From a January 2, 2024 Facebook Update. Presented without comment.
Tag: Todd Bentley
Famous false teacher and wolf extraordinaire Todd Bentley was rushed to the hospital yesterday morning after “experiencing excruciating abdominal pain, which has resulted in significant shortness of breath.”
According to a message to supporters, Todd was ministering, fleecing the flock this past weekend in Oklahoma City when the illness struck him. In a statement from Revival Harvest Ministries, wife Jessa said doctors suspect he may be battling an infection and was transferred to the ICU ‘not as an emergency but to keep him stable.’
The couple is requesting prayer for healing and financial aid to cover the medical expense, but we’d request that no one give him even a nickel.
To see why giving any money to Bentley is akin to giving a wife beater a couple of bucks to purchase a brass knuckle , click here.
Last week, Todd Bentley told his followers that he was heading down to the ‘Asbury Revival’ because he felt a “great stirring to attend this fresh outpouring” and that whatever he ‘received’ in Asbury, he would use to fuel a planned series of revivals.
We have written extensively about Todd, chronicling his malfeasance from lauded anointed revivalist and miracle worker to drunkard, adulterer, liar, and sheep-fleecer extraordinaire, all the while being lifted up by a cadre of ne’er-do-wells as a great and supernaturally gifted man of God.
Bentley went relatively radio silent in 2019 after being newly accused of drug use, adultery, and sexting, some of which he admitted. It was familiar ground for the disgraced minister, whose 2008 revival imploded in a similar fashion after he was accused of alcohol abuse and adultery- charges he would also later admit.
After the second round of accusations, a “New Apostolic Reformation” (NAR) tribunal report was launched. They found that Bentley was guilty—a pointless summation, as Bentley had already checked out and declared the whole thing a scam and witch hunt anyway. Despite these findings, Bentley has maintained a high level of ministry support, with the revelation of decades of grossly immoral behavior being viewed as “just a scratch” to his reputation, and continued putting on his revivals undaunted.
Upon learning that Bentley was heading down to their event to bask in the glow, the Asbury leadership could have chosen several actions. They could have refused to let Bentley attend, putting an usher at the door to deny him access. They could have sent him a message days before he left telling him not to bother or that his presence would bring with him demons enough to fill a hundred heard of swine.
Our preferred course of action would be to invite him to the front of the stage and ask students to take out their phones to film this moment. They would then publicly rebuke him as a two-fold son of hell who needs to repent of his demonic teaching, exposing him to the world. At this point, security guards would escort him out and tell him he is no longer welcome on campus and is being officially trespassed.
That’s the mark of true revival.
Instead they merely publicly acknowledged that they knew he was planning on attending, and said he was welcome to do so.
Bentley attended and loved every minute of it, even spending time praying for people and releasing ‘impartation into their lives.’
In a series of promos for his upcoming “Healing and Kingdom Tour,” Bentley is milking Asbury for all he’s worth, writing, “After attending the Asbury revival…(there will be) a special time of impartation as Todd desires to release what he’s received at the revival” and “time to release the impartation to others as the fires of revival are spreading everywhere.”
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It is no surprise that Todd has used his time at Asbury as a grift, drawing in desperate and biblically illiterate people who can’t travel to Kentucky for the event but who feel they can get a piece of it by listening to Bentley bloviate his wretched blasphemies so they can catch their own little piece of Asbury.
Asbury leadership could have stopped this, but instead they played their part, giving Bentley fuel and fodder to prey on the desperate for years on end.
Shame on them.
Charismatic prophet Todd Bentley, the only huckster in the whole of Christianity that Dr Michael Brown has ever bothered to condemn (and that only slightly), is up to no good again, annoucing that he’s heading down to Kentucky to partake in the Asbury Revival, explaining that “I feel a great stirring to attend this fresh outpouring.”
He further writes “this feels like a season of revival and truly reminds me of the last time I saw a season like this during the Florida Outpouring season in Lakeland.
This is disastrous news.
