Will I be going to see The Cross this Eastertide? NOT!

Lately I've been thinking about people who claim God speaks to them. I personally know one such person, and I have to say it's rather annoying to have to listen to him. He literally can't carry on a conversation about anything without mentioning that the lord told him this or the lord has been showing him that. One would think that he has a direct line to heaven.

Oh, I'm not against God speaking to people; perhaps I'm just jealous that He never speaks to me. I wish He would; there are a lot of questions I'd love to have Him answer:
-Which house should I buy?
-Are the Dead Sea Scrolls more accurate than the Masoretic Text?
-What did He mean that a man couldn't divorce his wife, "except for fornication?"
-How many years ago WAS it that He created the universe?
-What day of the year was He born--or for that matter, which year?
-Which of the four gospels was written first, and when?
-Just what DID happen to those last twelve verses of Mark?

Alas, these are not the sort of things my acquaintance discusses when he and his lord have their chats. Only the first one would even qualify, and I can't say I'd trust any answer that came to that question as being from MY lord.

So, does God speak to people? My first instinct would be to say No. If God spoke to people, He'd have spoken to me, since I've asked--many times. But on the other hand, my God HAS spoken to people--many times. They are recorded in His Word.

God spoke to Noah and told him to build an ark. Noah obeyed, despite people thinking he was nuts. Sure enough, the ark kept him and his alive while the world perished. But later, Noah got drunk and was party to an unspeakable act with his son. Does that mean that we can brush off Noah as a phony and disregard the message he claimed to have received from the Lord?

This was on my mind the last few days as I pondered the mission of Arthur Blessitt, featured in a movie that just hit the theaters last month.

As he tells the story, God spoke to Arthur and told him to make a cross. He obeyed, and saw fruit come from that obedience; people 'got saved'. Then God told him to carry it up and down Sunset Boulevard in LA. Same story. New twist: God wanted him to carry it across the country. He did. Next step: Carry it around the world. He did. Last step: Carry the Cross in every sovereign county and territory of the world. He did. And at every step he saw miracles, healings, or salvations.

Now here's the problem. Was it God who was leading Arthur Blessitt on his record-breaking world tour, or Satan? If Satan, why all the conversions (including one George W. Bush)? If God, then why in 1990, just over halfway through his 38-year project, did Arthur claim God wanted him to divorce his wife Sherry and marry a young blonde he met on his trek?

My first question was, well, is this any different from Noah's indecency? My studied conclusion is, YES.

First of all: Noah never claimed God was telling him to get drunk. Or to get naked. And after he awoke from his wine, he didn't justify what he had done. Rather, he cursed. When Arthur divorced Sherry Blessitt, forcing her to go to work to support their handicapped son, [see comment #38] he was in effect cursing her. But Noah's curse was recorded for all time in the Bible. How about Arthur's? Well, nowhere on his website is Sherry ever mentioned. On his "Family Album" page, there are photos of him with his children and their children, but none with their mother. And, on a separate page, photos of "Denise, my Love." He even went back through his old newsletters when he put them online and changed the signature line from "Arthur and Sherry Blessitt" to "Arthur and Denise Blessitt."

If it really was God's will for him to put Sherry away, then why doesn't he want to admit that she ever existed?

On a related note, I have at least three friends who consider themselves homosexual. I say 'at least,' because I don't know how many more there may be. None of these particular three have ever told me that they are gay; I've had to find it out online. No, in communication with me, they describe themselves as 'single', 'divorced', or 'pro-gay-rights' respectively. Why is it that they don't want to disclose their orientation--is it not that they are ashamed of their sinful relationships? And so it is with Arthur Blessitt and his trophy wife. Oh, very proud of HER he is--but of their sinful relationship he must be ashamed, for he makes a point to never bring it out.

But what if he did? I know of one man who makes a point of introducing his extra wife with the information that God told him to trade in the wife of his youth for her. This same man says there's no reason to read the Bible, when you can just hear from the Lord directly--and little wonder, since what his lord is telling him is in contradiction to God's Word.

Arthur Blessitt, you almost had me fooled into thinking you were hearing from God. And maybe you even were. But whatever testimony you had is now shot all to hell by you claiming that God told you to commit adultery--and then covering it up.

Repent! Go back to your first love. Until then, you have nothing to pass on to me from God.

NOTE April 2014: This was, for a couple of years, my most-read post, and has probably attracted the most attempted comments of any post on my entire blog. If your first comment doesn't appear right away, sit tight: I will eventually approve it. If I find several comments by the same author awaiting approval, I will only approve the most recent one.

NOTE February 2015: It is interesting to re-read this still-popular post in light of current events in Elkhart County, Indiana. I speak of the revival that has broken out, characterised by many healings and salvations. Is what is going on now at any higher of a level that what Arthur Blessitt experienced on his walk around the world? It's worth pondering.