Prophet Rick Joyner predicts a 'military takeover'

Last week, Rick Joyner of Morningstar Ministries--an influential U.S. leader in the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) movement--said America is destined for tyranny and its only hope is for the military to take over the government and restore the nation to its religious foundations.

Joyner--who is viewed as both an apostle and a prophet in the NAR movement--made these comments during the Sept. 30, 2013, edition of his television show "Prophetic Perspectives in Current Events." Here are his words.

I believe our only hope is a military takeover--martial law--and that the most crucial element of that is who the martial is going to be. I believe there are noble leaders in our military that love the Republic, they love everything we stand for, and they could seize the government. I'm not advocating this. I'm just telling you what could happen. They could seize it and help restore the foundations, restore the Constitution.

Notice that Joyner said he's not advocating a coup. But I find his denial hard to believe in light of the fact that he thinks a coup is our nation's only hope and that he claims to love America and want to see it restored.

Also notice that he said the most crucial element of the imposition of martial law is who the "martial" is going to be. So, who does Joyner have in mind for that draconian task?

He suggested that martial law could be imposed by "noble leaders in our military." Yet I believe he had some very specific military leaders in mind--NAR apostles. Why do I believe that? Take a look at a book he wrote, titled The Harvest--which, not so coincidentally, is advertised during the same show in which he predicted a coup. In this book, Joyner prophesies a collapse of governments across the world. He also teaches that--in order for a great end-time "harvest" or revival to occur--the church must first submit to the extraordinary authority of apostles. Furthermore, another NAR leader who is promoted by Joyner, Dutch Sheets, boasted at a 2008 NAR conference that there are apostles positioned in all sectors of U.S. society--including the military--waiting in the wings to unleash "a great awakening" and "transformation" in America. Sheets' boast is based on an NAR teaching that God has appointed apostles to govern not just in the churches, but also "workplace apostles" or "marketplace apostles" to govern in the seven major societal institutions, including the media, education, business, the family, arts, and government. So--in light of these NAR views--it seems obvious that the martial law Joyner speaks of would be imposed by the so-called "workplace apostles" God has appointed to govern in the military.

In response to Joyner's controversial statements, the Huffington Post and other online sites accused him of promoting sedition and undermining American democracy. Yet most evangelicals, thankfully, would not agree with Joyner's desire for a coup. And I don't believe many military officers would either--despite the statistics cited in the Huffington Post article.

But what really concerns me is that Joyner has tapped into a widespread sentiment and, by doing so, may gain more followers. Let me explain.

Many evangelicals would agree with one particular point of his perspective--that is, that our nation's demise has been accelerating under the present administration. And undiscerning Christians who are eager to see America restored to its heritage won't realize that the "restoration" Joyner speaks of is not to biblical Christianity. Rather, it is a restoration to the heterodox teachings of the New Apostolic Reformation movement--including the teaching that all Christians must submit to NAR apostles.

So, when you hear talk of a coming great "revival" in America, or a "restoration," or a "Third Great Awakening," don't just jump on the bandwagon. Be aware that these are catch words used by leaders in the NAR movement.