Posted on 12/19/2009 6:37:28 PM PST by marshmallow
Houston, Texas (CNN) -- Joel Osteen strides into the former Compaq Center. Some 20,000 people are standing and singing. Purple lights softly pulse across the ceiling, and mist floats around two giant screens flashing words to the songs.
It's not a pulpit but a podium. It's not an altar but a stage. There is no cross. Instead a huge globe spins, and two massive bubbling creeks flank the stage. A lighting system softens distant corners of the massive arena and spreads colored light and smoke in strategic spots. Somehow, the space that will hold 40,000-plus on Sunday morning doesn't feel like a sports arena.
In the control room, producers watch multiple camera angles and feeds.
Smiling broadly, Osteen bounds up the few stairs to the stage, closes his eyes, lifts his hands and leads a prayer.
"God, I'm going to start this week off in faith. Expecting your goodness. Expecting to have a blessed and a prosperous week. Amen. Well, God bless you. Give him your very best today."
Welcome to Sunday morning at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. It's reportedly the nation's largest congregation and probably one of the most diverse places in America. One third of these churchgoers are Hispanic, one-third African-American and a quarter white. There are dozens of nationalities.
Osteen will give this sermon twice. He later said he knows immediately which segments to edit together into a sermon that will air on television to millions three weeks later.
Between services, he is signing his most recent book in the lobby, just past the bookstore that is one of the highest-grossing Christian bookstores in America.
His wife, Victoria, is co-pastor of the church and a best-selling author in her own right. In fact, the Osteens are not paid to be pastors at Lakewood, according to .............
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
As the saying goes...."no cross, no Christ". A fitting metaphor for the Gospel according to Joel.
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" isn't Joel's favorite piece of Scripture.
Well, at least he doesn’t have any trouble playing his bills.
When you buy his books, you’re paying his bills.
Joel O is a fraud of monumental proportions using Christianity to pack his bank balances by tens of millions of dollars. Will these imbecile followers ever learn?
Amen, brutha!
He actually talks about and personally demonstrates a surrendered life, a committed life to the Lord, and living by faith in God's grace.
Many confuse a Philadelphia church with a Laodicean church. We are living in the lukewarm Laodicean era where Christ's return is imminent. Many who view Mr. Osteen from a distance and/or don't read his books confuse his ministry with the lukewarm Christ-less, faithless, cross-less, bloodless message of the apostate church. (I wasn't sure about him either until God helped me to take a closer look.) His ministry is biblically based, founded on scriptural doctrine, anointed, and infused with faith, hope and love.
The Pharisees of Jesus' day hated him because he didn't condemn people the way they did or follow their religious dictates. They also envied him because so many followed him. Crowds or the lack thereof neither qualifies nor disqualifies a ministry. "By their fruits (not leaves) you shall know them." Inspect Osteen's fruit and see what you come with. Pharisees are notorious leaf inspectors. No different with the Pharisees of today. Our notion of holiness isn't necessarily God's holiness. Jesus is the revelation of the Father and his holiness.
Please backup your words with facts.
Tell us exactly how Joel Osteen is a fraud, of course provide us with links and evidence of such as well.
He and his wife are downright creepy.
If you drop down the page which you had given the link for, you would have seen that story that Osteens saying that Obama loves the Lord. BARF!
I guess no one learned the lesson that Jim Bakker taught...
“He and his wife are downright creepy.”
I agree. I made the mistake of buying one of his books once but no more. Its amazing the number of books he and his wife manage to write and publish every year.
The cross is a symbol of suffering. I'm reminded of a passage from the Book of Wisdom; “If you want to know God, prepare yourself for an ordeal.”
According to Joel......"prepare yourself for the good times".
Just type in “Joel Osteen Fraud” in Google and see what you get!
Heeeee Heeeeee!
“hay, wood and stubble”
joel too positive everything is great for me preacher. i need some fire and brimstone to put me back in my place from time to time. no disrespect to joel just not my kind of message i need
Excuse me, but the cross is only a symbol of Christ’s SACRIFICE for all humanity. The cross is not an idol to be worshipped.
And .. for anybody who is willing to hear, CHRIST IS NOT ON THE CROSS ANY LONGER. JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD - BY THE POWER OF GOD - PROVING THAT JESUS’ SACRIFICE WAS REAL AND HAD A PURPOSE. THE PURPOSE WAS TO SAVE ALL THOSE WHO BELIEVE ON HIM (CHRIST) .. not all those who believe on Joel.
I watch Joel every Sunday. I find his preaching refreshing and uplifting, and I write down all the scripture references he uses and read them for myself.
It’s only jealously to be afraid of a Christian man who owns a huge and fancy arena in which to preach. Such a person needs to be redeemed.
A good key to remember is this: If Joel is from God, nobody will be able to stop him. If Joel is not from God, God is more than capable of shuting him down. The unbelievers of this world don’t have to do anything .. God can take care of it.
Well, what leaps to my mind immediately is his interview with Larry King — when asked about why he didn’t preach about hell, he answered (paraphrased) that his congregation didn’t want to hear about it.
Christ talked about hell.
I have yet to understand exactly how Osteen expounds the Gospel on any level. Does he preach Christ, and Him crucified? Does he preach that Christians are to expect to be hated and tried?
