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Tag Archives: Hillsong cult

Hillsong cult bullies Tanya Levin & again slanders her for causing “significant disruption”

09 Wednesday Sep 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Brian Houston's Beliefs, Hillsong Fascism

≈ 157 Comments

Tags

Bible Society Propaganda Rag, cult, Hillsong bullies, Hillsong cult, liars, lie, slander, sledge, sledgesong, tanya, tanya levin, The Bible Society

Tanya Levin just released a new letter she received from Hillsong cult elder, George Aghajanian.

Royal Commission - George Aghajanian

Notice the false accusation made by Hillsong in this letter where they say Levin “caused significant disruption to the meetings you attended”.


“We refer to your prior attendance at Hillsong Church and associated conferences where you have caused significant disruption to the meetings you attended.

As a result of your conduct, we require that you immediately and permanently cease to enter any of our Church properties or any property that is hired or utilized for the purposes of facilitating a Church event or activity.

– Your right as a member of the public to enter into any of our private premises is unequivocally withdrawn;

– You are not permitted to enter any of our Church properties;

– If you choose to ignore this notice and enter any of our Church properties or events, we will ask you to leave and further reserve the right to pursue an action for trespass. We may immediately notify the police of your breach of this Banning Notice;

– For the purpose of clarification, Church properties include any property associated with the religious services or administration of Hillsong Church, including but not limited to buildings located at 1-5 Solent Circuit, Baulkham Hills NSW 2153.

You may be also prosecuted should you fail to comply with this Banning Notice.

Regards

George Aghajanian
General Manager

TanyaLevin-SecondLetterOfTrespass_08-09-2015

This level of integrity displayed fom Hillsong does not surprise us. In fact, we’re expecting another defaming and unChristian article from Hillsong’s propaganda “Bible” Society rag against Tanya Levin.

Let the sledge BEGIN!

Let the sledge BEGIN!

Did Carl Lentz mislead James White of Alpha Omega Ministries?

11 Tuesday Aug 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Brian Houston's Beliefs, Hillsong Associations, Hillsong Fascism

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Alpha & Omega ministries, Carl Lentz, cult, Dr James White, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, homosexuality, James White, Lentz, liar, lying, mislead, postmodern obfuscation

For decades we have watched Hillsong act underhanded to Christians who question their practices and towards media who do their best to accurately report on the Hillsong movement. We are very concerned seeing similar games played by Hillsong behind the scenes to respected ministers and leaders.

Dr. James White is a respected Christian man in the field of discernment and apologetics. He sometimes weighs in on important church issues and recently decided to tackle the controversy surrounding Hillsong’s vague stance on homosexuality.
James WhiteWe wish to highlight what James White recently said on his show titled ‘Seer Stones, Hillsong Church, and KJVOnly Deceitfulness’:

“So when someone says, “Jesus never addressed this issue,” they’re just ignorant. They just don’t know what they are talking about. And Carl says, “I know that. I agree. And it was a combination of my not speaking clearly enough and them not following up with what I said afterward where I said those things.”

So, you know. Okay I hear you. Got it. Alright.

I tried to be- if I’m going to criticise, I want to try to be fair, and I want to try to be accurate. And the fact is, there are sources amongst conservative Christians that are trusted that shouldn’t be. We re-post stuff that isn’t always overally accurate. And my concern was exactly that. My concern was exactly that. Because, these are important issues. And when we are not- when we don’t do our homework and we just go with the twelve-gate shotgun blast from the start, we may think we are doing the Elijah thing. But in reality we are only hurting ourselves. Because then people can just focus on that and not focus upon what the real issue is.”

Source: James White, Seer Stones, Hillsong Church, and KJVOnly Deceitfulness, Alpha & Omega Ministries, http://www.aomin.org/aoblog/index.php/2015/08/05/seer-stones-hillsong-church-and-kjvonly-deceitfulness/, 26:17-27:50, Published 05/08/2015. (Accessed 10/08/2015.)

One has to wonder what Carl Lentz disclosed in that conversation with James White.

This is because we have the impression that Dr. James White had trouble finding the source of this quote from Carl Lentz and we find it odd that Carl Lentz didn’t give him the audio/source or apologise for his sloppy witness on the CNN program.

