Truth Matters Newsletters – December 2010 – Vol. 15 Issue 12 – Bay of the Holy Spirit Revival – By Rev. Robert Liichow
Discernment Ministries International
Bay of the Holy Spirit Revival
Rev. Bob Liichow
This time the location has changed from Pensacola & Toronto to the gulf coast of Mobile Alabama.
The reason DMI has not jumped immediately onto the bandwagon of wall watchers on this one is because it is so lame. The men who were evicted from their pulpits are involved in this latest display of carnality and works righteousness. Please keep in mind that bothKilpatrick (Pensacola) and Arnott (Toronto) both lost their pulpits when the hoopla died down. Needless to say all the “leaders” of these former movements of excess became very wealthy due to the largess of the attendees. Both men and their accompanying music leaders took their show on the road and after a few months of traveling tapped an un-mined vein of potential dupes and a rag-tag assortment of charismaniacs in seek of the next cosmic fix in Mobile, AL
Please go back to our Blog at http://discernmentministriesinternational.wordpress.com re-read all that DMI has researched and written about revival and simply insert Mobile in place of Pensacola or Toronto and you will have the same cast of shady characters running the show (or their disciples).
I have nothing positive to say about this latest example of spiritual debauchery and no new insights as to why people continue to love to be deceived even when the deceivers have been proven to be liars and frauds. Even after all the behind-the-scenes revelations from both Pensacola and Toronto, books, newsletters, Youtube accounts (see videos below), people still choose their experience over and above God’s Word.
I am concerned for people when God graciously presents them with His truth and they reject It in favor of their own experiences which they use to validate their incorrect biblical understanding and practices. Such people are in a very precarious spiritual situation and are in need of our intercession. There are two passages of text which ought to give every sentient being pause to think regarding the rejection of God’s mercy when it is offered:
Because I have called and ye refused: I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; but ye have set at nought all my counsel, And would none of my reproof I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as desolation, And your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; When distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; They shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, And did not choose the fear of the LORD: They would none of my counsel: They despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, And be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, And the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. Proverbs 1: 24-32
Every blow of Noah’s hammer was a warning of impending judgment. Yet all the people laughed at Noah and rejected his message. For a little over 100 years God granted the people a “space of grace” to repent, but they would not and then “Jehovah shut him in” (Gen. 7:16) and they were all destroyed.
The time comes when God allows man to have his own way which always ends up in destruction and death (Pro. 14:12). For over fifteen years Apologetic Ministries including DMI have been crying out to the Body of Christ as watchmen on the wall—-
Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel, therefore hear the word at My mouth and give them warning. (Eze. 3:17)
Nothing good is headed towards the lives of these SINisters unless they repent of their sins. They have been confronted many times and shown the error of their ways and they have (1) refused correction, (2) would not accept reproof and (3) have spurned the open hand of God, i.e. that which He freely offers us through the Gospel. As always, God is the aggressor in the relationship and He has thus far been treated as a spurned lover! Because they have rejected God’s bounty in the Gospel He will give them over to their own ways. Never forget what the Apostle Paul warns of in his letter to the Church at Rome:
And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who know the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them. Rom. 1:1-28-32
Those who reject the goodness of God are left only to experience His wrath in this life and the ageless eternity to come. I highlighted in greenjust a few of the common traits found among our current crop of televangelists. For the record I consider the various gimmicks, points-of-contact, etc. as “evil things” having been invented by covetous people. Don’t be swayed by their “god-talk” even a parrot can be trained to say “Jesus is Lord” and a chimp can sign those words too, big deal!
The next text that concerns me greatly when it comes to the Copeland’s, Hinn’s, Dollar, Crouch’s, et.al. is the following:
Many shall say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied through thy name, and through thy name cast out demons, and through thy name done many works of power? And then will I avow unto them, I never knew you. Depart from me, workers of lawlessness.Matthew 7:22
The saddest words ever uttered and heard are “I never knew you.” The Greek word for “never” is best translated as having never known you at any point in time. (1) On that day Jesus will look people in the eye, people who called Him “Lord,” folks who prophesied in His name (falsely), who through the name of Jesus even cast out evil spirits and did some sort of powerful works. Jesus’ response? I NEVER knew you at all, you NEVER at any time belonged to Me. This is not what they are expecting to hear, after all, they offer up to the Lord their bona fides by stating their good works done in His name. All of which avails them nothing, but the wrath of a Jealous God. The context of our Lord’s statement is clear, He goes on to speak about the one who is approved by God and that one is the person who receives (hears) and does (acts) the Word of God humbly acknowledging that “father knows best.”
I fear with godly fear for Mr. Kilpatrick, Steve Hill, and all the others who go about proclaiming “revival” and great “moves” of the Holy Spirit when in reality there is no revival nor anything moving but sweaty stinky excited flesh.
I urge that this Advent season (historically it is a Penitential Season) you take time to pray for those involved in all forms of biblical error that our Lord may yet be gracious still towards them and grant them repentance. ¨ ♦
Truth Matters Newsletters – November 2009 – Vol. 14 Issue 11 – Does the Bible Support A Doctrine of Being Slain in the Spirit? Part 2 of 3 – by Rev. Robert S. Liichow
Discernment Ministries International
Does the Bible Support A Doctrine of Being Slain in the Spirit?
Part 2 of 3
By Rev. Robert S. Liichow
The “Ministry” of the Catchers
This phenomena has caused the need to develop a “new” ministry within the church, that of the Catcher. No matter where you go, whether it is to a revival service at Toronto, Pensacola or a Vineyard Fellowship you will encounter the ministry of the Catchers. This is an actual “ministry” within charismatic fellowships and people are trained in how to fulfill this duty (it is often done by the ushers within a local assembly).
A catcher is a man who stands behind those receiving prayer. Their job is to “catch” the people who are being slain in the spirit. The catchers job is to make sure the person being “blessed” does no harm to themselves or those around them. Charismatic congregations even have written guidelines for catchers:
Tips For Catching People:
1. Do not touch the person being prayed for, but reassure them that there is someone behind them.
2. You don’t have to take a hold of their shoulders as if you are going to help God.
3. As the person moves down, move back and then facilitate their move.
4. Men- be careful when touching women.
5. Get them to fall back, not forward.
6. Catchers – ONLY catch, do not pray. Do not wave your hands only stand and be ready to catch.
7. Please do not push or pull anyone over. God does not need any help and it will ultimately backfire.
8. Do not hold anyone up by grabbing their shoulders or upper back.
Let me begin by asking a rhetorical question. If the power of God is knocking people down and placing them in an altered state of consciousness for the purpose of spiritually blessing them, then why do these churches employ the use of catchers?
The answer is quite simple —- if people are falling flat on their backs from an upright position they are very liable to hurt themselves or others.
We previously read that extremists explain this manifestation as being the result of encountering the power and presence of the Holy Spirit. If this is so, He is not mighty enough to see to it that those He sovereignty knocks down are unhurt by His blessing?
These churches employ catchers because: (1) they know people fake being slain many times. (2) They lack faith in their own stated beliefs. Obviously God is not big enough to safeguard His people.
In our former church along with the male catchers we had sisters who came along beside or behind the catchers with large sheets of material. Their ministry was to place these sheets over the women’s legs and bodies. Why? Because many times when women would be slain in the spirit they would fall in very immodest positions.
We had events where when some unfortunate women fell their dresses would be hiked up their bodies quite a bit, and their legs would be splayed out at inappropriate angles. When the Lord choose to embarrass His daughters in this manner we had to be there to quickly cover up their shame. Does this really sound like something the Lord God would do to His daughters?
Not only can being slain in the spirit prove to be embarrassing to a woman, it can prove deadly as well. Mrs. Ella Peppard died as a result of someone falling on her who had been slain in the spirit.
The ushers quickly pulled her off the stage and sat her in a pew where she cried out in pain for 20 minutes….The woman’s family alleged the ushers refused to call an ambulance because an ambulance would not look good at a miracle service. A lawsuit was settled out of court. Hinn says he never knew the woman was injured or he would have sought medical help.
According to charismatic theology the Holy Spirit will place women in morally embarrassing positions, and at times allow some people to be hurt and/or killed.
I know from past experience (I used to be a catcher) that when there was no one standing behind a saint receiving prayer nine times out of ten they would not fall down. This alone is proof to me that what is taking place is not a sovereign move of the power of God. There is a power involved at times but it is not of God.
3
The Historical Roots of the Phenomenon
I began by citing Stanley Burgess’s definition in the first chapter and it is a good one except for one point – he says it is a relatively “modern” expression. His statement is not correct. People have been allegedly falling under the power in the United States since the early 1760’s. It was a common expression among the Shakers. There were groups before the Shakers in Europe, which had this same manifestation:
The Convolutionaries
The extreme exercises of the “convolution Aries” startled Belgium and France. The grave of a young Jansenist clergyman, Francois de Paris, in the cemetery of Saint-Medard in Paris, because the scene of reputed marvelous cures. Multitudes flocked thither for healing. Strange bodily agitations seized the devotees. They fell in shakings and convulsions, threw themselves about on the ground, screamed, and assumed unusual and often unseemly postures.
The Shaker’s
Later on in the mid seventeen hundreds in America the Shaker cult also had people falling under the power. Their bodily agitations or exercise were various and called by various names, as the falling exercise…The falling exercise was very common…The subject of this exercise would, generally with a piercing scream, fall like a log on the floor, earth, or mud, and appear as dead.
The Shakers were a cult group led by a woman named Ann Lee. Many of the manifestations which are common to charismatic extremism, were first practiced by the Shakers. Since the Shakers were a pagan cult the source of their manifestations could not have been the Holy Spirit.
The Shakers were very evangelistic in their zeal to propagate their false doctrines & practices. Shaker evangelists were involved with the Cane Ridge “Revival,” and brought their manifestations (which they called “signs”) with them and infected the meetings.
People Were “Slain” During the Cane Ridge Revival
It was during the Cane Ridge meetings that we see more examples of the manifestation of being slain in the spirit. The underlining is added for emphasis:
The scene to me was new and passing strange…Many, very many fell down, as men slain in battle, and continued for hours together in an apparently breathless and motionless state sometimes for a few moments reviving, and exhibiting symptoms of life by a deep groan, or piercing shriek, or by a prayer for mercy most fervently uttered…Then the woman who had first stated shouting let out a shrill of anguish. Methodist John McGee, seemingly entranced, made his way to comfort her. Someone (probably his Presbyterian brother) reminded him this was a Presbyterian church; the congregation would not condone emotionalism! Later John recalled, “I turned to go back and was near falling; the power of God was strong upon me. I turned again and, losing sight of the fear of man, I went through the house shouting and exhorting with all possible ecstasy and energy, and the floor was soon covered with the slain” people were falling in ecstasy.
