Bill Johnson (pastor)

Bill Bryant Johnson (born July 18, 1951) is the senior leader of Bethel Church, a charismatic megachurch in Redding, California.

Under his leadership, the congregation reportedly grew from approximately 2,000 members in 1996 to more than 11,000 by 2019. Johnson promotes beliefs related to revival, faith healing, and supernatural manifestations—topics that have become central to the global Bethel movement and influenced segments of contemporary charismatic Christianity. In 1998, he co-founded the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry, which has drawn students from around the world and received significant attention from media outlets. Johnson is also an author and itinerant speaker and has appeared in Christian media and documentary films. His ministry has attracted both widespread support and criticism, particularly in relation to theology, charismatic practices, and political involvement.

Bill Johnson is a fifth-generation pastor and has led Bethel Church as senior pastor since 1996, following in the footsteps of his father, M. Earl Johnson. Before Bethel, he and his wife served as senior pastors at Mountain Chapel in California. Influenced by experiences at John Wimber’s conference and the Toronto Blessing revival, Johnson shifted toward emphasizing supernatural ministry, later co-founding the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry, which trains students worldwide. He has three children, and his wife Brenda died in 2022.

Johnson has also gained recognition in popular media, appearing in documentaries like Father of Lights and American Gospel: Christ Alone, and in interviews with CBN and Charisma magazine. Politically, he has expressed conservative views, endorsing Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020 due to positions on abortion, same-sex marriage, and globalization. Johnson opposes homosexuality as a sin, aligning with Bethel Church’s stance on heterosexual marriage, and the church has actively opposed legislation restricting conversion therapy in California.

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