Apprising Ministries continues our coverage of the slowly growing fallout in the aftermath of the ER2, which detonated as a bomb within the walls of contemporary evangelicalism.

I told you previously in Voddie Baucham, Who Turned Down An ER2 Invite, Speaks Out On The Elephant In The Room that it seems pretty clear to me ER2 will prove to be a watershed event.

We may not yet even realize how big this story is going to get. It’s my opinion the division ER2’s going to cause is only barely beginning.

For example, yesterday Christian Research Network Associate Editor Erin Benziger of Do Not Be Surprised… brought to our attention Third Church Leaves Harvest Bible Fellowship, She explains that Harvest Bible Chapel, New Lenox has left HBC:

HBC New Lenox has offered the following reasons for their withdrawal from Harvest Bible Fellowship.

Harvest Bible Chapel Ministry new distinctives that we oppose-

1. A Growing Personality/Celebrity Pastor Centered Ministry

2. Pastor James MacDonald’s associations with “pastors” who hold to errant theologies

3. Lack of Discernment in the Elephant Room Discussions

Their website provides much additional detail and information, and the reader is encouraged to visit there to read further. (Online source)

The most notorious of those “pastors” would be Word Faith mogul T.D. Jakes, who in my opinion, was given a real pass. His obvious Word Faith teachings and connections were never even mentioned. Then in addition Jakes was also allowed to essentially say, “I’m a trinitarian who expresses it as a modalist.”

I bring this up because not long after ER2 James MacDonald, curator of the Elephant Room—and who heads up the Harvest Bible Chapel church planting group—went on a mini-offensive defending his, at best, poor decision to bring T.D. Jakes into ER2.

Remember, as I showed you in There’s More To The Resignation Of James MacDonald From Gospel Coalition, MacDonald chose to regisn from TGC rather then dis-invite Jakes to his ER2. MacDonald  also informed us that he’d been having private dialogue with Jakes.

The idea conveyed by James MacDonald was that T.D.Jakes was no longer a modalist. Well, I remain unconvinced that Jakes has repudiated modalism, which he would have to do publicly before he could be considered orthodox in the all important area of the nature of God.

Keep this in mind now as I remind you that on the aforementioned Chris Fabry Live (CFL) program MacDonald implied that Jakes does not accept the label of a Word Faith prosperity preacher. However, I can tell you that no WF preacher wants to be branded with that particular label.

CRN’s Erin Benziger also informed us that during MacDonald’s appearance on CFL:

Fabry brought up the oft-neglected (by MacDonald, anyway) elephant of T.D. Jakes’ prosperity gospel. In this part of the discussion, James MacDonald indicated that a private conversation had taken place (among whom, we do not know, though it is obvious that it was at least allegedly between MacDonald and Jakes).

During this conversation, says MacDonald, T.D. Jakes expressed that he would “not currently accept the designation of prosperity or Word of Faith as an accurate description of what he believes. […] As of two weeks ago [Jakes] would not accept these terms in a private conversation as an accurate description of what he believes.” MacDonald continued and stated that Jakes’ “ministry will have to bear that out.”

Indeed it will. After all, the prosperity preaching gig is quite lucrative and it is undoubtedly not abandoned lightly. (Online source)

Unfortunately, as you’ll be able to see in T.D. Jakes Prosperity Gospel; Sow A Seed, God Will Bless You, recent evidence simply doesn’t bear this out. Nor does the fact that Jakes’ upcoming “leadership” conference in May is featuring his new friend and fellow WF prosperity preacher Joel Osteen.

Take a look for yourself in T.D. Jakes May 2012 Leadership Conference To Feature Joel Osteen. In closing this, for now, I’ll present yet another piece of evidence refuting James MacDonald and any supposed private claim by T.D. Jakes, that implicitly, he’s not involved with WF prosperity preaching.

In my email today was the announcement of A God Encounter Conference put on by the “ministry” of nefarious Word Faith pastrix Paul White. Notice that it features Jakes:

(Online source)

We’re not surprised at all when Paula White makes sure we’re told again that T.D. Jakes is her spiritual father:

(Online source)

If you haven’t seen it, the clip below is from TBN’s Praise the Lord program 9/1/11. Listen for yourself as Jakes introduces WF pastrix Paula White as “this tremendous woman of God.” You’ll hear from her very own mouth as White says to Jakes and his wife:

It’s my honor… Well, first Iwant to say what an honor it is to be with the two of you. In life I believe that, um, Henry Drummond said that we are all mosaics of the men in our life—the people in our lives—and that we become a part of those we interact with.

A large part of who I am—the development, the cultivation—the staying on a track, the maturing [in my life] is, is, due to the people that I have the privilege to sit with [here]—that I have been able to call my spiritual father and mother for almost 23 years.

I adore, admire, love, and respect [you]…

It’s important to stop and think this through. Pastrix Paula White, already in rebellion against God’s Word on this point alone, has just told us that “who I am” would be “due to” T.D, Jakes being her “spiritual father.” Those aren’t my words, it’s clearly her own testistimony.

To anyone without an elephant ax to grind, the fact is, Jakes mentored White; as such, her own Word Faith prosperity preaching extends from him. I was once in the WF and have still followed its spread for years. Nowhere will you find T.D. Jakes encouraging Paula White to leave WF.

No rather, what you will hear is Jakes introducing his spiritual daughter Paula White as a tremendous woman of God whom he also calls “pastor extraordinaire”:

The other thing I’m excited about tonight and really, really, really, glad to have is this tremendous woman of God. Who I feel silly trying to introduce her because everybody in the world knows her.

If you don’t know this woman, you don’t have a TV. You don’t have a cell phone, you don’t have a computer, you haven’t been anywhere. She is a pastor extraordinaire, she is a life coach, she is an author in her own rights.

She is a woman of integrity that God is using in a very, very, unique way; not only in Church Without Walls there in Tampa, Florida, but throughout America, and around the world.

Would you welcome, Dr. Paula White. (applause) We are glad to have you. We love you. We appreciate you.

T.D. Jakes is no evangelical; the clear evidence presented here convicts him as a Word Faith prosperity preacher.

See also:

EMERGING ECUMENICAL EVANGELEPHANTS AND THE WORD FAITH MOVEMENT

T.D. JAKES PREACHING HERETICAL WORD FAITH POSITIVE CONFESSION

PASTRIX PAULA WHITE AND SCROLL-WRAPPING “RABBI” RALPH MESSER