Honest questions about the Lakeland Revival in Florida
By J. Lee Grady
God is stirring deep spiritual passion in the hearts of the thousands of people who have travelled to Florida during the last month to experience the Lakeland Healing Revival. Since these meetings began in a 700 seater church in April, the crowd has moved four times to bigger venues with news spreading worldwide and fervour intensifying. Within a few weeks, the bandwagon effect was in full swing. One would say that no outbreak of Pentecostalism in history has gained so much international exposure as quickly as these meetings have.
I’m a cheerleader for the charismatic movement, so I rejoiced when I heard the news about revivalist Todd Bentley’s extended visit to Ignited Church. It was thrilling to hear the reports of miracles and to watch the crowd grow. When I visited a service later that month, I was blessed by Heather Clark’s music and the audience’s exuberant worship. And I laughed with everyone else as I watched Bentley shout his trademarked “Bam! Bam! Bam!” as he prayed for the sick and flailed his tattooed arms over the crowd.
However, I would be dishonest if I told you that I wholeheartedly embraced what I saw in Lakeland. Something disturbed me, but I kept my mouth shut for three weeks while I prayed, sought counsel from respected ministry leaders and searched my heart to make sure I was not harbouring a religious spirit. The last thing we need today is more mean-spirited heresy hunters blasting other Christians.
I am not a heresy hunter, and I support what is happening in Lakeland because I know God uses imperfect people (like me and you) to reach others for Jesus. At the same time, I believe my questions are honest and my concerns are real.
My motive is not to criticise Bentley or the pastor who is sponsoring these meetings, Stephen Strader, but, as the noise from Lakeland grows louder and its influence spreads, I’m issuing some words of warning that apply to all of us, not just the folks in Florida. I hope everyone understands that these cautions are offered in love:
1. Beware of strange fire
The name of Jesus is being lifted up in the Lakeland revival, and three people came to the altar for salvation the night I attended. Larger numbers have come to the front to find Christ every night since then. Yet I fear another message is also being preached subtly —a message that cult-watchers would describe as a spiritual counterfeit.
Bentley is one of several charismatic ministers who have emphasised angels (in the context of Christian theology). He has taught about angels who bring financial breakthroughs or revelations, and he sometimes refers to an angel named Emma who supposedly played a role in initiating a prophetic movement in Kansas City in the 1980s. Bentley describes Emma as a woman in a flowing white dress who floats a few feet off the floor. All of us who believe the Bible know that angels are real, and that they work on our behalf to protect us and minister to us. But the apostle Paul, who had encounters with angels himself, issued stern warnings to the Corinthians, the Galatians and the Colossians about angels who preach another Gospel or that demand attention. In Colossae, believers were so enamoured with angels they had seen in visions that they became “inflated without cause” by spiritual pride. (Col 2:18) Paul was adamant that preoccupation with angels can lead to serious deception.
We need to tread carefully here! We have no business teaching God’s people to commune with angels or to seek revelations from them. And if any revival movement — no matter how exciting or passionate —mixes the Gospel of Jesus with this strange fire, the results could be devastating. We need to remember that Mormonism was born out of one man’s encounter with a dark angel who claimed to speak for God.
2. Beware of bizarre manifestations
When the Holy Spirit’s power comes on people they may feel weak or even fall. The Spirit’s power can also cause people to tremble, shake, laugh or cry. Such manifestations are Biblical and we should leave room for them. But where do we draw the line between legitimate experience and fanatical excess?
The apostle Paul had to deal with outrageous charismatic manifestations in the Corinthian church. People were acting like raving lunatics and turning the church in to a free-for-all of unbridled ecstatic behaviour. Paul called for discipline and order, and he reminded early Christians that “the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets” 1 Cor 14:32. In other words, Paul was saying that no one under the influence of the Holy Spirit should act out of control. When we put bizarre behaviour on the platform we imply that it is normative. Thus more strange ‘fire’ is allowed to spread.
3. Beware of hype and exaggeration
Our hearts are crying out today for a genuine move of God. We want the real deal. We’ve read about the ‘great awakenings’ of the past and we long to see our nation overcome by a wave of repentance. In our longing for a holy visitation, however, we must be careful not to call the first faint breeze of the Spirit a full-fledged revival. If we do that, we are setting people up for disappointment when they realise it may not be what we blew it up to be. Some of the language used during the Lakeland Revival has created an almost sideshow atmosphere. People are invited to “Come and get some.” Miracles are supposedly “Popping like popcorn.” Organisers tout it as “The greatest revival in history”.
Such brash statements cheapen what the Holy Spirit is doing and they do a disservice to our brothers and sisters who are experiencing New Testament-style revival in countries such as Iran, China and India. We have a long way to go before we experience their level of revival. Let’s stay humble and broken before the Lord. Miracles are awesome. Crowds are great. But miracles and crowds alone don’t guarantee a revival. Multitudes followed Jesus during His ministry on earth, but many of the people who saw the dead raised or ate food that was supernaturally multiplied later crucified the Son of God. It was the few disciples that followed Jesus after Calvary who ushered in a true revival—one that was bathed in the fear of God, confirmed by signs and wonders, tempered by persecution and evidenced by thousands of conversions, new churches and the transformation of society. We should expect nothing less.
By J. Lee Grady
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