November 22, 2010

The Popularity of the Prosperity Gospel

Can you see the difference in the message of the inspired Word of God as opposed to the message of the prosperity scammers? In the Word, being the best, working hard, trying to get ahead, improving your station is motivated by the very understanding that it is actually God for Whom you are working.
"What so ever you do, do wholeheartedly as unto the Lord knowing that is HIM that you serve."

In trying to "shine" it is for the very purpose of reflecting the brilliance of God. It is knowing that what you do and how you do it is important to God and that what you do truly is a reflection on Him! It is all about God. The prosperity hucksters make it all about YOU. And now you know why they have some of the biggest churches and best selling books around!

November 12, 2010

"Don's" question answered re: the New Age Movement and Biblical Promises (see previous entry for background)

Don, thank you for your question. I wish we had this interaction before my book went to the publisher as your question illustrates one of the salient points of my book. One of my chapters is "The Precarious Nature of Prosperity Proof Texting"

The chapter synopsis says:
Where the prosperity gospel falters is that its development from the Scriptures is with utter disregard for any semblance of systematic, biblical theology. It fails to understand the Bible as a whole allowing the Bible to interpret the Bible. Jumping in and out of books, chapters, and verses, with utter disregard for context in the immediate with respect to the whole revelation of God to mankind, is the root of all aberrant beliefs in every age. What makes them so pernicious is that there is almost always a bit of truth contained within the "proof texts" giving them an air of plausibility.

Citing Joel 3:10 with your question is a perfect example. You cannot divorce Joel 3:10 from the context of the situation. namely God's judgment is promised to fall on the nations when they are gathered against God's people. This is a reference to the future days of the "End" but has relevance for the days of Joel as well. The statement you quote is expressly from God to His people related to the battle that is to come. when those nations gather against God's people, God will be the One fighting with them and for them. that changes everything! So in light of God's great promises for these coming battles, He--GOD--commands even the weaklings to be brave; with God for them, they will be strong and victory is assured.

Don--this is a far cry from simply tearing one verse out and using it as some kind of mantra. "Speaking it" over and over or even with great faith is not what makes it true; what makes it true is that God orders it with the specific application to the coming scenarios of Joel chapters 1 and 2.

Pastor Osteen no doubt means well--but is abusing the Scriptures'. He writes in chapter 1 of Your Best Life Now pg. 3 "We have to conceive it on the inside before we can ever receive it on the outside." "It" he goes on to define as anything your heart desires. In the context of his own words of chapter 1, he is referring to his dream home! He continues on pg 8. Referring to he and his wife's desire for this home he writes--"We kept believing it, seeing it, and speaking it."

The foundation of the New Age Movement was "you can create your own reality by envisioning what you want and bringing it into existence essentially through your will power since we are all wired into the "great divine" meaning we are all gods.

My friend, thank you again for allowing me to explain the destructive nature of today's "prosperity Gospel."

November 02, 2010

Prosperity Preaching or New Age Thought?

In my upcoming book, The Proper Pursuit of Prosperity--I delineate the similarities between the New Age beliefs of Shirley McClain and others with one of the most renown prosperity preachers today--Joel Osteen.

These are two of Joel's latest tweets:

Enlarge your vision for bigger dreams and higher things. Once you conceive it on the inside, you can receive it on the outside!

Believe and declare you will see every dream, every desire, every promise God put in your heart come to pass!


This isn't biblical theology--this is shamanism plain and simple. Learn more in my new book when it's released!