Apostolic doctrine, therefore, is not the new and novel teachings of someone who calls himself/herself an apostle. Apostolic doctrine is the message of Jesus, His redemptive work, and His call to selfless discipleship that is found in the 27 books of the New Testament.

The “apostles’ doctrine” of Acts 2:42 is a reference to the original eyewitness accounts of Jesus by the 12 apostles. This “doctrine” consisted of their first-hand reports of His life, teachings, death, and resurrection. This was, at first, an oral message spread by the Twelve and those that heard them. It was later written down in what we know as the four gospels. Paul’s writings were later added to this original testimony and, with the addition of James, Jude, Hebrews, 1 & 2 Peter , 1, 2, & 3 John , and Revelation there came into existence what we know as the New Testament canon.

Canon, of course, refers to a measure or rule. As such, the twenty-seven books of the New Testament became the standard or rule against which all other teachings and revelations must be measured. Why? Because the New Testament canon contains the original, apostolic testimony and teaching. Hans Kung, the well-known Roman Catholic theologian and reformer, says,

The preaching of the apostles, as it has come down to us in the writings of the New Testament, is the original, fundamental testimony of Jesus Christ, valid for all time; being unique, it cannot be replaced or made void by any later testimony. Later generations of the Church are dependent on the words, witness and ministry of the first “apostolic” generation. The apostles are and remain the original witnesses, their testimony is the original testimony and their mission the original mission.

The Significance of the Twelve & Paul

Image: James Tissot

Although there are other apostles in the New Testament, it is obvious that the Twelve chosen by Jesus are a select company and occupy a unique place in God’s purposes for the Church. This is borne out by the fact that throughout Scripture they are referred to as “the Twelve”, a set number neither to be added to nor subtracted from (See, for example, Matt. 10:2; 26:14; Mark 9:35; Luke 18:31; Acts 6:2; 1Cor. 15:5). Their uniqueness is clarified by the fact that Jesus tells them that, in the age to come, they will sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matt. 19:28).

Every Christian and every Christian leader must practice discernment because there are real deceptions and dangers to our faith. Historian and Bible teacher Eddie Hyatt brings a clear warning in this article originally titled “Angels of Light: Is the Spirit of Mormonism Being Revisited in the Contemporary Charismatic-Revival-Prophetic Movement?”

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 Jn. 4:1).

Someone has rightly said, “Those who do not learn from the mistakes of the past are bound to repeat them”. I see the distinct possibility of this happening with the contemporary charismatic-revival-prophetic movement unless serious steps are taken to implement Biblical injunctions such as 1 Jn. 4:1 above. For example, did you know that the early Mormons experienced speaking in tongues, prophecy, falling under the power, visions, and angelic visitations—that this heretical cult emerged out of one of thee most powerful revivals in Christian history, the Second Great Awakening? In fact, an examination of their beginnings reveals many similarities with the present day charismatic-revival-prophetic movement. Their example is a wake-up call for all who embrace the supernatural ministry of the Holy Spirit to be diligent in carrying out the Biblical commands to test the spirits and to judge prophetic and supernatural manifestations. After all, Satan does not come in a red suit with horns and a pitchfork, he comes as an “angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14).

Peter Cartwright’s Autobiography

Peter Cartwright was a circuit-riding Methodist preacher and one of the most famous revivalists of the Second Great Awakening. His autobiography offers intriguing reading and provides valuable information concerning the religious landscape in early and mid-nineteenth century America. His autobiography also offers a personal glimpse into the origins of Mormonism and how it began in the milieu of religious revivalism. His account provides an historical example of the dangers of naively embracing everything sensational and the importance of obeying the Biblical injunction to test the spirits and to judge prophetic and spiritual manifestations.

The Mormons Speak in Tongues

Cartwright tells about a particular campmeeting he was conducting in which a certain group remained behind at the end of one of the services, singing, and praising God. Eventually one of the women began to “shout” and then “swooned away” and fell into the arms of her husband and lay as if in a trance. Her husband announced that she was in a trance and that when she came out of it she would speak in an unknown tongue and he would interpret. This was obviously not something new for them.

