Charismatic Captivation

12 REASONS “SPIRITUAL COVENANTS” ARE NOT OF GOD AND UNAUTHORIZED
By Steven Lambert

Fourteen years ago, almost to the day, I wrote and published in an article titled, The Curse of Unauthorized Covenants, a strong warning against engaging in so-called “spiritual covenants” relative to what some Christian leaders refer to as “Covenant Relationships,” which we subsequently published on this site as well as various other websites we maintain. In that article, I referenced and quoted from a portion of one of the last books world-renowned international Bible Teacher Derek Prince authored prior to his death on September 24, 2003, Blessings and Curses. Prince, as I stated in that article, was one of the originators of what became known as the Discipleship or Shepherding Movement, transpiring in the 1970s. To his credit, when the doctrines associated with that movement were challenged and repudiated by numerous prominent church leaders in the mid-‘70s, the highly-respected Bible scholar was the very first of the “Fort Lauderdale Five” to publicly acknowledge the teachings were patently erroneous, recant them, personally repent of propagating them, release everyone who had submitted themselves to him, and ask fellow believers for forgiveness from the spiritual harm he had been instrumental in wreaking upon the Body of Christ.” (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Covering Doctrine, Curses, Discipleship Movement, Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, False Teaching, Leadership, Nicolaitanism, Personal Pastors, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Idolatry by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, authoritarian abuse, Biblical Authority, ECAL, Hyper-authoritarianism, ICA, ICAL, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual adultery, Spiritual Covering, Spiritual Idolatry, USCAL

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[Note: This article is an adaptation from Chapter Five of the book, Charismatic Captivation.]

It is absolutely vital for every minister to understand that the context and sphere of his shepherding is limited primarily to the spiritual. While Fivefold ministers may occasionally be able to proffer some inspired or experiential counsel and advice even regarding natural matters, their foremost calling and enablement is to feed, care for, lead, and guide the sheep of God’s Flock spiritually and in relation to spiritual matters, not so much natural affairs.

We (ministers) are charged by God with the responsibility to feed His sheep spiritual food, to care for them with the spiritual wherewithal of the Holy Spirit, to lead them unto the one and only true Rock of their Salvation and Provider, Jesus, and after the pattern given us by the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4;  Ps. 23) we are to guide them “in the paths of righteousness,” which is, the Way, Truth, and Life of Jesus.

When a minister routinely goes beyond the God set, albeit, invisible, boundaries of his calling and purview of authority, which is the limitation of the spiritual realm primarily, and habitually interlopes into the natural, physical realm, interposing his own will in the ordinary private matters of his followers’ lives, he is engaging in unsanctioned usurpation and illegitimate authority. In the process, he also leaves behind his legitimate duties, responsibilities, and sanctioning from God as an under shepherd, as well as his effectuality. (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Covering Doctrine, Discipleship Movement, Doctrines of Demons, False Teaching, Personal Pastors, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Idolatry by admin / Tags: covering doctrine, Spiritual adultery, Spiritual Covering

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Everything written in this book prior to this last chapter has been dedicated to the purpose of identifying erroneous hyper-authoritarian doctrines and practices being espoused and implemented within Charismatic and other Neo Pentecostal churches and groups. But, certainly, a work such as this would be wholly incomplete and deficient if it did not include instruction regarding how those caught up in the throes of such “charismatic captivation” can be set free and recover from it. This final chapter is devoted to that end.

Over nearly the entire course of my ministry, I have been studying this matter of hyper-authoritarianism, weighing it against Scripture, and ministering in various ways to many victims of authoritarian exploitation and abuse. Based on my experience and the understanding attained during that time, I have concluded there are fifteen primary actions that victims must take in order to break the fetters of predomination binding them and effect a full recovery from all the spiritual and psychological effects they have experienced. Though it is generally prudent to avoid improper dogmatism, there are some matters that require definitive actions in order to achieve a designated result. This, I believe, is one of those matters. Though I believe the steps I proffer here are critical and imperative, I would certainly allow that there could be other actions required to recover from authoritarian exploitation that I have not delineated. However, the ones I have enumerated here, I believe are absolutely necessary if effectual and comprehensive recovery is to be realized.

Although the effects of authoritarian abuse are profound, the actions necessary to break its bondage and to bring recovery are comparatively simple; not simplistic, perhaps, but simple. Thus, I have presented them in as simple and straightforward terms as I know how to present them, not only because of their simplicity, but also in order to make them as understandable as possible. (more…)

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There is no matter more central and critical to spiritual knowledge and understanding than the matter of authority. That fact becomes even more apparent when one considers that the very term “Kingdom of God” actually connotes the Domain, Authority, or Government of God (cf., Rev. 12:10). The word, “kingdom,” in fact, is a compound word composed of two derivatives, king and domain, thus it connotes the domain of a king—in this case, the Kingdom of God or Christ. One cannot even begin to have a proper understanding of the realm of the Kingdom of God as well as the genuine Gospel of the Kingdom, which the Gospel writers expressly indicated Jesus preached during His fleshly ministry, without having an understanding of the matter of authority. (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Domination & Control, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Biblical Authority, Hyper-authoritarianism, Illegitimate Authority

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At the zenith of the Charismatic Movement in the 1970s, a pseudo-movement that came to be known as the Discipleship or Shepherding Movement emerged. That purely humanly-devised campaign was led by an alliance of five ministers who employed their influence to rapidly proliferate in the emerging Charismatic Church a collection of doctrines related to authority that were patently hyper-authoritarian. In sum, the unscriptural teachings posited and promoted a multi-tiered, pyramid-shaped system of governance that conveniently positioned these five ministers at the apex of the pyramid. Coincidentally or not, the multi-level paradigm these teachers proposed mirrored the multi-level marketing models that were exploding upon the scene across the nation at the time in the business world. (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, False Teaching, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Absolute Submission, False Doctrines, Latter Rain Movement, Spiritual Abuse

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Though the term is a fairly familiar one within the context of the church and Christianity, few people really understand what spiritual idolatry is, meaning its true nature. In this article we are going to consider the matter of spiritual idolatry and what it is from a Biblical standpoint.