You can find this uploaded media presentation with the relevant quote (9:18-10:08) in the Poppy Harlow interview, on the ‘Pastor Carl Lentz’ YouTube channel.

proof_YouTube-CarlLStupidStatement_08-08-2015Below the video, you can read:

Carl Lentz 2015 sermons | Carl Lentz sermons.
Directed by Carl Lentz
Be Blessed As You Grow In Grace And Knowledge and share the videos with your friends so that they maybe blessed too.

Source: Pastor Carl Lentz, Carl Lentz | Tattooed Megapastor Carl Lentz The Next Joel Osteen Mar 12,2015, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPOKqMonUc8, Uploaded 10/03/2015. (Accessed 10/08/2015.)

So why didn’t Carl Lentz “bless” James White?

Just in case it may be pulled by Hillsong, here is another screen grab of this video from the ‘Pastor Carl Lentz’ channel (titled ‘Carl Lentz | Tattooed Megapastor Carl Lentz The Next Joel Osteen Mar 12,2015‘):

proof_YouTube-CarlLStupidStatement3_10-08-2015If Carl is protesting to James White “that it was a combination of [him] not speaking clearly enough and them not following up with what [he] said afterward where [he] said those things,” then why has he supposedly uploaded this video on his own YouTube channel?

[09:18-09:20] Announcer: “Are gay men and women welcome in the church?”

[09:21-09:24] Carl Lentz: “Absolutely. We have a lot of gay men and women in the church and I pray we always do.”

[09:25-09:30] Laura Lentz: “It’s not our place to tell anyone how they should live. That’s there journey.”

[09:31-9:37] Announcer: “Every article I’ve read about you guys says, “he declined to discuss gay marriage.’”

[9:37-10:08] Carl Lentz: “Yeah, it’s a misquote because I do discuss it just not the way people want me to. When it comes to homosexuality, I refuse to let another human being or a media moment dictate how we approach it. Jesus was in the thick of an area where homosexuality, just like it is today, was wildly prevalent. And I’m still waiting for someone to show me the quote where Jesus addressed it on the record in front of people. You won’t find it because he never did.”

Source: Pastor Carl Lentz, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QJZXVdwvO8, Uploaded 07/06/2/15. 09/08/2015. (Accessed 09/08/2015.)

In Australia, Hillsong has been saying for decades that the media are great (only when they look good). However, whenever the Australian media report Hillsong peddling Word of Faith or prosperity heresy; reported on scandals; report on leadership abusing or ripping off it’s members financially, etc, Hillsong are quick to demonise, distort, defame and damn the media organisation.

When you watch the CNN media report, it is not tearing into Hillsong. This would make sense as to why Carl Lentz would record this and upload it.

proof_YouTube-CarlLStupidStatement2_08-08-2015Now that he is being rightly condemned as being “ignorant” or “deceitful” by using that argument in the report, both Lentz and Houston are now defaulting to their typical defamation statements against the media, that being that they were taken out of context or misrepresented.

Thus Carl Lentz’ dialogue with White appears to be disingenuous in regards to the media misrepresenting him. [edit 11/08/2015] If he thought they misrepresented him to begin with, why did he [supposedly] upload that video to his YouTube account? [/edit]

Dr. James White, if you are reading our site, please understand that we respect your work and are perturbed that Carl Lentz was not upfront and honest with you about his views regarding homosexuality. We believe that if you are given well documented evidence against Carl Lentz, you will confront him for his rejection of God’s Word.


[Edit: Carl Lentz has responded to this which we will be addressing:

Carl Lentz  August 11, 2015 at 3:49 am
Hi! I actually don’t have a YouTube channel, so that’s unfortunate here in regards to your attempt to discredit me. Hard for me to upload videos on a site I don’t actually have. Make sure you do just a little bit of homework before you build your attack, might make it a little more believable. James white is a respectable man, who actually called to check facts. What’s funny is he actually talks about people like you the podcast you posted! Hilarious. In your eagneress to tear down, don’t rush the fact checking part. God bless you!

Carl Lentz: guy who has no YouTube channel.

Source: Carl Lentz, Did Carl Lentz mislead James White of Alpha Omega Ministries?, ChurchWatch Central, http://churchwatchcentral.com/2015/08/10/did-carl-lentz-mislead-james-white-of-alpha-omega-ministries/comment-page-1/#comment-1871, Published 11/08/2015. (Accessed 11/08/2015.)

