Masquerade In Ministry
If God were interested in numbers, He’s
doing a lousy job of saving the world! Most of the world is steeped in
superstition, deception and false religion of all shades. And for those
who think that Christians are excepted, that very supposition is
evidence of their own blindness of which Jesus warned (Matt 24:4,5).
The truth is that Jesus is not failing.
He said that His Kingdom is NOT of this world (Jn 18:36). So, He is not
desperate to save most people now. He is fully in control. It is part of
His scheme of things to allow massive deception to engulf the majority.
Paul revealed God’s mind on the matter:
For God has committed them all to
disobedience, that He might have mercy on all (Rom 11:32).
While Paul was referring to
Israel – the people of God at that time – his words outline a major principle
in God’s working with humanity.
This principle is not understood by many
preachers. Morris Cerullo seems to be one of them. He says, “Remember,
the heartbeat of God is S-O-U-L-S – SOULS!”
That is a half truth. And half truths can
be dangerous lies, because they subtly lead you into error, into heresy,
and away from the mind of God.
Do You Comprehend God’s Mind?
Mission To London
(MTL) is part of international evangelist Morris Cerullo’s outreach in
the UK. In his April 2006 MTL Newsletter he announces that he is
bringing MTL to London from July 17 to July 22, 2006.
MTL used to be a regular annual event in
Earls Court, London, until he was disgraced a number of years ago and
banned because of deceitful fundraising tactics which breached a
recognised code of conduct. He gave promises that weren’t kept, or
couldn’t be kept. Morris has been very glib with slogans.
When God calls a man into His service, He
gives him a measure of truth. No man has a monopoly on truth. Nor is he
alone in his service to God’s people. There are others, too, who are
God’s servants. But Morris has placed himself on a pedestal, calling
himself “God’s servant” (MTL Newsletter, Issue 1, p 1). The implication
is that he is the most exalted one.
Not only that, Morris is now trying to
start a new gimmick to promote and elevate himself. He claims “God has
revealed something new to me.” (Ibid., p 1.)
In understanding God’s mind, the first
thing we must all understand is that God does not promote pride! God’s
mind begins with humility (Is 57:15; 66:2). But Morris’s words are to
get you to think highly of him and to convince you that what he is doing
is of God.
“He has birthed in my heart the dynamic
Elijah Institute – a school worldwide without walls that will help
accelerate Jesus’ return. This year at the MTL School of Ministry in
London I will be presenting the Elijah Institute.” (Ibid., p 1.)
Do you see the masquerade in the above?
Firstly, does Jesus need our help because
He is failing? Should anyone dare to presumptuously claim that Jesus
needs them?! Or that our efforts – in this case, Morris’s – are going to
speed Jesus’ return? Didn’t James reveal the danger in such presumption?
Instead you ought to say, “If the
Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” (James 4:15.)
When a preacher is so engulfed in pride
as Morris is, naturally he thinks that he IS in God’s will – whatever
he does! He can abuse others, treat them with disdain, yet be blind to
his maltreatment. And he can say things that are half truths or entirely
false!
It is certainly true that Elijah is doing
His Work on earth today, but Morris Cerullo has only had a part
of that Work, by no means all that he claims for himself! And that part
is being superceded by others, yet he is unaware of what God is now
doing – elsewhere! (But I believe he will be aware of it in due course.)
Morris does not receive from God
regularly in dreams and visions as prophets do (Num 12:6). He is NOT a
prophet of God. He is an evangelist with a miracle-working gift from God
(which he has abused, I’m sorry to say). By starting a human institute
and naming it ‘Elijah’ he is cleverly masquerading as the only or
pre-eminent prophet through whom God works.
Moreover, he boasts: “The theme of the
School of Ministry in London this year
is Passing On The Mantle. God is going to raise up hundreds of
thousands of Elijahs and they will pass on the mantle of God’s
anointing. [Oh yeah? More likely they will pass on demonic oppression
and deception.] God is going to raise up for you, Elishas, by the
hundreds with a new dimension – a new breed – of people that are going
to be able to hold your arms up and extend your ministries out to the
areas where God has placed you to harvest.” (MTL Newsletter, Issue 1, p
1.)
It sounds good, but it’s a masquerade.
It’s a blend of truth with falsity.[1]
It is gimmickry.
It is now a human work, done by human
effort – an attempt to rally people around a human leader, under the
guise that it’s God’s Elijah Work on earth! It’s a masquerade.
Jesus said to me a number of years ago
these words: I am not found in the Institutions of men. So why is
Morris trying to establish another institute? To glorify himself. Of
course, he can’t see that... yet.
Morris calls this event “a great,
week-long soul- saving healing Crusade...” The number of ‘souls’ that
are saved are minimal, because the majority of people who attend are
already churched. And, while God certainly does some miracles and heals
some people in desperate circumstances (according to their faith, not
Morris’s, and because of God’s limitless grace), the anointing that used
to be present on MTL is not there any longer.
Why not?
False Ministers
In 1992 and 1993, we attended MTL. There
was a dramatic outpouring (‘anointing’) of God’s Spirit there. God was
performing many miracles. However, God showed us a man behind the scenes
who was a false minister. (The gift of discerning of spirits operates
with true prophets.) We were proven right by subsequent events. He
falsely accused me and my wife, and unilaterally exerted total despotic
power over us, removing our ‘status’ as ‘counsellors’ because he felt
threatened by the Spirit with us.
He is a liar and powermonger. Yet he is a
prominent minister in London. And he was put in charge of personnel
helping with spiritual counselling at MTL.
I tried to alert Morris’s organisation by
writing to Theresa Cerullo, but she just passed the problem over to the
office managers in Hemel Hempstead and those men were equally unable to
handle it. Arrogantly, they called us in to their office; they didn’t
come to us. Then they dismissed our input as totally irrelevant,
‘without foundation’, and contemptuously exerted their authority over us
as if they were overlords – Hitlers, if you like. Their modus operandi
was similar to the Gestapo’s.
Now we could see there wasn’t just one
false minister in MTL; the place was riddled with them!
I didn’t just write once. They had more
than one warning (Titus 3:10; Jer 6:10,27-28). Then the shutters started
to come down from heaven (Jer 6:19; 7:23-24, 28-29; 8:5-7). The
following year, Robert Shambach was on stage, having preached, and
awaiting God’s ‘anointing’ which would customarily come for the healing
of the sick, but nothing happened!
Not realising what was wrong, he filled
in time by relating some interesting anecdotes, hoping that the power
would begin to be felt as he did so. But still nothing happened. As we
sat on the bleachers, high up, away from the thousands on the ground
floor, God made it clear to us what He had done. He had removed from MTL
the former blessing. Only very few people were healed compared with the
many who benefited in previous years.
The above references in Jeremiah explain
why.
And MTL has had other damaging setbacks.
It is cursed! (Explained in Newsletter 34.) It does not accept the
prophets God sends. In their place are men who are corrupt, although
able speakers and stage performers. I do not mean that all who associate
with Morris Cerullo are false, but many of them are.
Matthew Ashimolowo, for example, has a
massive church in London, but his personal life is far from exemplary.
Financial irregularities have been unearthed in his organisation. Money
and power have corrupted him. And Ayo Oritsejafor’s Word of Life Bible
Church in Nigeria boasts a membership of multiple thousands with a TV
programme reaching 15 million in Africa each week. But so what, if what
you are feeding people is a diet lacking some vital nutrients? They will
end up malnourished and with deficiencies or illness.
Do you see what the emphasis is? It’s on
size, on numbers of people reached, not on the quality of what is
preached. God said to me:
A preacher’s success is not rated by
the number of people he reaches but by the depth of repentance he
teaches.
That’s what is important to God. It’s not
what MTL holds up in highest esteem. Numbers (‘souls’) matter more to
those with a mere human appraisal.
Morris Is Lifted Up
Ayo says: “At least 50% of ministers
preaching across Africa have been, directly or indirectly, influenced by
Dr Cerullo’s ministry. Many of them look up to him as a spiritual
Father, as I do.” (MTL News- letter, Issue 1, p 3.)
And that’s the problem! Morris is
elevated as if he is God, and that pride has left the door open for the
devil to enter and cause mayhem (see 2 Thes 2:3-12).
Deception always follows in the wake of
pride. Morris claims: “God has showed me that the School of
Ministry is going to continue until Jesus comes.” No. The temple will be
dismantled; not one stone will be left upon another! (Mt 24:2.) Thus
says the Lord!
Malcolm B Heap, June 2006
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