-11)

Hebrew Roots Movement vs. Messianic Jews

The Hebrew Roots Movement is not the same as the Messianic Jewish church. The Messianic Jews are actually Jewish people who have come to believe in Jesus their Messiah. They love the Jewish people and are winning them to the Lord. But the Hebrew Roots Movement is made up of Gentile believers adopting Jewish customs that were never meant for non-Jews. By doing the things they are doing, like processing the Torah in their services, or in one case wrapping a fallen minister in the Torah, they are alienating and offending Jews unnecessarily.

There is a Messianic Jewish man named Tov Rose, who wrote an article, in which he linked to the following paper that goes into the history of the Hebrew Roots movement.

I just read up to page 41 or so of this paper, and may finish it later. But page 33 is key. This is the history of the modern Hebrew Roots Movement, which has its roots in cults like the Worldwide Church of God led by heretic Herbert Armstrong. In other words, the Hebrew Roots Movement is essentially a new brand name for the Herbert Armstrong cult, known as Worldwide Church of God, which was closely related with the Millerites and the SDA. After Armstrong's death in 1996, the elders of the Worldwide Church of God repented and formed Grace Communion International (GCI), at which time they publicly confessed that they had been wrong to preach that message.

The Hebrew Roots Movement is synonymous with the Two House of Israel Movement and the One Law Theology, which states that "there is one law for both the native born and the sojourner" (Google AI). This is essentially replacement theology, which teaches that the Gentile Church is made up of the lost tribes of Israel and that it is Israel. It teaches that the Jews in Palestine are not Israel and not the true heirs of the land, but that we Gentile believers are.

Article (One Law Two Sticks)

Is HRM a Cult or Not?

I hold to the broad definition of a cult that I learned in Bible school in the late 1980's and early 1990's. A cult is any group claiming to be Christian that does not hold to the sound doctrines of the faith as taught in the Bible and upheld by the Church for centuries. The heretical Hebrew Roots Movement meets this criterion, and shares the same historical and doctrinal roots as other cults, as I have already discussed and proven from Scripture; therefore, it is a cult, in my opinion.

Closing Words

In conclusion, the Hebrew Roots movement is actually a false or heretical movement, not one that is true to God's Word. It preaches another gospel, which has already been condemned by Scripture. Beware of this false gospel! And if you have already been caught up in it, then repent and come out of it, so that you may be saved, since you are putting yourself under the law. Please share this with those whom you love that are caught up in this false movement. I hope they will prayerfully consider what I and Tov Rose have written, and be set free from their bondage in Jesus' mighty name.

Please do not attack me for sharing this information with you. As Paul wrote: "Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth? Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may have zeal for them." (Gal 4:16-17)

Attribution notice: Scripture taken from the Holy Bible NIV, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, I recommend The Eth Cepher "Bible"?, Scripture Alone, By Grace Alone, By Faith Alone, Christ Alone, Seventh Day Adventist Heresies, Christian Sabbath is Sunday, not Saturday, Famous Christian Sabbath Observers, Keeping Sundays Holy - Part I, Keeping Sundays Holy - Part II, The Lord's Day, The Origin of the Sabbath, The Spirit of the Law, and The Spirit's Law of Life. You may access more of my articles on the Main Directory of this blog, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

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Thursday, October 31, 2024

HOREMOW's Linda Rika "Knows" Whose Names Are in Book of Life

Most of you know by now that I have written a few articles regarding some serious issues and concerns about HOREMOW, the worldwide holiness movement based in Nigeria, which is led by Paul Rika and his wife Linda. Today I would like to share some things that a sister in Christ in Kenya shared with me. She wrote:

"I attended one HOREMOW meeting one Saturday...and was very tempted to join, but something is holding me back. I don't know what it is. I'm very afraid of getting myself into bondage...I witnessed a strange thing in the meeting, and it bothered me, including being told I have to rededicate my life to the Lord afresh, and hearing someone praying to the 'God of HOREMOW'. These are not Scriptural. I told them I have to seek God to know whether to join.

"I was already planning a 3-day dry fast last weekend, and I did not major on praying for this, but I did ask God about it. But one of my fasting days I dreamt that I was with Nigerian men who were giving me Nigerian food to eat. They told me it is 'hot' as Nigerians put a lot of chili in the food, and I said I did not mind and ate it. When I woke up, I was horrified. I know being fed any type of food in a dream is witchcraft. I prayed against it, but I wondered why Nigeria.

"I prayed against it, and a few days later I spoke with a servant of Jesus I respect from Tanzania, and he told me that dream is connected to me attending the Nigerian church I attended the previous week. (He doesn't know HOREMOW.). He had told me not to be quick to attend any churches or meetings and to wait on God. He helped me pray to renounce anything that happened there and to repent for disobeying the Lord and going there when I did not hear from him.

"The teachings of Paul Rika are wonderful to be fair. He knows how to teach God's Word and make one desire holiness. But I'm troubled by the statements of them being 'the last ark' or him being a 'savior', and also the endless revelations sister Linda receives of people's name in the book of life or out of the book of life and being shown eternal destiny of members of their church etc. There's too much detail of who made heaven and who went to hell, which can lead to discouragement and also feeling like if you leave HOREMOW you're doomed for hell.

"I know God speaks through prophecy but....either God has chosen her with a very unique calling, because I've never seen that level of revelation before, or something is off...I never want to offend Jesus by speaking against his servants...I do not believe Jesus would choose one man to lead everyone to heaven. It seems off and unlike how He works because the world has billions of people and Jesus has given gifts to all his kids. Something is strange.

"HOREMOW seemed to have a balance of Word and Spirit, but I still see some extreme of exalting one man and woman, and yet they say it is Jesus who had chosen Pastor Rika and who is leading this movement."

To anyone who is still considering joining this movement, I hope this has helped you to realize that the issues and concerns with HOREMOW have not gone away. They continue to persist, and you should very carefully wait upon the Lord to direct you regarding any decision to join that movement.

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 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."

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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."

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