What does Bishop John Francis and Ruach Ministries believe?
An honest question here folks. Neither the Ruach church website, or Bishop John Francis’ site state the doctrine or fundamental beliefs of the church. Even Bishop T. D . Jakes carries a statement of faith on his church website. I am not sure why there is no faith statement on Bishop Francis and Ruach Ministries website, but I’d really like to see one.
I am not sure what they actually believe and teach about Jesus Christ, redemption, salvation, and so on. I am not saying this to knock, but I would like to know what a preacher believes before I listen to them, to see if what they stand for is backed up by the Word of God. Having a Charismatic Ministry is not enough, evidence of a solid bible based foundation is needed.
Ironically, the site carries a ‘biography’ of Bishop and 1st Lady Francis and lists their itenary and also ‘products’ for sale… but nothing of the gospel. Also, the church site only carries the address of the church. Could a doctrinal statement please be added – so that there’s something about JESUS on the pages for this popular ministry.
Good question indeed. I have had the pleasure of hearing Bishop Francis speak in person and I can tell you he delivered a Biblically sound message of hope and dememtion only through Jesus.
I’d suggest you submit your question to the ministry’s webmaster through the “contact us” tab. I’m sure they have a statement of faith, but simply failed to publish it on their sites.
Thanks, that is a very good suggestion. I have just emailed johnfrancis@ordermysteps.org.uk and asked if they would add a statement of faith to the site.
I am interested to know if you got a response as yet, as I hear you and agree with your point of view.
i like your preachings very much and would like to have them on cds but dont have money to buy your cds,can your ministries do something about it.pls pls pls from donald from south africa
I rather see a statement of faith manifested through the person of Jesus Christ rather than the other way around. Everyone on the planet knows about Jesus. Action speaks louder than a statement.
Rev. Rudi
Perhaps he doesn’t do this because he doesn’t want you to label him (As in group him as believeing in a baptist, apostolic, pentecostal doctrine, etc….. he just preaches the Gospel of Jesus that’s it). As with any preacher, you should know the Word for yourself and not just accept what they say…… I’m from America but I have been attending Ruach for the past couple of months while i’m in London for school and it is really a blessed and high time in the Lord…..
Alana
GodsGirl
I think its true, lets make Jesus the centre of our ministries, Jesus should be our main focus!! Let’s point people to him!!
what does bishop think about the sabbath
Why is everyone centered on Bishop and what he believes? Is he the mediator between God and man? Instead of focusing on Bishop, I suggest that we focus on ourselves and work out our own salvation. We see through a glass darkley, so why continue to focus on things outside of ourselves (people, places and things) and neglect Christ within us. I suggest that you take on Apostle James Brown words and “Get on the Good Foot” and be the GOOD NEWS through Christ in YOU. Rev. Rudi
Rev. Rudi – Maybe this person is just wanting some advice on the Sabbath and asking if anyone know’s what Bishop Francis view is on this? It doesn’t mean she’s not looking to Jesus, she’s just wanting someone elses viewpoint.
There’s no need to go all preacher man on someone asking questions like this. Your response does not reflect the character of Christ (in my opinion) so I would advise that you see how Christ answered questions like this and look at Christ in YOU.
Some of us look to preachers/teachers etc for advice to help us to better understand the Bible and responses like yours do not help.
As in Jesus’s day, many did not recieve him even though his statement ‘could be’ described as the Messiah and Saviour of the world. Jesus asked his disciples “who do men say that l am” and some had thier own revelation of who they thought he was. There are many churches that state their faith statement and dont practice what they preach…. I believe that when you are “led by” the holy spirit, he will lead you into ALL truth. Ruach ministries like many others, has been a Godsend in my personal life. The Pastors preach Christ and the power of repentance without compromise, and that’s what the body of Christ needs to hear!! Much love to this house !!
p.s…. I have been attending Ruach ministries for the last 18mths, and have experienced healing, confirmation of prophecies that God has given me years ago and total JOY !!.. I will be taking up membership by the end of the year, and l am in “expectant ” of the manifestations of the promises of God
Just to say that Bishop Francis does know about this page… He addressed it this past sunday during Ruach’s 3rd sunday service @ 12:30pm… He isn’t interested in being put in some kind of theological/doctrinal/denominational box… All he’s interested in is preaching the gospel & saving grace of Jesus Christ!
By the way, Ruach do have “doctrinal beliefs”, however, their focus is on getting people saved & showing folk how to develop a relationship with God. Not to be hung up on doctrine.
God Bless.
“Not to be hung up on doctrine”
Doctrine is VERY important. It is your doctrine that determines what you believe about the gospel and salvation and even the person of Christ
http://realchristianity.wordpress.com/2007/09/06/how-important-is-doctrine/
Please do not assume that everyone believes in the same Jesus. It is important to know what a church believes. Would you want to go to a church who had no statement only to find out that they didnt believe that Jesus is God?
