Kim Clement

Is being crazy the mark of a true prophet?

That’s what Kim Clement — one of today’s so-called prophets — would have you think. When he and his fellow “prophets” come under fire for their bizarre prophecies, they defend themselves by saying that the Bible prophets were also viewed as crazy.

In his book Call Me Crazy But I’m Hearing God, Clement says:

You may call me crazy, my own family and friends may call me crazy, and I may even call myself crazy at times. … It’s all crazy; hearing from God has been crazy for thousands of years.

Those ‘Crazy’ Bible Prophets

He’s got a point: the Old Testament prophets did some unusual things. Just look at Ezekiel. Lying on one’s side for 390 days, as he did, is definitely odd. And don’t forget Isaiah who prophesied naked.

That’s weird.

But just because the Bible prophets did some crazy things doesn’t mean that all crazy people are prophets. Said another way: All apples are fruits, but not all fruits are apples.

Yet — taking inspiration from the strange behaviors of these Bible prophets — Clement wears his wackiness as a badge of honor. In his book, he says that many people who are honored today were once viewed as “off their rocker” because they attempted seemingly impossible feats — people like Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and Joan of Arc. He, apparently, includes himself among this distinguished crowd of “crazy” people.

But now let’s think about a different type of “crazies” — people who are are truly off kilter — like Octomom, the late Wacko Jacko, and the parents of the “Balloon Boy.” These people are crazy, too.

So, what’s the difference between prophets who do crazy things and run-of-the-mill crazy people?

The difference is in their message. Throughout the Bible, we see real prophets making predictions that are specific, come true and are consistent with other Scripture. Run-of-the-mill crazy people who pose as prophets, on the other hand, give prophecies that are vague, don’t come true and contradict Scripture. Let’s look at a few examples of truly crazy prophecies from Clement.

The ‘Big E’

An example of a vague prediction is his well-known “Big E” prophecy. For a number of years, Clement has prophesied that a new form of energy is about to be discovered, which he calls the “Big E.” He claims it will end America’s dependence on Middle Eastern oil. Back on May 22, 2005, he told a church in Whittier, California:

“But He [God] tells me there’s something other than petroleum or gas or whatever you call it, oil, that’s coming forth that’s going to be used. ‘Invest in it for it will bring some of you millions of dollars within a 14 month period’ says the Lord. It begins with an ‘e’” … (Read the full prophecy here.)

This prophecy is so nebulous that the “Big E” could refer to almost anything and everything that starts with the letter E. Indeed, his followers have interpreted it numerous different ways, as you can see from a discussion of his prophecy here. The kicker is that some of them — based solely on Clement’s vague prophecy — have invested money into companies that are experimenting with new energy forms that start with the letter E.

Five years have passed since that “Big E” prophecy was given and his followers are still waiting for the new energy to materialize. Earlier this month, Clement gave another prophecy about it. See it here.

Bin Laden, Aborted Babies and Other Bizarre Prophecies

An example of an inaccurate prediction is Clement’s infamous prophecy about Osama Bin Laden. In short, he prophesied that Bin Laden would be captured within a specific number of days. Yet, when it didn’t happen by that date, he offered a series of ridiculous explanations to hide his mistake. To learn more about his attempted cover up, check out the link here.

An example of a prophecy that contradicts Scripture was given on the same night as his “Big E” prophecy in Whittier, California. Clement claimed God told him that babies who had been aborted would get a second chance at life — they would be reborn in the wombs of other women. See it here. Yet the Bible teaches that it is appointed for people to die just once (Hebrews 9:27).

The bottom line: crazy does not necessarily equal prophet. Sometimes it just equals crazy.

Is being logical unspiritual? That’s what modern “apostles” and “prophets” want you to think.

In fact, it’s not just unspiritual — it’s a sin to be repented of, according to Paul Cox, founder of Aslan’s Place in Hesperia, Calif. His suggested prayer urges Christians to repent of “all intellectualism, ungodly reasoning, logic and humanism.”

Huh? When did logic become an evil comparable to “ungodly reasoning” and “humanism”?

I want to show that logic isn’t bad — it’s a gift from God, and it protects us from harmful beliefs.

