Todd White- How to Read Your(self into the) Bible
/He doesn't just read the Bible-he lives it! Or he lives in it! Or maybe it's both? Oh wait, he is the Bible!
Todd says: "God did not tell you to memorize Scripture! He told you to become it!" Great. As if we didn't feel enough pressure already; now we're supposed to become the Bible. But hey, apparently Todd is doing it...
After all, he's Todd White, and he's:
The Man Who IS the Bible!!
Let's take a look at what Todd White says in this video...
He says, "My life is laced with so much scripture because I live in it. You will hear so much scripture coming out of my mouth because I live in it. My days are saturated with understanding and growing in who God says I am. I read the Bible not so I can preach a sermon;" (says the man preaching a sermon) "I don't read the Bible so I can teach you-never read your Bible so you can teach people!" (says the man teaching people; and this video is an excerpt of a teaching session that's over two hours long) "You read the Word-you get in there and you say 'God, this is who you say I am, I need to become what this book says!" (so we don't need to learn about how great Jesus is, we need to learn about how great we can become) "God places this inside of me, so that I can become a living epistle, known and read by men."
When Todd White says being "a living epistle" means that we are to "become Scripture" he is taking 2 Corinthians 3:2 and mangling the daylights out of it. Here's what that passage (with the prior verse included for context) actually says:
“Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? You yourselves are our letter (epistle) of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all.”
In this passage, Paul is not telling people to "become the Bible;" that's just insane. In those early days of the church, congregations wrote letters of recommendation for their members who were traveling to teach in other towns. These letters would validate the maturity of a teacher so that a church could trust what they had to say. Paul was saying that the believers in Corinth were like a letter of recommendation for his ministry because of their maturity.
You know what's really ironic about this? The practice of mature pastors/teachers having a letter of recommendation is actually very similar to a pastor/teacher getting a diploma from a Bible school or seminary today-the very thing that White ridicules in this video! Not only that, but the Apostle Paul was a brilliant scholar of the Scriptures-he was a very learned man! So quoting Paul in order to tell people that they should "become the Bible" (instead of studying and memorizing it) is incredibly twisted and sinful.
Todd White then yells at the group, "God did not tell you to memorize scripture! He told you to become it!" (applause... he is probably very happy that nobody questions him on this point, because it's the opposite of what the Bible actually teaches) "And if you go to God with that, grace will empower you to walk out what that truth calls you to... When I am not around people, I am in the secret place, I am with my father, I seek my father in secret so that when he rewards me in the open, he doesn't reward me with power, he rewards me with him, who is power." (so basically, this is the secret formula to getting power-without coming right out and saying so) "If I seek my father in secret, he rewards me in the open." (really yelling now for emphasis...) "I go into the bedroom, so I can know him, who created me; so that wherever I walk people know him because I LIVE LIKE HIM!!" (applause… apparently, God's Word is not good enough for anyone to know God, so Todd becomes God's Word. Gee thanks, Todd)
By the way, don't you just love it when guys like this talk all about spending time with God "in the secret place?" It's not really a secret place if you're on stage bragging about it!
Todd White continues with his teaching: "The only one that will limit you is you; God will not put the brakes on (dramatic pause) God wants you to manifest him! All creation is groaning for you to manifest who you've been created to be! All creation is waiting for the sons of man to be made manifest! All creation is waiting for you! The police is waiting for you! The shopping malls are waiting for you!" (Aren't you GREAT?!!)
Here's the truth: The Gospel removes the burdens that this false teacher is trying to heap onto our shoulders. All creation is not "waiting for the sons of man to be made manifest" in the way he explains it; that's a weird heretical teaching that started decades ago, and it keeps popping up again. It is a complete mishandling of Romans 8:19 to say that all creation is waiting for you. Here's a very helpful article and another, about the "Latter Rain" movement and the "Manifested Sons of God" false teaching that Todd White is perpetuating.
This video is supposed to be about How To Read Your Bible, but it's 100% wrong.
The Bible points us to Jesus.
Notice how Todd White NEVER actually mentioned Jesus?
Notice how many times he referred to himself? After talking all about himself, he went on to talk all about us and all the stuff we're supposed to do, and how great we are. That is not a mistake, that's his whole intention. Watch this other (emotionally manipulative) video from Todd White to see how much he emphasizes the greatness of you and all the great things you can do. This guy would make a great recruiter for the Army.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
— Matthew 11:29-30
When Todd is warm and friendly towards strangers he's a great example to all Christians. But the truth is, we do not have to "muster up" miracles in order to "win people over;" and we certainly don't have to "become the Bible!" Jesus already did the miracles! If God wants to do some more miracles, that's up to Him; but when Todd White suggests that we all have to do miracles and "become the Bible," he's saying that Jesus and His Word are not enough, and he's very wrong. God is the one drawing people to Himself, and faith is a gift from God; we don't cause it to occur in others by our "supernatural" activity. The supernatural activity of Jesus Christ coming to earth in human form and dying on the cross for our sins, and then demonstrating His power over death itself by rising from the dead is ENOUGH! Do we really need to add a leg-lengthening routine in order to improve on the finished work of Christ? To make the Gospel "better??"
“He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”
“Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
“Jesus said to him (Thomas), Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.”
— John 20: 29-31
“And yet some people actually imagine that the revelation in God’s Word is not enough to meet our needs. They think that God from time to time carries on an actual conversation with them, chatting with them, satisfying their doubts, testifying to His love for them, promising them support and blessings. As a result, their emotions soar; they are full of bubbling joy that is mixed with self-confidence and a high opinion of themselves. The foundation for these feelings, however, does not lie within the Bible itself, but instead rests on the sudden creations of their imaginations. These people are clearly deluded. God’s Word is for all of us and each of us; He does not need to give particular messages to particular people.”
Here's Todd White and his spiritual mentor, Prosperity Preacher Kenneth Copeland:
Check out this giant compilation of articles about Todd White:
The Todd White Cornucopia of False Teaching
Todd White is part of the New Apostolic Reformation: The New Apostolic Reformation Cornucopia of False Doctrine, Dominionism, Charismania and Deception
For those who think it's mean, judgmental and un-loving to criticize Todd White (or any other popular teacher) here's something just for you: Shocking Stuff You're Not Supposed to Know.
If you're having a knee-jerk reaction to try and defend Todd White, check out: Confirmation Bias: Why You Are Protecting Your False Beliefs.
Finally, here's an article that will help you be more discerning and a lot less gullible: Defusing Demonic Dirty Bombs.
As Todd White gets more and more famous, he is able to get bigger and better speaking gigs. Here's Todd right next to a couple of the world's worst false teachers: Kenneth Copeland and Benny Hinn:
This article by Steven Kozar; check out his new and improved: The Messed Up Church website!