1/21/2026 This article/post is very enlightening for anyone who is serious about understanding the ethics of the widely known Bethel church and community. Please consider these misgivings and judge all things for the Church in light of Scripture, as we reflect on Luke’s praise for the Bereans. “Now these people (Bereans) were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). The Church of Ephesus is also commended by John in Christ’s words in Revelation: “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false” (Revelation 2:2).

Here is the link to that post https://wesleygospel.com/2026/01/21/is-bethel-church-a-cult-2/

I have also copied the whole post below.

It is very elaborate, because a lot of homework has to be done to reveal the truth – please read and help the cause of bringing light to the dark places. His goal is to “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11). To this end, we pray and labor and strive: “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:13-14).

Is Bethel Church a Cult?

Spineless from the start
Sucked into the part
Circus comes to town
You play the lead clown

Please, please, spreading his disease
Living by his story
Knees, knees, falling to your knees
Suffer for his glory, you will

Time for lust, time for lie
Time to kiss your life goodbye
Send me money, send me green, heaven you will meet
Make a contribution and you’ll get the better seat
Bow to leper messiah

Marvel at his tricks
Need your Sunday fix
Blind devotion came
Rotting your brain

Chain, chain, join the endless chain
Taken by his glamor
Fame, fame, infection is the game
Stinking drunk with power, we see

Time for lust, time for lie
Time to kiss your life goodbye
Send me money, send me green, heaven you will meet
Make a contribution and you’ll get the better seat
Bow to leper messiah

Witchery, weakening
Sees the sheep are gathering
Set the trap, hypnotize
Now you follow

Time for lust, time for lie
Time to kiss your life goodbye
Send me money, send me green, heaven you will meet
Make a contribution and you’ll get the better seat
Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie

–Metallica, “Leper Messiah”–

There are some people, such as discernment ministries and heresy hunters, which are hyper prone to label any reports of miracles in charismatic churches as “New Age,” but I’m not like that. I wouldn’t say that about the Azusa Street revival, Assemblies of God (the Smith Wigglesworth era), the International House of Prayer (IHOP), the Brownsville Revival, or the Vineyard churches (the John Wimber era). While there’s always been Pentecostal leaders handling the demon possessed in such revivals, that’s not my concern here. In the case of Bethel Church, and especially after the publication of Judy Franklin and Ellyn Davis’ The Physics of Heaven (2012), one may fairly conclude that Bethel Church’s leaders in particular have been sliding into New Age views. It seems that ever since this book came out, they have gotten more off center theologically; and hundreds, if not thousands of videos have come out on YouTube about it. If this is true, then it would mean that Bethel Church might now be a source of demonic oppression and false teachings, rather than a church where people can find healing and deliverance.

YouTubers’ Concerns About Bethel Church

Here are the biggest problems I have with Bethel Church and Bill Johnson’s ministry. I’ll admit, a lot of these concerns have not been proven, but the top five in red have. The top four books quoted are all from Destiny Image Publishers.

1. Beni Johnson does “Christian” yoga (Healthy and Free, p. 71; against Deut. 18:9-14).

2. Bill says people should follow him “off the map” of the Bible (When Heaven, p. 76).

3. “Prophetic ministry is not to be focused on the sins of the world” (Dreaming, p. 89).