We have written extensively about Todd, chronicling his malfeasance from lauded anointed revivalist and miracle worker to drunkard, adulterer, liar, and sheep-fleecer extraordinaire, all the while being lifted up by a cadre of ne’er-do-wells as a great and supernaturally gifted man of God.
Bentley went relatively radio silent in 2019, a year after being newly accused of drug use, adultery, and sexting, some of which he admitted. A “New Apostolic Reformation” (NAR) tribunal report was launched. They found that Bentley was guilty—a pointless summation, as Bentley had already checked out and declared the whole thing a scam and witch hunt anyway.
Despite these findings, Bentley has maintained a high level of ministry support, with the revelation of decades of grossly immoral behavior being viewed as “just a scratch” to his reputation. This should surprise no one, however, as NAR adherents historically have enjoyed infinitesimally low levels of discernment when it comes to the sinful behavior of their leaders, and this case has sadly proved to be no different.
In the summer of 2008, Todd was flying high, filling stadiums with a world-renown revival in Lakeland, where he claimed to have raised multiple people from dead. He was getting so much attention that 17 high-profile charismatic “apostles,” including Bill Johnson, Jon Arnott, Rick Joyner, Che Ahn, and C. Peter Wagner, came together in a ceremony of “apostolic alignment” over 32-year old Todd Bentley, commissioning him to lead the Lakeland Revival and recognizing him as an evangelist doing the work of the Lord led by the Holy Spirit. We call this the Charismatic day of Infamy.
During the ceremony, Wagner asked the three apostles, Che Ahn, Bethel Church’s Bill Johnson, and John Arnot, “Do you perceive the grace of God given to Todd Bentley as an evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring?
They answered: “I do.”
Wagner continued:
“This commissioning represents a powerful spiritual transaction taking place in the invisible world. With this in mind, I take the apostolic authority that God has given me and I decree to Todd Bentley:
– Your power will increase.
– Your authority will increase.
– Your favor will increase.
– Your influence will increase.
– Your revelation will increase.
I also decree that:
– A new supernatural strength will flow through this ministry.
– A new life force will penetrate this move of God.
– A government will be established to set things in their proper order.
– God will pour out a higher level of discernment to distinguish truth from error.
– New relationships will surface to open gates for the future. […]
The people cheered. Todd cried and shook his head. The “apostle” sat back, satisfied at the historic nature of their coming together, wondering what glorious things the Lord would do next.
Within a month of his alignment ceremony, Bentley would announce that he was leaving Lakeland and stepping down. A few days later, he told the world he was divorcing his wife and it was revealed that during his time as leader of the revival, as he was getting aligned by the apostles, he had been engaging in “an unhealthy relationship on an emotional level with a female member of his staff.” He was also getting drunk all the time, spiraling into depression, anxiety, and babbling on stage in a series of pseudo-spiritual slurs.
The vaunted Lakeland Revival crashed into a smoldering heap of disillusionment immediately afterwards, the populace burned by a charlatan who was able to garner the endorsement of 17 charismatic “apostles,” all the while acting like a devil.
And now he’s headed to Asbury.
If the Asbury revival is a real revival, they will personally and publicly exclude this false teacher and charlatan from attending, rebuking him for all to see, lest he spread his poison.
Todd Bentley quote about who knows what the heck he’s talking about, from his FB page:
We must become more conscious of the indwelling Christ and the abiding Glory, so we can drop down into our inner man (Spirit) and experience this secret fortress, refuge, tabernacle and dwell with our king in his inner chambers where our secret history in God is made. Abiding in God, we find the true mountain and secret garden of the lord….
The Spirit of counsel brings the Spirit of might. As we receive the counsel of Heaven to synchronize Heaven and earth, we’ll see a demonstration and manifestation of the might of Heaven…
We are called to a spiritual union with him where we continuously soak, marinate and drink of his love. When we are united to the vine, the sap of divine love and glory, we will receive from the vine (Jesus) His glory flows through the branch and comes out in the fruit of love, for the nourishment and refreshment of others.
Charismatic prophet Todd Bentley, the only huckster in the whole of Christianity that Dr Michael Brown has ever bothered to condemn (and that only slightly), is up to no good again—the result of a string of angelic encounters and personal vision.
He announced on Facebook that that he’s returning to Lakeland, Fl, the site of his infamous ‘Lakeland Outpouring’ where he both became famous and then imploded in a sea of scandal, in order to put on a new revival and touch the hem of heaven for those who missed it the first time around.
We have written extensively about Todd, chronicling his malfeasance from lauded anointed revivalist and miracle worker to drunkard, adulterer, liar, and sheep-fleecer extraordinaire, all the while being lifted up by a cadre of ne’er-do-wells as a great and supernaturally gifted man of God.
Bentley went relatively radio silent in 2019, a year after being newly accused of drug use, adultery, and sexting, some of which he admitted. A “New Apostolic Reformation” (NAR) tribunal report was launched. They found that Bentley was guilty—a pointless summation, as Bentley had already checked out and declared the whole thing a scam and witch hunt anyway.
Despite these findings, Bentley has maintained a high level of ministry support, with the revelation of decades of grossly immoral behavior being viewed as “just a scratch” to his reputation. This should surprise no one, however, as charismatics and NAR adherents historically have enjoyed infinitesimally low levels of discernment when it comes to the sinful behavior of their leaders, and this case has sadly proved to be no different.
In the summer of 2008, Todd was flying high, filling stadiums with a world-renown revival in Lakeland, where he claimed to have raised multiple people from dead. He was getting so much attention that 17 high-profile charismatic “apostles,” including Bill Johnson, Jon Arnott, Rick Joyner, Che Ahn, and C. Peter Wagner, came together in a ceremony of “apostolic alignment” over 32-year old Todd Bentley, commissioning him to lead the Lakeland Revival and recognizing him as an evangelist doing the work of the Lord led by the Holy Spirit. We call this the Charismatic day of Infamy.
During the ceremony, Wagner asked the three apostles, Che Ahn, Bethel Church’s Bill Johnson, and John Arnot, “Do you perceive the grace of God given to Todd Bentley as an evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring?
They answered: “I do.”
Wagner continued:
“This commissioning represents a powerful spiritual transaction taking place in the invisible world. With this in mind, I take the apostolic authority that God has given me and I decree to Todd Bentley:
– Your power will increase.
– Your authority will increase.
– Your favor will increase.
– Your influence will increase.
– Your revelation will increase.
I also decree that:
– A new supernatural strength will flow through this ministry.
– A new life force will penetrate this move of God.
– A government will be established to set things in their proper order.
– God will pour out a higher level of discernment to distinguish truth from error.
– New relationships will surface to open gates for the future. […]
The people cheered. Todd cried and shook his head. The “apostle” sat back, satisfied at the historic nature of their coming together, wondering what glorious things the Lord would do next.
Within a month of his alignment ceremony, Bentley would announce that he was leaving Lakeland and stepping down. A few days later, he told the world he was divorcing his wife and it was revealed that during his time as leader of the revival, as he was getting aligned by the apostles, he had been engaging in “an unhealthy relationship on an emotional level with a female member of his staff.” He was also getting drunk all the time, spiraling into depression, anxiety, and babbling on stage in a series of pseudo-spiritual slurs.
The vaunted Lakeland Revival crashed into a smoldering heap of disillusionment immediately afterwards, the populace burned by a charlatan who was able to garner the endorsement of 17 charismatic “apostles,” all the while acting like a devil.
And now Bentley is going back to “re-dig the well.” Lord have mercy.
Charismatic prophet Todd Bentley, the only huckster in the whole of Christianity that Dr. Michael Brown has ever bothered to condemn (and that only slightly), is up to no good again—the result of a string of angelic encounters and personal visions that has him explaining that crime and violence doe not happen where he lives, on account of the atmosphere he’s created.
We have written extensively about Todd, chronicling his malfeasance from lauded anointed revivalist and miracle worker, to drunkard, adulterer, liar, and sheep-fleecer extraordinaire, all the while being lifted up by a cadre of ne’er-do-wells as a great and supernaturally gifted man of God.
