The Great Outpouring of Wealth

PROSPERITY plus POWER

The Dominionists are hitching a ride on the prosperity gospel train. And by combining the two grandiose ideas they are getting more mileage. They claim there is going to be a great outpouring of wealth (prosperity) with which to build their global kingdom (power).

This is the latest aberration of the oldtime prosperity heresy – also known as “name it and claim it,” “seed faith,” or “health and wealth” gospels. This get-rich teaching was popularized by the Word-Faith movement:

The Word-Faith Teachers. This is the group that would seek to convince us that Jesus and His disciples were rich, that to be poor is a sin, to be sick is a sin, and that faith is a creative force that we can use to shape our world just like God supposedly created this world and universe that we live in through His “faith”!

Kenneth Hagin, Kenneth Copeland, Paul Crouch, John Avanzini, Robert Tilton, Fred Price, and Benny Hinn… are just a few that spew out this theological vomit.[4]

These men gained prominence as televangelists, thus enabling their false doctrines to become household items.

The new generation of prosperity preachers, Creflo Dollar, Paula White, Joel Osteen, and a host of other ‘luminaries’ took the humble health and wealth gospel to another level. Rather than focus on audience healings and testimonies, the leaders themselves became advertisements for the movement, highlighting their expensive cars, airplanes, homes, and perfectly-toned bodies as a way to show their parishioners and followers across the world that prosperity was the way.[5]

This “seed faith” doctrine teaches that if one gives money they will get rewards. Plus, there are promises of financial miracles and windfalls if one applies certain, supposedly biblical, economic “principles” or “laws.” This false gospel also teaches that one can invoke things in heaven on earth, including especially wealth. Prosperity is seen as an entitlement and an inheritance which one should name and claim as rightfully theirs. Closely connected with this heresy are the warfare prayer ideas taught by C. Peter Wagner. Even during his Third Wave era (1990s) he was already linking Dominionism (power) to prosperity.

“As I have mentioned several times, the ultimate focus is world evangelization. Warfare prayer is not an end in itself, but a means of opening the way for the Kingdom of God to come, not only in evangelism, but also in social justice and material sufficiency.”[6]

When C. Peter Wagner formed his New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) in the late 1990s, he reinvigorated the Latter Rain/Manifest Sons of God false prophecies about a great endtime revival accompanied by signs and wonders. A great influx of money was promised to facilitate this revival, and as the years went by, the NAR “prophecies” about a great outpouring of wealth began to increase in intensity and frequency.

In 2000 NAR leader Jim Goll wrote about a World Congress of Intercession he attended in Colorado Springs held by the newly formed Apostolic Council of Prophetic Elders (Goll attended the meeting, and included in the list of attendees such notables as C. Peter Wagner, Mike and Cindy Jacobs, Chuck Pierce, Dutch Sheets, Bart Pierce, Tommy Tenny, Kingsley Fletcher, Mike Bickle, Paul Cain, John and Paula Sanford, Bill Hammond, James Ryle, Beth Alves, Barbara Wentrouble). This group issued 12 points for the next decade, “prophecies” about a much-antiticpated outpouring of wealth, such as:

• as we learn God’s kingdom principles for economics. It is important to invest in Kingdom structures rather than in the world’s economic systems in this hour.
• We will see tremendous transfers of wealth into the Kingdom of God through the ministry of “market apostles” (those with apostolic anointing for business and other areas of society).

