Apostles and Prophets Grapple With What is Happening

December 11, 2008
By Steve Strang

It comes as no surprise that this is a time of great transition. In light of the economic downturn and the recent election results, which were different from what many conservative Christians prayed they would be, Christian leaders are meeting, and the question of "What's happening?" tops the agenda.

Last week I had the privilege of attending an invitation-only roundtable hosted by Rick Joyner. I have attended this annual meeting periodically since the early ’90s. What God is saying as a result of the election was one of the main topics of discussion, and I'll write more about it later.

The big event this week was the meeting of the International Coalition of Apostles (ICA), which takes place every December. This year the group met in my hometown of Orlando. It is the third time I have attended. In some ways the meeting was as it has been in former years. C. Peter Wagner, the founder of ICA, told me that people who attend say that every year is better than the one before. To him, this year was pretty much the same. However, the topics ranged from the Lakeland revival with Todd Bentley to a number of economic issues (which are actually brought up every year), and of course the election.

The high point according to many people was the message given by Apostle Kim Daniels from Jacksonville, an African-American minister and author who is well-known to the Charisma audience. She served on a panel about the supernatural and gave her views of what the supernatural is--a godly supernatural which is on the straight and narrow, or a carnal or fleshly supernatural which is the broad way.

In that setting she brought up the election. She was one of a relatively small percentage of African-Americans who supported John McCain because of the abortion issue, and she has defended Charisma and its editor, Lee Grady. Both have been attacked by some in the African-American community. She felt that many of the apostles and prophets, including those in attendance at the meeting, were stifled from speaking out what they believed God was saying because of fear of intimidation and making people upset. She broke that off them in a very dramatic way and received a standing ovation.

There was whispering among a number of the blacks who were in attendance, both those who came from Africa as well as African-Americans, yet interestingly no one challenged her or asked any questions during the question-and-answer period. Kim had such authority it was as if no one would oppose her.

I have written before that I think African-Americans--and all Americans--can be rightfully proud that we have elected our first African-American president. But many of us feel that biblical stands on the issues take priority over someone's race in determining whom we will support. Of course it's always risky to talk about politics; that's why many people say there two subjects you never discuss in polite society--religion and politics--because they are so divisive.

It's well-known that most African-Americans are Democrats. And had Hillary Clinton won the nomination for the presidency, as many of us thought a year ago she would, undoubtedly a large number of them would have voted for her. So I don't think it's just a matter of Obama’s being black. However, there is a divisiveness in Christian circles as a result of the election that Daniels spoke to eloquently at the ICA meeting and that earned her a standing ovation.

The session was videotaped, and if you’d like to watch it, you can order a DVD from Fresh Video, P.O. Box 5020, Woodland Park, CO 80866-5020. You can call toll-free in the U.S. at 1-800-687-6077, or order online at www.freshpublishing.com. The DVD costs $20. When you order it, you will get not only what Kim has to say, but also the comments from Chuck Pierce, Che Ahn, Greg Brown and Stephen Strader. It is the session that included the discussion about Todd Bentley. I got permission from Peter Wagner to make this available to the readers of the Strang Report.

Recently Kim Daniels wrote a blog that is posted on our charismamag.com Web site under the title "Somebody Say Amen." I am including what she has to say here because though it's not exactly what she shared at ICA, it does give her perspective, which I believe needs to be considered by the body of Christ.

As usual, you're invited to add your comments to what I've written or to what Kim wrote in her blog.

Steve Strang


It Is Not About Obama's Faith!
By Kimberly Daniels

This column is a response to all the ministers who have shared their concern that the faith of President-elect Obama has been challenged. My position on this issue is very simple. I believe that the church, in general, has gotten away from the simplicity of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I agree that we cannot judge the heart of a man, but "keeping it simple" will allow us to know those with whom we labor.

Keeping it simple will also sharpen our ability to test the spirits that rule over us, to discern whether they are of God. Then, whether the leaders are saved or not, we will know how to pray for them.

We do not pray only for saved leaders. We pray for all leaders! It is important to have discernment when we pray, or we may become guilty of praying amiss. It would be a terrible thing to pray for leaders as though they are saved when they are not. We would be guilty of having blood on our hands!

Ephesians 4 says that five-fold ministry gifts are called to perfect (mature) the saints so that they will not be blown to and fro by every wind of doctrine released by cunning and crafty men waiting to deceive them. As an apostle of Jesus Christ, it is my responsibility to challenge anything that would hinder the unity of faith.

I am not speaking of a temporary, carnal unity that is undergirded by the opinions of men and motivated by a false love. Ephesians 4:15 commands us to speak the truth (in love). Love is not the root; truth is! Truth is true all by itself, but love that is not rooted in truth is a lie.

