A Response to Todd Bentley's Commissioning in Lakeland, Florida - Part 2
by Joanne Panettieri, Editor
Kingdom Iconoclast
Part 2
First speaker (Bill Johnson?)
”That Moses would no longer be considered the high-water mark where the glory shone from his face, but instead the revelation of the goodness of God would change the face of the Church. And that He would use your voice, He would use your grace, your anointing to alter the face of the Church before this world. That the goodness of the Lord would be seen once again.”
I’d like to know where the glory of God is showing here in this outpouring? When Todd is talking about his angels, or when he kicks cancer patients in the stomach? Yes, his anointing is altering the face of the church before the world all right.
See the video below to see how much Todd Bentley's anointing is altering the face of the church!
Next word: Unknown Speaker:
“Yes, the Lord would say unto thee that this day you have loosened upon this earth yay what I have wanted for centuries to come forth, a kingly anointing which will bring in MONEY, MONEY, MONEY. Because the business men will rise up and they will go forth under this anointing and no more will they stay hidden in the shadows but they shall go forth into the political world, into the business world, into the military world, and great changes shall take place saith the Lord. Because this night is the night when you started out speaking your first words about the Kingdom of God. “
Note what was said to Todd: "This day YOU have loosened upon this earth what I have wanted to come forth" Todd loosened it, not Jesus??
"A kingly anointing that will bring in MONEY, MONEY, MONEY"! Yes, I'm sure this made some people very happy, but I don't think the Lord Jesus desired this to be loosed upon the earth! Money is part of the fallen world, not the Kingdom of God!
"According to Todd Bentley, you don’t get the anointing from the Holy Spirit unless you donate money. Here are his own words as relayed by Tampa.com to convict him:
”Get out your credit cards, he said. Write a check. Click on the blue button on the Web site. You reap what you sow,” he said. “Generosity and the anointing go hand in hand.” (15)
This sounds like a false gospel of greed. I recently read an article that stated that ATM machines (16) were installed in the building where the revival meetings were being held. I guess this makes it convenient for the money, money, money to come in!
Next speaker: Unknown woman in dark pantsuit
“For the word of the lord would say behold the vanguard, behold the tugboat that is cutting through the ice of religious traditions, the cruel hard thing. The understanding of the mind of men will now bound to the reality of the revelation of the finished work of Calvary. Behold saith god, you’ve been equipped with cutting power, you have been equipped to go through those traditions of the mind of men. Yay, saith god, and you are pulling the church into the realm of glory. Behind you is a great ship that is laden with healing and deliverance and prosperity. This is the word to you, o man of god, arise, kill, and eat. No longer, no longer, no longer will men call unclean what I have called clean. “
Does this woman actually think that Todd has been equipped with cutting power to cut through the traditions of men? Are those the traditions of worshipping Jesus and preaching his word and acting in humility and love? Notice that after she says: “No longer, no longer, no longer will men call unclean what I have called clean.” That the crowd cheers for several minutes and Todd does his shaking routine. This time it looks fake. When will people realize that it’s not Todd’s looks that are unclean, but the spirits that are manifesting in these meetings?
Next speaker: Rick Joyner
“Todd, your ministry is very appropriately named Fresh Fire, and uh, you’ve certainly been bringing fresh fire. And even when you were going through the dark night of the soul I thought you had more fire on you than … than uh … many I’ll just say. But uh, you know the worst state we could ever fall into is lukewarmness, and god has sent you as an antidote for that lukewarm spirit. And the fire is been birthed here, it’s been released here, you’ve unstopped a well, you have other wells to unstop, and other cities and other places. This is just the beginning. And there is longevity, too. There is increase, but there is also longevity coming. There are many wells but there are also oil wells and they catch on fire when you unstop them. “
There are many references to the Fire of God in the Bible, but all of them refer to judgment. The fire that Todd is releasing is from the release of the Kundalini.
