Prosperity Gospel Doesn’t Work… Okay, Now What?
(Thanks to Recovering Pharisee for tuning me in to this CNN article.)
And so the 53-year-old accountant from the Tampa, Florida, area pledged $500 a year to Joyce Meyer, the evangelist whose frank talk about recovering from childhood sexual abuse was so inspirational. She wrote checks to flamboyant faith healer Benny Hinn and a local preacher-made-good, Paula White.
Only the blessings didn’t come… [more]
I can only sum this up by paraphrasing my pastor last weekend: “It is not about giving in order to get. God wasn’t getting excited because we were discovering the revelation of ‘getting’.”
I don’t know if this worldwide but it has been a long long while since I have heard prosperity preached. I go to a lot of churches and I listen and watch a lot of sermons and I just don’t hear it much anymore. Even in Durban, South Africa, I went to a service at a megachurch (seats 500+, multiple campuses) and that pastor was super-extra-over-cautious careful with his words when he had to speak about wealth and riches. I felt that he truly loved his flock and was careful to raise them in the right way.
When I first started writing this post, I thought it was just about pastors taking the Lord’s name in vain (Exodus 20:7). But in thinking about that church in Durban, I suddenly realized it really is about the love you have for your congregation. You love your congregation so much that you are willing to put the burden of responsibility of their spiritual growth upon your shoulders. When your faith is in Jesus, then that burden is light (Matthew 11:30).
That is a very beautiful thought.
Great post!
Before He answers prayer, He looks at the motive of our hearts. Those who give from the heart expect nothing in return. The gift to them is the blessing of having blessed someone else. Too many people read only the parts of the Bible that speak to provision. While God’s love is unconditional, His blessings almost always have conditions attached to them. “I will bless whom I want.” Thanks for the post!
That reminds me about my thoughts on us as a nation.
Despite our national leadership, the people of the land can worship the lord.
Despite the spiritual leader, the hearts of the people of the body of Christ can be in the right place.
Ashley: Sorry about letting your post sit in moderation. Thank you for your kind words.