But by now these leaders were also aggressively prophesying Dominion, and the two ideas were becoming intertwined in a volatile new combination of both power and prosperity:

• Government shakings: God is going to shake Government. Rulers will bow their knee to the Lord of Glory and dedicate their nations to the Lord Jesus Christ.
• The Government of God’ kingdom will be established through the apostolic and prophetic authorities in cities and nations.[7]

That was just the beginning. The latest postings this past year on The Elijah List, chief organ of the NAR, reveal that the call for Dominionism (power) is now consistently being linked to wealth (prosperity), obvious incentives for those who are deluded by these lusts of the flesh. But the military rhetoric has now also been added to the mix, teaching that one must not only claim their inheritance (“name-it-and-claim-it”), but also war for their supposed inheritance! The Elijah List has been promoting events like “The Transference of Wealth 2010 Conference with Pat Francis, Hank Kunneman, Judy Jacobs, John Benefiel, Trent Cory and more! September 9-12, 2010 in Oklahoma City, OK,” described as “a strategic gathering geared towards preparing YOU for the transfer of wealth that God is depositing into the Body of Christ this season!” The conference promo promises that this is

the year where God would strategically shift members of the Body of Christ, moving them into their places of inheritance and prosperity, divinely orchestrating circumstances so that the wealth that we are destined to possess would be transferred into our lives! The Lord showed me that in 2010, He would release several different income streams, and that it would be likened unto Genesis 2:10. There will be a release of wealth through creativity in 2010 that will cause people to think a thing that will produce Kingdom ideas that have the potential to produce billions of dollars in revenue.

The Transference of Wealth 2010 Conference will prepare you to:

• Understand the war over the transfer of wealth being transferred into the hands of the Kingdom of God from the grip of the enemy!
• Receive keys to break the power of poverty and lack!
• Receive the anointing for wealth!
• Receive new strength to war, prophesy, and break through!
• Understand how to position yourself to receive the transfer of wealth!
• Become strong and do great exploits for the Kingdom!
• Dethrone the spirit of Mammon that tries to rule over finances
• Receive the spoils of war!
• Understand how Kingdom Wealth is vital to establishing God’s covenant!
• Take the keys of the Kingdom and war through prayer and intercession for release of wealth and inheritance![8]

Along with this, the conference also promotes the heresy that “Heaven and earth are aligning!… It is time for God’s army to ARISE and SHINE with glory and new strength!”

The Elijah List also advertised the “Kingdom Economic Yearly Summit” Austin, TX held on April 22-25, 2009, which claimed that “God is preparing His Bride, the Body of Christ, for unprecedented wealth transfer,” and urged “marketplace leaders to become more united, connected, networked, intentional and strategic in order to infiltrate the seven societal mountains/cultural spheres, and to exercise authority and influence over their respective gates and gatekeepers.” Positioning itself as an economic summit, this group expressed its Dominionist wealth goals ominously as:

The Holy Spirit is calling the valley of dry bones together (Ezek. 37) in the marketplace to rise up and come to life, to connect and knit together, to align into unity of purpose and order, to prosper and multiply, and to deploy strategically to conquer and occupy territory (spheres of influence and authority) as a vast endtime army of the Lord. It is a set and appointed time in 2009 for the Church to hold its second Kingdom Economic Yearly Summit, just as the nations of the earth hold the World Economic Forum each year. Summits are governmental gatherings where apostolic leaders declare, decree, legislate, negotiate, set policy, plan the future, discuss issues, enter into agreements and treaties, and form alliances and coalitions, so this is not a conference, seminar or workshop. Instead, it is an intentional, strategic assembly of warriors, leaders and generals who are supernaturally taking the Kingdom of God by force and advancing it in the marketplace on earth as it is in Heaven.[9]

Chuck Pierce, C. Peter Wagner’s heir apparent, issued one of his “decrees” in a “prophetic” letter published on The Elijah List on February 10, 2010. In this anti-poverty message he decreed that “you succeed… have success and bring forth His covenant plan…. To succeed means to follow after, dispossess the enemy and possess or occupy his territory.” He assured his readers, in classic “prosperity gospel” style that they need to abandon a poverty mentality because it won’t achieve dominion.[10]

The Great Transference of Wealth

In the old Latter Rain cult heresies about a great endtime “harvest,” there was an aberrant teaching about the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles which has since become very popular in some segments of the evangelical world. According to Pastor Bill Randles in his book critiquing the Toronto Blessing (laughing movement) Weighed and Found Wanting . . . Putting the Toronto Blessing in Context,