It is believed by new agers that the kundalini and the Holy Spirit are one and the same:
“Although Christian dogmatists might protest the equation, it seems evident that the Holy Ghost (or Holy Spirit) and the Kundalini are one in the same. The Holy Ghost, like Kundalini, is symbolically represented by a flame. (Many of the Christian saints who were not familiar with the Eastern concept of Kundalini suffered from mysterious illnesses in which they claimed to be "burning" with the spirit of God within them. This was officially known as incendium amoris, the fire of love.)” http://www.elcollie.com/st/fire.html
“Long rumored to be among the most rare of human experiences, in the past several decades, the incidence of reported Kundalini awakening has been on the increase worldwide. Kundalini awakening manifests on multiple levels. "Brought up through the body, this power promotes healing and longevity," writes transpersonal psychologist Ralph Metzner; …… The radical restructuring of the psyche catalyzed by Kundalini leads to a state which Metzner says "has been variously referred to as mystical experience, ecstasy, cosmic consciousness, oceanic feeling, oneness, transcendence, union with God, nirvana, satori, liberation, peak experience, and by other names."
A Kundalini awakening is celebrated as an extraordinary gift for healing and growth, but the early stages (which can last for months or years) can be exceedingly difficult. …..The influx of high vibrational energy throughout the system produces an array of physical symptoms and strange sensations. .
The Kundalini process repeatedly cycles through the stages of the mystic path outlined by Evelyn Underhill: (1) awakening or conversion to divine reality; (2) purgation and purification; (3) illumination, visions, ecstatic states; (4) death, "the dark night of the soul"; and (5) union with the divine. (Note Rick Joyner’s mention of the ‘dark night of the soul’ in his word to Todd Bentley)
Although the Sanskrit word "Kundalini" originated in India, this dramatically regenerative process has been recorded in nearly every culture and religion in the world. The transformational energy the yogis call "shakti" (the risen Kundalini) is alternately known in other traditions as Holy Wind, Serpent Fire, Vital Winds, Seiki (mystical Japanese), mana loa (Hawaiian Kahunan), ….. These metaphoric names describe the tremendous rushing, burning, spiralling and wavelike physical sensations of the aroused spiritual energy. When the Kundalini rises, these sensations may be subtle and pleasurable, or they make strike with unexpected gale force, literally thrashing the body around like an internalized hurricane. And Kundalini is renowned for setting the body ablaze with incandescent inner heat.”
People who have never experienced Kundalini tend to think these descriptive metaphors imply something abstract. A man once posed the question to an Internet Kundalini list: "How does the Kundalini heat manifest itself?" The answers came back: "As HEAT. It feels HOT!"
Kundalini has been called the lifeforce (see info on “life force” in part 1) -- the vital, animating current within all creation. The energy of Kundalini has been used everywhere in the world for healing and accessing spiritual experience. The Greek philosopher, mathematician and physician Pythagorus knew it as pneuma, which, according to metaphysical researcher Mary Coddington, "came from a central fire in the universe and provided man not only with his vitality, but his immortal soul." The Turkish genius and founder of neurology Galen, born in 129 A.D., also spoke of pneuma. (Mary Coddington, Seekers of the Healing Energy) (17)
“These Kundalini spirits and other spirits of eastern religions have sought to enter many revivals. In some cases the discernment of the leaders saved them. Jessie Penn-Lewis gives a report of this spirit in the Wales revival:
"The counterfeit of the Presence of God is mainly felt upon the body, and by the physical senses, in conscious 'fire,' 'thrills,' etc. The counterfeit of the 'Presence' in the atmosphere is felt by the senses of the body, as 'breath,' 'wind,' etc., whilst the mind is passive or inactive. The person affected by this counterfeit will be moved almost automatically to actions he would not perform of his own will, and with all his faculties in operation. He may not even remember what he has done under the 'power' of this 'presence.'" Jessie-Penn Lewis, War On the Saints, page. 153 (18)
Next Speaker: Unknown
"Todd, the Lord has made you to be a detonator, I see cables going around the world to different nations; I see great Britain being set ablaze by the power of God; I see that even as you go into places that God says that you will go even with the glory like William Branham and the Lord says you’ll carry a portal anointing and whatever city you go over there will be a portal, there will be a portal that will be opened up says the Lord, and the Lord says you’ll detonate and boom, boom, boom, there will be release of glory, through the nations, says the spirit of the Lord." (See notes in Part 1 on new age portals)
For those who do not know William Branham was a healing evangelist who couldn’t heal until his angel appeared in his meetings.
