When we hear and read these words of Paul, how can we even think that we should not at least be “more careful” in what we believe, as well as who we follow? We hear many things “out there” today...there are many ministers and ministries in the church world who “claim” to have This Truth or That Truth; they claim, sometimes, to have an unquestionable “corner” on All Truth. But do they...? (And be very, very careful when anyone claims to have All Truth) How, then, can we be absolutely certain we know Truth, and -- more importantly -- how can we be 100% certain that we are not following (or listening to) error? I have a very simple “Rule of Thumb”, regarding matters such as this, and it is divided into Three Parts...

Part One of the Rule is this: If I cannot find it in the Word of God, then I had best be careful accepting (and even listening to) certain teachings and/or following certain teachers, preachers and evangelists. And dear beloved of the Lord...there are many well-known and popular evangelists and teachers who are teaching things that cannot be found in the Word of God! This ought to be a very real and serious concern among Christians today, but I’m afraid many Christians accept and follow these ministers simply because they are popular and well-known, and because there are vast crowds following them.

Part Two of the Rule is very similar: If Jesus, Himself, said something, then I had better pay close attention to it -- no matter how hard it might be to “swallow”. A good example is Matthew 24:24, where Jesus warns us of those who could “deceive even the very elect of God”. If we add to that what Paul had to say in the above Scripture (2nd Cor.11:13-15), that there would be those who “will transform themselves into the ‘apostles of Christ’ or even ‘ministers of righteousness’”, we can see that -- as Christians -- we are not to stand idly by, grasping at and swallowing every tasty tidbit someone might offer us. We have an obligation to be wise and careful...!

Now this doesn’t mean we are to go about with a critical and cynical attitude, accusing and challenging anything and everything that everyone says -- but it does mean we are to be wise and careful! And it does mean we are not to accept anything and everything that everyone says, at all times! In other words, when some evangelist or preacher (or even our own pastor) makes statements and claims that are obviously contrary to the Word of God, then we need to take a quick step back, consider the Word in the matter, then deal with it accordingly (ask your pastor, if he is teaching something contrary to the Word of God). Some things can be careless “slips of the tongue”, not meant to be doctrine, and certainly not meant to be opposed to the Word of God.

Here’s an example that occurred during Easter Sunday morning, 1999: We were visiting a church where we knew many people, and eventually we became acquainted with the pastor. While there were things that happened in that church (on that day, and on subsequent visits) that we do not necessarily agree with or even appreciate, one thing that did happen was during the preaching of the sermon on that particular Easter Sunday. The pastor got so caught up in the emotion of the moment, that he began to make some bold declarations (and much like a steam engine -- gathering up a full head of steam and speed -- it is fairly difficult to stop once you’ve started). Most of these declarations I could overlook, but when he boldly declared that “the devil has no power...”, I sat upright in my seat. He went on to say that the devil was powerless against us, as Christians. And he got lots of “amens” and “hallelujahs” from his people.

And yes, that’s true...yes, he is correct...in the proper context! However, the way he was bringing this thought forth was that Satan never has any power over any Christian, at any time! According to what he was saying, we are “immune” to any and all attacks. Now, if that were true, I’d be shouting a loud and hearty “amen”, and I’d be letting go of a chorus of “hallelujahs” myself. But it’s only TRUE in the proper and correct context. Read Psalm 91...it does not say that every person is “immune” to the “snare of the fowler” or to the “noisome pestilence” (verse 3); nor does it imply that just anyone is “covered with His Feathers” (verse 4). And those who would be free from “the fear of the terror of the night and the arrow that flies by day”, as well as “pestilence that walks in darkness and the destruction that devastates at noonday” (verses 5 & 6) are only those who dwell in the Secret Place of the Most High. And frankly, dear saints, not many people are doing that...

There is a Third Part of this Rule: If something seems too good to be True, then it usually is. If something sounds “way out there”, or “too hard to swallow”, or even a little bit “on the edge”... be very careful. Although, let us be wise and remember: Jesus said and did many things that -- to the Jews of His day -- seemed “way out there”, or “too hard to swallow”, or even a little bit “on the edge”. That’s why I believe it is so important to study and know and judge all things according to Scripture... especially the so-called “spiritual things” that are happening around us. Generally speaking, if something doesn’t “sound right” or “feel right”, it usually isn’t “right”. But again, let Scripture be the final judge of that.

