Hear & Obey... Whom?

Part 1, Part 2 by Bible Expose'

Theological code of silence?

On the surface, Hear & Obey seems to affirm the complete canon of the Scripture, which means there should no longer be books added or removed from the 66 books of the Bible, 39 in the Old Testament and the 27 in the New Testament.

Prophecy can also be referred to simply as “hearing from God” or getting a word—a “revelation” from God. “Revelation” does not mean new doctrine in addition to the established truths in the Bible… We need not be afraid that the teachings and revelations of the prophets today are additions to the Bible. They are not. They do not proclaim new ‘truths’. Rather, they provide illumination to the existing truths in the Scriptures…”[i]

The book also pays tribute to the final authority of the Bible. “We accept the Bible as final and authoritative, and it is the standard by which we are to judge all things. It is our measuring rod—any experience, prophetic word or “revelation” which contradicts the Scriptures is not of God and is to be rejected… No other revelation should be accepted as from the Lord if it would attempt to add to, debase the value of, or contradict the principles in the Bible, the final basis of all revelations.”[ii]

But, JHMT really does the opposite! Their prophetic utterances “add to, debase the value of, or contradict the principles in the Bible.” Though they may say that they cling to the final authority of the Bible, they deny that it is the only authority.

First, Hear & Obey questions the sufficiency of the written Word of God.

There are those who hold firmly to the teaching of “sola Scriptura”, that the Bible, God’s written word, alone, is sufficient and thoroughly able to equip us for every good work… They have “boxed” God into a neat theological “code of silence” which will be broken only upon His Second Coming. Until then, if His children want to “hear” from Him, all they can do is hopefully open their Bibles in simple faith. Prophecies, they say, are a thing of the past as we already have a “more sure word of prophecy”, the Bible.[iii]

“Sola Scriptura” means “Scripture alone,” that the Scripture is the sole and final authority in faith and in practice. “His Word, both in command and promise, was not only to have the last word, but the first word and every word in between, in all matters concerning doctrine and the Christian life.”[iv] Simply put, the Bible is the only basis for everything we believe and we do as Christians. We did not invent the wordings. We simply quoted it from the Bible.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16, 17, NKJV, emphasis added).

The King James Version translated verse 17 this way, “That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” And Scripture is also called “a more sure word of prophecy” in 2 Pet. 1:19.

One may ask, what is left outside “thoroughly,” “every,” or “all?” All excludes nothing and includes everything. So, is there any room left for “a fresh word from the Lord?” Either the Bible is sufficient or it is not at all!

Psalm 119:7 says, “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul (Emphasis added).” In Hebrew, “perfect” means “whole,” “complete,” or “sufficient” conveying “the idea of something that is comprehensive, so as to cover all aspects of an issue.”[v]

The meaning [of “perfect”] is that [Scripture] lacks nothing [for] its completeness; nothing in order that it might be what it should be. It is complete as a revelation of Divine truth; it is complete as a rule of conduct… It is absolutely true; it is adapted with consummate wisdom to the [needs] of man; it is an unerring guide of conduct. There is nothing there which would lead men into error or sin; there is nothing essential for man to know which may not be found there.[vi]

To question the sufficiency of God’s Word is to doubt God Himself! “God is the all-sufficient God; everything about Him is completely adequate. Surely His written revelation of Himself would not be the one thing lacking in total sufficiency for His people!”[vii] Looking for the truth outside the Bible leads to grave error.

[Is] there really any necessity for additional “prophecies” in the life of the believer? Does God need to say more to us than He has already said? …[Since] the canon of Scripture was closed, virtually every “prophet” who ever spoke a “thus saith the Lord” has been proved wrong, recanted, or gone off track doctrinally… [He] has ultimately digressed from the true faith, usually falling into serious corruption or heresy… The quest for additional revelation from God actually denigrates the sufficiency of “the faith which once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). It implies that God hasn’t said enough in the Scriptures. It assumes that we need more truth from God than what we find in His written Word.[viii]

In a way, those who are in the prophetic are the ones who have really “boxed” God, not those who believe in “sola Scriptura.” An article, which appeared in the Discipleship Journal some time ago, shows that “by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you (Matt. 7:2b).”

