How the Health and Wealth Gospel Perverts Our View of Evil and Suffering

[Revmitchell]

Prosperity theology teaches that God will bless with material abundance and good health those who obey him and lay claim to his promises. “We don’t have to wait for God’s blessing in the life to come,” it promises. “He’ll send it to us here and now.”

This popular “name it and claim it” teaching—also called the health and wealth gospel—is not limited to certain congregations, but has worked its way into mainstream evangelical churches where it gets subtly woven into many Christians’ worldviews.

The author of Total Life Prosperity writes,

“Biblical prosperity is the ability to be in control of every circumstance and situation that occurs in your life. No matter what happens, whether financial, social, physical, marital, spiritual, or emotional, this type of prosperity enables you to maintain control in every situation.” [1]

The author of another book writes,

“Poverty is so unnecessary. Loss is so painful.... I hate pain. Your pain can stop. I want you completely healed. That’s why I wrote this book.” [2]

This false worldview breeds superficiality, seriously misrepresents the gospel, and sets people up to believe, when evil and suffering come to them, that God has been untrue to his promises.

http://www.bibleprophecyblog.com/2012/07/how-health-and-wealth-gospel-perverts.html#

 

[Scarlett O.]

You are right - it is a much more terrible belief system than people realize. And it does subtly creep in. AND, if you believe this way - that your obedience is going to rain down pennies from heaven and total health, then you have to believe the opposite - that when sickness comes - either God is unfaithful or you have angered Him and He is up there with a proverbial baseball bat waiting to strike you down every time you get on His nerves.

Yesterday, in Sunday School, we were studying Job and his friends.

They started off alright at the end of chapter 2. They kept silent and grieved with him for 7 days.


But then they started opening their mouth. And it got subtly and progressively more untruthful.

• Eliphaz said, "You know Job, you might have sinned and your children might have sinned."
• Bildad said, "You DID sin and so did your children."
• And Zophar said, "You DID sin and so did your children and you are getting FAR LESS than you deserve."

Both sides of the coin are unbiblical and ever so destructive. One builds a false pride and a works-based relationship with God and the other builds a unhealthy and incorrect understanding of the fear of God that leads to a relationship with Him that is based solely on living a life that doesn't make Him mad.

 

[genesis12]

The simple conclusion...........

............ one must draw is that those of us who are utterly, totally submitted to the will of the Holy Spirit will receive what HE has in store for us. No way we are going to tell Him what to do and how He is to do it.

:saint: -or- :jesus:

 

[SolaSaint]

Have you read Ray Comfort's book "God has a Wonderful plan for your Life"? It exposes this kind of preaching and teaching. I think he nails it.

 

[Yeshua1]

Prosperity theology teaches that God will bless with material abundance and good health those who obey him and lay claim to his promises. “We don’t have to wait for God’s blessing in the life to come,” it promises. “He’ll send it to us here and now.”

This popular “name it and claim it” teaching—also called the health and wealth gospel—is not limited to certain congregations, but has worked its way into mainstream evangelical churches where it gets subtly woven into many Christians’ worldviews.

The author of Total Life Prosperity writes,

“Biblical prosperity is the ability to be in control of every circumstance and situation that occurs in your life. No matter what happens, whether financial, social, physical, marital, spiritual, or emotional, this type of prosperity enables you to maintain control in every situation.” [1]

The author of another book writes,

“Poverty is so unnecessary. Loss is so painful.... I hate pain. Your pain can stop. I want you completely healed. That’s why I wrote this book.” [2]

This false worldview breeds superficiality, seriously misrepresents the gospel, and sets people up to believe, when evil and suffering come to them, that God has been untrue to his promises.

http://www.bibleprophecyblog.com/2012/07/how-health-and-wealth-gospel-perverts.html#

The BIG problem with what they claim is that Jesus and His Apostles either NEVER heard of it/taught it, or else did not either have 'revelation/faith" about it!

 

[ktn4eg]

Apparently the Apostle Paul didn't have that much faith because Phil. 4:11-12 tells us that he often experienced times of "non-prosperity."

 

[Alive in Christ]

It gets even worse then the "prosperity" gosple.

The big thing now is the "seed faith" scam

Those crooks are (((THIEVES))) plain and simple.

Their should be a "*special* place in hell for those guys...

 

[Thomas Helwys]

It gets even worse then the "prosperity" gosple.

The big thing now is the "seed faith" scam

Those crooks are (((THIEVES))) plain and simple.

Their should be a "*special* place in hell for those guys...

And Mike Murdock is the worst.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Murdock

 

[Alive in Christ]

And Mike Murdock is the worst.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Murdock

I agree. That guy reeks SLIME.

 

[SolaSaint]

I don't know: the Mike Murdock's and Joel Osteen's are obviously preaching Prosperity but I worry about those who promise good things to those who just try Jesus as Rick Warren has proposed. Seeker friendly preachers come across softer and closer to the truth and that is what makes them more dangerous than the obvious false teachers.

 

[steaver]

It gets even worse then the "prosperity" gosple.

The big thing now is the "seed faith" scam

Those crooks are (((THIEVES))) plain and simple.

Their should be a "*special* place in hell for those guys...

TBN has them on all the time. I seen one the other night give a testimony of how a woman came up to him on a Sunday evening after the sermon and was distraught because her husband filed for divorce and it was to be final. She "planted her seed" of 1000 dollars and Wednesday night her husband was at the church getting saved and repenting of the divorce. You see? All you have to do is put up a lot of cash and your daddy in heaven will pay attention and help you! Sad, very sad. Her husbands salvation only cost her $1000.

 

[Yeshua1]

TBN has them on all the time. I seen one the other night give a testimony of how a woman came up to him on a Sunday evening after the sermon and was distraught because her husband filed for divorce and it was to be final. She "planted her seed" of 1000 dollars and Wednesday night her husband was at the church getting saved and repenting of the divorce. You see? All you have to do is put up a lot of cash and your daddy in heaven will pay attention and help you! Sad, very sad. Her husbands salvation only cost her $1000.

WORST of them all are the WoF treachers, like a Copeland, who make jesus a faith teacher of the Force, and whose heresies concerning Him needing to get born again afterhe died demon possessed to be really rotten!