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Some Pitfalls of Reinhard Bonnke's Ministry Reinhard Bonnke has done a sterling job of evangelising in Africa. But it is time for reform. God is raising up others to take restoration further. And He is confirming this 1) through dreams, and 2) by raising the dead. By Malcolm B Heap, Midnight Ministries Copyright © Midnight Ministries Copyright of Midnight Ministries may be waived and this publication duplicated without asking permission, if full credit is given to the source (with the address) and if the contents are not altered. Likewise, publications of Midnight Ministries may be translated into any other language without asking permission, provided that the translation is as accurate as possible to the meaning of the original text, and full credit is given to the source (with the address). The distribution of God's truth should not be restricted by copyright.. |
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When Reinhard Bonnke was a small boy, in his home church in Germany a lady received a prophecy and vision that one day he would evangelise Africa. He went on to fulfil that prophecy. Now, some 50 years later, his outreach to black African nations has taken the gospel to multiple millions – even in single meetings! As an example, in a massive 'crusade' in Ibadan, Nigeria from 7-11 November 2001, Reinhard preached to an estimated 4 million people. 2.5 million decision cards for Christ were completed. (Filled in by those ostensibly declaring their commitment to Christ, and their acceptance of His salvation.)
"Soon the follow-up work would start as the workers made sure of the harvest. Churches would grow dramatically over the next few weeks as the Christians swelled the numbers." (CfaN Revival Report Telegram, Dec 2001, p 4.)
But what happens when these new believers reach those churches? Are they fed properly? Are they able to grow spiritually, as they should? In a moment, I will tell you what God showed me in dreams about all this.
Is Gospel Witness Validated By Large Numbers?
"The event had called upon all the resources of thousands of churches which had taken part: these churches had supplied 150,000 counsellors, 100,000 intercessors, 50,000 ushers, 5,000 additional security people, 1,000 paramedics and 100 doctors." (CfaN Revival Report Telegram, Dec 2001, p 4.)
Reinhard had terrific support from all the co-operating churches. They wanted to be in on 'the act'. Understandably so.... they have much to gain from association with Reinhard's ministry, Christ For All Nations.
It is well known in all the areas where Reinhard Bonnke preaches that many sick people who attend his meetings are healed – some who are crippled, some blind, some deaf, some mute. Countless miracles occur. Some are delivered from demons. Reinhard is dedicated to the call on his life, and where there is faith in, and love for Jesus, He responds.
The miracles authenticate the message and bring many to a knowledge of Jesus. As the word spreads about this success, so does the name of Reinhard Bonnke. Success breeds success. But there is a price to be paid for such success.
In the massive gospel meetings in Nigeria in 2001, 15 people were crushed to death, as the crowd's enthusiasm spilled over. This fact was not reported in CfaN's Revival Report. Only the positive facts were presented. It took a secular TV documentary to disclose this sad fact.
Reinhard, being the man of God that he is, was naturally troubled by the deaths. He even questioned whether he should be continuing with such large scale meetings.
He has good reason to be concerned:
Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets (Luke 6:26).
I am not suggesting that Reinhard Bonnke is a false prophet. He has had his full measure of opposition, false accusations to bear, and persecution to put up with. But I AM suggesting that there is a need for reform, because God is indicating this in dreams, which I will come to.
By contrast with the reputation and acclaim given to false 'prophets' who bring smooth messages that people want to hear, is the stark reality that true prophets are NOT accepted:
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you (Matt 5:12).
Message of True Prophets Not Wanted
It is also significant that Jesus' warning about true prophets not being easily accepted occurs in ALL gospel accounts (Matt 13:57; Mark 6:4; Luke 4:24; John 4:44). The truth is that prophets are not wanted and not heeded because their message upsets the status quo. The majority of the people don't like their correction, and nor do church leaders, evangelists of God included!
I'm sad to say that even the great men of God such as Reinhard Bonnke don't want to know what God has to say to the Church via prophets He has raised up for the task. God spoke to me in this dream on 6th August 2001:
In this dream I was wanting to reach Reinhard with the truths and revelations which God has given us for the Church. The first time I tried to reach him I was able to meet him. [This is not a literal face to face meeting, but represents how I have reached him through correspondence I have had via his office manager.] After I had spoken with him for a short while he turned away from me. [What he has done in spirit.]
