The distorting power of prosperity gospel
NO one wants to suffer.
In my culture, and in most African cultures, suffering is seen as a sign of bad luck; or proof that you did something wrong. Interestingly that was exactly the same thinking as Job’s friends.
For example, Eliphaz says this about Job’s situation: “Remember: who that was innocent ever perished? Or where were the upright cut off?” (Job 4:7-8).
His point? The innocent do not suffer. Everyone wants their best life now. And most would simply settle for a materially better life too.
This view of suffering explains the success of the prosperity gospel across Africa.
For its heralds promise only good things in life, claiming that God does not want us to suffer. Who does not want to believe that?
Who does not want it to be true? Furthermore, as one of the world’s poorest continents, Africa was and still is fertile ground for such teaching.
Everyone wants their best life now. And most would settle for a materially better life too, but especially those in hard circumstances. This teaching misleads people.
It leads people away from God; away from the true gospel.
How the prosperity gospel ruins faith
1. People follow men rather than God God has revealed himself to us through and in scripture. If we want to know what God is like, we read his word. This is the first problem I want to briefly explore, when it comes to prosperity teachers. For they regularly quote the Bible. They are using the same scriptures. Only with it they are teaching their own agendas.
How do they get away with it?
In most of these churches the man or woman of God is treated with absolute respect. What they say is final. One dare not speak against the Lord’s anointed. Thus when the man of God preaches that God wants the congregants to be wealthy, healthy, and prosperous, it must be true. Even when what is promised by these so-called prophets does not materialise.
Sadly, people rarely ask if they have been misled by the man of God. Instead they either grow angry with God or disillusioned with their own faith.
2. Faith becomes a means to material blessings not more of God
Secondly, following from the above, people in prosperity gospel preaching churches end up coming to God for the wrong reasons. Jesus taught that the richest blessing in life is to know God (John 17:3; see also Ephesians 1:3-4).
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8).
However, people sitting in prosperity gospel churches want stuff more than God. They are coming to God for things, rather than for God himself. What motivates them in their faith is health and material possession.
This misunderstanding is made worse by the fact that faith is then reduced to a way of getting stuff from God.
‘If the faithful prosper,’ the thinking goes, ‘then I must have greater faith.’
So faithfulness becomes the means of pursuing material blessings.
Health and wealth become the evidences of faith; their lack, on the other hand, suggests sin and disobedience. This was what Job’s friends preached. It is heard in countless pulpits across Africa. And it is very, very wrong.
We do not believe to get better stuff from God. We do not persevere in faith in the hope that he will reward us with good health and a growing bank account.
It reduces our love for him to self-seeking greed. This brings us to the third thing.
3. Greed becomes normal and discontentment is encouraged
For both those who preach and those who believe the prosperity gospel, what matters most is life in the here and now. It is all about living your best life now, having more, and being discontent with what you already have. It is an endless pursuit of getting more things from God.
It tends to normalise greed. Wanting more stuff is encouraged. Settling for less or seeking contentment is discouraged.
1. It’s tempted to herald another Gospel One of the challenges that the church will face as a result of the prosperity gospel is that the church will be tempted to compromise on its faithful teachings of God’s counsel. Preaching the whole Bible will address sin, suffering, holiness, and perseverance, among many other things not taught by prosperity teachers.
Paul was determined. He preached “Christ crucified” (1 Corinthians 1:23). That is obviously not an attractive message. Most would much rather hear how coming to God will mean having all their earthly desires met; that they will get everything they want. The crucified Christ is the church’s message. That is what it must preach. Indeed, that is the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16-18).
2. The church gathers unbelievers chasing prosperity
Secondly, the church will increasingly be filled up with people who are not actually believers; who are not saved. The prosperity gospel preaches the desires of the flesh; it leads people into believing that their faith is about trusting God to give them stuff. There is no mention of God’s wrath poured out against sin at the cross.
Furthermore, having more people in your church has become a sign of success. Only this does not mean they are converted.
3. People distrust the church Finally, the prosperity gospel also hardens the hearts of people and communities to the church. What do I mean by this? Already, people struggle to discern good churches from bad ones; faithful pastors from rogues. But too much exposure to the prosperity gospel confirms what many people already feel, that all the church cares about is money. An encouragement
The prosperity gospel is everywhere. Different forms of its teachings already exist. More will come.
But the church must not lose sight of its mission: to make disciples of all nations, teaching them to obey our Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:19-20).
The church is to be faithful in doing that, preaching the crucified Christ because that is the only way for the world to be saved. Salvation is only found in the crucified Christ and the church must be faithful in making him known.-TGC Africa