In 1951, [George Warnock] wrote his book, The Feast of Tabernacles, in which he laid out a specific doctrine for the Latter Rain Movement. He taught that the Church was about to usher in the completion of God’s feasts through perfection of the saints and their dominion over the earth. Essentially, this Latter Rain teaching implies that the three great annual feasts of the Lord in Israel’s worship (Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles) typify the whole Church Age, beginning with the death of Jesus on the cross, and consummating in ‘the manifestations of the Sons of God‘ – the ‘overcomers’ who will become perfected and step into immortality in order to establish the Kingdom of God on earth. According to Warnock, this will be accomplished through the restoration of the Church in unity…. (p. 57)

This quotation was cited by Ed Tarkowski, a noted discernment researcher, in his 2000 paper titled “Prophecies Announcing The Birthing Of The Corporate Child: Part Four.” He described the new doctrines that arose during the “Toronto Blessing” of the mid-1990s, a manic group phenomenon of uncontrollable laughing and other wild behaviors which quickly spread to Pensacola, Florida. These “revivals” were supported by the leaders of the present-day NAR. One particularly bizarre feature of the Toronto “blessing” was women writhing on the floor, acting out a mystical portrayal of the prophesied birth of a corporate “manchild” that would fulfill old Latter Rain prophecies. Why was it so necessary to do this? The answer may shed some light on the current prophecies about a great outpouring of wealth.

In his article, Tarkowski noticed that Constance Cumbey, renowned attorney and researcher of the New Age movement, had written that the Feast of Tabernacles had specific New Age significance, and was connected to a coming Year of Jubilee, in which the wealth of the world would be redistributed. He wrote:

POINT 5: THE TRUTH IS THAT THE LATTER RAIN FEAST OF TABERNACLES PARALLELS THE NEW AGE AGE OF AQUARIUS
In her 1985 book, A Planned Deception: The Staging of a New Age ‘Messiah‘, Christian writer Constance Cumbey writes about Rev. Ernest Ramsey, an enthusiastic follower of the Alice Bailey and Benjamin Creme teachings. She says that his major report was entitled “An Evolutionary Basis For The Reappearance of the Christ and his Executives, the Masters of Wisdom.” Cumbey writes,

“In his Research Report #2, he tells of something he was led to by a spirit guide – what he terms ‘Neo-Pentecostalism.’ An aberrant branch of Pentecostalism, this is more commonly known as the ‘Manifest Sons of God.’ . . . Ramsey concludes . . . that this is part of the New Age Movement.”

Cumbey continues,

“The most interesting section of Ramsey’s report dealt with ‘Neo-pentecostalism.’ Ramsey spent a semester at one of the Neo-Pentecostal or Manifest Sons of God seminaries . . . . Already familiar with the Alice Bailey writings, he was amazed to see that there was a branch of Pentecostalism that embraced the same teachings – albeit using sometimes different terminology.

“Like those seeking the ‘Age of Aquarius’ these people too were seeking a ‘New Age.’ Like the other New Agers, these people taught that ‘The Christ’ was an anointing – not necessarily one man. They taught that Jesus was a pattern son who was to be a sign of something even greater to come – the ‘Manifestation of the Sons of God.’ They too believed the earth was to be cleansed of evil. And chillingly, like the other New Agers, they believed they were to be ‘God’s’ instruments to do such cleansing. The New Agers believed they were gods. The Manifest Sons of God likewise taught that if one accepted their ‘new revelation’ that they themselves would actually become Christ at the time of the unveiling or manifestation of the Sons of God.”

