Quote:
Originally Posted by Ohio
Definitely I agree with this, but ...
Within that charismatic experience was the real thing -- the Spirit of reality, the Lord Jesus Himself bring me to the Father. The abundant fruit in my life and others is just undeniable.
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Absolutely. The charismatic experience has also been essential to my Christian life. I don't regret a minute of the LC experience, if that's what it took. But I have to admit that an awful bug came into my mind, and it took years to shake it out.
"Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion" indeed. But also, "prove all things". We did the first in the LC but completely neglected the second. Instead of "prove all things" it was "Brother Lee says". And this is not exclusive to the LC experience. But I keep bringing it up because they pretend that charismatic mind-control is not part of the agenda, when it surely is. So what if they don't speak in tongues or practice laying on of hands? They're an extremely charismatic group, and these practices, combined with an attitude of unquestioning obedience (don't want to be 'negative', we were always reminded) allowed some really ruinous ideas to set up shop in LC brain pans.
It was conditioning, pure and simple. But we didn't realize it, so even if we left physically, we never bothered to de-condition ourselves mentally. So many who left the LC had no clue as to how to continue a christian life and living.
A word on the dangers of charismatic mind-control (I speak as a former and current charismatic [noisy Christian]). I once read a transcript from the podium of one of the Todd Bentley Lakeland Florida Revival meetings. The syntax was fractured, there was no coherent message, it was a pastiche of "Oh my God" and "I feel Jesus in my shoe" and a few Old Testament phrases. Where's the edification? As a Christian, it was embarrassing. We in the LC weren't much better: we'd chant-shout whatever our handlers fed us - "Let's all declare Banner Two up on that wall, over there!"
No opportunity for reflection, for correction, for adjustment, for uncertainty, for wonder. It was all volume, arm-waving, red-faced intensity; a dangerous mixture of zeal and ignorance.
Am I over-reacting? Of course. I always do. But there's a warning there, not to think that excitement equals divine transmission. In many cases excitement can distract us, and I highlight the danger that it weakens our God-given defenses of reason, to get us to uncritically accept things that are not of God. Scripture is ignored, or explained away. Eventually the disconnect between the plain words on paper in front of us and what we are saying becomes quite disconcerting. But we are too busy shouting, pray-reading, declaring, jumping up and down, and arm-waving to notice.