“Bentley is well read up on Branham- he describes how he conducted his services in detail in his article 'Living in the Supernatural"May 25, 2003. "When people would come on the platform to receive healing and Branham entered that realm, he would go into visions and tell everyone many details of their life. He did this only as a sign that the Lord would heal them. People would wait in healing lines for hours. They would have to get a card with a number to get into the healing line to even get prayer. He would wait for an angel to come and stand behind him on his left side. He would do nothing until the angel arrived."
From the beginning Branham had unusual manifestations which he attributed to his angel. "The power invested me by my commission given by Almighty God and ministered to me by an Angel, a Pillar of Light" (The Revelation of the Seven Seals p.112-113). Branham admits the angel is a pillar of light (this will become important as we look at Todd Bentleys experiences with angels and light).The angel that William Branham had was actually a powerful angel of light- a demonic entity that masqueraded as the angel of the Lord and the Holy Spirit of God. This entity appeared throughout Branham's life from early childhood and eventually led him into all kinds of "serious error." It is crucial to understand what Bentley is claiming, by renewing the call of William Branham. Bentley's acknowledgement of his angel as Branham's angel via Bob Jones (notwithstanding the many other angels that constantly visit him) puts his imprimatur on Branham being used of God. This is not that unusual, many charismatics endorse Branham, the difference is that he is saying this angel is an influence or power in his ministry.”(19)
Todd Bentley was also told by Che Ahn at an earlier meeting that he had a ‘double portion’ of Branham’s anointing: (Note Che Ahn falling toward the end of the video and manifesting the Kundalini spirit.)
Rick Joyner and the Knights of Malta Connection
It is of great significance that Rick Joyner was one of the men presiding over this meeting. Several years ago Rick Joyner was initiated into the Knights of Malta, the Order of Saint John. This is a known fact and Rick has even spoken about it and made an audio tape explaining it and defended it in his 1998 Morning Star Journal. Rick Joyner and many of the other prophets and apostles from C. Peter Wagner’s New Apostolic Reformation are calling for unity with Rome.
What are the Knights of Malta
The Order of Malta is a lay, religious order of the Catholic Church. It is a Hospitaller order, founded in Jerusalem during the eleventh century. Members of the Order seek to glorify God through his or her work with the sick and the poor and witness of the Catholic faith. (20)
Sherry Shriner writes in her article: “Rick Joyner, Knighted By The Knights Of Malta”
“The primary organization, called the Knights of Malta, has its headquarters in the Vatican of Rome and is clearly controlled and operated by the Catholic church. Their official website gives their name as the "Sovereign Military Order Of Malta." They state of themselves that this "is a lay religious order of the Catholic church." It was founded in Jerusalem in 1099 and it was approved formally as an order by the Pope in 1113. They also say of themselves, "The Order of Malta was admitted to the United Nations as a permanent observer on August 24, 1994." They also claim "official diplomatic relations with over eighty states and international organizations." The Order of Malta is clearly a Catholic order, controlled by the Pope and totally committed to the Pope, the Virgin Mary, and service to Roman Catholic ideas and causes. It is a powerful and massive organization.” (21)
The History of the Knights of Malta
