Jack Hayford - General Teachings/Activities

- Jack Hayford (born 1934) is the hyper-charismatic pastor of The Church on the Way, The First Foursquare Church of Van Nuys, California. Hayford started the church in 1969 with 18 people; it is now the largest Foursquare Church (Pentecostal) in the U.S. -- about 9,000 members (of which about 80% speak in tongues as a prayer language, according to Hayford) with weekly attendance between 8,500 and 10,000. Hayford promotes the "four-square" doctrines of Pentecostalism -- that Jesus is Savior, Baptizer with the Holy Spirit, Healer, and Coming King. He also teaches the false doctrine that healing is promised in the atonement (Charisma, June 1992). Pat Boone is an elder in Hayford's church, and Trinity Broadcasting Network's (TBN) heretical founders, Paul and Jan Crouch, are members. Hayford has authored more than two dozen books, and is also a prolific "hymn" writer, composing more than 400 popular charismatic "gospel" songs, including "Majesty" (which promotes the false charismatic "Kingdom Now" philosophy in which Christians are thought to be able to exercise kingdom authority over sickness and the devil in this present hour).

Hayford's teaching can be heard nationwide through his "Living Way" radio and television ministries. The half-hour weekday radio program was started in 1981 (originally titled, "FreeWay") and is now heard in over 40 states and in several foreign countries. In 1989, Living Way began a Sunday morning "live" broadcast of the church services from The Church On The Way. The now one-hour Sunday television program was started in 1977 and is seen in all 50 states on TBN (as well as in Canada and South Africa). Also on its 24 acre campus, the Church on the Way operates The King's College, The King's Seminary, and the Jack W. Hayford School of Pastoral Nurture.

Hayford writes in A Man's Worship and Witness (p. 80) that since the inception of The Church on the Way 25 years ago, over 40,000 "decisions for Christ" have been made at his church, more than 30 churches have been planted elsewhere, and over 100 pastors and church leaders have gone out to serve in other places. Also, Hayford claims to have given over $20 million to "serve human needs and spread the Gospel" throughout the world.

- Foursquare was founded in 1923 by flamboyant, twice-divorced Pentecostal female preacher Aimee Semple McPherson. (In a 1990 sermon about McPherson's ministry, Hayford defended her on the grounds that "she certainly should not be viewed as one who 'bounced' from marriage to marriage," and that in his view, her ministry was validated by the fact that "a half-century later, the devil still hates her sufficiently to spray lying venom on her memory.") In a 3/93 Charisma magazine article, Hayford says Foursquare was "one of the first to fully embrace the charismatic movement as being a legitimate movement of the Spirit." Yet, Foursquare teaches physical healing in the atonement, "Spirit-slaying," spiritual warfare/demon-deliverance, tongues-speaking, signs & wonders evangelism, extra-revelatory prophecy, etc., etc. In the face of mounting criticism, Hayford now admits to a more flexible attitude. In his latest book, he also refrains from demanding tongues as a proof of Spirit baptism, and instead presents "spiritual language" as a "divine and desirable provision to assist every believer ..." [still error though]. (Reported in the 8/17/92, Christianity Today; the 3/15/93, Calvary Contender; and the 3/8/93, Christian News.)

- Evidence abounds of Hayford's hyper-charismatic, ecumenical, and occultic tendencies: (Reported in the 11/1/89 and 9/15/91, Calvary Contenders; and the 12/91, CIB Bulletin.)

- Charismatic Bible Ministries (CBM) was founded in 1986 by hyper-charismatic Oral Roberts. Jack Hayford was one of the original officers and trustees of CBM. (Others included such hyper-charismatics as Richard Roberts, Kenneth Copeland, David Yonggi Cho, Charles Capps, Morris Cerullo, Paul Crouch, Kenneth Hagin, Benny Hinn, Charles and Frances Hunter, Robert Tilton, Casey Treat, John Osteen, Earl Paulk, Fred K.C. Price, Tommy Reid, Stephen Strang, and Lester Sumrall.) CBM conducts leadership conferences for its charismatic coalition, many of whom espouse dominion theology tenets. CBM's slogan is "Love and Unity through Signs and Wonders." When people look to signs and wonders to produce love and unity, they will find themselves united with everything that appears miraculous regardless of the source (Vengeance is Ours, pp. 125-127).

- Paul Crouch, the founder of the blasphemous Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), is a member in good standing at the Hayford-pastored Church on the Way. Crouch publishes the monthly newsletter Praise the Lord . I think it's fair to assume that Hayford is in agreement with Crouch's theology, or else as his pastor, Hayford would correct Crouch and discipline him if necessary. The following are quotes from the 3/93 Praise the Lord newsletter: (All emphases in the original.)

- Hayford is an endorser/participant in the National Evangelistic Census (NEC), a Kingwood, Texas charismatic/ecumenical ministry to "turn the nation back to God by winning our city to Jesus." NEC sponsors an annual one day "census"/global neighborhood survey where teams of two go door-to-door asking questions from a form and presenting the "gospel"; an NEC brochure predicts: "The angels in heaven will be shouting when the goal of 25 million souls are reported won to Jesus in one day!" (Among other endorsers are the Evangelical Free Church of America, Youth With a Mission, Campus Crusade for Christ, and A.D. 2000 & Beyond Movement, as well as charismatic-loonies John Osteen, John Hagee, Charles and Frances Hunter, Frederick K.C. Price, Morris Cerullo, Marilyn Hickey, Dick Eastman, and Richard Roberts.)

- Campus Crusade founder Bill Bright fasted 40 days during the summer of 1994, during which he claims to have received a "prophecy from God" that a mighty revival is coming. He then issued a call for hundreds of liberals, charismatics, and new-evangelicals to gather in Orlando 12/5/94-12/7/94 to fast and pray for revival. An Invitation Committee made up of a hodgepodge of 72 liberals, new evangelicals, and charismatics was formed. Included were: Robert Schuller, Charles Colson, E.V. Hill, Jack Hayford, James Dobson, W.A. Criswell, Charles Stanley, Paul Crouch, Luis Palau, Bill Gothard, Pat Robertson, Kay Arthur, and Larry Burkett. CCC's Bill Bright cites "a great sense of urgency to link arms and unitedly call upon God for help in the spirit of King Jehoshaphat (2 Chr. 20)." This ecumenical "linking" is in the "spirit of Jehoshaphat" indeed, but the Jehoshaphat of 2 Chr. 18 (instead of 2 Chr. 20) where he "linked" with wicked King Ahab and incurred the wrath of God. (Reported in the 11/15/94, Calvary Contender.) [Another three-day "Fasting & Prayer" conference was held in 11/95 in Los Angeles; it attracted 3,500 "evangelicals" and charismatics. The Invitation/Host Committee for this event included most of those listed above, plus Dick Eastman, Chuck Smith, Bill McCartney (Promise Keepers), Tim and Beverly LaHaye, Shirley Dobson, Paul Cedar (E-Free), Ted Engstrom (World Vision), Joseph Stowell (Moody), and Joseph Aldrich (Multnomah). A third conference was held 11/14/96-11/16/96 in St. Louis. New additions to the Host Committee included Max Lucado, Henry Blackaby, Loren Cunningham (YWAM), Greg Laurie, Dennis Rainey, Randy Phillips (Promise Keepers), Josh McDowell, D. James Kennedy, Howard Hendricks, and Neil Anderson. Conferences were also held in 1997 and 1998.]

- Eugene Peterson's The Message has swept into Christian bookstores, homes, and churches from coast to coast. In the first four months after its mid-July, 1993 release, 100,000 copies of this "New Testament in contemporary English" were printed by NavPress and 70,000 books were sold. Apparently, most readers were delighted: "The Message is so good it leaves me breathless," wrote popular New Age author Madeleine L'Engle in her endorsement. Jack Hayford has also endorsed The Message: "The Message is certainly destined to become a devotional classic, not to mention a powerful pastoral tool."

But The Message teaches a different gospel and a different morality than the Bible (as well as a worldly/warm fuzzy view of life)! For example, The Message translates Jesus' statement in John 14:28, "The Father is the goal and purpose of my life," versus the Bible's "... The Father is greater than I." In l Cor. 6:18-20, the words "sexual immorality" are deleted and the words "avoids commitment and intimacy" are added. (One could conclude that now "commitment and intimacy," not marriage, set the boundaries for acceptable sex.) In Rom. 1:26-27, the words "God gave them over ..." are deleted and words that qualify homosexuality are added (a loophole is provided for committed homosexuals who "love" each other; thus lust becomes the sin, not the choosing of a same-sex partner). There are hundreds of examples like these in The Message.

