Thursday, February 14, 2013

The Prosperity ‘Gospel’: Fact or Phony? (Part 2 of 2)

-->
This piece is not about whether or not the Bible condemns wealth itself.  It is about objectively weighing the Prosperity Gospel (TPG) claim (i.e. that God has made promises of earthly wealth, fame and prosperity to His people) against what the Bible actually teaches (Acts 17:11). The Bible does teach that God will provide the basic physical needs for His people that make spiritual matters preeminent in their lives (Mat. 6:33). God promises that for Christians “all things work together for good” (Rom. 8:28). Despite hardships and perceived injustices, God is working things out for His people that will result in their ultimate good.  I believe wholeheartedly that God is providentially exercising care over His people and He may bless them financially is He so desires.  But the question remains: Does God promise to indulge people with windfall wealth if they put more money in the plate?  Is this the focus of the gospel? Is this where the Christian’s hope should lie? Is this message consistent with the gospel?



The first problem with TPG is that it is completely without Biblical support.  It is very easy to make the Bible say things that God never meant it to say.  Anyone can find a verse, lift it out of its context, divorce it from the flow of thought to which it belongs and shape it to fit one’s preconceived agendas.  For this reason, many Bible scholars and teachers have said, “you can make the Bible say anything you want it to say.” This is an erroneous way to approach Scripture.  We should approach Scripture like we approach any other text, to find out what the author meant for it to say.  TPG teachers often rip passages out of context and make them sound like they mean something that they really do not.  The Bible minces no words when it comes to these types of teachers; they distort the Scriptures to their own destruction (2 Pet. 3:16).



Another foundational problem with TPG is that its promises are contradictory to true promises made in the Bible.  One such true promise is, “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim 3:12).  This had immediate reference to severe Roman persecution of believers, but applies to Christians for all ages.  Furthermore, Jesus promised that no one can be His disciple who “does not forsake all that he has” (Luke 14:33).  The Bible is replete with similar teachings.  However, these two references suffice to show that God does not call His people to a “lifestyle of the rich and famous”, but a life of necessary hardship and detachment from worldly possessions. 



TPG teachers appear to have their hope fixated on this world, while the Biblical hope is vested in the life to come.  Please do not misunderstand me: I believe that living for God within the confines and purposes of His design is the most hopeful, joyful and fulfilling life despite the cost of discipleship.  Nevertheless, the joy, hope and fulfillment are not derived from promises of physical prosperity. Paul, one of Jesus’ apostles, lived a life of true suffering.  Among other things, he lived on the brink of danger, he was a recurring inmate, he received a myriad of physical abuses, and the people that were closest to him maligned him unapologetically (2 Cor. 11:23ff).  Despite his pitiable physical circumstance, Paul could say, “I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therein to be content” (Phil. 4:11).  Christians have “an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven” and “are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Pet. 1:4–5). Jesus admonished,  “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Mat. 6:19–20).  Does any of this sound like the temporally focused Prosperity Gospel to you?



TPG is not a real gospel at all (Gal. 1:7,9).  Therefore, as far as I’m concerned, TPG stands for “The Phony Gospel.”  Dear reader, do not be dazzled with the oratory skills, the million-dollar smiles and the clever pep talks of those who get rich on the backs of misled parishioners. Please examine the Scriptures for yourself to find the true promises God makes to those who live for Him.



Torrey Clark is the preacher for the church of Christ Northside (www.churchatlagrange.org) and host of the weekly Christian worldview talk show, Culture Shock (www.thelightnetwork.tv/shows).  Torrey can be reached at clarktorrey@gmail.com

No comments:

Post a Comment