My thoughts and feelings about Faith Assembly & Dr. Hobart Freeman
-© copyright Tom McLaughlin 2004

If I can have the freedom to put what I felt happened via the "faith teachings" by Dr. Freeman at Faith Assembly (ex: Glory Barn) and its influence on me is that I have had a lot of answered prayers and questions done through his ministry and tapes.

I felt he was as close to my heart as if he was my father. But he was human, just like the rest of us. I have not met anyone in my life who has preached the Word with conviction and truth like he did. And still feel this way almost 20 years after his passing away back in 1984.

But I am saddened to hear about what happened to people there or even to this day how some cannot fellowship with other Christians or neglect personal hygiene like brushing their teeth because they think it is sin to go to the dentist. - heck I too thought that once.

I couldn't even talk to Baptists because they didn't believe in the Holy Spirit and tongues. Now some of my best friends and neighbours are Baptists because I had to humble myself and ask the Lord for forgiveness about being proud to the fact I speak in tongues and they don't. This is all a result of spiritual pride turned into bondage.

I can't make my convictions be your convictions, nor anyone else for that matter.

Jesus said He didn't come to take us OUT of the world, but to make sure we are not to become PART of the world, meaning we don't partake of sins like drunken parties, reveling, and fornication. We are to interact with this world, to show compassion to those who mourn, to those who are sick, poor, or needy, even to visit people in jails.

But does this mean the faith message and Faith Assembly were a cult or false? I don't believe so. While one can "justify" a cult mentality crept in, I believe there was a divine happening going on where God was present at the meetings.

The problem I feel is we went too far with faith and didn't balance our walk with Love and Hope. It wasn't in the message it was in the fact we as people put Dr. Freeman on a pedestal and then everything became legalistic. If someone stumbled and went to the doctor, we cast that person off as a sinner. I know quite a few went off the deep end seeing Dr. Freeman not as a messenger from the Lord but someone to worship. Christianity is the only army that shoots its wounded.

I by no means will say he did things to gain notoriety or finances. Having been down to Faith Assembly eight times and talking to a lot of people before and after his death, I know from what I saw wasn't the man or his preaching that caused this, but the lack of love from the followers.

You have to remember this faith walk/message came a time when there was a spiritual vacuum in the 70's with Jesus' movement being all about love and feeling good but offering no substance. Faith is not feeling, but results from a deep love and trust in God.

When we, as followers started putting Freeman, or anyone else for that matter, before the Word ("Brother Freeman said this" or "Doctor Freeman said that") then I believe God in His grace had to remove Dr. Freeman from our midst as a wake up call, and like the Bible says, "not to have no other god's before Me".

I wouldn't say he died because of sin, just God had to preserve His Word.

Dr. Freeman was a moral man and had a modest home; he did not live in mansions such like some of today's preachers. I also have made great and close friends who have been part of the movement and have seen the fruits in their lives grow which shows the seed has taken root to follow God and not the messenger. Others unfortunately have become bitter, closed in, and nothing close to what God wants them to be, a light in this world.

So what would I do to tell someone locked in spiritual bondage? I'd tell them to read this article, humble themselves and seek repentance. Or to put it in layman terms - to loosen up a bit - not compromise per se - but to see that WE made this a legality and not common sense walk with God.

Some statements or questions people have asked, and my response:

1. The Faith Walk was performance based to the extent that people become very legalistic.

- This is true I believe.

2. Dr. Freeman was a 'self-claimed' anointed man of God which resulted in cult like subservience in his flock.

- That is the wrong approach or attitude. He definitely was anointed and definitely preached the Bible.

3. The extreme faith message seems fundamental and Biblical. However, it is a hollow doctrine based on sensationalism, fantastic claims and unproven miracles. It stretches individual Bible verses to their logical extremes. Furthermore, Bible verses like 1 Timothy 5:23 and Philippians 2:25-29 are avoided or hastily explained away.

- As for unproven miracles, I am one of those.

- As for the other statements, I sometimes drink wine with my supper and don't have an issue with it. Hey there is even a picture of me drinking wine with a bowl of chili on my website! The only reason I don't drink beer is the appearance and association it has in people's minds. But I drank beer while over in Europe and Israel because the water tastes horrible and Coke taste like camel pee over there :-)

- I believe if you work too hard your body will start shutting down, so common sense is needed. As for doctors, I believe one should seek healing first via prayer, and if need be seek help. I don't have the answer to why some get healed and many don't, and I don't know why there isn't more miracles happening, but I don't believe we are to depend on the medical profession for our health and livelihood. God forbid, they are human just like the rest of us. We are fearfully and wonderfully made and most problems could be cured by common sense, food diets, exercise, and looking after the temple of the Holy Spirit - our bodies.

4. The methodology for achieving miracles becomes more important than the condition of one's heart toward serving God and others. Love and compassion take a back seat. Some actually shake their head at the mention of verses like Matthew 22:36-40 and Romans 13:9-10.

- That unfortunately is a by-product of spiritual pride. But the other can be said about too much "love" and not enough faith. Need all three: faith, hope, and love. Yes love is the greatest, but what kind of love is needed, or what is love, and what is fanaticism?

5. Do you know of any way I can be of assistance to someone I know who is bound by spiritual pride? Loneliness, bitterness, judgment and condemnation are their only companions. I feel so much for them, but I have absolutely no impact.

- You are doing the right thing by seeking to help them; I wish I could give you a quick fix. God doesn't get upset when we ask or challenge Him to show us the truth. Actually He delights in us asking, remember something about knocking...seeking, etc.