Cumbey continues her eye-opener with this revelation:

“Ernest Ramsey excitedly pointed out in his report that [the Manifest Sons] had a teaching which indeed did parallel the Aquarian teaching of the Age of Aquarius – the Old Testament ‘Year of Jubilee’ as well as the ‘Feast of Tabernacles.’ The Year of Jubilee paralleled the redistribution of the world’s wealth. The Feast of Tabernacles was the equivalent of the coming together of the world’s peoples and varied religions under one tent or tabernacle – the equivalent of the New Agers’ long-awaited ‘New World Religion.’ . . . .”

We must not miss this point: the Replacement Theology of the Manifest Sons of the Latter Rain has brought the Age of Aquarius into the Church under the guise of the Feast of Tabernacles and the Year of Jubilee.[11]

Constance Cumbey’s book A Planned Deception: The Staging of a New Age ‘Messiah’, which Tarkowski was quoting from, examined the concept of a Year of Jubilee from the writings of New Ager Jeremy Rifkin, who in the early 1980s had been promoted by Pat Robertson on his 700 Club. She wrote that “Robertson praised Rifkin’s Entropy unpublished manuscript,” which was part of the Bantam New Age book series.”( p. 157) She quoted from Rifkin’s book, which called for a “fundamental redistribution of wealth,” observing, “One way Rifkin says we will have the moral courage to make this changeover or voluntary redistribution of wealth is through a new metaphysical orientation – a new world view.”(p. 159)

Rifkin’s metaphysical worldview, however, unlike that promoted by the modern NAR Dominionists, called for voluntary poverty, simplicity, communal sharing, a reduction in the world’s population, etc. Clearly this austere worldview didn’t appeal to the CBN or TBN crowd, which were by then gorging on a daily banquet of “name it and claim it” health, wealth and prosperity delicacies. Rifkin’s less popular voluntary poverty message remained submerged in the evangelical world until the rise of the recent mystical contemplative and emergent movements, where this teaching is now gaining a new life.

There is much more that could be said on the linkages between the New Age dominionists and the leaders of the NAR, but the simple fact is that they share a common goal of changing the world’s economic system to facilitate their coming “kingdom.”

The Source of Wealth

What does all of this mean? Where is this money going to come from? What is the source of this much ballyhooed great outpouring of wealth? Oral Roberts in his books on “seed faith” called God “the Source,” like a bank. He claimed that “GOD BUILDS A PERSONAL STOREHOUSE FOR THE GIVER IN WHICH HE STORES UP THE MIRACLES WE WILL NEED IN EACH OF OUR DUE SEASONS . . . THAT IS THE CUMULATIVE EFFECT!”[12] He describes the prayer of faith as one in which we claim on earth the riches he has stored for us in heaven. This mystical type of easy-believism appeals to those who are not well-grounded in Scripture, stirring up carnal lusts and covetousness, and wreaks havoc in the lives of believers who become entangled in the incessant desire for more riches.

But clearly the NAR Dominionists have much more in mind. The quotations earlier in this post indicate that these leaders actually believe that there will be a real, tangible wealth that is due them which will help them build their own kingdom on earth. Are these folks simply out in la-la-land? Or, worse, is it even remotely possible that these false apostles and prophets have come by a an actual effective method to gain wealth and power? Obviously, their cellular downline networking model is conducive to rapid wealth accumulation, as is the case with all multilevel marketing entities. But is there more to this than meets the eye? Just who might their partners be in a rapid global expansion?

What if the NAR leaders are set to go mainstream in the philanthropic world? After all, C. Peter Wagner concocted “philanthropic apostles” a few years ago. In a Herescope post at the time we quoted from his announcement, in which he said:

Along with all of these mega-changes is the impending fulfillment of God’s promises through His prophets for the great transfer of wealth. My sense is that we are looking at unbelievable quantities of wealth moving from the control of the kingdom of darkness to the control of the kingdom of God.[13]

The philanthropic world is rapidly restructuring itself, by the way. Just last week, a press release announced that

Forty U.S. Families Take Giving Pledge
Billionaires Pledge Majority of Wealth to Philanthropy
SEATTLE – Aug. 4, 2010 – Forty of the wealthiest families and individuals in the United States have committed to returning the majority of their wealth to charitable causes by taking the Giving Pledge. The announcement of this first group was made by Warren Buffett approximately six weeks after kicking off the long-term charitable project with Bill and Melinda Gates.

