The Call

Thousands of Christians gathered at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Nov. 1, to fast and pray in support of Proposition 8 -- which would ban same-sex marriage."The Call" received support from prominent evangelical leaders like Dr. James Dobson (who spoke at the event) and from many Southern California churches -- even though its list of organizers reads like a "Who's Who" of the apostolic-prophetic movement. Well-known "apostles" and "prophets" behind the event include founder Lou Engle, C. Peter Wagner, Che Ahn, Rick Joyner, Bill Hamon, Cindy Jacobs, Chuck Pierce, Dutch Sheets and more. See the national board and advisory board.What's the problem with this? The apostolic-prophetic movement promotes modern-day "apostles" and "prophets" who claim to wield unlimited authority and give new doctrinal revelation in addition to Scripture. It's teachings have historically been considered outside orthodox Christianity.Why would mainstream evangelicals like Dr. Dobson, Michael W. Smith (Christian musician) and Steve Douglas (president of Campus Crusade) partner with this fringe movement? (See other prominent evangelicals here.) My guess -- and hope -- is that they aren't aware of the organizers' teachings. But in their zest to support marriage and family values, their participation gives the movement greater visibility and credibility in mainstream evangelicalism.As a result, many Christians who never heard of Lou Engle or Cindy Jacobs or Dutch Sheets before are going to want to learn more about them, buy their books and attend their churches. Then they're going to start being exposed to dangerous apostolic-prophetic teachings.