Then the dream conveyed that I tried to pass on to him three of our publications which contain biblical truth of which he is not aware. These were Our Sabbath Rest, The Controversy Concerning Law and Grace, and Sunday Versus Sabbath: The Final World Crisis. However, he didn't want to know.
In a prophetic word given on 11th August 2001, Jesus said:
THE CHURCH HAS MISSED THE MARK OF MY HOLINESS.
Reinhard is no different from others we have reached who have turned away from considering the message. These include great men of God as well as false preachers whom God has used mightily (there are many preachers whom God has used who will not be in the Kingdom, because they don't submit to Him in true obedience from the heart, even though they have served Him in the harvest fields, Matt 7:15-23).
What Constitutes A Great Man of God?
John the Baptist was acclaimed by Jesus as the greatest prophet (Luke 7:28). Why?
Jesus applauded John's singlemindedness:
What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ...a man clothed in soft garments? Indeed those who are gorgeously apparelled are in kings' courts. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet! (Luke 7:24-26.)
John did not care for the person of men. He didn't care what others thought of him. He only cared what God thought. He never held back. He spoke out, reprimanded, rebuked and corrected without fear or favour (Matt 3:7-9). Eventually, it cost him his life (Matt 14:3-10).
While many people came to hear his preaching, his humility still remained legendary. When some of his disciples reported to him the remarkable things his cousin Jesus was doing, he merely said:
He must increase, but I must decrease (John 3:30).
When would the great evangelists of today admit to that? Would they ever concede that it is time for their ministries to wane and to give credit to others waiting in the wings to come on stage?
It is hard to resist the inertia that carries their operations along. And what about the traditions which fuel their acceptance?
In this respect, on 15th February 2002, I was given two dreams about Reinhard's ministry:
1) I was talking with Reinhard about things to do with his preaching of the gospel. These words came out of my mouth (prophetic words inspired by God) in the dream:
A PREACHER'S SUCCESS IS NOT RATED BY THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE HE REACHES, BUT BY THE DEPTH OF REPENTANCE HE TEACHES.
John the Baptist was the most highly rated man of God, according to Jesus, because of his humility, single-mindedness and the depth of repentance he taught.
It's Hard For You To Accept...
The evangelists with the largest impact display a plethora of tainted biblical teachings. They subscribe to majority views that undermine some pure biblical truths. It is now time to restore these truths to the Church, but do people want to know...?
When a certain prophetess learned what we were promoting, she could not refute what I had written about the applicability of keeping God's Sabbaths today, but would she keep them and teach others? No. She commented euphemistically "You're a prophet before your time."
No, I'm not. It's the Church that is behind the times! Now to the second dream about Reinhard given on 15th February 2002:
2) While talking to Reinhard, I brought up the subject of keeping the Sabbath holy as God instructs us in the Bible (Ex 20:8-11; Is 56:2-8; Is 58:13,14). In answer to him, this was given to me by the Spirit:
When you make tea you make it with hot water because you want to keep it hot. You don't wait until the water is cold before pouring the water onto the tea.
So it is with the Sabbath. It is holy time ('hot') and God commands us to keep it holy (Ex 20:8-11). He tells us how to keep it holy.
That holy time comes to us as the 7th day of the week begins Friday evening. But the customs of most of the Church in this present evil world are to wait until holy time has expired and keep Sinday, oops, Sunday instead. You can't keep cold water hot, nor can you keep Sunday as holy time when it isn't.[1]
That was the dream God gave me. It is loaded against many!
What God Said In Dreams About Reinhard
Midnight Ministries is a unique ministry. I am a prophet with a commission to restore 'lost' truths to the Church. So, you shouldn't be surprised by the number of revelations God has given my wife and me via dreams. This has always been God's most direct and expressive route of revelation to prophets (Num 12:6).
In what follows, I am going to share with you most of the dreams God gave to me about Reinhard, and about his work, past and future. These dreams illustrate what is on God's heart and where Reinhard – along with the overwhelming majority of other apostles, evangelists and even prophets, with most of the Church – is missing it.
The dreams on the previous pages introduce the major truth God wants restored to His Church – God's Sabbaths and festivals.
Restoration of truth is God's greatest priority now – not 'saving souls'. God has never been in difficulties saving the lost. Many preachers have behaved as if He has been! They need to understand His plan. (Those who die in this age without hearing the gospel will have a chance to be saved in the Great White Throne Judgement period.[2])
The dreams that follow give an overview from God's perspective.
On August 18th 1997 I was given a dream about international evangelist Reinhard Bonnke. He came to visit us and was very interested to know what we were doing.
He inspected our electrical room and made some suggestions as to how we could alter the wiring to get more output from our equipment. He was very well-meaning and full of enthusiasm for the work we were doing. He was a real joy to be with, and so helpful. Comment: The dream depicts his good character and motives. Reinhard lives for God and to promote the Gospel. What the dream doesn't show are his misconceptions. They follow in other dreams: Reinhard And Our Van
29th April 2000. M. Dream of Reinhard and Our Van. Yesterday, 28th April, I was moved by the Spirit to send God's Church – Whose Authority? to Reinhard Bonnke, via his office manager here, Bernard Jones. Then, God gave me a dream to indicate the response, and the immediate future of our ministry. In this dream, Reinhard was temporarily occupying a Council house. It was a very ordinary place. Our ministry was represented as a small white van which was parked in the front garden. It was squarish, small, and white, but nothing much to look at. It was not an impressive vehicle. There were meetings being held in Reinhard's Council house. They were very ordinary, and the material was so familiar to us that they held little interest. I wasn't sure whether to stay or leave, but I showed respect by sitting down and staying. I sat at the back. The meeting was soon over. I got up and, on leaving, I passed Reinhard, who was sitting in an empty room with only his chair and a telephone. He was making a call to book his airline flight. I wanted to stop and talk with him but he was busy, so I just walked by him and left. Even if I had used sign language to him to acknowledge him and smile, that would have distracted him from his call, because he didn't know me, so I said and did nothing as I went out. I got in my small white van and drove off. Before doing so, there was a pile of paving slabs outside which I moved (supernaturally) from the place where they had been left to the middle of the lawn in front of Reinhard's Council house. They must have weighed a ton or two, but they had been moved (not by human might, but by God's). Yet, they complained that I shouldn't leave them there, the grass would die underneath. I said "That's not my problem; it's yours", and walked off. I drove off in my van. Not long down the road, I noticed that I had a flat tyre. I wasn't sure whether to go back and change it or what. While I was stationary, considering what to do, I noticed that there was a fork in the road. The road to the right went past a nice new home some guy was building opposite a large mountain. He had chosen this idyllic spot because he liked the view. The mountain opposite his house was about 5,000 feet tall, yet it was in the Chilterns! (Just a low range of hills in southern England, only a few hundred feet high. The figure of 5,000 is symbolic; it is 50 [release] x 10 [number of man or 'humanness'] x 10.) The other road was the road to the left. That was the route I chose, but it was unclear what lay down that road ahead. The dream ended there. Interpretation: Reinhard's Council house, and the meetings: This depicts the more substantial physical structure of his ministry compared with ours, but the very ordinary teaching in his ministry. The plane booking: Symbolises the large finance Reinhard has compared with ours and what that makes possible in his ministry. He can go places fast, unlike us. My small white van: Our ministry is nothing much to look at on the outside, but our teaching is practical. It is not a ministry backed by large resources, so it epitomises that lack of support, but it is going places by our efforts and with God's guidance. White = righteousness. The flat tyre: The obstacles we have to contend with in doing this work. We face many difficulties and lack of funds because true prophets are not recognised and don't have the acclaim that false prophets get. The stack of paving slabs which I moved and left on their front lawn: Part of the work of 'Elijah' is restoring the way, showing the path to walk. But it is others' responsibility to lay the pavers out and walk that route. We can't do it for them. The symbolism shows the unwillingness of personnel at CfaN to incorporate the truth about Sabbaths and holy days into their Christian walk. Their being supernaturally moved: What is to come in our ministry will make the truths about the Sabbaths so plain to CfaN that they then have the responsibility to lay those aspects of truth out, and put them into practice. The nice house some guy was building: Preoccupation with the physical structure – a big problem in most churches. The left fork in the road: The way which is unclear what lies ahead. The faith walk – but it is in freedom with God.
