Back in January of 2017 a Bible in Dalton, Georgia began to get supernaturally saturated with oil, and eventually it overflowed, dripping and flowing slowly out of the book—enough so that vials could be filled and given away. Eventually it gained enough publicity that those involved with the Bible began to minister locally and around the country, having regular meetings to share what God was doing in and through the oil, to give vials of oil away for free, and to pray for the sick to be healed. However, recent events have brought the Dalton Oil miracle into question—specifically concerns that the entire “miracle” has been faked, and that it was all in fact just mineral oil purchased from a local tractor supply company.
Investigative journalists have done their own research and have already drawn their own biased conclusions in an article titled “Claims that a Bible in Dalton is flowing with oil undermined by new information” I am still on the fence to a certain degree as to what to think about this issue, as I have a somewhat different perspective on the subject than most people in or outside of the church. In my book Gemstones From Heaven I discuss some of the issues with using human knowledge and perspective as a means of testing signs, wonders, and miracles, and will look at the subject to some degree here inasmuch as it relates to the Dalton Bible and its oil. Due to the nature of the topic, this article is longer than most that I tend to write. For those unfamiliar with this miracle, you can read an article I wrote about the initial manifestation on our other website, TheKingsofEden.com here and a guest article from a friend posted on TheRisingLight.com here.
The journalism article posted above speaks about an investigation process into the Dalton Oil miracle, and found that Jerry, one of the Dalton Bible owners has been identified by employees of a Tractor Supply Co. on more than one occasion as buying large quantities of mineral oil over the past few months. While at first Jerry denied the allegations (according to the article), a statement posted on the His Name Is Flowing Oil ministry website on February 14th, 2020 states that he did, in fact, purchase mineral oil, but does not state a quantity or frequency. It also states that this was done without the knowledge or agreement of any other ministry members, but then also states it was never added to any of the miracle oil.
Other interesting details surrounding this controversy include the fact that the Bible only ever produced oil while in Dalton and never while the ministers traveled to other locations, and the fact that according to another statement on the ministry website, posted on Feb 4th, 2020, that the Bible has stopped producing oil and that the ministry will cease meetings after Feb 11th, 2020. The website states “From the very beginning of this sign and wonder we have always considered that God started it, and He can stop it anytime according to His timing and will. If the oil does not begin to flow again, we in no way grieve.” Additionally, someone had the miracle oil tested at the beginning of the year (the document was written on Jan.6, 2020), and the professional spectrography results show it has a similar makeup to mineral oil. According to the article, “A series of chemical analyses by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga of Pearce’s oil compared to the Ideal brand mineral oil at Tractor Supply found Pearce’s oil is petroleum-derived and is a nearly exact match to the product sold at Tractor Supply.”
I want to review the facts stated in the article, add some details of my own, and then share my perspective on both the miracle manifestation of oil flowing from heaven and how this entire controversy is being handled by the His Name Is Flowing Oil ministry. My hope is that this will both shed light on a biblical perspective for how we ought to approach this miracle as well as the controversy, and shed light on how this type of issue can be better-handled in the future, as God isn’t planning on stopping miracles, and the Body of Christ still has room to grow in how to maturely steward this kind of miracle manifestation.
First, it is very sad that anyone’s actions have caused this entire miracle to be called into question. The fact that someone who has been growing in prominence due to a miracle related to oil would buy quantities of it from a tractor supply company (and from what reports say, buy it on multiple occasions) is certainly and undeniably suspect. Further suspect is the fact that once the manifestation was called into question, the accused did not explain what he bought the mineral oil for, but instead apologized that he have brought doubt onto the miracle and yet still affirmed that the miracle was real. In other words, when accused of lying, instead of proving one’s trustworthiness, the individual in question’s public statements have effectively been “Yeah, I did buy oil, but I didn’t use it to fake the oil miracle, and you can trust me because I am telling you I am not lying.” Most people are not willing to accept that kind of answer, and realistically they shouldn’t. If the mineral oil purchased from the tractor supply company was bought for other purposes, it should be very simple to state those other purposes, and preferably prove where possible that it was used for what it was purported to be for. While no one is technically owed an explanation when one chooses to step into a public ministry position there is a measure of personal integrity that can reasonably be expected, and when an individual’s actions call that integrity into question, I do not think it is unreasonable for those affected to expect a rational explanation for what otherwise looks very shady. Failing to explain, or in this case directly avoiding an explanation, only casts further doubt upon the integrity of the individual, and in turn the integrity of the ministry and the miracle.
