NAR false prophets, David Herzog and Chuck Pierce, are two
of the featured speakers in the upcoming conference called “The Awakening.” It
will be held in mid-November in Phoenix, Arizona. The third man on the ticket
might surprise Christians who attend popular Bible prophecy conferences hosted
by teachers who stick to what the Bible teaches concerning end times. Paul
McGuire, at first glance, seems out of his league to share the platform with
men who major on gold dust and healing angels and speak from their own visions
and imaginations while ignoring Scripture. But upon further investigation it
becomes clear that he fits right in with the evil workers of the “New Apostolic
Reformation.”*
The Elijah List (an umbrella group for todays false apostles,
prophets and signs and wonders seekers) and the event’s promoters say the first
fruits of the coming Great Awakening was experienced at their last event, and
that “many prophets have prophesied that Arizona would be a starting place that
launches the next move of God.” The implication from the title is that you will
miss out on this advertised action of God if you don’t pay the price of
admission.
The hook in the ad is power and miracles, as if anyone can
promise in advance what God is going to do. They hype supposed manifestations
of God’s glory as if it were the next greatest product on the market.
“Join us for this
Power-packed weekend for our Clear Prophetic
Direction, GLORY, HEALINGS/MIRACLES, conference as the Heavens
open up and the Spirit comes down with clear prophetic direction and
revelation. Learn how to access and flow with God during
the greatest harvest, and greatest shakings, and not be caught by surprise as
the Glory of God moves with healing, miracles, signs and wonders following! God
promises to visit in historic ways as you experience your season of visitation
and get empowered to move forward in these most important, sobering and
exciting times.” [Emphasis in original.]
No solid Bible teacher in his right mind would come anywhere
near such religious hype and con artistry. Sadly, this is not the first such
event Paul McGuire has been involved in. As recently as September 2015, he
joined with Herzog in a similar conference in Phoenix with the provocative
title, “New Beginnings Glory Festival.” Another NAR false teacher, Robert
Stearns, joined the lineup for a promised time of miracles as their promotion
says:
- “Experience the Glory of God and
impartation like never before
- Tap into an open Heaven window as you show up to the feast
- Receive healing and miracles, prophetic direction, and
"reset" your life”
In January 2010, out of my concern for McGuire, I wrote him
regarding his involvement with false prophetess Wendy Alec of GodTV. I emailed
him and said, “Do you have a standard response to
people when they ask you what your thinking is on joining together with Wendy
& Rory Alec on GodTV considering they are a blight on the Body of Christ
and are the number #1 promoters of the false prophet movement - including Todd
Bentley? I'm referring to the prophecy special they've produced starring you
and Chuck Missler, Gary Kah, Larry Bates and others…Going on their program
without bringing correction gives the appearance to viewers that you are
all in this together. Wendy Alec is a false prophet as is documented here:
http://www.letusreason.org/Latrain51.htm
Thank you for taking the time to read
this and respond. I mean no disrespect - I'm very concerned for you and your
ministry.”
“I don't usually give
"standard" responses unless it is many people asking the exact same
question,” he responded in part. “As you know, Missler, LaHaye,
HItchcock, Kah, Bates and a number of prophecy teachers go on the show… My
appearance on any show secular or Christian is to represent my views or
beliefs. For example, Chuck Smith recently appeared on Praise the Lord on
TBN. It was to give his message. Going on a secular of Christian
network does not imply a blanket endorsement.”
Compromising Church Leaders
This is where I’ve had to beat this drum for decades now** –
The Bible has one set of requirements when dealing with those outside the
professing church, and another with those claiming to be Christians. The
Apostle Paul is very clear on this:
“I wrote you in my letter not to
associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean
with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or
with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I
wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral
person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a
swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging
outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.”
– 1 Cor. 5:9-13
I’ve observed church leaders who compromise for the sake of
selling books or getting notice for their ministries by donors watching
“Christian” television, that when they begin to overlook their hosts’ fleecing
the flock of God, God gives them over to it and then they begin spouting the
same things.
There are many, many examples of this, but one very
disappointing case is that of David Jeremiah, who began showing up on TBN’s
Praise the Lord program after buying airtime from them for his show. Though
many of us lovingly warned him, he turned a deaf ear to us. Years later, he
appears on their fundraising program, Praise-a-Thon, spouting the same
give-to-get flock fleecing scams his newfound friends have used for decades to
rip off the widows’ mites.
A common trait of today’s false prophets, as exemplified by
the NAR and the Elijah List, is the pursuit of signs and wonders, and the
sensationalistic guarantee of God’s power and glory showing up in their
meetings. Another common denominator is the lack of a clear taught Gospel of
Repentance unto Salvation. The draw they use for people to come down to the
platform is not for prayers, but for getting an impartation of some sort of
glory.
If it Quacks Like a Duck
From watching the ministry of Paul McGuire, it is evident
that his message has taken on the glory-seeking tone, although he does seem to
adapt his words to the venue. He even began introducing himself as a prophet in
some media appearances.
