What is wrong with the NAR?

A friend recently approached me with questions about the New Apostolic Reformation after they realized the church they grew up it fit the mold of an NAR church. As this person has grown in their faith, they now have a clearer view of some of the problematic theology absorbed while growing up in those specific church environments. Those questions opened a larger conversation about a movement that has shaped a great deal of modern charismatic Christianity without most people even knowing what to call it. It is my hope here to not only put a name to it, but to express why it is Biblically problematic regardless of the good intentions behind the movement.

What Is the New Apostolic Reformation?

The New Apostolic Reformation is not a formal denomination with membership lists, a single headquarters, or an official doctrinal statement. It is a loose, global network of independent charismatic churches, ministries, apostolic networks, and prayer movements. C. Peter Wagner popularized the term in the 1990s. He described the shift he was seeing as “the most radical change in the way of doing church since the Protestant Reformation.”

At the center of the movement is the claim that God is restoring the governing offices of apostle and prophet in the church today. These leaders are understood to receive fresh revelation, strategies, and authority necessary for the church to fulfill its mission. The practical outworking of this vision is often expressed through what has become known as the Seven Mountain Mandate. The idea is that Christians are called to take dominion over seven key spheres of society—religion, family, education, government, media, arts and entertainment, and business—so that the kingdom of God can be advanced on earth before Christ returns.

Major centers of influence have included Bethel Church in Redding, California, associated with Bill Johnson, and the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, associated with Mike Bickle. Lance Wallnau has been one of the most prominent voices promoting the Seven Mountain framework. Many others have been significant in prophetic networks connected to the broader movement so much so that it would be impossible for me to list them all. Further, because the NAR is a network rather than an organization, many people shaped by its teachings do not use the label, and some leaders distance themselves from the term even while sharing its core emphases.

What NAR Gets Right

Much of the appeal is easy to understand. There is a genuine hunger for the active presence and power of the Holy Spirit. The New Testament expects the church to operate with spiritual gifts given for the common good. Paul writes that “there are different gifts, but the same Spirit” and that “to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:4, 7, CSB). The early church lived with a sense of mission, boldness, and awareness of spiritual conflict (Acts 1:8; Ephesians 6:10–18). Many believers in these circles also rightly desire the church to influence culture rather than withdraw from it. Jesus called His followers to be salt and light (Matthew 5:13–16). These instincts are not the problem. A living faith should expect the Holy Spirit to work in power.

The desire for revival, for people to encounter God in tangible ways, and for the church to look more like the book of Acts is understandable and, in many ways, healthy. The difficulty is not the hunger. The difficulty is the theological and structural framework that has been built around that hunger.

The Core Problem: Authority and New Revelation

Historic Protestant conviction holds that the faith was once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3). The apostles and prophets of the first century laid the foundation of the church. Paul says the church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20, CSB). Their unique role was eyewitness testimony to the risen Christ and the delivery of the authoritative message that is now preserved in Scripture. Once that foundation was laid, the ordinary ongoing offices of the church are those of pastor-teachers and elders, who equip the saints and guard sound doctrine (Ephesians 4:11–16; 1 Timothy 3; Titus 1).

Scripture itself is sufficient. “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17, CSB). There is no need for ongoing foundational revelation that adds essential strategies or truths the church must have in order to fulfill its mission.

NAR teaching typically places modern apostles and prophets in a governing role and treats their words as critical new revelation. Prophetic claims are often described as fallible or conditional, yet the biblical standard remains clear. “When a prophet speaks in the LORD’s name, and the message does not come true or is not fulfilled, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him” (Deuteronomy 18:22, CSB). Failed predictions, specially around political outcomes, specific healings, or end-time timelines, are frequently reinterpreted, spiritualized, or quietly set aside rather than rejected. Over time, this quietly shifts functional authority from the closed canon of Scripture to living leaders who claim ongoing access to new revelation.

Jesus warned that false prophets would be known by their fruit (Matthew 7:15–20). Rapid growth, powerful experiences, and cultural energy do not override that test. The New Testament repeatedly calls the church to test what is claimed in the name of the Spirit. The Bereans were commended because they “examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:11, CSB). Paul instructed the church, “Don’t stifle the Spirit. Don’t despise prophecies, but test all things. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:19–22, CSB).

Practices and Consequences

The authority problem shows up in concrete practices that shape how people pray, hear from God, and relate to leaders. One common emphasis is strategic-level spiritual warfare and spiritual mapping. Certain cities or institutions are treated as under the control of territorial spirits that must be identified and bound before the gospel can advance. While the New Testament teaches that believers wrestle against spiritual forces (Ephesians 6:12), it does not instruct the church to map demonic hierarchies or treat geographic strongholds as the primary obstacle. The focus remains the proclamation of Christ and faithful obedience.

Another frequent practice is “apostolic covering.” Leaders or churches are encouraged to submit to a recognized apostle for protection and alignment. This often creates a hierarchy in which disagreement is treated as rebellion and accountability flows upward rather than to a plurality of local elders (Acts 14:23; 1 Peter 5:1–4). Schools of supernatural ministry and activation exercises train people to prophesy and heal by prioritizing immediate experience. Paul told the church to weigh what was said (1 Corinthians 14:29), yet practice frequently outruns careful testing by Scripture within the NAR.

These patterns have produced real harm. Churches have divided. Families have been strained. Individuals have walked away from faith after promised healings or breakthroughs failed. The pressure to act on prophetic words can leave people carrying guilt for outcomes they were told God had already secured. My friend who first raised these questions has walked through the slow work of untangling some of that harm: teachings once received as normal later proved to rest on assumptions Scripture does not support. Recovering a healthy expectation of the Spirit’s work while rejecting unbiblical authority takes time and a renewed confidence that Scripture is enough. When practices consistently outrun the Word, the damage accumulates, quietly in some lives and more visibly in others.

A Better Balance

I am baised here, but I believe Calvary Chapel (among others) has, for decades, modeled a healthier path. The gifts of the Spirit are real and usable today. God still works in power. Healing, prophecy in the sense of Spirit-prompted encouragement and insight that aligns with Scripture, and other gifts are not dismissed. At the same time, every gift and every claimed word must be tested against Scripture, and ultimate revelation is closed. The written Word remains the final authority. Passion for the things of God and submission to that Word belong together. This balance protects both the expectation that the Spirit moves and the conviction that He will not contradict or add essential new revelation to what He has already given.

This approach does not require cynicism. It simply insists that the same Spirit who gives gifts is the Spirit who inspired Scripture and who points always to Christ. When gifts are exercised under the authority of the Word, within the accountability of local church elders, and for the building up of the body, they serve their biblical purpose. When they are elevated above Scripture or attached to unaccountable governing offices, they become dangerous.

These distinctions matter in ordinary church life. They shape how we evaluate conference speakers, worship music that carries certain theological assumptions, and prophetic words spoken over individuals, families, or nations. They affect how we respond when a leader claims unique apostolic authority or when a ministry insists that receiving their particular revelation is necessary for breakthrough. The safest path is not to quench every expectation of the Spirit’s work. It is to remain eager for God to move while remaining anchored to the faith once for all delivered.

Stay Hungry, Stay Submitted

Stay hungry for the living God. Desire the gifts He gives for the building up of the church. Pursue His presence. Expect Him to work. But never seek the gifts more than the God who gave them. The Spirit’s work is to glorify Christ and to point us back to the finished revelation of Scripture, not to replace it or stand above it.

When the church keeps that order, passionate about the things of God, submitted to the authority of His Word, the result is both power and protection. We are free to welcome whatever the Spirit genuinely gives, and we are guarded against the errors that have wounded so many. That is the faith once for all delivered to the saints. It is worth contending for, and it is more than enough.