Freedom Encounters review: False teachers

Freedom Encounters (FE) is a deliverance ministry that has recently gained
Considerable popularity. A deliverance ministry is one that is focused on teaching
And equipping the believer to live a life of freedom that is rooted in the truths of
The gospel. Freedom encounters concerns itself greatly with angelology,
Demonology, and the spiritual realm. While not everything that FE teaches is in
Error, there are a handful of major concerns that have become apparent upon a
Thorough review of the FE Victory Over Spiritual Conflict (VOSC) curriculum.
This document intends to present to the reader a survey of the material that has
Informed the position taken by One Love Ministries, and is written by individuals
Who have watched the entirety of the FE video curriculum, as well as those who
Have observed firsthand an initial and "After Care" appointment with FE.
B. Errors to be addressed:
I. Foundation of Personal Revelation
II. Teaching a Different Gospel
III. Shifting the Responsibility for Sin off of the Individual
IV. Frequent Misuse of Scripture
V. Wrong Understanding of "Demonization"
I. Foundation of Personal Revelation
A. One area of concern is the authority FE grants to personal revelation. FE is
Willing to present extra-biblical ideas as doctrine if those ideas are obtained
Through personal revelation by the ministry's leaders. Indeed, FE claims to be a
Ministry "centered upon the regular and expanding revelation of Holy Spirit,"
("Personal Ministry" page on FE website) and asserts that "everything is not
Written in the logos [the Word] between the covers of the Bible," so "we must also
Be open to a rhema [utterance] word to increase our understanding" (FAQ page on
FE website). Some examples of such teaching are provided; this list is not
Exhaustive.
1. FE claims that "the Lord told us 'the Trinity'" is biblical proof of alters
(video 29,1:00-1:25). No biblical support is provided.
2. FE claims that "the Lord never allowed [FE] to include a child over the
Age of twelve when [they] prayed [for deliverance] for the parents," until
October 1993. Then, "[God] agreed to pray for a thirteen year old" (video
32,18:40-19:22). This is another instance of new revelation (the
Boundaries of deliverance prayers) being given exclusively to FE and
Being taught as truth.
3. FE claims that the Lord Jesus went down to hell for 3 days and endured all
Kinds of evil against Himself. "He was at their mercy for 3 days and every
Unspeakable thing was done to Him" (video 25,17:35). Not only is there
No biblical support for this, but this is in direct contradiction to Christ's
Finished work on the cross and suggests that His suffering was insufficient
And needed to continue.
II. Teaching a Different Gospel
A. An additional concerning teaching from FE is the belief that there can be
Salvation for deceased ancestors by way of intercessory prayer. According to FE,
This special prayer gives those who reside in Hades (allegedly a holding place for
The unsaved) and have never heard about Christ an opportunity to have the gospel
Preached to them. They may then respond to the gospel with faith and be ushered
Into the presence of God. This prayer is a salvation that takes place after a
Faithless death and comes into conflict with Luke 16:19-31, where a rich man dies
And goes to Hades. The rich man requests relief from Lazarus, who is with
Abraham, but Abraham denies his request, stating " between us and you there is a
Great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not
Be able, and that none may cross over from there to us" (16:26). This passage
Shows us that it is impossible to be transferred from Hades to the presence of God,
And Scripture is clear that those who die without faith in Christ die in their sin
(John 8:24, Heb. 9:27). FE's teaching attempts to attribute an extended degree of
Grace to God, and while He is perfectly gracious, the teaching seeks to fashion
God's grace according to human reason. To teach that people may be saved after
Death is foreign to the true gospel and deceptive to the client who prays this
Prayer (Gal. 1:8-9).
III. Shifting the Responsibility of Sin off of the Individual
A. This discussion is concerned with the teachings from video 18,11:00-14:57.
B. FE has an alarming tendency to shift the responsibility of personal sin away from
The individual and instead accredit those sins to the work of Satan and/or demons.
In video 18, FE teaches that if a believer has tried prayer, Bible reading,
Discipleship, Christian books, and still struggles with sin, "if you have an
Accentuated problem, that is a sign of [demonization]" (14:49). While it is
Certainly enticing to believe that any long-term or ongoing struggle with sin may
Simply be the work of a demon (and solvable by FE's deliverance program),
Scripture makes it clear that even as believers, it is our own sinful tendencies (the
"old man," in Eph. 4:17-32; see also James 1:14) that lead us away from the Lord.
It is our responsibility to "[put] to death the deeds of the flesh" (Rom. 8:13),
Including "the sin which so easily entangles us" (Heb. 12:1). It is incredibly
Dangerous to suggest that when it comes to fighting persistent sin, the divinely
Provided weapons and strategies for godly living are insufficient. These include
Prayer (Phil. 4:6-7,1 Thess. 5:17), reading and studying the Word (Josh. 1:8, Ps.
1:1-3, Ps. 119:11,2 Tim. 3:16-17), church attendance and fellowship (Heb.
10:23-25,1 Pet. 4:8-10), discipleship (Titus 2:1-8), finding our identity in Christ
(Rom. 8:1, Eph. 1:3,1:7-8,2:1-10), and other Christian disciplines (the listed
Scripture references are far from exhaustive). It is harmful for the believer to
Begin to look for victory over sin outside of the all-sufficient weapons God has
Provided for us through salvation, yet by hinting at some insufficiency of these
Weapons, FE subtly presents itself as the key that unlocks the fullness of the
Christian life.
IV. Frequent Misuse of Scripture
A. FE practices a loose, sometimes careless handling of Scripture. While not always
A matter of heresy, there is a danger in consistently misreading, misinterpreting,
And misapplying the Word of God, especially as a teacher or ministry leader. Such
A habit creates opportunities for unbiblical claims. A handful of examples are
Provided. This list is not exhaustive.
1. FE cites Luke 12:52-53, teaching that division is a tactic used by Satan's
Forces. Verse 51 clearly teaches that it is Jesus Himself who says He has
Come to bring division (video 30,12:51).
2. FE cites Isaiah 45:11 and teaches that we are told to command God, and if
We command Him according to His will, "He obeys our commands."
Some translations do not use "command" in this verse. Even so, in Isaiah
45:11, God sarcastically asks if a mere man will command Him, for God is
The One who "made the earth and created man upon it" - Isa. 45:11 (video
31,13:00). FE's teaching misses the point of the passage entirely.
3. FE cites John 11:44 in order to teach that we are born with "grave clothes
That the enemy has put on us from birth." This verse simply refers to the
Cloth Lazarus had been wrapped with, for he was dead. There are no
Spiritual implications, but rather a historical recounting of ordinary details
(video 27,5:22).
4. FE refers to 1 John 4 and teaches that "Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth Who
Came in the Flesh" is the full, proper name of Jesus. While 1 John 4:1-3 is
About testing spirits to see if they are from God, the teaching that the
Above is the full name of Jesus is absent from this passage. FE teaches that
This name need not be used in conversation or prayer, but only in spiritual
Warfare. Further, FE says that those who would cast out demons only in
The name of Jesus are "lazy." See Acts 16:18, where the apostle Paul casts
Out a spirit of divination "in the name of Jesus Christ," and the spirit obeys
(video 31,16:50 -17:47). In an interview with one of the founders of FE,
The founder states that the name "Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth Who
Came in the Flesh" was revealed to them by God (see point I above) as the
One name above all names that demons must obey during spiritual warfare.
Scripture clearly states in Philippians 2:9-11, "Therefore God has highly
Exalted him and bestowed upon him the name that is above every name, so
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth,
And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father." As in 1 John 4, the name "Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth Who
Came in the Flesh" is totally absent from this passage.
5. FE cites Exodus 20:5,34:7, and Deuteronomy 5:9 in order to teach the
Generational Curse Principle. "Part of the goal of [FE] is to eliminate the
Generational curse principle" ("Preparation Overview," p.1). These verses
Reveal an important characteristic of God. While He is compassionate and
Loving (Deut. 5:10), He will not leave the guilty unpunished. This
Principle is vital to understanding the gospel and Christ's atoning work,
Yet FE cites these passages as something that must be done away with.
6. FE points to Exodus 25 (presumably 25:10-22) in order to teach about a
Diamond-shaped "hedge of protection" that can be placed around us and
"filled with the blood of Jesus." This diamond shape is allegedly derived
From the position of the cherubim's wings. Exodus 25:10-22 contains
God's instructions to Moses concerning the building of the Ark of the
Covenant. It is a stretch to infer a diamond shape from these verses, and
Even more so to use this text as the basis for a spiritual hedge of protection
That we can place around ourselves and fill with the blood of Jesus (video
31,21:24).
V. Wrong Understanding of "Demonization"
A. FE teaches that born-again, Spirit-filled Christians can have demons who dwell in
And occupy the body, and even control the person. Moreover, they teach that each
Born-again believer continues to be indwelt with and under the control of these
Demons which enter a person at conception. Allegedly, these demons are inherited
Through one's bloodline and reside in the individual until the demons are cast out
And the believer is delivered. The following are a few examples of this teaching,
But by no means an exhaustive list.
1. "I believe without a shadow of a doubt that Christians can have demons
Indwelling them and tormenting them in various areas of their lives. We
Believe this both from our study of Scripture and from our experiences
With hundreds of counselees…" - (Demonization chapter - Section 3, pg
25 of VOSC booklet. Quoted from "The Deliverance Ministry" by George
Birch)
2. "The Greek term for "having a demon" is daimonizomai, or "one who is
Demonized." In its strictest sense, the word daimonizomai, means that one
Or more demons can inhabit the person's flesh, not the spirit…. A person
Who does not believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God is
Classified as demon possessed. That's why we use the correct biblical
Term, "demonized," when we find demons inhabiting the body of a
Believer in the Lord Jesus Christ." - FAQ page
3. "The issue of how demons enter a person is rather extensive. We have
Found that most come in at conception through the bloodline, because
Parents were unaware there were demons to be removed." - FAQ page
B. FE teaches that the word daimonizomai, which they translate as "demonized"
Should apply to believers in Scripture. However, when we survey Scripture, we
See this word is applied to unbelievers or used in the context of perceived false
Teachers.
The Scriptures below are clear about the freedom that a believer has in Jesus
Christ from the indwelling, controlling occupation of the enemy.
1 John 4:4 - He who is in you is greater than he who is in the WORLD.
Colossians 1:13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and
Transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have
Redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
1 Cor. 6 and 2 Cor. 6 - Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit
Matthew 12:43 "Now when the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes
Through waterless places seeking rest, and does not find it. 44 "Then it
Says, 'I will return to my house from which I came'; and when it comes, it
Finds it unoccupied, swept, and put in order. 45 "Then it goes and takes
Along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in
And live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.
That is the way it will also be with this evil generation."
A) Ask these questions of this verse:
- Why is the demon able to live in this person?
- What (who) is it that would prevent the spirit from returning?
H. Believers can be afflicted, deceived, tempted, harassed, and troubled by demons.
They cannot be indwelt, occupied, controlled, or enslaved by a demon. FE is
Wrong in both their definition of the word and their application of it.