Over the years, we’ve written a number of articles on the increasingly affirming and ecumenical Max Lucado. Previously, we described Lucado as “fairly orthodox though not without problems,” however, in his neverending slide toward total apostasy, Lucado continues to surprise us at just how unorthodox he actually is.

In previous years, Max Lucado, pastor of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, TX, has always been thought of as a fairly orthodox teacher with a few issues, including a watered-down view of sin and the gospel. Lucado has always been soft on these issues, but in the last few years, he has taken a sharp turn to the left and is embracing a form of spirituality that attempts to bridge the gap between biblical Christianity and progressivism.

Lucado’s drift began several years ago as he began shifting his views on homosexuality. In 2020, he gave a glowing endorsement of the pro-gay, far-left feminist and professing Christian, Jen Hatmaker. Hatmaker has made campaigning for the normalization of sexual immorality her primary mission in life and has a massive following of lost people who endorse her. To make matters worse, she also partners with pro-abortion political groups to advocate for “women’s rights” — read, abortion rights. Bottom line; Jen Hatmaker is nothing more than a voice for Satan himself disguised as an angel of light.

Yet, Lucado joined her in a podcast and sanger her praises, stating “I think so highly of you. You energize me,” and “You bring me in touch with a circle of believers that I might not typically have contact with, you know?”

Since then, Lucado has gone belly-up trying to appease the LGBTQ movement after he offered an apology to sodomites in the Washington National Cathedral for previously preaching against their movement and “harming” them.

But now, according to a report at Church Leaders, Lucado has embraced an ancient rite out of the Montanist charismatic movement—glossolalia. Glossolalia is just the technical term for the charismatic and pentecostal practice of “speaking in tongues,” a practice which is today distorted from the biblical Apostolic gift of tongues. What passes today as “speaking in tongues” is foreign to what was practiced in Scripture. Yet, unsurprisingly, Max Lucado has embraced it. I mean, why not, he’s embraced every other aberrant movement.

Telling Church Leaders that he did not believe he received the Holy Spirit when he was first saved, Lucado says that “speaking in tongues” is now a part of his daily prayer life.

Speaking in tongues is not the “most significant” spiritual gift he has received, but Lucado said it is “a significant gift…And this will surprise a lot of the audience.” The pastor said he had assumed that he had received all the spiritual gifts that God wanted him to have. But 1 Corinthians 14:1 says, “eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit,” so Lucado prayed, “Lord, is there any other gift you desire for me?” After praying that prayer every day for several weeks, one morning Lucado began praying in a “heavenly language.” 

“I had been taught those languages were discontinued, and I really am not raising this topic so somebody can send me an email,” he said. “I’m really not.”

Lucado writes about his journey toward speaking in tongues in his book, but he was quick to emphasize that he does not see speaking in tongues as a gift that is more special than any other. “I’m very careful to say that doesn’t make me a better Christian, that doesn’t make me a better believer,” he said. “I don’t ever display that gift…I don’t want to come across like I’ve heard others come across, like, ‘Oh, I’m a super saint now that I have this gift.’”

Below is the podcast where he shared his weird new obsession: