Christian prayer for healing Andrew Fergusson considers recent events at Lakeland
Lakeland, Florida earlier this year at events organised by Fresh Fire Ministries, and led by Todd Bentley, the flamboyant, tattooed Canadian evangelist. It was said people were healed of all sorts of diseases and disabilities, and it was even being suggested that people were being raised from the dead. Was this a wonderful revival? Or was it a mixture of the good, the bad and the ugly?
M
ost of us heard about the supernatural phenomena claimed at
Those questions may partly be answered now because Todd Bentley has stepped down from ministry after an ‘unhealthy relationship’, 1
and things seem
to have gone quiet, but this article will review the Lakeland phenomenon before moving to a wider consideration of prayer for healing.
early comments from the Evangelical Alliance
CMF is a member body of the UK Evangelical Alliance and was consulted about an appropriate response to the early reports from Lakeland. We endorse what General Director Joel Edwards wrote in an open letter on 10 June: 2
I suspect that many of you have watched with interest the recent developments in Lakeland, Florida. Unusual things have been taking place in Todd Bentley’s church, and they now seem to be spreading to other parts of the world, including the UK.
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I’ve spoken to a number of our members who are overjoyed at what they perceive to be the latest outpouring of God’s spirit. Others, though, have expressed their concern at what is happening and particularly the kind of appeals that have been made on TV and the internet.
Inevitably, all of this reminds me of the struggles we all had at the Alliance at the time of Toronto. And I simply don’t yet know how I feel about all that is going on in Florida. There are aspects that make me rejoice, and others that make me uneasy. However, at the time of Toronto, I drew up the following list of principles that it seems to me have enduring relevance. I share them again with you now so that together we can remain united around our one common cause: the gospel of Jesus Christ.
1. Evangelicals should make every effort to measure all spiritual phenomena by biblical criteria. In every case, the devotional hallmarks of holiness, prayer and witness provide reliable indicators of authentic moves of God.
2. We also acknowledge that the current phenomenon is not new. During the 18th, 19th
nucleus christmas ‘08
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