“We’ve really just started, but already we’ve had a terrific response,” said Warren Buffett, pledge co-founder and chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. “At its core, the Giving Pledge is about asking wealthy families to have important conversations about their wealth and how it will be used. We’re delighted that so many people are doing just that – and that so many have decided to not only take this pledge but also to commit to sums far greater than the 50%minimum level.”

Wealthy supporters from throughout the country have come forward to join the pledge, including the following 40 families and individuals. A full list of those taking the pledge and personal pledge letters by many of these supporters outlining their commitment to give is available online at www.givingpledge.org.[14]

This was not news to those who follow Bob Buford‘s e-newsletters. Buford of Leadership Network has been writing about it for the past several months, first referring to it as “The Social Activism of the Super Rich.”[15] Buford applauded Bill Gates, whom he heard at the Aspen Ideas Festival this year, for “driving relentlessly toward action solutions with measurable results.”[16] This, of course, is the mantra of Leadership Network, which was trained by Peter Drucker in his controlled accountability system of “measurable results” for the private sector of society, which included churches, charities, and philanthropic organizations. Charities would no longer simply give their money freely to those in need, but rather use the Druckerian operating system of achieving specified measurable “results” as a gauge for delivering funds and directing intentional change. Systemically, this means that large philanthropies can control the agendas of organizations, and even nations, which is very evident in Bill Gates funding of education reform in America.

This is just a little blip on the radar screen, and it may seem way off base to even bring it up. But is it even remotely possible that some of the wealth of these large donors will make its way into the hands of these false apostles and prophets? And if so, for what possible reason? Are we off our rockers for even bringing this up? There are some connections. . . .

Recall the many Herescope blog posts that talked about Bob Buford and Leadership Network, and Peter Drucker‘s 3-legged stool vision for restructuring a society that would be performance-driven and outcome-based, under a continuous quality improvement assessment system that is both onerous and devitalizing. And consider that Leadership Network spawned 1) Rick Warren and the mega-church movement, 2) the Emergent church movement, and 3) Dominionism Lite, the milder-sounding “cultural renewal.” Don’t forget Rick Warren‘s connections to the NAR. And then consider that Bill Gates has already been funding Rick Warren and his secretive global mission databanking operation that boldly proclaims to be turning entire nations into “purpose-driven” countries. . . . [17]

So just where is this much touted great outpouring of wealth coming from?

The Truth:

The actual biblical truth about poverty and riches is better described by the attitude found in the following verses:

“Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” (Habakkuk 3:17-18)

“I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” (Philippians 4:12)

