There is a ministry in Kansas City called, "The International House of Prayer." This is a place where there are people praying and worshiping God 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Sounds good right? Well, I've been checking out their web information and came across something strange. Read below (taken from http://www.ihop.org/Publisher/Article.aspx?id=22543):
"Children are trained weekly in areas of Kingdom Ministry, Creative and Prophetic Expression. They are being trained to speak and teach God’s word, heal the sick and prophesy. Children are trained and released to minister in all IHOP Mission Base services."
Weird, huh? Teaching kids "prophetic expression?" Teaching them to "heal the sick and prophesy?" I didn't realize that healing and prophesying took training. I thought they were gifts from God. What do I know?
There is no precedent for such things in the Bible. What kind of strange children will come from this?
11 comments:
Wow, that is strange! Teaching them to preach and teach Gods Word thats great but, why mess up a good thing with the Prophesying and Healing. Surely they know Gods in charge of the healing not us. If they are telling them what scripture says about the end times hey why not but, I don't need someone to tell me what my next step in life is going to be I have the Bible to help with that.
That is a very interesting question...what kind of children will come from this? Many possibilities but it's all unsettling to me. I remember the Scripture about the millstone...not a pretty picture.
This is actually a pretty easy one, they have to know how to heal because after their older congregants get through eating the rooty tooty fresh and fruity breakfast and a stack of Chocolate Chip Pancakes. The kids need to pray hard that their Dads artetries aren't completely clogged. I can't believe you missed the IHOP references.
Way to go passafist!! :)
(of course, IHOP, in this case, stands for International House of Prayer)
Healing and prophesy are gifts from God. But just like any other gift, if you dont practice it or recognize that you have it, it's a dead gift. In the Old Testiment there were "schools of prophets" that trained people in the prophetic. Also, 1 Corinthians 14:32 says, "And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets." meaning these gifts are in the hands of those who have them. It is our duty to awaken it, practice, and train in it. Training can take place in terms of studying what the former prophets did, and how they used this gift. Studying the healings Jesus and his disciples performed is also a way of training.
That being said, I have been to the International House of Prayer and have spent a great deal of time there. Their ministries are Biblical, including the children's ministry. The kids there have been walking in healings and prophetic because they take these gifts seriously. God has his hand on them, and it is really awesome to see how he has used them.
Oh yeah, the "school of prophets" and the dormant gifts of healing. Those are definitely prominent biblical themes.
Why, just the other day I reading where Paul was talking about the school of prophets he and the other apostles were setting up so that they could be like the Old Testament dudes.
And then, there was the command to wake up those sleepy gifts of healing and prophesy that were just hanging dormant waiting for someone with the magic key to wake them up!
Dude, get a grip. Sounds more like gnosticism than Bible to me.
Keep screwing up kids heads, and one day, you'll find the Shepherd of souls has fitted you for mill stones.
I have been out to the International House of Prayer, and while i was out there my life was completely changed. I have never experienced God more than when i was out there, and it is not because of the location or place or something special that they have done, but it is becasue through prayer they have ushered in the spirit of God into their own lives and into the lives of others.
I actually did go to the youth program at IHOP and was taught in the prophetic and healing and like anonomous said, those are both gifts that are given to us by God but unless we know how to use them then they are useless. It is for this same reason that we have mentors, and elders that teach us things and help us in areas of life..because we were not born knowing it all.
Miraculous events take place all of the time at IHOP, and i know for a fact that God's power would not be going forth in such ways as it is out there if they were teaching unbiblical or ungodly things to children.
One such event i witnessed in my own life, so i know first hand that God's hand really is upon them.
& I say this only in love to show you that we cannot have division among our hearts in the church, because in the church we are all one body and we must not slander others who are our brothers, and we must not curse those who have our same enheritance & heritage in Christ.
-with Christ's love
Your sarcasm does not offend me, nor does it convince me of anything.
You're right, there is no "sleeping gift" in the Bible. Prophecy and healing are perfect gifts that are put in the hands of imperfect humans. It's the people who become dormant to the Spirit. 1 Corinthians 15:18-"Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished."
You know, your sarcasm doesnt make much sense to me, becaue Paul did quote these "Old Testiment dudes" many times in Acts. Acts 1:20; 2:17-21, 25-28, 34-35; 4:25-26; 7:42-43. ect... It's not me you mimicked.
You obviously lack the understanding of what they teach and how they train. Your 'research' online can only take you so far. I'd encourage you to go to the International House of Prayer and get some facts straight before you point any fingers. Their ministry welcomes all questions.
If you have not been there, or witnessed the teachings for yourself, who are you to make this judgment call?
I am not looking for a heated arguement. I hope you understand the tone I've meant to write in.
Kristlement, I do not doubt your experience. Experience is like that.
Anonymous, I was not trying to offend you with my sarcasm. I was trying to make a point.
Let me make another, I do have a right to make judgements based on the information I have. It is not "finger pointing." If it is, then what you say is finger pointing too, because you are clearly saying I am not qualified to comment. How do you know? Do you know what I know? Have you been where I've been? Have you seen what I've seen?
No. you haven't.
But this is my blog. Not a place where I feel the need to give my spiritual history and pedigree to everyone who comments. if you don't think I have a right to say what I say, you have the right not to read it.
Now, serious issues:
How do you know who has the proper information on how to use the prophetic gifts and the gifts of healing? what qualifies a person?
Are you saying that the KC prophets have it because of their experience? IF so, then there are more questions that you have to answer --trust me, questions you don't want to deal with (like Paul Cain's car ride with Jesus where he touched him and healed him from all sexual temptation so he could remain single --of course, it turns out he's just gay--).
Because someone proclaims themselves to be knowledgeable on the prophetic doesn't give them authority to speak for God.There is no New Testament justification for a school of prophets. My sarcasm pointed this out with a greater economy of words. Also, dormant gifts or gifts people don't know how to use is not a New Testament, nor even Old Testament idea. Where did you get it? Mike Bickle? Where does he get this secret info?
To take the one verse claiming prophesy to be subject to prophets and put all one's weight on it, and then invent one's own methodologies does not make one right. I say Bickle is wrong.
My friend, if God gives you a true prophesy, you won't need a school to get it out of you. You'll know. God has a way of not stuttering.
I know, this flies in the face of an increasingly large cannon of books, conferences, etc. But, I oppose these teachings. Sorry. They're wrong.
As for what is being done to kids, trust me, to try to teach them in these invented methodologies for hearing the voice of God is going to do more to mess them up then to fix them.
Praying is good. Praying 24 hours a day is good. Believing that by praying 24 hours a day your ushering in the end times? Unbliblical idea. Gnosticism is when some people believe they have secret spiritual knowledge that others don't have. Bickle, Cain, Joyner, et al have been peddling their gnosticism for years. I don't buy it. You do. You must be new on the scene.
Your mind is obviously made up. I thought you might be interested in my personal information and testimonies from the International House of Prayer, but if you will only listen to those who agree with you then I will be wasting my time trying to give Biblical information on this subject.
Anonymous,
Were you speaking of me? . . . or yourself?
in His Grip, and for your good
mike
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