I could list and recall many, many things that I’ve heard and seen over the years, but I do not want to get side-tracked (it’s already taken me nearly five weeks to finish what I hoped to have finished in two!). But I will say this -- for there is a point to be made in all this -- I have seen and heard some strange and bizarre things in thirty-plus years. I have heard ministers and Christians make wild and “way out” declarations. But when you take an “honest step back” -- viewing all that might be said or done in the Light of Scripture -- many of these so-called bold and faith-filled declarations are nothing more than man’s desire to impress and even control other Christians.

The following accounts are certainly not isolated incidents among Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians today, and we will discuss several such incidents. Not to make light of, nor to dishonor anyone, but rather to take a look at things in the Light of Scripture (and I have used and will use this phrase quite a bit in this closing part of our teaching). For when we view anything according to the Word of God, we will always find that “God is True, but every man is a liar” (Romans 3:4). This simply means that in all things -- and especially regarding His Word -- God has the Final Say...we, on the other hand, do not.

Recently, while having dinner at a friend’s house, he shared with us how he had been watching a certain well-known TV evangelist who brought out a lady with blood “flowing from her hands” (stigmata). This Pentecostal evangelist has been around for many years, and I am very familiar with him (having heard him 30-something years ago, while in Bible school), but what does it mean to have someone with blood flowing from their hands? And what is this supposed to do? What does it prove? As I said, the Catholic church has had their mystics and stigmata for centuries, and they have had many such incidents of blood flowing from hands! Then there are those who have oil “flowing from their hands or fingers” (and the Catholic church has also had this phenomenon). Early in this century, there were other well-known cases documented, where certain Christians had either blood or oil flowing from their fingers or hands or head. Some of these were finally exposed, proven to be hoaxes, but I am convinced that some of them had real, physical manifestations. Just like so many TV and video cameras have “caught” certain stigmata around the world today, it is rather hard to dismiss, ignore or even deny.

But is all of this supposed to be a mark of true Heaven-sent, Holy Spirit-empowered spirituality? If so, then why didn’t the apostles show forth such signs of spirituality? As I mentioned, there never was oil flowing from their bodies, and the only blood flowing from them was when they suffered physically for the sake of the Lord Jesus.

And why didn’t Jesus have blood flow from His Body...? Oh, wait! He did!!! In the Garden of Gethsemane, “He sweat great drops of Blood”, agonizing over His coming separation from His Father -- agonizing over the Role He had been called to fill, for you and me, and for anyone who would come to call on His Name! And then, the cruel beatings and whipping, the crown of thorns, followed by the spear thrust into His side, and finally His Death on Calvary! Oh yes...Blood flowed, alright, but, dear saint of God, That Blood flowed so that you and I could have our sins forgiven, be restored to the Father, and eventually “sit with Him in Heavenly Places”, as we mature and grow in Grace and Favor with God.

I am afraid, dear brothers and sisters, that we have gone “far afield”, and that we have even “strayed very far” from the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus warned us that there would come false Christs and false prophets, and Paul warned the Corinthian Christians that there are “false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ” (2nd Cor.11:13). In Matthew 12:39, Jesus also said, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign”. Because of the society we live in, we all know what adulterous means, but keep in mind something you read in Part Two...“I will set My Face against the soul that turns after familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go whoring after them, and I will cut him off from among his people” (Leviticus 20:6). Israel had gone whoring after familiar spirits -- they had become spiritually adulterous, and so has the church, by seeking after and desiring signs and wonders!

From Matthew 12:39 (“an evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign”), I believe we understand adulterous, but now let’s see what evil means: Evil is to be “diseased; to be morally culpable (to be ‘at blame’ or ‘at fault’), i.e. derelict; facinorous (and this odd word means ‘wicked deed or crime’, therefore a ‘wicked criminal’) -- evil also means grievous (causing grief)”. Once more, this takes us back to our original thought: “Will we also weary the Lord?” (Isaiah 7:13), and to refresh our minds “weary” meant to grieve and disgust the Lord.

I sincerely believe that much of what is happening today thoroughly and truly disgusts and grieves our Lord. Much of what some Christian leaders and ministers call “the anointing” is nothing more (or less) than the flesh of man, striving to be seen and heard, to be noticed and even to be glorified! Jesus is the Only One who is to be glorified and exalted. Not man. Not some church or denomination. Not some program or ministry. Not any of the saints. Not any “stigmata”, and certainly not any “physical sign” or “manifestation” -- no matter how much people “love it”, “want it” or “follow it around”. And now I am speaking specifically of the “gold” and “gold dust” (and any similar) phenomena. [As I crawl out here, on this limb, I can only trust and pray that the Lord will faithfully hold me up, bearing me up in His Hands, lest I fall and dash my foot (and my sensibilities) on the stones below (Psalm 91:11-12)].