"Blessed Gerard originally founded "The Hospice of St. John of Jerusalem" prior to the 1st Crusade to care for sick and poor pilgrims in Jerusalem. In 1120, after Pope Urban II issued a Bulla recognizing the Hospice as a military religious order, the Order became "The Military Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem". Its members became known as "Knights of St. John", "Knights of the Hospital" or simply "Knights Hospitallers". Later, after the capture of Rhodes, the Order's name became "The Military Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem and of Rhodes". The knights of that period were known as "The Knights of Rhodes", as well as by their previous names. After the loss of Rhodes, the Order came into possession of the Island of Malta. The Order's name then became "The Military Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta". After the loss of Malta the name of the Order became "The Sovereign Military Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta". Since that time, the members have since been referred to most commonly as "The Knights of Malta", however, they may still be referred to as "Knights of St. John", "Knights of the Hospital" or "Knights Hospitaller". The Order is now typically referred to as "The Sovereign Military Order of Malta", "The Order of Malta", or the "SMOM". . . (22)
The following quote is from: An Encyclopedia of Freemasonry and Its Kindred Sciences," etc. by Albert G. Mackey, M.D., Thirty-Third Degree, Volume I, published by the Masonic History Company, Chicago, New York, & London, 1925, Volume One, pp. 392-95:
"This Order, which at various times in the progress of its history received the names of Knights Hospitalers, Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights of Rhodes, and lastly, Knights of Malta, was one of the most important of the religious and military orders of knighthood which sprang into existence during the Crusades which were instituted for the recovery of the Holy Land. It owes its origin to the Hospitalers of Jerusalem, that wholly religious and charitable Order which was established at Jerusalem, in 1048, by pious merchants of Amalfi for the succor of poor and distressed Latin pilgrims....
"...There are now two bodies-one Catholic and the other Protestant, but each repudiates the other....
"The degree of Knight of Malta is conferred in the United States as "an appendant Order" in a Commandery of Knights Templar. There is a ritual attached to the degree, but very few are in possession of it, and it is generally communicated after the candidate has been created a Knights Templar...."
The Knights of Malta are the militia of the Pope, and are sworn to total obedience by a blood oath which is taken extremely seriously and to the death. The Pope as the head of the Vatican is also the head of a foreign national power.
As a member of the Knights of Malta, and by virtue of your blood oath of obedience to the Pope, you are required to support to the death the desires of the head of the Order of the Knights of Malta-in this case, Pope Benedict XVI -over and above any other allegiance you may feel or pretend to feel toward any other loyalty-such as a loyalty to the Constitution for the united States of America.
Those who are presently members of the Knights of Malta must on penalty of death support those policies advocated by the Vatican. It is not hard for them to do this. They BELIEVE in these policies and principles. The polices which are espoused and proclaimed by the office of the Pope are as follows:
1. End of sovereignty for the United States and other countries.
2. End of absolute property rights.
3. End of all gun rights.
4. The new international economic Order (world government).
5. The redistribution of wealth and jobs.
6. Calls for nations to trust the United Nations.
7. Total disarmament.
8. Promote the United Nations as the hope for peace.
9. Promote UNESCO, the deadly educational and cultural arm of the United Nations.
10. Promote interdependence.
11. Support sanctions honoring Father Pierre Teilhard de Chardin-the New Age Humanist Priest.
12. Support the belief that the economic principle of traditional Christian or Catholic social doctrine is the economic principle of communism.
