Fwd: Say Amen somebody! Cultic practice of positive confession.
naboth675
<naboth675@...> wrote:
Pastor Ernie Toppin has taught and promotes a cultic practice that
is popular in charismatic circles known as 'positive confession'.
In a sermon he taught that reality could be changed by the words we
speak. He also taught that evil things could happen which would not
have otherwise happen if you confessed them.
When I was in primary school one child came up with this
superstitious belief when objecting to a turn of phrase used by some
in the class. There is a phrase that some use as an exclamation of
surprise. 'Gawd blimey'is commonly heard, particularly in and around
the greater London area. This child believed that simply saying the
words could cause a person to become blind. The psuedochristian
doctrine of positive confession is similar to this. I have heard
Pastor Toppin use this logic to affect his prayers and his sermons
on countless occasions.
On many occasions he would 'confess revival' and 'speak destiny'
and teach us to speak to our circumstances in order to change them.
He used the christian principle of faith to justify this. This has a
link to the insistance by some of saying amen to something in order
to make it real to them. There is a belief in certain circles in the
fellowship that saying amen to certain points initiates a miraculous
empowering of those words in the hearers. While it is true that God
requires faith it seems that this is taken to an extreme by Pastor
Toppin.
I overheard his daughter in a conversation that went something like
this.
Friend / {sneezes} Urgh, I've got a cold.
Daughter / Oh no, don't say that. You shouldn't say that.
friend / WHAT?
Daughter / You shouldn't say that. You don't have a cold.
friend /What are you talking about?
Daughter / Sister, you don't have a cold. You have the SYMPTOMS of a
cold.
friend / That's daft. What are you talking about?
Daughter / If you confess you have a cold then it will become a
cold. You only have the symptoms of a cold. Don't confess it.
The logic of such arguments are plainly ridiculous. For instance, if
I were to spot a large gray mammal with a long trunk and big flappy
ears I would say that was an elephant. Imagine if someone was to
argue that it was not an elephant but merely had the SYMPTOMS of an
elephant. However if you confess it as an elephant it would in fact
become one. I have yet to figure out how you tell the difference
between a real elephant and an animal that merely has the SYMPTOMS
of an elephant.
Believe it or not, this insanity is actualy being taught from behind
Potters House pulpits. Have you ever wondered why there is so much
pressure to believe for revival and why it never seems to come? Why
do preachers keep insisting that they feel there has been a
breakthrough in the spiritual realm and yet a year later the church
has barely grown? Why do preachers keep insisting that there will be
a financial breakthrough if people would give more to the church. {a
favourite of Ernie Toppin} These are nothing more than manipulative
strategies that stir the saints to get out on the streets to witness
and to put more money in the offerings. Next time the preacher tells
you there is a powerful presence of God in the place ask yourself,
is that really true or is he trying to create the reality by
confessing it?
regards...naboth675
--- In slamthedoor_on_...@yahoogroups.com, "naboth675"
<naboth675@y...> wrote:
> One of the things that irritated me while I was in the fellowship
> was the arm twisting that went on just to feed a ministers ego.
>
> On many occasions, the people in my church were told {sometimes
> sarcasticaly} to say 'amen' or we would be prompted with 'amen
> somebody...I said AMEN SOMEBODY...hello, walls ceiling ..can you
> hear me?'{He would get like this if we didn't respond on cue.}
>
> I find this all quite immature. The word amen as far as I know
> means ,truly or indeed. What are doing is affirming what he is
> saying by saying yes! true! indeed! amen! Nothing wrong with that
of
> course if it's spontaneous and comes naturaly but these religious
> types want a performance and they start cajoling you for an amen.
> The more they pushed me for it the more I resisted. {I resent
being
> told what to say and when.}
>
> You shouldn't force people to agree with you. If they don't have
any
> conviction about a certain point then let them make their own mind
> up. Often I would sit there and I liked to sit silently
> contemplating and mulling over what was being said. When I was
being
> pushed to say amen it was as if I was not being given the chance
to
> make my own mind up.
>
> One way they justified this was to say that by confessing with
your
> lips and affirming that the word was true you are causing the word
> to bear fruit in your life. That's fine but only if that was what
> God was speaking to you right then and that really is down to the
> congregant to decide.
>
> Our old pastor used to get real peeved about this because we
didn't
> perform as requested and got quite irate. He even preached a whole
> sermon on saying amen just to get us to say the darned word. {at
> that point I relented and went along with it}
>
> Another thing is that they told me was that there was something
> spiritual about saying amen with the insinuation that spiritual
> people were the ones saying amen. This was also an example of what
> Holy Spirit filled christians did. {in other words if you don't
say
> amen to my sermon then you are not filled with the Spirit and you
> are not spiritual}
> Well if it's evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit then
they
> won't have to prompt you will they. This is just another silly
> example of fellowship guilttripping and manipulation...amen?....I
> said amen somebody? hello? computer?...screen?...I said AMEN! LOL
>
> Oh my...I'm having flashbacks.
>
>
> regards...naboth675
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