“Look at us,” you say. “We are proud that we are not like those others who deny the power of the Spirit today.” Brothers and sisters, are you any different from those who would deny the gifts at all? For while you profess the power and majesty of God, are you not also limiting God’s Spirit by insisting that He always move in the way you expect?[ix]

Second, Hear & Obey waters down the authority of the Bible.

It seems at the onset that the authors of Hear & Obey believe God speaks to us through His Word, the Scripture.

Do not read the Bible with the notion that it is only a thing of the past which you may push around at your convenience. It is God’s very voice once spoken, recorded, and continuously speaking.[x]

But, immediately following this statement, the book claims that since the Bible is the “prophetic word of yesterday,” it is stale, or worse, dead. It is also hard to understand and not applicable to our times without the present-day prophets.

The prophetic words they release this season are not in addition to the Bible but an illumination that would make the prophetic word of yesterday come alive, more understandable and applicable to our present time… This is the true Spirit of prophecy that makes the written Word of God yesterday our fresh, living, daily bread today.[xi]

Therefore, the Scripture becomes a pretext only or a springboard to launch whatever the prophet reveals today. For Hear & Obey, without the modern-day prophets, the Bible has no impact and lives will remain unchanged.

There are prophets who quote and use a Bible text as a reference before releasing a prophetic word. Sometimes a prophet would just stand and read a passage as a way of delivering a word of prophecy. No other prophetic word would follow after reading it. This happens, however, on a case to case basis. And this is done only when led by the Holy Spirit to do so. And when this happens, there is much impact to the hearers—lives are changed.[xii]

That’s why, for Hear & Obey, the Bible is only one of the “Various ways God speaks to us.”[xiii] Other than the Scripture, God allegedly speaks through other “divine channels” like visions, dreams, “inner voice,” angelic visitation and circumstances.

Though it is doubtful if they would admit it, but for Hear & Obey, the Bible only becomes the Word of God when it speaks to them personally and, of course, through present-day prophets.

The existence of the Bible, however, does not mean that we no longer need prophecy today. And while it is true that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, it only becomes powerful and effective if we apply it upon our lives as spoken to us by the Spirit and heard by our spiritual ears for “the letter kills but the Spirit gives life.”[xiv]

It is a misinterpretation of 2 Cor. 3:6, “for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” Its context shows that Paul contrasts the old covenant and the new covenant. The law (“the letter”) kills while grace (“the Spirit”) gives life. The wrong interpretation that the book made these verses appear to mean sounds very much like what the heresies the Gnostics espoused.

[The Gnostics] claimed elevated knowledge, a higher truth known only to those in on the deep things. Only the initiated had the mystical knowledge of truth that was higher even than the Scripture.[xv]

Hear & Obey rejects the notion that Christians will depend on prophecies for directions in their lives and ministries much like unbelievers regard “fortune cookies” or “horoscopes.”

Some Christians I know have gone to such extremes that they totally base all their actions on the counsel of the prophets or the prophecies they hear… They take the prophecy as the sole source of guidance as if its authority is equal to the Bible’s authority upon the believer’s life. This is dangerous and does not please God.[xvi]

But their practices directly oppose their denials. For example, Hear & Obey find visions much more encouraging than the written Word of God.

At times, while people were still on their knees pleading God’s mercy and grace for forgiveness, God would show me various kinds of open visions with different messages. Sometimes I would see dirty clothes like filthy rags symbolizing sins being removed by God. Then the visions would be followed by another: a huge white blanket would fall upon them which would later divide and be formed into smaller sheets covering each one. God would show that He was clothing them anew with His righteousness… Oftentimes the Lord would tell me to quote Hebrews 8:12 which says, “God forgives and remembers our sins no more.”[xvii]

One wonders if those people would feel assured of God’s forgiveness if they only read or heard His Word, the Bible (Like Isaiah 1:18). Would they rather hold on to a vision or cling to a promise from the Scripture? Besides, employing biblical imagery or mouthing Scriptural vocabulary does not really authenticate a vision.

That’s why other than the Scripture, we can supposedly judge a prophecy by our feelings. “When we get a word and PEACE rules in our hearts, it is of God”.[xviii] Thus, if we either have doubt or disturbance, it is not of God. Hear & Obey also talks about an “inner witness.”

When we hear a prophetic [word] that witnesses in our hearts, we affirm in our spirits that the word is really from God. It is like saying we believe God has really spoken to us or is the One speaking to us… [Even] if the prophetic word does not bear witness to our spirit at the time of prophecy, we simply have to give it the benefit of the doubt and trust God for it. Bear in mind that in believing alone, we will be reaping the reward in due time.[xix]

No matter how much Hear & Obey talks about “testing the spirits,” it seems one is really not sure what to believe and what to reject among the prophecies he might receive. Thus, one ends up giving unquestioning acceptance. This comes dangerously close to existentialism, “an approach to religion that was pure passion, altogether subjective… [Faith] means the rejection of reason and the exaltation of feeling and personal experience.”[xx] What follows is a “free-for-all.”

Everything becomes relative. Absolutes dematerialize. The difference between truth and nonsense becomes meaningless. All that matters is personal experience. And one person’s experience is as valid as another’s—even if everyone’s experience lead to contradictory conception of truth.[xxi]

Since experience became everything, the absolute authority of the Bible is abandoned. Ultimately Scripture as the only reliable standard of faith is rejected.

Mystical experiences are therefore self-authenticating; that is, they are not subject to any form of objective verification… the Bible itself is not objectively the Word of God, but it becomes the Word of God when it speaks to me individually… What the Bible means becomes unimportant. What it means to me is the relevant issue… why should we bother ourselves with what the Bible says? …If personal prophecies, visions, dreams, and angelic beings are available to give us up-to-the-minute spiritual direction—“fresh revelation” as it is often called—who cares if Scripture is without error in the whole or in the parts?[xxii]

The Bible is the Word of God whether we feel it or not. Whether the verses appear to “jump” right out of its pages or not. The Bible “is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Heb. 4:12, NKJV. Emphasis added).” Emotions are merely our response to the truth, not a reliable standard to determine right and wrong.

They said to one another, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us? (Luke 24:32, emphasis added)”

Third, Hear & Obey considers “prophetic utterances” equal to the Bible.

The book claimed that, unlike biblical revelations, personal revelations “are not eternal, unchanging and infallible, but are highly subjective.”[xxiii] That “fresh words of the Lord” are not equal to—or not as inspired as—the Word of God. This artificial distinction aims to counter the accusation that they are adding to the Bible. It is strangely similar to the stand of the Roman Catholic apologists on the relation between the Scripture and extra-biblical revelations.

Rev. Auguste Poulain, S.J.’s ‘Treatise on Mystical Theology’ distinguished the public revelation contained in the Bible and apostolic tradition of the Church, and the special revelations of saintly Christian men and women: “Even when the Church approves them, they are not to be used as deciding questions of history, philosophy or theology. The nobler aim is that of the soul’s satisfaction. Sometimes it is linked to a historical event to bring out the secret meaning of the mystery.”[xxiv]

This shallow distinction is based on a misunderstanding of the meaning of the Greek words, logos and rhema.

[A prophetic church] live not only according to the “logos’ which sets the general principles of living, but more significantly according to the “rhema” word of God which determines the specific directions of God in their daily lives.[xxv]

“Logos” allegedly refers to the “written” Word of God while rhema [rhema] is the “spoken” or the “fresh word from the Lord.”

The Bible, (Logos, in Greek) is the eternal, unchanging and infallible Word of God… What is being referred to here [personal prophecies] is only an illumination of God’s written revelation that is applicable to our times and made easier to understand. We can call this simply as “fresh revelation” in the Bible (Rhema, in Greek).[xxvi]

But, actually, there is not much difference between logos and rhema [rhema], as the prophetic movement would have us believe.

In the original Greek, rhema and logos are little more than synonyms. There is very little difference between the two words as they were used. The parallel in English would be the words “big” and “large.” We select the word most appropriate to the sentence, but both are essentially the same in meaning. The same is true of rhema and logos… The Greek language offers [these] two terms for “word,” whereas English has only one.[xxvii]

Hear & Obey actually contradicts itself when it claimed that “fresh words from the Lord” are not equal to the written Word of God. In the chapter “Hearing From God,” the “prophetic word” is even described as “authoritative.”[xxviii] We are supposed to meditate, revere and obey the prophetic utterance for it is God’s “direct” word. Does that mean the Bible is God’s “indirect” word?

We must treasure the prophetic word because it is God’s message to us… The Lord commands us to read and meditate on His Word, the Bible. This also applies to our personal prophecies… The prophetic word is a direct word from God through a human vessel. Therefore we must take heed, give due respect to the word of the Lord and not take it for granted.[xxix]

Hear & Obey also took verses that clearly speak of the Bible and wrongly applied them to present-day prophecies. Note what it said regarding predictive prophecies about the Philippines:

Our great consolation is this—“The Word of the Lord will not return to Him void; but will first accomplish the purpose for which it is sent; and it will prosper in the thing whereto God sent it” (Isaiah 55:11, KJV). Truly, when the Lord speaks, it will surely come to pass.[xxx]

“[For] no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God (2 Peter 1:21)” is an important, supporting verse for the inspiration of the Bible. Clearly it speaks of God’s written Word, the Bible, for verse 20 speaks of the “prophecy of Scripture (Emphasis added).” But Hear & Obey used this text to describe the prophetic movement.

[Prophecy is] a means by which God speaks directly to His people through a human vessel… A word of prophecy comes when the Holy Spirit moves on an obedient person who, under His promptings, speaks forth the word. “For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21).[xxxi]

Thus, those in the prophetic movement end up treating the utterance equal to or even higher than the Scripture. In his Reckless Faith, Dr. John MacArthur warns that, “Anyone who is truly convinced that God is speaking fresh words of revelation will inevitably view the later prophecies as somehow more relevant and more personal than the message of Scripture, which is more than two thousand years old. Inevitably, wherever personal prophecy has been stressed, Scripture has been deemphasized.”[xxxii]

God’s Season at hand?

Sadly, the prophetic movement is plunging headlong to the age-old Gnostic heresy. The Gnostics were one of the earliest and most dangerous assaults against Biblical Christianity. Much like the prophetic movement, Gnostics did not directly question the authority of the Scripture.

In fact, many of them insisted that they were genuine, Bible-believing Christians. It wasn’t that they rejected the Bible; they just claimed an additional source of knowledge or insight that was superior to or at least beyond the knowledge of Scripture. The gnostikoi [gnostikoi] were “those in the know.” Their knowledge was not derived from intellectual comprehension of Scripture or by empirical research, but was mystical, direct and immediate. God “revealed” private, intuitive insights to them that carried nothing less than divine authority.[xxxiii]

The Gnostics ended up assailing the sufficiency of the cross. “If we can add to what God has said, His Word, then why may we not add to what He has done, His redemptive work?”[xxxiv]

Every words and acts recorded in the Bible revolves around the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ.

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son… how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will (Heb. 1:1-2; 2:3, 4. Emphasis added).

For example, even dreams and visions were tied to the Cross. Dreams and visions were really not the usual ways through which God speaks in the Bible.

“Consider that in the entire [Old Testament] (a period of over 4,000 years) fewer than 20 specific dreams to less than 15 people are recorded. Historical instances of dreams in the [New Testament] are not found beyond the 6 recorded in Matthew. All these dreams occurred to or for the benefit of incredibly important people as they related to the crucial times in God’s unfolding plan of redemptive history. Yet dreams, even then, were extremely few and far between… less than 25 specific visions to fewer than 15 people were recorded in the OT. Even fewer are found in the NT. Dreams and visions were never given for mundane reasons or to the masses as they related to God’s plan of redemption.”[xxxv]

Jude used the Greek word hapax [hapax] when he described the “faith [as] once for all delivered to the saints (v. 3, emphasis added).” It is the same one used in Hebrews 9:27, 28, when describing the redeeming sacrifice of the Son of God. “And as it is appointed to for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many (NKJV, emphasis added).” So, if we say the Bible is not sufficient, we are also saying that Christ’s death is not enough to save us.

God’s giving of revelation, spoken and written, is always historically joined to and qualified by God’s work of redemption. Now that God has accomplished salvation, once-for-all, in Christ, He has also spoken His word, once-for-all, in Christ and in those whom Christ authorized and empowered by His Spirit… With the completion of salvation in Christ comes the cessation of revelation.[xxxvi]

Yet, Hear & Obey insists, “We maintain that God still speaks to His people today: personally, purposively… [We] believe [this] to be God’s Season at hand, The Prophetic Season.”[xxxvii]

Admittedly people, even respectable Christian leaders, have fallen into the trap of abusing and counterfeiting God’s Prophetic Move to further their self-seeking interests. To use this argument, however, to say that God no longer speaks to His people in ways other than through the Bible is like saying “There are no genuine P500 bills because there are so many counterfeit ones!”…There must be a biblically sound middle ground. This is what we believe.[xxxviii]

If we follow the letter of the book’s logic, we should expect additional but still genuine Christs since there are so many false Messiahs today. Yet, there is only one Jesus. And that’s one the reasons why we reject those who appear in our days claiming to be the new Christs. So also His Word. The Bible is God’s sole and final Word.

Throughout this critique, I did not appeal to “extremists” in the prophetic movement to debunk the “balanced view” that Hear & Obey attempted to achieve. We just examined the book on the weighing scale of the Bible. And like the writings on the wall, we could say, “You have been weighed on the scales and found deficient (Dan. 5:27).”

I find the arguments in the book much like the ones set forth in Dr. Jack Deere’s book, Surprised by the Voice of God. And what one reviewer said to Deere applies to the authors of Hear & Obey. They made two fundamental errors when they interpreted the Bible in their attempt to justify the prophetic movement.

The first is generalizing, i.e., believing the occurrence of a miracle [or phenomena] in the past means that nothing prevents it from happening again, and therefore expecting its recurrence. The second is experientializing, i.e., accepting someone’s claims to have a miraculous experience today of the kind that appeared in biblical history, then letting that experience prove that God is presently working the same kind of miracles. The first involves a biblically unwarranted hermeneutics that reasons, unless Scripture denies the continuance of an experience, that experience has continued and will continue today. The second reads experience into Scripture so that experience validates Scripture rather than the reverse… [Surprised by the Voice of God] has engaged in bad logic which yields poor theology.[xxxix]

There is no “biblically sound middle ground.” Hear & Obey is unbiblical. Period. Either we uphold the sole and final authority of the Scripture or we drift deeper into the error the book espouses.

Thus, Hear & Obey must heed its own words, that “if the Lord has really not spoken we face the judgment of God. Prophesying out of one’s personal imagination is very dangerous and definitely wrong!”[xl]

Truly, the Lord has not really spoken through the prophetic movement. Thus, we must hear and obey… Before it’s too late.

Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves… Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven [will enter]. “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness (Matt. 7:15, 21-23, emphasis added).’

Part 1, Part 2

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