Kris Vallotton from Bethel explains the importance of knowing your identity in Christ but misses that he does not actually follow Christ...

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But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. -- 1Peter 2: 9-12 (ESV)

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Beloved, the Bible warns us very explicitly that we can believe in a false gospel and follow a false christ. It says we can believe in vain, which if we think about that, has two meanings. First we can believe for no real reason -- in vain. I am reminded of the people in Matthew 7 who will stand before the Lord thinking they were serving Him and casting demons out in His name only to discover He never knew them. The word vain is also where we get the word vanity however. When people create these false gods in their wickedly deceitful hearts it is because they want to worship themselves. It is always about vanity on some level. We see that play out in the false theology which usually ends up being about me instead of God. The Bible is not a book about us beloved but about Him. You are not David with the smooth stone in your hand. You are not marching around the walls of Jericho or having your Ziklag moment. When we make this to be about us we miss the point and what God is actually trying to say to us.

One such wickedly false teacher is Kris Vallotton from Bethel Church. He has created his own god who he markets aggressively to anyone willing to listen to him. He operates a false school where he pretends he can teach the actual gifts of the Holy Spirit. He is a notorious prosperity pimp where he turns his god into a personal ATM blessing machine. He has his own website where he sells his wares and writes a blog that gives us valuable insight into the devious workings of the mind set against God. The link above is to a recent post where he delves into the importance of knowing who you are in Christ but what he cannot see is this topic is only worthwhile if you are actually following the real Christ. Keep that in mind beloved as we reason together and examine who it is that Kris Vallotton actually worships.

"I'm sure you've heard that you're a child of God, but do you truly believe that in your very core? Most of the obstacles that Christians face can be traced to forgetting their identity in God. For example, a poverty mindset is rooted in a lack of belief in the resources we have access to as God's children. Another symptom of an unawareness of identity is living as a victim to the schemes of the devil. The truth is sons and daughters of the living God ought to be crushing the devil under their feet! Knowing your identity may be the one of the most important truths to grasp. Without it, your life with be plagued by lack, fear, insecurity and powerlessness." -- Kris Vallotton

I want us to start with what should be obvious. Most of the problems Christians face can be traced back to forgetting their identity in Christ? No Kris, most problems for Christians can be traced back to sin. The problem is that Kris believes in a theology where sin is minimized if ever seriously addressed. Because sin doesn't sell. You can't market sin. Not like money! The very first example he gives is one of his favorite creations -- the poverty mindset. There of course is no such thing but Kris teaches that God wants all of His kids rich! He never seems to mention Christians in poor and indigent countries. I guess they have a national poverty mindset and have just forgotten who they are in Christ. The poor and starving kids in third world countries have just forgot all of the resources they have access to as children of God. Not only that but they have a victim mindset! Yes, when they are scrounging around in landfills to find any scrap of food for the day they cannot see that they are living as victims to the schemes of the devil. Why doesn't that weak unbelieving underground church in China start crushing the devil under their feet! Wait a minute preacher that line about crushing the devil under your feet sounds awful biblical! Yes, yes it is:

The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. -- Romans 16:20 (ESV)

Remember that the god Kris Vallotton worships is himself. So he routinely usurps what belongs to God. It is God that will soon crush Satan under your feet. The Bible tells us to resist the devil because he will tempt us. He will tempt us with wild theologies about how we should be dancing on his head and that lack, powerlessness, and insecurity are all signs of somehow not knowing who God is. You must understand this distinction beloved. The people in the underground church in China only lack according to the carnal measurements of materialism in this life. They have more faith than Kris Vallotton can ever have because their faith is actually in God. The Iraqi Christian father facing beheading for not denouncing Christ is not powerless unless measured temporally. Eternally he is more powerful than Kris Vallotton could ever imagine. When you truly know who you are in the real Christ than what the Kris Vallotton's of this world see as insecurities are rubbish compared to the eternal joy of being truly found in Him.

"Kids inherit family traits. The truth is, as a child of God, you're supposed to look and act like your Daddy! You are created in His image--a beautiful heir to His kingdom. You have access to everything your Dad has access to, and you're glorious just as He is!" -- Kris Vallotton

Since Kris insists on taking this so literally he forgets that our sonship is through adoption. Our creation in His image is not meant as a physical representation. God is Spirit. What we lost in the fall we start to gain back when saved but it is all through Christ. In trying to be more Christlike in holiness and obedience, two concepts Kris never speaks about, we then can begin to see our image as getting close to His image. It is something to aspire to and work towards every day as we work out our salvation in a fallen world. It is not something to be bragged about like a spoiled heir to a tycoon's fortune. Once again though, we see the narcissistic and vain god of self that Kris worships. It is the same sin that Lucifer was cast out of heaven for. I am a beautiful heir to His kingdom! I am just as glorious as God Himself! I will ascend to the throne of the Most High! Vallotton routinely sounds like the old Saturday Night Live character Stuart Smalley. Because I am good enough, smart enough and doggone it, people like me!

'Romans 8:14-21 says, "For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God."' -- Kris Vallotton

As usual, Kris knows just enough Scripture to be dangerous because he does not understand. The glory is TO BE revealed in us. Future tense. We are to partake in the very sufferings Vallotton seemed to be dismissing earlier. The sufferings are of this present time and cannot be compared to the glory of being with Jesus forever. Do you notice the palpable difference? What I am saying is all about Jesus. He is the star. The story is about him. I get to share in what belongs to Him. I am not as glorious as God himself. I get to share in His glory in eternity where Kris believes he is His glorious equal right here and now. Vast difference.

