I’m kinda hoping that maybe Todd just goes away for a while now. But seriously, I’d love for him to find some healing in his marriage, but among folks like this, let’s face it, this isn’t that unusual now, is it…

Maybe his wife and kids need to be away from him. His antics of kicking and punching in order to “heal” might lead one to be concerned with his treatment of them.

We are commanded in the Word of God to “test the spirits” (1 John 4:1). Just because a man calls himself a Christian and a prophet (apostle?) doesn’t make him one. We’re not shooting our wounded.  It could well be the Lord shut this thing down.  Truth is what he is judged by, and he comes up way short.  Even his supporters are realizing the errors involved with this “ministry.”.

http://fireinmybones.com/index.php?col=081308~Life+After+Lakeland:+Sorting+Out+the+Confusion

I saw Bentley proclaim himself, not Christ.  Christ followers are told to beware of wolves in sheeps clothing. I hope God is using the present circumstances to bring this man to repentance and truth.

Thank you for the link...The claims it makes I will have to look into just as I have with the revival itself.

Fresh Fire Ministries themselves has never asked people to not be discerning. And have discussed concerns people have had as the revival has gone on. Maybe look at their archives. I also do not recall GodTV saying that any criticism of Bentley is demonic. I’d be interested in seeing where/when that was stated. I’m also not going to shut someone out because they have tattoos or are overzealous in style. One of my pastors has tattoos all over his arms. Does this disqualify him from being a valid minister as the article suggests??

There is always risk involved when someone steps out into something like this...Many ministries have learned through their mistakes...In my pressing into God on this whenever I had questions I was reassured that He was in it and had a purpose for it...That could have been me - but I am usually quite skeptical and have, as you said, tested the spirits.

I may have been watching on the wrong nights but I never heard TB give himself the glory for anything, He has consistently pointed to Jesus Christ.

I agree with you, that if any repentance is needed that God brings him around...But I also believe that the only response we should have is to pray for him and ask God HOW to pray for him and the entire ministry. I’m not sure that insinuating that he is abusive in his marriage is quite fair??

The point remains that you, nor I, have any idea what is going on in his marriage regardless of ministry style (which I have stated before I’m not a fan of). He didn’t take unwilling people and throw them onto the stage to brow beat them...People were lining up.

My biggest concern in my comments here is that while Todd may have some issues we are called not to judge one another but to pray for one another. There is a procedure in the Bible for taking a brother to task that does not involve making assumptions about them or gossiping about them as if we ourselves are above needing repentance in our everyday lives.

If the man has been a charlatan then those in position over him are called to bring him to a meeting and present their case against him and offer him a chance to make restitution to the body of Christ. See Matthew 18.

Contrary to what we might think, the means through which God deals with people is sometimes not what we would consider gentle. Biblically, Paul was thrown to ground and blinded, Zechariah was rendered deaf and mute, An angel placed a burning coal to the lips of Isaiah to purify him.

In John Wimber’s book “Power Healing” he recounts that during one session of prayer in which he was praying for healing of a man with a dental issue, he felt prompted to hit the man in the face. He resisted this prompting but it persisted. He gave the man’s shoulder a chuck and nothing happened...Finally he gave him a sharp pop on the forehead and the man was healed.

Go figure.

Helen, I’m can’t agree that what the angel did with Isaiah and the other cases you cite are valid precedents. What happened to Paul on the Damascus road is a far cry from kicking someone with a running start.  When HEALINGS took place, didn’t they have a different tone.

Here’s a link if anyone is interested in John Piper’s comments:
http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1348_Test_Revival_with_Doctrine/

Helen,

One doesn’t need to follow the Matthew 18 procedure when their sin/crime is public.  Matthew 18 has to do with private sins.

TB’s assaults were public.  And just as the Apostle Paul publicly reprimanded Peter in Galatians 2, without following Matthew 18 I might add, so should we with TB’s assaults.

To refer to TB’s actions as anything but assualt, is truly bizzarre.

So - these assaults which undoubtedly took place in more recent days, have the folks involved pressed charges? I haven’t heard/read anything regarding this. The hoo ha seems to be about a troubled marriage.

As far as Peter and Paul, they were still personally connected. What I am seeing is an outpouring of people not directly involved in the ministry making assumptions and basically throwing the entire ministry under the bus in nasty tones. What SHOULD our response be? That is my question...Does it behoove anyone to make guesses as to what is going on between TB and his wife? Does it edify the Church?

What can be learned from all of this? What about it was good? I know a number of people who were blessed by it, are their experiences invalid because TB is seperated from his wife...That he has problems in his personal life just like the rest of us?

For what it’s worth…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zV_Whu0kfTk&feature=related

Bill Johnson speaks to Todd’s treatment of his wife and kids...Bill has known Todd for quite sometime…

Helen,
You wrote: “Christians are notorious for shooting their wounded. “ This would be the case if he were a soldier in the army of Jesus Christ but the fruit tells us of the tree.  I don’t believe this man is a Christian and I am glad that Christ took a whip to his “ministry”.  Hopefully, his downfall will result in his humility and true surrender to Jesus.

I hope this is the beginning of Jesus taking a whip of cords and “having at” the so-called Christian pastors and evangelists like Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, Ken Copeland, Jesse Duplantis, Juanita Bynum, Paula White, Creflo Dollar, Benny Hinn, Rod Parsley, Jimmy Swaggart, Leroy Thompson, Perry Stone, etc.  Good teachers of the Word of God are the only ones we should tolerate and call out these others who are leading the lost on the wide road of destruction. How can we as the body of Christ stand by and do nothing? We should demand fidelity to Scripture like MacArthur, Piper, Zacharias, Sproul, Begg, & Washer.  We are no better than the charlatans I’ve mentioned if we permit this to continue.

Katrina:

Amen to both of your comments.  To Helen’s point, if, “Christians are notorious for shooting their wounded,” then I would say that false Christians are notorious for kicking the wounded in the stomach, like Bentley did with a stage 4 colon cancer patient.

=)

--
CS

helen,

no, God did not die and leave me judge.  He did tell me clearly to test the spirits to see if they are from God.  Jesus said we were to be discerning and from the fruit of these trees I do not see the fruit of the Spirit of God. Why should we be afraid to judge with righteous judgment?  That righteous judgment comes from knowing the Scriptures and testing all teaching by them.  If a teaching is found to be unbiblical we are to call a spade- a spade.  Had I never heard the teachings of these people and made that assessment then I would be wrong in doing so but I can list their heresies if you’d like and you can make the call yourself....interested?