Peterson himself, in his introduction to The Message, says, "This version of the New Testament in a contemporary idiom keeps the language of The Message current and fresh and understandable in the same language in which we do our shopping, talk with our friends, worry about world affairs, and teach our children their table manners ..." This all sounds like an excuse for "dumbing-down" Scripture to match our culture's downward trends. Should we then rewrite God's holy Scriptures to fit our more shallow and worldly communications? And what does it say about a man like Jack Hayford when he endorses it as an authentic translation of the Bible rather than as Peterson's personal, politically correct interpretation? (Also endorsing The Message were Warren Wiersbe and J.I. Packer.) [Adapted from "What Kind of Message is THE MESSAGE, an article by Berit Kjos.]

- In the Foursquare World Advance magazine of Jan-Feb '94, when asked why he was among a group of evangelical Christian "leaders" who met with President Clinton on 10/18/93 at a private breakfast in the White House (since Clinton is pro-abortion and pro-homosexual), Hayford said he respects the office of the presidency and "Finally, I believe in the power of presence. Just my being there would leave a deposit of some sort." He also said he has "deep love" for Clinton as "a human being," and views Clinton as "a personable, devoted public servant." Indeed! And it's what Clinton is devoted to that should be denounced by all real Christians. [Among the other attendees with Hayford were social radical and pantheist Tony Campolo, church growth movement guru and psychologizer Bill Hybels (who stayed overnight at the White House and helped Clinton set the agenda), and the psychologized president of Taylor University Jay Kesler.] (Reported in the 4/94, Lofton Letter .) [Later, in a congregational report, Hayford expressed his conviction regarding the "clarity of President Clinton's commitment to Jesus Christ," and said he was convinced that Clinton was indeed a believer! (6/20/94, Christian News).]

- Hayford spoke for Renovaré at its 1991 Los Angeles Conference -- Renovaré is an international, New Age, ecumenical organization that emanates from the religious traditions of Quakerism, whose message is that today's Church is missing out on some wonderful spiritual experiences that can only be found by studying and practicing the "meditative" and "contemplative" lifestyle "of early Christianity." In actuality, Renovaré espouses the use of the early pagan traditions of guided imagery and visualization, astral projection, "Zen" prayer techniques for meditation (i.e., Buddhism), and Jungian psychology (i.e., a blend of Eastern mysticism and Roman Catholic mystical spiritual tradition, which nicely fits the New Age model), all as means of obtaining "personal spiritual renewal" in the lives of believers. (For a more detailed analysis of Renovaré and the teachings of its co-directors, psychologist Richard Foster and William Vaswig, see Media Spotlight's Special Report of March, 1992: "Renovaré: Taking Leave of One's Senses.")

- Promise Keepers is the gigantic new (1991) "men's movement" among professing evangelical Christians. Its roots are Catholic and charismatic to the core. PK's contradictory stand on homosexuality; its promotion of secular psychology; its unscriptural feminizing of men; its depiction of Jesus as a "phallic messiah" tempted to perform homosexual acts; and its ecumenical and unbiblical teachings should dissuade any true Christian from participating. Promise Keepers is proving to be one of the most ungodly and misleading movements in the annals of Christian history. Nevertheless, Hayford is a promoter of this ecumenical, charismatic, psychologized men's movement. Hayford is on PK's board of directors and has spoken at major events for Promise Keepers every year since PK's inception. (He also patterns the men's program at The Church On The Way after the PK model.) On 5/14/94, Hayford spoke at a regional Promise Keepers conference in Anaheim, California. During his message, Hayford gave three reasons why God required circumcision in the Old Testament:

Hayford also spoke at the PK "1996 National Clergy Conference" (2/13/96-2/15/96) in Atlanta's Georgia Dome stadium. The theme for the conference was "Fan the Flame," because McCartney (PK's founder) believes "God wants to bring revival to His church through its clergy" (2/26/96, Christian News, p. 10). The purpose of this gathering, according to McCartney, was to "tear the hearts of pastors wide open so that a single leadership can be produced." He had hoped to "bring as many as 100,000 ministers and priests of all races together" (7/1/95, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, p. C8). [Actual attendance was 38,914, which represented all 50 states and more than a dozen foreign countries; 600 in attendance were Roman Catholic priests!] At the beginning of the conference, Hayford was speaking and trying to influence everyone to "dance in the Lord," an unscriptural routine favored by the fanatical wing of Pentecostal charismaticism. Hayford said he learned the dance in Africa, and later the Lord spoke to him directly saying, "May I have this dance?" He then began doing an African folkdance around the podium, suggestive of the dances associated with heathen witch-doctoring.