Bentley, you will recall, went relatively radio silent in 2019, a year after being newly accused of drug use, adultery, and sexting, some of which he admitted. A “New Apostolic Reformation” (NAR) tribunal report was launched and they found that Bentley was guilty—a pointless summation, as Bentley had already checked out and declared the whole thing a scam and witch hunt anyway.
Despite these findings, Bentley was able to maintain a high level of ministry support, with the revelation of decades of grossly immoral behavior being viewed as “just a scratch” to his reputation. This should surprise no one, however, as charismatics and NAR adherents historically have enjoyed infinitesimally low levels of discernment when it comes to the sinful behavior of their leaders, and this case has sadly proved to be no different.
In this case, he’s back on the circuit, speaking at Jacksonville’s Ablaze Conference on February 22, 2022, where you can see him for $60- a person for $90 per couple, explaining these curious principles and beliefs.
I don’t need to be a public famous influencer on the internet, social media, I want to be a ‘glory influencer’ And I want to show up in a place and because I’m standing in the line at Starbucks, the whole atmosphere is subject to what I’m carrying. I’m not subject to the atmosphere.
….That’s why I’ve been able to go into countries all over the world where they said, ‘Oh, this is the graveyard for preachers, we’ve had every preacher come in, no miracles are going to happen here’. And I said, ‘I’m not subject to whatever you’re under generationally, I’m operating from a higher place’.
So my expectation is when I show up in your city, I’m a co-laborer. I’m an ambassador. I’m important. I’m
royalty. I’m government. You don’t have to treat me that way, but the demons do.I don’t expect it from people. That’s the problem we make, we try to lord it over the people. We want the people to treat us like we’re government and ambassadors and royalty, rather than the demons.
I couldn’t care less about what the people think, I’m more concerned about, because I’m here right now, this shenanigans can’t go on. I have things that have never happened in my neighborhood because I live there. Sure, I built my house and went outside and anointed my property because I said I have the authority because I own this. When you own something, you have authority, right? Sometimes when you rent something you’re a victim, but when you own it, so I went out and anointed my property because I knew this was mine.
..and I just wanted the devil to know (that) no matter how dark it gets out there, you can’t come into my neighbourhood. And I love that, but we need to start with our city block. You need to start going and kick all the demons off your street and don’t permit it in Jesus name. No violence, no thief, no gangs, no murder, no rape. If I live here, this whole block, we need to start working out that kingdom…”
Bonus Todd Bentley quote about who knows what the heck he’s talking about, from his FB page:
We must become more conscious of the indwelling Christ and the abiding Glory, so we can drop down into our inner man (Spirit) and experience this secret fortress, refuge, tabernacle and dwell with our king in his inner chambers where our secret history in God is made. Abiding in God, we find the true mountain and secret garden of the lord….
The Spirit of counsel brings the Spirit of might. As we receive the counsel of Heaven to synchronize Heaven and earth, we’ll see a demonstration and manifestation of the might of Heaven…
We are called to a spiritual union with him where we continuously soak, marinate and drink of his love. When we are united to the vine, the sap of divine love and glory, we will receive from the vine (Jesus) His glory flows through the branch and comes out in the fruit of love, for the nourishment and refreshment of others.
During the October 20 Line of Fire, Jim Osman (author of God Doesn’t Whisper) called into Michael Brown’s show and criticized him for platforming the worst of the worst of charismatic ne’er do wells, telling him, “I would say that you have given a lot of shade, in fact, shade to some of the worst and most egregious charismatics, charlatans, false prophets, and hucksters that the charismatic movement has turned up in recent years, including Sid Roth and Benny Hinn and others just like it.”
Osman is not wrong. The Heterodox Research Initiative (HRI) explains it this way:
One major red flag about Michael Brown is who and what he won’t give a red flag. Michael Brown would never tell someone to avoid watching Sid Roth’s It’s Supernatural because it’s spiritually toxic and dangerous.
Sid Roth is the Johnny Carson of the cuckoo, strange, weird, toxic and dangerous wing of charismania. Once you’re on his show, you gain a lot of credibility in charismania circles.
