Toronto Blessing, Pensacola Outpouring - Where are the renewal and revival movements leading the church?

''For the nations!'' is a prayer phrase often repeated while imparting the Toronto Blessing. It is their aim to spread the experience across the entire world and they have made a lot of progress.

Wine and intoxication are used in the Bible to represent false religion; and particularly that false religion which is to intoxicate all the nations (Jer 51:7, Isa 28:7, Rev 14:8, 17:1-6, 18:1-3).

Babylon has been a golden cup in the hand of the Lord, intoxicating all the earth. The nations have drunk of her wine; therefore the nations are going mad. Jer 51:7

Spiritual drunkenness spoken of in the Bible - but only as a judgment from God on those who reject truth, never as a way to experience Him!

And it will be as when a hungry man dreams-- and behold, he is eating; but when he awakens, his hunger is not satisfied, or as when a thirsty man dreams-- and behold, he is drinking, but when he awakens, behold, he is faint, and his thirst is not quenched... They become drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. For the Lord has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep... Because this people draw near with their words and honor Me with their lip service, but they remove their hearts far from Me... Isa 29:8-13

I am convinced that the Toronto Blessing is just as this passage describes- those involved imagine they are richly feasting on experiences which seem profound and meaningful, but the time will come when they awake and realize it was nothing but a dream; emptiness and delusion.

Our emotions are part of who we are and they have their place in worship, but they are not the Holy Spirit and cannot take the place of God's word as our source of discernment or truth.

The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it? Jer 17:9

There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. Prov 14:12

He who trusts in his own heart is a fool. Prov 28:26

The movement's leaders have put together flimsy rationalizations for these practices and the prophets have brought forth prophecies to support them, but there is nothing to support them in the Bible; they are totally outside of God's word. When concerned believers bring this to their attention, it seems their attitude can be summed up by saying they like worshipping God like this and are going to do so, regardless of what the Bible says. It is frighteningly similar to the attitude of Cain, who insisting on offering to God that which he desired to offer, rather than what God required (Gen 4).

'''Her priests have done violence to My law and have profaned My holy things; they have made no distinction between the holy and the profane, and they have not taught the difference between the unclean and the clean... And her prophets have smeared whitewash for them, seeing false visions and divining lies for them, saying, `Thus says the Lord GOD,' when the LORD has not spoken... Thus I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; their way I have brought upon their heads,' declares the Lord God.'' Eze 22:26-31 (See also 1Kings 22:18-23, Jer 29:8, Eze 13:1-16.)

Now, listen closely to a parable of Jesus- does it not have application to those who undermine the teaching of Christ's imminent, literal return, and spend their time in spiritual drunkenness, dispensing empty, self-originating ''prophecies'' instead of faithfully feeding God's people with His word?

''Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes... But if that evil slave says in his heart, `My master is not coming for a long time,' and shall begin to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and shall cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; weeping shall be there and the gnashing of teeth. Mt 24:45-51

The Way of Cain - Page 18