Reinhard Bonnke Is 'Assassinated'
19th September 2000. M. Reinhard Bonnke. Two dreams. 1) In the first dream, Reinhard was assassinated. Everyone was shocked and could hardly believe it! I saw the assassin's 'bullet' embedded in his body. It was not a bullet, but a round piece of aluminium, splayed into a rough star shape. (This indicated that the dream was not meant to be taken literally but has a figurative meaning.) I went close to Reinhard and wanted to pray for him to be resurrected, but I didn't feel it was appropriate because it would have drawn attention to me. That I didn't want. But my presence there drew the anointing of God on our ministry into the situation, and... Reinhard came back to life. Meaning: Reinhard is a good man of God, but he needs the truths contained in our ministry's teaching. These include the knowledge of the Sabbaths, holy days (festivals of God) and new moon celebrations. They are an integral part of the faith once delivered to the saints, about which he is still unaware. What God is going to do with us – by raising the dead – will spell the death of his present ministry. It will cause him to be made aware of us and of these truths of God. The result will be a new lease of spiritual life in him, and enable him to start again with fuller truth. Notice that the dream predicted this several years beforehand. 2) In the second dream of Reinhard, he was coming out of his headquarters which was depicted as a caravan. He was leaving to go to his next campaign. I waited for him to leave, and as he walked away I went up to talk with him. I encouraged him to keep up the good work and to do a 'good job' as he always does at campaigns. I felt a real affinity with him in the spirit. [This depicts my love for the man and my admiration for what he has achieved. Some people misjudge me and think that I want to find fault with Reinhard out of wrong motives. God knows that is very untrue.] Then, as the Spirit moved me deeply, I said: "There is not much time left. You know, we only have one or two years left!" He was surprised, but he believed me.
Reinhard's Dead Procession
19th January 2002. M. The Funeral Procession. Reinhard Bonnke was in this dream. The funeral procession. There were a number of people going to a funeral. All the bodies – and there were many of them, probably 20 or 30 – were loaded onto a flat-bed cart which people were pulling. The corpses were covered with reddish-brown sheets, like the colour of burnt soil. On other smaller trailers, small people were sitting (in sixes), totally covered (over their heads as well, so they couldn't see anything) with charcoal coloured blankets. Also, they were facing the other direction to the way the procession was going. Reinhard Bonnke was at the front, leading them. I couldn't help but think, "Why doesn't he show them what is wrong with their customs? Why does he just go along with them without correcting the error in their tribal traditions?!" Comment: Here God is revealing that there is a need to forcefully address the matter of wrong traditions in the Church, such as Sunday worship, Easter, Christmas, hierarchic church authority, etc., which are as pagan in their origins as tribal (demonic) traditions. It is now time to move on. The old church structures and teachings are inadequate to prepare the Bride of Christ to accept the full purity of God's teachings in His Word. 'Elijah' must do his work. He must challenge all the false prophets of Asherah and Baal and their compromised teachings promoted by Jezebel in the Church. Meaning: What the imagery of this dream portrays: Funeral. The Church with its present teachings is heading towards death, as in Sardis. It needs new revelation of truth to revive it. Many dead bodies. There are many dead Christians, who are not alive by the Holy Spirit. People sitting in sixes. Six in biblical numerics denotes the evil which men subscribe to. From God's perspective, these small groups of people need to come to terms with the evil in their Christian practice. Totally covered... they couldn't see anything. The blindness of the Church. They can't see where they are headed. They are blindly following customs that have no biblical basis. Facing the other direction to which the procession was going. Reinhard is pointing people towards God's Kingdom of righteousness which Jesus introduced. Despite the fact that he has got some things wrong in his theology, the overall thrust of all his work is towards God. But many believers are facing the other way. They don't share his aspirations. They are selfish and self-orientated, which is backward looking. Reinhard was at the front, leading them. God holds him responsible as their spiritual leader for not showing them the folly and unbiblical nature of their religious practices.