Some of the excitement and much of the focus in the church, today, has shifted entirely “off” of the Lord Jesus Christ, and it is now on the “wonderful” and varied manifestations that are seeming to come “out of nowhere” (and “wonderful” is not my term; it is a term used by those enamored with all these “varied manifestations”). But are these manifestations, indeed, coming out of “nowhere”? My wife and I recently heard a pastor declare to his congregation that -- according to “common sense reasoning” -- if a group of people are gathered “in Jesus’ Name”, then whatever happens must be “of the Lord...”. He went on to say: “If they are worshipping Jesus and praying to Him, then whatever ‘happens’ has to be ‘of God’.” So you can conclude, using this kind of reasoning, that everything that is happening in any of the churches across America must be “of God”.

Dear saints of God...have our minds “brain-locked”? Have we forgotten, or have we ever even known, that all of the New Testament was written to Christians...and most of these were Spirit-filled Christians...? And all of Paul’s “corrective” writings were also to Spirit-filled Christians. So, any warnings, admonitions, cautions or “verily, verilys” (whether from the Mouth of Jesus, or Paul or John or anyone) were not only for those first century Christians, but even more so for those of us who are striving to serve Him today, for “the time is short”, and “because we are living in the last days” -- as Paul said in 1st Corinthians 10:11...

Now then...what some of you have, no doubt, been “waiting for” -- the Gold Dust Phenomenon. Several years ago, in the Fall of ’99, my wife and I went back to my old alma mater, to hear a man who was associated (in a large way) with this new and exciting gold dust phenomenon. I had read accounts from here, in America, from overseas in Great Britain and other places, and apparently this new “craze” was sweeping across the world -- much like the laughing meetings (which we may or may not touch on in this teaching). Everyone seemed to want to go and “see” or even “collect” some of this gold (yes, people were taking Scotch Tape and other tapes to stick to it and collect this dust!!!). I had recently read an article in a certain women’s newsletter, and I had thought: Well, maybe this thing is real, after all, even though my searches through Scripture produced no evidence, much less purpose, for such a thing.

The article, and an associated book by one of the other proponents of this new move, seemed to declare and insist that all this gold was simply a “manifestation” of God’s Great Glory. And, even though -- as I said -- I could not find any evidence of it in Scripture, I decided to go along with my wife to hear this man. I went, hoping to see a True Manifestation of God’s Glory; my wife secretly hoped to see some of that gold.

What we saw was neither...

What we saw and heard was a likeable enough fellow -- charming, homespun, and folksy -- but what we began to realize was that this man (who is so greatly honored among so many circles today) lifted himself up, far above Jesus Christ. And not in some subtle, hidden way; and this was not an “off day” for him...this was who the man was. He constantly spoke of himself in a way that could not be mistaken as “casual” or “careless slips of the tongue”. He bragged at how the “gold dust” just seemed to “follow him around”. He told of many things that he did, only occasionally giving reference or credit to the Lord. But the two things that troubled me the most were this...

...First, he kept referring to “the many people he had saved”. I didn’t think too much about it in the beginning, but he kept saying “the people he had saved”. He began to say this so often that I finally couldn’t ignore it, passing it off as “carelessness” on his part. This man was not “humble” at all...not in the least. He truly believed that he was responsible for people’s salvation. While he should have been giving God all the Glory, thanking Him for using him as a vessel of God, he was, instead, “full of himself” -- taking all the credit and the glory to himself. At first, when he began telling us about himself and how God had brought him there, he seemed to be a humble man. I began to see, though, that his “apparent humility” was nothing more than his folksy, home-spun charm -- and many people get by with this kind of charm. It’s called charisma...

The second thing that troubled me was the fact that he began referring to himself as “just another Smith Wigglesworth” -- not once, or twice, but many times. “Oh, I’m just another Smith Wigglesworth”. But I’ve studied the life of Smith Wigglesworth, in depth, and he was not an arrogant and proud man, and he most certainly did not lift himself above the Lord, in any manner. Smith Wigglesworth may not have been a “perfect” person, from all the accounts of those who knew him well (and I have talked to people who knew him, personally), but he was a man, like Paul, who could be “marked” as an example or pattern to be followed (see Philippians 3:17). Another way to read that is: “Follow the examples, observing those whose lives are Godly -- making them a pattern for your own lives”. Among other things, such as a great faith, Smith Wigglesworth was also a very humble man. And he also loved and respected the Body of Christ, never giving them false or threadbare hopes; never leading them anywhere but to the Throne of Jesus Christ. From all I’ve read and heard regarding Smith Wigglesworth, I can safely say that the man we went to hear back in the Fall of ’99 was definitely not anything like Smith Wigglesworth...