A quick comparison of McGuire’s behavior in front of the
camera on the Sid Roth show, “It’s Supernatural,” to Sid’s regulars, Herzog,
Stearns, and NAR heir Chuck Pierce, reveals a similar emphasis on power grabs
and the impersonal Force they seek after.
“I'm with my guest Paul McGuire,” said
host Sid Roth on the June 10, 2013 episode of It’s Supernatural (available on YouTube). “You might have seen him
on Fox News, O'Reilly, History Channel on one of the top viewing shows. But as
a young man, he had quite a background. You were raised to hate Christians. You
thought the answer was in science and the new age. So you go out to the
University of Missouri (McGuire nods in agreement) where you're really debating
Christians and you're going to put them in their place. Guess what his major
was? You'll never guess. I shouldn't have said guess. His major was altered
states of consciousness. That's a major? (McGuire gives a confirming nod.) And
he's in class one day, and he hears a voice. What does the voice say to you?” "Surrender
to the dark forces within," he responds.
There are four campuses of the University of Missouri and
this reporter called all four, receiving the same response, there is not now
and never has been a major called altered states of consciousness and
there is no student past or present in the entire system by the name Paul
McGuire. The Registrar’s offices could not even find a class by that name, let
alone a major.
At the end of the program, as it is
customary for Sid Roth’s guest to make an appeal to the viewers, McGuire
stepped up to the plate.
“That supernatural leading of the Holy
Spirit, before today's program is over,” McGuire addressed the viewers, “there
is going to be a very strong move of the supernatural force. And if people will
be open to it, and they don't have to be religious to be open to it, by the
time today's program is over they are going to experience firsthand perhaps one
of the most powerful experiences supernaturally that they ever had in their
lives.”
This power for anyone who wants it
would then come right through the airwaves from Sid Roth’s studio. Haven’t you
all seen that before from the likes of con-men like Benny Hinn, Robert Tilton
and Peter Popoff?
McGuire continued, “The Lord spoke to
me, and He said that in the last days as these problems accelerate, that God
was going to pour out this supernatural power in an unprecedented force and
manner. And as I'm joining you now, I just want to share with you very briefly
that, no matter what situation you're facing, whether you're religious or not,
that right now as you're watching this TV program, the supernatural power of
God is flowing through this studio into your bedroom or living room, or
wherever you are, and you can feel it. It's like a tangible force. It's like
electricity is filling your room and you can sense the overwhelming power of
God. I just want to encourage you, that's going to give you the power you need
to live triumphantly in the days to come. But no matter what you're facing, the
Lord simply wants you to just receive His force as He extends it to you now. So
whatever you're facing, whatever challenge or problem you have, at this moment
the Lord delights in proving His reality, not with talk, but with power.”
“And we're not talking about words or
hypnosis,” McGuire assures the audience. “We're talking about the power of God
moving through the airwaves through this studio, and it's flooding your bedroom
and your office. And all you have to do is respond to it and God is going to do
something absolutely incredible for you.”
So they only need to respond to an “it”
– some sort of power. Not one word of the Gospel that Jesus Christ died for
their sins and gives the Holy Spirit to us to make us witnesses of Christ as
His ambassadors to this fallen world.
That does not sound like the same Paul
McGuire I’ve seen at prophecy conferences alongside David Hocking and Jack
Hibbs.
This quest for power was also the bait
for McGuire’s speaking partner, Robert Stearns, whose testimony of such power
was sent out in an Elijah List mailing, the same ‘ministry’ that advertises the
glory conferences these men engage in. In the Sept 12, 2013 letter to the E-list,
Stearns of Eagle’s Wings, had this to say:
“I was caught up in the Spirit, and I was
brought to a place with enormous Ancient Gates. The gates were covered over by
debris and overrun by neglect. The gates were enormous and were guarding access
to a place of great authority and power.
The question rose in my heart, What can it
be that these Gates guard and release? As I stood before the
Gates, the wind of God began to blow upon them. Stronger and with increasing
force, the breath of God began to blow away the debris that was covering the
Gates. As the Wind increased with greater force, I saw the name of the Gates
that were written at the top of them. IMAGINATION
was the name of these Ancient Gates…Finally, the full word, IMAGINATION was
pulsing with a living light.” [Emphasis in original.]
On Jun 6, 2014, Elijah List also
published a so-called prophecy by Chuck Pierce, a co-speaker with McGuire
coming up this month. They’re all hearing audible voices. Again more power and
force being prophesied – no scripture:
"Fiery trials will make One New Man for the times ahead
and the new things I will send you into. You will
carry a new message of greater works into the nations. This
takes the One New Man! You will come into agreements that generations before
could not form. This is the time of the greater
works. At creation My Spirit hovered, and when I
spoke, all of the earth shifted. At Pentecost My Spirit hovered, and when I
released My voice, the whole earth shifted. I am hovering again, and the earth will shift
at the sound of My voice. There is a whirlwind coming to places in the
earth. In this whirlwind is fire! …"I am beginning to give revelation over ley lines and power lines
over nations and continents. I am releasing angels to war along with you and
bring revelation over power sources and strong men. You will release decrees,
and you will see giants coming down and My glory rising. The world is Mine, and
today I am hovering and holding the earth and its nations in My hands. The
Father has given them to Me and I am giving them to you as your inheritance.