This eyewitness of the Cane Ridge excess described the people falling in “ecstasy,” but is this necessarily a good thing? Pagan religion has long been given over to ecstatic forms of worship (see 1 Kings 18:28). The Oracle at Delphi breathed in the fumes which rose from the ground and in an ecstatic state uttered prophecies which directed the lives of many people.
ECSTASY The state of being in a trance, especially a mystic or prophetic trance. The derivation of our word “ecstasy” (from the Greek ek, out plus stasis, state) suggests an out of body state (2 Cor. 12:2,3) or the state of being out of control.
From what I have personally witnessed and experienced being slain in the spirit is a condition in which the individual’s normal rational mental state is suspended, and that person is for a period of time literally out of control. During the Shaker meetings and at Cane Ridge we find multitudes of people capitulating their volitional sensibilities over to an experience which was so great it physically overwhelmed them. However, it was also noted by the orthodox Reformed ministers at Cane Ridge, that a person simply getting slain was not a true indicator of spiritual regeneration, “They noted that some who “fell” had within six months gone back to the world.”
The Ministry of Charles Finney
After the Cane Ridge revival the experience of being slain in the spirit became common in many revival meetings. One evangelist in particular whose revival meetings were patterned after the emotional excesses of Cane Ridge was Charles Finney. In many of his meetings people were slain in the spirit:
Before the week was out I learned that some of them, when they would attempt to observe this season of prayer, would lose all of their strength and be unable to rise to their feet, or even stand upon their knees in their closets.
The congregation began to fall from their seats in every direction, and cried for mercy. If I had had a sword in each hand, I could not have cut them off their seats as fast as they fell
Finney was not particularly concerned with scriptural precedent, he was interested in getting result and fostered the belief that revival was not a sovereign move of God’s Spirit, but that revivals could be planned and worked up by the use of what he called new measures.
The Ministry of Maria Woodworth Etter
Being slain in the spirit was one of the ordinary signs in the ministry of Maria Woodworth-Etter (1844-1924) the trance evangelist.
Yesterday during the afternoon meeting the Lord Jesus bowed the heaven and came down. Many went under the power. Two women and a girl were struck down unconscious, and lay on the floor…The second woman lay unconscious for about two and one-half hours, with both arms raised to heaven. When she was recovering she sang praises unto God in the spirit.”
Her ministry manifestations began in 1885, 21 years before the Azusa “revival.” She received a spiritual renewal at a Friends meeting in 1879. Here is a woman, who received some type of spiritual power from a Quaker meeting. Keep in mind that the Society of Friends, the Quakers, were originally a non-Christian group (although many people unknowingly lump them in with Christian groups).
Maria would go into trances, people came to her while she was in a trance state and allegedly got “saved.” She would lay hands on others and place them in a similar trance-state.
The Ministry of Aimee Semple McPherson
The practice of people being slain was not widespread in Pentecostal circles after Etter’s death. It became more commonplace through the ministry of another woman minister named Aimee Semple McPherson (1890-1944). Sister Aimee was also a traveling evangelist and she too had people fall out under the power in her ministry—
One of these was a Sunday school teacher at the city’s largest Protestant church. After Aimee touched him, he dropped to the floor trembling and speaking in tongues. The next day, the wife of a leading citizen had a similar experience, and scores of people came to the altar for counseling. The day after that, “Three were slain under the power and through speaking in tongues,” Aimee said.
Aimee was very controversial to say the least. She is the Founder of the Foursquare Gospel denomination. She later died of a barbiturate overdose in 1944. To this day charismatic believers ignore the fact that she was a divorcee and most likely faked her own kidnapping in order to spend time in an adulterous liaison in 1926. Yet the power of God is supposed to have flowed mightily through during her life!
The Ministry of Kathryn Kuhlman
The next major figure whose ministry is responsible for making the practice of being slain in the spirit part-and-parcel of charismatic healing and miracles services was Kathryn Kuhlman (1907-1976).
Kathryn committed adultery with a married man, who left his wife and children to marry Kathryn. A few years later Kathryn divorced him and never remarried. She died of heart disease in 1976. I bring these distasteful facets up because it show some of the character of these mighty Pentecostal/Charismatic giants of the faith. I am not saying these people were not saved, nor that they did not sincerely repent of their sins. However, character does matter in ministry.
Apart from the well-documented healings, the most sensational phenomena associated with Kuhlman was “going under the power” (sometimes referred to as “slain in the Spirit”) as people fell when she prayed for them. This sometimes happened to dozens at a time and occasionally hundreds.
Her ministry was international in scope. Well received by many Pentecostal’s and the fledgling charismatic renewal movement of the 1960’s.
I have witnessed Mr. Kenneth Hagin have a long line of people hold hands and he lay hands on the head of the first person and then the entire line fall down. I have personally seen Benny Hinn whirl around and “throw” a wave of anointing in his meetings and multitudes have fallen, as if shot on several occasions. As recently as August 1, 1997 my wife and I were at the Toronto Airport Church and we witnessed multitudes being slain in the spirit as John and Carol Arnott laid hands on people.
The Phenomenon Is Universally Accepted By Charismatic Christians Today
This experience is almost universal to all charismatic’s. If you know any, ask them if they have ever been slain in the spirit and what it was like.
This practice and manifestation is accepted de facto due in large part to the following:
The long history behind it, i.e. God has always done this.
Their own subjective experience of it, they got “blessed.”
They have been taught that the Bible clearly teaches this is a legitimate experience of what takes place when God’s power comes on an individual.
Slain- Carol Arnott
As with holy laughter today’s revivalists strongest case is that of historical precedent. Yet when anyone takes an honest look at the history of this manifestation, they see a historical background of occultism (with the Shakers), aberrant mystics like Maria Woodworth-Etter, and ministers of dubious character such as Aimee McPherson and Kathryn Kuhlman. The historical case is not sufficient, nor will it ever be, to overrule the plain teachings of the Bible.
From an exegetical view point the revivalist have even less support. None of the texts they cite as “proof” for this practice can be legitimately applied. All of the texts have to do with divine encounters which were extremely important to the plan of God either for Israel as a nation or for the Church. It is not enough to locate texts which denote someone falling and then interpret them to refer to being slain in the spirit. All of their comparisons are at best apples-to-apples. None of the writings of the Early Church Fathers indicate any such manifestation as part-and-parcel of normal Christian experience, in fact, they never mention it at all. One would think that these writers would have recorded some evidence of this manifestation in their writings if it was a genuine experience given by the Holy Spirit, especially one that alleges to bestow ministry calls, visions of the Lord, emotional and physical healing. Yet the historic record of the Church for almost 1,700 years is totally silent on this matter.
As I have already stated the history behind this practice is extremely questionable at best. The earliest references we have of it in America come from the Shakers, a non-Christian cult of necromancers. The familiar spirits (demons) told the Shakers at the same time in their various communes that they, the spirits, were leaving the Shakers and going to visit the “world’s people,” and would do so by various manifestations. This did occur and many Christian sects, unsound in doctrine were open to such forms of enthusiasms, and this deception continues to this day. The practice of being slain in the spirit is less than four hundred years old, and has had only marginal acceptance at best in the past. However, this has changed in our time.
Now with rapid growth of neo-Montanism with the Church this practice is now a common, sometimes weekly experience for literally millions of people professing the name of Jesus Christ.
The sheer numbers of people submitting to an experience does not validate it as biblical. Truth is not determined by consensus. Truth is revealed to us by the written Word of God. The Westminster Confession of Faith states what the Christian’s relationship to the Bible ought to be:
IV. The authority of the Holy Scripture, for which it ought to be believed, and obeyed depends not upon the testimony of any man, or Church; but wholly upon God (who is truth itself) the author thereof: and therefore it is to be received, because it is the Word of God.
VI. The whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for His own glory, man’s salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men. Nevertheless, we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word:
God’s Word along is the standard by which we live. His Word contains all things necessary for salvation, faith and life. These things are expressly set down in the Bible, or “by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture.” This deduction however is not accomplished by violating the principles of hermeneutics and wresting the texts from their context in order to attempt to make them fit one’s experience.
This is exactly what today’s revivalists have done regarding being slain in the spirit. This experience is not mentioned once contextually in the entire Bible. Every text the revivalists site as proof of their non-biblical practice has been taken from it context and misapplied.
The revivalists have failed both historically and biblically to make their case that this manifestation is the result of the Holy Spirit or the glory of God coming upon an individual to such a degree their physical bodies cannot withstand it. And thus fall to the ground in some form of a trance-like condition. With this in mind we must seek other explanations.
Learned Behavior
There is an undeniable element of learned behavior with this phenomena. A minister gets up and preaches, towards the end of the message he or she will begin to make allusions to what people may see or experience while being prayed for. Often some of the texts we have considered will be sited to validate what the congregation will see or personally experience. The catchers are called forward and then an alter call is given. The first people are lined up with catchers behind them. Hands are laid on the people and some of them begin to fall into the arms of the catchers. The other people are observing this behavior. When their turn comes, they too fall down.
This is the basic pattern of ministry I have personally observed for over fifteen years, it was the pattern I also used while in full-time charismatic ministry. Although not done consciously, I and other ministers, were setting the state by psychologically preparing the people in advance. On the part of the people, they wanted to get blessed, they wanted a stronger “anointing” or deeper walk with Christ. Seeing others fall, they too fell. Many times I knew as a minister that people were simply “faking it.” How? When people came up for prayer I would notice them quickly look behind them to make sure there was a catcher there to “catch” them when they fell. These fakers, came knowing in advance that they were going to fall, and they wanted assurance they would be caught. ♦
(TO BE COMPLETED NEXT MONTH!)
Copyright 2009 Robert S. Liichow
* Color-highlight and some bolding are not in the original book by Robert S. Liichow.
