A viral stunt by a South African preacher, Alph Lukau, may lead to several lawsuits after the self-declared prophet claimed to have resurrected a man at his church in Johannesburg, the BBC is reporting.

A group of funeral directors in South Africa have threatened to sue the preacher for a spectacle he put on in which he appears to convince churchgoers that he rose a man from death.

In a now-viral video, Mr Lakau who runs the popular (Alleluia Ministries) can be heard shouting “rise up” to a man in a coffin. The man then sits upright as onlookers cheer.

He convinced his congregation that he successfully brought the man back from the dead.

The video was filmed outside Mr Lukau’s church in Johannesburg.

Since the hoax went viral, the BBC reports say Kingdom Blue, Kings & Queens Funeral Services, and Black Phoenix are taking legal action against Mr Lukau for allegedly staging the stunt and tricking them into being involved.

Mr Lukau reportedly got the coffin from Kingdom Blue and placed Black Phoenix stickers on a private car in an attempt to “look credible to Kings & Queens Funeral Services” when they arrived to order a hearse.

“There are no such things as miracles,” the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities told South Africa’s national broadcaster.

According to several news reports, Alleluia Ministries has backtracked on Mr Lakau’s resurrection claims and insists the man in the coffin was “already alive” when he arrived at the church in Kramerville, Sandton.

The ministry said the pastor simply “completed a miracle that God had already started.”