Eschewing people based on doctrinal differences, rather than treating them like brethren you disagree with is an important distinction.
They taught regression to me in Quantitative Methods class. I've used multiple regression. Structural Equation Modeling uses regression and I have used that, and see no conflict with doing math-based statistical exercises and my faith, not the way I have done them.
But I suspect you are talking about something else, a practice I am unfamiliar with, a story I am unfamiliar with.
I did read something about people using 'prophecy cards' that had a connection to Bethel, but wasn't the Bethel church itself. I found that quite alarming, and I don't know the follow up from their church on that. I also realize that 'heresy hunter' sites, based on what I have seen of them can criticize based on false understanding of the situation and a false doctrinal perspective. Some of the sites (and videos) remind me of some of the cable 'news' media-- people who do not do a thorough job of researching the facts, who pick a few phrases or incidents to criticize all day, and twist the few facts they gather into a narrative they can criticize. So I do not automatically believe such reports on the rare occasions I look them up, and I do not stay up to date with all the criticisms about Bethel, Redding or any other group.
I also have concerns about their attitudes toward prophesying. It is like on the one hand they want to be 'charismatic' and experience great prophetic things, but they (or Bill Johnson) almost has a Presbyterian view of prophecy, except toward opening your mouth and saying something encouraging as opposed to narrowly treating preaching as prophecy. Calvin had a fuzzy idea of preaching and prophesying, but he realized not all preaching was prophesying. Some Presbyterians nearly equate preaching and prophesying. Johnson seems, IMO, to have a fuzzy view of what prophesying is. There is this idea that anything spoken to edification, comfort, and exhortation is prophesying, instead of seeing prophesying as Spirit-moved speech, the definition of which we understand from the whole historical background of the Bible--- which is spoken for edification, comfort, and exhortation.
Please read my previous post. Johnson said his church attracted some unusual people. He did not do or endorse grave sucking, but if you are at some great saints grave and pray for the power, ministry (or whatever word he said) that was on them be on you, he did not have a problem with that.
I also pointed out that 'grave sucking' might have been sort of joking terminology for praying like that. It's a guess, but I've heard 'slimed' to describe emotional or other after effects of encountering demons-- possible post reference to ghost busters-- from someone who was at the early days of IHOP. Some Charismatics say, "He read my mail" to describe when someone gives an incredibly detailed prophecy about personal details that he could not naturally know. So I don't know whether to take some of these terms literally.
I never experienced that to my knowledge. If it is legitimate, I am not opposed to it. if it is not, then of course it is not good.
Strange-sounding stuff. I cannot see any specifics in the Bible about it. Seraphim in and women with stork wings had wings in visions. That's about as close as I can get to feathers from the Bible. I don't have any Biblical reason for saying feathers and gold teeth are Biblical miracles. But I also see in the Bible that God did things He hadn't done before, so I have no Biblical reason to say he couldn't do it either.
A gold tooth is an improvement over a mercury filling. Medically, I'd prefer enamel. Gold has some Biblical symbolism to it (the ark and building gold, silver, prescious stones on the Foundation for example.)
My brother went to a Bible study with this couple. He worked with the husband. He also had been a pastor for many years. I know them, but haven't seen them for many years. I worked abroad and I was told that the wife got a gold filling, a filling that turned gold. He'd seen the filling. One of my other family members might have, maybe my sister. This conversation was many years ago. I have not seen her or her husband in probably 25 years.
I talked to a woman in Indonesia who told me about her cavity. She prayed for a filling and showed me the fillings in her mouth. They looked like normal dental fillings. She couldn't afford it apparently. (They also don't use novacain over there unless you ask, and people don't know, and a lot of people are more scared of needles. I can tell you the drilling hurts.) If it is all legit, my comment would be why did you ask for that instead of enamle, mantle, etc. But that is still pretty amazing, so I should be thankful for a testimony of answered prayer instead of being too critical. I've experienced some mind-blowingly specific answers to prayer, but never something materializing like that that wasn't there before.
Smoke machines-- not something I am crazy about, not something I can say is sinful either. I do not know which one you are talking about, but it sounds like you are talking about your personal opinions and you are sounding rather mean. If someone is praising the Lord, I think we should be careful about criticizing. Mical criticized David.
I did not hear about the man from cancer dying. I know about Bentley's sin. I would say Wagner was NAR. Some of the others were in the signs and wonders and prophetic movement, or that is what they call themselves. There are other movements where people prophesy. I wouldn't rule out that someone can have a prophecy over their life and then go into sin or error, or maybe come back. I read an old tradition Eusebius recorded that St. John laid hands on a young man. But the living a Christian life, even became a thief, but eventually repented and eventually became an elder in the church. It's not in the Bible. Jesus appointed Judas, but called him a devil and later Judas betrayed Jesus and hanged himself.
I can also say that the snippets I saw of Bentley's preaching before this anointing ceremony did not focus on Jesus. He talked about himself, his experiences, some pretty amazing stories, his calling.
Which spirits? The spirits of these men? The spirits in the exorcism video? What do you mean by 'home test'? You can add the question of whether the people at Bethel or whatever group you are criticizing at the moment confess Jesus as Lord. I think I mentioned that in some post. If not, I mentioned Jesus as the Son of God.
