The modern hyper-charismatic Pentecostal movement has been moving in a certain direction for the last several years. The emphasis has been on the Spirit and our relationship with Him or it depending on how you look at things. With such books by Benny Hinn as Good Morning Holy Spirit, Welcome Holy Spirit and others promoting the Toronto movement. The focus has been on the One who Jesus sent, not on Jesus Himself who the Spirit is to point to and to glorify. That should be the tip off since it goes against the scripture but it seems to go unnoticed as does much more.

Kenneth Copeland has also been teaching on the anointing for the last few years. When he came to Hawaii, he put together a masterfully orchestrated sermon on the anointing. He used biblical words with a brand new interpretation poured into them. The meanings were uniquely changed. While he started his teaching by saying that Jesus is the Christ, the anointed One, he very quickly claimed that we are anointed in the same way and with the same anointing as His, being Christed ( which is what the gnostics taught).

The anointing is redefined to mean the breaking of the yoke of bondage from the believer in order to give them superman powers for signs and wonders for these last days (AKA Joel's army).

if someone did not check out how he went from Scripture to Scripture framing his own influence through the traditional views held in the beginning, if you believed what he said about Christ, and you went out of there without checking your Bible, you were deceived! The lines were clearly crossed over and he has brought the church to exactly what the New Age Occultic teachings have been saying for years, that we are all Christed. And it not surprising when we have heard such surprising statements like this one: "...imparted in you when you were born again. Peter said it just as plain, he said we are partakers of the divine nature. That nature is like eternal in absolute perfection. And that was imparted, injected into your spirit man. And you have that imparted into you by God just the same as you imparted into your child the nature of humanity. That child wasn't born a whale; born a human. Isn't that true? Well now, you don't have a human do you? No, you are one. You don't have a god in you, you are one."

Here's the reasoning. The divine nature is imparted to you via the Holy Spirit. He lives in us. He controls us when we yield ourselves over to Him. However, we don't become Him! These are two separate natures. And neither does He become us! The Word of Faith philosophy states that man has at his own disposal the power and know-how that Jesus did in it's fullness! And we just release it all by faith.

However, what is being neglected is that even Jesus did not use his power independently, but surrendered to the Father for His will to be done! He was led into what work was needed! He was looking to the Father's will. In Word-Faith philosophy, there is no will of God, only your "I which becomes, as they claim, God's will. And all that God has is yours - His nature, His power, His wealth. It is man-centered and self is it's focus.

"Ah, it became a startling revelation to me one afternoon The Spirit of the Lord had to speak it to me because I was not catching on to it! The letters that Paul wrote, the letter the James wrote, the letters that John wrote, the letters that ah, all these men wrote to the body of Christ -- the Apostle Paul did not write to them what he preached ... While he was there he preached how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and power. That's what they preached and taught. And that's the reason he said, the gospel of Christ is the power of God And I, when 1 realize they had already heard that message, now when you read what these men wrote after knowing what they preached, they did not attempt to change Jesus message. They preached what He preached. Never having any idea that you and 1 would ever be so stupid! (laughter) And have stolen from us the very things. I mean, after all they put Him in there 341 times, 1 mean, look like you'd know something's UP!

What sounds biblical is NOT! Since Copeland has poured new meanings into the terms. The gospel according to Copeland now is how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth. He is the Christ the anointed One. It all started when the Holy Ghost anointed Jesus. He returned in the power of the Spirit. What is being taught is that Jesus could not do anything without the anointing. That God does nothing without the anointing. And that we too have the same anointing as Jesus as we are the residence of the anointing upon the earth. And it's called the gospel of Christ, the gospel of the anointing, the anointed One. This is what Jesus preached, he claims. So the Apostles preached what Jesus did.

So at his teaching seminar on August l8th 1996, we heard a masterful manipulation of Scripture, which changes the very content of the gospel itself and what was preached in the early church. Copeland says we have to get back to what was preached and he doesn't seem to know how we got away from it. We are anointed with the same Spirit to do the works of Jesus. We are called the body of the anointed (Christ). We should preach our anointing too, just like Jesus did. The central focus of Christianity is being obscured, the cross which is the power of God unto salvation. For a Christian is to die daily, for Christ to live in us and to conform us to His likeness is traded in for Copeland's model of the anointing. It is not praying, submission to His will or His authority. It is power given to all to do the works of Christ through the power of the Spirit and faith and a combination of saying words. The shift is to the Spirit who came upon Jesus and not toward Jesus Himself.