Truth Matters Newsletters – May 2006 – Vol. 11 Issue 4 – The “New Wine” Hangover – by Robert S. Liichow
Discernment Ministries International
The “New Wine” Hangover
I thought after considering the hundredth anniversary of Azusa Street enthusiasm that it would be appropriate to look into the current state of the Signs & wonders revival in our own day. One constant characteristic of Pentecostalism is the belief that God is continually doing a “new thing” in the Church. The trick is to find out what it is and get involved with it. Pentecostal folks are in a continual state of flux. (1) From 1906 until around 1910 Pentecostals believed that the Azusa experience was the final fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy and Jesus was due back anytime. The Azusa revival only lasted about three years and then it die out, although its concepts were spread far and wide.
For forty years Pentecostal folks looked back fondly to Azusa and sought the Lord to “do it again.” Then the Post World War II healing “revival” and inauguration of the New Order of the Latter Rain began around 1946. Whereas Azusa alleged to give people the gift of tongues, this new move showed forth great healing and deliverance power along with the restoration of prophets and apostles. These restored prophets & apostles claimed to have the ability to impart supernatural power to their followers. This was seen as the lastgreat worldwide-soul-saving move of the Spirit heralding the imminent return of our Lord. (2) This revival also lasted only about four or five years. Both the Azusa revival and the Healing revival spawned many sects founded on a wide variety of aberrant doctrines. Another approximately forty years later, according to Bill Hamon (3) that “God” restored the Prophetic Movement back to the Church. According to Hamon, the Prophetic established a platform for the Apostolic Movement to be birthed in the early 1990’s which lead up to the most recent explosion of delusion via a man named Rodney Howard Browne, RHB), aka God’s “Bartender.”
Rodney Howard Browne (RHB) was originally from South Africa and he came to the United States in 1987. (4) In 1988, the new wine began to be poured out by God’s bartender:
From January 1988, they traveled across America for fifteen months, all the time praying that God would pour out His spirit upon His people and that they would have a supernatural encounter with the Holy Spirit that they would never forget. In the sixteenth month, April 1989, the glory of God was poured out in a Tuesday morning service in a church in upstate New York, beginning a revival that continued to this day. That week, hundreds of people were dramatically touched and changed by the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit and since then, hundreds of thousands of people, around the world, have experienced the life changing power of God. (5)
According to RHB he was preaching on hell one evening in New York City and “suddenly” people began to laugh uncontrollably. The harder he preached about the dangers of eternal damnation the more people began to laugh.
Rodney Howard-Browne reported: “One night I was preaching on hell, and laughter just hit the whole place. The more I told the people what hell was like, the more they laughed.” The Holy Ghost…might have you do something that no one’s ever done before, and he might have you do something that’s totally unique. But don’t question, and don’t argue, and don’t ask, and don’t try to devise and to plan it out but just follow the prompting of the leading of the Spirit of God and oh, great and wonderful things shall be done, for God will move in diverse ways and with diverse anointing in these last days. (6)
RHB interpreted this response to being the work of the Holy Spirit. (7) Naturally, one wonders why people began to laugh during the proclamation of such a serious topic. I am firmly convinced that anything that stops or hinders the preaching of God’s Holy Word must be attributed to sinful flesh or demonic activity. Whenever I read or hear reports that say “Oh the Spirit was moving so strongly that we did not even get to the preaching,” (which is commonly reported in these revival meetings) then I know that it was certainly not the working of God’s Spirit. The Holy Spirit uses the preaching of the Word of God to convict sinners and draw them to faith in Christ:
Romans 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
God uses the foolishness of preaching (and sometimes foolish preachers) to reach the lost:
1 Corinthians 1:21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
RHB and all the other charismatic extremists look for God’s power to be something outside of the Word of God Itself. To them God’s power is some form of amorphous, tangible energy which can be transmitted from one person to another totally apart from the Word of God being proclaimed. Yet the Bible plainly teaches us in the following text:
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
RHB’s big break did not come for almost another five years when he spoke at a large and influential charismatic congregation in Florida:
In the spring of 1993, Karl Strader, pastor of Carpenter’s Church in Lakeland, Florida, invited him to preach. Scheduled for a one-week appearance, he was carried over for three more weeks. Since the services were broadcast on radio, many people began showing up at Carpenter’s Church to experience what they heard on the air. (8)
The Carpenter’s Church in Florida is the home congregation of Mr. Strang, who owns Strang Communication, which publishes Charisma Magazine. While he preached there, people began to laugh again, this time RHB encouraged the people to let go and let God pour the new wine of the Holy Spirit into their parched souls. Word spread rapidly, all the way from Florida to Tulsa’s “City of Faith,” aka Oral Roberts University and Oral and Richard Roberts flew over to see for themselves what the latest stirring of the waters was. Both Oral and Richard got soused with new wine from Joel’s Bar. (9) and immediately invited RHB to come back with them to the Maybee Center and hold revival meetings there. Richard Roberts documented this experience, including his own reception of “holy laughter” on video tape which can still be purchased through their website.
Rodney Howard Browne at ORU – Oral Roberts and Richard Roberts
It was the meetings in Tulsa that rocketed RHB to fame & Fortune and man of the charismatic glitterati came to the meetings to receive the latest work of the Spirit, including Charles and Francis Hunter aka, the “Happy Hunters” who went on the write a book and this latest outpouring of the Spirit entitled, “Holy Laughter.” (10)
The Hunters also brag: “The Spirit of God is swiftly moving in breathtaking and sometimes startling new ways, and people of every tongue and every nation are letting out what is on the inside of them…they are running at a fast pace to ‘Joel’s Bar’ where the drinks are free and there is no hangover!…one of today’s signs ‘in the earth beneath’ is the ‘holy laughter’ which is supernaturally overcoming people in services all over the world!” (11)
Do not lose the mindset of Pentecostalism; by this I mean the continual search for God’s power apart from His Word. It has been almost forty years since the massive ministry machines of the roving healing evangelists and now, via RHB, God was pouring something completely new and available to the average sign-seeking believer. Was this really the “new thing,” possibly the “last thing” Pentecostals had been seeking? Was this the sign that God was performing before the return of Jesus? High profile Pentecostal leaders didn’t want to get caught high-and dry if it was, so they began to chase the spiritual carrot on the stick RHB was dangling before their eyes. If the revival did not spread, they’d suffered no loss, they got their Gospel giggles. However, if it took off, then they could claim to be part of a historic spiritual event.
Word spread throughout American Pentecostalism while RHB was working his shtick at Oral’s conference center. In 1993, one pastor, who by his own admission, was on the verge of spiritual burnout, and suffering from depression was encouraged to make his pilgrimage down to Tulsa and receive this new anointing. (12) This pastor was Randy Clark, who led the Vineyard congregation in St. Louis, MO. Initially Mr. Clark was reluctant to go because he was not open to the Word of Faith movement being part of John Wimber’s Vineyard sect. (13) He ended up attending RHB’s meetings and after having RHB lay his hands on him many times Mr. Clark “received” the new wine and took this highly exportable experience back to his Vineyard Congregation. This new experience caused many sign-seekers in St. Louis to flock to his church. Remember the cardinal rule: If anything causes people to coe to your church then it is a good thing. With the injection of this unbiblical phenomenon into his sagging congregation Clark became the “go-to” guy for Vineyard congregations. This sudden growth in Clark’s congregation caused another Vineyard pastor, John Arnott to contact Clark and ask him to come up to Toronto and hold a series of meetings to help pump some life into his small congregation.
Randy came to Toronto and “imparted” the new wine to Arnott, his leaders and congregation members. From there, word began to spread about the new thing the Lord was doing in Toronto. Many people have wondered why the so-called “holy laughter revival” took off at this small church versus remaining centered around RHB. Part of the reason could be that the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship (TACF) was located near a large international airport and the Vineyard sect had many congregations across America and overseas. Whatever the reason, this much is sure what stared out from RHB quickly became know as the “Toronto Blessing.”
Tens of Thousands of people made their pilgrimage to TACF to receive the latest experience and take back to their own congregations, commonly referred to as spreading the fire due to highly contagious nature of these manifestations. Arnott quickly cast himself in the role of one who was pasturing the revival. One of the earliest countries affected by the latest outbreak of spiritual enthusiasm was England, Holy Trinity in Brompton to be specific. It was at Holy Trinity Church that a young American Assemblies of God evangelist received the Toronto blessing, his name was Steve Hill.
Steve Hill left England and came to an Assembly of God church in Brownsville, Florida that was being led by a pastor John Kilpatrick. On June 18, 1995, Steve Hill got up to preach his Father’s Day message and “revival” broke out in Brownsville AOG! Well at least that was what Kilpatrick and Hill wanted people to believe, I.e. that a spontaneous and sovereign move of the Holy Spirit had broken forth at Brownsville. The TRUTH of the matter is that prior to Hill’s arrival Kilpatrick’s wife and many leaders from Brownsville went to TACF to acquire the fire. (14) They showed videos to those who could not take time to Pilgrimage to TACF. In short, they primed the pump and built up the people’s expectations before Hill came on the scene. When Hill arrived the “Lord” began to pour out His new wine.
True to form, over a million sign-seekers traversed land and sea, chasing the charismatic carrot-on-the-stick to get to Brownsville. Many had already been to Tulsa, then to Toronto and now to Brownsville. The same sort of thing happened forty years earlier when the healing hucksters roamed the nations. A.A. Allen would come to town, people would flock to his meetings for a touch from God’s man of the hour. Then Jack Coe would come next month, the same people would run to Coe’s meetings, from there to Oral Roberts tent when we came through. Always seeking and never receiving the thing promised (the proverbial carrot on the stick). This is nothing new, Jesus had to deal with sign-seekers in His ministry as well. Here is what our Master had to say;
Matthew 12:39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
In reality this so-called latest outpouring has been anything but spontaneous or sovereign on God’s part. The manifestations proved to be highly transmittable, or the sign-seeking people seem to be highly suggestible in being willing to believe something divine is being given to them. The following flow chart demonstrates the human chain of transmission regarding the Holy Laughter revival aka the Toronto Blessing aka The Brownsville Outpouring:
The Unbroken Chain of HUMAN Transmission of the “New Wine”
Δ
Rodney Howard Brown
↓
The Carpenter’s Church
↓
Then to Oral & Richard Roberts, ORU Convention Center
↓
Randy Clark gets the blessing
↓
Taken it to St. Louis
Randy then goes to Toronto Airport Christian Church (TACF)
→ ↓
John Arnott, Leader of TACF hypes it to the Charismatic world
↓
Holy Trinity Brompton Bestows blessing to Steve Hill
Steve Hill takes it to Brownsville/Pensacola, Florida AOG church
Brownsville promotes the new experience to over a million people
All these leaders end up leaving their ministries within 5 years
Revival over, dead in the water, fini!
Millions of sign-seekers left with nothing but spiritual ennui & they are praying desperately to learn what the next “move” of God will be!
Stay Tuned Campers!
The experience in Toronto and Brownsville were never equated as the same type of revival by both sets of leaders. The Toronto Blessing seemed to appeal more to the various charismatic sects, whereas the Pensacola Outpouring was initially geared towards attracting the classic Pentecostal denominations, beginning with the Assembly of God Rodney Howard Brown never spoke nor imparted anything at either church during their simultaneous moves of the Spirit. There are at least two reasons why RHB never was invited to participate in these massive meetings: (1) the leaders at TAFC & BAG wanted to keep the illusion that what was taking place in their midst was a sovereign move of the Holy Spirit and (2) neither group fully embraced many of the concepts espoused by the Word of Faith movement of which RHB was a member. I have thoroughly examined this so-called revival from start to finish and there are simply no accounts of “holy laughter” simply breaking out in congregations. Every instance I know of, which is quite a few of them, these manifestations were brought into congregations by leaders or individuals who received an “impartation” at some other vortex of delusion.
From about 1995 to 2000 both groups (and many other smaller congregations) tried to keep the revival fire stoked with everything from holding spiritual drunkards conferences, (15) reports of God filling peoples teeth with gold and platinum, reports of diamonds and precious stones appearing in various sanctuaries and even reports of angels feathers being found after worship!
However, as with the Azusa meetings, the Healing revival, the Catholic charismatic renewal movement and lastly the Holy Laughter revival…the enthusiasm died down and a great emptiness filled the lives of millions of sign-seekers. This sense of lack is what I refer to as a spiritual hangover. The “party” was over, uncontrollable laughing, hopping up and down and falling into cataleptic trances on the floor (aka doing “carpet time”) was passé. Like a junkie experiencing withdrawal the sign-seeker was left asking “where is the next high”?
What about the leaders of this move of God? They were and are responsible for all the bold claims they made to millions regarding the fad they were promoting. They claimed people needed to come to their centers and receive what God was currently doing. And come they did, often at great personal expense and they left with their impartations of new wine and took them back to their home congregations. From our research virtually every congregation that embraced this delusion ended up in a church split. (16)
John Arnott more or less abdicated his role at TACF, he is still there, but he is busy these days trying to discern what the next “big” thing is via a para-church ministry sponsored by TACF. TACF is back down to a small church size, gone are the thousands of daily visitors from around the world.
John Kilpatrick? Oh, he moved on (or was moved out) from serving as Pastor at the Brownsville Assembly of God church. Once the hoopla that he touted ended, so did his role as pastor. Kilpatrick now heads up “John Kilpatrick Ministries and will be opening an independent church called “the Church of His Presence,” in AL. (17)
Steve Hill? Well old stevie was the first to bail out from BAG when he quickly noticed that the “cloud had moved on.” His job was done, he’d fleeced all the pockets he could and it was time to take the money and run. Today Hill has turned in his “evangelist” hat and has opted to pastor an independent church called “Heartland Fellowship Church” located in Texas. (18)
Lindel Cooley, the highly “anointed” music/worship leader at Brownsville, he took off right after Mr. Hill and now operates “Music Missions International.” On his website he declares that the Brownsville revival is the longest running revival in American history, which is simply a lie. (19) What of the father of this current strain of insanity, Mr. Rodney Howard Brown? RHB, although the man who can rightly claim to be the initiator of the enthusiasm, quickly became a bit-player and faded from prominence. He too dropped the evangelist role and decided to become a pastor. Currently he is the head of “The River Church” another independent congregation. By the way, he continually refers to himself as “Doctor” RHB. This too is a lie. He received a doctorate from the School of Bible Theology in San Jacinto, CA. This is a diploma mill. Not only were the manifestations he foisted upon millions spurious, his own educational and some of his ministerial background is equally fallacious.
I close this article out by simply asking — “what good fruit came from this revival?” None that I can discern. At worst, millions of people were duped into accepting possible demonic activity into their lives and at best people simply emptied their minds and gave themselves over to fleshly indulgence disguised as the work of the Spirit.Churches were split, lifelong friendships and more then a few marriages were destroyed.
All those who ran to TACF or BAG are left today wondering what the next “great” thing will be. Many are disenchanted with Church and church leaders. Especially when it became well publicized how wealthy Arnott, Kilpatrick, Hill, Cooley and others became due to the revival.
What can we learn from past and this most recent “revival”? Keeping in mind that all the Pentecostal revivals have at their root a belief in restoration within the Church it must be stated that Jesus Christ is still Head of the Church, which is His body (read Eph. 5:23). God’s plan for His people has continued since He conceived it. Fallen humanity and all the demons of hell cannot detour what God has ordained. Christ Jesus has lost nothing pertaining to His Body (read John 6:39).
There is not one genuine spiritual benefit to the Church from any of these revivals from Azusa to this current time. All of the people who laughed uncontrollably are not any more sanctified today than prior to their fits of laughing. The thousands who spent hours in catatonic paralytic fits on sanctuary floors are no more “powerful” in Christ today than prior to their temporary psychotic breaks with normal reality. No great biblical insights were granted to any of the so-called restored apostles or prophets due to these meetings. No further true unity (20) was developed and sustained due to the revival. Upon close examination the Toronto Blessing and Pensacola outpouring were much a due about nothing.
Probably the most important lesson that can be gleaned from this most recent example of excess is that need for the people of God to look to the Holy Scriptures alone and find in them all they need to give a godly and spiritually prosperous life. There is no such thing as a spiritual “quick fix” {unless you are a spiritual jukie, seeking the next high}. Spiritual maturity takes a lifetime, no one can mystically impart it to you anymore than someone can make you a prophet by laying their hands on you. It is an honorable desire to want to be used of our Lord in a mighty way. Sadly, many think “mighty” means becoming the next charismatic superstar, when in our Lord’s eyes being mighty may be serving as a faithful janitor in your local church. Those who are running hither-thither and yon after the anointing, sincere as they may be, are probably some of the least productive people in the Kingdom. I end by saying grow where you are planted, be faithful in promoting God’s work, attend Bible study, share your faith at home and work, prey for your bothers and sisters…This will not only make you a vessel of honor, but will also keep you from ever-suffering from a spiritual hangover! ♦
1. I am using “Pentecostal” in the article to refer to all the branches of this aspect of religion. It includes the entire charismatic movement (yes, I know there is a difference between classic Pentecostalism and charismatic groups), i.e. the Word of Faith, Prophetic, Apostolic, Signs and Wonders and basic run-of-the-mill sign gift sects.
2. Let me be clear in stating that I believe in the imminent return of Christ for His Church. He could come before you finish this issue. I do not predicate my belief on anything I see going on in the Church, or the world, simply on His promise in the Bible.
3. Bill Hamon is a false prophet and prolific writer. He holds traveling school’s where one can learn to be a prophet of the Lord. He is the product of a Latter Rain sect and he has been trumpeting their aberrant doctrine for 20+ years now.
7. A similar occurrence transpired at the Vineyard Church led by the late John Wimber. A meeting was taking place, people began to laugh uncontrollably so Wimber, who was no stranger to odd manifestations, had the laughing people brought forward and he and his leaders attempted to cast the “demons” out of these people. When they failed in the deliverance attempts, Wimber declared that what was taking place was of the Holy Spirit since they were powerless to stop the laughing.
9. RHB became know as “God’s Bartender” and he referred to this novel experience (at least in our time) as getting drunk at Joel’s Bar, a reference to the prophecy in Joel which has been repeatedly re-fulfilled by every enthusiastic movement since the true Pentecost in the Book of Acts.
10. Hunter, Charles and Francis, Holy Laughter, Hunter Publishing, 1994.
11. Tarkowski, Ed. The Laughing Phenomena: From South Africa to St. Louis to Toronto to Your Church (Part 1), The Christian Conscience (February 1995, Vol. 1 No. 2) p. 25. Bold type added.
13. It is important to keep in mind that a few years back (80’s and 90’s) there was little agreement between the various Pentecostal/charismatic camps. Shepherding folks did not buy into Word of Faith concepts. Classic Pentecostal denominations did not believe that most non-traditional Pentecostal people had the genuine “Holy Ghost.” Wimber’s Vineyard was a bit of a melting pot of Later Rain/Prophetic/Signs and Wonders, but in general was not into the name-it-and-claim-it people. It was not until recently, post Holy Laughter phenomena, that all of these groups are coalescing into a miasma of error.
14. Cathy Wood, a member of the Brownsville Revival, has written many articles proclaiming the link between the two movements. She and many other Brownsville Revival members attribute the coming of revival to the visits that the pastor’s wife and the worship leader, Lindel Cooley, paid to the Toronto Blessing. Many of the members felt that the anointing that both had received from the Toronto Blessing provided them with the spirit of revival to bring back to Brownsville ( http://ww.pen.net/~crow/proof.html ) Evangelist Steve Hill also met Sandy Miller, the pastor at the Trinity Brompton Anglican Church in London, where manifestations are also occurring. He was refreshed by Sandy Miller beore he came to Brownsville and began the revival. In his church now almost identical manifestations are taking place. (http://crash.ihug.co.nz/pensa.html) Obtained from http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/Brownsv.html
15. My wife and I personally observed one such conference at TACF where the people came from all over the world to receive the new wine to such an extent that it paralleled physical drunkenness. The same type of thing was promoted at BAG as well.
16. I have documented this in our book “Fruit Proof” which is filled with eyewitness accounts from various charismatic and Pentecostal people caught up in the madness. This book is offered in this month’s issue.
Truth Matters Newsletters – March 2006 – Volume 11 Issue 3 – Choo’s Tall Tale of Heaven is to Touch to Swallow – by Robert S. Liichow
Discernment Ministries International
Choo’s Tall Tale of Heaven is to Touch to Swallow
Let me begin by saying thanks to Pastor Dick Fisher who gave me the initial clue to the existence of this latest book allegedly revealing heaven. For some time I have been slowly working on a book which compares all of the alleged visits to heaven and hell with the Bible and with each other, so I was interested to learn of the existence of this book and after I read it I was dumbfounded that anyone could possibly believe what is written in it.