Reinhard, my dear friend, There needs to be a radical re-emphasis in your teaching to these people. You need to upgrade the content and spiritual depth of your preaching. After all, you are not preaching to the unconverted. Most of those gathered at your meetings are church folks (with a minority who are not), and they need to be fed and challenged not merely entertained. Your evangelistic meetings are opportunities for all these people to come together for a big celebration, which is wonderful. But there needs to be more. As long as spiritual instruction stays in the shallows, how can they be made ready for the final thrust of preaching that must come to prepare the Bride? Will they be ready when Jesus comes? Or from now on will they just continue to remain in the dark, heads covered, going backwards towards their own funerals, after they have attended those of others?
Further Reading: The Truth About Easter (Eas), Why Keep Christmas? (X)
People's Esteem For Reinhard
26th December 2002. M. People's Esteem For Reinhard Bonnke. Reinhard Bonnke has such a following that many will simply not accept that he has anything more to learn. In this dream I was finding it impossible to convince certain people that RB is missing certain things in the spiritual. But he is; he is not receiving in the spirit all that he should; he is not hearing from God about everything that he ought to be doing. It was a real struggle to try to make them see that he was not open to receiving certain truths from God. Meaning: People, being like sheep, tend to follow leaders such as Reinhard Bonnke, without thinking that the mentors they place such trust in could have anything much more to learn. Yet, God showed me in other dreams about Reinhard, that although he is a wonderful man of God, he is not willing to accept (at the time of writing) that there is anything wrong with church hierarchy. However, hierarchy in the Church is the biggest single abomination and factor limiting the spiritual growth and development of God's people! There are also other spiritual issues Reinhard has yet to face such as accepting worship on God's Sabbaths and festivals and getting rid of Sunday worship, Christmas and Easter. More work has yet to be done, and Reinhard has yet to move ahead in all these areas, but try convincing the sheep whom he has reached in his ministry that he is in need of so much correction, and they would show you the door!
Reinhard Finally Concedes We Are Right
28th December 2003. M. Reinhard Bonnke is told about the Sabbath. I was in a room with Reinhard and I stated that the Church was missing the mark of God's holiness in several ways and was severely adrift, not obeying God as she should. He was surprised, because he didn't think such could be true. He asked me to give an example and I replied: "The fourth commandment." I gave him a paper or publication about it. He looked at it and considered what I had written. Then, with a sort of shake of his head, he admitted that he could not fault my claim and had to concede I was right. There was a hint of reluctance on his part, but he could not deny it. Meaning: After the dead are raised, to get his attention, Reinhard will no longer be able to deny the veracity of the thesis of the Sabbath about which we have been commissioned to correct the Church, as well as to present the other truths expounded in our literature.
Reinhard Receives More Truth
9th March 2004. M. Dream of Reinhard Bonnke with me in the North. Reinhard and I were going somewhere together. He was with me in the same car as we were travelling to a remote area up north. Although I was aware of this region and the people there, it surprised me that he was not. I was showing him around. He commented that it was new to him. There was more that followed, about reaching out and taking God's truths to others, but I was not permitted to remember any of that. Meaning: What this dream symbolises is going further with God, who lives 'in the North'. Those who know of the prophecies we have received from God about manifold resurrections will understand the connection. After Jesus brings back many people who have been dead for some years, the publicity that such feats will bring will draw attention to why. It is for the purpose of promoting truths which we 'carry' for the whole Church, but who have been held in ignorance about such things up to now. These are summarised in the leaflet Wielding The Divine Axe. God emphasised that Reinhard's present teaching is unbalanced because it leans too much on the side of grace. It's not that what he preaches about grace is wrong. But there is not enough instruction given to people about the specifics of obedience which God wants to see worked out in people's lives after their receipt of His grace. A Church which merely basks in God's grace all the time is not a disciplined Church. It is not emphatic about His holiness. It has no substantial outworking of the practicalities of His righteousness. Sure, we are righteous because of Jesus' grace. He imputes His righteousness to us, as Paul told the Corinthians (2 Cor 5:21). But that does not absolve us of a duty to live out a very practical righteousness by avoiding sin, and by fulfilling every aspect of God's commands. Yet there are huge gaps in the practical outworking of God's righteousness in people, because of the failings of the teaching. God wants to give people more, MUCH MORE! That was what He emphasised to me as He concluded that dream of 9th March.
