Spiritual Grooming- How Control Hides in Faith

John and Melissa discuss her journey into the Hebrew Roots movement, what attracted her at first, and the theological concerns that eventually led her to leave. The conversation explores Torah observance, Sabbath keeping, feasts, dietary laws, restorationism, church history claims, and how some groups view the church, Israel, and the New Covenant. Melissa also shares how questions about the deity of Christ, conspiracy-based history, end-times expectations, and isolation shaped her experience. She explains why she now emphasizes the righteousness of Christ, Scripture in context, humility, and freedom in the New Covenant. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John Collins and McKinnon discuss 1 Kings 13 and the sobering story of the prophet from Judah, the old prophet from Bethel, and the danger of allowing a claimed revelation to override the clear command of God. The discussion connects the biblical account to questions about prophecy, sincerity, obedience, spiritual authority, and the responsibility to test every claim by Scripture. They also examine concerns about William Branham, failed prophetic claims, religious authority, half-truths, and the way followers can become dependent on a messenger's interpretation instead of reading Scripture directly. The conversation emphasizes the need to separate truth from error, reject claims that contradict the Bible, and keep God's Word as the final foundation. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Chino discuss how deliverance teaching became a fear-based stage act in parts of the Latter Rain, Healing Revival, William Branham, Hobart Freeman, and later charismatic movements. They examine how people were trained to see demons behind sickness, fear, accidents, intrusive thoughts, mental health struggles, and ordinary life problems. Instead of creating freedom, this worldview often made people afraid, dependent on powerful ministers, and unable to question the people claiming authority over the invisible world. They also discuss the connection between stage deliverance, divine healing extremism, rejection of medicine, "touch not mine anointed" manipulation, misuse of Scripture, and the damage caused when ministers present themselves as spiritual gatekeepers.  Topics discussed: • Stage deliverance and religious performance • Fear-based demon theology • William Branham and control over spirit • Hobart Freeman and deliverance teaching • Gordon Lindsay's deliverance conferences • Divine healing extremism • Rejection of medicine • "Touch not mine anointed" manipulation • Misuse of Scripture • Mental health and demon language • Why ordinary problems were blamed on demons • How people became dependent on ministers instead of God ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Jed discuss how people can recognize possible New Apostolic Reformation influence in churches, especially when groups identify as non-denominational or avoid clear labels. They examine concerns about authority structures, apostles and prophets, five-fold ministry language, prophetic history, spiritual covering, alignment, and the way certain churches describe mission and mandate. The conversation also explores why not every charismatic or Pentecostal church should be treated the same, while still identifying patterns that may point to unhealthy control, isolation, loaded language, dominion-focused teaching, and network connections. John and Jed use examples from International House of Prayer, Pasadena International House of Prayer, Kansas City Fellowship, Bethel, and related movements as discussed in the episode. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Christian discuss spiritual grooming, how it can appear inside religious communities, and why people may not recognize it while it is happening. They examine the difference between pastoral care and spiritual control, including dependency, secrecy, isolation, information control, and the use of spiritual language to influence people. The conversation also explores examples from church culture in Latin America, Costa Rica, and the United States, including financial pressure, filtered teaching, cover-up culture, and questions people can ask to evaluate whether a community is healthy or controlling. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Ken examine the overlap between Word of Faith teaching, prosperity preaching, healing lines, "honoring the prophet," and high-pressure giving culture through Ken Barriger's experience around World Harvest Church in Paducah, Kentucky. The discussion traces connections involving Amway-style motivation, The Way International, Ed and Nancy Dufresne, Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, grave soaking, slain-in-the-spirit experiences, and the broader charismatic ecosystem. The conversation also explores how religious language can prepare people to give beyond their means, how miracle claims can become difficult to question, and why independent verification matters when evaluating spiritual leaders. Ken's story offers a personal look at the tension between sincere faith, group pressure, healing expectations, and the need for discernment. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Bob discuss the strange world of numerology and dream interpretation inside the Latter Rain, Kansas City Fellowship, IHOPKC, and New Apostolic Reformation streams. Bob shares firsthand memories from the 1980s, including the culture shock of watching dreams, dates, numbers, and symbols become part of everyday spiritual language. John connects those experiences to older religious currents, including British Israelism, Christian Identity, spiritualism, pyramid speculation, zodiac symbolism, Christian fundamentalism, and the Latter Rain belief that God was restoring apostles, prophets, and an end-time army. The conversation explores how ordinary numbers can become hidden codes, how coincidences can be treated as revelation, how symbolic dream interpretation can separate people from reality, and how Joel's Army theology created repeated cycles of excitement, disappointment, disillusionment, and spiritual harm. This episode is not an attack on the biblical idea that God can speak through dreams. Instead, it asks what happens when dreams, symbols, numbers, and prophetic interpretation become a system of authority.  ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Frannie discuss what it is like to grow up inside intense charismatic and New Apostolic Reformation-style church environments, where worship, prophecy, healing services, deliverance, and "moves of God" often blur together with emotional pressure, crowd psychology, and spiritual fear. They examine revival culture, long worship sessions, altar calls, healing claims, spiritual highs and crashes, the pressure to "feel God," and the painful process of untangling faith from manipulation. The conversation also explores trauma, identity loss, therapy, boring stability, and why many former members must relearn how to trust their own emotions after leaving high-intensity religious systems. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

Personal prophecy has become one of the most influential—and controversial—practices in the modern charismatic movement. In this episode, John Collins and Chino Ross examine the rise of prophetic culture, the promise of receiving a personal "word from the Lord," and the often-overlooked dangers that can follow when individuals allow others to direct major life decisions through claimed revelations. Drawing from historical examples, firsthand experiences, and documented cases from across the charismatic world, they explore failed prophecies, spiritual manipulation, prophetic excesses, and the psychological impact of predictions that never come to pass. Along the way, they discuss famous prophetic stories, examine the roots of modern prophetic ministry, and ask an important question: What happens when believers begin looking to prophets for guidance that Scripture never intended them to provide? Whether you're familiar with prophetic movements or simply curious about the role of prophecy in modern Christianity, this conversation offers a thoughtful examination of discernment, authority, accountability, and the real-world consequences of personal prophecy. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Pia examine how modern church systems can transform from small spiritual communities into large religious machines driven by money, growth, hierarchy, and control. Pia introduces the concept of "financial gravity" and connects it to her own experience inside People of Destiny International, later Sovereign Grace Ministries, and the wider world that helped shape the New Apostolic Reformation. The discussion traces connections between William Branham's influence, the Shepherding Movement, Derek Prince, TAG, PDI, Larry Tomczak, C.J. Mahaney, Che Ahn, John Wimber, church growth strategy, and the N.A.R. system. Pia also shares painful memories of how authoritarian teaching on family, discipline, and obedience affected her children and marriage, showing why these doctrines are not merely abstract theology but can have devastating real-world consequences. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962  Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K  ______________________ - Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham  - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org