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Elevation Church 'Emotionally Manipulating' Thousands Into 'Spontaneous' Baptisms, Say Critics
christianpost.com ^ | February 20, 2014 | Leonardo Blair

Posted on 02/20/2014 5:24:30 PM PST by Gamecock

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1 posted on 02/20/2014 5:24:30 PM PST by Gamecock
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To: markomalley; DocRock; del4hope; Alex Murphy; Gamecock; Dr. Eckleburg; jude24; Ottofire; fishtank; ..
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The YBPDLN Ping List is generally published infrequently but based on the exploits of the megachurch pastors posts can spike for a season. If you would like on or off of this list please FReepmail me.

Because 18,000 People Can’t Be Wrong!

*YBPDLN=Your Best Purpose Driven Life Now
2 posted on 02/20/2014 5:26:50 PM PST by Gamecock (Grace is not opposed to human activity. It's opposed to human merit. MSH)
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To: Gamecock
Furtick Prepares His Church for News Report About His 16,000 SF "Not That Great of a House" Mansion


3 posted on 02/20/2014 5:30:19 PM PST by Gamecock (Grace is not opposed to human activity. It's opposed to human merit. MSH)
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To: Gamecock

Sounds kinda Mormon..


4 posted on 02/20/2014 5:43:22 PM PST by Tennessee Nana
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To: Gamecock
" which teaches people how to produce "spontaneous" baptisms among the repentant, is being criticized as "emotional manipulation."


5 posted on 02/20/2014 5:52:11 PM PST by GraceG
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To: Gamecock

It is recognition of emotional reality whether it is manipulation or not.

People respond more readily to something that is seen as socially appropriate. Others moving forward enables them to overcome any social embarrassment.

So, there is an emotional reality being addressed by this strategy.

If it is manipulation, then we need to address the household baptisms in the book of Acts when the leader of the household’s response led to others responding.

It became socially acceptable.

The same with the spread of Christianity when the conversion of the king led to other conversions, Ireland/Scotland/England giving examples.

Is it manipulation to respond to Christ because you have a follower’s mentality, but a friend or family member can be a leader who can enable you to overcome a social obstacle?


6 posted on 02/20/2014 5:52:52 PM PST by xzins ( Retired Army Chaplain and Proud of It! Those who truly support our troops pray for victory!)
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To: Gamecock

“The Christian Post reached out to Elevation Church”

I’m seeing that NewSpeak “reached out” all over the place now. Is that, like, “telephoned for comment”?


7 posted on 02/20/2014 5:59:34 PM PST by SharpRightTurn (White, black, and red all over--America's affirmative action, metrosexual president.)
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To: SharpRightTurn
I’m seeing that NewSpeak “reached out” all over the place now. Is that, like, “telephoned for comment”?

More likely, an email.

8 posted on 02/20/2014 6:14:46 PM PST by PAR35
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To: SharpRightTurn

They attack this Elevation church guy relentlessly on Channel 6 in Charlotte. I think he must have murdered the new anchors dog or something. They literally have 10 minute stories every week.

A couple weeks ago they were putting a noose around his neck because he is selling a new book as buy one get one free to pump his sales numbers up to get on the NYT bestseller list.

I think the elevation guy is a bit of a shyster but I don’t see him breaking any laws. If people want to keep giving him money, that’s their prerogative.


9 posted on 02/20/2014 6:16:47 PM PST by bigtoona
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To: Gamecock

mob psychology


10 posted on 02/20/2014 6:16:58 PM PST by Wuli
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To: xzins

You can’t be serious. When the head of a household led in conversion, it was genuine.

Not theatrics.


11 posted on 02/20/2014 6:20:24 PM PST by SoothingDave
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To: Gamecock
What that makes me think of is
Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Baptism is not to be trifled with.

12 posted on 02/20/2014 6:53:32 PM PST by Lee N. Field ("And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise" Gal 3:29)
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To: Gamecock

Check this out:

THIS IS WHAT @STEVENFURTICK IS TEACHING THE KIDDOS!
http://matthewpaulturner.com/2014/02/19/this-is-what-stevenfurtick-is-teaching-the-kiddos/

False teacher!


13 posted on 02/20/2014 7:02:25 PM PST by .45 Long Colt
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To: SoothingDave

I am serious. When the head of the household led, others followed? Would they have followed without the first step by the leader?

I’ve always known that Billy Graham had his counselors come down at the time of the invitation. Did that make it easier for others to get out of their seats? And, if it did, did it make ALL such statements of commitment to Christ by these people to be false?

It wasn’t a large percentage that stuck, but I think I remember reading it was over 10%.


14 posted on 02/20/2014 7:38:25 PM PST by xzins ( Retired Army Chaplain and Proud of It! Those who truly support our troops pray for victory!)
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To: .45 Long Colt

Wow, this is scary, I take back my comment above. This guy is a whacko.


15 posted on 02/20/2014 8:27:22 PM PST by bigtoona
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To: Gamecock

I’ve been studying the mind manipulation techniques used in religious settings for over twenty years. They are very common. I trained as a stage hypnotist in order to identify the process and know how to select the most suggestible individuals for demonstrations. It’s very easy to learn. I will never use the techniques and actually teach workshops on how they work and how to identify them.

I was very upset when the New Chapel Dean at Duke University who was formerly a professor of homiletics at Princeton started using these same techniques. I stopped attending his services.

The manipulation techniques are very common in black theology. Rev. Wright, Obama’s pastor is excellent at using them.

The difference between the real born again process and the fake one is the direction of surrender. In the fake process, the person surrenders externally to the suggestions of another individual. In the real process, they surrender within themselves to God.

Emotional manipulation is an excellent description of the process. The secret to trance induction is to first emotionally destabilize a person.


16 posted on 02/20/2014 8:31:35 PM PST by tired&retired
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To: tired&retired

Interesting. Have you ever heard of a deciever named Rodney Howard Browne? He induces trance states also,in the name of Jesus.2 Peter 2


17 posted on 02/20/2014 8:46:30 PM PST by pastorbillrandles (The choice isn't heaven or Hell. its heaven or the world)
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To: Gamecock

The excellent Tony Miano posted this on his facebook. Quite a terrible thing to hear. It’s the union between “marketing” and “evangelism”, and the output is probably lots and lots of false converts.


18 posted on 02/20/2014 9:17:51 PM PST by Greetings_Puny_Humans (I mostly come out at night... mostly.)
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To: pastorbillrandles

Only by the Grace of God am I able to discern the true from the false process. When the process is real I see the Light of the connection and feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Light will move with a person as they move around as though there is a spotlight above them all the time. It is unmistakable. There are also definite changes that take place in their soul.

Most spiritual leaders get their energy as parasites from the people who follow them rather than through their Divine Connection. They will never find God by raising themselves on the backs of their followers or by climbing the highest mountain. You can only find God by feeling as though you are falling and their is no bottom, at which time you turn to God in prayer and grab hold as His hand reaches out to you. That’s the real connection.


19 posted on 02/21/2014 4:43:23 AM PST by tired&retired
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To: Greetings_Puny_Humans

I just read the story about Tony Miano getting arrested in Scotland for preaching on the street and saying that homosexuality is a sin. It is interesting to observe the battles.

Most of ministerial words fall upon deaf ears as when a person is full of themselves they are not open to the answers. The upcoming economic, political and geographic turmoil will empty a lot of souls, just like the old bottle of wine must be tossed aside. Only then will people open their ears and listen for answers that will truly help them. Too bad satan is going to rush in and try to take advantage of all the fear to recruit people to surrender their souls to him in the interim, but it must happen according to God’s Plan.


20 posted on 02/21/2014 4:55:16 AM PST by tired&retired
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