I am not surprised that people have an interest in the afterlife. Every world religion, cult and sect has its version of what happens after we die and since there is still one death per person due to being sinners it comes as no surprise that the world desperately seeks answers. What does surprise me is how gullible and biblically illiterate multitudes of Christians are regarding this subject.
The vast majority of Christians who purchase these books fall into the category of sign-gift believers, i.e. people of the Pentecostal and charismatic persuasion. Coming from that background I can shed some light as to why these folks are more susceptible to this particular brand of deception. Many (not all) charismatic believers hold to the view that God is still revealing truth to His people, apart from the Bible. While claiming to believe that the Bible is the standard by which they judge all revelations, they readily admit that new revelations are still coming, usually through the so-called restored Apostles or Prophets. What they will not admit is that the Bible is a complete and totally sufficient revelation. According to them God has something more to say.
I remember confronting John Arnott, the Pastor of the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship regarding the bizarre and unbiblical manifestations transpiring under his pastoral leadership. I challenged him to prove that what was taking place could be found within the context of Scripture. He responded by attempting to validate the manifestations by using fragments of biblical text without regard to their context. When I challenged him regarding his use of proof texts he switched gears and used what I have since termed the “John 21:25 Argument.” This text reads “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written Amen.”Arnott and the other charismatic extremists cite this text to answer those who question their new doctrines or practices. When forced into a corner exegetically they simply respond that what they are teaching or doing is part of the “many other things which Jesus did” that are not recorded for us in the Bible, but God in these last days is revealing them to us!
This is philosophically called – an argument from silence, there is no way of biblically validating such claims ergo we are told to accept them based on the sole authority of the person(s) making them. Thus the restored prophet or apostle becomes the authority over the new doctrines and practices and not the Bible. To question them is to doubt the work of God in the end times and to demand biblical precedents simply proves that we are undoubtedly of a Pharisaical spirit and are steeped in legalism.
All of the accounts regarding alleged visits to heaven and hell since the 1800’s in America have been written by either Pentecostal or charismatic believers. This most recent foray into the afterlife is no exception to this fact. The book we are going to consider has sold over 450,000 copies overseas, making it an international bestseller and with the recent full page story in Charisma magazine (whose publisher, Strang Communications, just happens to be owner of Creation House, the publisher of this book) it will no doubt quickly gather steam among the sign-seekers in our own nation.
Throughout this article I will be citing the page numbers in brackets versus using endnotes. The title is: Heaven Is So Real, Thomas, Choo, Lake Mary, FL: Creation House, 2003.
Who Is Choo Thomas?
Isn’t it interesting that of all the accounts by people claiming to have given a personal tour of heaven (or hell) do not have any theological training whatsoever! In other words, Jesus does not choose someone like Dr. R.C. Sproul, Dr. H. Wayne House, Dr. Marquart or any other theologians to give a personal visit of the heavenly realms too. Instead, He chooses people with little to no biblical education or knowledge whatsoever, like Choo Thomas.
Mrs. Thomas is a Korean-American, her parents are deceased, and she is married and has two grown children (p1). She says she became a Christian in February, 1992 and from that moment on she began to skyrocket into the upper realms of personal holiness “I could only think about Jesus every waking moment,” (p.1). Two years later she says she received “the fire of the Holy Spirit” while she was praying at home in January, 1994. After this experience she had her first vision of Jesus sitting by the pulpit at her local Assembly of God in Tacoma, WA (p.2).
What Does Choo’s Jesus Look Like?
It is interesting but almost everybody’s heavenly encounter with our resurrected Lord differs as to their descriptions of what Jesus looks like. According to Choo this is how Jesus looks:
He was sitting by the pulpit. His legs were crossed, and I could see Him as clearly as a real person, except I couldn’t see His face. As I perceived Him, He had silky white hair and was wearing a pure white robe. His person was visible to me for almost five minutes. After seeing Him my body was on fire with unspeakable joy, and I became wholeheartedly committed to Jesus. (p.2)
Unfortunately, no one else saw “Jesus” during this service or any other time throughout her book. Being married to an African-American woman for over twenty years I can tell you I know the difference between silky (straight) and wooly (kinky hair. According to the Book of Daniel (Dan. 7:9) and the Book of Revelation, Jesus Christ has hair “like as wool” (see Rev. 1:14) which any woman can tell you is far from silky. Beyond this minor detail what is troubling is that Jesus appears to this woman for no apparent reason, He is simply “there.” Every time the Lord appeared either in an Old Testament theophany or in the New Testament (Stephens stoning in Acts 7:59; Paul’s conversion in Acts 9:4; or John on Patmos in Rev. 1:12) it was for a specific purposes in the economy of God. As we shall see, Choo’s role is pivotal in God’s end-time redemptive plan. Beyond seeing this apparition and feeling her body of fire with joy nothing else transpired but 100% commitment to Jesus.
Before delving deeper into Choo’s delusion let me just say that there is no such thing biblically as a baptism of fire. She says she had some physical experience in 01-94 which she interpreted as “the fire of the Holy Spirit,” yet there is no support exegetically for such a claim. It is after this vision that things begin to become very bizarre in Mrs. Thomas’ life.
A Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On aka Choo is Special!
As of Easter Sunday, 1995 Choo enters into (and she has not stopped to this day) the realm of charismatic extremist manifestations. While she and her family were attending their AOG church in Puget Sound she states:
…my whole body began to shake violently, and we had to stay for second service. I was experiencing the same phenomenon known among Quakers, Shakers and early Pentecostals. Since then, my body never stops shaking in church or during my prayer time at home. Two weeks after this Easter Sunday experience, I received the gift of tongues while at home and began to sing in the Spirit. While watching a Benny Hinn crusade on television, I stood up and lifted my hands in prayer. Then I fell on the floor for almost three hours. The anointing of God’s Holy Spirit was so strong that I couldn’t get up, and all I could do was sing and talk in tongues and laugh. During every worship service after that, I could see the presence of the Lord Jesus in church. (p2)
Please note that Mrs. Thomas is a very special person which she shall make abundantly clear to all of us as we progress. The church she was attending obviously had been involved in the Toronto Blessing aka The Pensacola Outpouring because neither the pastor nor anyone else thought her shaking was out of the ordinary. What is out of the ordinary is that this shaking occurs whenever she is in a church service or even praying at home. She also claims to have received the gift of other tongues while alone at home. Apart from the debate as to the validity of this gift today, the general manner in which 99.9% of all Pentecostal and charismatic believers receive this gift is through the laying on of someone else’s hands or during a congregational meeting. Very few people attest to receiving this gift at home, and without dispute no one in the book of Acts received any of the spiritual gifts apart from the presence and/or the ministry of one or more of the Apostles.
Choo seems to indicate that she received this gift while watching a Benny Hinn crusade on television, this is very problematic considering the facts about Mr. Hinn since he is a false prophet, false teacher and proven liar. Also her statement about being slain in the spirit for almost 3 hours seems more demonic than divine. She states that she could not get up, something she stresses throughout her book, and all she could do was sing, talk in tongues and laugh. She attributes this experience to the anointing of the Holy Spirit being heavy upon her. As taught and practiced by today’s sign-gift believers there is biblically no such thing as being slain in the spirit. More importantly, the Holy Spirit gives us self-control (see Gal. 5:23 and 2 Peter 1:6). He does not possess us to the extent where we are physically paralyzed yet according to Choo this is exactly how the Spirit ministers to her. After this possession, which is what I consider it to be, her spiritual eyes are opened and from this point on she could see the presence the Lord in every worship service.
I will not go into the history of these aberrant “revivals” and their attending manifestations. I have covered them in the fullest detail avail in my 2 books “Blessing or Judgment” and “Two Roots of Today’s Revival.”
I urge all of our readers to purchase at some point the book “The Confusing World of Benny Hinn” published by the Personal Freedom Outreach (www.pfo.org). It is the definitive work exposing this dangerous charlatan for who and what he is.
DMI has a small, but very helpful book on this topic entitled “Does the Bible Support Being Slain in the Spirit.” She tries to biblically explain her palsied attacks as a preparatory work of the Holy Spirit; The Bible is replete with examples of people quaking and shaking in the presence of the Lord. Sometimes this manifestation is accompanied by fear, but most of the time it is preparatory; God is about to do a great work through a yielded vessel. (p7).
Obviously, Choo is the yielded vessel through whom God is about to do a great work, a theme she hammers home throughout her book. This preparatory work is ratcheted up by the Lord after her Easter 1995 experience. On January 19, 1996 the Lord wakes her in the early morning and personally visits her. Before each visit the Lord causes her body to shake and perspire for close to an hour, and then the apparition speaks and appears to her.
I turned my head on the pillow to look in the direction of the sound, and there, all aglow, was a figure dressed in white garments. The radiance that emanated from this unknown visitor was so brilliant that I could not see His face, but in my heart of hearts I knew that I had been blessed with a special visitation from the Lord. (p.7).
How did she know this was Jesus? She “knew” in her heart of hearts. I guess she never was taught that Satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14) or that our Lord Himself warned that many will come saying “I am he Christ” (Matt. 24:5). This figure speaks the following words to her “My daughter, Choo Nam, I am your Lord, and I want to talk to you. You have been My special daughter for a long time,” (p.7). According to her own chronology she has been saved about 4 years when this occurs, not much of a “long time” in my book. Don’t lose sight of how Choo’s Jesus calls her His special daughter, Choo is special! He goes on to reveal to her “Daughter you are such an obedient child, and I want to give you special gifts. These gifts are going to serve Me greatly. I want you to be happy about these gifts,” (p.8). Because of her total obedience to the Lord, He has chosen to give her special gifts and He wants her to be “happy” about them.
I knew at that moment God was choosing me to do an important work for Him and that this must become my single-minded purpose…I have known since then that when my body begins to shake from the inside out that God will be speaking to me…God has chosen me for a specific work. It was too wonderful to imagine…(p.8).
The same experience happens again the next morning and this time as she shakes and sweats the Lord explains the reason He must do this to her: “You are my precious daughter…I am giving you the power that you will need for the work I’ve called you to do. I am preparing you to serve Me. Your body shakes as the power flows into you. I am giving you all the spiritual gifts. I am releasing your spirit so you will be completely free to serve Me. (p. 10).
Now we know when we see someone shaking and sweating it is because of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. We are witnessing God pouring His power into some one for a special purpose. He is working to release his or her spirit so that yielded vessel can serve Him! Choo explains it this way to us:
The shaking continued for twenty minutes. I began to view it as being like a spiritual transfusion. The power of the Holy Spirit was coursing through every nerve, sinew, muscle and organ of my body. It was setting me on fire with the power of God. (p.11).