- Hayford's psychological teachings are less chronicled than his charismatic doctrines, but they nevertheless are prominent. Hayford is a frequent guest on Dr. James Dobson's Focus on the Family radio program, and he endorses many of the newly published books by "Christian" psychologists as they come to market.

- In the Church on the Way's Mission Statement, Hayford espouses the following about tongues-speaking and spiritual warfare (from the Living Way Ministries Internet web site -- 8/6/96):

- In endorsing ecumenical evangelist Luis Palau's 1991 book Say Yes!, Hayford says: "There are many practical reasons for supporting the ministry of Luis Palau: his fidelity to the truth, his constancy of passion for the lost, and his integrity in personal life ... the evidence of God's sovereign choice to anoint and use this man mightily at this crucial juncture in church history." (Palau is a Catholic sympathizer whose ecumenical message is heavily diluted with pop psychology and Arminian easy-believism -- hardly God's "sovereign choice.") [Hayford has also taken part with Palau in the annual ecumenical/charismatic/ Catholic-accommodating March For Jesus campaigns.]

- Hayford has endorsed Catholic-sympathizer Chuck Colson's book, The Body: Being Light in Darkness (which is also endorsed by Jerry Falwell, J.I. Packer, Pat Robertson, Bill Hybels, Carl Henry, and Cardinal O'Connor). Colson, ever ecumenical, praises the Catholic chain of command, and includes the Catholic Church as a part of the body of Christ. He also says, "the body of Christ, in all its diversity, is created with Baptist feet, charismatic hands, and Catholic ears -- Fall with their eyes on Jesus." In blindly praising the Roman Catholic church Colson says it, "to its great credit, does call heretics to account." Indeed she does, having burned more than a million at the stake! (4/93, Berean Call).

Hayford also writes: "Redeeming worship centers on the Lord's Table. Whether your tradition celebrates it as Communion, Eucharist, the Mass, or the Lord's Supper, we are all called to this centerpiece of Christian worship" (Seven Promises of a Promise Keeper, p. 19). Historically, the Roman Catholic mass has been recognized by Bible believers as blatant blasphemy, Yet, today, Hayford teaches that this false view of Christian worship is approved by God and proper for all Christians to accept.

- Almost all of the major apostate religious organizations (including a large Roman Catholic contingent) had representatives/participants at Orlando '95 (North American [charismatic] Congress on the Holy Spirit and World Evangelization.) A Catholic bishop led one session. There was also conga-style aisle-dancing by the Haitian Catholics during the evening worship sessions. Others "praised God" by dancing around the convention center waving open umbrellas, signifying that the invisible rain of the Holy Spirit was falling. Of the 8,000 attending, over half were charismatic Catholics. The 10/95 Charisma said, "Charismatics abandoned their theological differences ... at least for four days. ... Today millions of Catholics, including Pope John Paul II's personal preacher ... have joined ranks with charismatics." A Catholic priest added, "This is the greatest ecumenical movement in the Christian church." Some of the hyper-charismatic teachers at Orlando '95 were Pat Robertson, Benny Hinn, Jack Hayford, Marilyn Hickey, and Paul Crouch.

- Hayford also has a strange idea of what constitutes true worship of God (although not strange by charismatic standards):

Wrong! The goal of worship is not the reshaping of our lives. True worship focuses on God, the object of worship, as worthy of all glory and honor and power and obedience for Who He is, regardless of what we are. If we were perfect in every way we would still be unworthy of Him. It is not worship, but Scripture which is useful for reshaping our lives (2 Tim. 3:16-17). For Hayford and others of the charismatic ilk, Scripture is fast giving way to experience as the standard upon which to base belief. Nowhere in Scripture are we told that the goal of worship is the reshaping of our lives. That is just self-centeredness. [Source: Comments/Essays in The Answer To Happiness, Health, and Fulfillment in Life: The Holy Bible (with Selected Writings by Leading Inspirational Authors.] [Comments excerpted/adapted from Media Spotlight, Vol. 14 (1993), No. 1.]

- Rave is a dance movement from Europe in which teens take designer drugs, use virtual-reality devices, and dance (usually alone) away the night and early mornings hours to repetitive techno-pop dance music. Often there is no lighting except for strobes and lasers. "Christian" rave parties have been adopted by several youth ministries worldwide (including Chuck Smith's Calvary Chapel movement). In April of 1997, Hayford's Church on the Way sponsored its second rave concert.

Biblical Discernment Ministries - Revised 2/99


HOME	NOTEBOOK	MAIL