Why I Am "Word of Faith" by Dr. Larry Ollison

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Subject: Why I Am "Word of Faith" by Dr. Larry Ollison Mon Jan 06, 2014 12:05 am

Why I Am "Word of Faith"

by Dr. Larry Ollison

Years ago when our church was new, many people asked, "What kind of a church are you?" Because my background was Baptist and I had attended a Southern Baptist University, but had become a "charismatic" minister, I usually answered, "Our church is a non-denominational, Spirit-Filled, Full Gospel, Word of Faith, Charismatic, Pentecostal church." When people would look at me with one eyebrow raised after my answer, I would usually come back and say, "Pick one of those and we will be fine."

Later when the yellow page man came to get our church advertisement, the only listing he could find for our church was under the "non-denominational" heading. As time went on, I began to realize that everyone's definition of "non-denominational" was not the same. In the phone book and in the newspapers, "non-denominational" had in its listings some churches that believed in speaking in tongues and some churches that did not. Some churches were liberal and some were conservative. I also discovered that in many areas of the country Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses, new age organizations, and eastern religions were listed under "non-denominational."

Non-denominational tells what I am not. That's like having a business card that says, "I am not a plumber. I am not a carpenter. And I am not a car salesman." While it may be true that I am none of these, it doesn't tell what I am.

So, I went on a quest. What kind of a church did we have anyway? Of course, as a Christian minister, I thought the best place to look would be in the Bible.

Once in a deacon's meeting years ago when I was the pastor of a Southern Baptist church, one of the deacons stood up and said, "I'm proud to be a Baptist, because the first Christian in the Bible was John and he called himself a Baptist." Looking back on this, it's actually quite funny. First of all, the word Baptist is a word that was not translated from the Greek text. It was only transliterated. If it had been translated properly, John would have been called "John the Immerser," or "John the Dunker."

Actually, John the Baptist was never a Christian anyway. During his lifetime, the church did not exist and he was living under the Old Covenant. John died before the resurrection of Jesus. There were no Christians on this earth until Jesus put His blood on the Mercy Seat in heaven and became the firstfruits into the Kingdom. (1 Corinthians 15:20; Romans 8:29) By this He made a way for us to follow Him and be a part of His body (the Church).

So, I studied Paul and the evangelists and pastors who were his contemporaries. In Romans chapter 10, verse 8, Paul tells what kind of a preacher he was. And not only did he say what kind of preacher he was, but he told what he and the fellow Christian ministers of the day were preaching. In his own words he said he preached "the word of faith."

That day I decided I was going to be like Paul and the first century ministers. I officially became a Word of Faith minister and our church officially became a Word of Faith church. Since that day, I know who I am and I know where I stand. Word of Faith says what I am.

Interestingly, when you call yourself a Word of Faith minister, there are those who will point and ridicule. One man said to me, "Are you one of those ‘health and wealth' ministers?" It makes you wonder what people expect. Would they prefer to listen to a "sickness and poverty" minister? When someone asks, "Are you a part of the ‘name it and claim it,' ‘blab it and grab it,' ‘lip it and grip it' group?" my answer is, "Yes, of course I am." We must name God's promises and claim God's promises in order to receive God's promises.

So, there you have it. When you look in the phone book or in the newspaper in our area and you see the church listings, look under "Word of Faith." That's where I am.

"But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart' (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (Romans 10:8-10)

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