Hillsong’s “trespasser” releases information on charges

10 Friday Jul 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Uncategorized

≈ 22 Comments

Tags

a current affair, court, Driscoll, Hillsong, hillsong conference, Hillsong Conference 2015, Hillsong cult, John MacArthur, levin, Mark Driscoll, tanya levin, trespass

Brian Houston – shamed by God for his stupidity

It’s interesting that the offenses of Mark Driscoll are court-worthy considering his defamation, plagiarism and alleged misuse of church building funds, while Tanya Levin’s questionable minor offense against Hillsong has landed her in court.

The scriptures say,

“If any of you has a dispute with another, do you dare to take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the Lord’s people? Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, do you ask for a ruling from those whose way of life is scorned in the church? I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother takes another to court—and this in front of unbelievers!” 1 Corinthians 6: 1-6

The anti-biblical stance of Brian Houston on such issues is rather telling of where he stands with biblical Christianity, Once again Houston exposes himself as a law unto himself.

Recently, Tanya Levin was arrested for supposedly trespassing on Hillsong property.

Brian Houston’s Inclusive Jesus rejects Tanya Levin

Tanya-Book-Brian-Houston-Live-Love-Leave

Tanya Levin wrote the following on Facebook,

“Yesterday I was contacted by NSW Police and informed that the Fact Sheets following my arrest last week at Hillsong Conference were ready for collection, and that a court date has been set in around 6 weeks’ time.
Below is a copy of the charges, which is a matter of public record. It’s not for me to comment on the details of the fact sheets at this stage. What I can say is that police have monitored my social media activity and one needs to be wary about such things.
And that I never thought that ‘The Accused’ would ever really mean anything more to me than a fine Jodie Foster film.

tanya trespass fact sheet

Source: Tanya Levin, Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/ilikelevin/posts/989455431117061, Published 09/07/2015. (Accessed 09/07/2015.)

 

George Aghajanian Responds To The Steve West Media Saga

15 Friday May 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in News Headlines

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Aghajanian, Board, cult, elders, General Manager, George Aghajanian, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, Hillsong NY, Manager, steve west, West, word games

Quite a while ago, we looked at Steve West, and the Australian media, expose the appalling systematic and problematic behaviour found in Hillsong and its leadership.

The Steve West & Hillsong Saga (Part 1)
The Steve West & Hillsong Saga (Part 2)
The Steve West & Hillsong Saga (Part 3)
The Steve West & Hillsong Saga (Part 4)
When Steve West Went To The Media

What came out of this media saga was Brian Houston’s personal response:

Brian Houston Responds To The Steve West Media Saga

While this response was for his church members and external audiences, Brian Houston’s friend George Aghajanian also responded to the media by writing a letter specifically to Hillsong members.

There were a few sections in the letter below that caught our eye which we will respond to in future articles (some in relation to the Royal Commission) . However, this got Steve West’s attention:

“If you have any questions or concerns, I would encourage you to speak to our leadership or pastoral team. Our website contains further information on our church governance policies and you can always speak directly to me or my team.”

Steve West exposed the facade of George Aghajanian and the “Elders and Board of Hillsong Church”.

I noted dryly that George said in the letter that Hillsong doesn’t refuse to meet up with people who want to see the books.

That was never my allegation.

I met up with George, yes.

But he showed me NOTHING.

Source: Steve West (Emblazoned), Hillsong’s Snailing Love for Brian Houston, Signposts02, https://signposts02.wordpress.com/2010/08/09/hillsongs-snailing-love-for-brian-houston/#comment-12447, Published 9/08/2010 AT 10:47 PM. (Accessed 15/05/2015.)

The point is, no one can trust Hillsong’s leaders when they resort to postmodern obfuscation and word games. That is, unless you have been conditioned by this type of trickery you are about to read.

Signposts02 writes,

Now I was emailed by an anonymous person what George Aghajanian was doing in Hillsong. He is the Hillsong general manager and he has snail-mailed this letter during the week about the Sunday Telegraph article.

hs-ga1 hillsong letter lies bully

hs-ga1 hillsong letter lies bully 2

Source: S&P, Hillsong’s Snailing Love for Brian Houston, Signposts02, https://signposts02.wordpress.com/2010/08/09/hillsongs-snailing-love-for-brian-houston/, Published 09/08/2010. (Accessed 15/05/2015.)

Bobbie & Brian Houston desecrating Good Friday (updated).

29 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Sermons

≈ 13 Comments

Tags

bobbie houston, Brian Houston, desecrating, easter, good friday, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, houston

Chris Rosebrough from Fighting for the Faith has recently reviewed Hillsong’s disgraceful and blasphemous Good Friday service.

“When the secular media critiques a pastor or church movement like Hillsong and stuff like that, they have limited ability to do this and what I mean by limited, is that they’re not theologians, they’re not dealing with an audience that understands doctrine and theology. But the thing they do understand is greed. And so the way they portrayed Hillsong is as just this money-grubbing machine and it’s all about the giving. And that probably is the case. The issue is that, you know, I look at this and it’s like that’s just a symptom, the root is the bad doctrine and theology. And so we’ll listen to Bobbie Houston from their Good Friday service, we’ll listen to her as she addresses the area of giving.” Chris Rosebrough

We would like to give special mention again to the mind of Bobbie Houston who had the audacity to twist this gospel scripture to elevate financial giving above the salvation of Jesus Christ:

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” 1 Cor 1:17-8

“The truth is when you actually think about it, the message of giving in like manner is also foolishness to those who are perishing but to us is the power of God.” – Bobbie Houston, Good Friday service, 2015.

Chris Rosebrough does another outstanding sermon review exposing how Brian Houston refuses to proclaim the Christian faith and the message of Christ and him crucified accurately.

05CWCPortrait_Brian Houston

This is a must listen.

Creflo’s 65 Million Dollar Theological Tantrum

Click Here to Download this episode

Program segments:

• Creflo’s 65 Million Dollar Theological Tantrum
• John Hagee Warns of Imminent World Economic Crash
• Bobbie Houston Says Giving Is Our Power
• Patricia King Discusses Divine Wealth
• Sermon Review: Silent Saturday by Brian Houston

Source: Chris Rosebrough, Fighting for the Faith, http://www.fightingforthefaith.com/2015/04/creflos-65-million-dollar-theological-tantrum.html, Published 23/04/2015. (Accessed 24/04/2015.)

SMH reports on Hillsong’s “gorilla warfare” against ACA.

27 Monday Apr 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in News Headlines

≈ 17 Comments

Tags

a current affair, ACA, Brian Houston, gorilla, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, houston, SMH, sydney morning herald

God’s Word says the following about false teachers,

“But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively.” Jude 1:10

Hillsong sledge

Do you want to know what Christian love looks like at Hillsong Church? Spiritual leader/CEO of Hillsong Church, Brian Houston was not impressed as to how he was represented in A Current Affair’s recent report.

Hillsong: The multi-million dollar “crazy cult”
Which “tabloid trash” do you believe?
Brian Houston in damage control… again… and again…and again.
“Tabloid trash” exposing Hillsong of lying?

It looks as though secular media are now reporting on the conduct of Hillsong’s spiritual leader.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports,

A Current Affair versus Hillsong: the coffee challenge

It was a Goliath and Goliath story. Channel Nine’s nightly current affairs program versus Australia’s best known mega-church, head to head, in the Twitter arena.

A Current Affair last week aired a 16-minute special report detailing explosive revelations that the controversial Hillsong Church made a lot of money but, like every other church in Australia, paid no tax.

Hillsong was making a concert movie set to rake in millions of dollars tax free. Parishioners regularly gave up to 10 per cent of their income in a practice known as tithing. The church was making it so easy to collect tax free dollars through tithing that it was even developing a giving app.

ACA said the church had not responded to requests for comment, a claim denied by Hillsong in a statement the next day that called the segment “tabloid trash”.

A day after that, Hillsong founder Brian Houston laid down a boldfaced challenge to ACA reporter Ben McCormack.

@benmccormack9 Hey.. How about coming to have a coffee with me one day? You got the guts to do that? Just you and me.

The proposed coffee date sounded more like the pastoral equivalent of  “Do you wanna take this outside?”

McCormack wasn’t backing down.

@benmccormack9 Hey.. How about coming to have a coffee with me one day? You got the guts to do that? Just you and me.

@BrianCHouston love to meet. Why not do an interview on camera & answer some questions too? You got the guts to do that?

Houston shot back:

@BrianCHouston love to meet. Why not do an interview on camera & answer some questions too? You got the guts to do that?

@BenMcCormack9 The Q’s are not the issue. It’s your skewered editing & underhanded tactics that are the problem. So no..!

McCormack repeated his offer of an interview before Houston repeated his mano-e-mano cappuccino challenge. McCormack suggested that, like Hillsong followers, the ACA team “lived to give”.

A bitter stalemate ensued.

On Monday, not content with having had the last word only once, McCormack tweeted:

@BenMcCormack9 well my offer of a coffee with no hidden recording or cameras stands. It’s not as though ACA is known for its credibility!!

@BrianCHouston “credibility”?? Hillsong issuing false hysterical misleading press statements. It’s you with the credibility problem Brian.

Houston may be frantically trying to come up with his own put-down. But maybe he has taken another tack to win this stoush.

As he tweeted the day before it began:

Love is a very compelling argument!!

Source: By Patrick Begley, Sydney Morning Herald, A Current Affair versus Hillsong: the coffee challenge, http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/a-current-affair-versus-hillsong-the-coffee-challenge-20150427-1muarj.html, Published 27/04/2015. (Accessed 27/04/2015.)

LieSledgeLead live love lead brian houston hillsong

Does Brian Houston’s response to the ACA report, represent the actions of a godly shepherd or are we seeing the responses exposing the behaviour of a false teacher.

“The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.” 1 Timothy 3: 1-7 

“Tabloid trash” exposing Hillsong of lying?

26 Sunday Apr 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Uncategorized

≈ 12 Comments

Tags

a current affair, ACA, Ben McCormack, Brian Houston, crazy cult, cult, exposed, Grimshaw, guts, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, houston, lie, lies, statement, Tracy Grimshaw

LOVE, LEAD, LIE

We noted in our previous article Brian Houston retweeting Hillsong’s tweet of their ‘Hillsong Statement’ about the A Current Affairs (ACA) report. This is what the Hillsong Tweet read:

Statement by Hillsong Church on A Current Affair story: http://hil.so/qzpw
Source: Hillsong Church, https://twitter.com/hillsong/status/590754683674853376, 10:51 PM – 21 Apr 2015. (Accessed 24/04/2015.)

We have already reviewed this “Official Statement” from Hillsong:

Which “tabloid trash” do you believe?
Brian Houston in damage control… again… and again…and again.

What occurred after Hillsong issued that statement was breathtaking.

THE REPORTER AND THE RORTER

One of the issues that the A Current Affairs report highlighted was the fact that Hillsong pressures people to give money.

Hillsong have continually lied to the general public about this issue and this is a lie that we at Church Watch have exposed repeatedly.

We would like to remind our readers that Brian Houston himself pressures his members to give money so they can be right before God and be in the will of God. (This false teaching absolutely perverts the foundational teachings of Christianity and is in fact a damnable heresy.) As you can see, Houston is scamming people financially into believing that they can only prosper in God if they give money to God/Hillsong.

[Click to download soundbite]

On the 22nd of April, Tracy Grimshaw from A Current Affair tweeted ,

@FArimado we ask Hillsong constantly to talk to us about how the donations are spent. They will not. “If only” they would..
Source: Tracy Grimshaw, Twitter, https://twitter.com/tracygrimshaw/status/590997174332227584, 2:54 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 25/04/2015.)

It was this phrase from Brian Houston that caught our attention:

“It’s not as though ACA is known for its credibility”.

Who is lying?  Who’s credibility is at stake here? Sadly, many people are tweeting that this is not a good look for a church. And as @Dan_Nolan9 observed, “Not a good look for a church – creating falsehoods in a statement accusing ACA of falsehoods”.

This because ACA responded to Hillsong’s original tweet alerting people to the Hillsong Statement. The statement claimed “the program made no attempt to contact us to get the facts – or even hear our perspective – before airing this piece of fiction”.

Ben McCormack from ACA tweeted a few times to people who accused ACA of not contacting Hillsong.

@hillsong this statement by Hillsong is false. ACA contacted the church by phone and email and we got no response.
Source: Ben McCormack, Twitter, https://twitter.com/BenMcCormack9/status/591090162039279616/photo/1, 9:04 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 25/04/2015.)

This tweet included the following evidence to prove that Hillsong’s statement was a farce:

prood_TwitterACAExposesHillsonLie2_24-04-2015 prood_TwitterACAExposesHillsonLie1_24-04-2015

He also tweeted later with the same attachments,

@Markedw @tracygrimshaw @hillsong we contacted them on 4 separate occasions. Don’t fall for more Hillsong dishonesty.
Source: Ben McCormack, Twitter, https://twitter.com/BenMcCormack9/status/591105999525650432, 10:07 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 25/04/2015.)

After the news team publicly exposed Hillsong for not being honest in their official Hillsong Statement, Brian Houston contacted Ben McCormack. Do you think Brian Houston apologised for his false allegation?

This exchange took place on the 23rd of April, 2015:

Brian Houston:
@benmccormack9 Hey.. How about coming to have a coffee with me one day? You got the guts to do that? Just you and me.

Ben McCormack:
@BrianCHouston love to meet. Why not do an interview on camera & answer some questions too? You got the guts to do that?

Brian Houston:
@BenMcCormack9 The Q’s are not the issue. It’s your skewered editing & underhanded tactics that are the problem. So no..!

Ben McCormack:
@BrianCHouston now there’s a surprise.

Ben McCormack:
@BrianCHouston our offer of an interview remains open..

Brian Houston:
@BenMcCormack9 well my offer of a coffee with no hidden recording or cameras stands. It’s not as though ACA is known for its credibility!!

Ben McCormack:
@BrianCHouston we live to give Brian.. Just like your followers.

proof_TwitterHoustosteroneChallenged_25-04-2015

You’d think that excellent leadership could check all their emails or even check with ACA, before publicly accusing ACA of lying. (Especially when the program was being advertised in advance.) Once again, we are seeing another unsound, unwise and poor leadership example in Hillsong Church.

So why should Bobbie and Brian Houston set themselves up as leadership mentors for other churches to follow?

Live Love Lie

Live Love Lie

Brian Houston in damage control… again… and again…and again.

23 Thursday Apr 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Brian Houston's Beliefs, Hillsong Fascism

≈ 12 Comments

Tags

Brian Houston, crazy cult, cult, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, tabloid trash, twitter

When a person’s “image” starts to be bought into question through their own conduct, it’s not uncommon for that person to automatically kick into damage control mode. Brian Houston is doing just this over the recent A Current Affair report.

Hillsong: The multi-million dollar “crazy cult”

As a result of this report, Hillsong published a very lethal statement lambasting the media and even political figure Nick Xenophon. Houston retweeted the article from Hillsong:

RT @hillsong: Statement by Hillsong Church on A Current Affair story: http://hil.so/qzpw Source: Brian Houston, Twitter, https://twitter.com/BrianCHouston/status/590987698384560128, 2:17 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 23/04/2015.)

The statement and our analysis of it can be read here:

Which “tabloid trash” do you believe?

The problem with Brian Houston’s damage control is that it actually is doing more harm than good. For instance, the more he says, the more easier it is to spot his hypocrisy online. For example, Brian Houston tweeted the following:

Leaders goal: Lead with grace, even in the face of opposition. Lead with love, even when under attack! Source: Brian Houston, Twitter, https://twitter.com/BrianCHouston/status/590964263788761088, 12:43 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 23/04/2015.)

Love is a very compelling argument!! Source: Brian Houston, Twitter, https://twitter.com/BrianCHouston/status/590964263788761088, 12:43 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 23/04/2015.)

However, Brian Houston seems to think that when he throws words around like “love”, “grace” and “leaders goal”, it means Mr Houston can be justified to say things like this:

When A Current Affair lie and malign @hillsong (which they have done regularly) they insult the intelligence of the thousands who attend. Source: Brian Houston, Twitter, https://twitter.com/BrianCHouston/status/590990488259420160, 2:28 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 23/04/2015.)

proof_TwitterHoustonsACAHissyFit_23-04-2015

It’s sad seeing Tim Costello become involved by aligning not only himself but World Vision in this story as well.

I’ve personally witnessed the generosity of @hillsong-partnering with @WorldVisionAus after Typhoon Haiyan @BrianCHouston #hillsongchurch Source: Tim Costello, Twitter, https://twitter.com/TimCostello/status/590738654601093120, 2:28 PM – 22 Apr 2015. (Accessed 23/04/2015.)

In closing, there’s an important question still to be asked.

Why didn’t Brian Houston call out Reverend Bill Crews for his strong statements against Hillsong during his interview on the ACA segment?  

Rick Xenophon has been quite vocal for years about addressing cults and religious movements and their impact on families. What is the difference between Rick Xenophon and Reverend Bill Crews in their appeal for truthfulness from these ministries making mega millions of their “flocks” while their leaders lead lives of luxury and comfort in a very rarified atmosphere?

Did the Reverend Bill Crews miss out on an attack from Brian Houston because he (Brian Houston) operates under the false teaching of “not touching the Lord’s anointed” (Reverend Bill Crews)?

It’s a mystery yet to be answered.

Hillsong’s ‘infallible’ prophets? (Part 2)

09 Monday Feb 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Uncategorized

≈ 22 Comments

Tags

bobbie, bobbie houston, cult leader, god whisper, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, innerspasm, prophet, vision

DID YOU KNOW THAT GOD WHISPERS TO BOBBIE?

Bobbie declared in her 2013 Women’s conference that she received a “God whisper”.

“And in that moment, God spoke to me…”

“I feel like the Lord is saying, ‘Go home and flourish.”

“It was the genius and wisdom of God! Honestly!”

Speaking with such authority that God spoke to her, she continually reinforced the idea that she was some kind of prophetess.

Towards the end of this video – you’ll notice Bobbie Houston’s innerspasm kick in as she wrestles with what she just said to her audience.

[5:26] “And you know if you’ve been around me and us that, you know, the essence [of this conference] came out of what I felt was a god whisper.

A whisper in my spirit many years ago that said, “Bobbie! Create a conference in Sydney. An environment in Sydney for young women, girded up with the older women, and tell them something. Tell them there is a god in heaven who believes in them. And not only that, a company of others.” I mean, that is the god whisper.

[Looks unsettled]

Sometimes I smile at myself and I go, “I hope when I get to heaven it was a god whisper. I hope I don’t get there and Jesus goes, “Actually we never said that but we rolled with it anyway because it was really God”. I don’t know! Hahaha!

No I feel it was a God whisper! The fruit bears witness! Hahahaha! Sometimes, do you ever doubt that? You’re going, “How embarassing if I get to heaven and they say, ‘Actually – no- but it was a good idea and we went with it anyway’.

But you know what? That was a – that was a god whisper.”

Source: Juan Marcos Lecuona, Pastor Bobbie Houston, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwqz-1PA0wE, Published 17/07/2013. (Accessed 05/02/2015.)

Hillsong’s “infallible” prophets? (Part 1)

09 Monday Feb 2015

Posted by Nailed Truth in Brian Houston's Beliefs, Hillsong Fascism

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bobbie houston, Brian Houston, cult, fascism, For This I Was Born, Hillsong, Hillsong cult, houston, infallible, spiritual fascism, Visionary leadership

As some have pointed out – Vision Sunday is on this week. This is a time in Hillsong where their fuhrer and visionary leader Brian Houston gets a God-given “Vision” for his church and preaches a “vision-casting” message that demands loyalty and unity above all else throughout his entire Hillsong movement and those affiliated with Hillsong.

The idea is this: to question the vision and the message is to question God Himself. Why? Because Brian Houston received this “Vision” and “Message” from God. It is claiming a prophetic status – that is, Brian Houston is presented to his entire movement as an infallible prophet. (Bobbie Houston claims this same status.) So what does it mean when God gives Brian Houston a God-given vision? What does it mean when God gives Bobbie Houston a God whisper? What does this mean for Hillsong?

Below we will let Brian Houston explain what it means when he gets his God-given vision for Hillsong in his book “For This I Was Born”. (This book is worth any theologian or scholar’s time if they want to research spiritual fascism – see “Modern Fascism: Liquidating the Judeo-Christian Worldview” by Gene Edward Veith, Jr.) Furthermore, we will be reviewing the below segment in articles to come.

Brian Houston writes,

 Chapter 4

_____________________________

United Around the Cause

THE DAY TWO PEOPLE GET MARRIED IS THE start of a powerful partnership for the cause of Christ. Sadly, over the years, Bobbie and I have been forced to watch as the once-happy marriage of some of our friends have broken down, ending in acrimonious divorces. It is tough to watch, and ultimately it is a losing situation for everyone.

Some 80 percent of divorces are granted on the basis of irreconcilable differences. These differences may be due to infidelity, a lack of communications, or a multitude of other reasons, but often the differences are grounded in the fact that the vision that each partner had for their marriage, their family, and their future diverged. The result? Vision became division, and where the there was once unity, there was now disunity.

In Matthew 12:25, when the Pharisees accused Jesus of casting out demons by Beelzebub (the prince of demons), he responded, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.”

Jesus here talks about a kingdom, a city, and a house. The point, as it applies to our lives today, is that just as division can bring down a nation (think coup), it can and will ultimately destroy a church, a marriage, or an individual life.

A house full of division is not a pleasant place to be. When we think of division, we tend to think of strife, anger, fighting, and people splitting away.

Division in a church is a little like division in a marriage. When the church is functioning the way God intends, it can be heaven. When it is not, it can be hell.

A house divided does not necessarily mean the people are fighting and punching each other around the communion table, or that a husband and wife are pitching plates and vases at each other. A divided house is one that is going different directions. If we are truly one, we need to be going in a single direction.

The Pharisees were often divided among themselves. John 7:43 and John 9 speak of this division. Legalism and bandage lend themselves to division. But in a house (be it a church or a home) where the people are empowered, released, and have a sense of vision and leadership that inspires, people will flourish.

A single vision united around a cause, be it in a church, a marriage, a family, or a workplace, will help guard against division.

A House Divided Has Divided Motives

When motives are pure, the house of God is awesome. There is a  huge difference between people who use their vision to build the house of God and people who use the house of God to build their vision. When people’s motives are to use the house of God in a negative way, division is inevitable.

I never want to be a controlling leader, but I do need to understand and be a discerner of people’s hearts. Failure to do so would put our church at risk and thwart our ability to serve the cause and the kingdom of God effectively.

Take, for example, a businessperson who is using his or her gifts and connections to be a blessing to the house of God. This is completely different from those who come into the house of God thinking about how people in the church can help them build their businesses.

At Hillsong’s profile has gained recognition, people have come who have tried to utilize the leverage of our church’s name by attaching it to their business or ministry. You would be astounded at how creative some people can be. We have become well versed in discerning wrong motives. It is similar to what happened growing up. I was treated differently at school and in the community when people found out that my dad was a prominent pastor in our part of the world.

When your motives are genuinely driven to serve the Lord’s purposes, God will see that his  house and your life flourish, but when motives are going in different directions, the house divides.

A House Divided Has Divided Vision

I often tell our church that we have one vision that is outworked in may different ways. Imagine how complicated and confusing, not to mention divisive, it would be if every one of our departments had a different vision.

We would experience utter chaos. There would be no cohesion, and in time, splinter groups would form and go their separate ways. Division in the case of a church will minimize that church’s impact, but division will also negatively affect the people of that church as they are pulled to and fro, unsure whose vision to follow and what cause they are contributing to.

The same can be said of a family or a business partnership in which one spouse or partner is pursuing one vision, while the other is going in a completely different direction. The children or employees in that family or business are put in a very difficult situation, and in time, irreconcilable differences will arise.

When your house, family, marriage, friendships, business, and church have a united vision and a focus anchored on a greater cause, there is a great sense of stability and security because everyone knows where he or she is heading, and people have something to follow.

A House Divided Has Divided Loyalties

 Jesus had a disloyal friend named Judas whose divided loyalty caused him to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. He is the type of friend Proverbs 18:24 describes this way: “The man of many friends [a friend of all the world] will prove himself a bad friend” (AMP, brackets in original).

Proverbs 18:24 is saying that people who try to be loyal to everyone actually are not good friends to anyone. Judas tried to be both friend to Jesus and to the Pharisees, but he failed at both and ended up hanging up himself.

I am reminded of people who come to church on Sunday and lift their hands in worship, but during the week live like hell. Sadly, in time, this kind of divided loyalty will lead to destruction.

God values loyalty, and undivided loyalty is an important characteristic for all of us. Strength comes when you know where your loyalties lie. Loyalty actually forces you to take sides.

No doubt you have heard of an “us-and-them” spirit. It is one I do not let fester in our church. I ask our leaders, “On which side of ‘us and them’ do you find yourself?” Loyalty always positions itself as one of “them”. You can build the church, a marriage, and friendship on that kind of loyalty.

There will be times when you will have to make a stand about where your loyalties lie, particularly when it comes to the house of God. It is impossible to be a friend to the house of God and a friend to the world simultaneously.

Living for the Father’s cause is about making the tough decisions in life. This includes with whom and what you are “friends.” You need to position yourself to be best friends with God’s house, guarding against division and determining in your heart that nothing will draw you away from building his kingdom.”

Source: Brian Houston, For This I Was Born: Aligning Your Vision to God’s Cause, 2008, Publisher : Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, pg. 45-50.

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