Corona-Benefits 1: Crooks Exposed

As a gale checks the quality of the roofer’s work and a recession the businessman’s acumen, so a pandemic offers its own unique brand of quality control. Much of a once evangelical Christianity has become obsessed by healing miracles and spiritual powers. Called the Word of Faith movement, its leaders have been exposed like a skirted woman on a windy day. Bill Johnson, Sid Roth, Kenneth Copeland and a whole host of other off-the-peg charlatans, false teachers, showmen and deceivers have each been found wanting. They told us that suffering was a curse for disobedience. That illness was a spiritual disease that the truly anointed saint could never experience. That the Christian has the supernatural authority to command illness to flee.

Redding’s Bethel Church, a vomit-spewn gutter of falsehood if e’er there was one, has closed all its healing events because of the virus. Meanwhile, Kenneth Copeland’s mind continues to be awhirl with his own importance. He dramatically commanded the virus to leave America, and it will be gone ‘much sooner than we think’, having ‘executed judgement upon it’. In the readily accessible video, he’s surrounded on the stage by four acolytes like dung flies hovering over a freshly laid steamer in a farmer’s field. They earnestly repeat his incantations like pantomime witches. 

Paul taught that imposters and swindlers will be uncovered on the great day of Christ’s appearing:

Each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. (1 Corinthians 3:13)

I would propose that some, especially Word of Faith teachers, don’t have to wait that long:

Some men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment, but those of some men follow later. (1 Timothy 5:24)

An amusing remix of Copeland‘s executing judgement can be seen below: