Prosperity Gospel
26 min read
The Prosperity Gospel is also known as the "health and wealth" gospel. It is not the gospel of Jesus Christ, but a counterfeit gospel. It claims that God rewards increases in faith with increases in health and/or financial wealth.
Preachers of the prosperity gospel teach that "health and wealth" are the automatic divine rights of every Christian. If you claim them, you can have them. Health and wealth are advertised as blessings that come with the package of "salvation" that they sell. Prosperity gospel preachers teach that the atonement of Jesus Christ is not just for the removal of sin, but for the removal of poverty and every single sickness.
All about money
Prosperity gospel preachers want us to believe that we can make God do things by donating money to them. This is what allows these preachers to get rich. Prosperity gospel preachers ask their followers to donate big sums of money in order to buy the miracle that they want. Followers are told that since money is the thing that they love the most, by giving it up, God will then give them what they want.
The Prosperity Gospel is deeply flawed because it teaches that poverty is a sin and that we must donate money to gain material compensation from God. It is also a deeply flawed gospel because it teaches that faith is a force that we can use to unlock prosperity, and that prayer is a weapon to force God to grant prosperity.
A false gospel
The Prosperity Gospel is a false gospel. Prosperity gospel preachers turn the relationship between us and God into a business transaction. If we give God enough faith, donations, and service, then God will give us health and financial prosperity.
We cannot make God do anything. We can only make requests to God in our prayers. The Prosperity Gospel has made God our servant. Instead, the Bible presents God as the sovereign ruler of the entire universe, and we are His servants.
The Prosperity Gospel has turned God into a genie in a bottle that we can use to get what we want. If we declare a word of faith often enough, then we can make it happen. If we donate enough money, then we can unlock special blessings. Our faith, money, and big declarations of faith turn God into a slave that does whatever we please. This is not the God of the Bible.
If the Prosperity Gospel were true, then grace would be obsolete and God would be irrelevant. The Prosperity Gospel is all about what we can do to enrich ourselves. If all we need to do to get what we want is to declare it and to donate more money, then what becomes of God?
The Prosperity Gospel is human-centred and based on works, not true faith. It undermines the true Biblical meaning of faith and grace. The Prosperity Gospel is not leading people to repentance and to faith in Jesus Christ for who he is. Instead, it is leading people to worship the idols of "health and wealth" above Jesus Christ.
The Prosperity Gospel is an assault on the character of God. It puts no emphasis on who God actually is. The emphasis is only on what God can do for us as our servant. The Prosperity Gospel is popular among preachers because it enables them to use the Bible to make themselves wealthy.
Origins of the Prosperity Gospel
The Prosperity Gospel is not a new type of false teaching that has infiltrated churches today. The Prosperity Gospel has always existed, even during the early New Testament church.
Paul wrote to Timothy about false teachers who were teaching different doctrines that went against the words of Jesus Christ. One of the reasons that false teachers were teaching different doctrines was that these false teachings became a means of financial gain for them.
Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church to remind them that he was not like the many peddlers of God's word that existed in his days. Notice that there were "so many" of them. Thus, it's no surprise to find so many Prosperity Gospel preachers today.
The Greek word used for "peddlers" is kapēleuō and it means to corrupt or to adulterate. A peddler is different from a merchant. A peddler is a petty retailer. To peddle means to sell at retail, with the insinuation of improper profit, either by overcharging or adulterating. Peddlers will try to sell anything for their own personal advantage.
Peddlers were in the habit of adulterating or corrupting their commodities for the sake of greater gain. An example of a peddler would be someone who secretly watered down the wine that he was selling people at full price.
The peddlers of God's word were attempting to teach God’s word for their own personal gain. This is exactly what Prosperity Gospel preachers do today. These preachers are the only ones profiting from the gospel that they are selling.
Just a few chapters later, in 2 Corinthians 5:10, Paul issued a warning that also applies to these peddlers of God’s word today. Paul said that we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and have to give an account of our lives.
The apostle Peter said that shepherding or leading a church should not be done for financial gain. There were also individuals in Peter's time who only wanted to be preachers because of the shameful financial gain that they could get from it. These corrupt preachers existed then and they still exist today.
History of the Prosperity Gospel
The modern-day Prosperity Gospel emerged out of Pentecostalism and can be found in many Charismatic circles today. It became popular in the 1980's with the rise of "televangelism".
Many consider Oral Roberts to be the father of the modern prosperity gospel. He was a self-proclaimed television faith-healer. In 1987, he told his followers that God would call him home if he didn't raise 8 million dollars in a matter of weeks. He also said that he needed that amount every year until "until Jesus returns." Oral Roberts would hold vigils in his prayer tower to rejuvenate his so-called "healing powers".
At the height of his influence, Oral Roberts led a ministry that brought in 110 million dollars in annual revenue. Kenneth Copeland was a student at Oral Roberts University. He also served as a pilot and chauffeur for Oral Roberts. Kenneth followed in Oral Roberts’ footsteps and became one of the most wealthy Prosperity Gospel preachers.
Oral Roberts created what is called "seed faith offerings". He taught his followers to plant a seed by donating to his ministry. They were to do so with the expectation of reaping special blessings from God for the seeds they sowed with their money.
Seed faith offerings are still used by many prosperity gospel preachers today. A seed faith offering is money that is donated, believing that God will multiply it and return it to the donor. The more money one gives, the more faith they are told that they have, and the more money they are told they will receive in return. Of course, none of this is actually true. God is not a casino or a sports betting service.
Television and Internet media have allowed the Prosperity Gospel to spread world-wide. Large-scale events and "megachurches" have also helped advance the propagation of this dangerous teaching.
Abundant life
Joel Osteen, a Prosperity Gospel preacher and the pastor of America’s largest church, told Oprah from his Texas mansion that "Jesus died that we might live an abundant life."
The problem with false teachers is that they only give you a small part of the truth. Let's look at what the Bible really says about abundant life.
Unlike a thief, Jesus did not come for selfish reasons. He did not come with his own agenda in mind. He came to give, not to receive. Jesus came that people may have life in him. What kind of life? A life that is meaningful, purposeful, joyful, and eternal.
The abundant life that Jesus came to give us is an eternal life. It is a life that begins the moment we repent and believe in him. This life goes on for eternity. It’s not an abundant physical life, but an abundant spiritual life.
In this verse, Jesus gives us the definition of eternal life. Eternal life is to know God through Jesus Christ and knowing God begins today. This definition of eternal life makes no mention of length of days, health, or prosperity. The only thing it does mention is a knowledge of God because this is the key to a truly abundant life. Abundant life does not consist of an abundance of material things. Material wealth is not God’s priority for us.
If God is so concerned with prosperity, as the Prosperity Gospel preachers claim, why would God have let his only begotten Son, Jesus, be born in poverty? The reality that Prosperity Gospel preachers do not like to hear is that Jesus was born poor, and he died poor. During his earthly ministry, Jesus taught about the importance of spiritual health and spiritual wealth. When Jesus spoke about material wealth, it always came with warnings.
Ask and you shall receive
Prosperity Gospel preachers teach that whatever we ask in faith, we will receive. One common verse that they use to teach this Mark 11:24.
This verse seems very attractive and appears to back up the beliefs of the Prosperity Gospel. However, we can only gain a full understanding of this verse by looking at 1 John 5:14-15.
If we ask for anything according to God's will, then we will receive it. However, we cannot ask for anything we want and expect to receive it. Not everything we want is God's will for us.
In Luke 22:42, Jesus is in the garden of Gethsemane before his crucifixion. He prayed, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." We ought to pray following this example of Jesus. Prayer is not a way to make our will be done. Prayer is the way we ask for God’s will to be done.
When teaching his disciples how to pray, Jesus taught them to ask for the Father's will to be done on earth. This is what prayer aims to achieve. Jesus did not teach that prayer was a means for us to make all our lavish dreams come true.
Confess with your mouth
Prosperity Gospel preachers often recite these famous verses. They tell people that if they can confess and obtain salvation by faith, then by faith, they can confess and receive anything else as well. This is a lie because it attempts to make Romans 10:9-10 say something that it does not. These verses are about salvation. They are not about getting rich.
The promises that are ours in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus are many, but they are not all fully available right now. In the same way, the Kingdom of God is already here and yet not fully here. We still pray for God’s Kingdom to come in the Lord’s prayer. We do not yet see everything under the rule of God’s government. We will see the Kingdom of God in its fullness only when Jesus returns.
Prosperity Gospel preachers love twisting this verse to make it be about financial wealth and material riches. However, Jesus was concerned with more than just making us materially rich for a few years on this earth. Jesus came to make us rich in soul and spirit for all of eternity.
The Prosperity Gospel is all about the "now" and those who preach it want people fixated on the now as well, so that these preachers can make their money now. Prosperity Gospel preachers want people to believe that they can tap into all the riches of heaven right now. The Prosperity Gospel never mentions the future. It avoids subjects like death, heaven, and hell.
