A.There is a growing trend among denominations and individuals to embrace a doctrine that is know as the “prosperity gospel.”
B.Therefore, let us take this time to consider this doctrine so that we may understand its meaning and its effects on the world around us.
II.WHAT IS THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL?
A.The prosperity gospel is a doctrine that teaches that God makes His believers to prosper in every way, including financial prosperity.
1.The premise of the doctrine is that God desires for His believers to abound in everything, including wealth.Therefore, He will give them everything they desire.
2.According to most who teach this doctrine, the ultimate purpose for God’s blessings to His believers is for the funding of evangelism and other so-called “Christian” works.
3.Some have called this doctrine the “health and wealth movement.”Opponents have dubbed it the “name it and claim it” doctrine or the “blab it and grab it” doctrine.
B.This is not a new doctrine, but one that has been espoused for many years.
1.This teaching has long been associated with certain prominent charismatic and Pentacostal preachers.Oral Roberts taught this doctrine many years ago.
2.Perhaps this doctrine is most commonly associated with television evangelists who have used their followers to build enormous organizations with millions of dollars.
a.Some of these have become notorious by their corruption, such as Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart.
b.Others who have been prominent in this doctrine through television are Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, Robert Tilton, and Pat Robertson.
3.There are different variations of the prosperity gospel, but the essence is the same.
a.Kenneth Copeland’s “Word-Faith” theology has three main tenets:
i.Positive confession – Based on the notion that God will grant anything a believer requests (misapplying Mark 11:23-24), the believer is taught to first visualize his desire and then verbally speak it into existence.
ii.Gospel of health – The sufferings of Christ are taught to have been for the physical healing of believers (a misapplication of Isaiah 53:5).By this teaching, no Christian should ever become sick.
iii.Gospel of wealth – This is the essence of the prosperity gospel, teaching that believers will be blessed with financial prosperity.According to this, poverty is evidence of ungodliness.
b.Pat Robertson teaches the “law of reciprocity,” which is the idea that if a person generously gives of his finances to godly causes, then he will receive even more in return.
c.Some prosperity gospel preachers even teach that both Jesus and His apostles were actually very wealthy (contrary to Scriptural evidence) and that disciples should seek to become as they were.
C.Today, this doctrine has become very popular and is growing in influence in this nation and the world.
1.In 2000, Bruce Wilkinson published The Prayer of Jabez: Breaking Through to the Blessed Life, which caused many people to embrace the prosperity gospel.
a.The premise of the book was that if believers will repeatedly utter the prayer of Jabez as recorded in 1Chronicles 4:10, then they will be financially blessed by God.
b.This book became an international bestseller, selling over nine millions copies.
2.Currently, Joel Osteen teaches the prosperity gospel daily through his television programs and his bestselling books.
a.Osteen and the Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, have the most watched religious broadcast in the country.Their organization receives about $73 million per year.
b.Osteen’s books are wildly popular.For his latest book, Become a Better You, he received a $13 million advance.
3.Moreover, the prosperity doctrine is not just for television evangelists anymore.It is very common even among some denominational churches.
III.DOES GOD PROMISE HEALTH AND WEALTH?
A.Prosperity gospel preachers base some of their teachings on interpretations of the following passages:
1.2Corinthians 8:9 – “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
2.3John 2 – “Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.”
3.Deuteronomy 8:18 – “But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.”
4.Others that were already mentioned are Mark 11:23-24 and 1Chronicles 4:10.
B.On the surface, these Scriptures may at first appear to support some of the prosperity gospel preachers’ claims, but in their contexts, none of these passages teach the health and wealth movement.
1.Let it first be noted that most prosperity gospel preachers make very little use of the Scriptures.Most of their teaching is just inspirational and motivational speaking based on positive mental attitude psychology.
2.For what little Scripture they do use, they take these verses out of context and give false interpretations or improper applications.
a.They make temporal applications of spiritual messages (2Cor. 8:9; Mark 11:23-24).
b.They make overreaching interpretations of simple messages (3John 2; 1Chron. 4:10).
c.They apply to Christians commandments not intended for them (Deut. 8:18).
C.In truth, God has made certain promises regarding temporal blessings for Christians, but He has never promised unbounded health and wealth.
1.The Lord taught us to “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).
a.In this context, the Lord spoke of such things as the daily necessities of food and clothing.He did not promise the finest food and clothing, but only the necessities.
b.This promise is tempered with the expectation of persecution for righteousness sake, which may deprive us of some of these necessities (Matt. 5:10-12).Indeed, many early Christians suffered loss of possessions because of their faith (Heb. 10:34).
2.In the early church, we see how the Lord’s words were fulfilled, for those who were in need were supplied by their fellow Christians.
a.The first church in Jerusalem practiced benevolence toward one another (Acts 2:44-45; 4:32-35).By no means can we consider them to have been temporally wealthy.
b.Later, when there was a famine, the apostle Paul collected funds from the church at Antioch to relieve the saints in Judea (Acts 11:28-30).He did this in other churches later (Rom. 15:25-27; 1Cor. 16:1-4).Again, no one was made wealthy in this process.
3.In truth, God has warned us of the trappings of wealth and prosperity and their effects on our faith.
a.The Lord taught regarding the difficulty for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God (Luke 18:24-27).
b.Jesus warned about greed, saying, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).
c.In a passage that speaks directly against the prosperity gospel doctrine, Paul warned against pursuing godliness in the hope of monetary gain (1Tim. 6:3-10).
i.He commended contentment with whatever we might have, for “those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.”
ii.He warned, “For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil…”
D.The prosperity gospel is not popular because it is true, but rather because it is a message for the itching ears of this generation.
1.We are very blessed in this nation with great prosperity and the opportunity for even more.Because of this, people want to be told that our prosperity is a sign of God’s favor and that it is good to pursue even more.
2.Prosperity gospel preachers have arisen to fulfill the desires of those who want to hear this message.Just as Paul warned, people have “accumulated for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires” (2Tim. 4:3-4).
