Kenneth Copeland: ‘They’ll Never Be the Same’
Then Roberts asked Kenneth Hagin and T. L. Osborne to pray over Copeland, which they did, finally sensing a “breaking” of the thing Roberts said he felt in his spirit needed to be broken.
Copeland responded, “I commit, in the name of Jesus, that I will not withdraw from any man, beast, nor devil. And I re-declare we will win a minimum of 50,000 souls to Jesus in eight days. The nation of Manila (sic) will come to the Lord and be broken to its knees in repentance … .”
Copeland had been feeling the Lord wanted him to minister overseas, but he didn’t know how. He sought out Lester Sumrall of South Bend, Indiana, who has had great success overseas as well as in America. Copeland and his wife, Gloria, went to South Bend and after ministering in Sumrall’s church asked to be anointed for overseas ministry.
Sumrall anointed him, then prophesied over him. Copeland meanwhile went down “under the power.”
A few months later when Sumrall was in Manila, he rented the Araneta Coliseum and arranged for the Copeland meetings to be sponsored by Bethel Temple, a great church in downtown Manila. Bethel Temple founded by Sumrall back in the early 1950s, is pastored now by Lester’s nephew David Sumrall. Later, Lester Sumrall organized a tour of 225 Christians—including me—who accompanied Copeland to the meetings.
Meanwhile, Copeland raised $140,000 from his USA supporters and got his thousands of people to promise to pray for the meetings. In a letter to his donors Copeland repeated the prophecy he made at the camp meeting that the eight-day crusade would result in more than 50,000 people finding Christ.
He sent Associate Billy Rash to Manila two months ahead of time. Rash sent back reports of a woman who had been blind for years receiving her sight in a meeting they held in Manila. He told Copeland to expect even greater things.
By the afternoon before the crusade began, Copeland told me his faith was even stronger. There would be 50,000 saved not in eight days, but in the first two nights alone.
The Copelands went to Manila a day early, because their friend Dr. James E. Johnny Johnson, former Under-Secretary of the Navy in the Nixon administration, had arranged an audience with Ferdinand Marcos, president of the Philippines (Johnson had been stationed at one time at Subic Bay outside Manila, and was personal friends with President Marcos).
They talked with Marcos for 45 minutes about various things—especially the new Reagan administration which had been in office just a few days. Then Johnson asked the President if Copeland could pray for him.
Copeland told President Marcos, “I believe the greatest thing we can do for you is to pray that God will sustain you in your high office and enable you to administer it as God’s gift.”
Interestingly, Copeland didn’t share in the meetings about his visit with Marcos. It was too personal, Copeland said.
The 225 English-speaking people on the tour paid $1,500 each to be a part of the crusade. The group did some sightseeing, stopping overnight in Tokyo on the way over, and in Honolulu on the way back. But mainly they came to Manila to help Copeland minister.
Most of the people were Americans. The rest were from Canada, New Zealand, Scotland and Australia.
Many in the group were ministers and wives, who took opportunities to preach in various parts of the Philippines. Others went into the slums of Manila to hand out thousands of small fliers in English by Kenneth Copeland on topics like “Prayer That Brings Results.”
One group of ministers—Ed Dufresne, Happy Caldwell, Wylie Tomlinson, Sam Carr, Jerry Wright, Bill Grein and Jerry Curtis—went to various parts of Manila including a place called Tondo, translated meaning “where the garbage is laid.”
The tour members who visited the poverty-stricken areas or who ministered to the Filipinos said they were deeply moved by the experience. Many said they’d never be the same. Most said they wanted to come back.
But others on the tour spent their days shopping, taking bus tours to points of interest in Manila or attending two daily teaching sessions at Manila Bethel Temple held in conjunction with the Copeland Victory Crusade. Gloria Copeland taught each morning on healing; Lester Sumrall taught each afternoon on faith.
When asked to hand out tracts or minister in Manila’s slums, some in the tour group declined, saying they preferred to get “the teachings,” an attitude that irritated the ones who had been touched by the need for ministry in Manila.
Every morning at breakfast, I’d pick up the latest stories about what the tour members were doing. My favorite was from an attractive middle-aged American lady who spent several days sunning at a Filipino resort for the very rich several hours north of Manila on the China Sea. She had some connections with the family of the first president of the Philippines. This family was her host at the resort.
She met there a handsome young descendent of the former president, whom she felt should be a future president of the Philippines. She asked if she could anoint him with oil. She told me later she felt like Samuel sent by God to anoint Saul for kingship.
Copeland asked to meet with the tour group in the Manila Hilton where we stayed the afternoon before the meetings began.
“We didn’t put together this tour for sightseeing,” Copeland told them. “This is a team to witness and pray and to bring the power of God to bear on what will come about.” Then, he and Gloria, along with Lester Sumrall, laid hands on each of us to impart—as Copeland put it—”the same anointing to heal the sick and perform miracles that he had.” As he touched us, several people went down “under the power.”
Then, Sumrall interpreted a message in tongues: “These meetings are of Me, saith the Lord. I will bless them. You shall bless the Filipino people and cause faith to raise up.”
A woman from Jacksonville, Florida, stood and said, “We love you Kenneth and Gloria. We’re standing with you; you won’t be ashamed of us. We believe we’re standing on the brink of destiny.”
A few hours later, some may have wondered if she was right.
The 225 tour members were ushered that evening to the front center section of the mammoth 370,000 square-foot coliseum designed to seat 24,000. Many had expected the place to be packed. After all, more than 400,000 leaflets had been distributed. There had been announcements on Manila television stations.
And, a large ad that morning in the leading Manila newspaper advertised the meetings with a headline that read: “Jesus is Lord of the Philippines. Kenneth Copeland Victory Crusade. Feb. 1-8, 7:00 p.m. Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Philippines. Preaching. Music. Miracles. The public is invited. All seats free … .”
But the place wasn’t full that night. There were only 4,183 by actual count at the gates by the coliseum superintendent.
Copeland told me later he was stunned at the poor turnout.
After all, previous meetings had drawn tens of thousands dating back to the early 1950s. For example, in 1955, Oral Roberts held meetings in which 40,000 people reportedly attended every night for six weeks. Local radio stations carried daily reports and then President Magsaysay reportedly told Roberts the only answer for the Philippines was Christ.
Three years earlier, in 1952, Lester Sumrall had held his first great meeting in Rizal Stadium sponsored by Youth for Christ. Hundreds were saved that year.
Out of these huge meetings many Full Gospel churches like Sumrall’s Bethel Temple were started.
Later, men like Rex Humbard, Ernest Angsley and Jimmy Swaggart drew tens of thousands when they went to Manila. Ironically Swaggart supporters were handing out fliers promoting Swaggart meetings to be held six weeks later as people left Copeland’s services.
But Copeland’s initial service was anything but a success. The arena was 84 percent empty. His prophecy of seeing 50,000 won to Christ in two days was obviously wrong. What now?
If Copeland was disappointed, it didn’t show. He sang several upbeat songs with his band backing him up, and told the Filipinos the meetings were “a love gift from your brothers and sisters in the United States” (which brought applause).
He thanked the Filipino people for “releasing your faith, along with the body of Christ in the United States concerning the release of the hostages” in Iran, only two weeks before.
Then he prayed for the nation and government of the Philippines, interceding for President Marcos, his wife and high government officials. Copeland preached that night a powerful message on “Jesus the Jubilee,” from Luke 4.
“Jesus was telling the sick people they did not have to be sick any longer. He was telling the blind they did not have to be blind anymore,” Copeland said. “To the brokenhearted He was saying, ‘You don’t have to be brokenhearted.’ To the captives He was saying, ‘I’ve come to set you free.’ The Jubilee has come and His name is Jesus!”
After preaching for 45 minutes, Copeland seemed unsure how to end the service. Seriously ill people already had been brought to the front of the coliseum to be prayed for.
Then, like Kathryn Kuhlman used to do at her miracle services, Copeland began calling out illnesses and healings: A ruptured right eardrum is healed; a bad throat is better; someone’s back is healed; lungs are being healed. So are nerves.
