mardi 27 mars 2018

A Short Criticism of The Last Reformation (TLR)

          The Last Reformation has certainly been the subject of many articles, videos and, as I do, critics. As a bit of history, this movement was founded in 2011 by a man, Torben Sondergaard, of Danish origin, convinced that we are in the end times and that the life of the Christian as described in the Gospels is still actual and alive[1]. The typical life of the disciple includes among others, miracles, healings, chasing evil spirits and demons, preaching the gospel, and the baptism of water as the starting point of salvation (what about grace and saving faith?). If, on the face of it, there is nothing to blame for the initiative or the fruits that the movement can bear, the things experienced there[2] can leave a bitter taste to some tepid Christians, some poor Christian lambdas in search of more life and some people who want to discover the meaning of their lives.

Courtesy (c) The Last Reformation


You can find a multitude of videos and testimonials, as well as very successful films, on the official website of the movement and on YouTube[3]. These videos are for generally an exemplary advocacy of the movement.  There is no detail left to chance – emotional staging and grandiose music, close-ups on the healed people (with a special attention for the miracles and the legs that grow back), testimonials before / after the contact with the disciple, guided tours in the streets camera in hand etc. I was already be skeptical about some aspects in these videos, but it is clear anyway that what we are shown are selected – and possibly embellished – pieces for the needs of the cause. Far from doubting of the authenticity and veracity of certain deliveries and healings, I am nevertheless much more doubtful when it comes to the systemization of this new "kickstart" fashion, as rendered on a large majority of the videos proposed; and I may question without hesitation the filming strategies of what is going on there. Anyone can almost readily assimilate it to a reality show which reality is “too good to be true.” Again, this is not the movement that I attack but only the use of videos.

Let's get back to the concept - or “trademark” - of “kickstart.” A “Kickstart” is the entire practice of training a ready-to-serve disciple. The "kickstarted" person is given a powerful teaching about the Gospel and receives as well the Holy Spirit, if necessary. The person is then equipped with a variety of communication methods to make him/her a good salesperson. Once these processes are acquired and repeated, the person is sent with others in small groups to the streets to heal, cast out demons and evangelize. And then, the disciple can in turn kickstart other people. First problem: what if it does not work like videos? In addition to the credibility of the movement that takes a hit, the freshly kickstarted disciple will start to doubt, to say the least. Moreover, the people approached by the disciple, in quest for healing, will have to turn back and go in the very same condition. Now, how about the testimony? One could of course ask the question of the acting Holy Spirit. Nothing resists the Holy Spirit and the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The whole thing is to really have received it and to be absolutely certain about it. On the other hand, "chasing down" the sinner in the streets in any context is not given to everyone. 

This is where I would like to go back to the concept of systematization, which is yet in opposition of what Torben says. The movement has come up with a “miracle” recipe which consists of assembling perfect little disciples with the same attributes without taking into account that everyone is different and that there can be a variety of gifts and an abundance of spiritual skills. Clearly, not everyone is called to go out in the streets, just as not everyone is forced - unfortunately - to speak in tongues at the very moment of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. For example, Torben's wife is more devoted to a "home" ministry than to serial kickstarting. The lambda kickstarter actually supports a pressure so to follow a mold at any cost, and forces himself/herself not to disappoint his/her TLR trainers. It is not surprising that, in the end, a fresh kickstarter, even very sincere, will find himself/herself in the complex situation where he is confronted with a seriously ill person (Parkinson's disease for instance) and will end up completely disarmed after a lot of unsuccessful prayers and impositions of ineffective hands.

Courtesy (c) Blossomofthesoul.org


Once their "training[4]" is over, these fresh brothers and sisters in faith are being separated from the communion in which they have lived their first experience of discipleship of Christ in order to return home, full of fervor. The second problem is that, once at home, the kickstarters are left to their own devices and have almost no one to relate to. How about fraternal communion? How to discern the good from the evil when you are a fresh believer? Where to find people who believe and practice the same lessons taught at the Last Reformation? There is of course a world map on the official website of the Last Reformation showing where the confirmed (and unconfirmed) disciples can be found[5]. This map is a very good deal for the people eager for contacts in their own area. But it also carries many risks. The map may not be actual or accurate; contacts may appear but their contact information are not valid. Another recurring problem; some will use the map for their own purposes which may have no connection to The Last Reformation or to Christianity whatsoever. Warning: impostors! And how about the isolated kickstarters who unfortunately are living in remote areas? How to maintain a regular contact, grow and strengthen together? Many recently kickstarted going back home are complaining about the lack of contact, fellowship and so on. Finding a nearby church is another risk to run when you know the condition of nowadays churches. And returning to kickstart seminars is an option that ends up being expensive and artificial. 

