Amid Controversy, Brian Houston Preaches at Unleashed Church, Says Stupid Things
As the full extent of Hillsong’s financial improprieties become known, former Global Senior Pastor Brian Houston has been vacationing in the United States, where he preached a sermon at Unleashed Church. Unleashed is led by Todd and Mary Bishop, and it is a church that is big on “training leaders.” Todd himself runs a life-coaching side gig where he charges people $12,000 a year to “achieve higher goals,” “attain personal success,” and help “unleash the leader” inside of you. If that’s too steep a price for access, your church can join his church network for only $1800 a year.
During his sermon, Houston argues for the importance of acquiring and maintaining ‘the anointing’. He says that once you have it, you can’t lose it, frequently referencing his time at Hillsong and how he grew it to 47,000 people with the help of the anointing. He also engages in flagrant and ignorant bible twisting, such as his claim that 1 Samuel 10 teaches that Saul came from a hard and difficult life because his father’s name meant ‘hard’ or difficult.’
“And one of those standing there says ‘can anyone become a prophet no matter who his father is?’ So that the origin of the saying ‘is even Saul a prophet?’
See Kish, his father, was no prophet. He was a herdsman, a Rancher. We would say a father. But that’s what he was. And we all know that Saul, he was out looking for donkeys when he came across Samuel and suddenly his life would change incredibly. He’d become a different man, the Bible says, became a different person. God gave him a new heart. The Holy Spirit came powerfully upon him. Well, when the Holy Spirit come powerfully upon you, then we ready are Church Unleashed. That’s so true, it’s so true and so just some things about the anointing.
The first thing is this; the anointing makes hard things easy. As a matter of fact, Kish, Saul’s father Kish, his name meant ‘hard’ or ‘difficult.’ That’s what Saul came from. Hardship. Difficulty. Now I don’t know what area in your life right now you’re finding hard, that the anointing can make hard things easy.”
Two significant problems arise. First, according to the seminal Jones’ Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names, keyed to Strong’s, Kish means ‘snaring or birdcatcher.” According to the more likely source that Houston googled- SheKnows, a digital parenting lifestyle digital magazine for women- the name Kish means either “hard or difficult- or “straw” and “for age.”
The second issue, conflicting name meaning aside, is how foolish and infantile it is to say that because Kish’s name possibly means “hard,” that then Saul had a hard life and came from hardship. Or because Kish possibly means “difficult,” Saul had a difficult life.
Houston is objectively a terrible preacher; this is just one more example of why he was disqualified long before the recent high-spending scandal.
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Satan is laughing all the way to the Bank, because he is getting so many Churches to follow him instead of Jesus Christ, it’s an absolute disgrace that so many Pastor’s give in to Satan
why? because I’m telling you the thruth? just keep on serving Satan, he is just beside him self how many Churches he is taking to HELL with him, it is beyond sad
I have a feeling that the ‘anointing’ Houston is referring to is a Platinum American Express card…