13. Promote the Pope as the acting go-between for the United States and the Soviet Union.
It doesn't really matter what kind of religious or political affiliation a member professes, when they take an oath as a Knight they are obligated by that blood oath of obedience to follow the political lead of the Vatican and will do so to their dying breath-as all good Knights of Malta do. Their first loyalty is to the Vatican, anything else is secondary. Each and every member is under complete and total obedience to the Vatican's political ambitions. (23)
The Order of Malta has ambassadors or diplomatic representatives in more than eighty nations, and enjoys Permanent Observer status at the United Nations General Assembly." (24)
It is a known fact that Rick Joyner is very focused on warfare and the Knights of the Roundtable. Here is a quote from Joyner:
"Like the nation of Israel, the Order of St John the Baptist seems to
have been uniquely preserved to play a part in the final battle between light and darkness. The church, and even Western civilization, is no less in jeopardy today than it was in the time of Suleiman. Conflicts within the church have weakened her to the point that she is more vulnerable to the enemy than ever. Even so, the Lord is not constrained to deliver by many or by few. He still has
those who are true noblemen, who are establishing noble families
throughout the earth. They are bound together by a common faith that transcends denominational differences. They, too, have vowed not to retreat before the enemies of the cross, nor yield a single acre of
ground to the enemy of our faith.
The Lord is again calling together true knights of the Spirit. They will stand unified in spite of all the petty divisions and spiritual wars that go on around them. They know who the real enemy is, and they, too, will stand without wavering against the greatest darkness of their times, and they will push the darkness back. Some of these are in the modern Order of St John. Some of them may be in your church. One of them may even be you." (pg 58, end of author's text)
A picture of the present Grand Master with his various titles covers page 59 of the book. (25)
The Significance of the Date of Todd Bentley’s commissioning:
What is significant about the date and Rick Joyner being one of the presiding “apostles” at Todd Bentley’s commissioning is that June 23 is the eve of the Feast Day of Saint John, the Knights of Malta’s feast day!
The Sovereign Military Order of Malta observes as its feast day Saint John's Day, June 24th. (26) It is not insignificant to note that Saint John’s Day is on the same date as Midsummer’s Day, the pagan holiday of Litha. It is a time when pagans worshipped the sun god through the summer solstice.
“Midsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice, or that take place on the 24th of June and the preceding evening. European midsummer-related holidays, traditions, and celebrations are pre-Christian in origin and have been superficially Christianised as celebrations of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist as "Saint John's Eve" festivals.” (27)
“Midsummer fires served as sun charms to keep up the heat. Midsummer Eve, however, afterwards nominated as John the Baptist's Eve, was a great fire-day far and wide. Von Buch, the traveller, speaks of seeing custom observed within the Arctic Circle.
An old writer about Ireland remarked--"A stranger would imagine the whole country was on fire." Brand writes of the Vigil of St. John--"They make bonfires, run along the streets and fields with wisps of straw blazing on long poles, to purify the air which they think infectious by believing all the devils, spirits, ghosts, and hobgoblins abroad this night to hurt mankind." One, writing in 1867 said--"The old pagan fire-worship still survives in Ireland though nominally in honour of St. John. On Sunday night bonfires were observed throughout nearly every county the province of Leinster." As Easter Day was of old devoted to Astarte, the East goddess, so was St. John's Day to Baal.” (28)
The Feast of the Nativity of St. John is set down in the Papal calendar for the 24th of June, or Midsummer-day. The very same period was equally memorable in the Babylonian calendar as that of one of its most celebrated festivals. It was at Midsummer, or the summer solstice, that the month called in Chaldea, Syria, and Phoenicia by the name of "Tammuz" began; and on the first day--that is, on or about the 24th of June--one of the grand original festivals of Tammuz was celebrated.
For different reasons, in different countries, other periods had been devoted to commemorate the death and reviving of the Babylonian god; but this, as may be inferred from the name of the month, appears to have been the real time when his festival was primitively observed in the land where idolatry had its birth. And so strong was the hold that this festival, with its peculiar rites, had taken of the minds of men, that even when other days were devoted to the great events connected with the Babylonian Messiah, as was the case in some parts of our own land, this sacred season could not be allowed to pass without the due observance of some, at least, of its peculiar rites. When the Papacy sent its emissaries over Europe, towards the end of the sixth century, to gather in the Pagans into its fold, this festival was found in high favour in many countries. What was to be done with it? Were they to wage war with it? No. This would have been contrary to the famous advice of Pope Gregory I, that, by all means they should meet the Pagans half-way, and so bring them into the Roman Church. The Gregorian policy was carefully observed; and so Midsummer-day, that had been hallowed by Paganism to the worship of Tammuz, was incorporated as a sacred Christian festival in the Roman calendar.