Image: Bruno Kelzer

By this time a large crowd had gathered and Cartwright decided to break up their meeting, as he believed they were merely drawing attention to themselves. As he walked into the midst of the group the woman in the trance suddenly opened her eyes, laid her hand on his arm, and said, “Dear friend, I have a message directly from God to you.” Cartwright, who was a gruff sort of personality, said, “I stopped her short and said, ‘I will have none of your message.'” The woman’s husband, who was to interpret the message, angrily replied, “Sir this is my wife, and I will defend her at the risk of my life.” Cartwright retorted, “Sir, this is my campmeeting, and I will maintain the good order of it as the risk of my life.” After a further exchange of emotionally charged words, the group finally left. Cartwright identified them as Mormons, followers of a “Joe Smith” with whom he had had several conversations.

Having recently read and reviewed Angels of Light by Eddie Hyatt, Pastor Larry Russi asks questions to clarify and go even more in-depth.

Larry Russi: Thank you Dr. Hyatt for agreeing to do this interview. I was greatly blessed by your book.

Eddie L. Hyatt, Angels of Light: False Prophets and Deceiving Spirits at Work Today in the Church and the World (Hyatt Press, 2018), 120 pages, ISBN 9781888435252.
Read the review by Larry Russi.

Larry Russi: What were the main factors that prompted you to write Angels of Light?

Eddie Hyatt: Having been in Pentecostal/charismatic ministry for almost 50 years and having done my doctoral dissertation on spiritual awakenings in church history, I was aware of the good in Holy Spirit movements but also the dangers and pitfalls. In contemporary prophetic and revival movements I could see many of the same trends that had led to entire movements falling into heresy and destructive practices. This is what inspired me to write Angels of Light. I wrote out of a deep concern that we learn from the lessons of history and not repeat the same mistakes.

Larry Russi: What has been the response to this work?

Eddie Hyatt: The volume of response has been moderate, but the quality of response has been very enthusiastic.

To cite one example: Before he passed away, T.L. Osborn read one of the chapters in the book, which was published as an article at the time. He strongly commended what I had written and went on to say how shocked and embarrassed he was at some of the things going on in the modern charismatic movement—particularly in people chasing signs and miracles, rather than preaching the gospel and letting the signs follow the preaching the word.

Larry Russi: As for the future of Pentecostal/charismatic churches, do you see this deception continuing and intensifying or do believe that we will return to our Biblical roots.

Eddie Hyatt: I believe the Bible teaches a mixture in the last days.

Religious liberty was important to those that risked everything to break away from Britain to form the USA. Did they anticipate a secular nation? Christian historian Eddie L. Hyatt is passionate about making known the true story of America’s founding.

America was founded on Christian principles and values. It was not founded as a theocracy. Theocratic rulers claim a Divine right to rule over their subjects. America’s founders held no such grandiose view of themselves or any human being, and they had rejected the theocratic claims of popes, priests, and monarchs. They had not, however, rejected Christianity.

America’s Founders, for the most part, identified with the mindset of those they called “dissenting Protestants.” The dissenting Protestant insisted that civil government should have no role in the church nor in matters of faith and conscience. Freedom from government tyranny in matters of faith was an ideal that pervaded the thinking of America’s Founders.

However, for there to be liberty without license, the Founders knew that the populace would have to be governed from within by virtuous values. That is why they all agreed that only Christianity provided the moral values and intellectual underpinnings for a stable and prosperous nation.

Here are 5 pillars on which the American Republic was founded.

Pillar #1

Faith in God as the Creator and Moral Governor of the Universe.

The Founders considered belief in the God of the Bible as being essential for good citizenship. Unless the citizens would have a moral sense of obligation to their Creator, they would tend to live selfish, unrestrained lives, harmful to society.

This was expressed by James Madison when he wrote, “Before any man can be considered as a member of civil society, he must be considered as a subject of the Governor of the Universe.” Madison also wrote,

The belief in a God All Powerful wise and good, is so essential to the moral order of the world and to the happiness of man, that arguments which enforce it cannot be drawn from too many sources nor adapted with too much solicitude to the different characters and capacities impressed with it (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 131).

The Founders functioned on the assumption of a Divine Creator to whom all creatures owe their love, honor, and respect, and this is made clear by the many proclamations for days of prayer, repentance and thanksgiving issued by the Congress and presidents. During the Revolutionary War no less than 15 such calls for days of prayer were issued by the Continental Congress.

After being sworn in as president, George Washington issued a proclamation designating November 26, 1789 as a Day of Thanksgiving. The proclamation assumes the obligation of all citizens to acknowledge God’s existence and to show honor to Him. It opened with the following statement.