Further Reading: Wielding The Divine Axe (Ax).
Reinhard Approaches Me
24th July 2004. M. Reinhard Bonnke came to me and asked me to pray with him for 15 minutes. However, I wasn't keen to do so. There was no point, and I told him so. All he needed to do was to read the literature we have produced. The truth is in there. Meaning: There are various purposes for prayer. But when God has made truth available in writing, one doesn't need to pray for it, just get on and read it! Perhaps the request for me to pray with him was one of manipulation, albeit subtle – to try and exert his dominance in some way. In the dream God emphasised the spiritual value of MM's publications which most people want to ignore. 'Our' literature contains the truths of God laid out in sufficient detail for people to know once again what the faith once delivered to the saints was (Jude 3).
God Gives And God Takes Away
Finally, the following dream was given to Kassahun Ayele, an Ethiopian prophet:
July 26th 2005. Reinhard Bonnke. I was hearing Reinhard Bonnke preaching in a large auditorium. He seemed very old and weak. The audience wasn't impressed by his preaching. The miracle-working power was also gone from him. Meaning: Reinhard's ministry is on the wane. God is removing much of the anointing that accompanied his ministry, because it is time for God's 'new thing' on earth. What this ministry (Midnight Ministries) brings is part of that 'new thing', restoring truth which has been neglected, ignored or rejected. Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them (Is 42:9).
It's Time For Reform
Through the above dreams, God is giving an overview, not just for Reinhard's benefit, but for others as well, because many follow the man. None of us should follow a man. We should only follow a person insofar as that person follows Christ (1 Cor 11:1).
Human hierarchy is not to be upheld in spiritual areas (Matt 20:25, 26) for "you are all brethren" (Matt 23:8). God wants the demonic strongholds of ecclesiastical hierarchy demolished!
Further Reading: God's Church – Whose Authority? (GC).
Other areas that require reformation are covered in Wielding The Divine Axe, so I do not need to repeat all those here, except to say that it is imperative that believers change! God is not sloppy when it comes to His standards of holiness, and when He sends a prophet onto the scene with 'new' truth, He expects His chosen ones to accept it and reform. Those who refuse to do so will be rejected.
Either you move forward with the truths He is challenging you to accept, or you backslide. You can't decide to carry on just the way you have always gone, assuming that it doesn't matter about the error you have gone along with in your Christian practice. The Spirit moves on and leaves you behind, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
God gives His anointing for His purposes, not for ours. And just as surely, He can take it away too, if we don't comply with His requirements.
Final Confirmation
Of course, many will 'take umbrage' at my comments, and accuse me of the height of arrogance for having the 'audacity' to find fault with such a man of God as Reinhard. But, as I have said already, I have the highest regard for Reinhard, and if I could have reached him and conveyed what God has given me for him without having to resort to this exposé, I would have done so. But organisational walls of people (who are not sufficiently on God's wavelength to accept the prophets He sends), and the depth of church dogma, prevent such penetration.
The fact that I am a prophet of God is confirmed in my Dream Diary – which contains many of the hundreds of dreams God has given me and my wife – and also by the signs and wonders. The Word is confirmed by the signs which follow it (Mark 16:20). These confirmations are the raising of the dead.
As we have prophesied since 1993, God is raising the dead, and will continue to do so. He has started by resurrecting people in Nigeria through our outreach there. David Isaac Ohuoba can tell you that he realises such restoration of life to dead bodies is closely linked with his acceptance of God's truths promoted in MM literature. Testimonies are contained in the leaflets Raised From The Dead, Parts 1, 3, and 4.
In 1993 and subsequent years, we foretold – according to dreams God gave us – greater miracles of restoration to follow. People who have been dead for years are coming back to life to verify these words. I have named 8 of these people in Newsletter 32.
When this comes to pass – surely it will come – then they [you] will know that a prophet has been among them (Ezek 33:33). Malcolm B Heap
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