He then explained the shaking in my body. “Your body shakes for a long time because you need power for this work. I want you to expect many surprises.”(p.17).
Shaking equals power in Choo’s world and few charismatic extremists would argue that point with her. The problem with these statements is that there is not one shred of biblical proof to backup such a claim. Everything in her book is based on her own subjective pseudo-spiritual experience. Choo does not make a strong appeal to the scriptures. Instead she continually points to herself as being Jesus’ “special daughter.”
“I knowyou do not know many things, but I see that you are pure-hearted. I know that you believe everything about Me. I’ve seen your obedience, and I know you fear My words. (p.80).
Because of her high degree of sanctification and her unwavering belief concerning everything about Himself He chooses her for this great end-time work.
“You are living your life completely for Me. Your heart has willingly given up all worldly things for Me. I now know that nothing brings satisfaction to you more than being in My presence. (p.84).
Choo has become totally heavenly-minded. She has reached sinlessperfectionbecause one would have to be totallysinlessto live his or her life completely for Christ, without any thought of self. She has reached a level of perfection that even surpasses the Apostle Paul who said that he had not obtained (read Phil. 3:12) perfection and was still striving to reach it.
“Whoever permits Me to control their life will be blessed. These are My obedient children. You are My special child.” (p.93).
Choo’s life is blessed because she is one of the obedient children, which makes her special.
“Daughter, you are special to Me…I choose My children who are pure and obedient — those who put Me first in their lives. (p.107).
She gets confused here because she stated earlier that the Lord had told her He had chosen her for this work before the foundation of the world. Yet now her Jesus reveals to her that He choose His children based on their purity of heart and obedience, people who put Jesus first in their lives. It is by our works, whether of personal sanctification or obedience to the law and putting Jesus first. (which in and of itself is fine) that determines the Lord choosing us or not.
If you were not such a special daughter, I could not bring you to heaven to show you all the things you have seen. (p.11).
Obviously Thomas is such a special daughter because if she was not then Jesus could not have brought her to heaven and shown her all these wonders. The inescapable inference is that the vast majority of Christians are not special to the Lord because He has not given them this foretaste of heaven. Choo is special, you and I are not.
…You are very special to Me. You must believe this. I had to choose the right daughter for this important work, and you are the one I’ve chosen. (p. 111).
I am not a psychologist, but it really seems that Choo suffers from delusion of grandeur because the quotes from Jesus deal with how special she is versus revealing unknown truth to the church. Choo is the right daughter for this work, she is the personally chosen one!
“This is one of the reasons I love you so much, My daughter.” (p.115).
“My daughter, I really enjoy being with you.” (p.125).
“You have beautiful hair.” (p. 125).
“You are beautiful, My daughter.” (p.125).
“Don’t be shy, My daughter,” the Lord counseled. The He lifted my face… (p.125).
Choo and Jesus are on a deserted beach and she is dancing and singing in front of the apparition. One of the reasons Jesus loves her is because of her yielded spirit and devotion, so now we know that Christ’s love is not unconditional, there are reasons why He loves us. Here again I believe we read about her deeply held insecurities because Jesus tells her how much He enjoys being with her, how beautiful her hair is, how beautiful she is! This specific encounter is one of the most sensual and frankly, disgusting of the entire book.
“ I will bring many of My children to the Kingdom, but not every one will live in mansions like the one that had your name on the door. These mansions are for very special children.” (P.138).
There are 2 classes of Christians in heaven according to Choo’s Jesus. The lower wattage believers will not inherit palaces like Choo’s with her own name in gold on a nameplate on the door. These palaces are reserved for the, you guessed it, the very special children (more on the 2 classes a bit later on).
“I didn’t show you the kingdom and the pit of hell to bring you home now. I showed you all those things so you will help save the lost and let everyone know what it takes to enter the kingdom. (p.152).
After seeing her mansion and all the glories of heaven she does not want to go back to earth. Yet her Jesus tells her that He has shown her these things so Choo can help save the lost. What is more she is to let everyone know what it takes (WORKS) to enter the kingdom. Choo has a role in the redemption of the lost and is appointed to tell everyone what it takes to get to heaven. The problem is she does not tell anyone in the book exactly “what it takes.” She surely does not mention that salvation is the gift of God, or that what it takes is the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf. Nor does she point out that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone according to the Scriptures alone.
“My daughter, you are an End-Times prophetess.” The Lord told me, “and You are living proof of My Word and My prophecies. (p. 168).
Towards the end of the book we see her role in the Church revealed. She is an end-time prophetess (she told us she was special). She is living proof of the Word and His prophecies! The Bible is not enough “proof”…
“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:31).
The fact that the Holy Spirit bearing witness with our spirits that we are children of God is also insufficient proof (see Rom. 8:16). Nope, we need living proof in the form of sister Choo to believe God’s Word.
“He took me to His throne and directed me to sit on a chair next to Him. This was the first time the Lord seated me next to Himself.” (p. 61).
While in heaven she entered into the throne room which is filled with the O.T. prophets and N.T. authors and directed by Jesus to sit next to Him on the throne! The mother of James and John must have really been livid upon finally discovering who the Father was granting the right to sit at Jesus’ right hand. Remember she tired to wheedle her boys into the right and left hand seats in the Kingdom (see Matt. 20:21). Sorry sister, very special Choo is seated next to Jesus not James or John.
There can be no doubt in the readers mind how special Choo Thomas is. It makes sense when you realize how important the work she has been given to do is according to God’s plan for the end-times. His great work for her is to complete the canon of Scripture.
Choo’s Book Is Divinely Authoritative
Choo told us she was special, so special in fact that what she has written for us are the exact words of Jesus Christ. If language means anything, then the revelations in Choo’s book are on the same level as the Holy Bible; in fact, we should cut out the pages and tape them into our Bibles. Keep in mind according to this woman, Jesus appears to her and directly tells her to remember and write down His exact words. If that does not mean her book is to be treated as divine revelation than I do not understand the concept at all. Here are only a few of the statements from her book which prove my point:
“I am your Lord, My daughter. I want you to hear and remember everything I tell you. When you write it down, use My exact words. You are sleepy, but do not miss any of the words I tell you. I will be visiting you many times in the future because I have important work for you to do. You are the child I am going to use to do this work for Me, so be prepared.” (p. 11).
Then He reiterated something He had commanded me to do several times before: Write down everything I show you and tell you. (p.21).
The Lord continued: I want you to remember everything I tell you and show you. Make sure you write everything down. I will make sure that everyone understands all the things I show and tell you. (p.28).
“I do not want you to miss anything I show or tell you,” He instructed. “Nothing more; nothing less. Everything has to be exactly as I reveal it to you.” (p.36).
“My daughter you have much work to do. I want you to write a book. This is an important book for the last days, and it will be translated into many languages. I chose you for this work before you were born, and this is why My Holy Spirit is always shaking your body—to pour My power into you. (p.47).
You do not need to know how to write the book. Just write down what I show you and tell you… (p.70).
“Now you know why, My daughter. I want you to concentrate on the book, with no interruptions. This book is very important to Me, and it will be a special blessing for My children. Whatever you do, I want you to talk to Me first. Everything about this book has to be My will. (p.79).
“Some people will not believe you, but you don’t need to worry about that. My daughter, I am simply using you for this book. It is My book and I will take care of it.” (p.80).
“Because you are what you are, I chose you for this work…This is My book and My responsibility… I want you to be happy because you are My special daughter. (p.80).
This book will help deliver many people who are in spiritual darkness…I notice that you have never been deliberately disobedient since you gave your heart to Me, an you always put Me first in your life. This is why I chose you as My special daughter and friend. (p.92).
Write this down, Choo Nam. I want all My children to know what awaits them in heaven. I know many of My children have questions about heaven. Some of them wonder if there will be food to eat in heaven. (p.100).
Why do you think I chose prophets to work for Me on earth? Like you, I’ve sent them in order to do My work. Without prophets, I would not have any way of communicating my desire to My children. Therefore, My daughter, do not miss writing about anything I show or tell you. Tell it all. It is because you are such an obedient daughter that I am able to use you. (p.102).
“I want My children to read this book, because so many of them have doubts about heaven. I want them to believe there is a heaven and to live pure and obedient lives so they can come into My kingdom. This book is about all My words and the Kingdom I have prepared for whoever wants to come. Everything is already prepared. This book must be written by a Spirit-filled person. My daughter, if you were not under the special power of my Holy Spirit, I could never use you for this work. (p.116).
I want you to write down exactly what I show you and tell you. Nothing more and nothing less. After this is done, you will receive special gifts to serve Me, and you will be a blessing to My people. I will also bless you more than you want. (p.120).
I want all of My children to come to My kingdom. Whoever reads this book, I want them to believe and realize how they have to live in the world in order to enter the kingdom. (p.131).
From these 15 citations (there are more in the book) it should be obvious to the reader that this book is no ordinary book. Choo, although very special to Jesus, was simply the vehicle through which the “Lord” gave the Church and world new insights. Her book is so powerful that God will use it to deliver people out of spiritual darkness and through its revelations teach people how to live in order to enter the Kingdom of God. According to her Jesus, everything in the book, including its title (p.120), comes directly from the revealed will of God.At no point does Choo’s Jesus direct her or her readers to read the Bible daily, or to study and show themselves approved of God (2 Tim. 2:15). This entity makes no statements regarding the centrality of the Bible; He does make quite a few comments about how important His book through her is!
Hitherto Unknown Heavenly Revelations – aka The Gospel According to Choo
Since you now understand the divine weight of the words in His book, it behooves us to look into the “deep’ insights Choo’s Jesus is sharing with the Church and World. According to Mrs. Thomas, our Lord took her to heaven on 17 occasions. Prior to each “lift-off” the paranormal pattern is as follows: It is early in the morning, between 1:00 and 3:00 AM. Choo’s body goes into the uncontrollable spasms and she sweats profusely. This shaking goes on from a half and hour to an hour. She refers to the cause of this experience using a variety of adjectives based on the root word “anointing.” Here are a few examples: “the anointing of the Lord’s presence,” (p.9), “the intense heat of His anointing,” (p.19), “The anointing was heavy upon me,” (p.59), “a special anointing,” (p.59), “by the anointing of heat,” (p.74), “I was praying intensely under a great anointing from the Holy Spirit,” (p.84), “I cried under the precious anointing,” (p.87), “I plan to give you a special anointing,” (p.121), “a very special anointing,” (p.121), “then the hot anointing and groaning began,” (p.137).
Then she hears a voice speaking to her and she sees the apparition. At this point she has an out-of-body experience where this being first takes her to a secluded beach on earth (location unknown), where they chat for awhile. While out of her physical body it reacts to everything she sees and experiences in her transformed spirit body. If she dances spiritually, then her body on the bed dances too, etc. From the beach they then travel to heaven. I will not detail all 17 trips, but I will cite the “new” information from her trips.
The Master again took me into a huge tunnel. Again—unlike most tunnels—it was bright and shiny…I reasoned this must be the tunnel that people who have near-death experiences frequently describe as the passageway from this life to the next. (p.24).
Unlike Duplantis who got a cable car ride to heaven, Choo goes through a bright tunnel and pops out on the other side in heaven. She has no Scripture to equate her experience to, so she relies on the subjective alleged near-death experiences of others for validation.
Thomas and her apparition walk along a winding road, passing gorgeous flowers until they come to a white palace with beautiful stained glass windows. They walk in and she sees — The Lord’s glistening golden throne stood atop a raised, oval shaped platform. Beams of radiant glory streamed from the center of the room where this platform was located. I was directed by an angel to a little room on the side, and I was surprised to discover a powder room there. A full-length mirror covered the entire wall on the left side of this room, and many beautiful velvet chairs were neatly arranged in front of the mirror…The being opened a large, walk-in closet that contained many robes, gowns and crowns…After I was dressed, the angel escorted me back to the main room. The Lord was waiting for me. I noticed that He was wearing a gown and crown like mine. (p26).
Good news ladies there are powder rooms in heaven! Every time Choo gets ushered off to heaven she and her Jesus must first change into different robes than their normal spirit-body robes. Note that Jesus wears a crown and robe like Choo’s, as opposed to her being clothed in the robes of His righteousness, no Jesus is dressed like Choo.
What is fairly unique to Choo’s delusion is that she does not see many others in heaven, no multitudes, no throngs of joyous saints praising their Lord. She does mention briefly meeting Abraham, but basically her report is about her, she is the center of attention.
After walking over the beautiful bridge, the Lord led me to a place where babies and infants—many of whom looked as if they had just been born—were kept. It was a huge room, like a warehouse, and wasn’t fancy or pretty. It was filled with babies who were naked and lying close to one another…”There are the babies of mothers who did not want them.” (p.38).
Something doesn’t make sense, Duplantis saw babies and little children being taught by angels….Thomas on the other hand sees them laying in a drab building, naked with no one attending them. They are the aborted babies, whose mothers can have them back if they get saved. Robert LIARdon saw a warehouse in his trip to heaven, but his was filled with human body parts, not babies. Whose vision can we trust? After all, the Bible is silent about what happens to infants and none of the biblical accounts of heaven make mention of them.
The Lord took me to a barren site outside the gate of the Kingdom and showed me many people wearing sand colored robes were in this region, standing very close together, and I noticed that they looked forlorn and lonely even though they were in the midst of so many others. (p.39). I noticed multitudes of people who were wearing sand-colored robes roaming aimlessly in the vicinity of the pit’s yawning mouth. Their heads were hanging low, and they looked very dejected and hopeless. Who are these people, Lord? I asked. “They are disobedient Christians.” How long will they have to stay in this barren, lifeless place? “Forever, My daughter. The only ones who will enter My kingdom are the pure of heart—My obedient children.” (P.46).
He took me to another high mountain from which I could look down into another endless valley here a multitude of people dressed in grey-colored robes were wandering about in an apparent mood of dejection. Their robes reminded me of the gowns worn by hospital patients. The people looked weak and lost, and their grey faces matched the color of the robes they were wearing…This place was mostly men with just a few women. Who are these people Lord? “They are sinful Christians.” What is going to happen to them? I wondered aloud. “Most of them will go to the lake of fire after the judgment.” (p.58).
At least in this detail Choo stays the course with many of the other heavenly delusions in print. We can expect there to be 2 classes of people in heaven. Duplantis saw people in different colored robes, denoting their rank in heaven. Choo sees a class of Christians, some are disobedient and others are sinful. Her Jesus says some of these sinful Christians will end up in the lake of fire. Why not all of them? What did some of these sinful saints do in order to escape the fire? Choo attempts to back up her cockeyed notion by citing 2 Cor. 5:10 concerning the judgment seat. According to her revelation only those who attain sinless perfection in his life will be numbered among the justified in heaven. Again, her focus is on our works and our strivings as opposed to the work Jesus Christ did for us on the cross. If these are the lower class of Christian who are the “high class” super saints?
…I noticed many adults and children who were wearing white gowns, and some of them were wearing crowns. They were simply standing there with very happy looks on their faces. (p.40). As I turned in another direction, I noticed a beautiful river. Along the river was a rock wall, and magnificent dwellings were situated on the left side of the river. Many of these homes looked like castles where only the very wealthy might live. The Lord said, “They are houses for My special children.” (p.44).
These folks have worked really hard and because they are extra special to Jesus (no doubt because of their works), He has made castles for them. As we know all too well by now, Choo is “special” to this being so it only stands to reason that she should get to see her mansion in glory:
We approached one of the castles, and the Lord opened the door for me to enter…The walls were constructed of multicolored precious gems that glistened in a magical way…The Lord rested on a chair as I went up the winding staircase that was more massive and grand than the one shown in Gone With the Wind’s Tara plantation…I noticed that the carpeting was a plush white. I entered a huge powder room that had a very large, sparkling mirrors everywhere. They reflected the brightness of the room (p.55)…I was awestruck by the sparking stone walls that lined the corridor of my mansion. I loved the red-and-cream-colored carpet with its round pattern. The red velvet chairs—so classic and sophisticated—were like the ones I had always wanted in my home. The red draperies were the finest I’d ever seen…The bedroom was carpeted in pure white, and I noticed that the headboard of the bed was silver with blue stones embedded…The mirror on the dresser also had blue stones…The bathroom had a silver bathtub that was decorated with precious jewels of every color. (p.64).
Everybody who gets a pre-death trip to heaven gets to see their “mansion.” This is one problem with taking the Kings James version of the Bible at face value without doing a little grammatical digging. Robertson’s Word Pictures of the New Testament says the following about John 14:2:
John 14:2 – Mansions (monai). Old word from menw, to abide, abiding places, in N.T. only here and verse 23. There are many resting-places in the Father’s house (oikia). Christ’s picture of heaven here is the most precious one that we possess. It is our heavenly home with the Father and with Jesus. If it were not so of the verb (Mark 2:21; Re 2:5,16; Joh 14:11). Here a suppressed condition of the second class (determined as unfulfilled) as the conclusion shows. I would have told you (ejpon an u `min). Regular construction for this apodosis (an and aorist-second active–indicative). For I go (o`ti poreuomai). Reason for the consolation given, futuristic present middle indicative, and explanation of his words in 13:33 that puzzled Peter so (13:36f). To prepare a place for you (e `times topon u `min). First aoist active infinitive of purpose of e `toimazw, to make ready, old verb from e `toimoj. Here only in John, but in Mr 10:40 (Mt. 20:23). It was customary to send one forward for such a purpose (Nu 10:33). So Jesus had sent Peter and John to make ready (this very verb) for the Passover meal (Mr 14:12; Mt 26:17). Jesus is thus our Forerunner (prodromoj) in heaven (Heb 6:20).
These text says nothing about each saint having their own mansion. Her description sounds more like the TBN television set than something created by God! Also, think a moment, why will we need beds in heaven? Will we get tired of praising the Lord? There is no day or night there; the Christ himself is the light throughout heaven (Rev. 21:23). We will be in eternity, so time as we know it will not pass. We will be glorified and like Christ, so we will not get tired and need a “nap.” Choo is fixated on mirrors and powder rooms in her book. She does not describe a heavenly commode, but I assume there must be some since there are heavenly bathtubs (I wonder where the dirt will come from that needs to be cleansed off our bodies?). Thomas also noted a dresser in her bedroom, I guess that is to hold her gowns, maybe the saints “dress” for dinner. Furthermore, the obedient/special children on God will also possess vacation homes on the beach (p.102). When you get tired of all the hubbub in the New Jerusalem just pack up the kids in your chariot and go down to your beachfront vacation mansion for a little R&R!
Good news for pet owners! Hot off the pages of the Gospel according to Choo: We hiked out of the garden, along a narrow, winding road that led to a mountain vista overlooking a lush green valley. I could see animals of all sorts galloping and playing among the trees. I particularly noticed a spectacular deer that looked so strong and healthy. I noticed that these animals, which would usually be considered wild, were playful with one another. (p44)…It is reassuring to know that animals will live with us in paradise. So many people wonder if their pets will be in heaven…where people and animals alike will never experience pain, hardship, death or suffering ever again. After our visit to the animal paradise, the Lord and I went back to the waterside…(p55).
Again, this is information that the Bible does not detail for us. The book of the Revelation does not mention any animals, there may or may not be animals in heaven, does it really matter? Thomas tells her readers that no animals will ever experience pain or death. Well, that is, except for fish!
Good news for Fishermen! According to the revelation of Thomas we shall both catch and eat fish in heaven.
We descended the hillside and walked to the water where we saw all kinds of fish swimming in the river…It amused me to see fish in heaven, and I began to laugh…I reached down and grabbed a red, striped fish and lifted it out of the water. I was laughing so uncontrollably, so the fish jumped out of my hands and swam to safety…He began to participate in the action with me by reaching down and grabbing a large fish…It was so good to see the Lord enjoying the moment with me (p.88-89).
As we walked over it, I looked down and saw that the stream was filled with many different kinds of fish. What are the fish for? I asked. “This is food for the kingdom.” the Lord replied. It made me happy to know that we willl be eating fruit and fish in heaven. The fact that these are the primary foods of the kingdom suggests we should be eating more of them on earth. (p.97). …by wading into the water and grabbing a large, flat, white fish. It was about the size of my two hands together. I enjoyed watching the Lord do this for me, and I found the scene to be very amusing…Next, I walked with Him beyond the rocks, where I noticed many large cooking areas that had silver-colored ovens built into the rocks. Atop the oven were cooking grilles with oval-shaped plates and silver forks. The Lord simply pushed a button on the side of one oven and a fire began. He then assumed the role of a cook, right in front of me. He grilled the fish until both sides of it were brown. He seemed to be so happy doing this for me…When we finished eating, He took my plate and fork and put them into a silver container…It wasn’t because I ate the fish; it was because my Lord and Savior cooked the fish and we ate it together. (p.98).