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God ….

The Declaration of Independence begins by acknowledging the Creator and recognizing that all human rights come from Him. That is the basis on which John Dickinson, chairman of the committee for the Declaration of Independence, declared in 1776, “Our liberties do not come from charters for these are only the declarations of preexisting rights. They do not depend on parchment or seals; but come from the King of Kings and the Lord of all the earth.”

Indeed, although there was tolerance for those of various faiths, there was a hostility toward atheism in early America. This was born out when a judge in the court of Chester County in the state of New York, threw out the testimony of a witness when the witness admitted he did not believe in the existence of God.

Not gifts, not healing, not revival—seek the LORD.

Thus says the Lord to the house of Israel, seek Me and live. But do not seek Bethel, nor enter Gilgal, nor cross over to Beersheba. Seek the Lord, and Live (Amos 5:4-6a).

Definition: To “seek the Lord” means that we move from an approach to God that is centered in ourselves with our own self-interests at the forefront, to an approach that is centered in Him with His interests at the forefront of the relationship. We must no longer relate to God on the basis of what He can do for us, but on the basis of how we can know Him and be more fully conformed to His will and purpose.

Here some practical suggestions for making the transition. Understand that I am not suggesting that we should never ask God for anything. But as a matter of principal, we must change our attitude from one that is ego-centered in me and my needs and desires to one that is centered in the Lord, His kingdom, and His will.

Don’t Seek Gifts, Seek the Giver of Gifts

In the early 1950s a certain pastor attended a William Branham crusade and was awed by the miraculous gifts that he saw demonstrated through Brother Branham. This pastor returned home and announced to his wife and congregation that he was shutting himself away in his office to fast and pray until God gave him a ministry like Brother Branham. He fasted for 84 days and died without hearing anything from God. What was the problem? He was not seeking the Lord. His fasting and praying were self-serving. He was seeking a ministry that he thought would give him personal status and prestige. If the modern charismatic movement is to move to the next level of God’s will and purpose, we must move away from an approach to God that is self-serving to one that gives priority to knowing and serving Him.

The LORD ALMIGHTY sent me this message: Say to all your people and your priests, “During those seventy years of exile, when you fasted and mourned in the summer and at the festival in early autumn, was it really for Me that you were fasting? And even now in your holy festivals, you don’t think about Me but only of pleasing yourselves (Zech. 7:4-6).

Don’t Seek Healing, Seek the Healer

When I was 3 weeks old my 7-year-old brother, nicknamed Pete, was run over by a large farming tractor that also pulled the large discs behind it over him. Unconscious and with blood bubbling from his eyes, nose, mouth and ears, my parents rushed him to the nearest hospital where he was examined by three physicians. They all agreed in their assessment that he would not live more than 10 minutes since he had, at least, a broken rib that had punctured a lung.

What I Don’t Like About the Charismatic Movement

1. I don’t like the super-spirituality that is constantly giving rise to new and bizarre teachings and experiences. In this super-spiritual milieu, individuals are constantly seeking some new experience or some new revelation or giving themselves and others impressive sounding titles. All the while, the simplicity and power of Jesus and the Gospel are neglected. This is exactly what was happening in the city of Colosse when Paul wrote his letter to the church in that city (see my article “The Colossian Heresy Revisited“). I think the inhabitants of heaven must weep when they observe the self-centered, religious antics in our movement today.
2. I don’t like the celebrity mentality that is promoted by so many, nor the entertainment culture that has captured so much of the movement. This culture has more in common with Hollywood than with the New Testament. In it, worship leaders have become entertainers, preachers have become performers, and church has become big business. At one time, commitment to Christ involved giving up personal fame and fortune. Today, people come to the church to seek their personal fame and fortune. Oh, for a mighty heaven-sent revival that will sweep through the churches of North America.
3. I don’t like the money-driven antics of preachers who promise blessings and gifts from God to those who will send them an offering. These are the new charismatic indulgences. Scripture is twisted and integrity is compromised as the gifts of God, purchased by the blood of Christ, are offered for a price. These are those of whom Jesus spoke in Matt. 23:14, Woe to scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. What a terrible reckoning these will have to give when they stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

