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[Lily]

Hey Jim,
I'm a believer & my sister's husband is dying. My sister & her hub have always attended conservative, evangelical churches. She quotes the Bible regularly. But since his admission into hospice, my sister has been demanding a miracle from God, having connected with John G Lake Ministries out of Texas, now run by a guy named Curry Blake. They're praying with her every day. Someone drove 2 hours to visit him in order to heal him. I'm trying to understand what they're teaching her so I can know better how to minister to her. But within the structure itself are built in defenses so that if anyone questions you, it trains you to shut them out & dig in deeper. So trying to have a discussion is difficult. And I'm at a geographical distance which makes it harder anyway.

Are you familiar with this organization that you can give me a run-down on it? Any thoughts on how to reach her? A couple other apologetics sites I've found have quoted the deceased founder's writings, John G. Lake saying that believers become "as a god." But I don't really know those sites to know if they're reliable & trust you more (as I saw you at my church - thanks for that!).

Any info you have would be appreciated. Thanks!
Lily

[jimwalton]

Thanks for writing, Lily. I'm not familiar with "John G. Lake Ministries," but I'll have to say from the start that their policies and actions make me suspecious. Any ministry that discourages questions and keeps a lot of secrets immediately makes me think something is fishy. I hate to judge what I have no information about, but on the surface, from your explanation, warning lights are going off in my head.

In addition, anyone that teaches that believers become "as a god" are not teaching Scripture. 1 Corinthians 15 assures us that in the afterlife we take on a spiritual body, but there is no scripture that teaches that we become divine or "as a god." I looked at their faith statements on the website but didn't see anything about becoming as a god, so if it's there, it's hidden.

While I believe that God heals people, it has been my observation that many so-called healing ministries are little more than shows.

I'm glad they're praying for her.

If people in the ministry are able to heal, the sick person wouldn't have to drive 2 hours. Jesus was able to heal from a distance (Mk. 7.24-30; Mt. 8.5-13; Jn. 4.46-54). The true power of God isn't limited by geography.

And if they're asking for money, that's another warning sign. Make sure your sister doesn't give them any money.

[Lily]

Thanks so much for your reply, Jim. I've doen some research myself & JGL's original writings that I found online point to the FALSE belief that believers become gods. Yuk. Yep - Scripture's clear this isn't the case. There's only one God & it isn't us! They have some other false teachings, too.

I emailed excerpts of his teaching to my sister & her church family is now also lending wonderful support. It is hard when someone is in a place of suffering & someone with false teaching comes along to promise the false hope of healing. To walk away from the group can feel like walking away from hope. But Jesus is our Only True Hope. He doesn't disappoint or fail. I'm hoping & praying she'll anchor her hope more there.

Because you're not familiar with them, you likely don't have need for more info on them. I don't want to post their info online, but if you want links to some of the info I found, you should have my email from when I signed up. (If not, ask your cousin's wife, Sue, for it & she'll give it - you spoke at our church this summer with Biola).

Thanks so much!

[jimwalton]

Lily, I'm glad you're finding the information you were after. I think it's terrible that ministries supposedly for Jesus's kingdom deceive people. It's just shameful.

Suffering is such a hard position to be in. You want to grasp at anything that might possibly offer some hope, and there are plenty of places to get legitimate help. But a ministry pretending to help is unconscionable.

I hope your sister and her husband find the help and strength they need to get through this.

[Mark Imisides]

Thanks for writing, Lily. I'm not familiar with "John G. Lake Ministries," but I'll have to say from the start that their policies and actions make me suspecious. Any ministry that discourages questions and keeps a lot of secrets immediately makes me think something is fishy. I hate to judge what I have no information about, but on the surface, from your explanation, warning lights are going off in my head.

In addition, anyone that teaches that believers become "as a god" are not teaching Scripture. 1 Corinthians 15 assures us that in the afterlife we take on a spiritual body, but there is no scripture that teaches that we become divine or "as a god." I looked at their faith statements on the website but didn't see anything about becoming as a god, so if it's there, it's hidden.

While I believe that God heals people, it has been my observation that many so-called healing ministries are little more than shows.

I'm glad they're praying for her.

If people in the ministry are able to heal, the sick person wouldn't have to drive 2 hours. Jesus was able to heal from a distance (Mk. 7.24-30; Mt. 8.5-13; Jn. 4.46-54). The true power of God isn't limited by geography.

And if they're asking for money, that's another warning sign. Make sure your sister doesn't give them any money.

Let me help you out:

1. They never ask for money.
2. I've listened to many messages by Curry Blake, and I've never heard the "as a god" term or concept used
3. He encourages questions. He starts every session of his training seminars with answering questions.
4. He certainly believes in healing at a distance and in fact encourages it over personal visits.
5. Look up his "DHT" and "Renewing the Mind" teaching series. The basis of his ministry is that if we renew our mind (Rom 12:2) we can do what Jesus did (or even "greater works" as he said).
6. He is nothing like Benny Hinn or Kenneth Copeland any of the high profile people in this space (many of whom are fakes IMO).

Cheers

[jimwalton]

Thanks for your reply. It's good to know that some of what was reported to me may not be accurate. There are so many good ministries out there, but also many who also thirst for fame, money, or influence under the guise of thirsting for righteousness.