Bill Johnson, Randy Clark and Heidi Baker aren’t false prophets, as some wrongfully claim, but who then are true false prophets? About a month ago I argued in a Youtube video that several charismatic leaders are falsely accused if being false prophets by primarily Christian internet warriors; many of them are even accused of being driven by false, demonic spirit.
A popular theory is that Kundalini spirits from India have infected large parts if the Christian, charismatic movement, but as I showed one month ago this Kundalini myth has neither biblical nor empirical support, and so saying that influential charismatic leaders are Hindus in disguise is quite similar to the claim that the pope and US president are alien lizards in disguise.
I received some feedback on my Kundalini Myth video that I want to address today. My friend Robert Martin wondered if it isn’t so that “weird manifestations” may be the result of demonic activity, even if the person has not any connection to a Kundalini sect. He mentions dog barking and laughter.
My response is that neither behaviour is necessarily caused by false spirits (even if one is certainly weirder than the other) but could be mere human behaviour, moreover I think the Holy Spirit can cause laughter but hardly, if ever, animal sounds.
A passionate subscriber to my YouTube channel called Beforethedawnbreaks asked me to describe what I believe are true false prophets, that is genuinely false prophets as the Bible warns us about, in contrast to these charismatic leaders that are falsely accused of being false.
In the video I briefly tell the story about the Lightbearers in Norway, a false revival led by New Agers that friends of mine worked against and stopped. The Lightbearers claimed to be Christians but shared false prophecies about polygamy and promiscuity, and they had real, documented contacts with new agers and Hindus. Their mission was simply to destroy Christ’s church from within, like wolves in sheep’s clothing, they weren’t just misinformed charismatics but genuine occultists.
Beware of those false prophets, my dear brothers and sisters. Those are what we should watch out for and warn against. Not genuine Christian leaders. Remember that Jesus didn’t warn us against prophets, but false prophets, and not signs and wonders but false signs and wonders. In order to know the good from the bad we must thoroughly know and experience the good. Therefore, passionately seek the gifts if the Holy Spirit and be filled with His presence, experiencing signs and wonders, before judging others.
Charismactivism 
What makes these people false prophets?
All sorts of things can make people turn to occultism. In the end it is the sinfulness of humans that cause this.
Specifically what have these people done or said that has made them fall prophets? I’ve listened to them and never heard them say anything that would lead me to believe that they were false prophets. When it comes to things like this I try not to judge by what I hear or see because only God knows the human heart.
Oh, I thought you meant the Lightbearers! No, my point in my Kundalini Myth video is that Bill Johnson, Randy Clark and Heidi Baker are NOT false prophets, in contrast to Andrew Strom and others who make such claims. This is a follow up where I address the question: if these preachers now aren’t false prophets, then who are truly false prophets?
I guess I didn’t make that clear enough, so I will change the first sentence if this post. Cause I agree with you – there is nothing to prove that those three are false prophets.
Blessings!
Thanks for clarifying. The way I read it at first was that you were saying that they were.
Secondly, have you personally seen and heard the things you now accuse these people of or are you going by what others have seen and heard.
And I do have attended conferences with all three and like then a lot 🙂 I got some amazing impartations by Clark and Baker! They’re truly filled with the Holy Spirit
Thank you for your article. I appreciate you and your opinions. I don’t know much about the three teachers you mentioned, so believe me when I tell you, none of this is directly targeted towards them.
The disclaimer for being weary of false teachers is so important, because as we know a little yeast leavens the whole batch. Small pieces of deception can really work through-out our entire walk and really hinder us having a healthy relationship with the Lord. You have said that we should be mindful of true false teachers and not genuine Christian leaders, yet this would ignore the metaphorical warning of a wolf in sheep’s clothing. A false teacher by implication will often appear as a genuine Christian leader. We should discern the true from the false and no genuine Christian leader should be immune to having their teachings weighed against scripture.
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 2 Timothy 3:16
3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 2 Timothy 4:3-4
What is blasphemy of the spirit? (Matthew 12:31-32). Some men were saying that the miracles Jesus was performing, were of the devil(B), when in fact they were done by the power of the Holy Spirit(A). By the same line of thinking, is there not also an argument to be made that those who choose to attribute manifestations of false spirits to the Holy Spirit are also blaspheming against the Holy Spirit? If saying that A=B is blasphemy, then saying B=A would be the same equation, Blasphemy against the Spirit of God. Pray for discernment, if we are deceived into this blasphemy, then let our eyes be opened and our hearts be changed.
We should be hesitant to immediately attribute anything going on in Church today to either the Holy Spirit or the enemy, because of widespread abuse. All things should be weighed against scripture. All things should be prayed about. We have both a wealth of scripture and Spiritual discernment if indeed his Spirit is in us, and we must practice both vigilantly. That’s not to say that something’s that happen are not crystal clear where they came from. I don’t need to pray for discernment when I see people shaking and having convulsions, it is clear to me where this comes from. (Mark 9:26). You won’t find these types of manifestations being attributed to the Holy Spirit in scripture. (1 Corinthians 14:32-33, 1 Corinthians 14:40, Galatians 5:22-23) In fact anytime I see a frenzied chaotic supernatural experience, I am inclined to believe this is not of God. Jesus and the Apostles all lived in the Spirit, they all practiced love, joy, and peace in their ministry, and the underlying element of self-control is found throughout the New Testament. God does not manifest in us in any chaotic manner, but in a peaceful and controlled manner.
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse! Galatians 1:8-9
17 Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may have zeal for them. Galatians 4:17
11 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. 12 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. Galatians 1:11-12
Paul received the Gospel he preached by revelation from Jesus Christ, and he was tasked with taking this Gospel and delivering it to the gentiles. We are weary of anyone who adds or takes away from the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ our savior. But what about the application of our Gospel to our lives, was Paul not also given revelation of how we in the body of Christ should apply this Gospel to our lives and what that should look like? Are his letters and the other writings in the New Testament “God-breathed”, writings inspired by God to help us in our walk? If people stray from this application to the Gospel given to us in the New Testament, then wouldn’t that make them a false teacher?
Can the Spirit be bought and sold?
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. Acts 8:18-22
Any Church or conference treating the Spirit of God as a commodity to be bought and sold, truly has no part in the ministry of Truth. That goes for selling Spiritual training as well. More than likely the Spirit involved is a false counterfeit. How can we take a gift from the Lord and attach a dollar sign to it and think we are serving Christ in any manner?
Did Jesus and his apostles preach a gospel of prosperity?
20 Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. John 15:20
17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. Romans 8:17
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth. Mark 10:21-22
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. Romans 8:5
If a teacher is teaching a Gospel of prosperity, then they are not a Spirit filled Gospel teacher, but a flesh driven “teacher of the law”. Notice how often they cite the Old Testament to back up their claims. The Old Testament is of great value to us when examined hand in hand with the context of the Gospel and New Testament. Taken alone, however, it teaches the Law, as it predates the coming of our savior and New Covenant. (Hebrews 8:6-13)
Prophecy and Prophets?
3 But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort. 1 Corinthians 14:3
22 Tongues, then, are a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers; prophecy, however, is not for unbelievers but for believers. 1 Corinthians 14:22
24 But if an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, 25 as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!” 1 Corinthians 14:24-2
32 Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers. Acts 15:32
1 Corinthians 14:3. The KJV uses the word Edify, where NIV has used Strengthen. Edify means to construct, to build up. Is Prophecy a prediction about the future? Yes, knowledge that would be unknown except by inspiration from God. Would the inspired words given from God for the purpose of Strengthening, comforting, and encouraging fellow believers also fall under the gift of prophecy? I think these verses suggest so. Prophecy is both foreknowledge of events/people and Spirit inspired speech for the purpose of strengthening, comforting, and encouraging the church with a level of understanding that can only be God given(foreknowledge). Even consider OT Prophets, was the primary function of a Prophet to predict the future? Or, was it to take their God given understanding and Spirit inspired wisdom and communicate to the Lord’s people what God desired from them. Prophet’s have always been for the construction and guiding of the Lord’s people, and prediction of what was coming occurred WHEN it served the Lord’s purpose.
Prophecy is not making predictions for the future and occasionally getting some right. That much more closely resembles channeling false spirits. Neither is Prophet a title meant to be Lorded over other believers. It is a Spiritual gift, you cannot earn it, and for certain, none of us somehow deserve to be above the others. We are created for a purpose and gifted with that purpose in mind. However, like Spiritual fruit, gifts can grow from the Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:31).
3 If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. 4 Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, Galatians 6:3-4
5 “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6 they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7 they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others. Matthew 23:5-7
8 “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. Matthew 23:8-12
14 May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Galatians 6:14
Can a woman have the gift of prophecy? Yes. (Acts 2:17). I don’t believe women have been excluded from any of the Spiritual gifts. Paul’s application of the Gospel to the church, of which we have already noted he received by revelation from Jesus Christ does limit the role of women in regards to speaking (leadership) in Church. We do not see a limit placed on women in regards to Spiritual gifting or supportive roles in Scripture.
34 Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35 If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church. 36 Or did the word of God originate with you? Or are you the only people it has reached? 37 If anyone thinks they are a prophet or otherwise gifted by the Spirit, let them acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command. 38 But if anyone ignores this, they will themselves be ignored. 1 Corinthians 14:34-38
I am sure we could go in circles on this all day, and I am sure many have tried. The danger is, if we choose to neglect this verse then we are completely doing away with 2 Timothy 3:16 by opening that door. When we begin to interpret for ourselves what came from God and what did not we only serve to diminish the entire text. I think the best interpretation of this scripture is to take from the verses directly before and after this section (1 Corinthians 14:33, 1 Corinthians 14:40). Order and peace for a fitting and orderly way(within the Church). The Lord placed the man at the head of the household and he has not changed his mind about this. We now live by the Spirit and not by the Law, but scripture also tells us that this does not mean the law was sinful, in fact it is Holy and Spiritual, it functioned with the purpose to make us aware of our sin(Romans 7:7,12,14). We no longer live by the law, because the law was powerless to free us from our sinful nature, but the Spirit we are now called to live by sets us free from slavery to sin allowing us to live in a way pleasing to God.
3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:3
17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. John 14:17
15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:15-17
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Matthew 7:21-23
Four different verses here for you. Let me explain how the ideas lend to one another. John 14:17, the Spirit lived with the disciples but the indwelling of the Spirit had not yet taken place(Pentecost). Acts 8:15-17 The Spirit was not yet “in” the new believers, although they believed, were baptized and surely said “Jesus is Lord”. The laying on of hands was the method in which the indwelling of the Spirit then took place. Matthew 7:21-23 Not everyone who claims Jesus and practices “spiritual gifts” truly knows him or serves him.
The literal interpretation that anyone who says “Jesus is Lord” has the Spirit in them does not stand up to the context of other scripture. If we can accept John 14 as a basis for the Spirit both operating “in” Spirit filled believers and with believers that have not yet experienced the indwelling which comes from the anointing by laying on of hands of one who IS SPIRIT FILLED, Then this verse makes more sense.
Nobody can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit, but that’s not the same as living according to the Spirit and “in” the Spirit.
Consider the fact that there are countless different denominations, with various beliefs. Traditions that are contrary to scripture. Holy wars, the Crusades? Church’s that go around telling everyone God hates “faggots”…. It is very easy to come to the conclusion that not everything done in the name of Jesus truly serves Jesus.
I don’t know you, but I love you and will be praying for you, and I truly mean that.
It seems that speaking about others in a negative way, including pastors, teachers, prophets, etc. is easy for any churchgoer. I believe that it’s not so much “how much” one of these saints says or does, but often that they do say or do do and the person speaking about them doesn’t like it, perhaps because of a jealous spirit? Afterall, we churchgoers do need “something” to gossip about and what better subject than those who happen to be in the higher ranks of Christianity, as our own pastors, prophets or teachers?
I do not know Heidi Baker personally, but I am sure that the attacks of the enemy have been many and furious. The average Christian, who is seeking the Lord is being attacked by words, illness and gossip; so what makes us think that Heidi, who has done so much for Love of the Lord Jesus won’t be attacked by the same. The Devil is a liar and he knows who those are who will be used by him. Jezebel reigns even without the permission of the Body of Christ. Wake up Christians! Don’t allow those who won’t even allow the Holy Spirit in their churches speak for the Righteous Church of Christ. Amen.