Self-Glorification
When a man claims to be the only “Appointed Son” (yes, capitalized) of God, dresses in white, and boasts of his great spiritual accomplishments, then you know he is false. You also know it when politicians beat a path to his door. What lies people will believe to serve themselves! Yet the truth is always mixed in with the lies of those coming in deception. Our job is to identify and separate the two, so what is valuable is retained, while what is harmful is discarded.
“The king spoke and said, Is this not great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty?” (Daniel 4:30 MKJV)
“And if any man thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know” (1 Corinthians 8:2 MKJV).
Jon wrote to us about another false teacher:
Hi Friends,
Good day, I just visited your website. It’s good that you are exposing False Teachers in our world today.
I would like to report a false teacher named Apollo C Quiboloy. He’s a BIG man here in the Philippines, owning a Global TV/Radio station and a Huge Mansion in Davao. Politicians have been coming to him as he has vast influence to people and worse… he has been proclaiming in National TV that he is the Appointed son of God.
Here is his website: http://www.kingdomofjesuschrist.org/
Regards,
Jon
Victor’s reply:
Hi Jon,
I viewed Apollo Quiboloy’s site and find it as you say – total falsehood. The site glorifies him from start to finish. The man is so deceived.
There are simple external signs for people to watch for. Men of God don’t customarily dress in white and present themselves as beautiful to the world, and they never attempt to impress or be popular with it. They don’t live in extravagance and luxury, expecting the poor to support their lifestyle. They don’t give apologetic interviews and answers to the world, though they may answer questions for those enquiring. More importantly, they don’t contradict the Holy Scriptures with their claims and doctrines.
While Quiboloy is ridiculed and persecuted by many, he is also loved and greatly admired by many. This is not necessarily a reflection on the one admired – the problem is that he accepts their adoration. Not only does he accept it, he loves, encourages, and even expects it. Apollo would gladly be a king in this world. Contrast that to Jesus Christ, Who refused such designs of men for Him:
“Therefore when Jesus perceived that they would come and take Him by force, that they might make Him a king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain alone by Himself” (John 6:15 MKJV).
Jesus would not permit others to worship Him in the flesh. To the rich young ruler, He said:
“Why do you call Me good? No one is good except one, God” (Mark 10:18 MKJV).
He taught His disciples to shun men’s praise, as well. For Him, to accept man’s carnal worship is to betray God.
“And you shall be hated by all for My Name’s sake” (Luke 21:17 MKJV).
“If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you” (John 15:18 MKJV).
Apollo wrongly presumes he has understanding and revelation that others simply don’t have. There are things he says that are true, things we also have learned, but he claims he is the only one preaching these things.
For example, he says, “In the spirit, you are a child of the devil. You don’t know that. Christianity doesn’t know that.” Perhaps you haven’t believed that, Jon, but we have known it, as do others. We are either in the first Adam, from whom we all proceeded, or we are in the Last Adam by the new birth – simple enough. Those in the first Adam are at enmity with God.
As is common with most false prophets, Apollo speaks some truth. He writes, “Then he showed Him all the kingdoms of the world. He said unto Him, ‘Look at the glitter of the kingdoms of the world.’ (Matt 4:8-9) Why did Lucifer brag of the kingdoms of the world? Why did he say that if Jesus Christ would bow down before him and that he would give Him all the powers of the world? It was because he was now the king. Adam lost his dominion when he disobeyed. Anyone that’s given a dominion is a king. It was now in the hands of Lucifer. That’s why he bragged to Jesus Christ about this. Jesus Christ, the Begotten Son, said, ‘It’s not me who should bow down before you. It should be you who should bow down before me.’”
On the other hand Quiboloy preaches false doctrine as well, doctrine we address throughout our site. For example, he repeats the age-old error of the serpent:
“Have you seen a talking serpent? This was a rare breed of a serpent, because he can talk. You know, before Satan came to the serpent through the spirit, the serpent was one of the most beautiful creations in the Garden of Eden. He did not crawl, but stood upright. He was the most subtle of all beasts, which means he was the wisest of them all. That was where the devil entered. He talked to Eve through the serpent. That’s why I call it the serpent seed or Lucifer’s seed.”