Or, does he preach, “blab it and grab it”?
Just sayin’.
Hoss
Ditto Obama and Muslim lover Rick Warren.
Ghost writers are incredibly cheap.
btt
I don't know about the "Book of Wisdom," but I know the Bible says, "Looking unto Jesus...who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross..."Hebrews 12:2. Joel emphasizes that the hard times now are meant for our good and for a future blessing God has in store. Totally scriptural.
I don’t assume Joel is perfect.
However, I find his sermons Biblical.
I find his small groups work at maturing people in discipleship relationships in authentic Christianity.
I find the rock throwers petty, prissy, often hypocritical, pharisaical and usually rather mean-spirited.
I’ll take the Biblical fruit of Joel’s ministry over the fruit of such bad heart attitudes any day.
I seem to recall that Jesus promised his followers suffering in this life...but that kind of thing doesn’t exactly fill an arena now does it?
It's more than a symbol. Jesus says that anyone who would be a follower of His, must take up his own cross. The New Testament is clear both in the word and in the example of the apostles and evangelists that trials and struggles await those who follow Jesus
And .. for anybody who is willing to hear, CHRIST IS NOT ON THE CROSS ANY LONGER. JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD - BY THE POWER OF GOD - PROVING THAT JESUS’ SACRIFICE WAS REAL AND HAD A PURPOSE. THE PURPOSE WAS TO SAVE ALL THOSE WHO BELIEVE ON HIM (CHRIST) .. not all those who believe on Joel.
Jesus is the head of the Church which is His body. The Church militant here on earth still suffers and struggles and lives out the Passion of Jesus.
I watch Joel every Sunday. I find his preaching refreshing and uplifting, and I write down all the scripture references he uses and read them for myself.
Read a few he doesn't use.
It’s only jealously to be afraid of a Christian man who owns a huge and fancy arena in which to preach. Such a person needs to be redeemed.
Who's jealous? I fear for the Osteen "bubble".
A good key to remember is this: If Joel is from God, nobody will be able to stop him. If Joel is not from God, God is more than capable of shuting him down. The unbelievers of this world don’t have to do anything .. God can take care of it.
On that, we agree.
What sort of a "blessing"??
Moolah?
As a life long born again Christian myself, Joel Olsteen is class 1-A huckster new age fraud.
Just in my opinion, I'd be more inclined to listen to Tony Robbins than Joel Osteen. At least Robbins gives practical advice.
On the subject of "moolah", haven't you ever read, 3 John 1:2 "Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers."
I you don't like it, take it up with God, it's His Word. He certainly won't force you to take what his Word grants you.
Joel Osteen=Christianity light
How about the Christians who were martyred behind the Iron Curtain. What was their problem? No faith?
Osteen's shtick might fly in the air-conditioned comfort of the Compaq Center but it won't fly in the real world.
Many don't like the scriptural message and demonstration of hope and faith in God's love. They killed Jesus because of it.
As the Alumnus of a 3-yr Bible school - I can assure you I have read quite a few scriptures.
And .. it was rude and presumptions of you to ASSUME I had not.
When Jesus said, take up your “cross” and follow me - He was not talking about a literal CROSS - He was talking about the burdens of life - which every person has. But .. to follow Jesus, you have to lay them down (not carry them around with you) and follow HIM, not a symbol.
Non-believers or some who believe evengelical preachers are all bad seeds should read what God has to say about judgement. If we cannot judge - then we need to have a mechanism by which to “judge” people - Jesus called it DISCERNMENT. If more people would tap into discernment (from the Holy Ghost) instead of judgement - they wouldn’t get so cranky about what other preachers are doing.
The only “bubble” Osteen is in .. is one supplied by God, and I believe God is more than capable of sustaining it.
Hebrews 12:2 and 3John1:2 is God’s Word. As I said, you’re going to have to take up your complaint with God.
Wow! Such ignorance. How can you possibly be a conservative.
Amen and Amen!
ROTFLOL!!!!
I don't have a complaint.
I'm just wondering what Joel would say if he suddenly found himself in front of an audience of hungry Iraqi Christian refugees in the middle of the desert instead of a group of Americans luxuriating in purple lighting and fake smoke.
"I see prosperity in your future, brothers.........LOL"
Noticed your tagline. Did you see this thread?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411440/posts
Hmmmm ..?? Ordeal huh??
Then how come the Bible says, “Beloved, I wish above ALL THINGS that thou mayest prosper and be in good health”.
That doesn’t sound like an “ordeal” to me ..??
What ..?? You’d rather hear about HELL instead of heaven ..??
And .. those who have made Jesus their Savior, are no longer interested in HELL, because they are not going there!
But .. of course, if people don’t know Jesus as their Savior, then I suspect they might be very curious about HELL.
As Christians, we wish that for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
And it may happen, through God's loving providence that we do indeed prosper and enjoy good health.
On the other hand, we might find ourselves in a prison cell like St. Paul or persecuted like the Christians who lived in communist Russia.
The Gospel is not a guarantee of earthly comfort.
“I’m reminded of a passage from the Book of Wisdom;”
The ‘Book of Wisdom’???? What the heck is that? Whatever it is, it doesn’t have the authority of scripture.
Tony Robbins is a cultist!
Good luck with that!
Catholics still have it and you can read it HERE.
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