4. Bethel Church admits they accept some New Age views (The Physics of Heaven, p. 15).

5. Bill has an Arian view of Jesus (click this link to hear a sermon clip).

6. Grave sucking (some say this is occult; it is weird; I’m not so sure: cp. 2 Kgs. 13:21).

7. Jenn Johnson compares the Holy Spirit to the genie in Aladdin.

8. Some people in Bethel apparently use the f-word and nobody corrects them.

9. Some people have expressed universalist “love” views (cp. Rob Bell’s Love Wins).

10. Painful electrical power coursing through the body (cp. kundalini awakening).

11. Seductive female musicians dancing with sexy attire; breathy singing during worship.

12. Non-judgmental tolerance of theological errors; hostility towards critics.

13. They don’t preach lordship salvation or repentance from sin…they scoff at it.

14. Seth Dahl has a vision of “Jesus” saying “please forgive Me” for a pastor’s sin.

15. Beni says “Wakey! Wakey!” to wake up some giant angels (cp. 1 Chron. 21:16).

16. Signing tithing contracts to remain a church member (against 2 Cor. 9:7).

17. Shepherding Movement / covering theology / authoritarianism (“culture of honor”).

18. No limit on the number of prophecies in church services (against 1 Cor. 14:29).

19. Deification of charismatic people as little gods (theosis / against Acts 14:14).

20. Eric Johnson said, “You’re not born evil” (denial of original sin, Psalm 51:5).

21. Young people wallowing on the floor in a “drunken spirit” (like an orgy).

22. One young man said he can use animals to prophesy words from God (cp. New Age).

23. Against open-air preaching of the Gospel (lordship salvation).

24. Bill Johnson drives an Aston Martin luxury car: materialism (James 5:5).

25. Gold dust: possibly a demonic omen for prosperity preaching (cp. fairy dust).

1. Bethel Church Horror Story – 5/11/16 (Yoga and f-words).

2. Bill Johnson on Wretched Radio with Todd Friel – 3/26/09 (Man cusses on stage with Todd Bentley at the Lakeland Revival and everyone laughs; Bill Johnson compares Todd Bentley to the woman caught in adultery; however, Todd wasn’t told “go and sin no more,” he’s still “married” to the adulteress: no regard for 1 Timothy and Titus).

3. New Apostolic Reformation Heresy – 2/15/12 (The NAR is the continuation of the Latter Rain movement started by William Branham, and continued through Paul Cain and Mike Bickle (IHOP): see DVD called The Life, Teachings, and Legacy of William Branham; in 1949 the Assemblies of God condemned the Latter Rain movement and again in 2000; I disagree that charismatic prophecy needs an open canon; I disagree with his rejection of contemplative prayer as only Catholic and not Biblical; the NAR thinks that doing special charismatic prayer is a better way to impact society than Gospel preaching and Bible teaching; dominionism is the NAR idea that they need to take over all world governments through NAR influence (like Rick Perry).

4. Bill Johnson’s and Mike Bickle’s False Teachings – 12/28/12 (I disagree with some things in this video. I think that Bickle himself has kept himself safe from supporting heresies that have cropped up by some of his friends; anti-theological attitude; charismatic cult followings of Johnson or Bickle due to the downplaying of Biblical authority; I disagree with this video’s cessationist view of Christ, as if the Scripture never said, “He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do” (John 14:12); quotes Bill Johnson’s When Heaven Invades Earth, p. 76, where he says charismatics should be willing to go “off the map” of Bible knowledge in order to experience supernatural things; a man acting like a turkey at the Toronto Blessing, from which Bill Johnson got his power (“power animal” / New Age); Bickle and the “manifested sons of God,” sensual “bridal paradigm,” revelations for an elite end-times “Joel’s Army” (Latter Rain).

5. Exposing the False Teaching of Bill Johnson at Bethel Church – 8/13/13

6. Bethel Church and the False Gospel of Kris Vallotton – 10/23/13 (Miano thinks Bethel Church is a spiritist cult; Paul Washer and Tony Miano met together in Norway in 2013 to denounce Bethel Church’s influence there; John Crowder’s meetings are blasphemous, orgy like, bong party like (see 2 Peter 2); Vallotton seems like a really nice guy, but Miano doesn’t know if he’s born again; we have to judge the fruit and words of prophets (Matthew 7:15-19); Bill said Jesus once taught Scripture out of context to make a point; Vallotton teaches non-judgmentalism (hence prophecies won’t be judged either); reply to Vallotton’s “7 Signs of a Poor Gospel” on Facebook; Vallotton: “Do I believe in a prosperity gospel? You bet”; materialism is against salvation (Matthew 19:16-30); Bethel Church believes sickness serves no sanctifying purpose; Reformed cessationists would be more persuaded to become charismatics if they would just be provided with documentation of serious physical healings: see Dr. David Lewis’ Healing: Fiction, Fantasy or Fact? (1989), provides the oft-requested documentation: about 30% of the people prayed for by JOHN WIMBER experienced total physical healing of serious sicknesses at the November 1985 Harrogate Conference; see also similar medical documentation of before-and-after cases for KATHRYN KUHLMAN‘s healings: I Believe In Miracles (1962), God Can Do It Again (1969), and Nothing Is Impossible with God (1974);  Bill believes in kenosis (Arianism): that Jesus was not fully God while on earth; “honor theology” (shepherding / discipleship / covering theology / unquestioning submission to the pastor = “humility”); James 1:2: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds”; Luke 9:58: “Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head’” (in contrast to Bethel Church’s health-and-wealth triumphalism); Vallotton’s “gospel” is man-glorifying rather than Christ-glorifying and is not cross-centered).

