A Personal Testimony for Monday, 6/8/26
As a young adult, I felt like my church was dead, and I longed to be around Christians who were excited about knowing Jesus. I was drawn to the emotional, enthusiastic praise and worship I found in a NAR/Word of Faith church.
This is how easily a new Christian, or anyone not grounded in God’s Word, can get caught up in error. That’s why pastors and teachers must teach the flock about false teachers and false prophets.
Many Christians think that when you have God’s Holy Spirit within you, He will keep you from accepting error, but this is not always the case, as when Paul had to correct Peter (Galatians 2:11-21).
The NAR movement often introduces new apostles, prophets, and ongoing new revelation, leading to a disregard for the sufficiency of Scripture. Extra-biblical revelations often take precedence over the written Word. In fact, the sermons of these false teachers are often based more on the words of their “prophets” than on the Word of God.
For example, sermons may focus on “the coming revival”, “the 7 Mountain Mandate”, or “prosperity and wealth”, none of which can be found in the Bible.
“However, a strong Biblical foundation enables believers to discern true spirituality from practices that may lack a solid Scriptural basis.” Bruce Cooper
An overemphasis on emotional experiences can overshadow the need for diligent study and accurate interpretation of Scripture. Verses are frequently taken out of context to support erroneous teaching.
These movements erode faith, trust, and dependency on the authority of God’s Holy Word by emphasizing personal experiences and extrabiblical revelations. Therefore, it is crucial that believers maintain a strong, unwavering commitment to the study of God’s Word, making it the foundation of their faith.
After a while, I started to see contradictions in what was being taught and what the Bible said. For example, my church focused on the “prosperity gospel”, which teaches that God wants to make you rich. I started to question this. I thought, ” Is that something the Bible emphasizes? 1 Timothy 6 often came to mind.
“If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, they are conceited and understand nothing. They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between people of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” 1 Timothy 6:3-10 NIV
So, how did God change my thinking? He drew me to His Word, the Holy Bible, and showed me Truth. It’s really that simple. It took time, but I went from being enthusiastically convinced that these false teachings were true, to questioning some things, to being set free!
Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32 NIV
For more on this topic and to better understand the NAR, read The Framework Series by Bruce Cooper
In His Love, Cindy
To learn more about Jesus, read Who Is Jesus? A message for the Skeptic
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: May they prosper who love you.
Psalm 122:6 NASB
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