Prosperity Gospel Gone Wild: Joel Osteen and Myles Munroe charging over $1. Watch Church Services. Osteen’s event will charge as much as $1. Peter 2: 1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. In what is just the latest excess in the “name it and claim it” Prosperity Gospel movement, Joel Osteen, pastor of Lakewood Church, the biggest church in America (with approximately 4. Night of Hope” sermon in Key Arena in Seattle Washington (B& E – As the link to the January 2. I couldn’t believe what I saw on my Facebook news feed last night. Myles Munroe died in a crash that took place on November 9th afternoon and killed all nine people. The Prince 2 Nicolo Machiavelli CHAPTER II Concerning Hereditary Principalities WILL leave out all discussion on republics, inasmuch as in another place I have written of.
It’s God’s will for you to pay your bills and not be in debt. It’s God’s will for you to live in health and not in sickness all the days of your life.” This sums up Joel Osteen’s prosperity gospel message, also known as the Word of Faith Movement, which is based on the false idea that a Christian can use their faith to obtain material gain and wealth. Other nuances include “speaking wealth into being” by pronouncing the riches before they arrive. At the heart of it, it is commanding God to provide a material blessing as if it is the individual who has power over the universe, fate and even God. The Bible says otherwise. Jesus Christ said: Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 2. F or where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Christians can work, make incomes and enjoy material success, if it is God’s will for us. But it is certainly not our goal or purpose on this Earth. In becoming a Christian, believers are to surrender their sinful desires and worldly lusts to let the desires of Jesus and His righteousness fill us up. It is about living for God’s will, not our own. And Jesus’ will is not focused on our being wealthy and prosperous. He explained this in a parable He spoke: 1. And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness . The Adoption of Sons by David Weber. I feel the need to express a few things today; some things that are foundational to our understanding of "sonship. Buy Christian Books online in India. Christian Books India is the online store of Evangelical Literature Service (ELS) India. Browse by various categories or search. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 1. And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. And in the parable Jesus speaks of a man who was rich and successful to the point that he could not even store everything he had. Now this was not the sin. Success in and of itself, when lawfully gained, is not a bad thing in the Bible. It was what followed afterwards that was at issue. He stated to his soul, that he was now set for years to come, so he could relax, “eat, drink and be merry.”The wealthy man’s misplaced confidence in his wealth made the man so blind that he assumed he knew how long his life would be. He gave no credit to God for the crops growing so well and then showed he had no fear of God by his boastful attitude and ideas that he knew his own lifespan. This is what Jesus means by being “rich towards God.” What God wants is not our order and commands to Him. He wants our love, worship, respect and thanks. God is the one gives us life. And the only one who can provide eternal life. The prosperity Gospel goes against this by making worldly prosperity guaranteed and just a matter of increasing faith to receive it. This “me- centered” false theology has exploded in church across the world and led to great material gain for the pastors. Notice the passage at the opening of the article states: “And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you.” The Prosperity Gospel preachers use human desire for wealth, health and success as their means to make millions upon millions of dollars. A basic concept of Christianity is Jesus Christ being the exclusive way to Heaven. Jesus went on to say: “. And he even indicates that people he has met in India who are not Christians are going to Heaven as well. This is a blatant denial of the Gospel, Jesus Christ and the Bible. Again, we stress that it is not wrong for Christians or pastors to make an income. Joel Osteen has written many books and rightfully deserves the income from the millions of copies that he has sold. But it is the doctrine that is being preached that is at issue as it turns the focus from eternal life to the present life and emphasizes personal desire of following the desires of God. Jesus said: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”The essence of being a follower of Jesus is the willingness to forego the sinful pleasures of today or their own personal agenda for the greater glory of eternal life and membership in God’s Kingdom. What if it is God’s will that a well- to- do young woman, give up a great future in college, a successful career and lifestyle to go live in one of the poorest, war- torn regions of Africa and start a ministry? That is precisely what happened to once Christian woman. What if it is God’s will that a star professional football player, set to make millions in the prime of his career, retire early to start spreading the Gospel as a pastor? Or that a faithful Christian never makes any money? Would you still be interested in following Jesus? What would Joel Osteen say about this? A “me- centered” form of Christianity would say to always stick to whatever personal goals you have made and God will just give you what you want. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? There is nothing we have in our short time on the Earth in this life that we can take with us to the grave. What ultimately matters is the fate of our soul. And having eternal life. And the willingness to forego what we think our “destiny” and “prosperity” should be if it conflicts with our love, faith and God’s plan for our lives. We actually live our best life in Heaven. Not now. In his best- selling book “Live Your Best Life Now”, Osteen writes: “If you develop an image of victory, success, health, abundance, joy, peace, and happiness, nothing on earth will be able to hold those things from you” (p. He and His disciples were not wealthy and lived mostly off of the hospitality of others. Jesus Himself said that He did not even have a place to rest His head. What Jesus did encourage instead of focusing on a financial “breakthrough” or “harvest” or “victory” was instead not worrying at all: 2. And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? God knows our material needs and will provide accordingly. Jesus preached that we should not even worry about these daily cares when we have our faith and trust in The Lord. Destined for Victory. Osteen repeatedly teaches that every human being has inborn “destiny” for immense wealth and success, given by God. Again, Osteen’s focus is always on the present world – the exact opposite of the message of Christ. What Osteen and other prosperity Gospel preachers miss out on is the fact that not only does the Bible guarantee suffering, that trials and tribulations actually help the relationship between a Christian and God. Let’s look at the example of the Apostle Paul. As a Pharisee, living in 1st century Judea, the Apostle Paul (then known as Saul), was a well- respected leader in his community. A Roman Citizen, he enjoyed many benefits and a position of privilege among his Jewish brethren. He was living a good material life. In his zeal as an enemy of Christians, Paul persecuted the church, tracking down Christians and having them arrested and sometimes sentenced to death for their faith. But God had other plans for Him. Jesus Christ was preparing to speak to Paul directly to witness to Him that He was real and alive and give Paul a new mission: to become a Christian and spread the Gospel. In order to help Paul get started, Jesus called upon one of the early apostles to go meet Paul on his way to Damascus (where he would be converted to Christianity). Here is what Jesus said when He gave Ananias: 1. And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, 1. And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight. Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: 1. For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. Jesus Christ, from Heaven, handpicked Paul to serve Him as one of His greatest apostles.
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