There is an interesting article in a recent issue of the NY Times about the International House of Prayer in Kansas City.
For the record, I also have some reservations about the teaching of Mike Bickle. My observation is that he himself needs more theological education than he has had. His eschatology is not fully Biblical, and he is given to making pronouncements about the return of Christ and its timing when in fact no one knows when Christ will return, and as Jesus says in Acts 1, it is not for us to know the times and seasons of such things.
I have no problems with the affirmation of the gift of speaking in tongues, but there seems to be some misunderstandings about how Biblical prophecy actually works and should be interpreted. While I certainly agree that God can powerfully use our prayers to accomplish various things, sometimes an almost magical view of prayer seems to be suggested, as if it were some kind of genie’s lamp one can rub and produce result, if we only have enough faith.
My own students who have spent time at IHOP have often given positive testimonials about their time there, but at the same time, some of the things they told me about the teachings about demons, among other things, gave me pause. Of even more concern was the over-emphasis on emotions and emotionalism as if that were the essence of our relationship with God. Some of this of course is common enough in Pentecostal religion in general, and despite what the article seems to suggest, I do not see evidence of cultic practices or mind control at IHOP, so far as what has been reported to me by my students. What I would however like to see is the leadership at IHOP getting some better and more in depth training in the Bible in the original languages, especially perhaps the prophetic and eschatological material in the Bible. But perhaps that will yet happen.
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