Satan is known as the dragon or serpent of old, not as a spirit who came animating one of God’s innocent creatures.
Quiboloy writes, “The first mountain where He [Jesus, the Lion, I assume] stopped was Kitbog. So Kitbog, one day, is going to be a great city. Why would it be a great city? Because we would always remember that the Appointed Son [Quiboloy referring to himself] and the Lion [referring to Jesus Christ] were there; and remember the tremendous revelations I received in that place. It’s very historical.
But if you stop there, you will not be saved either. So the Lion stopped there and talked to me for one year. And I had to sit beside Him and listen to Him every boring day.”
Quiboloy’s focus on his own importance is obvious. And though these are evil things we witness, we know there is a purpose in God’s grand scheme of things being worked out with the ungodliness of man’s self-glorification, idolatry, presumption, and arrogance.
Was the time boring for him while receiving understanding and revelation each day from none other than the Creator of the universe, Who is very Life? If we speak of quiet times on earth, they can be very boring, but if we speak of hearing the Voice of the Lion, Jesus Christ, it is anything but boring. Boring to the flesh, yes, but not to the quickened spirit. There is nothing more exciting or fulfilling that I know of:
“And He said to me, Son of man, cause your belly to eat, and fill your belly with this roll that I give you. Then I ate it; and in my mouth it was like honey for sweetness” (Ezekiel 3:3 MKJV).
Apollo’s experience was not of God, but of his own doing and/or imagination, if not a work of devils. It was not the preparation and anointing of God for goodness’ sake.
Many have been called God’s sons and daughters over the centuries. As John said:
“But as many as received Him, He gave to them authority to become the children of God [sons and daughters], to those who believe on His Name, who were born, not of bloods, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but were born of God” (John 1:12-13 MKJV).
One might speculate that Apollo speaks of the full sonship of God, having overcome (Rev. 2 and 3), something few believers have experienced (read The Three Degrees), but his fruits show otherwise.
His boasts of himself are spectacular and many. For example, he writes,
“I passed the tests of hardship, of poverty, of threat, of losing everything just to follow Him. And the devil would say, ‘See, you would lose everything; even your relatives, even your brothers and sisters. Everyone around you!’ Would you surrender? Just like Job, I said, ‘It is the Father who gave, it is the Father who will take away, praise be the name of the Almighty Father!’
So, everybody was asking me, ‘Why do you call yourself the Appointed Son of God?’ I said, ‘Don’t ask me, ask Him who sent me.’ But if you want to read the fulfillment of my life, if you want to read that I have inherited everything, read Revelations 21:7, ‘He that overcometh shall inherit all things…’ See? What did I overcome? I overcame the serpent seed. Many others wanted to go to heaven and become sons without overcoming anything.”
In a previous copy of The Day of the Lord, he wrote, “Who among you have passed your Calvary? Your model here was in Calvary for five years. Did I pass? Yes, I did and I did so with flying colors!… It is up to you whether you pass it or not.”
I know for a fact that if I have received anything good, it surely hasn’t been by my power, will, strength, faith, understanding, wisdom, cunning, dedication, persistence, virtue, courage, or any other thing. I know of nothing at all in which I have obeyed the Lord by my own power. In everything He has ever asked of me, I have been a miserable failure. I know I am entirely unworthy and unprofitable.
And I’m not the only one of believers who have failed. Abraham failed, as did Isaac, Jacob, Noah, Moses, Joseph and his brothers, David, Paul, Peter, John, Elijah, and Elisha. All humans fail, though in Christ they are victorious. It is strictly the grace of God that gives us the internal victory. There is no human being exempt from this state of being; all have sinned and all need the Savior, from start to finish.
“For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 MKJV).
But Quiboloy boasts of his accomplishments and glorifies himself, as did Nebuchadnezzar, just before he was turned to a beast (Daniel 4). Quiboloy: “Did I pass? Yes, I did and I did so with flying colors!”
As it was with Nebuchadnezzar, so it will be with Quiboloy. You will see the immaculate white suit turned to soiled rags as he passes from his exalting throne to the humiliating grave. Sadly, he will take many with him, but that is their choice and destiny – God’s judgment according to the issues of their hearts.
“For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you” (1 Corinthians 11:19 KJV).
In The Threefold Ministry, Quiboloy suggests that we can overcome by our own will and commitment. He also suggests that anyone can do it, if they really want to:
“So among all of you, children of the Father, I am the only one who did not stop in the middle of the revelations. I continued. I did not commit the mistake of those who went ahead of me. I was given the chance and the opportunity to follow the will of the Father no matter what! I overcame. That’s why He called me His Son. When He calls you His Son, you will inherit everything.”
It seems Apollo believes that even the apostles missed out on becoming full sons, aside from the apostle Paul, this despite Jesus’ promise to them:
“And Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, you also shall sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matthew 19:28 MKJV).
Many years ago, I had a vision: I saw a mortar and pestle, in mid-air, the pestle suspended just above the mortar. Written over the front of the picture were these words: “You are My son; you are My discipline.” This vision was likely in the late 70’s.
I knew God was speaking to me as though it was an accomplished fact. But God called me His son without capital letters. Furthermore, though I have long desired the perfect will of God, I have always felt like I was anything but His discipline; I have found that He is my discipline. So true are the words:
“Faithful is He Who called you, Who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24 MKJV).
Apollo would agree with those words with his lips, giving credit to the Lord, but his fruits tell another story.
Quiboloy also indulges in pagan practices and festivities God hates, like Christmas (the birthday of the anti-Christ) and earthly birthday celebrations (the favorite day of witches, who celebrate carnal victory and longevity). We see that so many things God hates, Apollo practices and teaches in word and deed.
So how, then, can he be the sole “Appointed Son of God,” as he claims? And why would God appoint an “Apollo,” the name of a fictitious god of Greek mythology who was the god of light, of prophecy, and the son of Zeus (another name for, and identity of, Baal)? Possibly Apollo even perceives his personal name as a divine gift and confirmation of his calling.
Now, ironically, he is in the person of Lucifer – the pride of revelations and accomplishments have overcome him.
Isaiah’s discourse in Chapter 14 on Lucifer (“son of the morning,” the king of Babylon) are now all about Apollo, who follows in his father’s footsteps. Instead of overcoming in Christ Jesus, he has been overcome by the serpent.
No, Apollo Quiboloy is not even the least in the Kingdom of Heaven, much less “THE son” or “the FIRST son after Jesus Christ.” We know this by how he sorely contradicts the Scriptures. He declares that after Christ’s days in the flesh, only the apostle Paul experienced anything close to Apollo’s glory. Yet Paul acknowledges that Peter (Cephas), James, and John were equals to him in spiritual authority:
“For He working in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision also worked in me to the nations. And knowing the grace given to me, James, and Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, gave right hands of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we go to the nations, but they to the circumcision” (Galatians 2:8-9 MKJV).
Paul declares that as Peter was sent to the Jews, Paul was sent to the Gentiles. Paul recognized Peter as an equal in God’s service. He goes on to declare the apostles James and John as pillars and recognized their authority as no less than his own. If Quiboloy acknowledges Paul as an overcoming son of God, how about James, Peter, and John, whom he denies to have reached that status?
If Paul, an overcomer, recognized the other apostles as his equals, why doesn’t Quiboloy accord them equal respect? Was Paul mistaken? Can an overcomer be in such blindness? The truth is that Quiboloy is the one in error, full of contradiction, and truly, in his arrogance, he has no respect for the apostle Paul. What’s more, Apollos Quiboloy blasphemes the God of heaven and earth Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Were the apostles the only overcomers and sons of God? Paul wrote to his beloved children in the Lord:
“My children, for whom I again travail until Christ should be formed in you…” (Galatians 4:19 MKJV).
Paul was nurturing believers to be mature children of God (overcomers) 2,000 years ago.
To some in his day, John wrote:
“I write to you, fathers, because you have known Him Who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the Word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one” (1 John 2:14 MKJV).
John was given to speak to the seven churches (Revelation 2 and 3). To those in the assemblies of God, the Lord promised an overcoming, wherein they would be His mature sons and daughters. Does Apollo suppose 1,900 years have passed and only he has overcome? Yes, indeed he does and emphatically says so.
Herbert W. Armstrong, founder of the now defunct Worldwide Church of God, had the same thought – that nothing had occurred in 1,900 years, until him. As Herbert was in delusion, so is Quiboloy in delusion. But many are impressed and deceived by such men, are they not? Men will believe anything but the truth and receive any man before they will receive the Lord Jesus Christ.
“I have come in My Father’s Name, and you do not receive Me. If another shall come in his own name, him you will receive” (John 5:43 MKJV).
“And [Jesus] said to them, You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15 MKJV).
It is of such as Quiboloy that Isaiah writes: “For you have said in your heart, I will go up to the heavens, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north. I will go up above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13-14 MKJV).
It is of such as Quiboloy that Isaiah also declares: “Yet you shall be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. Those who see you shall stare and closely watch you, saying, Is this the man who made the earth to tremble; who shook kingdoms; who made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed its cities; who did not open the house for his prisoners?” (Isaiah 14:15-17 MKJV)
Something I find, however, and must acknowledge, is that many claims Apollo makes can indeed be made by a true and mature son of God. For example:
“I inherited everything. He has given me the Sonship and the Kingship.”
This is declared to be the will of God:
“He who overcomes will inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son” (Revelation 21:7 MKJV).
Apollo says, “If you want to see the Father, see me.”
Not only would Jesus claim this, but all those who come to be mature sons of God have the honor to speak the same:
“And I have given them the glory which You have given Me, that they may be one, even as We are one, I in them, and You in Me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that You have sent Me and have loved them as You have loved Me” (John 17:22-23 MKJV).
Apollo says, “So when you hear me speak, it’s not me that you hear, it’s the Father who lives in me. That’s the fulfillment of John 14:8. Philip was looking for the Father, and Jesus Christ said, ‘Have I not been so long with you Philip, yet you have not known me? He that has seen me has seen the Father.’ (Jn. 14:8)”
Jesus said, “The one hearing you hears Me, and he who despises you despises Me; he who rejects you also rejects Him Who sent Me” (Luke 10:16 MKJV).
Quiboloy says, “I am preaching about Someone whom I have met. And if you ask me where He is, I will tell you where He is. He lives in His Son.”
These are words that overcoming sons of God can speak in all truth and with all justification. They are sons, however, with a small s, not with a capital S, as Quiboloy privileges to himself.
Men look for God and await His coming, yet He did come, and He took up residence in all those who received Him, beginning at Pentecost, ten days after His ascension into Heaven. Thereafter they testified by His Spirit.
But does Apollo suggest that others have not met the Lord? No doubt many with whom he has spoken have never met the Lord, but can he assume that none but he has met the Lord?
The questions before all those who search for God and truth is whether or not Apollo Quiboloy has overcome (Revelation 2 and 3), whether or not he has entered into the Holy of Holies, whether or not he has come to experience the third and final Feast, the Feast of Tabernacles, and whether or not he has entered God’s rest (Hebrews 3 and 4). One must decide whether or not Quiboloy is true or just another pretender to the throne of God. We will see….
“For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad” (Luke 8:17 KJV).
In reviewing Quiboloy’s site, Paul Cohen remarks: “Taking up your cross (according to Quiboloy) means to affirm Quiboloy and to deny Reality. Then you will be in Nirvana, feeling nothing.”
Quiboloy shows mankind another way to Heaven, which leads straight to Hell.
Victor Hafichuk