Endnotes:
1. Stacey Campbell, “’The Calm Before the Storm’ – Prophetic Insight for 2010 Stacey Campbell,” emphasis added, http://www.revivalnow.com/eyesandwings/stac/calm_before_the_storm.html
2. Sandie Freed, “God Will Rend the Heavens and Make His Name Known to His Enemies!” The Elijah List, August 9, 2010, emphasis added, http://www.elijahlist.com/words/html/textonly-080910-Freed.html
3. C. Peter Wagner, letter from Global Harvest Ministries dated August 20, 2007, introducing Lance Wallnau and Wagner’s book Dominion! emphasis added.
4. Richard Vincent, “AN EXAMINATION OF THE WORD-FAITH MOVEMENT,” 1991 paper posted on http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/WRDFAITH.TXT For additional historical and informative documentation on the problems inherent in the Word-Faith movement, see the compilation on this webpage: http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/word-faith.html
5. Anthea Butler, “Prosperity, Spiritual Warfare, and the ‘On-Demand’ God,” Religion Dispatches, July 15, 2009, http://www.religiondispatches.org/archive/religionandtheology/1678/
6. Subheading “Dominionism & Word/Faith Doctrines,” C. Peter Wagner, Warfare Prayer excerpt posted at http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/wagnerquotes.html (bold and italics added), and scroll down to subheading “Considered Himself To Be An Evangelical, But Coined The Term ‘Third Wave’.” Original at “City Taking – Peter Wagner,” http://www.christian-faith.com/html/page/city_taking
7. “False Prophesies Endorsed By Wagner,” http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/wagnerquotes.html, emphasis added. This page cites the original source as “Prophetic Gathering Share In Ministry Together Concerning 2000, by Jim W. Goll, http://www.theremnant.com/news.html.”
8. E-mail sent July 26, 2010, http://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word_pf.html?ID=8984, emphasis added. Prospering in an Economic Crisis, Denver, CO – Feb 3-6, 2010, featuring 7 Mountain Mandate promoter Lance Wallnau, Rick Joyner, Cindy Jacobs, Os Hillman, C. Peter Wagner, and others. http://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word_pf.html?ID=8412.
9. The Elijah List promo sent out March 6, 2009, emphasis added, http://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word_pf.html?ID=7422
10. Chuck Pierce, “The South Pacific Boils! PLUS Day 1-7 Prayer Focus to Release You to See Your Future,” The Elijah List, February 10, 2010, emphasis added. http://www.elijahlist.com/words/html/textonly-021010-Pierce.html
11. Ed Tarkowski, “Part Four: Prophecies Announcing The Birthing Of The Corporate Child,” http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr1.htm citing Constance Cumbey’s book A Planned Deception: The Staging of a New Age ‘Messiah (1985), pp. 171-175.
12. Oral Roberts is credited with being one of the first to teach the great outpouring of wealth concept. See his Miracle of Seed-Faith (1970) and Seed-Faith Commentary on the Bible (Pinoak, 1975). Caps in original.
13. “Announcing — Philanthropic Apostles!” Herescope, June 13, 2006, emphasis added. https://herescope.net/2006/06/announcing-philanthropic-apostles.html
14. The Giving Pledge press release, August 4, 2010, http://givingpledge.org/Content/media/PressRelease_8_4.pdf. For more webpages and articles about this organization and its agenda, see the following:
http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/06/16/gates-buffett-600-billion-dollar-philanthropy-challenge/
http://philanthropy.com/article/A-Plea-for-Greater-Giving/66195/
http://givingpledge.org/Content/media/GivingPledge_FAQ.pdf
http://givingpledge.org/#enter
15. Bob Buford, “my next book, musings for friends,” e-newsletter, June 21, 2010, http://activeenergy.wordpress.com/2010/06/21/the-perfect-storm/
16. Bob Buford, “my next book, musings for friends,” e-newsletter, July 27, 2010, http://activeenergy.wordpress.com/2010/07/25/aspen-institute-part-ii/
17. In addition to the many links in this section, here are just a few samples of Herescope posts and other articles on the topics mentioned:
http://www.discernment-ministries.org/Purpose_Driven.pdf
https://herescope.net/2006/08/pseudo-mission-rick-warrens-3-legged.html
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/08/discernment/12-rwanda.htm
https://herescope.net/2010/05/mainstreaming-dominionism.html
https://herescope.net/2007/06/tyranny-of-3-legged-branding.html
https://herescope.net/2006/10/rick-warren-is-he-scary.html
https://herescope.net/2010/07/destiny-driven-dominionism.html
https://herescope.net/2005/11/peter-druckers-mega-church-legacy.html
https://herescope.net/2005/11/bob-bufords-tributes-to-peter-drucker.html
https://herescope.net/2005/11/peter-druckers-influence.html
https://herescope.net/2005/11/how-leadership-network-created.html
https://herescope.net/2008/01/rick-warren-brian-mclaren-at-davos.html
https://herescope.net/2006/12/cfr-and-social-gospel-part-1.html