They taught regression to me in Quantitative Methods class. I've used multiple regression. Structural Equation Modeling uses regression and I have used that, and see no conflict with doing math-based statistical exercises and my faith, not the way I have done them.
But I suspect you are talking about something else, a practice I am unfamiliar with, a story I am unfamiliar with.
I did read something about people using 'prophecy cards' that had a connection to Bethel, but wasn't the Bethel church itself. I found that quite alarming, and I don't know the follow up from their church on that. I also realize that 'heresy hunter' sites, based on what I have seen of them can criticize based on false understanding of the situation and a false doctrinal perspective. Some of the sites (and videos) remind me of some of the cable 'news' media-- people who do not do a thorough job of researching the facts, who pick a few phrases or incidents to criticize all day, and twist the few facts they gather into a narrative they can criticize. So I do not automatically believe such reports on the rare occasions I look them up, and I do not stay up to date with all the criticisms about Bethel, Redding or any other group.
I also have concerns about their attitudes toward prophesying. It is like on the one hand they want to be 'charismatic' and experience great prophetic things, but they (or Bill Johnson) almost has a Presbyterian view of prophecy, except toward opening your mouth and saying something encouraging as opposed to narrowly treating preaching as prophecy. Calvin had a fuzzy idea of preaching and prophesying, but he realized not all preaching was prophesying. Some Presbyterians nearly equate preaching and prophesying. Johnson seems, IMO, to have a fuzzy view of what prophesying is. There is this idea that anything spoken to edification, comfort, and exhortation is prophesying, instead of seeing prophesying as Spirit-moved speech, the definition of which we understand from the whole historical background of the Bible--- which is spoken for edification, comfort, and exhortation.
Please read my previous post. Johnson said his church attracted some unusual people. He did not do or endorse grave sucking, but if you are at some great saints grave and pray for the power, ministry (or whatever word he said) that was on them be on you, he did not have a problem with that.
I also pointed out that 'grave sucking' might have been sort of joking terminology for praying like that. It's a guess, but I've heard 'slimed' to describe emotional or other after effects of encountering demons-- possible post reference to ghost busters-- from someone who was at the early days of IHOP. Some Charismatics say, "He read my mail" to describe when someone gives an incredibly detailed prophecy about personal details that he could not naturally know. So I don't know whether to take some of these terms literally.
I never experienced that to my knowledge. If it is legitimate, I am not opposed to it. if it is not, then of course it is not good.
Strange-sounding stuff. I cannot see any specifics in the Bible about it. Seraphim in and women with stork wings had wings in visions. That's about as close as I can get to feathers from the Bible. I don't have any Biblical reason for saying feathers and gold teeth are Biblical miracles. But I also see in the Bible that God did things He hadn't done before, so I have no Biblical reason to say he couldn't do it either.
A gold tooth is an improvement over a mercury filling. Medically, I'd prefer enamel. Gold has some Biblical symbolism to it (the ark and building gold, silver, prescious stones on the Foundation for example.)
My brother went to a Bible study with this couple. He worked with the husband. He also had been a pastor for many years. I know them, but haven't seen them for many years. I worked abroad and I was told that the wife got a gold filling, a filling that turned gold. He'd seen the filling. One of my other family members might have, maybe my sister. This conversation was many years ago. I have not seen her or her husband in probably 25 years.
I talked to a woman in Indonesia who told me about her cavity. She prayed for a filling and showed me the fillings in her mouth. They looked like normal dental fillings. She couldn't afford it apparently. (They also don't use novacain over there unless you ask, and people don't know, and a lot of people are more scared of needles. I can tell you the drilling hurts.) If it is all legit, my comment would be why did you ask for that instead of enamle, mantle, etc. But that is still pretty amazing, so I should be thankful for a testimony of answered prayer instead of being too critical. I've experienced some mind-blowingly specific answers to prayer, but never something materializing like that that wasn't there before.
Smoke machines-- not something I am crazy about, not something I can say is sinful either. I do not know which one you are talking about, but it sounds like you are talking about your personal opinions and you are sounding rather mean. If someone is praising the Lord, I think we should be careful about criticizing. Mical criticized David.
I did not hear about the man from cancer dying. I know about Bentley's sin. I would say Wagner was NAR. Some of the others were in the signs and wonders and prophetic movement, or that is what they call themselves. There are other movements where people prophesy. I wouldn't rule out that someone can have a prophecy over their life and then go into sin or error, or maybe come back. I read an old tradition Eusebius recorded that St. John laid hands on a young man. But the living a Christian life, even became a thief, but eventually repented and eventually became an elder in the church. It's not in the Bible. Jesus appointed Judas, but called him a devil and later Judas betrayed Jesus and hanged himself.
I can also say that the snippets I saw of Bentley's preaching before this anointing ceremony did not focus on Jesus. He talked about himself, his experiences, some pretty amazing stories, his calling.
Which spirits? The spirits of these men? The spirits in the exorcism video? What do you mean by 'home test'? You can add the question of whether the people at Bethel or whatever group you are criticizing at the moment confess Jesus as Lord. I think I mentioned that in some post. If not, I mentioned Jesus as the Son of God.