PETA will not be happy to learn that Jesus is not a “vegan.” However, we have been given important information about our future diet in heaven, fruit and fish, ergo we are to be eating much more of these on earth now (I suppose we should walk around in gowns too). I suppose eating all this fruit and fish necessitate the need for “powder rooms” in glory.
Demonic Possession
I stated earlier in this article that it is my belief that Choo is demonically possessed, certainly under the control of a strong demonic delusion. Her own account bears witness to my belief:
“During the night of February 12, my body shook more violently then it ever had. I was almost hurled form the bed because it was so forceful. I tried to grab the sheets to steady myself, but I couldn’t because I had no control over my body. The shaking was unremittingly forceful, and I grew afraid. (p.17).
I began singing in the spirit. The songs come forth, and I have no control over them when I am with the Lord. (p119).
The unusual voice that accompanies the supernatural visions the Lord gives me came forth. (p.123).
The supernatural voice that accompanies the visions He imparts to me came forth, and I saw the cover of Heaven Is So Real. (p.128).
“After everything is done, I want you to build My church.” This statement called forth the voice that always accompanies the supernatural visions the Lord gives me. (p.132).
The vision-voice came forth from my spirit. It seemed to take control of me for a long time (p.134).
My vision-voice came forth as it usually does in preparation for a supernatural vision from the Lord (p.138,139).
By this time I was singing loudly, and my hands were moving around like fists swinging at a punching bag…Mywhole body was jumping up and down because of the anointing and the shaking. I felt as if I were flying…The excited movement of my body and my vision-voice were so loud that I’m sure the whole house could hear me. (p.139).
Since January 1996 the anointing has been so strong that I cannot even control the shaking and other physical manifestations…For example, as of this writing, I cannot even enter the room where Roger works on the computer because the Holy Spirit’s presence is so strong there…my body begins to jump for joy. This is a physical response that comes from the Lord, and I have no control over it. (p148).
During the periods of shaking I would read my Bible and pray. Then as I would get into bed, my body would undergo tremendous and violent shaking for five or ten minutes. In the process my stomach would tighten, and I would experience spasms in the abdominal region. All of this happens each evening before the Lord’s visit to my room…During these marvelous visits, the Lord speaks directly and personally to me. Then He began to preparatory work in my body. When this happens, I have no control over my body for a period of two to four hours. (p158).
It isn’t until the reader is almost half way through the book that Choo’s mentions that prior to the appearance of the apparition she begins to speak in an “unusual” vision-voice. This is nother usual voice, but something that comes upon her or from within her which signify the beginning of her visions. She admits time after time throughout the book that when this voice speaks through her she has no control over it. When her body shakes or she jumps up and down, again she has no control over it. During the duration of visit by her spirit-guide she is physically out of control. This simply is not the work of the Holy Spirit, it is not indicative of His fruit in our lives.
Galatians 5:22-24 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.
1 Corinthians 14:32 The spirit of prophets are subject to the control of prophets.
Choo tells us that she is an end-time prophetess, why can’t she control her own spirit? Where is the self-control in her devotional life? By simple definition, when one is possessed then that individual is incapable of independent action apart from the controlling entity. Choo tells us she has no control during these times.
During the next portion of her book, Thomas goes on to reveal to the readers how “anointed” she is and exactly what the Lord did to her physically in what she refers to as her “body work.” “Each time before the preparatory work begins the Lord talks to me about my future. Then the body work commences…” (p.159). Sound creepy? Choo takes us to the “outer limits” and beyond in the next chapters:
The work involved with preparing my body for the ministry God has called me to do included my face, my hands, my head, my feet and my back. The Lord used my hands to touch every part of my body from my head to the bottom of my feet over and over again…The Holy Spirit directed me in all of this. I don’t really have control of my hands, or any part of my body, when the Holy Spirit is doing His anointed work on me and with me…On several of the nights the Lord poured oil upon me. This precious oil was in oval vessels that looked like small perfume bottles. The bottles were of many different colors. He would pour the oil upon me from head to toes, and on my back as well…I have found that He poured a total of eight-five bottles of anointing oil upon me…Before being bathed in the anointing oil each time an unusual vision-song would come forth. (p.160).
As He poured the anointing oil on my body, I would shake, jerk, perspire and become intently hot…Some nights, while the Lord would be working with my body and hand movements, my entire physical being would become black and cold… There were other occasions when my entire body would become invisible as the Lord was doing His preparatory work with me…During some sessions the Lord would both lift my body and lower it…Many times He would raise and lower my body forty-nine times a night (p.162).
Thomas goes on and on with more of the above. My brothers and sisters what she is describing has absolutely no relationship to the Bible whatsoever. She is describing perfectly what happens to an individual who has undergone what the Hindus call “Shaktipat initiation.” Those who practice Kundalini yoga (translated the serpent power) undergo what they term as an unlocking of their charkas. Charkas are alleged to be energy centers within the human body. The lowest charkas is at the base of the spine and is said to have the form of a coiled serpent (the Kundalini). There are 7 charkas, stopping at the top of the head. Kundalini yoga is considered to be one of the most dangerous forms of yoga and the most demonic gurus of our day have all practiced and taught it, i.e. Bhagwn Shree Rajneesh, Swami Muktananda, Sai Baba to name just a few to deceive multitudes in our own nation. When the serpent power is released in the body, the body goes into spontaneous “kriyas”:
Kriyas, literally “activities”, are spontaneous movements that occur after Kundalini awakening. These include bodily activities such as trembling, shaking, and spontaneous yoga postures; vocal activities such as yelling, or spontaneous chanting and mental activitiessuch as visions. These Kriyas eliminate the blocks to kundalini risingwithin the spine or central channel.
” Then came the most wild of the kriyas. They continued day and night, but were most vigorous when I was lying down at rest. I hardly slept at all during this period. My body would jerk around in radical, spasmodic movements. These often involved very specific muscle groups, such as those in my feet, hands, stomach, back and so forth… then my arms would fly up and down in similar kind of rapid and rhythmic motion. My legs would kick up and down in the same way. These movements were hard and martial, as if I were practicing military marching while lying in bed… The arm movements were becoming more sinuous and complex. As these arm motions became more fast and furious, I went to a full length mirror to witness what was happening. All at once I had the most eerie feeling, as if my body was ‘remembering’ something. My hips, knees and legs began to sway and undulate as the intricate arm motions choreographed. I stared at the mirror in awe…My body was performing some kind of exotic dance. Then my arms came forward and my hands met, palms pressed together in a prayer-like pose, and drew up to the centre of my chest. A force pulled me over into a bow and held me there an instant. Then my knees buckled, and I found myself kneeling prostrate on the floor. The thought hit me; ‘I’m worshipping something, but worshipping what?Then I knew; I had just performed a sacred temple dance.
Once these “blocks” within the body are removed, then the serpent power can flow throughout the person and from them to others! This is precisely what Mrs. Thomas is undergoing and she has mistakenly attributed it to the work of the Holy Spirit! Choo, like the woman in the quote, mentions that her hands began to move at such a rapid rate they were almost a blur at times. She spends a great deal of time relating to the readers how she privately “dances” before the Lord on the beach. At least the woman in the above citation had the wherewithal to ask what she was worshipping? Choo never asks, just knows all of these experiences are of the Lord and by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Why on earth (or heaven) would the Lord have to work on her physical body in order to prepare her for ministry? No one else in the entire Bible has had to undergo such experiences, frankly, no orthodox Christian since the Apostles have had to undergo any such nonsense.
It was as if He were unlocking the potential within my body…He would cause my body to rise and kneel before Him in intervals of seven, over and over again…Thirty-three different time He “unlocked” the various parts of my body that needed His work of preparation. When He unlocked my hands, for instance, they shook so hard that I grew frightened…Each part of my body had a special reaction to the unlocking work…Each time the Lord pours the anointing oil on me or unlocks the locks of my body, my physical being responds with violent shaking, jerking, intense heat, groans and supernatural power that causes my body to be lifted up (p.165).
Thomas says her body literallylevitates, at times becomes invisible, other times turns black and cold. She experiences intense heat and each part of her body (charka?) responds differently as it is unlocked, which is exactly what everything written about kundalini awakenings denotes.
She reports so many other bizarre occurrences during the 3 years of her spiritual transformation that I cannot describe them all. What is to me most disturbing is that close to half a million professing Christians have purchased her book! What shocks me is that Strang Communications, owners of Creation House, would deign to publish a book that is so completely off the charts biblically. From start to finish her novel is fill with unsupported statements and out rightly demonic manifestations. Why didn’t the Strang Editors pick up on this? Why didn’t they refuse to print her book and point Thomas to the Bible and the Jesus of the Bible, who sees all His children as special?
This book and its growing popularity prove to me that we are surely living in dark times. When people can give this balderdash any credence at all is beyond the scope of even my warped imagination. Her book does alert me, and now I hope you as well, to the desperate need that the Body of Christ has for Apologetic ministries. When hundreds of thousands of people can be deceived by such patently obvious fabrications we know that we have got a real battle for God’s truth on our hands. Please pray for Mrs. Thomas and ask God to grant repentance to Strang publications for being a tool in Satan’s hands to mislead multitudes. ♦
This is a video link that shows a comparison of the manifestations which are mentioned above in this article, and have also continued to be currently promoted in books, conferences and recent revivals such as the Lakeland Revival.
Footnotes
1. I will not go into the history of these aberrant “revivals” and their attending manifestations. I have covered them in the fullest detail available in my 2 books “Blessing or Judgment” and “Two Roots of Today’s Revival.”
2. I urge all of our readers to purchase at some point the books “The Confusing world of Benny Hinn” published by the Personal Freedom Outreach (www.pfo.org ). It is the definitive work exposing this dangerous charlatan for who and what he is.
3. DMI has a small, but very helpful book on this topic entitled “Does the Bible Support Being Slain in the Spirit.”
6. The books written on heavenly trips have been by people without any seminary education. People like Mary K. Baxter, Jesse Duplantis, Robert Liardon, Howard Pittman, Richard Eby and others.
Discernment Ministries International 
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