Experience in first love church Uk / mustard seed chapel international

**BACKGROUND**

Many months ago I was saved/Born again but it wasn't because of that church, when first began to go to it for a few weeks after being invited while unsaved and still habitually sinning, I already began noticing a few off things with how speaking in Tongues were used, how there was a book sold at an inflated price every service where the pastor always went down from a price of £50 to say £30 to £20, couple this with the idea of tithes and offerings.

So even when unsaved I decided to take a step back and evaluate the faith for myself because well, even after all those weeks going I didn't get anything of substance, it felt more like a social club instead of a place of Worship and the preaching more like a stand up show.

In my time away I began to study Christianity look at it's claim and really understand the gravity of Sin, and having to let go of all the habitual willful sin in my life such as the major ones of Pornography and fornication, Gluttony when I full submitted I felt this strong conviction and mourning to confess everything and resist all of those urges and this was at a point where I didn't fully start doing Bible study but study of the whole why Jesus came

This was the changing point after a few months away from that chruch of finding my faith I was truly born again I wanted to fellowship, I wanted to read Bible it was like a burning desire to know more about God, I wanted to study and read more books not only to know the faith but defend it and keep it, with sound doctrine and theology, so Back to First Love UK church after this break where I finally have found Christ I decided it's time to come back to Chruch and since the people there were blowing up my phone I thought it would be nice to reunite and the eagerness to fellowship pushed me to come back


**RED FLAGS IN THE CHURCH**

FLEECING THE FLOCK

And This is where the Problems/issues started to arise with the Chruch, after all my study I naturally got a better level of discernment, for the sake of unity in the body I thought I could overlook the Tithes and offerings, and the Abuse of tongues, even after finding out they taught one of my friends how to speak tongues over video call which is not biblical at all, but it just got worse and worse or my eyes were just made more and more open to the spiritual abuse in the chruch by Gods Grace, They implemented new practices for Tithes and offerings, such as turning on your phone light so that the pastor can see you and that's when the talking starts "oh left side is the one who really wants there blessing" "ushers don't want that blessing where are the lights", this was a big red flag to me the moment scripture came into mind as Our Lord says In

Matthew 6:2-3

"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.
3
But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4
so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

I brought this up on two occasions, and it was a non answer saying it was "just for fun" or "try not to be too legalistic", I'm like ok but it's still a practice that goes against the essence of what Jesus is getting at it is no different from standing up and shouting "I'm giving look at me!", and has strong fleecing the flock vibes


FOOLISH TALK

The next Red flag I noticed was the subtle inappropriate jokes/sexual undertones every time a newly married couple comes after their honey moon, can call me a Debbie downer, marriage is a beautiful thing made more beautiful to me after learning about what it means in scripture but when you have a pastor pressuring them to kiss and say how was the "experience" brings me to this

Ephesians 5:3-4

But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.

This pressure is also done by the same pastor who opens the service taking verses out of context to tithe the "Sow a seed" type of guy, which is also a strange thing they do, they have a pastor begin the service solely to encourage people to tithe and give, and then after the main pastor comes, ends off with a book sale, and then end it with the same pastor at the beginning asking for Tithes and offerings

Beyond that I was still willing to be patient and observe a place of fellowship with brothers and sisters in the faith.

SHALLOW EVANGELISM

In this time I also began to get a greater desire for Evangelism so I joined them on a few outreaches to see how they bring people to the faith and already I could tell it was about getting numbers to chruch, going through a scripts and less about actually convicting someone to seek Christ and evaluate themselves, there was a clear emphasis on come Chruch on Sunday before spreading the Gospel, The Gospel that saves and gives Eternal life was not given as much priority than getting numbers, and in came the sinners prayer a prayer that gives a unrepented sinner false confidence in salvation, which got me thinking on those who say they are saved/born again in the chruch but their life top to bottom doesn't show it and they have no desire to read the bible, the parts they enjoy most are the socializing and going out to eat and would rather spend more time doing that, than searching the word, studying and meditating on it, why not do both things I wonder, yes I know it's by grace we are saved but a good analogy I learned was if I told you I was hit by a truck, and the same day, week or month after looked completely normal, how much more would you change after being hit by GOD The holy spirit that they claim to have, I find it inconsistent to say you speak in tongues but are not bothered to engage with God's word for even 5 minutes a day, is that the Holy spirit really driving you?

DISCERNING A FALSE PROPHET/TEACHER

And this is where the big problems began and is pretty much why I write this post, after Reading one of Dag Heward mills book the Leader of this Church I saw him Praise Kenneth Hagin as anointed Man, so I look up this Kenneth Hagin and I find a Heretical Charlatan and the Pioneer of the Word of Faith movement a False teacher who Influenced the prosperity Gospel which has not only tarnished the image of Christianity but have led so many astray and the fruit of his Teachings have led to even more false teachers such as

Kenneth Copeland
Creflo dollar
Jesse duplantis
Joel Osteen
Joyce Meyer
Benny Hinn

And many more, guess what they say the moment you point that this so called "anointed prophet of God" Kenneth hagin is a false Teacher, "Touch Not my anointed" and be careful when speaking on men of God,

I made it clear to them that's taking the verse out of context when it only applies to only the Patriarchs like Abraham and David and Israel, and by the anointing we all receive by the holy spirit it doesn't make us immune to criticism, that and when the Lord says touch not it specifically means do no harm e.g Kill, what they said seems like it was almost like reflex reaction to deflect criticism and it all started to make sense as in a Handful of sermons the pastors plant seeds with verses such as that, saying don't speak at all of if you have nothing nice to say about a man of God don't say it at all, even somtimes actively talking about those who left the church in a passive aggressive way, well they're gonna have to deal with this because scripture itself says Test all spirits

1 John 4:1
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world

Even after all this on top of evidence given for the heretical doctrines of Hagin, and encouraging them to do research, they don't but they act like it's not there, I continue to do my research and it only Got worse with strong hints of blind pastor worship and blind loyalty,

Dag Heward mills Affirms Benny hinn, Chris Oyakhilome, Duncan Williams, Whom all are false prosperity teachers couple this with him calling Kenneth hagin his father of Faith ontop of him also another false Teacher william branham.

So the man at the centre of this Church Dag Heward mills is surrounded by and affirming multiple heretical teachers who preach a false Gospel and this is who they call a prophet of God.

CLOUDS WITHOUT RAIN

So even while the signs are clear I give him a chance to testify for himself and observe his teaching, I begin to pay attention and watch a handful of his preaching and immediately I noticed how much idle talk and filler it is that strays from actually digging deep or on a meaningful way of the word of God, I continue to observe because as our Lord said to the pharisees but applies to us all when it comes to our hearts

Mathew 12:34-37

34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. 35 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Knowing the human nature to a core that what comes out of the heart in abundance will appear in the mouth such wisdom cause well he made us, so the more I observed him the more I noticed his big emphasis on chruch growth and numbers and being fruitful in the sense of starting a ministry, which on face value is a wonderful thing the gospel should be spread everywhere but then I start to see him with numerous sermons on a "mega churches" and "how to grow a mega chruch", and even in prayer meetings you see his obsession with having mega churches even saying a dead chruch is one with 20 members, his fixation on numbers instead of the substance and centre which is the gospel of Jesus Christ began to make it clear as to why the church evangelism was the way it is, beyond that I was still giving him a chance so we go to the most important thing

What he says about our Lord Jesus Christ, and I begin to see a pattern He always Places emphasis on "Jesus Loves you" and that he saved us from hellfire which is great, but it doesn't go beyond that he will spend a majority of the sermon repeating the same thing "Jesus loves you" "residue of your years" or any punchline he can repeat but rarely of ever going any further into the Gospel and also rarely if ever touches on how we are sinners who need to repent.

Furthermore he will say one thing like "we are not a Chruch of come get your blessings" but does it in a service called miracle service and does the come get your blessings and Miracles at the end,

what made it clear in the end that this man doesn't take scripture as seriously as he should was claiming Jesus is "Half man Half Holy Ghost", our Lord is Fully God Fully Man to get something like that off messes with the whole idea of Christ being the ultimate mediator, God and part of the Trinity I have been looking for videos where he directly calls Jesus God but haven't found some yet, all pastors can make mistakes and grow in learning but he has been doing this for 25 years wrote 70+ books and misfires like that on basic Christian doctrinal foundations

how?

Well cause as our Lord said out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks, and from what I have seen, heard and observed he's a charlatan who takes a light view of scripture doctrine and theology, and is associated and learned from false teachers of the Word of Faith and Prosperity Gospel, he and his sermon's are in essence as said In Jude Clouds without rain they look full of nourishment but are without them, wolf in sheep's clothing, he is either a crafty wolf or woefully misguided.

Jude 1:12
These people are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm—shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted—twice dead.

Matthew 7:15-20
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.


From All of This beloved if you are part of the chruch and haven't gotten another one to Go to DONT LEAVE the true chruch of believers but study scripture discern and stay strong by the power of the holy spirit until you can find another Church and if you already do have another chruch then leave all the churches associated with dag heward mills immediately we are one body, Fellowship and always seek to.

but beware to those who stay, always keep discerning

TLDR
born again saw through the nonsense of Dag Heward mills and First Love Chruch UK, he is a false teacher who associates with proven false teachers and calls the biggest false teacher (Kenneth hagin) a father in faith, discern and don't get wrapped up in the bad Doctrine and theology.