If we cannot get this principle, foreign spirits and demonic ideologies will penetrate our gates. Jude exhorted the church to earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints. He said that certain ungodly men had crept into the church unnoticed (grew up with believers and pretended to be like them but were not), turned the grace of God into lasciviousness (lust and perversion) and denied the Lord Jesus Christ (see Jude 3-4). It does not matter if we proclaim to be Christians (which means “like Christ”); certain acts cause us to automatically deny God, whether we admit it or not. We cannot be “like Christ” and believe that there are other ways to God besides Jesus!

Most of the ministers I have dealt with who say they are disappointed about how Obama’s faith has been questioned are black. I have a few questions for them: Where are the prophets in the black church? Prophets do not just pray; they decree and declare the will of God! Where are the apostles? They do not flow with the status quo but deal with principalities and come against anything that would exalt itself against the knowledge of God!

Where are the teachers who will teach sound doctrine that will not tickle men’s ears? Where are the evangelists who will save souls, get them filled with the Holy Ghost, cast the devil out and minister inner healing? Where are the pastors who will protect the flock from wolves and lions, even if it costs them their reputations?

God showed me that lines have been drawn in the spiritual realm. Many in the church have crossed these lines and received doctrines of devils that promote secular humanism and New Age religion disguised as Christianity. There are off-brands of Christianity in the world we live in that are nothing less than antichrist.

I have never questioned President-elect Obama’s faith. It is very clear that he is a man of faith. But I get concerned when people compare his faith to the faith of a born-again believer. Our faith could be considered equivalent to his only if Christianity were redefined.

Will we, as believers, stand by and allow the foundation of our faith to be broken into pieces and put back together in whatever way the New World order demands it should be? Radical Islamic groups have zero tolerance for any diversion from what they believe. They believe what they believe to the point that they love not their lives unto death. This is ironically what God commands His people to do in Revelation 12.

But we have not reached the point at which Christians will have to give their lives for their faith—yet. Can’t we at least lose our reputations if we do not have to lose our lives? Jesus was of no reputation! To walk in the anointing of God from now until 2012, we must become of no reputation--like Christ.

I do not understand why ministers are saddened by others’ challenging Obama’s faith as a believer. He claims to be a Christian—so it is OK to line up his faith next to the Word of God. President Bush and all other leaders are subject to the same scrutiny, especially when they make it an issue in a political race. Many people questioned Bush’s faith, but not one black minister came to me complaining.

In any case, the important factor is not whether Obama is a believer. He has the right to be a part of the faith of his choice. He does not have to be a Christian to be the president of the United States. My focus is on the fact that the devil has slowly and methodically deteriorated what it means to be a believer in America today.
· Preachers have condoned initiations into secret organizations such as fraternities, sororities, Masons and Shriners in the name of Jesus.
· Ministries have taken it upon themselves to include acts that God that chose to exclude (homosexuality, fornication and adultery) as being acceptable to enter His kingdom.
· Religious people have interpreted the Word of God in a way that lends support to doctrines of devils. They claim:
* There is no devil and no hell
* God loves everybody, and whoremongers and homosexuals will inherit the kingdom of God
* If a woman makes a mistake and gets pregnant, she has the right to kill the baby
* God is a God of love, and He sanctions marriage between members of any sex as long as the two partners love each other.

These doctrines not only conflict with the faith of the believer but also are abominations in the eyes of God. The God that I serve is a just God! If the things listed above are all right with God, then it would mean that God is unfair. He would have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah and repent for flooding the earth.

God is rigidly righteous (see Ps. 11), and His children are held accountable to live in holiness. Without holiness we will not see His face. If we do the things listed above, we are not holy! It is the responsibility of the priests to teach the people the difference between what is holy and what is common or unholy (see Lev. 10:10; Ezek. 44:15).

In closing, I would like to say that not everyone is a child of God! I am not anyone’s judge, but the Word of God is. Jesus told some people that their father was the devil and that they did his work (see John 8:44). It sounds nice and religious to say that we are all children of God, but it is a lie.

Salvation is about making a choice for Christ alone! God will separate the wheat from the tares, but until He does, we must have enough discernment to come out from among them. We must judge trees by the fruit that they bear.

It is simple: An orange tree bears oranges and a grape vine brings forth grapes. Signs will follow believers, and the souls of the heathen and the hypocrite will weigh in the balance. I agree that we need reconciliation, but let us put first things first. The priority agenda in the church should be reformation.

If Martin Luther King had not spoken out from streets and the churches, we would still be under Jim Crow. If Martin Luther had never pushed the doctrine that “the just shall live by faith,” everyone would be Roman Catholic. I will continue to sound the alarm for the sleeping church to awaken. I will also continue to seed the mind of the wicked with truth that they will not be able to deny in the midnight hour.

I will be praying for our country and our new administration, as I always have--prophetically! I pray that President-elect Obama will get to know God like never before. I also pray that he will be sensitive enough to give God more thanks at his inauguration than he did when he was elected.

Kimberly Daniels is founder of Spoken Word Ministries and Rhema Way City Church in Jacksonville, Florida. Visit her on the Web at kimberlydaniels.com.