Yesterday I saw the film "Miracles From Heaven" starring Jennifer Garner. It is an excellent film that highlights a very big problem in the church; spiritual abuse. Jennifer Garner plays the Mother of Annabel, a little devout Christian girl in Texas who one night wakes up with pain in her stomach and discovers she has serious disease. The church rather than coming together to help Garner, ends up condemning her, as ladies in church say, "Anna hasn't gotten well, so we have to ask if its because your sin, your husband's sin, or even Annabel. She should be well." The faith movement majorly supported by Kenneth Copland believes that if you have enough faith, or zeal, believing with this conjured energy inside, you will be healed or get what you want. This movement if false on two accounts, firstly faith does not mean zeal I can conjure to get God to do something, faith literally translated means trust, to "be still and know I am God." (Psalm 46:10). Secondly, Christ did not promise an easy life for Christians, "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, ESV), and "You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." (Matthew 10:22)
The Church in Miracles From Heaven is the American Church. A place were people go to hear the Third Day Worship band, to puff up the ego of the pastor by being fans, and were disciples are treated like toddlers, being told when to clap, when to stand, when to sit, when to pray, and more. A serious disciple of Christ finds this degrading, and this is why many churches are empty; people are tired of being treated like babies for Christ told us not to "conform to the pattern of this world, (Romans 12:2)" but to "whoever would be my disciple must deny themselves, pick up your cross, and follow me." (Matthew 16:24). Church is child care for Christians never get beyond Kidnegarden, who stay forever on milk, "You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God's word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food." (Hebrews 5:12, NLT). Church on Sundays basically is useless to the disciple, and more of place for the unbeliever who knows nothing of the faith or its customs. In Miracles from Heaven Garner's faith is shaken, and she only gets through the serious testing with her devout Christian husband, Christian children, and select few of Christians and unbelievers no associated with her church; the pastor is shown as disengaged in waiting room playing Angry Birds, rather than giving adoration to Christ and leading supplication; he does pray at one point, but only after the nurse comes out of surgery, so he then for show does a prayer. This is the church! Full of great exegesis, platitudes and sermons on Sunday, but no real service, even though Jesus said, "The greatest among you must be a servant," (Matthew 23:11), "But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves," (Luke 22:26), "Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant," (Matthew 20:26), "Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all." (Mark 9:36), and "You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love," (Galatians 5:13). Instead pastors today want to be served, than be a servant of all. This is ironic because pastor means to pasture, to take care of sheep like shepherd, which is what Jesus does constantly (see the Good Shepherd John 10). Pastors today are mostly just ego teachers, when in reality they are suppose to do the following, "And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming. but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,." (Ephesians 4:11-15). There in lies reason for five offices or gifts of church leadership! It is right then in scripture!
Worse, the pastor in the film who is based on true pastor, since the whole film is a true story, gives a sermon one day, "You need to see if there is sin in your life, pull yourself up and then you'll be healed." This is when ladies attack Jennifer Garner's character, with that esoteric faith movement that is not found in Scripture! This is spiritual abuse, when you know in congregation people are going through hell, you do not heap more bondage, in this way the pastor was Pharisees, "They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden. Jesus replied, And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them." (Matthew 23:4 NLT, and Luke 11:46). Spiritual abusers talk the talk, but do not walk the walk, "So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach." (Matthew 23:3). Eventually Jennifer Garner goes to Pastor and has private talk. She tells the pastor she will not come back because of the abuse, and pastor makes excuses, "I cannot give everyone a spirit IQ test." Well you could correct those ladies! Tell them in private (Matthew 18:15) that it is wrong to mistreat someone in hardships, and how very unchristian it is, but I guess this pastor is motivated by the pay check for finally after the miraculous healing of Anna, Jennifer Garner gets up to give sermon, and the pastor says, "you TV crews better leave an offering in plate at the back." And after Jennifer Garner gives a great sermon on how miracles are all around us, manifesting through people who bless us, and in bigger ways like her daughter's miracle, some of the church attendees attack the validity of the healing, while the TV crew is filming. This is jealousy and envy which is earthly and demonic, "But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing." (James 3:14-16). I bet those women hate that any attention is not on them (Jezebel spirit) and they are same women who shamed Jennifer Garner for her daughter not getting well, and now that her daughter was healed they question if it is a real healing?! Talk about darned if you do, darned if you don't! This is how Pharisees and Sadducees were in Jesus' Days! The Church is religious and haughty, and proud, and it is only among the disciples of Christ, the exiles, those like Jennifer Garner's family and all over world that are lights, and examples leading people towards Emmanuel, Christ Jesus!
Spiritual abuse is rampant in churches, and I am glad this film highlights it. Sadly the specialist doctor who helps Anna acts more like a pastor and servant of Christ, "Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these," (Matthew 19:14) than the pastor of the church! For this reason see Miracles from Heaven, it will heal you if you've been through major trauma, inspire you by the story of many miracles, and give you a glimpse of spiritual abuse so you can recognize it.
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