Human Logic vs. Heavenly Logic

“Apostles” and “prophets,” like Cox, often claim that there are two types of logic: “human logic” and “heavenly logic.” Human logic — they say — is unspiritual, evil, bad. Another example of the “human logic is bad” teaching can be found in “apostle/prophet” Rick Joyner’s prophecy titled Civil War in the Church.

Back in 1996, Joyner prophesied that an end-time battle will be fought in the church between two types of Christians — the “grey coats” and the “blue coats.” The grey coats — who represent the bad guys in Joyner’s prophecy — are Christians who use their “natural minds” and “human wisdom” to evaluate teachings in the church. The grey color of their coats represents “grey matter” — which, Joyner points out, is a slang expression for “the brain.”

But the blue coats — the good guys — don’t rely on their brains to evaluate teachings. They’re “heavenly minded” and “follow the Holy Spirit,” according to Joyner.

See other recent examples of the “human logic is bad” teaching by Kathi Pelton and John Mark Pool.

The problem with their statements is that the Bible doesn’t teach that there are two types of logic, and it doesn’t teach that human logic is bad. Let’s look at two Bible verses that have been misused by “apostles” and “prophets” to support these teachings.

1 Corinthians 1:21 and 3:19

In his first letter to the Corinthian church, the Apostle Paul says that the “wisdom of this world” is foolishness to God (1 Corinthians 3:19), and that God’s plan of salvation seems like “foolishness” to humankind (1 Corinthians 1:21).

So, the Apostle Paul believed that “human logic”  is bad, right?

Wrong. Confusion occurs because so-called prophets like Joyner teach that “worldly wisdom” and “human logic” are the same thing. They’re not. They’re very different.

When Paul talked about worldly wisdom, he was talking about the things that are valued by people who are separated from God — things like power, fame and money.  These things are the opposite of the things God values. That’s why Paul says that God’s plan of salvation — through a crucified Christ — appears like “foolishness” to worldly people.

Paul’s description of “worldly” wisdom matches James’ description of “earthly” wisdom in James chapter 3 — it’s jealous, covetous and self-seeking (James 3:3-18).

So, it’s selfish ambition that Paul and James are bashing — not “human logic,” as Joyner asserts.

Human Logic

Logic is the science of correct thinking. We use it to determine if our beliefs are sound or not. We use it everyday.

Not sure of this? Let me show you.

One of the rules of logic is called the “law of non-contradiction.” This rule may sound complicated, but bear with me.  In simple terms, it means that if two things contradict each other, then they can’t both be true. For example, a moving car can’t be both in the street and not in the street at the same time. It’s either in the street or not in the street.

We use the law of non-contradiction when we decide if it’s safe to cross the street. We use other laws of logic, too — whether we know their names or not. And we have places for people who don’t use them — they’re called mental hospitals.

That’s because the opposite of being logical is being illogical. And being illogical isn’t being spiritual — no matter what teachers like Joyner or Cox want us to think.

Logic Glorifies God

God made our minds, and it glorifies Him when we use them. We were created in His image and that includes our ability to reason.

In fact, Jesus, Himself, is called “the Logic” in Scripture. Where? In John 1:1 — where He’s called “the Word.” The Greek word for “Word” is logos — which is where we get our English word for “logic.”

In other words, Jesus is the Supreme Rational Being who governs all things. It shouldn’t be surprising, then, that the Greatest Commandment includes an admonition for us to love God with all of our minds (Matthew 22:36-38).

Likewise, the original apostles never discouraged people from using their minds. In fact, they had harsh words for false teachers who didn’t base their teachings on sound beliefs, but instead promoted a secret knowledge — or  “heavenly” knowledge, as Joyner would prefer to call it. Peter called these false teachers “unreasoning animals” (2 Peter 2:12).

So by not using their God-given abilities to reason — through applying the rules of logic — these false teachers are being unspiritual.

Why would they go to so much trouble to urge people to shut off their brains? So their followers won’t scrutinize the teachings of these so-called prophets and apostles. If they did, they’d detect the error.

Think about it.

***Read the first post in my Brain Stoppers series here.