Plucking the Eagle's Wings

Plucking the Eagle's Wings

"prince of the power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2). Notice the phrase "the prince of the power of the air." In this text, the Greek word for power is exousia, meaning authority . The air actually has certain authority! Powerful, air-based communication tools like television and radio deliver millions of signals that are converted into messages. These messages can be either for God, or against Him. Satan wants to control these messages with his "power of the air." This battle for the air began in the 1950s as television became popular. Evangelical Christians quickly learned just how much intolerance existed regarding the Bible. Oral Roberts broke the ice with his television ministry of preaching and prayer for the sick in the early 1950s. Roberts taped portions of his crusades to be aired on his weekly TV show. He truly pioneered the work of television evangelism in America. He also received widespread criticism from newspapers, magazines, and television programs for praying for sick people and airing it on national television. Outspoken skeptics felt that Roberts was a shyster who preyed on the weak. But visibly answered prayer before thousands of witnesses was not a sham. I have personally met hundreds of believers who were healed or greatly touched in the early days of Roberts' meetings. Most ministers in the early 1950s used radio to reach larger numbers while Roberts' most effective evangelistic tool was television. Others attempted to imitate Roberts' style, but often failed, ending up in bankruptcy. Roberts experienced severe persecution from the onset of his television ministry and the mainstream media never supported his efforts. As his crowds swelled to as high as twenty thousand people per night, some liberal media personnel saw his popularity as dangerous, thinking such men could become too influential with the general public. The testimonies of healings were ridiculed and Roberts' methods were viciously criticized in print and on television. Some insinuated that Roberts lived extravagantly through large offerings that he received; yet, Roberts was on a salary and the offerings went into the ministry. Instead of attempting to defend himself, Roberts ministered in the 1950s using every tool to reach the lost. The only way to stop Roberts' momentum was by using negative biased media reports. This was done in 1956 in Australia during a crusade. Communist agitators and skeptical religious groups hounded Roberts until he had to close the meeting prematurely and flee the country for fear of violence. Roberts said that the press was ten times 156