…Most episodes of It’s SuperNatural are infomercials for the guest to pitch their products. The products usually teach the viewer some spiritual trick to achieve a breakthrough, healing, miracles, manifestations of God’s presence, wealth, and you get the idea. For a donation, viewers are granted access to toxic and dangerous materials that do nothing but exploit them and sink their souls deeper into the cesspool of charismania.
Unsurprisingly, Brown used his mic to repeatedly talk over and bully the guest while clutching his pearls at the thought that someone would dare suggest that the paragon of pentecostal virtue Sid Roth would ever be considered less than the finest specimen of Godliness that Christianity has to offer. From our perspective, NAR grandpappy Sid Roth is continually up to no good. When he’s not platforming every wild-eyed charismatic with a prophecy, a potion, or a ploy to push, he’s telling tall tales about how he saw a kid starting flying around the room during a revival, claiming he can convert Jews to the faith with 95% success rate, and praising a revivalist who punched a baby and then threw it against a wall to heal it. We digress.
Brown then goes on the attack in a particular way – if you call someone a false prophet, Brown will instantly dispute this and take over the conversation by making it the center focus. For Brown, labeling someone a “false teacher” is the ultimate pejorative that means they are damned to hell, resulting in Brown aggressively questioning how one can have certainty a Sid Roth or a Benny Hinn is hellbound.
For this reason, when talking to Brown, rather than saying “false prophet” or “false teacher,” – frame it as “one who routinely, chronically, repeatedly teaches or platforms gross theological error and is unable to handle the scriptures properly.” You likely won’t get much further because even with someone like Todd Bentley, Brown never condemned his blasphemous theology, only his personal life choices, but it will take away the main and primary weapons that he uses to club his critics with. (Dr. James White, take note.)
Well, that’s where you really need to grow in discernment because you have no right whatsoever to make that statement. And there are believers who have made a profit off the gospel and repented of it and said that was an error as Benny Hinn has done in recent years and spoken very plainly about serious errors that were in his ministry. [Editor’s note: Benny Hinn said he made errors, and then within two weeks, he was back to the same old prosperity preaching.]
Osmand points out that Dr. Brown is begging the question by assuming that Hinn is a Christian and that Jim is wrong, which then causes Brown to again assert that claims of “false teacher = damned to hell.”
Brown: Jim, as far as I know, from the time I spent with him, one on one, from hearing his profession of faith, from people that I know that have worked with him in his own family, for many, many years that know him far better than Costi Hinn [Benny Hinn’s nephew that used to work for him and is now a reformed Baptist pastor in AZ] know him. As far as I know, he’s a believer who’s been in serious error, who has taught some serious error, and has repented of teaching that serious error. As far as I know, he’s your brother. But see here, here’s the big error. This is the massive blind spot. And may God help you with this, Jim, the extreme judgementalism that would that would damn someone to hell based on no personal knowledge of that person’s walk. Or, for example, Sid Roth. Do you believe is Sid Roth was to die right now, he would go to hell?
Jim: “I do. I have no reason to believe that he is in any way a genuine believer. He is the looniest of the looniest charismatic charlatans and hucksters…” [Editor’s note: Fact check: true. Hero move.]
Brown: When you slander a brother, calling him a charlatan and huckster – I’ve known Sid since the 1980s. I’ve had family members that have worked side by side with him. He’s neither charlatan nor a huckster; he has not accumulated personal wealth through the gospel. He does not use the gospel for personal gain. I don’t agree with certain guests that he has on; I would differ with him on different points. But I have walked with Him and seen his heart for the Lord for decades in this godly life.
I’ve never met a person in America who is more zealous to win people to Jesus, who will call me with biblical questions to make sure that fundamentals are right on. So when you make a judgment, not based on scripture, but based on your perception, and you think that you have the right to damn someone to hell, that’s very serious and that is such an extraordinary blind spot to me that you and other hyper critics don’t see that. That grieves me terribly.