7. Escaping Bethel Church, Bill Johnson and Jesus Culture – 10/29/13 (Probably kundalini spiritual power that electrically shocks, burns, and hurts your body; sensual women in worship; non-judgmental tolerance; no lordship salvation).

8. The New Apostolic Reformation – 11/11/13 (Mike Bickle says most of what is said by charismatic prophets is false, nauseating, and disgusting: and this makes me respect him more. Yes, there have been Latter Rain influences, but I still respect Bickle the most out of all the charismatic leaders today. I’ve never heard of antinomianism or universalism coming from IHOP like I’ve had with Bethel Church, but IHOP’s Onething 2016 conference features Bill Johnson and Todd White (both in the universalist Holy Ghost movie): so, is there a guilt-by-association thing going on here? I reject the “sufficiency of Scripture” cessationism expressed in this video).

9. Bethel Church’s Statement of Faith: They Don’t Believe It – 11/27/13 (I disagree with the cessationism of this video. $450 per year membership fee to be recognized as an “apostle” in the International Coalition of Apostolic Leaders (ICAL); reportedly, Todd Bentley was told by God, not to preach about Jesus, but to talk about angels and the supernatural; Nightline found no verifiable healings in Bentley’s Lakeland Revival; Bentley’s adultery, alcoholism, and remarriage to mistress, and endorsement by Bill Johnson and others to go back to ministry in that condition; grandiose prophecies made about Bentley, and the cover-up that followed; Bill Johnson wears glasses and yet, he claims walking in perfect “divine health” is the true gospel (positive confession view); Bill does not believe God is fully in control of the world, but that Christians have some control over events and circumstances through prayer; Bill depreciates the Bible and exalts the Holy Spirit instead (57:00ff); Miano believes Bill Johnson is a cunning deceiver: cunning means to “show skill in achieving one’s ends by deceit or evasion”; Bill said Jesus lived as a mere man emptied of all divine attributes while on earth (Arianism): denying the hypostatic union (fully God and fully man) (1:15:00ff); street praying, not street preaching (charismatics don’t really preach the Gospel much); charismatic experiences are like heroin is for addicts, and for this reason, they don’t have much of a desire to preach the Gospel; Eric Johnson said, “You’re not born evil” (denial of original sin, Pelagianism, Ps. 51:5) (1:34:00): from his sermon: “The Joy of Consecration” at 14:45; Miano: “We have to care more about the souls of these people than whether or not they want to be our friends”).

10. Why I Must Speak Out Against the NAR and Bethel Church – 12/13/13 (I disagree with Miano labeling Mike Bickle a false prophet; states that John Piper associated with Jesus Culture once at an event; they have a false Jesus (2 Cor. 11:4), false gospel, false Holy Spirit; Word of Faith prosperity gospel; Beni Johnson mocked Tony Miano’s call to repentance and faith (the lordship salvation gospel); they deny original sin (Eric Johnson); “honor the leaders” (authoritarianism / shepherding movement); John Crowder identified as a friend of Bethel Church).

11. Bethel Church and the NAR’s False Ideas of Glory – 12/21/13 – No limit on number of prophecies in church services (1 Cor. 14:29); I disagree with Miano’s cessationism; deification of charismatic Christians; Arian view of Jesus; still friends with Todd Bentley.

12. Jesus Culture: The Next Generation of Heretics – 5/31/14 – Exalting the presence of God over Bible study; I disagree with labeling John Wimber as a heretic, simply because Jesus Culture was influenced by Vineyard music (but they do say they are partnered with Bethel Church); Heather Clark (seductive musician); Bill Johnson blessed Todd Bentley at the false Lakeland Revival (and after); ecstatic prophecy by Jessa Bentley; they respect Benny Hinn.

13. Women From Bethel – 7/1/14 (Yoga; universalism; scoffing at lordship salvation).

14. THE BETHEL DESTINY – 7/19/14 (Bill Johnson says, “Prophetic ministry is not to be focused on the sins of the world” (Dreaming with God, p. 89): contradicts 1 Corinthians 14:24-25: “If an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!’” (thankfully Gary Wilkerson’s David Wilkerson shows that his words of knowledge often operated this way); and also the words of Jesus in John 16:7-8, KJV: “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you. And when He is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” Bill Johnson is wrong whenever he may blatantly contradict this sin-exposing principle of the Holy Spirit’s ministry through New Testament prophets. Jesus’ way is to comfort people with the love of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 13) as their sins are exposed by visions and dreams and words of knowledge (1 Cor. 14:24-25). Jeremiah said that FALSE PROPHETS are the kinds of guys that prophesy smooth things; and absolutely refuse to share revelations about other people’s sins, and they refuse to preach against sin, because they want to flatter people in order to gain more popularity. “Beware of the Flatterer,” John Bunyan said in his Pilgrim’s Progress.

