Challenging the nonsensical rants of Rick Joyner
Challenging the nonsensical rants of Rick Joyner
Pastor Rick Joyner is another "typical Christian" who preaches the gospel according to himself. We first challenged one of his 2003 articles entitled, "Doctrines of Demons" (which he has since removed) that referred directly to "the evils" of Messianic Judaism. Like all other Christians who haven't got a clue about Torah, Joyner insists that Torah observance means you're "under the law." In the meantime, he keeps espousing various other ideas that in no way line up with Scripture. Featured for a long time in various places on the internet was a five-minute video of one of Joyner's "meetings" wherein some woman named Tory "releases" something that Joyner said was like a "starting gun." On that video one could literally feel and hear the demonic presence that is evident in Rick Joyner's ministry. It is scary to think that people like Joyner and his ilk actually have followers!
Joyner is part of the NEW APOSTOLIC REFORMATION movement (also known as Dominionism, Third Wave, Latter Rain, Kingdom Now, Joel's Army, Manifest Sons of God), that suggests "prophets" and "apostles" alone have the power and authority to execute God's plans and purposes on earth. They believe that heaven is coming down to earth through them, and place a greater emphasis on dreams, visions and extra-biblical revelation than they do on the Bible, claiming that their revealed teachings and reported experiences (e.g. trips to heaven, face-to-face conversations with Jesus, visits by angels) cannot be proven by the 'old' Scripture.
The many false teachings of Pastor Rick Joyner are not only evident in his sermons and teachings, but can also be found in his book, "There Were Two Trees In The Garden", pp. 9-10 wherein he wrote:
"The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil is a powerful Biblical model of the Law. As the Apostle Paul declared "The power of sin is the law" (I Corinthians 15:56). This is because it is through the Law that we must derive our knowledge of good and evil. We may wonder how this knowledge brings death until we see the fruit. The knowledge of good and evil kills us by distracting us from the One who is the source of life; the Tree of Life - Jesus. The Tree of Knowledge causes us to focus our attention upon ourselves. Sin is empowered by the law; not just because the evil is revealed but the good as well. It drives us either to corruption or self-righteousness, both of which lead to death."
How Joyner came to the above conclusion is anybody's guess. How can the Laws of God - YHWH's Torah (Divine Instructions in Holiness) be forbidden? Without Torah we would have NO blueprint for moral, holy living!...Joyner then goes on to quote Paul who said, "The power of sin is the law." Let's examine what Paul actually said and meant, in context:
I Corinthians 15: 56. Now the sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is Torah.[1] 57. But thanks be to Elohim that gives us the victory, through our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach. 58. Wherefore, my Brothers and my beloved, be steadfast, and not weak willed; but be at all times generous in the work of Master YHWH; seeing you know that your labor is not in vain in Master YHWH. (Aramaic English New Testament)
[1] When Torah is diminished, the knowledge of sin is diminished; when Torah is increased the knowledge of sin is increased. The strength of sin is Torah, because it is Torah which makes it clear or plain what sin is; Torah explains sin and clarifies it. The sting of death is brought on by sin; the strength of sin is elucidated in Torah.
Another place where we can see that Rick Joyner has no clue about the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob or His Word is in his open support for the tatooed "pastor" Todd Bentley who, in his Lakeland Revival in 2008 insisted the Holy Spirit supposedly told him to heal a woman by insisting he "kick that woman in the face with" his biker boot, while at other times he banged a crippled woman's legs on a platform "like a baseball bat," choked a man, "leg-dropped" a pastor, and hit a man so hard it dislodged a tooth - all because God supposedly told him to do so. It was later discovered that Bentley was supposedly having an "emotional affair" during his Lakeland Revival and may have also have had an "excessive drinking problem"...which all apparently led to the eventual divorce from his wife....
Regardless, Pastor Rick Joyner - who blasts anyone who "is judging" Bentley - wants to have him "restored as soon as possible" to the pulpit. Below are some snippets from his article entitled "Todd Bentley Restoration Part II":
But first, here is the bottom line up front:
Mr. Joyner seems to be completely ignoring the fact that Todd Bentley is no longer qualified to be a spiritual leader! See 1st Timothy, Chapters 3 trough 6, which tell us in part:
1 Timothy 3: 1. It is a faithful saying that if a man desires the eldership, he desires a good work. 2. And an elder should be such that no blame can be found in him; and he should be the husband of one wife, with a vigilant mind and sober and reliable (in his behaviors), and affectionate to strangers, and instructive, 3. and not a transgressor in regard to wine, and whose hand is not swift to strike; but he should be humble and not contentious, nor a lover of money; 4. and one that guides well his own house and holds his children in subjection with all purity. 5. For if he knows not how to guide his own house well, how can he guide the assembly of Elohim? 6. Neither let him be of recent discipleship, or else he be uplifted and fall into the condemnation of Satan. 7. And there should be good testimony of him from those without; or else he fall into reproach and the snare of Satan. (Aramaic English New Testament/AENT)
1 Timothy 5: 20. Those who sin, before all rebuke that the rest of the people may fear. 21. I charge you before Elohim and our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach and his elect Messengers, that you observe these things; and let not your mind be preoccupied by anything: and do nothing with a respect for persons. (AENT)
Hebrews 10: 26 For if we deliberately continue to sin after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but only the terrifying prospect of Judgment, or raging fire that will consume the enemies.
Rick Joyner's comments:
...Restoration is actually the most basic theme the Bible, and is the theme of all but four chapters in the Bible-the first two and the last two. In the third chapter of Genesis, there is the Fall, and after that the entire Bible is devoted to the redemption, reconciliation, and restoration of man and the earth from the Fall. In the last two chapters of Revelation, this restoration has been completed....
NOTE FROM THE REFINER'S FIRE: Actually, TORAH is the "most basic theme" in the Bible. YHWH tells us time after time that He wants us to OBEY His Commands! The lack of obedience is why Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden. After that, YHWH reached out to restore man's relationship with God, but that required CONSTANT obedience! See, for example, Gen. 26:2-5; Ex. 15:25-27; Ex. 16; Ex. 20:6; Lev. 22, 26, 27; Num. 15, 36; Deut. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 26, 27, 28, 30, 31. This includes the keeping of the SEVENTH-DAY Sabbath (Genesis 2:3) which God commanded in places such as Exodus 31:13-16, Isaiah 66:23 and Isaiah 58:13; along with the keeping of the Biblical feasts - God's appointed times - as outlined in Leviticus 23, and the below:
Leviticus 18: 5 You are to obey my Laws (Torah), if a person does them, he will have LIFE through them.
Deuteronomy 30: 15 I set before you today LIFE and death. 16 For I command you today to love YHWH, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws.
Deuteronomy 6: 1 Now these are the commands, the laws and rulings which YHWH ordered me to teach you, for you to obey in the land you are crossing over to possess, 2 so that you will fear YHWH your Mighty One and observe all his regulations and Laws that I am giving you - you, your child and your grandchild - as long as you live, and so that you will have long LIFE.
Deuteronomy 32: 46 "Take to heart all the words of my testimony against you today, so that you can use them in charging your children to be careful to obey all the words of this Torah. 47 For this is not a trivial matter for you; on the contrary, it is your LIFE!"
Proverbs 4:2 2 "I give you good instruction: Do not forsake my Torah".
Though it seems there is a running theme of "restoration" between the first and last books in the Bible, just what is the cause of this need for "restoration"? In all cases, it is because the people strayed from obeying YHWH, from His Torah! And since Mr. Joyner recognizes that the restoration is completed in the last two chapters of Revelation, let's ask him if he knows who the last two chapters of Revelation are directed to! They are directed to "they who are registered in the Lamb???s book of life" (Rev 21:27). So who gets registered in the Lamb???s book of life? Those who obeyed Torah! Read it from a valid translation Mr. Joyner! Revelation 22: 14 "Blessed are they who do His Mitzvot, that they may have a right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates into the city."
Note regarding the above verse: Many translations substitute the phrase "who wash their robes" for the original "who do His Mitzvot" (See the Aramaic English New Testament, page 706). But if the reader will not accept that the Bible was often mistranslated, and that the correct translation of Rev 22:14 is "who do His Mitzvot," then please look at Revelation 12:17 - "And the dragon was enraged against the woman; and he went to make war upon the remnant of her seed who kept the Commandments of Elohim and have the testimony of Y???shua." You see, it???s those who obey Torah who are in the book of life!
Joyner continues:
...One issue that seems to be a focal point in our seeking to restore Todd is how wroth some leaders are to this very idea that Todd could actually be restored to ministry after what he has done. Not surprisingly, most of these seem to be the same ones who were critics of the Lakeland Revival or to Todd???s ministry before that. I don???t want to marginalize their concerns regardless of their previous or present positions, and I consider that most of these are sincerely concerned for the sake of righteousness and/or not causing many more to stumble by thinking too casually about divorce. These concerns I share. However, we need to also consider how much of this concern is also rooted in a flawed perception of what ministry is supposed to be. To many, it is a profession rather than a calling and viewed as a means of self-promotion or self-fulfillment rather than the sacrifice it is supposed to be.
...I do consider that God???s redemption, reconciliation, and restoration are meant to be total. I went into this process of Todd???s restoration to see him fully restored to ministry in the truest sense of the word-a life of sacrifice, of taking up the cross daily to do the will of the Lord-not just building a big or famous presence in the church or the world. However, I also recognize that Todd has that characteristic, which is also an anointing, to attract multitudes. This is also part of what makes people either love or hate him, with very few being indifferent. That is not going to go away, but it will likely increase....
....One of the first things the Lord said to me about Todd???s situation was that He was going to use it to expose a lot of foolishness because "fools rush to judgment." Impatience is not a fruit of the Spirit.
NOTE FROM THE REFINER'S FIRE: So, "the Lord" is going to use Bentley's situation to punish US - those who have chosen to obey God and to "call onto the carpet" those pastors - the guys who are "shepherding" people, and yet have the audacity to deliberately stray? The guys YHWH commanded to be sin free?...
YHWH said "Do not commit adultery" (Luke 18:20) and He told us not to be "drunk on wine" (Ephesians 5:18). Apparently Bentley, the preacher who was conducting one of the biggest revivals in history and who surely knew better, was guilty of both! The Scriptures tell us that priests of YHWH were to be above reproach. (Rules for YHWH's priests can be found in Leviticus 21.) Examples:
Priests were to have no bodily defects or imperfections (Bentley's body is covered with tatooes!), and the High Priest could only marry a virgin. They were to drink no wine during the time of their ministrations. The priest, referred to some 700 times in the Old Testament and 80 in the New, was identified with sacrifice, intercession, and blessing. At the heart of his character was holiness (Exodus 39:30; Ezekiel 44:11). He was called to wholeness, symbolized by his exclusion from the altar if he had any physical impairments (Lev. 21:17). All this was necessary, for the priest was invited into the presence of God....
Those who have been "ordained" by man as pastors, should do everything in their power to strive to be as perfect as God expected the priests of old to be. It is a Christian myth that they are exempt from purity just because they "believe in Jesus"! Therefore, while we as an assembly of YHWH are certainly are called on to "forgive" mistakes, we're not called on to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear when it comes to our supposedly "holy pastors" and repeat offenders who don't seem to realize that God is watching them perpetrate their deliberate sinning; we are called upon to use some common sense! Why should we "reinstate" pastors who drink excessively or flirt and/or commit adultery for months or years, to the point where they end up divorced? Those things are no "accidents" - they are DELIBERATE sinning!
Titus 1: 13: This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;
Titus 3: 10. An heretical man, after you have instructed him once and then again, avoid: 11. and know that such a man is perverse and sinful, and self-condemned.
Corinthians 6: 17. For you are the temple of the living Elohim; as it is said, I will dwell among them, and walk among them, and will be their Elohim, and they will be my people. 17. Wherefore, you come out from among them, and be separate from them says Master YHWH; and don't come near the unclean thing, and I will receive you;
Joyner continues:
..."I can???t imagine what it was like for Todd???s wife or staff as he endured eighteen months of this, but they???re all saints in my book."
..."I know the reasons why some put time limits for people to be out of ministry if they have had a moral failure. They can have good reasons for this, but I do not see that anywhere in Scripture. I felt that the Lord showed me that this is an affront to Him.
..."I make no apology for the fact that we are seeking to restore Todd to ministry. I would like to see it done as quickly as possible, but only if it is done right. I understand that many think it is the wrong signal to send to put someone back in the pulpit right after divorcing their wife or husband. However, it is also the wrong message to send out that people are disqualified if they???ve had such a failure in their lives. That is an affront to the cross too and belittles its power to redeem. I also don???t think the Lord likes to be put in some of the time boxes we come up with for Him.
NOTE FROM THE REFINER'S FIRE: By restoring to the pulpit a preacher who deliberately sinned, you are sending the message that divorce - which YHWH said He HATES - is an okay thing to do.
Malachi 2: 16 "For I hate divorce," says ADONAI the God of Isra'el, "and him who covers his clothing with violence," says ADONAI-Tzva'ot. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and don't break faith.
Malachi 2: 7 "For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, and people should seek the law from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. 8 But you have departed from the way; you have caused many to stumble at the law".
It is obvious that Rick Joyner has overlooked the Scriptures that tell us there is NO sin sacrifice for deliberate and continued sinning. It's easier to pick and choose what we want from the Bible and to insist that those of us who don't believe a deliberate sinner should be restored are guilty of "judging." Those scriptures about "judging" our neighbors are not suggesting we turn a blind eye to our neighbors sins, but rather, we are to weigh them against what TORAH says and act accordingly, as we are supposed to "rebuke them sharply" (Titus 1:13) if they are sinning against God.
James 4: 10. Humble yourselves before Master YHWH and He will exalt you. 11. Speak not against each other, my Brothers; for he that speaks against his brother, or judges his brother speaks against Torah and judges Torah. And if you judge Torah, you are not a doer of Torah, but its judge.* (AENT)
FOOTNOTE: If you add your own judgments to those already established in the Torah of YHWH, then you have judged Torah as insufficient, and are not allowing it to be your judge.
Take a look at what Yeshua said concerning deliberate sinning:
Hebrews 10: 26 For if we deliberately continue to sin after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but only the terrifying prospect of Judgment, or raging fire that will consume the enemies.
The above Scripture is not referring to those unclean bondages that dwell in our flesh but to the conscious choices believers make. It refers not to our unintentional sins but to those we pursue knowingly and willingly.
Leviticus 26: 23 If, in spite of all this, you refuse my correction and still go against me; then I too will go against you; and I, yes I, will strike you seven times over for your sins.
1 Corinthians 6: 9. Or don't you know, that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of Elohim?* Make no mistake! Neither sexual sinners, nor idol-worshippers, nor adulterers, nor the corrupt, nor men who lay down with other men, 10. Nor the oppressors, nor thieves, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, will inherit the Kingdom of Elohim. (AENT)
FOOTNOTE: Compare this to Matthew 5:17-20, where we are told that breaking the least commandment of Torah and teaching others to do the same makes a person "least in the kingdom" but they still get in. Y'shua implies that those with more serious sins won't make it in: "Depart from me, workers of iniquity, I never knew you"; but here, Rav Shaul gives a more specific list of what will keep them out.
1 Corinthians 6: 17. But he that joins himself to our Master (Y'shua), is with him one spirit. 18. Flee from sexual sin. For every (other) sin which a man commits, is external to his body*; but he that commits sexual sin, sins against his own body. (AENT)
FOOTNOTE: Actually the sexual sin goes deeper than the body, as the note on Romans 1:26 shows. But the other point is also that a sexual sinner brings sin upon himself rather than his partner, and vice versa, unless rape or abuse is involved.
James 4: 4. You adulterers, don't you know that the love of the world is hatred towards Elohim? He therefore who chooses to be a lover of this world is the enemy of Elohim. (AENT)
James 4: 17. He that knows the good and does it not, to him is sin. (AENT)
II Corinthians 11: 13 The fact is that such men are pseudo-emissaries: they tell lies about their work and masquerade as emissaries of the Messiah. 14 There is nothing surprising in that, for the Adversary himself masquerades as an angel of light; 15 so it's no great thing if his workers masquerade as servants of righteousness. They will meet the end their deeds deserve.