MORIEL MINISTRIES - By James Jacob Prasch - April 26, 2015
It is with a combination of sadness and joy that we learned Philip Powell, former General Secretary of the Australia Assemblies of God, went to be with The Lord early Sunday morning 26th of April following a battle with cancer.

Philip was pastor of a church in Brisbane, Australia and directed CWM Ministries in Australia, The UK, and New Zealand after leaving the Assemblies of God establishment due to its deviation into apostasy that included ecumenism, dominionism, the Toronto/Pensecola delusion, psychologisation, and money oriented preaching - all of which Philip bravely and staunchly opposed, often at tremendous personal cost, in favor of a more scripture based and Christ centered expression of Pentecostalism. Over the decades Philip had been pastor of churches in both Australia and the UK as well as a time spent in ministry in New York City.

Philip Powell came from a conservative but lively Welsh Pentecostal tradition in the school of Hedley Palmer and Clifford Reese, Aeron Morgan, and Philip's uncle David Powell, one of the the most powerfully gifted and insightful Pentecostal preachers of the 20th century as Aeron Morgan was its premier British & Australian exegete. Witnessing the departure from solid doctrine and standards of holiness that framed the early Pentecostalism he came from and so loved, Philip often stood almost alone as a voice of warning. Philip Powell realized that the Branhamite and Kenyanite insanity that was soundly rejected by early Pentecostalism as heretical was repackaged and relabeled and had become mainstream within most of modern Western Pentecostalism in the English speaking world. This won him the admiration of many bewildered believers as well as the angst of the religious establishment he resigned from that likewise rejected him. In the end, like the Hebrew prophets of scripture Philip was vindicated by The Lord and by history. The denominational figures Philip openly challenged for misleading the people of God from Elim's Ian Bilby and the Assemblies of God leader Wayne Hughes in New Zealand, to Frank Houston at Hillsong and Jim Williams in Australia and Thomas Trask in the USA, and various others ended in public scandal widely reported in the secular media just as Philip warned would transpire if they failed to repent. The high profile aftermath of these hyped up trends where the media exposed scandals that Philip and a few others with him prognosticated and earnestly tried to prevent rather than the "revivals" their proponents who opposed Philip Powell's objections promised. In this Philip Powell's rejected caveats proved to be in some sense demonstrably prophetic. The last 25 years of Philip's temporal life read almost like an Old Testament narrative of a rejected prophet of Israel whose predictions became undeniably true. Like Larry Thomas in the USA, Philip's attempts to avert these scandal clad disasters did not succeed, but he succeeded in doing what The Lord called him to do. As we can likewise say of Jeremiah, Hosea, and Amos - "they should have listened to him".

While usually on the same page on most issues, it would be hypocritical of us not to recognize that there had been certain points where Moriel and CWM were not congruous and where Philip Powell and I (Jacob Prasch) disagreed. This was however not the norm and at the close of his temporal life Philip Powell & Jacob Prasch were amicable as both brothers and friends. On a personal note I shall never forget the troubled era when the counterfeit revivals avalanched like a demonically orchestrated maelstrom of error and deception when Philip Powell and I stood shoulder to shoulder and back to back on platforms together in Australia, Britain, and New Zealand. Philip was a commander in cadre of moderate Pentecostal and Charismatic preachers and authors who were outnumbered and ostracized for what Pentecostal Executives came to consider to be the unpardonable sin: 'telling the truth'.

Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for the ministry of CWM and for Philip's church and its eldership in Brisbane including Brothers Frank Turvey and Jeff Pitman.. Above all we request prayer for Philip's dear wife Kath and his family.

May they know the consolation of Jesus during this time of temporary separation and bereavement. Philip did a thankless job he never asked for because that is what God told him to do. While I certainly express my condolences to his beloved Kath and his family, Philip did that job God assigned him that neither Philip or anyone in their right mind would ever want and in the strength of The Lord he now has finished that all but impossible job and simply gone home to a well deserved reward in Christ Jesus.

Now that he is in glory awaiting us with Jesus, whenever I recall the legacy of Philip Powell in the future - that one maxim will be repeated as summing his legacy up in just one sentence: "They Should Have Listened To Him"!

Original Post on the Moriel Ministries Website
http://moriel.org/MorielArchive/index.php/discernment/church-issues/rev-philip-powell

Christian Witness Ministries > Philip's Blog - By Jeff Pitman - April 26, 2015

An email received Sunday 26th April 2015 at 12:13pm from Brother Jeff Pitman.

Good Morning Brothers and Sisters
Greetings in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
It is with blessed Hope I write this morning, to let you know that your friend and fellow pastor, Philip Lewis Powell has escaped his tent and has met with His Saviour over on the other Shore.At 3:42am Brisbane Australia, this Lord's Day, Sunday the 26th of April 2015, the call was given and Philip answered.
I know each of you held a place in Philip's heart, as you worked with him as fellow Bond Slaves and errand boys, to bring Glory to God in the name of Jesus.
On Behalf of Kathleen and the Family (Powell and Pitman), Thank you for your continued prayer, friendship and labour in the Gospel.
The CWM family here and abroad, by God's Grace, will continue to keep our hand on the plough, and not look back, until we all can be in the presence of our Saviour.
I look forward to hearing from you, as you are able, and will keep you updated on the Funeral arrangements here in Brisbane.

Please feel free to publicise this news as you see fit.

Every Blessing in Christ!

Jeff Pitman
(pastor)

Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
https://philiplpowell.wordpress.com/2015/04/26/the-home-call-of-philip-l-powell/

  

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