If you are a Facebook user, one of the pages you might check out for news in the discernment world is the Exhort and Contend page. There isn’t information on who the site administrator is, so I can’t vouch 100 percent for this person’s background. But for news headlines about movements invading Christendom, it’s good to check out. Recently, E&C reported on the Bethel Music Worship School 2024” which took place from July 10-19 at Bethel in Redding, California. The event is still listed on Bethel’s website. This organization’s problematic theology includes being a leading influence and teacher of the New Apostolic Reformation as well as the Word of Faith heresies. (See: What your Pastor Needs to Know about the NAR)
Here is what the E&C page posted about the school’s event:
Part of the promo for the event reads as follows:
“Bethel Music Worship School is for Worship Leaders, Songwriters, Musicians, and Creatives who want to grow in heart and skill as they serve the local and global church…Come grow your skills while you learn what it means to be fully alive in Christ and grow in a deeper understanding of who you are in Him!”
However, as most readers already know, Bill Johnson and Bethel church promote false signs and lying wonders, oversee a school that teaches how to operate in the gifts of the Spirit, peddle dominionist NAR teachings including the belief it is the church’s mission to “bring heaven to earth.”
- So, Bethel Music Worship School and its instructors are obviously right in the mix of all this false teaching!
- One cannot separate the aberrations of Bethel and its music! Sadly, the music has been used like a modern-day siren song to lead people into Bethel’s clutches.
To underscore this concern, we see the titles of the classes as follows:
Skill Development, Heart and Calling, Leadership and Pastoring, Worship Leading, Songwriting, Creativity & the Arts, Bible Teaching & Worship Legacy, and Production.
Will the “Bible Teaching & Worship Legacy” class include some of the NAR false doctrines espoused by Bethel? One cannot say for sure, but what are the chances they’ll teach sound, Biblical doctrine? Zilch.
To add insult to injury, we see these ticket costs: Cha-ching .
REGULAR TICKET: $789
GROUP TICKET: $689
STUDENT TICKET: $599 (High School Students Ages 14-18)
And, here’s another plan they’ve devised to attract people to this worship school.
According to this link, the school is offering the following option:
“Song Review is an application-based opportunity at Bethel Music Worship School. We desire to equip song writers who have a passion for writing songs for The Church.”
“Applications that are accepted into Song Review will have an opportunity to meet for a 20 min 1:1 with one of the key writers at Bethel Music to get advice, finish a song, receive feedback on the song they submitted or a different song.”
The link states this isn’t a time to get discovered, but it’s easy to imagine the writers are hoping this chance will open a door of some sort.
Concerning instructors for the school, thirty-six, plus six special guests, are listed, but for the sake of time and space, I will just mention the following:
Brian and Jenn Johnson – Most readers of today’s post will have heard Jenn Johnson’s view of the Holy Spirit, but for anyone who hasn’t, at the 0:15 point of this video she says:
“I view the holy spirit like the genie from Aladdin and he’s blue (As she hits her blue pants she says, ‘unplanned, perfect’) and he’s funny and he’s sneaky and he’s courageous and he’s everywhere and he’s wonderful.”
Hayley Braun is an Overseer of the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry Online. She has written a book titled, “Surrendered to the Holy Spirit: A Life Saturated in the Presence of God” in which she describes this disturbing experience:
“I shook for SIX WEEKS violently under the power of God.” And, she even states, “Maybe I NEEDED to be violently shook.”
This is heartbreaking and reprehensible at the same time. This is not the work of the Holy Spirit, but of “another spirit” (2 Cor. 11:4).
Ben Armstrong – Director of Prophetic Ministries at Bethel Church, Redding, where he and his wife, Heather Armstrong, are the pastors of the Bethel Cascade campus. He was a speaker at Georgian Banov’s “Dream Interpretation and The Seer Realm 5-day Challenge” that took place from March 20-24, 2023, as discussed in this post.
Guest Speaker Natalie Grant – As discussed in this post (t.ly/2Ot1a), Grant was part of the LIFE SURGE event that took place on May 18, 2024, in Kent, WA. Here is part of her bio:
“As a Nine-time GRAMMY nominee and Five-time GMA Dove Awards Female Vocalist of the Year, Natalie Grant has become an icon in Christian & Gospel music. In addition to garnering more than 500 million streams and multiple number #1 albums and singles on the Billboard Charts, she is also a respected author and philanthropist.”
However, achieving the status of “icon” doesn’t mesh with Matt. 10:22 which states: “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.”
I pray that people would seek the truth and mark and avoid all things related to Bethel.