This note will finish with a very personal feeling about the story of close relatives. The Last Reformation uses physical healing as the "gateway" to evangelism. But people attending the kickstart seminars at the Jesus Hotel also receive healing if they ask for it. In order to make examples, allow kickstarters to practice and other people to witness, a handful of sick people with all kinds of diseases and troubles can ask to be healed, whether it is a cold, a backache, or Parkinson's disease, as Mark ch.16 says "they will lay hands on the sick, and the sick will be healed" without distinction. Three times (at least), two of my relatives received prayers with hands laid on them and speaking in tongues. Each time the result was negative. And each time the guilt gets added to the illness. Guilt for not having enough faith, not being worthy of healing, having an illness that is too serious or too advanced, not being able to satisfy the prayer of one or more disciples who have come to the bedside of the person in need. Then comes the sadness and disappointment of having to go back home still sick, with no improvement, despite all the beautiful promises of healing yet encouraging depicted in the videos. How are you supposed to go kickstart on the streets when you are still sick yourself? Wasn’t Jesus healing ALL the sick people He met? Has the Holy Spirit changed over the centuries?
And you, what do YOU think?


[2] By « there » I mean at the Jesus Hotel on Aalborg, Denmark, aka the headquarters of The Last Reformation.
[4] Kickstart weekends and 3-week PTS (Pioneer Training School). https://thelastreformation.com/events/

5 commentaires:

  1. I have prayed for countless persons, seen others pray for countless persons, and followed tlr for quite some time now. I want to say: Thank you for this post. I believe it’s spot on.

    I believe your post also paves the way for asking other question about obvious problematics of tlr, for example, the disconnect between the lingo and reality (not to mention the flirting with Oneness Pentecostal doctrine, and so on) - and I hope you will touch on that as well someday.

    The tlr lingo refers to these 'healings' as a demonstration of “the power of the Spirit who can raise dead men”, and so on, but the pattern is undeniable clear for anyone who practices faith healing like tlr: there’s sure is pain relief from physical and subjective illness SOME of the time you pray people… But just as often nothing happens and often the pain comes back after someone is declared healed.

    And this simply is an undeniable fact experience by anyone who, for a longer period of time, has prayed for people and actually followed up with the persons... but this problem is skillfully dodged by tlr who rarely touches on it when it should be a MAJOR concern reflected upon openly and honestly for many reasons.

    The straightforward question is: Is this 'hit and miss pain relief prayer' REALLY the power of the Holy Spirit who rose Jesus from the dead? Is it REALLY what you find in the Bible? (It’s not about questioning the reality of supernatural intervention, at all, but a question of being honest with your own Christian life.)

    One tactic tlr applies to dodge this is telling people they need to train their "faith muscles", as Torben Sondergaard says at his seminars (or simply choose to “have faith” they are healed) but this is straight from the Word of Faith movement (unsurprisingly as this is Torben Sondergaard denominational background). And sometimes it ends in disasters like more illness followed by some sketchy excuse of why the healing still doesn't occur or will occur later - or depressed and disillusioned Christians.

    Adding to this, major miracles rarely happen and when they do it’s hard to get them confirmed (like someone recently proved how the “real” in the sky (a video of TLRs), which supposedly was a miracle said “real men cook” and was a campaign for kitchen equipment or something like that... the last two words were cleverly never shown or disclosed in the video. Or wheelchair healings involve people who aren't really bound to or absolutely in need the wheelchair - it is a convenient transportation mode for them because of their actual illness - but still it's presented like a "wheelchair healing").

    And for these reasons - and the ones you mention in your post - there are stories of people attending “kickstart seminars”, the training schools, and so on, who end up dismissing tlr, healings or the supernatural manifestations - or Christianity altogether.

    And then when someone genuinely tries to engage in a conversation tlr about this - like you do - tlr followers start criticizing you for lacking faith, throwing bible verses at you and so on. And Torben Sondergaard dodges the inevitable growing crowd by making yet another video that only vaguely deals with the issues in questions...

    I just wanted to say - with this long comment - that you are right in honestly and genuinely addressing these questions. Unfortunately, you will probably experience some pushback from tlr followers not prepared to reflect on this matter. But I hope you will keep going. This brings clarity and strength to many people who struggle with this as well.

    It is so important that you are willing to be honest about this (sorry if I am being too frank in the following) since the quest for fame, hype, spreading the teachings and practices of Torben Sondergaard, paired with the unwillingness to be honest about the obvious shortcomings of tlr, has a price… and those paying it are honest, genuine Christians who end up disillusioned.

    RépondreSupprimer
    Réponses
    1. Hi Bent,

      Thank you for your open-hearted, sincere coomment. You have indeed pointed out several other aspects which I came across too. I can but agree with you on the general background. My words in this post are probably not the best but it is anyway a true perception of what I have experienced. In some way, this article is a desperate shout addressed to those who, like me, are alone or isolated in the same situation. I believe that many persons who approached or still are in touch with TLR are full of doubts regarding TLR, the members, the people gravitating around, themselves, the Bible, God etc... My hope is to reach some of them and send them a powerful encouragement.
      I know perfectly well that I won't attract as much sympathy and that I may lose friends or even brothers/sisters. But when you have a heavy heart, you have to let it go out one way or another.
      God bless you

      Supprimer
  2. You should go directly to God with these issues. He is the one who holds the power to heal, not TLR. Ask him why sometimes prayer doesn't work. It's different in every case, there's no one size fits all explanation. We cannot be the judge of that, only God. Keep faith not just for healing, but that he knows what he's doing when someone doesn't get healed.
    He's the one who knows where the true believers are, not the TLR map. Ask God to lead you and others into the right fellowship. Maybe use your discipleship training and hit the streets to evangelise until you find people of peace to fellowship with and disciple. This is why those who are not called to be evangelists should still learn how to reach out to people. At times, we will need to! Also, pray to see if God wants you to move in order to be better placed to serve his kingdom and be closer to other believers. You never know how God wants to solve your problem until you ask him, with a sincere heart, willing to obey.
    You can't go to an organisation expecting all the answers. TLR simply provides tools to help us obey God. In obeying God we seek his kingdom first, and to seek God's kingdom is to want him to reign and his law to be fulfilled. Before this can happen in the world, in the body of Christ, or in any system we create, it must happen in us individually. But no one is perfect yet. Only Jesus is the perfect will of God and the fulfillment of his law.
    So if TLR isn't helping you, why waste time pointing out faults in the system? It won't solve anything. Fall on your knees and ask for God's will to be done in you. Ask for the Holy Spirit to transform you. It's all you can really do to make a difference. If every believer did that, daily surrendering themselves to Jesus, then the Body of Christ would be aligned with God's will and God's kingdom would storm the world like never before. Can you see how that's much more effective than criticising what other people are doing, rightly or wrongly?
    So ensure you have repented and surrendered your life and entire being to God, and you are letting the Holy Spirit rule in your life.
    It's easy for us to get distracted and discouraged, but LOOK TO JESUS. Then you will be too busy being led into all truth to let the shortcomings of an organisation bother you.
    May God richly bless you and Jesus be glorified in your life.

    RépondreSupprimer
    Réponses
    1. Hello James,
      Thank you for your long, detailed comment. I appreciate constructive contributions like yours.
      If I am correctly reading between the lines, I can tell you are committed in The Last Reformation, one way or another. Which helpful for me, as I actually want to reach people - whether young believers or weaker Christians - inside it and make them aware of what TLR can also be. If you think that this organization offers what you need and that you are satisfied with it, then it is fine; you are taking the responsibility of your life and you will render account of it before God. My goal is not to tear people away from TLR or any organization. My goal is to inform - maybe tactlessly - of what TLR is about from what I shortly experienced.
      You are right, we should more rely on God and less on men, which is a lesson I learnt while in TLR. The truth is that we, as Christians, are also depending on each other and growing together and sharing together. We should bear good fruit together, strengthen each other. Going on the streets is definitely NOT a solution, especially when you are a sick person with difficulties to walk and speak. It is NOT a solution when you are a fresh disciple and don't have any discernement, knowledge of the Word of God, and - most important - when you don't have the Holy Spirit (which is unfortunately the case for many many people in TLR, including in the leadership). Some believe they do have the Holy Spirit dwelling into them but don't, and are actually using methods of persuasion to convince others. Going on the streets is NOT a systematic call for every disciple. God speaks to those He wants on streets specifically; it is a ministry reserved by God to certain Christians. The same way some Christians have gifts, others have ministries. Like you said, everyone is different and every case is unique.
      When it comes to healing, you are right again. Only God is healing. But He can heal through His disciples, which is the publicity that TLR advertises. If you were yourself seriously ill and heard that many people with severe diseases were healed at TLR, wouldn't you consider reaching TLR with the hope that God would make His will and heal you too? I bet you know the answer.
      I have been taking your advice for years now, as I am living with God for quite some time. The fact is that I knew God before I heard about TLR. And I have the intimate conviction that God is the same yesterday and today and forever. If we come to Him with a sincere heart, in a righteous, pious manner, He answers and heals. You can find in James 5:14-15 "Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven." Where are the elders at TLR? Aren't they included in those "elders" mentioned in this verse? Can't they heal?

      Supprimer
    2. I actually haven't wasted my time at TLR. I have learnt a lot about myself as well as about my relationship with God and with my family and fellow Christians. I have met wonderful people with a touched heart. It is painful that I must denounce what is going wrong in TLR so that it my role and responsibility before Christ to warn when the truth is being distorted. I am not saying I am perfect. Neither am I claiming that I got the full Truth. However, the Holy Spirit granted me with a capacity of discerning what is biblical to some extent, and what isn't. Jesus Himself criticized and told off when He confronted unbiblical situations.
      I think one major flaw of this organization is the lack of knowledge of Bible. If people read the Bible way more than they do, then they would be better equipped for healing, "kickstarting" whatever you call it, evangelizing, making disciples and so on.
      That being said, I really hope and have faith that you will be called out by our exchange of comments and led to a closer experience with God and His perfect Word.
      Be blessed, be filled up of the Holy Spirit and use the wisdom God gave you to discern what is biblical and what is not.

      Supprimer

Une étude génétique massive révèle que 90% des animaux de la Terre sont apparus en même temps

Barcoding (c) Pinterest   Traduction d’un article en anglais de Nicole Arce publié sur Techtimes.com le 30 mai 2018 Une nouv...