I've had some recent e-mails and comments sent my way about the lack of documentation for the "healings" taking place in Lakeland, and I want to address them. Again, this is not a cut-and-dry issue that can be taken "all or nothing." Rather, spiritual discernment needs to be applied, and critical thinking should be engaged to realize that the presence of the false does not necessarily indicate the absence of the true.

One person recently commented:

Hi, I agree with a lot of what you post. You seem to have a commitment to Word and Spirit, praise God for this.

I wonder about one thing though, you believe that Bentley's healing gift is from the Holy Spirit. As far as I can see through what I have researched, there have been no documented healings as of yet except the xray thing which you have noted doesn't show anything clearly.

I have some freinds over in Lakeland just now, one has tongue cancer and has been prayed for on the stage. Todd declared it a demon. I am hoping my freind comes back healed and delivered.

This is not the first person to bring this to my attention. In some recent e-mails, one of my readers shared this:

...I read a letter from a Lakeland resident who said all of the other Charismatic churches in the area are keeping out of this saying it isn't revival. Normally, I'd question whether or not that was jealousy, but as I watch this on TV, I can't help but feel creepy the entire time. After watching a few dozen testimonies to healing last night, it was remarkable how all of them were "no more pain", a side effect of endorphins and self-hypnosis, but none were able to say they were healed and most still seemed to have their problem. One letter I read was from a woman who was convinced she was healed because the pain went away, but 24 hours later, it was back and she felt spiritually violated and had to seek God to get rid of the oppression she was under. That's what I'm suspecting is much of what we are seeing. They were standing there claiming someone was raised from the dead after being clinically dead for 15 minutes . . . no mention of the fact that they were in the hospital and the doctors continued to work on them giving oxygen and shocking and all that, just that one of the relatives was watching God TV and prayed for the "dead" person and then they woke up as if that's what healed them. Is it possible? Sure, but it's more or just as likely it was the efforts of the doctors rather than Todd's anointing...

I asked this person for links to these letters, and he replied graciously; but after much prayer on the matter, I feel that I should not publicize these sites because they could cause people to stumble in their faith. I can, however, vouch for this writer and say that the letters they came across were credible.

So what are we supposed to do with this? Is anybody actually getting healed as a result of the Lakeland meetings?

Here is how I responded to that first writer:

In answer to your question, I persnally know a small handful of people who have been healed by God through Todd Bentley in the past and are still fully healed.

Also, regarding this current movement in Florida, a pastor I know was watching one of the early meetings online with a friend when Todd Bentley had a "Word of Knowledge" about "right shoulder rotator cuff surgery." Instantly the guy's shoulder popped into place and he could move it properly without pain. He had the surgery several years prior. It's still healed.

I know a lot of the so-called healings coming out of Lakeland are the temporary results of adrenaline and emotion, and I also know that most of what Todd is doing is not healing but rather praying for the sick.

In short, I know God has healded people through him due to personal experience, but I too have found the documentation sadly lacking.

As I said in the beginning of this post, the presence of the false does not necessarily indicate the absense of the true. Just because there are many false reports and temporary healings rising out of these meetings does not mean that they are completely devoid of the true healing power of God.

It doesn't surprise me, though, with all the false teaching and pride littering these meetings, that the Hand of God is not moving in as much power as one would expect from something getting such national coverage. I certainly believe in the healing power of God (as you could see from my last blog post), but I am also aware of counterfeits. I believe our response to these people "caught up in the moment" should be to follow the advice of Scripture and "rejoice with those who rejoice." If they feel that they are healed, then praise God with them. To rob them of their reason for praising God is to rob God of praise from one of His children.

Again, let us strive for unity and purity in the church without divisiveness, quarrels, and fruitless disputes. It's one thing to point out false teaching and warn our brothers and sisters to "beware of wolves in sheep's clothing" and to avoid false prophets; but it is another thing to slander fellow Christians and view with contempt those who are passionate about Jesus Christ. We need to pray for the Church in this hour that we will not all fall victim to deception and ruin. And we especially need to pray that God will purify this activity in Lakeland and shatter the operation of the enemy.

God bless!
--Art--

Expelled - Ben Stein's New Movie

Tonight my girlfriend Robin and I went to see Expelled, the new documentary by Ben Stein. In it, Stein points out the unfairness among academia as anyone even hinting at "Intelligent Design" is laughed out of even the most prestigious positions. Ben went to great lengths interviewing some of the top minds on either side of the debate, and it clearly revealed the bias against the possibility of Intelligent Design (ID). In American academia particularly, Darwinian Evolution reigns supreme.

I would have to say that it was thoroughly enjoyable--even though there was a dry spell in the middle (about an hour into it). Having just taken a class at the University of Phoenix called "Critical Thinking," I also thought the movie made a few small mistakes in making a case for open dialogue about ID. For one thing, much of the movie was an appeal to emotion as Ben visited some Holocaust sites and based much of his movie on an analogy with the Berlin Wall. Nevertheless, this movie has the potential of opening up some great dialogue among the scientific community if people will look past the emotionalism and accept the facts that are clearly laid out.

Three particular things really struck me. First, Stein asked one professor, "If Darwin's understanding of a human cell could be likened to a Buick, what would you compare today's understanding of the cell to?" The scientist's answer: "A galaxy!" What followed was a lengthy, computer animated flight through the inner workings of a cell. Echos of my college biology class rang through my head as I got to watch a simulation of the thousands of processes that happen at once in every cell of your body--it was mind blowing! I would recommend seeing this movie for this little animation alone!

The second thing that struck me was what great lengths the supporters of evolution will go to in order to steer clear of even the possibility of an intelligent Creator--aliens, crystals...it was weird to say the least! They treated the notion of Intelligent Design like a plague that needs to be extinguished, and their greatest attacks against the ID supporters were nothing more than name-calling and put-downs.

And the third thing that struck me was the obvious link between Darwinian, atheistic thinking and such atrocities as the Holocaust, the sterilization of thousands of "defected" people (even in America!), and Planned Parenthood. If life is nothing more than goop, and if there is no afterlife, then people should feel free to irradicate any life that is at all flawed, thus helping along the evolution of mankind. Yikes! But if there is a God, and life is more than what we see tangibly, then great lengths must be taken to preserve life at any cost!

Do you see why this debate matters? Do you see why Ben Stein was willing to put his name and possibly even his career on the line to point out something so needlessly controversial?

Even though Expelled was by no means a Christian movie (Ben Stein is Jewish), I felt it helped solidify my faith. And even though every ID supporter was careful to distinguish between "Intelligent Design" and "Creationism," I felt it restored credence to the reality of our Creator. This was not a movie of apologetics and proofs for ID, but it certainly made a clear case for allowing open discussion among the scientific community in America.

If you can get out to see this movie, I highly recommend it!
--Art--