E. W. Kenyon is generally recognized as one of the founding fathers of the modern Word-Faith Movement. He combined elements of the metaphysical cults, such as Christian Science, New Thought theology, and Unity School of Christianity (D.R. McConnell, A Different Gospel, pp. 31-35). He influenced Kenneth Hagin the "grand-daddy of the faith teachers" who sometimes plagiarized him. William Branham (who denied the Trinity) introduced much of the latter rain beliefs within the Word-Faith Movement. They include, kingdom dominion, modern “apostles” and “prophets,” perfection of the saints, impartation of the gifts of the Spirit through the laying on of hands, and the claim that the Holy Spirit would demonstrate His power in a greater way than the world had ever seen.
D.R. McConnell, himself a Charismatic, states some of the serious errors within the Word-Faith Movement in his book, A Different Gospel:
There are many peculiar ideas and practices in the Faith theology, but what merits it the label of heresy are the following: 1) its deistic view of God, who must dance to men's attempts to manipulate the spiritual laws of the universe; 2) its demonic view of Christ, who was filled with "the Satanic nature" and must be "born again in "Hell"; 3) its Gnostic view of revelation, which demands denial of the physical senses and classifies Christians by their willingness to do so; 4) its metaphysical view of salvation, which deifies man and spiritualizes the atonement, locating it hell, rather than on the cross, thereby subverting the crucial biblical belief that it is Christ's physical death and shed blood, which alone atone for sin.
Many Word-Faith proponents also believe that a person can predestine his or her own future by what they say and how well they use alleged spiritual laws. Many claim, “We can write our own ticket with God if we decide what we want, believe that it's ours, and confess it." In the Word-Faith Movement faith is a force and words are the container that allow the person to get what they want. It is alleged that a person should never get sick and symptoms are distractions of the devil.1
The Bible warns that a time will come when men will not endure sound doctrine (2 Tim. 4:3). Unfortunately, most of the Charismatic movement and some of the Evangelical church have been influenced by Word-Faith teachings. The best prevention from adopting error is a close walk with God, the protective umbrella of a sound church and knowledge of the Bible.
It is beyond the scope of this paper to refute Word-Faith teachings. Suggested resources include:
_______________________________Christianity in Crisis by Hank Hanegraff
A Different Gospel by D. R. McConnell
The Word Faith Controversy by Robert Bowman
Eastern Regional Watch and Deception in the Church websites
Personal Freedom Outreach CD-ROM
1 Some of the information taken from Watchman Fellowship articles on Word-Faith movement
