Third Wave Tsunami of Deceit: An Ancient Lie

An Ancient Lie, ‘Ye shall be like God.’  An ancient lie lies in the middle of the Third Wave Movement.  It all harkens back to the Latter Rain movement in 1940’s, which for our purposes began with the bizarre and outright doctrines of demons promoted by  William Branham.  He like many more today who claim to be a prophets & apostles.  Not just any prophet, but John the Baptist and the 7th Seal “Voice”of Revelation!  We will come back to this at the bottom of the article and why a proper understanding of eschatology (prophecy) keeps the Church watchful, not sensational! 

We will demonstrate occult connections with the Zodiac & The Pyramids which Brother Branham considered on par with the bible!  We will revisit him later and look at who some waited 5 days for him to rise from the dead, who denied the Trinity, and promoted Another Jesus.  2 Corinthians 11:4

“For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3 The Ancient Lie of the Serpent

Third Wave Tsunami of Deceit:  An Ancient Lie

By Joshua Toupos

This is a difficult series for me to write.  While we seek to destroy false teachings 2 Corinthians 10:5.  I don’t want to loose sight that it is not about winning a theological fight.  This is a serious issue and gaining speed as our original Tsunami illustration demonstrated. The warning is for those in these movements to flee from false teaching and to seek God in His word and not signs n wonders.  We need to pray for these people that God would grant them repentance and understand the core errors of this movement.

And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and [that] they may come to their senses [and escape] the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to [do] his will.  2 Timothy 2:24-26

That’s our prayer and petition as we move forward in this series.

Manifest Sons of God Doctrine

Central to our series is to expose the central themes of “New Revelation” & “New Wine” by the promotion of todays “so called new Apostles & Prophets”.

For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men. 1 Corinthians 4:9

Biblical Evidence: No More Apostles Coming

We can see here that the apostolic ministry during the apostles day was “last”  ἔσχατος eschatos in the Greek is last in line or succession  end, of series…  The Apostles Biblically speaking, is they where those who saw Jesus and DID DO MIRACLES, Signs & Wonders to validate the gospel message that He (Jesus) was indeed Messiah. Read NO MORE coming!  And when we see the vision of New Jerusalem coming down from heaven in Revelation, it is described as having 12 Gates being the Twelve Tribes of Israel and 12 Foundations being the Twelve Apostles… Revelation 21  Are we too expect more Tribes of Israel also?  However todays modern apostles would have us put the foundation on Gods house on the roof?  Let Gods word teach us and not the delusions of men the likes of Rick Joyner, C Peter Wagner, Bill Johnson, Bill Hamon, Bob Jones & Steve Thompson to name a few.

A False Christ Denies Christ’s Deity

Bob Deway pinpoints the underlining issue in the occult nature of those who promote the experience above reason.  “By combining signs and wonders with a false Christology that denies the deity of Christ, Johnson has placed his followers in the center of end-time deception. Now rather than the one “Anointed One” (Jesus Christ who is unique), there are many “anointed ones” who supposedly can do greater miracles than Jesus. This situation is described in the Bible:  (Note from Amos- “Christ” in Greek is Anointed and “antichrist” is Greek ψευδόχριστος (pseudochristos) read “FAKE”  that show up uniquely in conjunction with signs and wonders to seduce!  Matthew 24:24, Mark 13:22)

“Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have arisen; from this we know that it is the last hour” (1 John 2:18). “Antichrists” as understood from the Greek, are substitute “anointed ones.” In the Bible, all Christians are equally “anointed” by God, and only Jesus specially anointed, i.e., the Messiah.[10] An elite group of specially anointed ones who comprise the “Elijah generation” as taught in Bill Johnson’s Latter Rain theology would qualify as antichrists. -Bob Deway

The Gnostic Error

Gnosticism was an ancient heresy that claimed that the material realm was evil and the spiritual realm good. Johnson states, “Faith is the key to discovering the superior nature of the invisible realm” (Johnson: 43). The truth is that both realms, visible and invisible contain both good and evil. Both are created by God, and neither is innately superior. When the Bible speaks of things not seen, it includes things like the fulfillment of future promises and is not limited to ontological “realms,” such as material and spiritual. Johnson claims that there is an unlocked potential for seeing into the supposedly superior spirit realm:

“Many of us have thought that the ability to see into the spiritual realm is more the result of a special gift than an unused potential of everyone” (Johnson 43).

He misuses Hebrews 11:1 to teach his Gnostic understanding of realms: “The invisible is superior to the natural . . . Because the invisible is superior to the natural, faith is anchored in the unseen” (Johnson 45). But in Hebrews 11, what was unseen to the patriarchs was the future fulfillment of the promises of God, not just the heavenly realities (though those are included). There is much evil in the unseen world, so Johnson’s Gnostic categories are not what the Biblical authors had in mind.”  See more on  Gnosticism Exposed  I must tell you that when truth is mixed with error, it has a very dangerous appeal.  That’s why we painstakingly point out the poison.

We always see this.  When one pseudo Christian group after another begins to deemphasize doctrine (what the bible teaches).  We naturally find in the vacuum of experience it is normally filled with an unending need for “manifestations”.  Indeed this is a very wide gate!  What does the bible say about the work of the Holy Spirit?  Is it being entertained by wild stories about trips to heaven and talking to Jesus with visions aplenty?   This is the shallow nature of our Tsunami illustration in our first article. Deception has destructive power when it meets a shallow understanding of God’s word. That’s when the devastation of deception sweeps through the Church.  Souls will be swept away into eternal damnation because they loved a lie as it was in the past, so it is today.

The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their [own] power; And My people love [to have it] so. But what will you do in the end?  Jeremiah 5:31

I have had experiences with God!  I’m not against experience.  We all have experiences.  I have experienced conviction of my sins, remorse, joy, sanctification, thrill of leading one to Christ among just a few.

Jesus said and I think we should count on it as a measuring stick for the work of the Holy Spirit:  Note that Jesus emphasized the work of the Holy Spirit (Comforter) as …“But the Comforter, [which is] the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”  John 14:26  It is keeping Gods word.  But for the Third Wave folk, it’s not remembering what Jesus has said, but “New Revelation”.  So how can those claim to be anointed, marginalize Gods word for their own?  No!  Sorry the work of the Holy Spirit is not a Three Ring Circus.

Bill Johnson- speaking- Cloud of Glory

Note:  That everyone gets to prophecy to someone!  Talk about confusion… And note people looking around & taking pictures.  Deep worship in the shallow end!  “Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.”  2 Timothy 3:8

What is the work of the Holy Spirit?  Jesus says, “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment…” John 16:5-14

What do they say about Doctrine?  One of the hallmarks of this movement is a de-emphasis on the scriptures and of doctrine. The Bible has become allegorical, and interpretations become subjective (1). Many within the third-wave movement have been conditioned, by the lack of sound biblical teaching, to believe that doctrine is unimportant. Leaders will often state that “relationship” is far more important than doctrine.

“For the last several years people have started to gather around fathers instead of doctrine.” – Bill Johnson, Bethel Church  (Source)

Dabbling in Occult Connections

New Agers, Mormons, Hindus, Catholics and even Jehovah Witnesses teach that “.it is claiming that we are divine beings- hence all such are Gods,. Thus we have a family of God …. Now we appear like men, and all die naturally like men, but in the resurrection we will rise in our true character as Gods …Charles Taze Russell (Watchtower, 10 & 11/1881, p. 10, Reprints, p. 301) Source This is the heart of JW error.  They deny Jesus as God, but was created and became the son of God.  But that’s another issue, just want to state the original lie is here in many religious wrappings.

Speaking of, look at the connection with Charles Taze Russell and William Branham.  A picture is worth a thousand words.  Again it’s Freemasonry.  See the Church that promotes and defends brother Branham here.  Has a masonic pyramid on the lobby roof!

A Grave Problem!

The Great Pyramid was the hub of a huge complex of cemeteries. Mummified kings were entombed with vast amounts of gold, food and other things to maintain an opulent lifestyle in the after-life. Poor people were buried with nothing in surrounding cemeteries. In that culture of death dads ended up as mummies. Pyramids have an Occultic alignment with the stars.

On one occasion during his teenage years, Branham remembered being approached by an astrologer telling him that he was ‘born under a special sign’ and predicted an important religious calling for him. The astrologer told Branham he was born early in the morning on 6 April 1909. Branham’s wedding certificate from 1934 records his year of birth as 1908, although there is no official record of his birth.^[13] Following his encounter with an angel in 1946, who he said explained that demons can correctly identify divine callings (Mark 1:23-24), Branham compared the incident to Paul’s experience with the damsel with a spirit of divination,^[14][15] and thereafter used 1909 as his year of birth.^{[16]  (Source)}

