In Part 1 & Part 2 of our Need for Creed series we have looked at how the creeds came about to refute ancient heresies; and the need for discipleship and biblical understanding.

Here in Part 3, we will examine in a little more detail a few of the ways that some of these ancient heresies are sneaking into one of the most influential churches of our time, Bethel Church, Redding, California.

Now, the purpose of this piece is not to simply issue a warning on NAR (New Apostolic Reformation) theology and practices, nor indeed to point the finger too harshly. There are matters of concern with many other denominations too. Indeed, I believe it is important to recognise that many who are attracted to Bethel and related churches have had a deep experience of Jesus, have a great love for him and are serving him faithfully. There is much the wider Church could learn from them, not least their willingness to step out in faith for healing, making open a space for God’s miraculous intervention in this world.

However, concerns about the movement include, among others (which we will touch on another time), the following teachings:

• Jesus was not both fully man and fully God – This is an echo of the heresy of Arius/Arianism.
• There is truth about God outside the Bible – This is a repetition of the one of the heresies of Gnosticism.

Teaching that Jesus was not both human and divine

Bill Johnson says in his book, When Heaven Invades Earth, that “He (Jesus) performed miracles, wonders, and signs, as a man in right relationship to God…...not as God”.

Intentionally or not, this teaches that Jesus, when on earth, was not both fully human and divine (the heresy of Arius). Although this major error, together with its variations, was condemned throughout the Church, and rejected by all the major Church Councils, they are beliefs that Johnson continuously refers to. They are also beliefs that are repeated throughout his other books. For instance, in The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind, Johnson writes in a chapter ironically called ‘Celebrating the Living Word’:

“How many people came to Jesus for a miracle and left disappointed? None! He was 100 percent successful as a man dependent on God.”

“He said of Himself in John 5:19, ‘The Son can do nothing of Himself’. He had set aside His divinity. He did miracles as man in right relationship with God because He was setting forth a model for us, something for us to follow. If He did miracles as God we would all be extremely impressed, but we would have no compulsion to emulate Him. But when we see that God has commissioned us to do what Jesus did – and more – then we realise that He put self-imposed restrictions on Himself to show us we could do it too.

"Jesus so emptied Himself that He was incapable of doing what was required of Him by the Father – without the Father’s help.”

This quotation is incredibly nuanced, with truth embedded within it. As the epistles tell us: “Jesus emptied himself and counted himself not equal with God” (Php 2:6-7). And this, in our sense, reveals the deep danger of heresy. Heresy is never diametrically opposed to truth. If it was, it would be readily identified. Instead, heresy broadly runs with faith until the moment it takes a small, but critical, diversion from the truth. This makes it easier for apologists to argue that this is simply a small issue.

Heresy is never diametrically opposed to truth. If it was, it would be readily identified. Instead, heresy broadly runs with faith until the moment it takes a small, but critical, diversion from the truth.

Bill Johnson’s intentions may well be good – encouraging Christians to step out in faith to bring healing to a hurting world. But through this teaching, Johnson and the NAR churches inadvertently promote a false teaching similar to the heresy of Arius (Arianism), who taught that Jesus was created, and was a lesser being than God – a teaching that nearly overwhelmed the early Church in the 4th century.

Johnson’s core theology constantly rejects the divine nature of Jesus, and the accepted view of the Creeds that Jesus was both God and man – “begotten not made and being of the same substance with the Father”. His teachings by implication mean that man is glorified, and a lesser Jesus is promoted, with the blasphemous idea that God requires our cooperation because he is weak.

Looking for Truth Outside the Bible

One of the heresies of Gnosticism was looking for truth about God outside of the Bible – a search for ‘hidden knowledge’.

Johnson, like all the senior NAR leaders, approves of the need to read the Bible, and in many respects takes it very seriously. However, he also places an emphasis on revelation about God from sources outside the Scriptures. There is a belief in revelation from whatever the source. The Physics of Heaven is arguably a typical product of this thinking from within the Bethel stable; Ellyn Davis, who is described as an administrative assistant to Bill Johnson, co-authored the book together with Judy Franklin. Kris Vallotton, Senior Associate Leader of Bethel, wrote the Forward, and its contributors are all associates of Johnson.

In a chapter with the rather dubious title ‘Extracting the Precious’, she starts with a verse: “If you extract the precious from the worthless, you will become My spokesman” (Jer.15:19).

However, the vast majority of Bible translations render this differently, “If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall serve as my mouth” (RSV). A writer intending to tackle theological topics should go about this by comparing translations, as all preachers and Bible teachers are encouraged to do, to help get the best understanding, rather than basing an entire theology on something that is pulled out of context.

We all need each other to both encourage and to correct.

The Physics of HeavenUnfortunately, this is what Davis goes on to do. She then describes how in 2006 she took a job in Arizona, considered the global epicentre of New Age thought and practice, and what she found there; “I saw healing and mystical experiences and revelations to rival anything I had seen or experienced in the church. It wasn’t that I wanted to become a New Ager, I just wanted to find out if maybe they had uncovered some truths the church hadn’t. The strange thing was, much of what I saw and heard embodied biblical principles and could be backed up by Scripture” (no examples given).

Presumably referring back to her misquotation from Jeremiah that we need to extract the precious from the worthless, she continues “Now we are beginning to hear more and more revelation that is in line with what New Agers have been saying all along and we are hearing more and more teaching about Christians ‘taking back truth’ from the New Age that really belong to the citizens of the Kingdom of God.”

She ends the chapter by saying, “I believe the Holy Spirit is moving again. So do all the Christian writers (i.e. presumably her Bethel associates) who are contributing to this book……..They also all agree that there are precious truths hidden in the New Age that belong to us as Christians and need to be extracted from the worthless.”

In other words, there is strong evidence that the churches of the New Apostolic Reformation do not believe in the sufficiency of Scripture, and they pick and mix ‘truth’ from New Age and pagan thought with whatever appeals to them from whatever the source. It feels a great distance from the pearl of great price. (To be fair, Bethel is not alone in this. Even as far back as 1995, Prophecy Today was reporting New Age involvement within the Church of England [PT, Vol 11 No 6, 1995]).

I write this not to condemn those involved in these ministries, but with the purpose of encouraging them to go back to basics, to look at the creeds and the long-standing teachings of the Church, and to reevaluate how and what they are teaching, to ensure that it is thoroughly biblical. We all need each other to both encourage and to correct. As the final words in the book of Deuteronomy say:
“Hazak, hazak, v’nit hazek” – Be strong, be strong and let us strengthen one another.