Call out and come into One New Man for the earth is Mine. My
dancing hand is coming over the seven continents. My breath is upon the waters.
I am gathering together what will pull the end time portion into place. Watch
My breath on the waters. “ [Emphasis in original.]
This might be event too crazy for Paul McGuire to accept –
yet he does not mind joining together with such a sorcerer or point out this
false prophet’s lies – saying “God said,” when God has not spoken to any of
them.
Strange Bedfellows
David Herzog – the kingpin of the conferences who brings all
these like-minded men together in Arizona might be the craziest of the bunch.
He was one of the false prophets who was up front at the time C. Peter Wagner
and his host of false prophets were commissioning Todd Bentley into what they
said would be the Great Awakening and that Bentley was the first of the New
Breed, a god-man on earth prophesied decades ago by the late William Branham.
Wendy Alec of GodTV was there. She prophesied that Jesus was going to show up
in Todd’s meetings physically. Todd made a fool of the entire bunch of NAR
apostles and prophets when it was revealed a couple of weeks later that Todd
was cheating on his wife with a ministry associate he ended up marrying after
abandoning his family. All this was going on in secret as Herzog and the rest
of them were prophesying God’s approval of this man. Bentley claimed to have
the assistance of a female angel, named Emma, that supposedly worked with
Branham when he was alive.
Herzog also claims to be a source of spirit impartation to
others for power and holy fire. In a
May 8, 2008 letter to his E-list he promoted the signs and wonders going on in
the so-called Lakeland Revival starring Todd Bentley. He wrote in his “The
Glory Zone News Alert,” that the Lakeland outpouring would be coming to his
favorite portal, Sedona, Arizona.
“The
incredible level of the Glory and Presence of God along with amazing miracles,
healings, signs and wonders are hitting Lakeland, Florida but also are about to
explode in Sedona during Pentecost. Most the speakers have all been to
Lakeland, Florida and are full and ready to release it (including Jerame Nelson
who works for, travels with and preaches with Todd Bentley and has been in the revival
in Lakeland from day one.)… As we come together syncing heaven with earth
something BIG is going to happen. There will be more impartation released to carry
the fire of this revival in this conference than any other we have had so far…
What we sense is that since the Lakeland outpouring began the plates have
shifted in the Spirit across America.”
Unheeded
Warnings
In February, 2009, the then Editor of Charisma magazine pointed out the false
teachings and claims making the rounds back then. In his commentary, Strange
Fire in the House of the Lord, he warned:
“During the Lakeland Revival last year in
Florida, a man from Germany took the stage and claimed that an angel walked
into a restaurant while he was eating a hamburger, took his intestines out and
replaced them with a gold substance. Others have testified that angels took
them to heaven and operated on them. And many are claiming that angels are
dropping feathers, gold dust and precious gems on worshippers…If we promote a
false miracle or a false angel in the Lord's house, we are participating in
strange fire. I know of a case where a man was caught
planting fake jewels on the floor of a church. He told his friends he was
"seeding the room" to lift the people's faith. I know of others who
have been caught putting gold glitter on themselves in a restroom and then
running back in a church service, only to claim that God was blessing them with
this special favor. Where is the fear of God when Christians would actually
fabricate a miracle? This is a time for all true
believers with backbones to draw clear lines between what is godly worship and
what is pagan practice. We want the miracles of God, but we also want the fear
and reverence of God. We cannot allow this strange fire to spread unchecked.”
The late Dave Hunt, in his classic
book, The Seduction of Christianity, warned
about these things creeping into the church back in 1985. Unfortunately, most
of the professing church suppressed the warning, which truly was from the mercy
of God.
“During the prophesied apostasy, even
church leaders will be led astray, and those who follow their teachings will
suffer the same tragedy. We must be certain that we are following the Lord and
not men… To avoid the seduction that is at the heart of apostasy, we must be
able to distinguish the voice of Christ through His Word from the confusing
mixture of truth and error that is spoken in His name.” (pp. 8-9)
Today, the New Age influences Hunt
warned about coming into the church has grown into a monster that can no longer
be tamed or contained. It is out of control. The fault lies with the church
leaders who looked the other way and would not take a stand – but rather compromised
with the monster and joined alongside it, rather than exposing its wickedness.
There are many such Bible teachers/speakers who will have the blood on their
hands of the many whose faith has been shipwrecked by these wicked workers who
have been allowed to spread their leaven.
For further information, listen to this
reporter’s analysis –
*The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) is an
umbrella group formed by C. Peter Wagner consisting of his associates who claim
to be prophets and apostles, Wagner himself being the chief apostle. They have
an annual gathering at the end of every year to get a consensus of what the
Lord is saying to the people for the coming year. None of their proclamations
are specific enough to test – always what God is doing behind the scenes that
only they who have access to the third heaven can know. They are modern-day
Gnostics.