Another thing that bothered me that day was the fact that we did not see, neither did we feel, nor were we “in the Presence of” God’s Glory. We did not even witness the things they had predicted and hoped would happen (not that I was even slightly disappointed). We saw no gold dust, no manifestations, none of the hype and hoopla that preceded this man. And, I think I should state here, for the record: He (this minister, who thought of himself as “just another Smith Wigglesworth”) blamed us, for the lack of any phenomena -- apparently, it was our lack of faith or our unwillingness to believe and accept (what he thought he was bringing to us). But I’ve walked long enough with the Lord to know that God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). Jesus did many things in front of -- and in spite of -- unbelievers, doubters and even scoffers. And so did the apostles. And so have other great, faith-filled Christians along the way, Smith Wigglesworth being among them. (Notwithstanding, there were also times [in the Old Testament, too] when Christ and others made the unbelieving leave the room when they were praying)

One other point...this man, of whom we’ve been speaking, tried (in vain) to justify the phenomenom that he thought was about to occur. He read to us two very obscure and completely unrelated Scriptures from the Old Testament, neither of which even came close to satisfying anyone’s questions or concerns regarding this event (or perhaps I should say: to the discerning, “thinking” Christian, nothing even came close to satisfying anyone’s questions or concerns regarding this event). The Scriptures he read were so “obscure” that I could only find one, even though I have an excellent CD Bible Reference Collection. It is Psalm 68:13. You read it and see if you can “connect” the current phenomenon with this verse. Of course, he said that the falling gold dust was falling from angel’s wings (even though that Scripture plainly speaks of dove’s wings). The other Scripture was even more obscure, if that is possible, and I can’t even come close to remembering it. I do know when he read it to us -- and as I read it in my own Bible -- it made no sense whatsoever.

So...is the gold dust, gold teeth fillings (yes, people have claimed to have miraculous gold appear in their mouths, giving them perfect fillings) and all the hype about gold real...? Does gold really fall from the ceiling, as so many have reported...? Oddly enough, I have no reason to doubt that it does! But -- as all Christians should know -- missionaries have, for many years, reported of heathen witch doctors and shamans who had powers to heal, do miracles and sway people’s hearts and minds. Pharaoh’s own sorcerers and magicians could change their staffs into snakes (Exodus 7:10-12, and remember Elymas, the sorcerer in Acts 13:6-12). There are other Scriptures we could look at, but we need to finish this teaching.

As we have said, just because something is “supernatural” does not mean it originates from God; neither does a so-called “miracle” mean that God is the Author. I know many people who are so easily swayed by “supernatural” and “miraculous” things, not thinking for a moment that the enemy also has powers to deceive (here are but a few references: Matthew 24:4,5,11,24-26; Romans 16:17&18; Ephesians 4:14 & 5:6; Revelation 20:2,3 & 8). And please remember...the Catholic church, and other religious groups (including the Hindus, who have a sacred statue in India flowing forth with milk from a demonic idol’s mouth) have long had miraculous and supernatural manifestations and phenomena. What kinds of signs & wonders are we expecting?

The bottom line to all of this -- beyond the fact that none of it is Scriptural -- is the very real fact that these things do not draw people to the Lord Jesus Christ. Instead, these things draw people to the experience, or to a certain minister, or to a certain church. Jesus, in His very own Words, said: “If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to Myself” (John 12:32). This is not a mystery...this is not some magical thing. Jesus is speaking specifically of His crucifixion (verse 33), but more than that -- He is speaking of those who will lift up Him...in any and every way -- exalting and magnifying and making Him pre-eminent in all things! Most churches no longer lift up and exalt Jesus Christ, not even understanding the most basic of ways to exalt Him. If this is true, then why should we at all be surprised that many Christians are clamoring for and seeking out something other than Jesus?

If men...if ministries...if Christians cannot and will not make the Lord Jesus Christ center and central to ALL they do, does it not make sense that someone will come along and take that central focal point? If not man, then could not the enemy of our souls sneak in and assume the rightful place of the Lord? There are too many Old Testament stories, tracing the History of Israel in Egypt, through the Promised Land, into the time of the Judges and Kings, and on into the times of the Prophets of the Lord...there are far too many New Testament situations that are clear and evident for our hearts and minds to see...there are too many warnings and admonitions from Jesus, from Paul and others to ignore...there are too many modern, current stories of weird and bizarre happenings among Christians...and there are many more unscriptural occurrences -- too many to list here -- that should be a fair and more-than-adequate warning to us all.