The Bible teaches that God is sovereign. God can and does heal. Since God is sovereign, we cannot turn healing into a Prosperity Gospel formula that says, "confess this and you will be healed." We can only pray and then allow God to do according to His will for the given situation. The Prosperity Gospel creates unnecessary guilt on those who are not getting rich or not getting healed. These individuals are unfairly judged by people in Prosperity Gospel circles for not having enough faith or not having a true confession of faith. This is simply not true.
Not all followers of Jesus were wealthy
After committing his life to Jesus Christ, apostle Paul found himself being weak, needy, and physically unwell. He knew very little of the health and wealth that is mentioned in the Prosperity Gospel. Paul lived a life fully dedicated to Jesus. He was way more dedicated to Jesus than the majority of preachers are today. Yet, God did not give Paul the prosperity that today’s preachers boast about.
Today’s Prosperity Gospel preachers will tell you to "name it and claim it". Name your blessing and then claim your blessing. However, neither Jesus nor Paul ever did or taught such a thing.
Paul learned the secret to an abundant life. He learned to be content and to find true joy in God, despite the circumstances that he was in. Over the course of his life, he experienced wealth, and he also experienced poverty.
In this passage, Paul told Timothy to remind people to set their hope on God rather than on their wealth. Paul then said that those who are rich in this life should be focused on being rich in good works. They should be generous and ready to share their wealth rather than living lavishly. There were a few wealthy believers who were part of the early church. Wealth is not a sin but a responsibility to be shared through generosity.
Suffering and persecution, not wealth
The New Testament actually guarantees Christians suffering and persecution in this life rather than health, wealth and prosperity.
In the Old Testament, whenever Israel suffered, the cause of their suffering was their disobedience to God. Whenever Israel prospered, it was the result of their obedience to God.
Prosperity Gospel preachers have taken this Old Testament concept and tried to sell it to people today. These preachers tell people that the cause of their lack of health and wealth is their lack of obedience. If only people would correct their disobedience in financial giving - which is the only type of disobedience that these preachers care about - then they would prosper. This could not be further from the truth.
The New Testament concept of suffering is different than the Old Testament concept of suffering. The coming of Jesus changed the concept of suffering in the New Testament. Rather than it being a punishment, suffering becomes a way of life. Suffering becomes part of the calling to follow Jesus. Rather than trying to avoid suffering, we are called to suffer for the sake of the good news of Jesus Christ.
Suffering is not always a result of disobedience
Suffering today is not always the result of disobedience, as Prosperity Gospel preachers would have us believe.
The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy to let him know that there is a suffering that comes with following Jesus, and it often involves persecution.
The persecution experienced for following Jesus can be from physical opponents, as well as spiritual opponents. Apostle Paul experienced both. In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul let them know that Satan sent him a thorn in the flesh. God permitted this ailment of the body to afflict Paul because it would keep him humble and dependant upon God. If Paul was not as dedicated to Jesus as he was, he would not have been a target of Satan’s.
Jesus taught that the cost of following him could involve opposition from even those closest to us.
Persecution over blessings
Jesus did not speak to his disciples about being blessed financially. Instead, Jesus spoke to them about persecution, trouble, and suffering.
In these verses, Jesus told his disciples that the world would hate them and persecute them for following him. This does not sound like a calling to a life full of health and financial prosperity.
In this verse, Jesus was telling his disciples that in this world, they would have tribulation, not prosperity. This is the exact opposite of what preachers of the Prosperity Gospel promise. While Moses had promised Israel physical blessings for their obedience to God, Jesus promised his disciples trials and adversity for their obedience to God.
Jesus never told his disciples that they would have a trouble-free life if they followed him. Jesus never said that everyone would love us and that we would succeed at everything we do on this earth.
The apostle Peter understood what Jesus taught him and emphasized suffering as part of the Christian life. It was clear to Peter that to believe in Jesus was to follow in Jesus’ footsteps, which involves suffering, as seen in the example that Jesus left us.
Jesus lived a life of suffering. He could not even be born into this world in peace. There was an assassination attempt on his birth. He was not wealthy, was misunderstood, betrayed, mocked, had family members against him, had followers leave him, had a friend betray him, and died the death of a criminal on a cross at the young age of 33. The only followers that he had deserted him when he was captured and crucified.
The life of Jesus was totally different from the life of Prosperity Gospel preachers today. They live lavish lifestyles with large homes, expensive cars, and private jets.
In his sermon on the mount, Jesus said something shocking to his followers. He said that they should consider themselves blessed when they would be reviled, persecuted, and falsely accused for his sake. The persecution and attacks were not a curse, but a blessing.