Second, in spite of the ministry stating that the oil coming from the Bible is a true miracle, it is difficult to believe that none of the oil that was given away was ever faked. While I personally possess no proof one way or the other, I confess that upon hearing about the circumstances, that while I am still waiting for all the facts to be gathered, it is very difficult to believe otherwise. The Bible has been producing oil for multiple years. Can anyone prove beyond a shadow of doubt that none of it was legitimate? Of course not. Thus, for those who want to say that this is a closed-case with an obvious answer (ie. its all fake and the ministry is lying), things actually are a bit more complicated than that.
Third, it can be very easy to vilify someone unjustly in a situation. I spoke with Jerry on the phone about a year after the oil manifestation began and he was a very down-to-earth individual. He was very clear that the miracle was something God was doing and he took no credit for it. He seemed like someone who was genuinely touched by what God was choosing to involve him in, and wanted to share it with people. When some big controversy like this comes up, I think it is important at times to take a step back and look at a number of factors. First, how many people have ever been in a situation where there is pressure to perform a miracle? Certainly many ministers have, but most other people are unfamiliar with the pressure that comes especially with these kinds of miracle manifestations. Until you are in a similar situation, I truly don’t think you understand the pressure to perform and how the enemy can use that to twist what God is doing.
I know someone who once planted gemstones at a meeting to “help God out” and seed the faith of the individuals present before beginning to minister. Mind you, this gentleman was also having a legitimate manifestation of gemstones appearing regularly around him, so it isn’t as though the entire thing was faked. While in that instance the initial gems had been planted, I’m pretty certain they had all appeared from heaven at an earlier date (thus still being real heaven-gems), and the minister has since been very transparent about the failure. I suspect that if (and we still lack incontrovertible proof) mineral oil was added to the miracle oil that it probably was a bad response to external pressure. I don’t think that even if some of it was faked that all of it was. Usually when people make mistakes, it is well-intentioned bad decision-making, and while I do think it is important to maintain the integrity of the miracle (or confess readily if there has been tampering), I also think that external pressure and fear of what possibly millions of people will think if finding out that any of this has been faked only pushes people to hide their deeds instead of being open. Why? Because while of all people the Church should be known for giving grace, we are often those who cast the first stones. In fact, if you recall it was the Pharisees, church leaders of their day, who were the ones pushing to crucify Jesus—and we would be deluding ourselves if we think we have grown past that. Even if a person or persons in the ministry faked part or all of the miracle, I think we could simultaneously expect the truth to be shared and give them grace instead of heaping judgment upon them.
In spite of the unfortunate controversy, I think it can be far too easy to throw out the entire miracle, ministry, and manifestation of heavenly oil and label it all as fake, false, or demonic. I also believe that if we did so, we would be missing out on something important. I know that it is possible for oil to manifest supernaturally. In, fact, there are multiple scriptures that speak of this very thing, so it is well within the bounds of something our Creator is capable of. The Holy Spirit and the power of God to transform the world are both linked in scripture to oil, so it is important that we understand that God actually does want to do oil miracles and use them to help make things on earth as they are in heaven. If we throw out everything about this miracle due to controversy, then the only thing we will get is a hardened heart. The disciples had a similar problem, actually, in missing the message of a miracle. In Mark 8:11-21 Jesus spoke to his disciples about how in spite of seeing a miracle that they totally missed what He was trying to teach them, ending with “Do you not understand? (v21)”. While we need to be honest, open, and transparent about failures, including if any of this miracle was faked, we are in danger of losing sight of what God wants to teach us through this miracle if all we can do is focus on the failures. It is important, now more than ever, that we continue to thank God for the legitimate miracle of flowing oil that He has released, and to ask Him to reveal to us all that He wants to do in our hearts through this sign and wonder.
It is true that someone took a sample of the oil (as best as I can tell at the beginning of this year, 2020) to have it chemically tested. The results (written about here ) say that the oil is petroleum-based and basically are an almost-exact match for the mineral oil sold from the tractor supply company. While some of the test results are disappointing, there is something that I don’t think anyone has addressed so far that is kind of important—and if someone lacks experience with the miraculous it isn’t likely to be something they would ever consider. It’s simply this:
Testing the oil doesn’t actually tell us anything other than its atomic makeup.
We have run into the same problem with gemstones that appear from heaven as well. Because there is no “correct” formulation for heaven-sent oil, identifying its molecular structure does nothing to either confirm or deny the veracity of the miracle—it simply tells us what the substance is created from regardless of whether the miracle is real or not. I’m not saying it is okay to fake things, because it isn’t, but scientific testing of the atomic makeup of something doesn’t in any way inform whether it’s origins are supernatural or not. Let’s use the example of something incredibly mundane for a moment—say a pile of mulch supernaturally appeared in my yard, and then someone tested it and found it was just regular old chips of wood from trees. Regardless of the results of the test, it wouldn’t change the fact that I witnessed a pile of it appear in front of me. People had this same issue with the gemstones. “They’re just fake” or “plastic” or “glass” or whatever. Okay, maybe they are. But maybe they aren’t. I have personally seen gemstones fall from midair with no balcony above me in the middle of a living room with multiple witnesses present who also saw it appear. This particular stone appeared in midair over my head and another person’s, and then fell over seven feet down to land on the carpet. Regardless of what that gemstone is made of, no amount of scientific testing of its atomic structure can change what I saw (To read more about the gemstone miracle, read my book Gemstones From Heaven). Likewise, while testing certainly could reveal that the current oil being tested was in fact faked, that doesn’t mean all of the oil was, nor does it mean that God couldn’t or wouldn’t cause oil to appear that was, in fact, petroleum-based in its chemical makeup. It is limited human-based thinking that says things like “If it was really from heaven then it would . . .” God isn’t required to do things the ways we think they should be done (funny—He mentions as much in Isaiah 55:9), so we probably need to get His perspective on things instead of relying on our own.
One of the things about the gemstones appearing from heaven is that the miracle tested people. I suggest that the oil tests us as well. Even this controversy tests our heart motivations. Will we slander or cast judgments without looking into the situation properly? Will we ignore what God is doing in our midst when things don’t look perfect? Will we choose to weather the current storm and keep our eyes fixed on Him in this issue, or will we allow our fears, suspicions, and negative heart attitudes to rule how we each respond individually in this time.
Now, having said all of those things, including that we need to give grace to those involved, withhold judgmental attitudes, and also recognize that we need a God-perspective when it comes to the miraculous, I also am a firm believer in the fact that we need to grow in discernment of what God is doing, and that integrity is important. To that end, I think that His Name Is Flowing Oil as a ministry is doing a poor job of managing this controversy as a whole, for a few different reasons.
The circumstances surrounding all of this are obviously suspect to begin with, and the near-total-silence from the ministry only makes things worse. The initial new article breaking the controversy was posted on Feb 13th. The ministry website has an update on Feb 14th to address the issue and to explain their perspective, as well as to encourage those whose faith has benefitted in some way from this miracle. I think it was wise of them to encourage people, especially recognizing that many will be disheartened by the news. However, while speaking minimally to it, they largely brushed over the heart of the issue, which is whether or not part or all of the miracle has been faked.
Furthermore, the next update, which came on Feb 19th, says the following: “There are conflicting statements being told regarding the integrity of the oil flowing from the Bible in Dalton, GA. We know the oil flowing from the Bible was a true miracle. We deeply regret that this controversy happened. We want to assure you that the statements are being reviewed by our ministry and steps are being taken to attest to the integrity of the oil. We will keep you updated as more information comes to light.”
The one thing that we have yet to see from this situation is transparency. It honestly is really simple. Either an individual purchased oil that was then added to the miracle oil, or it was purchased and then used for other purposes and not added to the miracle oil. What people really need to hear is what the mineral oil was used for. If it wasn’t added to the miracle oil, why the secrecy?
The Bible is no longer secreting oil, so time-lapse video with reputable witnesses present isn’t possible at this time. Testing the oil, which has already been done, only points to the likelihood that it has recently been faked, and only by testing an early sample would there be a chance of different results, but even then as I explained above, that isn’t conclusive either due to the nature of how these kinds of miracles happen. At this point it is going to be near-impossible to “attest to the integrity of the oil”, and if that attestation was going to come, it really already should have happened (keeping in mind that it is now the 25th, nearly two weeks after the initial exposure of the potential fraud).
I want to add an additional detail about this situation. I don’t recall who specifically told me this, whether Jerry or someone else, but I heard it around the time I began researching the Dalton miracle in early 2018 and around the time I had the phone interview with Jerry. I recall being told that the Lord had told the ministry that so long as they gave the oil away for free and did not charge for the miracle, that it would continue to flow. I will say that they have been very faithful in that regard, and to the best of my knowledge have never charged a cent for it. In fact, I recommended early on that they put a donation button on their website so that people could donate to help cover the cost of vials, shipping, etc. if they felt led, and to date the website still does not have a way to accept donations. While there is a current controversy, it should be fairly clear that this ministry has not been in this for the money. There is no growing series of materials, books, messages, etc. for purchased by this ministry. They do not and have never sold the oil, and you can’t even really donate to them without going out of the way to mail a check or by being at a ministry event in-person. I think this speaks to the overall attempts by the ministry to operate in integrity in stewarding this manifestation, even if it has met with other failures.
The thing that saddens me about all of this is that the oil has stopped. And if I look at this from a prophetic perspective and not an earthly one, it seems that if God said that so long as the oil wasn’t sold that it would continue to flow, that obviously something has still happened—possibly someone “selling out” so to speak even if the oil itself wasn’t sold. Practically speaking I could see that trying to take a liquid-producing Bible on an airplane could be difficult, so God may have given grace for it to produce little or no oil while elsewhere, or to reduce its production at times for practical human purposes, but the oil stopping entirely is more indicative of God having a direct hand in the situation. Given the circumstances, if indeed the oil was switched out then either the miracle stopped a while ago and the mineral oil was purchased to “tide things over” until it started up again and that never occurred, or God stopped it to expose what is currently being exposed now so that the miracles could be free of taint. Again, while I cannot prove any of this, it is certainly how it appears to me if I look at the nature of God and how He tends to do things.
I do hope that this helps bring some perspective to the controversy surrounding this issue, as well as correct some of the misconceptions people tend to have about how God works miracles. If anyone is interested in reading more on miracle manifestations, I currently have written two books on the subject, Gemstones From Heaven and Feathers From Heaven. My interview with Jerry was a result of my work on writing Oil From Heaven which I have not yet completed, and I have other books in the series planned as well. All of these books are intended to help bring understanding, wisdom, and discernment to these miracles as well as help build faith for individuals step into the miraculous in their own lives.
I would ask that we keep the ministry of His Name is Flowing Oil in our prayers, as well as anyone who is struggling over the current controversy. God is exposing much in the Body of Christ, and I am hopeful that whatever needs to be exposed will come to light so that we can continue to walk in the miraculous, and I will also be praying that God brings the fullness of His alignment to both this ministry and this miracle.
