Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” (Matthew 7:15-23).
One false prophet Todd Bentley claims to have healed people by hitting and kicking them. This “revivalist” is not producing the fruit of righteousness, holiness, and love in Christ but rotten works of iniquity and worldliness. He glories in his “Christian” tattoos and body piercings which the Bible tells us is immoral: Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD (Leviticus 19:28). Though there are many ceremonial commandments of the Old Covenant, these are certainly morally binding still today for Christians in the New Covenant. Bentley also divorced his wife and married another to which Jesus said: “Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery” (Luke 16:18). Charisma Magazine reported:
The new wife of former Lakeland Revival leader Todd Bentley said she believes it was wrong to begin a relationship with the evangelist before his divorce was final.
In an interview with MorningStar Ministries founder Rick Joyner, who is overseeing Bentley’s restoration process, Jessa Bentley said her relationship with Todd Bentley began after he filed for divorce from his first wife, Shonnah. But she now believes they should have waited six months to a year after the divorce was final before beginning a relationship.
“Even though Todd was getting a divorce and Todd was already separated, it was still wrong for us to have anything romantic, regardless if anything physical happened or not,” Jessa Bentley said. “Even that emotional line that we crossed, I think is wrong. I think it was a sin. I think it was a mistake. I think we missed it.” (online source) See also “Todd Bentley of Lakeland Revival, Florida Outpouring endorsed by Bill Johnson.”
Recently Bentley has been banned from the UK. Pray for Bentley that he would bring forth fruit worthy of repentance or else the UK will not be the only kingdom from which he will be refused entry. The Guardian reports
Bentley, a controversial revivalist healer based in the United States, had been due to hold a series of gatherings in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in the next few weeks. But the Home Office said Bentley, a Canadian citizen, was subject to an exclusion order and would not be permitted entry to the country.
“We can confirm that Mr Bentley has been excluded from the UK. The government makes no apologies for refusing people access to the UK if we believe they are not conducive to the public good. Coming here is a privilege that we refuse to extend to those who might seek to undermine our society,” the Home Office said.
Bentley, a 36-year-old former drug addict who at the age of 13 sexually assaulted a minor, reacted angrily to the decision, writing on his church’s Facebook page: “What about all the other celebrities, musicians and others with a more colorful past than me that are permitted into the UK for shows … Is this really about my past and fear of potential violence or Freedom of Religion and attack on Faith, God & Healing?”
Bentley has reportedly distanced himself from some of his more extreme claims, insisting on Twitter that violence was “the furthest thing from who we are and how we minister”.
News of the tour’s cancellation will come as a relief to those who had petitioned the government against it, including Malcolm Wicks, the Labour MP for Croydon North, who earlier this month wrote to the Home Secretary, Theresa May, urging her to ban Bentley, saying: “His visit can do nothing but harm and I would be grateful for any measures you can take.”
Croydon’s 400-capacity conference centre was due to be the tour’s first port of call for three nights from 30 August. Bentley, who has visited Britain several times before, most recently in December, was also due to visit Portadown in County Armagh, Liverpool and Cwmbran in south Wales.
His planned visit had sparked alarm among those critical of his controversial style of preaching, which he has said often involves “curing” people of diseases, including cancer, by means of physical force. In various videos posted online, the self-styled “preacher with the tattoos” claims he once choked a man to health; in one he claims he banged a woman’s legs “up and down on the platform like a baseball bat” until she was miraculously healed.
In one typical claim, he is filmed telling an audience: “And the Holy Spirit spoke to me, the gift of faith came on me. He said, ‘kick her in the face with your biker boot’. I inched closer and I went like this – bam! And just as my boot made contact with her nose, she fell under the power of God.” (online source)