And yet, many Christians go blindly forward, grabbing ahold of the latest “brass ring” of the latest manifestation or phenomenon -- giving no heed whatsoever to the unscriptural basis for it -- taking not the smallest moment to consider:

Is this experience truly edifying the Body, and
More importantly, does it exalt Jesus Christ?
Does it draw my heart to the Lord Jesus?
Is Jesus Christ really the Lord of all that’s going on here?

***I feel I need to say this here: If you have had a truly glorious experience with the Lord -- if He has healed you, blessed you or touched your life in a truly Godly, Christ-exalting way -- then none of these “warnings” are directed at you (really... they are not). However, if you have found yourself in a situation where you have had serious doubts or questions, then please... please be honest enough with the Lord to ask those questions. He never has -- and never will -- deny any of His children the Truth. It is not our aim, here, to cast doubts (and/or add confusion) to anyone’s personal relationship with the Lord.***

All that we do, as Christians, should exalt and magnify the Lord Jesus Christ. All that we do should edify and encourage and truly build up the Body of Christ. And everything said, done, implied or imagined should always point to Him, and Him alone. And may all that we think, say or do be done with the least of this world’s hindrances, as the old song says:

“Nothing between my soul and the Savior...
Naught of this world’s elusive dreams.
Nothing to hinder the least of His Favor...
Keep the way clear...let nothing between.”

There are things -- ranging from people, to churches, to ministries, and even our own hearts -- that can “hinder” us, keeping us from truly being close to (and truly “knowing”) God. Like the song, I must allow “nothing between my soul and the Savior...”, and, at all costs, I must “keep the way clear and let nothing between.” Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthian Christians, puts it in a simple and easy-to-understand way:

2nd Corinthians 10 -- “(4) The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds. (5) (You must) cast down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the Knowledge of God, bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

“(6) You must have a ready heart to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled. (7) Do you regard things after the outward appearance? If any man trusts to himself that he is Christ’s, let him know this: that, even as he is Christ’s, even so are we Christ’s.”

These four verses tell us that it is supremely important to “deal with” anything and everything that in any way “opposes” or could even “rebel against” the Lord (or His Way or His Word). We must not only “cast down any imaginations”, but we must guard against anything that would “exalt itself against the Knowledge of God” -- and this means anything that would remove our focus from the Lord. Every single thought must be brought “into captivity to the obedience of Christ”. And we must be willing and ready to “revenge all disobedience, when our obedience is fulfilled”. This is a very important piece of the Word of God, directed to each of our hearts. But do we truly know what these Words mean; do we take these things seriously?

If we did, we would not casually and carelessly “chase after” every minister (or ministry) that is touting the latest, greatest and “best” supernatural phenomenon, nor would we “thirst for” some man’s idea of what a spiritual drink is supposed to be. Doing all of this would place us in the category of those who “regard things after the outward appearance” (verse 7, above). Jesus said “I am the Way,the Truth and the Life...” (John 14:6), and “if any man drinks of the Water that I shall give, he will thirst no more” (John 4:14a). “Drinking of Jesus” is not supposed to produce some kind of emotional or spiritual “high”. And here I am speaking specifically about a certain minister who has for several years now proclaimed (among other things) : “Come to Joel’s Place, and get drunk on the Spirit of God”. This, to put it bluntly, is very sad indeed.

On the contrary, “drinking of Jesus” should produce something eternal and holy. Jesus said, in John 4:14b: “The Water that I shall give him shall be in him a Well of Water, springing up into Everlasting Life.” If we sincerely “desire” Him, and we truly “thirst after” Him, nothing else will satisfy; nothing else can “lure us away”. And, if there were men or ministries who were not sincerely and clearly “pointing us to Jesus”, if there were those who were not exalting Him and only Him, then we would surely and confidently reject them and their soulish, carnal ways. And yet, for some reason, many of us are unable to do this. Why...?

Perhaps it’s because we truly do not have hearts to “follow after” Jesus Christ. I think if we could, for just a brief moment, see what it is we are really following in our lives, we would be shocked, surprised and perhaps even saddened (even as the Lord must be at times). My prayer, for me and for the Body, as a whole, is this:

O God...please open our eyes; please open our ears; please open our hearts... that we might see, hear and follow You and You alone. O God...please help each of us, causing our hearts to seek and run after You, and only You. May Your Heavenly Wisdom grip us, and may the Love of the Holy Spirit take hold of our lives, leading us, feeding us, and giving us more of the Lord Jesus Christ, Your Only Begotten Son....

Thus ends this rather “delicate” journey through some rather “unsavory” things...things very definitely “hard” to consider and think on (but we must, if we are to be true and faithful to Him). May our heart-cry ever be: