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When the Blind leads the Blind what happens? Those who are part of the Latter Rain/Third Wave Christianity that was birthed through William Branham and came through Wimber by Bob Jones and Mike Bickel. Bill Johnson has to be the most ill-informed and offensive teacher of all. He actually states that “Jesus is the most normal Christian in the Bible.” Which diminishes his personhood as the Messiah. Is Jesus a Christian? Which means to be a follower of Christ? To Johnson Christ means anointing. So then Jesus followed the anointing? Yes, that is exactly what he means. One cannot be more convoluted on this matter. But it gets worse as he claims "Jesus models, better than anyone in Scripture, how to host the presence of the Lord" while he goes on to say at times Jesus is God, he in fact denies it by describing an emptying that is not biblical. At the same time he diminishes Jesus, he exalts man. As Johnson often states, Jesus is our model - even to the point that we become the ‘Word made flesh.’ Which is straight out of the heretical Latter Rain teaching of the “manifest sons of God.” and was a promoted teaching in the Vineyard. “It’s the Spirit of God that makes this thing [the Bible] come alive to where we actually have the privilege of the Word becoming flesh in us again, where we become the living illustration and manifestation of what God is saying.” (“whizzpopping” YouTube video, Bill Johnson – Friendship with God. Nov. 1, 2009.) The word made flesh is about the incarnation of the Son becoming a man (which he denies by his description of emptying), and then shows how he misinterprets a key doctrine of Jesus being "the word," who was God the Son made flesh. Not that any in his church would be clued in on this being heresy, since they are deep into his interpretations and have no gauge on the churches previous history in dealing with his centuries before. The fact is--this is pure Branhamism! Branham stated “The incarnate Word made flesh amongst His people again.” (63-0320). “you become Word, and Word become you, God in you. You abide in God, and God in you.” (62-0714, The Uncertain Sound) “And if that same God, the Holy Spirit, working among us ... Then He manifests Himself in our flesh, like He did then.” (62-0611, It Is I, Be Not Afraid, Central Assembly Of God, Columbia, SC) So that now we are supposed to be just like Jesus. As Branham said, “before Jesus comes again, the full manifestation of the person of Jesus Christ is to be manifested in flesh.” Branham taught at a certain point the church grows up to maturity and begins to manifest the fullness of Jesus. Branham said of Jesus “He was the first Son of God to come to full maturity.” (65-0418M) “He was a manifested Son of God. That's what we're to be one of these days.” (61-0416) Paul Cain the head of the prophet group from Kansas city that entered the Vineyard church under Wimber; Bob Jones, Mike Bickle and others who are Johnson's friends. Cain said “he's coming to the church before he comes FOR the church.” (Paul Cain: Nov. 1988, Tape: “My Father's House”) To understand how this has been going on for years listen to Bob Jones who taught At Bethel “…the Lord spoke to me and said, ‘I’m coming IN my people. Christ in you, the hope of glory. I’m comin’ IN my people.” (Bob Jones “The Coming Kingdom” Piercing the Darkness Prophetic Conference. Hosted by Bethel Church, Redding, CA, Feb 23-25, 2011, Session 4, Feb 24, 2011, 7:00pm). Like all others before Johnson he said he was coveting power, miracles, to see something happen as Bill Johnson’s Testimony indicates. “Through the shedding of His blood, it would be possible for everyone who believed on His name to do as He did and become as He was. (“Our Debt to the World: An Encounter with God.” When Heaven Invades Earth. 2003; p 138) “God gave every believer the power to heal as Jesus did” (“You’ve Got the Power” Charisma Online, March 2012). How can he claim this when even the apostles did not have this power and they were the foundation of the church. His church has no concept what he is teaching is revived Branhamism. "The anointing on a coming generation will be great enough that the natural order of things will no longer apply. With a low-grade anointing and revelation, we have to live by natural principles and restrictions to get spiritual results. But Jesus brings this revelation, which is almost frightening. He says, `Lift up your eyes,' meaning, `With the way you see things right now, you cannot operate on the revelation I want to give you. But there is something available for a coming generation where the anointing is so extreme that every person will be ready for the harvest.'" (The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind, page 153) In other words the church has a low grade anointing (which happens to be a person called the Holy Spirit who is God). “We are most to be pitied if we think we’ve reached the fullness of what God intended for His Church here on earth.” (Johnson When Heaven Invades Earth p.186) “Revelation comes piece by piece, layer upon layer, to generation after generation.” (Hosting the Presence, Kindle edition, p.52)
This is not true. All the revelation God has given for us to know is written and complete with the book of Revelation written by the last apostle. We should consider what he is saying is more akin to the new age than Scripture. "The church will receive a fresh revelation, especially through the book of Revelation. That revelation will launch the church into a transformation unlike any experienced in a previous age. as we see him we become like him! The coming increase in revelation of Jesus will be measureable through new dimensions of worship- corporate throne room experiences ." ( http://bjm.org/content/23/the-coming-glorious-church--unity-of-the-faith.html) And whom will be the one to receive and distribute it? That's right, Billy J. Johnson states: [A] generation is now forming . . . that will walk in an anointing that has never been known by mankind before, including the disciples. (Bill Johnson, The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind: Access to a Life of Miracles (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image Publishers Inc., 2005, Kindle edition), Kindle location: 1959). Johnson clearly teaches the Latter Rain concept of an “outpouring of the Spirit in the last generation” (p.184 When Heaven Invades Earth). But Scripture does NOT teach it will be upon the church for an “Elijah generation.” “We will carry the Elijah anointing in preparing for the return of the Lord in the same way that John the Baptist carried the Elijah anointing and prepared the people for the coming of the Lord.” Instead of Branham being an Elijah there will be a prophet army of Elijah’s, Branham spoke of this, saying “You are messengers of this same message.” But the only one that will have an Elijah anointing is Elijah.
Looking to new "anointed ones" the spirit of Elijah (and Elisha) are to bring about the triumph of the church. In other words, they replace Jesus Christ as the many member Sons of God. Pure Branhamism. Who was a mystic who taught more heresy than anyone in church history. And yet Bethel adores him, emulates him, they use books of Owen Jorgenson on Braham for their Supernatural school. Nothing good can come of this.
Now rather than the one “Anointed One” (Jesus Christ the “only begotten Son”), become many “anointed ones,” many sons of God manifested who will do greater miracles than Jesus. Jesus warned of many false prophets in the last days, many who will claim to be Christ/ anointed.
“Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have arisen; from this we know that it is the last hour” (1 John 2:18). “Antichrists” are substitute “anointed ones” who claim the same ability as Jesus, are in the place of Jesus.
Johnson sets up this whole Latter Rain concept by saying “Jesus had no ability to heal the sick. He couldn’t cast out devils, and He had no ability to raise the dead. He said of Himself in John 5:19, “the Son can do nothing of Himself.” He had set aside His divinity. … He put self-imposed restrictions on Himself to show that us we could do it, too. Jesus so emptied Himself that He was incapable of doing what was required of Him by the Father – without the Father’s help.” (p.50 “The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind”).
Jesus had no ability to heal the sick? This is exactly what Branham said:
“Jesus didn't heal people; He only healed as God showed Him to heal. How many knows that? Saint John 5:19. "The Son can do nothing but what He sees the Father doing." And then, when He stood before the people, why, He could tell them ... The reason they knowed that He was the Son of God, and was the prophet that Moses spoke of, because He was a God-prophet.” (59-1127, Blind Bartimaeus, Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, San Jose, CA)
Branham said this because of his view of Jesus being the “fully anointed” (prophet) man that God used. Not much difference from Johnson who is mimicking him.
“There's no man can heal, not even Jesus. Jesus didn't claim to be a Divine Healer. He said, "It's not Me that doeth the works; It's My Father that dwelleth in Me; He doeth the works." (50-0405 Expectations; 53-1129E)
“It was
the Holy Spirit upon Jesus
[“baptism in the Holy Spirit”] “Christ anointing”] that enabled Him to know
what the Father was doing and saying. That same gift of the Spirit has
been given to us for that same purpose. (Johnson, Dreaming, p.
136) This is what the word faith favorite commentary by false teacher Finis Dake said, “He could do nothing of Himself in all His earthly life. He attributed all His works, doctrines, powers, etc., to the Father through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.” “He did not claim the attributes of God, but only the anointing of the Spirit to do His works” (Dake's Annotated Reference Bible, Finis Jennings Dake, New Testament, p. 218.) This is Bill Johnson’s teaching as well. Because it was Branham’s teaching. Jesus did what the Father led him to do as a submitted servant as a man. Jesus also made it clear that “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working." (Jn. 5:17) It completely diminishes who Jesus is to teach Jesus could not heal when people touched him and power went out to heal them. When you listen to the voice of another shepherd leading you over the “good shepherd” who is Jesus “you will want”… you will have no still waters, no rest. Many youth have no idea what they have accepted as Christianity. The followers of these strange doctrines cannot hear the Word of truth any longer, nor do they desire to. In fact if they did hear Biblical truth they would run away with their hands over their ears because it would offend them. Yet we continue to pray they would be released from following the blind before they fall into the pit with them.
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