Wagner seems to have thought the NAR was a revolution in the church and he was right. He thinks that God is changing the shape of Christianity across the world. Ask Bill Johnson if he believes that today because he sure does. He even admits here that this is an alliance of like-minded churches that prefer passion over doctrine! Either way this is hardly just some descriptor in Wagner's vocabulary.
"To this day, when I bring up NAR to colleagues, either they have no idea what I'm referring to, or else they say, "That was Peter Wagner's organization." I was having dinner recently with a well-known Charismatic leader and asked him, "What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of NAR?" He responded immediately with, "It was a good attempt by Peter Wagner, but I strongly differed with him on a number of key points, which is why I never joined it." (For the record, he was quite shocked when I told him that, according to the critics, he was also a major NAR leader!) So, in this leader's mind, the New Apostolic Reformation spoke of something very specific, and that's how almost all of us who traveled in these same circles understood it. That's why we're scratching our heads today trying to understand how this term came to be used to describe this alleged worldwide, demonic movement. How in the world did this happen?" -- Dr. Michael Brown
There is no "joining" the NAR! You either believe in the teachings and espouse them or you do not. So no offense but I doubt the whole dinner conversation here. Perhaps this unnamed leader disagreed on the key heretical points and if so that is great. At least he did not pretend it didn't exist.
"It appears that some of this can be traced back to Prof. Doug Geivett and Holly Pivec, who wrote the book A New Apostolic Reformation? A Biblical Response to a Worldwide Movement. In this book, they included Charismatic leaders who believe in five-fold ministry today (as I have, for decades) and grouped them together as part of NAR. The book also painted a very negative picture, although I believe that the authors were sincere in their writing and sought to do solid research. In the end, we are left with a totally ambiguous picture of what NAR actually is, making it all the more dangerous in the minds of the conspiratorial critics, who inevitably believe the worst. (Just look at Holly's website where she tells you how to identify a NAR church and tell me if it's clear to you. Even after a two-hour dialogue with Doug and Holly, I'm still not certain as to how they identify NAR leaders or churches.)" -- Dr. Michael Brown
Geivitt and Pivec have done some good work but then again they certainly are not the end all. This is really not ambiguous at all. The NAR believes in certain teachings and practices and if a church shares these then they are NAR. Not because of meetings or annual fees but because of the incorporation of the teachings.
"Does it matter that Mike Bickle's IHOP KC put out a categorical statement differing with some of the alleged tenets of NAR? Not at all. That just proves their duplicity. (The IHOP KC website also gives a helpful history of some of Peter Wagner's writings on the subject.)" -- Dr. Michael Brown
Of course it does not matter. What matters is what he teaches. He teaches the heretical bridal paradigm and Joel's End Time Army heresy. His website agrees with the basics of dominionism and the seven mountain mandate but then declares to not believe they have to actually take over all the world governments. What proves their duplicity is duplicity. It is about teaching one thing while claiming to not believe in it.
'Another website claims to give "The Six Hallmarks of a NAR Church." But first, it explains that NAR is not a specific organization. Instead, the website states, "Supernatural Signs & Wonders; Dominionism; The Latter Rain Movement; Joel's Army; The 7 Mountain Mandate; Third Wave Revivalism; IHOP; Bill Johnson's Bethel Church, The Hillsong Media Empire, these are all a part of this shape-shifting movement in one way or another. It is gobbling up churches and deceiving millions who don't even know they've become a part of an apostate, end-times falling away."' -- Dr. Michael Brown