But still a question was to be determined, What was to be the name of this Pagan festival, when it was baptised, and admitted into the ritual of Roman Christianity? To call it by its old name of Bel or Tammuz, at the early period when it seems to have been adopted, would have been too bold. To call it by the name of Christ was difficult, inasmuch as there was nothing special in His history at that period to commemorate. But the subtlety of the agents of the Mystery of Iniquity was not to be baffled. If the name of Christ could not be conveniently tacked to it, what should hinder its being called by the name of His forerunner, John the Baptist? John the Baptist was born six months before our Lord. When, therefore, the Pagan festival of the winter solstice had once been consecrated as the birthday of the Saviour, it followed, as a matter of course, that if His forerunner was to have a festival at all, his festival must be at this very season; for between the 24th of June and the 25th of December--that is, between the summer and the winter solstice--there are just six months. Now, for the purposes of the Papacy, nothing could be more opportune than this. One of the many sacred names by which Tammuz or Nimrod was called, when he reappeared in the Mysteries, after being slain, was Oannes. (29)
In other words this particular day, June 23, the beginning of Saint John’s Day and Midsummer Day is an ancient pagan celebration to the god Baal or Tammuz and it is marked by FIRE. Is it a coincidence that Todd Bentley is always talking about the Fire, and that his ministry is called Fresh Fire?
Here's an early 20th Century NY Times article on the pagan significance of St. John's Day (June 24). Here are just some quotes that highlight fire worship.
"How many and varied have been the forms of what we may term degenerate fire worship, or, rather fire worship ceremonial and superstitious rites engrafted on Christianity?....It appears to me to be simply a survival of the worship of Baal which was the universal fatih of our fathers--a remnant of that great fire worship which prevailed over the whole world, as known to the ancients...." (30)
Here is Todd Calling for a spirit of fire and a spirit of burning. Unfortunately for him he is calling for the judgment of God.
Isa 4:4 - The Lord will wash away the filth of the women of Zion; he will cleanse the bloodstains from Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire.
Mt 3:12 - His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
Mt 13:40 - "As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.
1Co 3:13 - his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work.
Heb 10:27 - but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.
Another interesting occurrence happened on this same date in 1947:
“The modern UFO era and the birth of the extraterrestrial hypothesis began on June 24,1947, when Kenneth Arnold, flying his private plane near Mount Rainier in Washington, reported nine disk-shaped objects flying in formation at speeds he estimated to be over 1,000 miles per hour” (31)
Is this all a coincidence? If so then there seems to be unseen hands arranging these circumstances and causing these men to speak certain phrases on an occult holiday.
Footnotes:
15. http://slaughteringthesheep.wordpress.com/
16. Ibid
17. http://www.elcollie.com/st/fire.html
18. http://www.unleavenedbreadministries.org/?page=revivalspirits
19. http://abominationnation.blogspot.com/2008/05/who-is-todd-bentley.html
20. http://www.smom.org/
21. http://www.sherryshriner.com/rick-joyner.htm
22. www.seekgod.ca/legacy.htm
23. http://www.cephasministry.com/masonic_knights.html
24. http://www.holiday-malta.com/resort/malta/history/knightsofmalta3.htm
25. www.harvestnet.org/lookback/troubleinprophetland.htm
26. www.orderofmalta.org.uk/history.htm
27. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsummer
28. ftp.fortunaty.net/com/sacred-texts/pag/idr/idr23.htm
29. Alexander Hyslop “The Two Babylons” http://philologos.org/__eb-ttb/sect33.htm
30. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?
_r=4&res=950DE1D7173BE733A25751C2A9609C946397
D6CF&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
31. http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2007/06/the-worldwide-u.html
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