(Protestia) On June 23, 2008, cessationists will celebrate what has affectionately been called the “charismatic day of infamy.” For on that day, 17 high-profile charismatic “apostles,” including Bill Johnson, Jon Arnott, Rick Joyner, Che Ahn, and C. Peter Wagner, came together in a ceremony of “apostolic alignment” over 32-year old Todd Bentley, commissioning him to lead the Lakeland Revival and recognizing him as an evangelist doing the work of the Lord led by the Holy Spirit.
In a letter sent to the Elijah List, C. Peter Wagner recounts what happened during this groundbreaking event:
During this ceremony Che Ahn, Bill Johnson and John Arnott laid on hands and anointed Todd Bentley with a special new ‘Be Revived’ oil that Chuck Pierce (who was in Africa) sent for the event. Todd went down under the power of the Spirit and the three prophesied over him, commissioning him as the evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring. Then most of the backup apostles prayed and prophesied as well. The power of the Holy Spirit was so heavy on that event that you could almost have cut it with a knife!
It was quite evident to those present that this was a groundbreaking event. A serious public problem had been growing in the Body of Christ revolving around concerns about Lakeland from respected leaders. Even ‘schism’ had been mentioned frequently. Because of the extensive media coverage through GOD TV, it was much more than a private or a trivial matter. Something was called for to set things in order, and this is the stated role of apostles. [Huh?!? Learn some Greek here. Apostolos means a messenger sent out on a mission, and nothing more, and nothing else. These moros (Greek for morons) are making stuff up. Again. -Ed.]
We are now in a place in what I see as the Second Apostolic Age that apostles can agree publicly to bring alignment. The seventeen apostles involved in this event represented three distinct apostolic streams: ICA (10 were ICA members), Revival Alliance, and Morningstar. Even though we are not networked formally, we believe in and support each other and we stand together when a crisis such as this one comes along. I may be wrong, but I cannot recall an event of this nature in the recent history of the Church. [Yeah, he’s wrong. The last capital-A Apostle (John) died in Ephesus over 1900 years ago. -Ed.]
Research
CRN’s homepage contains a list of professing Christians to mark and avoid (Rom 16:17-18). Scroll down to WARNING
The conservative voice and Christian content are being silenced more and more. CRN offers a lifeline to conservative people of faith. We urge you to sign up to receive our FREE need to read articles. AD FREE! NO VIDEOS! NO POPUPS!
Join Marsha West on MeWe