6. Why do people continue to believe in Dr. Freeman's faith message when seemingly no one can make it work? Is this not evidence that something is amiss?

- Like I said, I have seen and have lived what is preached on the tapes, but not to the letter. Meaning I have had to go to the dentist, have had to get my gall bladder removed and have had to take an occasional aspirin, but thank God have not had medical problems. Financial is another thing, but now I'm doing better then before.

7. Dr. Freeman, literally, couldn't make it work to save his own life. It also took the life of Dr. Freeman's grandson and 70 other children. How can a parent watch their own child die from withholding simple medical treatment (Luke 14:5)?

- I agree with your sentiments, but again from a different perspective. Heb 11 says some died believing or not receiving, so using the Bible can go both ways. The principal was he walked/died what he believed, and it has "worked" for others. Again, I don't have an answer why some died or why it's not a "normal" thing with us. As a parent it is the worst thing to see, but like Abraham, maybe just maybe, it was for a reason? I again don't know and yes, we went too far in extending our faith and convictions to others. It has to be a personal thing.

8. Recently, I lost a cousin to cancer. He was another Freemanite. It is my understanding, by time he went to a doctor; it was so advanced that nothing could be done. He had lost his wife to bone cancer, in much the same way, several years ago.

- Well, again unfortunately this is what may take to bring people around. I know when Dr. Freeman passed away I had to look at myself and the faith walk. But I was grounded on the Word and on Jesus as my saviour and that Dr. Freeman was a tool used by God to set a lot of people free from religion. I would love for anything to go back to the "glory days" of the 70's/80's with the knowledge and freedom I have now. It was a "happening" place and time to live in spiritually speaking.

9. My friend has for 25 years gone without the aide of reading glasses. She claims divine healing, but she squints over her large print Bible and struggles with a magnifying glass. I haven't the heart to tell the old gal that a magnifying glass is the same thing as reading glasses, except it doesn't fit on one's nose. All her teeth have rotted in her head from neglect. The pain and stench must have been overwhelming!

- My, my, I feel for that poor friend. I by no means have the answers and am humbled by the fact that I am sure it must hurt you to see this. You are correct; the magnifying glass is just like glasses. But that is what spiritual pride is - can't see the reality of the situation.

10. Can you offer me any proof that anyone can make Word of Faith work?

- Define "work". Define "proof", and not to sound callous, but why should I? I am proof that it works. I am proof that God's Word works. I am proof that Jesus died for me. Now tangible results? Maybe a house paid for, cars paid for, a dream job and working hours, a chance to share God's word over thousands of miles to thousands of people who visit my website, and a chance to heal others hurt by the legality we got into.

- That may not be "proof" or "work" so to speak that you seek, but it is to me, like stated in an earlier question, why would anyone continue to believe after all these years? Because it is reality - I don't have a corner on the market about it unfortunately.

11. My friend can relate stories of limbs growing anew, cancers being healed, the blind seeing, the deaf hearing and the lame walking. However, there is never any documentation. Do you specifically know of anyone whose limbs grew back? To me, this would be very easy to substantiate. Friends, neighbors and family photos could validate the person had no legs. The same sources could then be used to prove the miracle. For the life of me, I don't know why these people don't come forward for the glory of God! In our sensationalistic world, they would immediately receive worldwide news coverage. Could it be no one comes forward because they don't exist?

- My leg grew longer, I had food poisoning that I was so affected that I couldn't stand up, but left right after I prayed on myself for healing. I know of people who were deaf and hear and blind now see. But I must caution you folks, even if the dead were to raise and come to you and say "Now do you believe" you still won't.

- Signs do not save people, God's grace does. Heck if signs did it, then what about back in Jesus' day? Even his own flesh and blood brother and sisters thought He was nuts and His mother (Mary) had to ponder things He said in her heart, meaning she had to believe also.

- We've had miracles and have miracles every day in the news. You don't see much of it because sensationalism is here today and gone tomorrow. God is still doing miracles. But remember this - God is not into show business.

- Remember Jesus pretty well told people when He healed them to go their way, or be quiet and so on. Some He told to go show themselves to the priests, because for a leper to be declared "clean" the priest must announce it.

- Newspapers would make a story about it, but then people would get bored and move on. Remember Sept 11? A lot of miracles took place. A lot. Documented and undocumented. But everyone's talking about the Major League Baseball game now.

12. The Bible speaks of miracles that supersede physical law mostly at times when God has a greater purpose in mind than just the well being of His children. Stupendous miracles were especially evident when people had no divinely inspired scripture in which to place their trust. In the Old Testament, Moses and the prophets were vindicated that the hand of the one and only true God was by whom they spoke. The same is true for the apostles in the New Testament. And, of the Lord Jesus, it was prophesized that Christ would perform miracles to validate He was the only begotten Son of God (John 10:37-38). Throughout history many have claimed to be God. However, only One has walked on water and overcome the grave to prove to everyone His authenticity!

- You are correct on what you said except walking on water...remember Peter and raised from the dead...Lazarus? And what bugs me is Jesus said "These things you will do and even greater"...I just want to get to where He is first then we'll talk about the greater stuff eh! :-)

- The Word doesn't kill, it gives life. What kills is religion and pride. How to break it? Prayer I guess. Spiritual bondage cannot be fixed by natural means.

- And like Paul and a friend just said, "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit" (Philemon 1:25)!

Cheers
Tom McLaughlin