To merely call idolatry “sin,” though it certainly is, somehow seems an extreme understatement, for it is the ultimate affront unto God. Yet, arguably, it is the most pervasive sin of all today among professing believers. Contributing to the prevalence of idolatry within Christendom, no doubt, is the common perception by many that idolatry is something that occurs only in underdeveloped, far-away, foreign lands, or that it is something relegated mostly to ancient civilizations of past ages, while nothing could be further from the truth. (more…)

Posted in: Doctrines of Demons, False Teaching, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Idolatry by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Idolatry

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The main focus of the initial installment of our discussion was the matter of hyper-authoritarianism in general and how easy it is for the most principled spiritual leaders to cross over the “thin line of leadership” between leading and lording, discipling and dominating, coaching and coercing, to operate in “foul ground” without even realizing it. In this part, we begin turning our attention to some of the whys and wherefors of ecclesiastical predominance.

Of course, as was pointed out in Part 1, there is nothing new about authoritarian abuse by spiritual leaders. In any age, there is no shortage of unscrupulous religious dictators bent on self-aggrandizement facilitated through personal kingdom-building purportedly “in the name of the Lord.” Nevertheless, while it is not indigenous exclusively to our time, due perhaps to the move toward organizational ecumenicism commonly referred to today as “networking,” there is little doubt that it is more widespread than ever before, to the point that sadly the term, “ubiquitous,” now applies. Unfortunately, today there is little difference between the ecclesiastical and the secular realm with respect to corruption. And, after no small number of years of studying this phenomenon, I have concluded that the primary cause is nothing more sophisticated than base greed fueled by the oldest and most powerful human propensity which God Himself testifies is the ROOT of ALL evil — “the love of money.” (more…)

Posted in: Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, Leadership, Personal Pastors, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Leadership, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse

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There is a very thin line between leading and lording, discipling and dominating, coaching and coercing. So thin is the line, it is at times and in certain scenarios nearly indistinguishable.

Indeed, church leaders commonly cross the divide without even realizing it, and are much chagrined upon discovery of their transgression. Moreover, many find themselves alternately on one side or the other of the line at different times. For the majority of sincere, upstanding, and ethical ministers, transversing — or transgressing, as it may be — the line is altogether unintentional, and when they suddenly find themselves on the wrong side, they cannot remember when, how, or even why the misstep occurred. Unfortunately there are also ministers not of this upright ilk, who intentionally and indeed unabashedly leap over the boundary line to operate in “foul territory” as their habitual modus operandi. (more…)

Posted in: Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, Leadership, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Leadership, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse

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The adulterated concept of “spiritual covering” itself is problematic enough. Yet, its negative effect is increased by the fact that it is the predicate for several other, related elements of error comprising the heretical Discipleship/Shepherding doctrines and practices, one of which is the matter of “personal pastors.” Indeed, this element has been the basis for at least as much excess, errancy, and authoritarian abuse as the others discussed in this series of articles concerning those doctrines and practices. To those who employ these practices for sordid purposes or with less than pure motives, the perverted concept of “spiritual covering” is sanction for a most insidious kind of unauthorized personal domination and control of their subjects under the auspices of this very delusive and destructive version of “personal shepherding.” (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, Personal Pastors, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Personal Pastors, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse

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The adulterated concept of “spiritual covering” itself is problematic enough (for more on that subject, read the previous two posts). Yet, its negative effect is increased by the fact that it is the predicate for several other, related elements of error comprising the heretical Discipleship/Shepherding doctrines and practices, one of which is the matter of “personal pastors.” Indeed, this element has been the basis for at least as much excess, errancy, and authoritarian abuse as the others discussed in this series of articles concerning those doctrines and practices. To those who employ these practices for sordid purposes or with less than pure motives, the perverted concept of “spiritual covering” is license for a most insidious kind of unauthorized personal domination and control of their subjects under the auspices of this very delusive and destructive version of “personal shepherding.” (more…)

Posted in: Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, Personal Pastors, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Personal Pastors, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse

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“Spiritual covering” as theorized by the Discipleship theosophy is an absolute MYTH. No semblance of the Shepherding teaching version of “spiritual covering” exists anywhere within the pages of Scripture. “Spiritual covering,” in the vein it is presented by proponents and propagators of these hyper-authoritarian teachings, is an outright deception! It is a complete fabrication concocted by the originators of these fallacious doctrines as a supposed pretext for facilitation of entirely self-aggrandizing objectives of subjugation, domination, and control. (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Covering Doctrine, Discipleship Movement, Doctrines of Demons, Domination & Control, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Personal Pastors, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Covering

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Wholesale abuse and misuse of authority is an integral part of the very foundation, fabric, and functions of an ever increasing number of church groups today who are engaging in the most insidious form of hyper-authoritarianism by which they are dominating, controlling, and manipulating their followers for personal gain and private kingdom-building. Being able to readily identify the signs and symptoms of authoritarian abuse and psychological enslavement is absolutely essential for every believer in their quest to know and be personally related to the Great Shepherd, who is the Prince of Peace and the true “Guardian of our souls,” rather than the thousands of counterfeit  shepherds claiming to be the proxies of Christ. (more…)

Posted in: Absolute Submission, Covering Doctrine, Discipleship Movement, Domination & Control, Spiritual Abuse by admin / Tags: Abuse of Authority, Shepherding Movement, Spiritual Abuse, Spiritual Covering

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