Posted on 12/27/2015 8:56:51 AM PST by Greetings_Puny_Humans
Joel Osteen and The Prosperity Gospel
(June/July 2009 - Volume 15, Issue 4)
The New Age book and video by Rhonda Byrne, The Secret, which gained popularity recently due to Oprah Winfrey's strong promotion, teaches that we can "create [our] own happiness through the law of attraction." Whether it is cash, health, prosperity or happiness, all can be ours if we will just learn to use "the secret." Byrne tells us, "Disease cannot live in a body that is in a healthy emotional state." But be warned: "If you have a disease and you are focusing on it and talking to people about it, you are going to create more disease cells."[1]
Such rhetoric should sound familiar to anyone even faintly aware of the Word of Faith Movement, often termed "the prosperity gospel." This group has been infiltrating evangelicalism for decades and is now the fastest growing segment of Christianity in the world. Some have estimated that up to 90 percent of those claiming to be Christians in Africa are of the prosperity gospel variety.
Well-known personalities within the movement include Kenneth Hagin (deceased), Kenneth Copeland, Robert Tilton, Paul Yonggi Cho, Benny Hinn, Marilyn Hickey, Frederick Price, John Avanzini, Charles Capps, Jerry Savelle, Morris Cerullo, Joyce Meyer and Paul and Jan Crouch.
As implied by the title "Word of Faith," the supporters of this movement believe that faith works like a mighty power or force. Through faith we can obtain anything we want -- health, wealth, success, or whatever we please. However, this force is released only through the spoken word. As we speak words of faith, power is discharged to accomplish our desires.
In Christianity in Crisis, Hank Hanegraaff summarizes the theology of Kenneth Hagin (considered by many to be the father of this movement) as found in his booklet How to Write Your Own Ticket with God:
In the opening chapter, titled "Jesus Appears to Me," Hagin claims that while he was "in the Spirit," Jesus told him to get a pencil and a piece of paper. He then instructed him to "write down: 1, 2, 3, 4." Jesus then allegedly told Hagin that "if anybody, anywhere, will take these four steps or put these four principles into operation, he will always receive whatever he wants from Me or from God the Father." That includes whatever you want financially. The formula is simply: "Say it, Do it, Receive it, and Tell it."
Step number one is "Say it." "Positive or negative, it is up to the individual. According to what the individual says, that shall he receive." Step number two is "Do it." "Your action defeats you or puts you over. According to your action, you receive or you are kept from receiving." Step number three is "Receive it." We are to plug into the "powerhouse of heaven." "Faith is the plug, praise God! Just plug in."
Step number four is, "Tell it so others may believe." This final step might be considered the Faith movement's outreach program.[2]
Kenneth Copeland states the faith formula this way: "All it takes is 1) seeing or visualizing whatever you need, whether physical or financial; 2) staking your claim on Scripture; and 3) speaking it into existence." [3]
Paul Yonggi Cho, pastor of the world's largest church in South Korea , borrowing from the occult, has developed what he calls the "Law of Incubation." Here is how it works: "First make a clear-cut goal, then draw a mental picture, vivid and graphic, to visualize success. Then incubate it into reality, and finally speak it into existence through the creative power of the spoken word."[4]
If a positive confession of faith releases good things, a negative confession can actually backfire. Capps says the tongue "can kill you, or it can release the life of God within you." This is so because, "Faith is a seed . . . you plant it by speaking it." There is power in "the evil fourth dimension" says Cho.
Hagin informs us that if you confess sickness you get sickness, if you confess health you get health; whatever you say you get. The spoken word releases power -- power for good or power for evil is the commonly held view of the movement. It is easy to see why the title "positive confession" is often applied to this group.
As you might guess, the teachings of the "Word of Faith" movement are very attractive to some. If we can produce whatever our hearts desire by simply demanding what we want by faith, if we can manipulate the universe and perhaps even God, then we have our own personal genie just waiting to fulfill our wishes. The similarities between Word of Faith teachings and The Secret are unmistakable.
The New Look: Joel Osteen
Many Christians can discern the obvious error of New Age teachings behind The Secret and similar books such as Eckhart Tolle's The New Earth (another Oprah favorite), as well as the over-the-top proclamations of many within the prosperity gospel movement. However when similar teachings are repackaged, reworded and presented in a winsome fashion, a larger number will fall prey. Enter Joel Osteen and his brand of the prosperity gospel-lite. As we will see, Osteen teaches essentially the same theology as his Word of Faith mentors, but he gives it an updated twist.
(More at link)
Smiley.
Osteen seems like a One World Government kind of guy.
He is a master manipulator of the masses.
Christianity is not a “Get Rich Quick” scheme.
You left out my favorite, Dr. Eugene Scott!
I really enjoyed him! In fact he was on the hospital TV when our daughter was born!
Cool hat, cigar and those ponies!
BTW Mrs p6 and I do like Joel Osteen.
This seems to remind me of something.......I heard somewhere...
I'm surprised they did not include Rod Parsley in this group. Parsely is possibly the biggest huckster of them all. His broadcasts aren't sermons - they're infomercials. His pitch is basically: God wants to bless you and bring a miracle into your life, but he can't do it until you send in your $300.00 Faith Seed to the address at the bottom of the screen." (Until I started watching Rod Parsley, I did not realize that God accepts Visa and Mastercard.)
It is for many televangelists. It turns my stomach evry time I change the channel and one of those new age preachers is on tv. What I cannot believe is that people actually watch them and send them money. Jim Baker went to prison and he's back on tv. People are very gullible and that's what these predators count on.
Bishop Sheen smiles....
White preachers always act like they invented this stuff
I found out my mother watched Joyce Meyer & I almost gagged. It makes me sad that there are people out there so vulnerable to these leeches. They are the epitome of smarm. And Joel Osteen, those close together gopher eyes & creepy smile just makes me want to slug him. Being a non slugging human I can visualize it ;)!
If I am remembering correctly I saw Benny Hinn one time & I swear the man made Liberace seem like the straightest guy in Vegas.........
When you next see him, give him this for me:
1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Being blessed in many ways, even materially, by strong faith in God is not un-Biblical. Treating God like Santa Claus is, though.
Correct!
Well I don’t love money but I like it a lot and HATE poverty.
If you think God's entire purpose in your life is to make you wealthy healthy and happy, you've got serious problems though.
I nominate Mike Murdock for biggest huckster. Regardless, you are correct, Parsley is a grand charlatan.
You’re twisting words. That’s not what I said.
I will say it’s also not God’s purpose in anyone’s life to make people poor, ill and miserable.
So the goal of life is to suffer and be miserable?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.