What I Like About the Charismatic Movement

1. I love the thousands of Spirit-filled believers I have met in many parts of the world, including North America, who are sold out to Jesus Christ and the advancement of His cause.
2. I love the world-wide outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Wherever He is allowed to work in unscripted, spontaneous ways there is a melting and breaking, often resulting in tears and sometimes in laughter. These times also include healings, miracles, and conversions. These times cannot be duplicated and mass marketed, although that is attempted in our business approach to Christianity. These “times of refreshing” come as we are totally dependent on Him and humble in His presence.
3. I love the empowering of the Holy Spirit in preaching, teaching, and in the manifestations of the gifts of the Spirit. The only means Jesus gave for fulfilling the Great Commission was for His people to be filled with and empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit once said to me, “Life in the Spirit is a life without limitations.” Hallelujah! Keep coming Holy Spirit!

This article, used with permission, appeared on the Pneuma Foundation website on February 7, 2008. The Pneuma Foundation is the parent organization of PneumaReview.com.

There are some that would say private faith has no place in the public sphere. Historian Eddie L. Hyatt shows this was not what America’s Founders believed, and urges all Americans to recapture their vision that linked faith and freedom together.

In a meeting with Delaware Indian chiefs in 1779, George Washington commended them for their request that their youth be trained in American schools. He assured the chiefs that America would look upon them “as their own children” and then said,

You do well to wish to learn our arts and our ways of life and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are. Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention.

Washington’s freedom in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with this Indian tribe was normal for the founding generation for such freedom was rooted in the original American vision. This original vision was brought here by the Jamestown settlers of Virginia, the Pilgrims and Puritans of New England, the Baptists of Rhode Island, the Quakers of Pennsylvania and other Christian reform groups who were drawn to this land with a proactive vision burning in their hearts.

The Original American Vision

Indeed, the original American vision was for a land of individual liberty and a place from which the Gospel would be spread to the ends of the earth. America’s Founders were not shy in expressing this vision for they believed, that in this world, real freedom could only be realized in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

John Adams, circa 1815, portrait by Gilbert Stuart.
Image: Wikimedia Commons

This link between freedom and the Gospel was expressed by America’s second president, John Adams, just two weeks before the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. In a letter to his cousin, Zabdiel, a minister of the Gospel, Adams wrote, “Statesmen, my dear sir, may plan and speculate for Liberty, but it is Religion [Christianity] and Morality alone, which can establish the Principles, upon which Freedom can securely stand” (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 174).

Adams was not expressing anything new or novel for the idea of freedom rooted in the Gospel of Christ was a common American belief brought here by the very first European immigrants to this land. Consider the following quotes.

“From these very shores the Gospel shall go forth, not only to this New World, but to all the world.”
Rev. Robert Hunt, April 29, 1607, as he and the Jamestown settlers, who had just landed at Cape Henry, gathered in prayer around a large oak cross they had brought from England.

This is a three part series that Dr. Eddie Hyatt presented at a “Revive America” weekend at Christian Life Assembly of God in Picayune, Mississippi. In this series, he documents the radical Christian character of the first immigrants to this land and shows how the nation was formed out of prayer and a great Spiritual awakening.

For the rest of the series:

• Reclaiming America’s Godly Christian Heritage (Part 1): “It Began with a Vision“
• Reclaiming America’s Godly Christian Heritage (Part 2) “A Nation Birthed Out of Great Spiritual Awakening“

This is a three part series that Dr. Eddie Hyatt presented at a “Revive America” weekend at Christian Life Assembly of God in Picayune, Mississippi. In this series, he documents the radical Christian character of the first immigrants to this land and shows how the nation was formed out of prayer and a great Spiritual awakening.

For the rest of the series:

• Reclaiming America’s Godly Christian Heritage (Part 1): “It Began with a Vision“
• Reclaiming America’s Godly Christian Heritage (Part 3): “A Nation Birthed in Prayer“

This is a three part series that Dr. Eddie Hyatt presented at a “Revive America” weekend at Christian Life Assembly of God in Picayune, Mississippi. In this series, he documents the radical Christian character of the first immigrants to this land and shows how the nation was formed out of prayer and a great Spiritual awakening.

For the rest of the series:

• Reclaiming America’s Godly Christian Heritage (Part 2) “A Nation Birthed Out of Great Spiritual Awakening“
• Reclaiming America’s Godly Christian Heritage (Part 3) “A Nation Birthed in Prayer“