Jesus did not say "Blessed are you when you accumulate wealth and prosper financially". The true blessing is in following Jesus and enduring the suffering that may be involved.
Paul told the church at Philippi to consider it a privilege to suffer for the sake of Christ. It was a blessing that was granted to them.
In this verse, the apostles of Jesus had just been beaten for speaking about Jesus. It’s clear that the apostles did not live a life of trying to avoid suffering. Neither did they make excessive donations to a preacher in order to try to end their suffering. They received any suffering that came as part of their mission. Rather than complaining about their suffering, the apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus.
The apostle Peter also wrote about rejoicing as one partakes in Christ’s sufferings. There is a oneness with Christ, a becoming like Christ, that is part of our suffering for his name which brings a supernatural joy.
Peter taught that we should count it a blessing to be insulted for following Jesus. It was an honourable thing and it only confirmed that the one being insulted truly belonged to Jesus. The insult was just a confirmation that the Spirit of God and God’s glory rested upon that person.
Peter advised Christians to not be ashamed of their sufferings and persecutions for the name of Jesus. Three verses later, Peter explained that suffering as a Christian is according to God’s will and God’s plan.
In Philippians 3:8, apostle Paul let the Philippian church know that he suffered the loss of all things for following Jesus. However, he counted them as rubbish compared to the privilege of knowing Jesus.
In James 1:2-3, James let believers know that trials would come to test their faith and make them more steadfast in it.
In Colossians 1:24, Paul told the Colossian church that he rejoiced in his sufferings for the sake of the church. He was able to rejoice in his sufferings because he knew the purpose of them. He knew that he was filling up what was lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the advancement of the mission of Jesus.
In Romans 5:3, Paul taught the Roman church to rejoice in their sufferings for Christ because it produced perseverance and endurance.
In 1 Thessalonians 1:6, Paul reminded the Thessalonian church that it was not easy for them to receive the word of God. They had to receive the word in much affliction, but it did not stop them from receiving it.
All the apostles and the churches of the New Testament were familiar with suffering for the sake of Jesus and his Church. It is such a stark contrast to what Prosperity Gospel preachers are living and teaching people today.
Take up your cross
Jesus told his disciples that following him consisted of denying oneself and taking up their cross. What did Jesus mean by taking up their cross? He meant that they needed to be ready to embrace whatever suffering would be associated with them following Jesus.
Suffering is embedded in Jesus' call to follow him. If we don't suffer for the sake of Jesus’ name as the apostles did, we should really start to question our faith. Nobody suffers less than Prosperity Gospel preachers, who will only speak of what can make them money, not of what can get them crucified.
A Christianity that involves suffering is an unpopular Christianity. The popular version of Christianity sells people a pipe dream of prosperous living, as long as they donate enough money to make it happen.
Prosperity Gospel preachers are liars. They tell people that because Jesus suffered, they do not have to suffer today. This is the exact opposite of the New Testament verses that we've just seen, which call us to suffer alongside Jesus.
Prosperity Gospel preachers want us to believe that they are the answer to our suffering. They know that no one wants to suffer. They also know that if they can sell themselves as the answer to all suffering, they will get many people to follow them.
Prosperity Gospel preachers teach that if we please God, then God must make us rich. To them, financial wealth is a sign of God’s favor. Not being rich is seen as a sign of disobedience and a failure to please God. They tell people that a loving God wants his children to drive the best cars, have the best clothes, and live in the best homes. It’s a very attractive teaching, but it is a false teaching. Who wouldn’t want such things! Therein lies the temptation that makes this teaching so dangerous.
Prosperity Gospel preachers are quick to accuse people whenever something goes wrong in their lives. According to them, if something goes wrong in someone's life, then that person must be disobeying God or not donating enough money. However, the truth is that certain sufferings can be the result of obeying the call to follow Jesus.
In the New Testament, obedience results in suffering. The lack of suffering for the sake of Jesus in the lives of Prosperity Gospel preachers is evidence that they have gone astray and are living in disobedience to God. Their lavish lifestyle looks nothing like the life that Jesus lived. They are not followers of Jesus, but followers of their own greedy desires.
The life of a preacher should resemble the lives of the apostles and the believers in the New Testament. They lived lives marked by suffering for following Jesus. Instead, the lives of Prosperity Gospel preachers resemble those of wealthy CEOs. These preachers are nothing but fraudulent business owners who are using the Bible as a marketing ploy. Remember, you can’t get richer if you let them make you poorer.
The will of God for his only begotten Son was a life of suffering. How dare today's preachers think that God’s will is to make them so wealthy.