Mummies were preserved life-like as possible to provide a permanent home for the soul to cheat death and have eternal life. Evidently the soul did not know the body was dead. The pyramid is an essential point of pilgrimage for Occultists, witches, magicians, necromancers (seekers of the dead) and a place of demons and spirits. All are an abomination (Deut. 18). Narrow passages through the rock allowed Occultic soul travel. He prayed in a cave, not unusual but the occult connection is hard to miss.  Branham bought into these far-fetched fantasies saying the pyramid and zodiac are equal to scripture to reveal God’s word. A man at Jesus’ tomb said, “He is not here for he is risen” (Mark 16:6). What revelation of God’s word would Branham get from Egyptian cemeteries? Do fantasy-prone followers practice mummification at their churches? Benny Hinn visits graves to get anointing from bones.   We do not deny that he had visions or encounters we believe he did and it was demonic to the core.  Never take your eye off the fact that Satan is a master at counterfeiting experiences.  You never see these people test the spirits to see if they are of God!

Zodiac & Occult Sorcerey

Zodiacs are used by witches and astrologers to tell the future and also enabled Branham to predict Jesus’ return in 1977. Astrologers, sorcerers and star gazers are abominable (Jer. 47:12,13). (Source)

So it is at the core of this movement that The Third Wave movement has been unnoticed by many passing through the denominations and they ultimately promote that they will manifest themselves as gods on the earth. They have an eschatology (view of end times) that puts them in the place of God literally!  Now who’s finger prints are on that?  It is these men who will bring about Dominion on the earth before Christ can return.  This denies a plethora of scriptures about Christ imminent return, The Doctrine of Imminency and guts the sovereignty of Almighty God.  It is these modern day apostles and prophets who will bring this about this by their signs n wonders.  By substituting experience for biblical teaching and focusing on manifestations during service they open themselves up to end time deception.

William Branham’s Angelic Visit

William Branham’s fascination with the supernatural (forces outside of our abilities) Note:  both Godly and ungodly are supernatural.  Are we not to test the spirits.  This is true of Jehovah Witness’s angelic visitations at the Watch Tower, Joseph Smith, Mohammad and many Mary apparitions are all supernatural deceptions of the enemy!  William Branham had an angelic messenger he relied on and prayed in a cave with a pyramid in it.  Mystics believe power can be drawn by symbols and images.  At his site you can find this occult (hidden) influence with pyramids and this grand daddy of a tale… Branham says,

“Well, it happens to be that at least one man is present this morning who was standing there when it happened. It actually shook the rocks off of the mountain. We find out that during that time I saw seven Angels in a form of a pyramid that swept down and picked me up. And I was brought east to open the Seven Seals for God.”  (Source)

See our Series on Angelology Session 12 on Fallen Angels and their activity.  The entire series on Angelology Here Indexed.

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.  1 John 4:1-4

Preparation For the Coming Antichrist

Jesus said of such wild claims that the time would come when,

For there shall arise false Christs, (false anointed ones) and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect.  Matthew 24:24 And the Apostle Paul states before Christ Jesus coming it would be the opposite of what the Third Wave expectations!

For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [will let], until he be taken out of the way.  2 Thessalonians 2

Eliteism: Restoration of Prophets

& The Manifest Sons of God Doctrine

William Branham believed in the manifest sons of God doctrine, this became a main heresy of the Latter Rain movement, he claimed he too was a “god manifested in the flesh.” (not the God) He said:

“When I told this to a man the other day, when this piece had come out about this man being healed, this same minister said, “They make a god out of you, Brother Branham.”

Well, he was a critic,… I said, “Is that too far from the Scripture to be that?” See? I said, “No, it isn’t.” I said, “Because Jesus called prophets gods.” See? That’s right. God … And they say, “Well, you people try to take the place of God.”

“That’s not too far out; that’s exactly what it is. That’s exactly! God manifested in flesh, just as He promised.” (THE MIGHTY GOD UNVEILED BEFORE US, p.20)

“In them days it was God in a man, His Son, Jesus Christ. We believe that. Not just a prophet, not just an ordinary man, ordinary human, It was God In Christ, God, in a man, the fullness of the Godhead bodily In a man. God, in a man; now, it’s God in men. See? The fullness of God in the Godhead bodily in His entire Church, manifesting Himself, fullfilling His Word.” (THE MIGHTY GOD UNVEILED BEFORE US, p.20 ). Source

If this where the only issue with the Third Wave adherents, it would be enough to be labeled a “cult”  Strong claim!  So what makes a cult a cult?

So what makes a cult a cult?

There are four characteristics in the doctrinal dimension of a cult.  They are: New Revelation, Denial of the Sole Authority of the Bible, A Distorted View of God and Jesus, and Denial of Salvation by Grace.  Lets go through each of them:

1.  New Revelation – Cult’s teachings often change and new revelations are needed to justify the changes.  This is the hallmark of the New Apostles & Prophets!  7 Hidden gospels!  This is a gross perversion of the one true gospel.  Galatians 1:6-8  That will take a whole a separate article to tackle.

2.  Denial of the Sole Authority of the Bible – In order of the cults to push their idea of new revelation, they need to reject the sole authority of the Bible and put it on the same or in fact lower level as the new revelation.  Many in the Third Wave promote doctrines of angels Galatians 1:6-8 Todd Bently, Rick Joyner, etc… Brother Branham as noted use of pyramids, and the Zodiac are on par with the bible!?

3.  A Distorted View of God and Jesus – Many cults do see Jesus as who he is – the Son of God who is fully God at the same time.  They believe Jesus to a lower degree like a god but not the God.  Cults reject the Trinity and they reject the existence of the Holy Spirit.  Cults also reject the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Branham denies the Trinity and thinks he is a god manifested in the flesh.  Very dangerous teaching!

4.  Denial of Salvation by Grace – Cults reject the idea of salvation by grace.  They mostly hold to salvation by works.  Bill Johnson’s & many others theology requires that Christians do greater miracles than Jesus. If Jesus’ divinity had any influence on His mighty works, then we might think we could not do the same (and rightly so). So Johnson embraces what is often called the kenosis heresy  (More)

Need more on cult definition and characteristics.  (Here)

Other Elite claims by brother Branham & his followers.  

In 1946 while Branham was baptizing followers in the Ohio river he heard a small voice say ‘Look up!” Looking up he saw it descending toward him – it looked like a blazing Star, a Pillar of Fire. The Supernatural Pillar of Fire hovered just above his head and that voice he had been hearing since he was little spoke out of the Pillar of Fire saying, “As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the First Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, so you are sent to forerun His Second Coming.” –Brother Branham, p.71

That was that, Branham called this his ‘charge’ – that he was called by God and soon many believed him to be Elijah. In fact when Branham passed away in 1965 due to a head injury from a car accident many of his followers (and still today, believe it or not) truly believe he came in the spirit of Elijah, some believed him to be born of a virgin, some believed him to be God and most expected him to actually rise from the dead in three days. –All Things Are Possible, p.164

Signs & Wonders:  The Glory Cloud

The expectation of many in this movement is for “Experience” as we have noted.  I will comment on my experiences at the bottom of this article… I pick up a qoute here from a pro glory cloud blog… ”

What I love and what thrills me about this post is that Pete is absolutely unapologetic about what many of us who believe in and long for a “Charismatic Resurgence” have been writing about. There is NOTHING optional about charismatic life in the church! The reason why it isn’t optional is because charismatic life in the church is designed to impact the community. Pete says:“While we must have Spirit-saturated meetings, we need to receive God’s word, and be drenched in His presence, these things are not an end in themselves … The purpose of the cloud of glory is not only to make us feel good, but to transform the whole community. We are to be drenched in the cloud of glory, but He goes with us into the highways and byways of the streets around your church and around your home”.  Source)

Remember at the heart of Alice Bailey’s dream to “Transform the Church” by using Christian terms and substitute the occult teachings that we are gods!  Alice Bailey, Charles Russell Taze (JW’s) Ellen White (7th Day Adventist’s) Joseph Smith (Mormons all had occult links to Masonry (Pyramid Symbolism)   Experience is the key to linking (Syncretism) to other religious systems.

Like the modern versions or perversions of todays so called prophetic voices.  Next time we will look briefly at William Branham’s claim to be, “The Voice of the 7th Seal Judgement?”  We will need another whole article to look at the grandiose claims of Brother Branham!  Next article will be:  Brother Branham A False Prophet is born unto us.  Among the majestic claims is that William Branham was “Virgin Born”!  Yeah, see the next article… Part 3 False Prophets

Free Resources for the growing Christian.

“But grow in grace, and [in] the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Him [be] glory both now and for ever. Amen.”  2 Peter 3:18

Blue Letter Bible Free Online Bible & Study Tools & Commentaries

Bible Classes College Level For Free to Enroll   Track your progress.

Our Own Free Discipleship Course   In Video HD.

Free Audio Bible Download