"The devil, God and creation all know who you are" it's only you who doesn't know who the heck you are! When Adam and Eve sinned, it wasn't just humans that were cursed, it was creation too! That's why Jesus said to preach the gospel to all of creation. What is creation groaning for? For the sons and daughters to be revealed so that it can be released from the curse of slavery and back into its purpose of giving glory to God. As soon as you figure out who you are, creation gets released!" -- Kris Vallotton

Wow. Stunningly oblivious exegesis. Oblivious and again, narcissistic. So according to Kris Vallotton all of creation is waiting for you! God's very creation is bound up until you get it straight how special you are. BZZT. Thanks for playing Kris. The truth is that God originally created everything perfect. Creation was paradise. When man fell he indeed brought sin and the curse into the world but it is only through Christ that it is returned to any former state. Beloved, creation is not waiting for you to figure out who you are. It is waiting as we are -- for the return of the King.

"The reason why you can heal the sick, raise the dead and cast out demons is because of who you are in Christ. He didn't say "pray for healing," He said "heal the sick." You don't walk in miracles because of anything you did for yourself, rather you're just receiving what your Daddy did for you! (John 10:37-38)If you teach people to heal the sick and cast out demons without teaching them identity, then they have a performance-based identity. But if you teach them to do that and teach them who they are, then they'll understand they're supposed to walk in power because of who their Daddy is." -- Kris Vallotton

I just watched a sermon from Kris Vallotton where he said he had just finished cataract surgery. His pastor, who also believes in mandatory healing from God, wears corrective eyeglasses! I don't understand! Why don't they just walk in his miracles? Why couldn't they just heal the sick? Once again, Kris Vallotton is brilliantly displaying his total ignorance when it comes to dividing the Word of Truth:

Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. -- Matthew 10: 8 (ESV)

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. -- James 5: 14-15 (ESV)
Vallotton is referencing the verse from Matthew 10 but these were instructions given to the twelve on their first assignment apart from the Master. Read the entire chapter beloved. The surrounding context makes no allusion to us whatsoever. Now, through you can God heal the sick, cleanse the leper, raise the dead and cast out demons? Absolutely! It is through His power though and the gifts given as the Spirit wills -- not through some inherent power we have but just are not walking in. The verses from James show that Kris is doubly wrong as God most certainly said to pray for the sick. If we truly understand who we are in Christ then we walk with humility. We understand that God is sovereign over all matters including life, death and healing. If Matthew 10:8 really means that we should be walking around healing people and raising them from the dead as a matter of lifestyle, then why doesn't Kris spend every waking moment at his local hospital? Because he can't. Because he would be exposed as the huckster fraud he is. If his assertions about Matthew 10 were correct, then why would God have penned James 5? He wouldn't have. Kris now closes with more self-centered, narcissistic theology:

'When you act like God, you're being yourself.

You rock! And you didn't even do it to you.

Your identity as a child of God is a non-negotiable.

You're powerful, glorious, and outright awesome.

I want to reiterate the declaration from the video and encourage you to read this out loud today: "I am amazing. I am God's greatest creation. He loves me to death. I rock. I was born to do greater works than Jesus. I was born for glory. Nations are attracted to me. I have the mind of Christ, therefore I think like God. He's my inheritance and I'm His inheritance. He actually likes me and I like me too. And if people got to know me, they would like me. Creation knows who I am. The devil knows who I am, God knows I am, the angels know who I am" and today, I know who I am!"' - Kris Vallotton

This is the end result of creating your own god in your own image. Beloved this is actually what Kris Vallotton believes and what he teaches. When you act like God? You are just being yourself because after all you rock! You are powerful, glorious, and outright awesome! Not exactly walking humbly before your God Kris. Individually, we are not God's greatest creation -- that is a collective distinction. The church as a whole was born to do greater works than He, mostly from a time perspective. Nations are not attracted to you Kris. Get over yourself. You have created a false christ that you follow, idolize, worship and bow down to. Your little god thinks that you are the beez-knees and that you just rock! Your false god has no problem with having his power and glory routinely usurped by you and why not? You are outright awesome after all! Him? He is just god in your equation and you come first -- which means you are god actually Kris. That explains how you can take relatively clear Scriptures about God and make them instead about you. It is all about you. I will give you credit for the one thing you got right in this blog entry -- the devil does indeed know you. He most certainly does.

After such a disgusting display of mangling the Word of God let us close with some sound exegesis about who we actually are in Christ, found in the key verses today. We are a chosen race and a royal priesthood beloved. Kris would take the royalty angle and develop an entire sermon around that but the context is where we see the scope of what God is saying. We are supposed to be a holy nation beloved. We are a people for His own possession! Was there any sense in this self-absorbed rambling that remotely hinted at being possessed by Christ! These four attributes are so that we might proclaim the excellencies if Him who called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light! We are a chosen race to proclaim Him! We are a holy nation to proclaim Him! We are His possession to proclaim Him! Yes Kris, whatever royalty was are grafted into is solely to proclaim Him! I do not rock. Jesus rocks! Why? Because once we were not even a people but now we are God's people! Once we had not received mercy but now we have! We are not to be seeking the trinkets and baubles of this earth as Kris pushes. We are in fact supposed to be pilgrims and sojourners through this land. Exiles who abstain from the passions of the flesh which wage war against our very souls! Where was any of this identification from Kris Vallotton? Nowhere because he does not follow the real Christ. So let us keep our conduct honorable among the Gentiles beloved. Let us realize that we are nothing apart from Him. Our identity in Christ should be a constant reminder of the need for humility not to be used a license for arrogance and petulance. Our identity in Jesus Christ is always about Him and has nothing to do with us. Deny yourself beloved. Pick up your cross and follow Him.

Reverend Anthony Wade -- February 2, 2018

Authors Bio:
Credentialed Minister of the Gospel for the Assemblies of God. Owner and founder of 828 ministries. Vice President for Goodwill Industries. Always remember that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.