Here’s someone I’ve known, firsthand shared office space within the 80s and I’ve known for decades, and in terms of his personal life, has never moved a single inch from wanting to glorify God, demonstrate his power and win people to the Lord, especially Jewish people.
Yeah, there are guests he has on I’d never have on my show and differences I have over that. [Editor’s note: Really? Like that so-called Christian tarot card reader you gave the right hand of fellowship to a couple of years ago that we wrote about and that you can read about here?] But that doesn’t make me question whether he is saved or not, but when you call him a charlatan and a huckster, right, he’s not. He’s neither. I know him. I know his staff. I know his team. He’s not this. Now you may say, ‘he has crazy guests on. I think he believes crazy things’ – but to call him a charlatan and a huckster, you have no knowledge or evidence of that. Doesn’t it concern you to speak such words like that and to judge others in such a severe way? Does that trouble you at all? Does that give you pause for thought?
After Jim responds, Brown continues to take offense at calling Sid Roth a huckster and a charlatan, declaring, “I know it for a fact. I know it for a fact he’s neither of those things.” Jim points out that Roth platforms and promotes “some of the stupidest and most inane things to ever disgrace” the public view of Christianity.
Brown declares, “Sid genuinely believes in the things that he promotes otherwise he won’t promote them,” as if that’s some kind of defense, while reiterating his long-standing assertion that “I’ve been bringing critique and concern to the charismatic movement for decades,” even though the only person he’s ever named as problematic is Todd Bentley, having a pathological inability to name names. Brown routinely reassures critics of kooky charismatics that this or that person is legitimate and is being misrepresented because he’s “spoken to them privately” and gained gnostic knowledge about how much they in fact, love the Lord as if that helps anyone without access which only hears and sees publicly.
Unfortunately, Osman did not get a chance to ask him, “Why wouldn’t you have the same guests he has on his show? Why do you ‘disagree’ with some of the guests he has on? Are you suggesting that the guests he has on are hucksters and charlatans, but Sid is not? What does it say about Roth that he would promote and platform the guests that you yourself would never have on? Is Roth complicit in promoting guests and speakers and shilling their books and wares that are about as crazy as a rat in a coffee can?”
We’d love to know.
Bonus, remember when Brown issued a wager to complementarians, putting up his prophets of baal two most famed charismatic sorcerers prophets Chuck Pierce and Tracy Cook, who said that COVID-19 would begin diminishing by April 16, 2020. You can read about that here: 120 Days in, Dr. Michael Brown Silent on Failed, Wagered Charismatic COVID-19 Prophecies. As can be expected, he never followed up with his wager and as far as we know, never spoke about it again.
Charismatic “prophet” Todd Bentley, the only huckster in the whole of Christianity that Dr. Michael Brown has ever bothered to condemn (and that only slightly), is up to no good again—the result of a string of angelic encounters and personal visions from Jesus who gave him a new 25-year ministry mandate.
We have written extensively about Todd, chronicling his malfeasance from lauded anointed revivalist and miracle worker, to drunkard, adulterer, liar, and sheep-fleecer extraordinaire, all the while being lifted up by a cadre of ne’er-do-wells as a great and supernaturally gifted man of God.
Bentley, you will recall, went relatively radio silent in 2019, a year after being newly accused of drug use, adultery, and sexting, some of which he admitted. A “New Apostolic Reformation” (NAR) tribunal report was launched and they found that Bentley was guilty—a pointless summation, as Bentley had already checked out and declared the whole thing a scam and witch hunt anyway.
Despite these findings, Bentley was able to maintain a high level of ministry support, with the revelation of decades of grossly immoral behavior being viewed as “just a scratch” to his reputation. This should surprise no one, however, as charismatics and NAR adherents historically have enjoyed infinitesimally low levels of discernment when it comes to the sinful behavior of their leaders, and this case has sadly proved to be no different.
With an angel-filled, gospel-less message, Bentley has been putting on healing crusades up and down the East coast, claiming to be performing miracle after miracle after miracle, with Saturday evening service geared at removing metal rods and plates in people’s bodies.