Jeremiah 14:10, 13-14: “This is what the Lord says about this people: ‘They greatly love to wander; they do not restrain their feet. So the Lord does not accept them; He will now remember their wickedness and punish them for their sins.’ But I said, ‘Alas, Sovereign Lord! The prophets keep telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, I will give you lasting peace in this place.’ Then the Lord said to me, ‘The prophets are prophesying lies in My name. I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds.’” Jeremiah 23:11-12, 14-17: “Both prophet and priest are godless; even in my temple I find their wickedness…I will bring disaster on them in the year they are punished…among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen something horrible: They commit adultery and live a lie. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that not one of them turns from their wickedness…I will make them eat bitter food and drink poisoned water, because from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has spread throughout the land.’ This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. They keep saying to those who despise me, ‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’ And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts they say, ‘No harm will come to you.’”

FALSE PROPHETS WILL ALWAYS SPEAK COMFORT TO SINNERS LIVING IN THEIR SINS, JUST LIKE BILL JOHNSON DOES IN HIS BOOK DREAMING WITH GOD, ON PAGE 89; Bill admits on Sid Roth’s It’s Supernatural that he experienced a painful electrical power that coursed through his body (he thought it was a Holy Spirit baptism he received from Toronto Airport Vineyard, but it sounds more like a kundalini awakening); it is believed that the Assemblies of God’s 2000 position paper on “Endtime Revival” was a veiled rebuke to Bethel Church and the New Apostolic Reformation (prophetic movement); Jesus Culture musicians have sort of a high-minded attitude about their band being a movement; Bill rejects “He must increase, I must decrease” in Hosting the Presence (spirit of pride).

15. Lying Signs and Wonders – 10/26/14 (Universalism connected with many charismatics and their miracles; Beni says salvation comes by angels ringing bells; Benny Hinn teaches that born again Christians are little gods: refers to John Lanagan’s The New Age Propensities of Bethel Church’s Bill Johnson; money-centered preaching and gold dust, gold filling miracles, jewels, diamonds).

16. Bill Johnson Exposed – 2/25/15 (Word of Faith, name it and claim it, and positive confession).

17. On the Road: The Dangers of Bethel Redding – 5/26/15 (I disagree with Miano’s statement “I don’t have a problem with a guy being rich” driving a ridiculously expensive sports car; Johnson drives a $250k Aston Martin; no preaching of repentance and faith (no lordship salvation); false claims of healing; Beni Johnson is co-pastor, exercising authority over men; Beni “earthing”; Beni says she can wake up giant angels in the desert by saying “Wakey! Wakey!”; Bethel an annoyance to their community; against open-air gospel preaching; one kid said he can use animals to prophesy words from God (sounds like “power animals” / New Age: this originated with John Arnott’s The Father’s Blessing, ch. 11: “The Prophetic: Animal Sounds and Insights” (Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House, 1995): and it was because of this that John Wimber excommunicated the Toronto Airport church from the Vineyard).

18. BILL JOHNSON & THE NEW AGE – 9/14/15 (Grave sucking; young people wallowing on the floor in a “drunken spirit” (looks like an orgy); Beni likes reflexology; Physics of Heaven; mentions 2015 edition of Andrew Strom’s Kundalini Warning with updated material on Bill Johnson).

19. Bethel Blasphemy Alert – 9/22/15 (Seth Dahl, the Children’s Pastor, has a vision of Jesus holding him, and then says, “Please forgive Me,” on behalf of a pastor who said emotionally abusive things to him: JESUS ISN’T TO BLAME FOR ANYTHING…JESUS IS SINLESS! (1 John 3:5).

20. The Heretic Bill Johnson of Bethel Church – 12/24/15 (Says that Bill Johnson denies the deity of Christ (Arianism); signing tithing contracts for church membership; “apostolic” authoritarianism; reference to R. Douglas Geivett and Holly Pivec’s A New Apostolic Reformation?).

