A Pentecostal pastor in South Africa has been caught faking a resurrection (“South Africa funeral firm to sue pastor, for ‘resurrection stunt,’” BBC News, Feb. 26, 2019). A video of Pastor Alph Lukau raising a man from the dead “went viral,” but it turns out, not surprisingly, to be a hoax. In the video, the pastor, whose church is near Johannesburg, is standing beside a man lying in a coffin, pretending to be dead. To add authenticity, Lukau introduces the “dead man’s” family and friends. He then passes his hands over the man’s body, pauses dramatically, and shouts, “Rise up!” The man instantly sits up but has a bug-eyed look as if he is in a daze. A group of funeral directors who were manipulated by the scheme are suing the pastor. This is only the latest in more than 100 years of heresies, hoaxes, scandals, and nonsense emanating from the Pentecostal-Charismatic movements. It began with the students of Charles Parham’s Bible school in Kansas who claimed to speak and write in “tongues” that they claimed were Chinese but which turned out to be nothing at all, and the Azusa Street “holy choir” which was actually mass confusion. See “Azusa Street and the Birth of Pentecostalism,” www.wayoflife.org/azusa/. Jesus raised the dead as a sign that He is the Messiah. And Peter raised Dorcas from the dead (Acts 9:36-42) as the “sign of an apostle” (2 Corinthians 12:12). There are no apostles today; only deceivers pretending to be apostles. The apostles laid the foundation of the church (Ephesians 2:20), completed the canon of Scripture, and went to be with the Lord. At Christ’s return, they will sit on 12 thrones (only 12) judging the 12 tribes of Israel (Luke 22:30). Their 12 names (only 12) are inscribed in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:14). We believe in a miracle-working God and we have experienced miracles for nearly a half century of walking with Him, but we don’t believe in sign miracles for today. And we believe in healing according to James 5, but we don’t believe in the gift of healing today because that pertained to the apostles. Though we have attended the “healing crusades” of some the most prominent Pentecostal faith healers of our lifetime, we have seen nothing but heresy, nonsense, and fakery. They claim to live in the power of Pentecost and to have special Holy Spirit baptisms and apostolic power, but they can’t heal like the apostles, they can’t raise the dead like the apostles, they can’t speak in tongues like the apostles, they can’t prophesy like the apostles, and they don’t have the spiritual wisdom of the apostles. (Friday Church News Notes, March 8, 2019, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143) Comments are closed.
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