Copeland focuses his anointing teaching on Luke 4:14. He ties this to Isaiah 61 where Jesus got up in the temple and read this. He states that the Holy Spirit fell upon Him as He was reading this. Scripturally, this is not so. When Jesus was baptized and anointed by the Spirit in John 1:32 we are told that the Holy Spirit rested upon Him. It was a permanent resting which did not have to fall upon Him again while He read in the synagogue, there is not a hint of this. In Luke 4:14, after Jesus reads Isaiah 61, Copeland says they interrupted Him as He began to say ‘unto them this day the Scripture is fulfilled." Wrong again, it does not say that either. In verse 22, they all bore witness to Him and were astonished at the gracious words from His mouth. Then after He cited the proverb, physician heal thyself and a prophet is not accepted in his own country, it was then they were filled with anger and wanted to do away with Him.

He jumped around enough to confuse anyone who tried to follow carefully. He went back to verse 18 and interpreted, to preach the gospel to the poor, as, "poor you don't have to be poor anymore because of the anointing."

If Jesus came to make the poor rich, then He did a miserable job. If you read through the gospel accounts you do not find Jesus telling the poor how to become wealthy. Nor do you see Jesus revealing the "how to's" of prosperity. Actually, many of his statements dealt with those with wealth or those who wanted to be rich, not those in poverty.

Interestingly, Jesus warned about riches entrapping people. He did not warn against poverty.  Logically, why try to be rich if it is going to hinder your spiritual life? Copeland then went on to Isaiah,10 and 11 and jumped the Grand Canyon with this! He tells everyone to use the rule of biblical interpretation if you read a word, a subject, and want to know more about it, you go to all the Scripture on that subject and see what they say. That sounds good since it is true, unfortunately he doesn't abide by his own recommendation. However, it has to be read through the thought of the context. Here is where Copeland failed in his sermon and almost every time he teaches.

He then went back to Isaiah 10:27 to see what is said about the anointing. He says it shall come to pass in "that day" because of the anointing. He did some really stretching leaps to pull this all together.

Copeland's methodology used to put his points across is noteworthy. Anyone in that service would think in a casual observation that Mr. Copeland appears to be extremely knowledgeable. He really had his references down and he went to them at breakneck speed. In order to prove points, Copeland uses a coordinated and sinister effort to prove what is not there. He read Luke 4:21 after that saying, today or this day is this Scripture fulfilled in your hearing. The word "today" or "this day" was his attempt to establish that Jesus' message centered on His anointing. Immediately, Copeland asks everyone to turn to Isaiah 11 and he read verses 1and 2. This is a prophecy about the Messiah's future rule. He then skips verses 3 to 8 and reads verse 9-11. Verse 11, he stops "in that day" and switches back to Luke 4:21 and attempts to say the "in that day" of Isaiah is the same day that Jesus is talking about regarding, "Today is the Scripture fulfilled in your hearing." The problem with that is that these two days have nothing to do with each other.

In Isaiah 11:10, he used "this day" as the day Christ read of Isaiah 61 in the Luke 4 passage. However, Copeland missed the context. Verse 11 continues where Mr. Copeland stops, "they shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people who are left ..." It. goes on to show that it is referring to the millennium after the tribulation. He skips the preceding verse 6 which says, the wolf and the lamb dwell together. This all has to do with the second coming of Jesus which is still future, not His first coming. Matching Scriptures that talk about a day does not mean they have a thing to do with each other in the context of Scripture.this is called the flat Bible approach and is exactly how the cults deceive people into their own interpretations.

False teachers count on the fact that you will not follow how they jump through the Scriptures. Matching words out of context at a fast pace is an attempt to make his deceptive point. Isaiah is not speaking about that day in Luke 4. This is typical of all that Copeland teaches. He goes in speed, He speaks authoritatively and seems to know what he is talking about. Yet, you have to check him out or you will brought under his error.

Isaiah 10:27, has become the Pentecostal cheer from the TV evangelists today. "The anointing destroys the yoke, the burden-removing yoke-destroying power of God." In truth, the verse says, the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing oil. The Hebrew word is shemmin, a liquid, an oil. It is not the word Machiach, Messiah, or Christ as he implies. In context, this passage refers to Israel in their bondage to the Assyrians. It is the promise to a nation as seen in verse 24, the Lord says to His people in Zion, Do not be afraid of the Assyrian who is going to lift up their rod and staff against you like the Egyptians. It is the promise of freedom from the physical captivity, not a promise to individuals from sin or poverty". It is a cause and effect statement. God is going to break the yoke because of His anointing on his people. This is the general anointing relating to the purpose of God. As seen in Scripture, many were anointed in the pit and in the pulpit, such as Jeremiah. Paul was just as anointed in jail as he was in his travels starting churches. Israel was just as anointed in the bondage as when God delivered them.

Copeland went on to Deuteronomy 28 saying, the yoke of iron will be rusted until it is no longer fit for the devil's use. Yet in verse 48 we find that Israel served other gods and disobeyed the true God. All through the wilderness they disobeyed and God allowed Israel to have a yoke of captivity put on her. Throughout the chapter we find God stating that He is going to punish Israel in the future for their disobedience. So who put the yoke on her and judged her? The Lord did ! Yet, according to Copeland the Lord does not give trials. He does not give people suffering or kill anyone. As you look at Israel's history, coming out of Egypt, the Lord made sure that everyone died in the wilderness. He kept them in the wilderness so that only two people of that first generation survived. God put them through trials to develop their faith and trust in God to lead them.

Looking at the anointing. Jesus was not just anointed, but the anointed ONE. This is important. Jesus was not CHRIST-ED and neither are we at least not in the sense he conveys. Christ is an office of a person, and a person, not an event. We do not have His office or His own anointing as Mr. Copeland claims. While we do have the same Spirit, the Spirit who anoints gives each person a different commission and empowering for service. David was anointed to be the king, we are not also anointed to be king. Samuel was anointed to be a prophet we are not all anointed to be prophets. Jesus was from His birth as demonstrated in Luke 2:11, born king of the Jews. He was worshipped as a boy. Jesus did not become Christ at His baptism as Copeland expounds. He is Lord and He is Christ! He was also a king, a prophet and a priest - fulfilling all of the offices of anointing in the Old Testament.

Christ means the anointed One. It is uniquely inseparable with the personality and person of Jesus. It is not just "Jesus the anointed; it is the Lord Jesus Christ!" The Anointed one! God's chosen One Singular! - no more like Him, no other anointed as him In the Gospel of Thomas which is Gnosticism, it states that those who achieve the higher knowledge are no longer a Christian but Christ! How? By experiencing the Spirit! Copeland says that we have access to God through the anointing and we have the same access that Jesus had because we are His body. No! That’s false Jesus had direct access and He did not need a mediator! We have Him as our mediator which is necessary for sinners.

"I John 5, this is a startling revelation. Whosoever believeth Jesus is the Christ is born of God. Now you see why it's difficult to get people saved when you don't preach Jesus is anointed All you have to believe is that he is." He goes on later to say, "All you have to do is believe Jesus is anointed and the next step is to believe that you’re anointed!" Copeland insists that we are anointed just like Jesus. For that to be true, we would have to be Lord since Jesus is the anointed God-man! Copeland also states "CHRIST-ian" or Christian means the same thing as anointed, Christ. They were called this because "they spoke about His anointing and how He was anointed. We have His anointing and this means Christ." This is significant in light of what the Lord warned about in the last days in Matthew 24:3-4. He says Many will come in my name saying, 1 am, or I am Christ. I am anointed, CHRIST-ed! Isn't that what ye are hearing from Mr. Copeland

In Matthew 24:23, Jesus warned about those who say look over here, Christ is here or Christ is there, do not believe them! Do not believe those who say the "anointed" or the anointing" is here or there. Notice how people travel from all over the world to get the anointing at Toronto. In reference to his teaching, this is what Jesus is warning about for the last days.

What fits more accurately to his interpretation is the term "psuedochristos" - one who falsely lays claim to the name and office of Messiah. It is used for antichrists. That is something someone had better consider closely if they are going to go around with the message that I am anointed just like Jesus ! The Bible is warning you not to do that.

Copeland claims Jesus did not do anything without the anointing. This discounts that He was also God. Jesus was able to do everything the Father led him to because he was God not just because he was anointed. (Copeland teaches that Jesus claimed that He was the son of man with God all over Him.) If that is the case, Jesus could evidently do no miracles as the Son of God. This is also promoted by those such as Rodney Howard-Browne who thinks the Spirit is the greater part of the triune nature of God. Wrong! all act in accordingly in equal fashion always. One can not do anything apart from the other two; they are co-equal.

Copeland claims the whole message about the anointing is what Jesus preached as the gospel. Starting in Acts 10, that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth. He did not only say that God anointed Him but HOW He anointed Him. It is all based on the word anointed. The anointing is not about what the POWER is, but about WHO Jesus is.

Copeland focuses on the power, not the person. Then he gave examples of what the disciples preached which he claimed was the same as what Jesus preached. He used Acts 10:34-40, He zeros in on certain areas as verse 38, how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power. And this is the message that he claims that they preached. He left out the latter part of verse 36, "preaching peace through Jesus Christ" then he omits, "He is Lord of all" and inserts "anointed one of God!" He skipped down to verse 44, not focusing on verses 39-41 about the death and resurrection of the Lord. Verse 43 is especially about "in His name. Whoever believes in Him shall receive the remission of sins. This goes perfectly with Luke 24:46-,49, where the Lord declared what is to be preached. "... should be preached in His name" -not preaching His anointing. "43. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.) 'While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell upon them which heard the word., Now, it's referring to the message of Jesus as the Word! ... Now listen carefully! What is the message of the Old Covenant? He's coming! Messiah coming Messiah's coming! Messiah,s coming! The Anointed one is coming! There's coming a root out of Jesse that will have the Spirit of the Lord upon Him! ... And the Word of God says that when he spoke that he was actually speaking that to Christ! Read the third chapter of Galatians sometime; it's startling! It was a promise to the anointed one !that calling things that are One! That calling things that not as though they were! --That's how the anointed One got in here! The Word that was in the flesh and dwelt among us. What Word? "MESSIAH'S COMING!" Well, what is the New Testament ? 'HE'S HERE!' The WHOLE THING IS BASED UPON THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME AND ANOINTED ME!" Somehow he realizes this is an unorthodox view because of how he preps the people to accept it.

Copeland used Acts 9:20, to say that Paul straightway preached Christ anointed in the synagogue and how God anointed Jesus. He says that Paul got it from the disciples. It does not say that He preached only "Christ" but that He is "the Son of God." He didn't preach HOW God anointed Him, Rather that Jesus is THE Christ - the one and only, the Anointed One who is the Son of God! That is found in verse 22. Copeland consistently changed the meanings of the Scriptural message throughout his sermon by leaving out crucial points.

The Old manuscripts of Scripture have written in many places, "the Lord Jesus." The Byzantine text, starting from the fifth century has Jesus Christ or Christ which is the shortened version. Whenever you see "Christ" alone it is always in reference to a certain individual who is the Son of God! It is not referring to His anointing. It identifies a person who forgives sins! A perfect example of this is Matthew 16 when Jesus asked, Who do you  say that I am? Peter in revelation from the Father says, You are the Christ. But He doesn't stop there! He says, "the Son of the living God!" Or when Jesus was questioned by the Sanhedrin at His trial, He was asked if He was the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus answers that "they will see the Son of Man (a messianic title) sitting on the right hand of power coming on the clouds of Heaven," quoting Daniel 7:13. So Jesus points to who He is as a person, not His anointing.

In 2 Timothy 2:19 "name the name of Christ" is to Copeland "name the name of the anointing." The New American Standard says "name the name of the Lord based on an older manuscript text. The older text points to 'the person being the Lord.

Copeland says the letters are all about the same thing and that the Spirit spoke this revelation to him. It is safe to assume that it was the same spirit that told him that he could have gone to the cross if knew the word like Jesus; that Jesus became a satanic being on the cross and went to hell to suffer, that Adam was God manifested in the flesh; that Heaven was a planet; and all the rest of his peculiar fables and non-biblical revelation. This same spirit leads him to this teaching on the anointing.

He also changed Eph. 2:20 about Jesus Christ being the chief corner stone, meaning that not just Jesus, but includes anointing as the cornerstone. He goes on to say, the message of the anointing is the plumb line. I Pet. 2:6-7, Peter quotes Isaiah 28 saying, Behold 1 lay in Zion a chief cornerstone elect and precious, he who believes on Him shall not be put to shame. Believes on HIM! Again it refers to the person not the anointing. It is not the what or the how, but it's the whole

If you hold near and dear to the Word of God and perceive that something is very wrong with Mr. Copeland's interpretations of the Word by substituting the anointing for every time the name Christ appears, your discernment meter is on. Copeland's renderings not only yield ridiculous results, they take away from the person of Jesus Christ. We are not to put our faith in the anointing, but in the anointed One who is Christ. The emphasis of this tide is to the God-Man, Jesus and to the power that is His by nature of His deity. To focus on the anointing instead of or with Jesus is misplacing our faith. In whose best interest is it to corrupt our understanding of Jesus and the reality of his existence? The bottom line is that this is another gospel that Mr. Copeland either willfully or by means of being deceived is perpetuating. People are buying into this by large crowds, taking what he says as biblical truth.