During the service, people are “slain in the spirit” while Bentley does his schtick, twirling around, telling the congregation that the angels are everywhere, pointing them out left and right. “I’m burning up right now,” says Bentley, preparing to go spiritually “super-sayan,” and “man, my whole body’s on fire!”
He approaches a man who had some metal plates put into his ankle as a result of a skateboarding accident in his youth, resulting in pain and swelling, and tells him, his voice sounding like that of an Irish pirate in the last 10 seconds of the clip:
(You) look drunk a little bit to be honest, in the Holy Ghost by the way. My whole hand is on fire right now by the way. Look at it—you can see my hand—it’s tingling right now. This is the gift of healing. Oral Roberts would have the gift of healing, come he’d feel it in his shoulder or go all the way into his hand.
That happens to me only when the angel comes, and there’s burning here right now. You see it’s increasing. I don’t even have to touch him. You see whoever I get around, the angels start doing stuff. God’s doing this not us. So God, may he be released into a realm of creative miracles and visions of God, and know how to work with the miracle angels.
Boom! And take out the metal all the way. Never let it swell up again and let it never let it be in pain again, in Jesus name.
On June 23, 2021, cessationists will celebrate what has affectionately been called the “charismatic day of infamy.” For on that day, 13 year ago, 17 high-profile charismatic “apostles,” including Bill Johnson, Jon Arnott, Rick Joyner, Che Ahn, and C. Peter Wagner, came together in a ceremony of “apostolic alignment” over 32-year old Todd Bentley, commissioning him to lead the Lakeland Revival and recognizing him as an evangelist doing the work of the Lord led by the Holy Spirit.
In a letter sent to the Elijah List, C. Peter Wagner recounts what happened during this groundbreaking event:
During this ceremony Che Ahn, Bill Johnson and John Arnott laid on hands and anointed Todd Bentley with a special new ‘Be Revived’ oil that Chuck Pierce (who was in Africa) sent for the event. Todd went down under the power of the Spirit and the three prophesied over him, commissioning him as the evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring. Then most of the backup apostles prayed and prophesied as well. The power of the Holy Spirit was so heavy on that event that you could almost have cut it with a knife!
It was quite evident to those present that this was a groundbreaking event. A serious public problem had been growing in the Body of Christ revolving around concerns about Lakeland from respected leaders. Even ‘schism’ had been mentioned frequently. Because of the extensive media coverage through GOD TV, it was much more than a private or a trivial matter. Something was called for to set things in order, and this is the stated role of apostles. [Huh?!? Learn some Greek here. Apostolos means a messenger sent out on a mission, and nothing more, and nothing else. These moros (Greek for morons) are making stuff up. Again. -Ed.]
We are now in a place in what I see as the Second Apostolic Age that apostles can agree publicly to bring alignment. The seventeen apostles involved in this event represented three distinct apostolic streams: ICA (10 were ICA members), Revival Alliance, and Morningstar. Even though we are not networked formally, we believe in and support each other and we stand together when a crisis such as this one comes along. I may be wrong, but I cannot recall an event of this nature in the recent history of the Church. [Yeah, he’s wrong. The last capital-A Apostle (John) died in Ephesus over 1900 years ago. -Ed.]
During the alignment ceremony, Wagner, the head of the New Apostolic [!] Reformation (NAR) decreed:
You are about to witness an event which could well have historic implications not only for the Lakeland Outpouring, but also for our nation and for many other nations of the world. Prophets have been telling us for years that God is about to launch an extraordinary spiritual awakening with signs and wonders, and for over two months, Todd Bentley has been leading one of the more obvious fulfillments of those prophecies. This is an exciting place to be right now!..
Wagner asked the three apostles, Che Ahn, Bill Johnson, and John Arnot, “Do you perceive the grace of God given to Todd Bentley as an evangelist to lead the Lakeland Outpouring?
Answer: “I do.”
He turned to Todd Bentley and asked, “Do you recognize the apostolic authority of these three men in your life and ministry, and do you desire to establish an apostolic alignment with them and with Revival Alliance?
Answer: “I do.”