21. Heidi Baker: Demonic Impartation – 10/9/14 (Heidi Baker at 3:53 at Bethel Church lays hands on a young man and imparts a painful spiritual power into his body, possibly a Christianized New Age demon experience known as a kundalini awakening, Baker expresses a universalist view in Holy Ghost). There is nothing painful or universalist about the baptism in the Holy Spirit!

22. While a Guest Speaker at Bethel Church, Dr. Mark Chirrona Says Christians Are the True “New Agers,” and That God Speaks Through the Constellations, Like in Astrology – 3/6/16 – I will admit, there seems to be Biblical basis for God speaking through constellations (Job 38:31; Matt. 2:1-2), but not through horoscopes. Its a totally inappropriate comment about identifying with the New Age. He should know better. 1 Thessalonians 5:22: “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” Chironna wrote the foreword to Jim Goll’s The Seer.

23. Bethel Redding Exposed – 5/18/16 (Yoga; scoffing at lordship preaching; universalist).

24. Todd Bentley’s “Emma” Angel (Fairy Demon) – This is not from a video, but an article. It contains a quote which is found on many apologetics websites, and because the quote is exactly the same, it leads me to believe it is a true quote: but was later deleted, and publicly denied by Bentley at the Lakeland Revival. (In this video Bob Jones refers to a 3 foot spirit he saw called “ERMA,” not Emma, that represented the ascension of women into ministry (anti-Biblical; feminism; Jezebel spirit); at first he asked if it was an angel, but she said, “I AM NOT AN ANGEL–I AM A ‘BEING’ FROM AROUND THE THRONE”); The original article says that Bentley saw a vision of a young female angel named Emma who started the Kansas City prophetic movement (Mike Bickle and Bob Jones); the gold dust manifestations, and helped Bentley heal people at the Lakeland Revival. There is evidence that Bentley, like William Branham, was very angel-focused during his revival, rather than Christ-focused or even Holy Spirit focused. 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 says that healings and miracles through prophets come from the Holy Spirit, not from their personal angels. While John 5:4 does mention angelic healing at the Pool of Bethesda, that is hardly the New Testament norm. The concept of angelic healing pervades the New Age, the occult, and all witchcraft cults. “Fairy dust” is also a real occult phenomenon that witches and psychics say can happen. Here’s the quote, originally from Todd Bentley’s 2003 article “Angelic Hosts” and its subtitle “EMMA, ANGEL OF THE PROPHETIC”:

“Now let me talk about an angelic experience with Emma. Twice Bob Jones asked me about this angel that was in Kansas City in 1980: ‘Todd, have you ever seen the angel by the name of Emma?’ He asked me as if he expected that this angel was appearing to me. Surprised, I said, ‘Bob, who is Emma?’ He told me that Emma was the angel that helped birth and start the whole prophetic movement in Kansas City in the 1980s. She was a mothering-type angel that helped nurture the prophetic as it broke out.

“Within a few weeks of Bob asking me about Emma, I was in a service in Beulah, North Dakota. In the middle of the service I was in conversation with Ivan and another person when in walks Emma. As I stared at the angel with open eyes, the Lord said, ‘Here’s Emma.’ I’m not kidding. She floated a couple of inches off the floor…Emma appeared beautiful and young–about 22 years old–but she was old at the same time. She seemed to carry the wisdom, virtue and grace of Proverbs 31 on her life. She glided into the room, emitting brilliant light and colors. Emma carried these bags and began pulling gold out of them. Then, as she walked up and down the aisles of the church, she began distributing gold dust. The Lord answered: ‘She is releasing the gold, which is both the revelation and the financial breakthrough that I am bringing into this church. I want you to prophesy that Emma showed up in this service–the same angel that appeared in Kansas City–as a sign that I am endorsing and releasing a prophetic spirit in the church on people.’

“Within three weeks of that visitation, the church had given me the biggest offering I had ever received to that point in my ministry. Thousands of dollars! Thousands!…During this visitation the pastor’s wife (it was an AoG church) got totally whacked by the Holy Ghost–she began running around barking like a dog or squawking like a chicken as a powerful prophetic spirit came on her. Also, as this prophetic anointing came on her, she started getting phone numbers of complete strangers and calling them up on the telephone and prophesying over them…Then angels started showing up in the church.’” 

25. MANY, MANY, MORE.

God have mercy on the Church!