Isn’t it ironic the way Jesus didn’t even want to tell people who He was or brag about the miracles He perfomed.He saw the Pharisees coming from a mile off they wanted to trap him and used doctrine rather than the WORD.But He answered them always with the WORD not doctrine but the WORD.
Doctrine is a mixture of man made points of view but the WORD is all GOD.So if you want to know the faith statement of the ministry it’s all in the name RUACH…….
Ta
So Bev, are you telling me that the faith statement of Ruach is ‘the breath of God’. And that is it??. That alone is not mich of a faith statement.
You confuse me when you basically say that we dont need doctrine but the word of God. To know the word of God you actually NEED doctrine. Doctrine is just another word for teaching
2 Timothy 3:16 ALL scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for DOCTRINE, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. (Emphasis added.)
1 Timothy 1:9-11
9 We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound DOCTRINE 11 that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.’ (Emphasis added)
2 Timothy 4:3
‘For the time will come when men will not put up with sound DOCTRINE. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.’
Romans 16:17
Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the DOCTRINE which ye have learned; and avoid them.
1 Timothy 1:3
I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false DOCTRINES any longer.
Titus 1:9
He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound DOCTRINE and refute those who oppose it.
Hebrew 13:9 Be not carried about with divers and strange DOCTRINES. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
Bev, do not belittle doctrine. How do you know what to believe in? Isnt it because of the teaching (doctrine) that you have received? The bible, as you can see above, places a lot of emphasis on knowing sound doctrine and warning against false doctrine
Alan
You say is that it?? What do you mean that Ruach alone is not much of a faith statement? It is important to acknowledge that the word Ruach occurs nearly 400 times in the bible so do not belittle the word Ruach.
It was the Ruach that overshadowed Mary and brought forth Jesus (whom is the fundamental faith statement of Ruach). Matthew 1:18-21
In the last days the Lord shall pour out His Ruach on all flesh….Joel 2:28
(Isa 61:1a; cited in Luke 4:18)
“The Ruach Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed.
With reference to your comment about needing doctrine we need SOUND DOCTRINE….. Whilst quoting scriptures from Timothy please realise that this was about A.D.63 and the primary purpose of Paul’s visit to the church in Ephesus was to highlight doctrinal errors and give Timothy basic guidance regarding his duties towards church leadership and to teach the people the fundamentals of faith and Sound Doctrine whilst leading an exemplary life. My point in my previous response was that man has a tendency to construct their own doctrinal beliefs based on personal opinion and scripture. Should we base our doctrinal beliefs on what Paul wrote in 1Timothy 2:11 & 12? Let women learn in silence with all submission and I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man but to be in silence…..
Let’s continue to be led by the Holy Spirit whilst He reveals His truths to us… Not by might nor by power but by His (Ruach) Spirit saith the Lord of host, Zech 4:6
God Bless
Sis Bev.
The reason Bro Alan was confused is because you said “we believe in spirit (Ruach)”. That doesn’t mean much. Even if you said “Ruach’Ha Kodesh” it would have meant more, or translated “The Holy Spirit”. Just to say “spirit” (ruach) is meaningless – a lot of religions would say they also believe in spirit.
The Bible exhorts us to try the spirits (1 John 4:1), which is why we need to have doctrine.
Immediately after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we learn that the believers “continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine” (Acts 2:42).
Doctrine was so important that Jesus commissioned us to “teach all nations” rather than just “preach” in Matthew 28:19. It is by the Word that we grow spiritually, speaking in tongues and worshipping alone is not enough to sustain a Christian and keep one grounded spiritually. This is because there are many spirits flying around and we need to identify which are true and which are false.
In Matthew 24 Jesus spoke of false teachers coming. Paul’s major burden was that when he departed grievous wolves would spring up. Jude wanted to write about the common salvation but he was burdened to write that we earnestly contend for the faith once delivered. And Jesus’ words in Revelation rebuke the churches for allowing false teachers dominate. Yes, doctrine is very important for every spirit filled believer. To trivialise doctrine is to become open to the advances of the enemy, who is seeking whom He may devour.
One of the things to BEWARE of is also to rule out the relevance of the New Testament Epistles as you have done. Yes, we need to understand everything in it’s context. But you are in DANGER of saying we don’t need the Apostles all we need is the Spirit and it will reveal new truths to us. Jude says the faith was ONCE delivered – so I don’t expect anything new from a doctrinal point of view. What we need to do is get back to the book of Acts type faith and doctrine and spiritual experience. It was good for Paul and Silas, and it’s good enough for me.
Sis Bev, the Bible says:
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Do you believe that all scripture is given by inspiration of God? If so, are you saying Paul’s teaching is not God given, and therefore not scripture?
BTW: the word “inspiration” here is the Greek. “theoneustos” lit. breath of God – a bit like the Hebrew word ruach.
So Bev, if Joe Bloggs gets saved and he is looking for a church to attend, are you telling me that from the word RUACH alone, he will know what the church believes. Wouldnt it be just easy to write in PLAIN ENGLISH a statement of beliefs. Jesusblogger has covered a lot of the other points already so I will not repeat it. If doctrine is not so important and if the bible is not the final authority, then why are you even quoting scriptures in your reply? All scripture is FOR us but not all TO us and what I mean that we always have to look at the context and we cannot just grab scriptures and make it say what we want it to say. See http://realchristianity.wordpress.com/2007/10/24/ten-rules-of-biblical-interpretation/
Hi Jesusblogger,
I went to Ruach Ministries for three years while studying in London and I can assure you that Bishop John Francis’ church is founded on Jesus Christ and the power of His salvation. I can understand ones need to understand what a particular ministry is founded on because as we know there a lot of ministries that don’t have Jesus as their foundation. But as a person that has attended his church and been a supporter of his ministry Bishop John Francis’ doctrine is definitely sound. I think if you went there you would say the same. I even did discipleship classes and attended their new member classes while I was there and it was all rooted in the word of God, no flesh or man involved. Its been almost 4 years since I’ve lived in London, so I don’t want to quote the wrong fonndational scriptures for the ministry but they were definitely sound doctrine. As for why their statement of faith wasn’t on the website, I’m not sure but I wouldn’t judge them by that especially the Ruach website. As a designer for both print and web often a lack of pages has more to do with not having someone who can manage the pages. Ruach has had a basic page for awhile and I think it’s just because they wanted to have a place online where people could get basic church contact and service information to the public. I know that websites are the standard way of presenting information nowadays but we can’t assume that everyone has the same access to the resources we are used to seeing. Aside from the fact that he is on television and travels around the world ministering the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Bishop as well as the church does a lot of work on a local level, they are dedicated to reviving the message of Jesus Christ to the British people.
You raise a good point.
Well as a person who went there for more than three years, I know that Bishop John Francis preaches Word of Faith teaching. So you say one thing and I say another. Who is right? Well we have to be like the Bereans and check out everything against what SCRIPTURE says (Acts 17:11) and not go on our opinions. Yes they do do good work locally like working with the homeless etc but that is not a good marker to say that the doctrine is good for I am sure that Mormons probably do good stuff too
I am looking for the book, Secret’s of the prayer shawl”. I would like to order it…can you help me?
Greetings Bishop Francis, in Jesus precious name.
I am contacting you as I believe the time has come for me to do so.
Way back in 2006 I dreamt I was taken to the Rauch House. You were standing with 2 other persons at the alter. I was shown the design of this building overhead. Hebrews 8:5.
Then in 2007 I dreamt again I was taken to Rauch with another sister. A service is in progress, at the alter is a table pile high with fruits. As we entered a sister came to us and said “Take 2 fruits each” which we did and sat down. Soon we were on our way home. At the beginning of December the Holy Spirit said to me “TIME & SEASON”.
Two weeks ago I am reminded of the dreams for Reading (Berkshire). I believe God has a plan and purpose for the town and county of Berkshire, “Many dreams and visitors”.
I therefore believe I must meet you in person by God’s grace.
Hoping to hear from you in Jesus name.
Your sister in Christ
Joslyn Beckford (Pastor)
This is not Bishop Francis’ website and I can not confirm he has ever visited The Jesus Blog, it might be best to get in contact through the Ruach website.
If you got to guess my doctine, then I cant really be a preacher (Acts 2:40 2 Tim 3:10 Titus 3:10, 1 Tim 4:6).
In Response to sis Bev
Think about what we should be doing!
Winning Souls by Proclaiming a clear, and concise message of Faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!!
With so many Deceiving spirits and False Prophets around, people who don’t understand words like Ruach, really need to know before they expose themselves to an environment of Worship…
Simply, is this church somewhere Safe, Holy Spirit filled, and professing Jesus as the Only way to God.
John 14:6 (KJV)
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Also could I go there without having to understand GREEK, HEBREW, LATIN ….
Or… will I have to pull out a Bible Concordance to decipher the message of the Church.
Think about the people OUTSIDE of the Church, who need to know about JESUS CHRIST…
Evaluate… What your website actually achieves?
Will people know anything more about Jesus after leaving your website.
Hello Everyone,
I would just ask and not assume. Is there a “Mission Statement” in the Bible?
Blessings,
Lifelessons