He continued:
This commissioning represents a powerful spiritual transaction taking place in the invisible world. With this in mind, I take the apostolic authority that God has given me [none at all -Ed.] and I decree to Todd Bentley:
– Your power will increase.
– Your authority will increase.
– Your favor will increase.
– Your influence will increase.
– Your revelation will increase.I also decree that:
– A new supernatural strength will flow through this ministry.
– A new life force will penetrate this move of God.
– A government will be established to set things in their proper order.
– God will pour out a higher level of discernment to distinguish truth from error. [Okay, I’m laughing out loud here… -Ed.]
– New relationships will surface to open gates for the future. […]
The people cheered. Todd cried and shook his head. The “apostle” sat back satisfied at the historic nature of their coming together, wondering what glorious things the Lord would do next.
Within a month of his alignment ceremony, Bentley would announce that he was leaving Lakeland and stepping down. A few days after that, he told the world he divorcing his wife and it was revealed that during his time as leader of the revival, as he was getting aligned by the apostles, he had been engaging in “an unhealthy relationship on an emotional level with a female member of his staff,” and getting drunk all the time, spiralling into depression, anxiety, and babbling on stage in a series of pseudo-spiritual slurs.
The vaunted Lakeland Revival crashed into a smouldering heap of disillusionment immediately afterward, the populace burned by a charlatan who was able to garner the endorsement of 17 charismatic “apostles,” all the while acting like a devil.
To that day, we cessationists remember!
The disgraced-in-all-but-charismatic-circles Todd Bentley, the only person Dr. Michael Brown said was a false teacher disqualified from ministry (but only temporarily, as he also said he was supernaturally gifted and could return one day), took to Facebook to defend against charges that he is disqualified from ministry owing to his history of allegations regarding marital infidelity, drunkness, coarse language, hitting on homosexuals, sexting, pornography, proffering his wife to other men, and a host of other spiritually seditious activities. [Editor’s note: Yeah, he is one sinful dude.]
You will recall a panel/tribunal of charismatic leaders were called to examine evidence and decide whether or not the allegations were true. Before long, Bentley bailed on it and ended his involvement in the process, calling it a “witch hunt.” This did not stop the tribunal from releasing the summary of the report, where they declared him guilty, but that they had hopes for his future due to his miraculous gifts. Charismatics and NAR adherents historically have enjoyed infinitesimally low levels of discernment when it comes to the sinful behavior from their leaders, and this case has sadly has proved to be no different.
Like water off a duck’s back, Bentley shrugged it off and shortly thereafter resumed the ministry, recently putting on healing conferences and rallies throughout his state, as well as continuing to host his own church service. Then, another accuser:
While Todd’s explanation written in a way that is barely coherent, what comes through is that he views it as all fake news (a coined term, popularized by President Trump, whom incidentally Bentley prophecied would win reelection):
All the other stuff you were listening to was the wrong source, because to this day nothing was verified or proven, and that’s why I’ve never been charged with any kind of crime – because it was fake news! Not everything appears as it seems. Time will prove that I’m not guilty of the things I’m accused of…it was just the opinion of a few people, my brother.
Bentley previously admitted that he has done some of these things, but claimed they all happened 6 or 7 years ago when he was put under secret church discipline and it was all dealt with. He has never said which allegations are true and which aren’t, however, and now appears to be denying them all outright.
Of course, the internet holds things forever.
Last year, Rod Radosti, founder of Church14 ministries and former frequent ministry partner of Todd Bentley, uploaded a video to his Facebook page of one of Todd’s victims speaking out and detailing the nature and the existence of their sordid relationship, explaining that they regularly engaged in sexting and the exchange of nude pictures.
What is damning is that when confronted about this woman and her story, explicitly stated to be in 2017, and which showed Todd being the victimizer and her being a victim, he did not dispute it but rather took exception to that characterization of it as abuse.
In the process of reiterating his insistence that they were consenting adults and that “we as adults sinned,” he acknowledges and corroborates the veracity of her story and put the lie to his claim that this all only happened back in 2014, or now, that it never happened at all.
