I Am No Prophet But I Can Smell Manure When I Step In It

With social media, as your circle of contacts gets larger, the more you get exposed to different stuff. Some stuff is helpful, some is amusing but a lot of it exposes the dangerous nonsense that is being taught to people who don't but should know better. I came across this post, 2 Reasons WhyMany Christians Are Broke, while scrolling though my news feed and had to check it out. In fariness it was posted to a friends news feed by someone else that I don't know so I don't blame the individual who is in my contacts. It was pretty much the malarkey I expected and when I read the bio of the author, Kyle Miller, I was likewise not exactly shocked:

Kyle T. Miller has been called to the marketplace as a musician, play producer and educator. Kyle has been prophesying and interpreting dreams for almost 15 years. Kyle is also a scholar, obtaining a Masters of Arts in Intercultural Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from The University of Mississippi (Ole Miss). Kyle's theater production company, Positive Images in Christ, has directed and produced over a dozen shows since it was founded in 2004. Please visit his website at prophetkyle.com.

Well when your personal webpage is "prophetkyle.com", I guess you are not being terribly subtle about how highly you think of yourself. I might add that having an M.A. in "Intercultural Studies", whatever that means, from Fuller and a PhD. in Higher Ed Admin are lovely and all but I am not sure they qualify you as a "scholar", especially not a Bible scholar.

Anyway what does our resident "scholar", the self-proclaimed "Prophet Kyle" have to say about why lesser Christians are "broke"? Well he gets his prophecy on with this opening paragraph:

The Bible has a lot to say about money and prosperity. Although in the last 20 years there have arguably been wrong motives of some teachings on money, prosperity is biblically supported.

Well he is sort of right, the Bible DOES have a lot to say about money and prosperity but none of it implies that we should be seeking after it or that it is a sign of faithfulness if we are prosperous or lack of faithfulness if we are not. I had to laugh out loud at his begrudging admission that maybe, just possibly, at some place somewhere someone might have had less than pure motives when teaching about "prosperity", I guess buying a dozen mansions and private jet might or might not qualify as "arguably wrong motives". He goes on (emphasis mine):

Some preachers and teachers have taught on money in order to manipulate people to give. These ministers have used Scriptures—sometimes out of context—as a means of twisting people's arms into raising big offerings. Because of these abuses, honest Bible teachers have shied away from teaching on prosperity, in fear of being accused of being a "money preacher." Yet we cannot throw away the baby with the bathwater. Just because there have been abuses by some preachers and teachers concerning prosperity does not mean we should stop preaching and teaching on biblical prosperity.

Sometimes out of context? Sometimes! Well that is quite an admission from "Prophet Kyle"! Perhaps we should " stop preaching and teaching on biblical prosperity" because the teaching you are espousing is false? Just a thought. Never fear though...

Thanks to many pioneers in the faith who suffered resistance, ridicule and opposition from religious scoffers as they made gallant efforts to teach biblical prosperity, many people in the body of Christ do not have a problem with Christians being financially comfortable (or dare I say, rich). Many would agree that when God trusts someone with prosperity, that person is in a fantastic position to help others.

Why would God not want us to be able to comfortably provide for our families, live in nice houses, drive nice cars and enjoy ourselves? However, many saved, born-again believers are living by barley getting by. But why? If God has promised us that we will "eat the good of the land" (Is. 1:19) why are so many Christians broke? Although this is not an exhaustive list, I will share with you five reasons why some Christians are broke and how we can shift from poverty to prosperity.

I assume these "gallant pioneers" include folks like Benny Hinn and of course "Prophet Kyle". Dare I say rich, he sez? Oh yeah, he dares! After all he is a prophet. Then there is this: "Many would agree that when God trusts someone with prosperity, that person is in a fantastic position to help others." If by "help others" you mean "buy expensive cars, mansions and private jets for myself" then yes. Of course what would any erroneous teacher be without a random, out of context and completely inapplicable Old Testament quote? " If God has promised us that we will "eat the good of the land" (Is. 1:19) why are so many Christians broke?" Has good promised Christians that we will "eat the good of the land"? Sure, it is right there in the Bible bro! Of course Isaiah is written about "... Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah." (Isaiah 1:1), speaking of a specific nation under a now obsolete old covenant that is not transferable to Christians in American living under the New Covenant in a secular nation. It sometimes helps us to correctly interpret and apply (or not apply) Scripture when we bother to read it in context, but I am just some schlep on the internet and "Prophet Kyle" is both a prophet and a scholar, so what do I know?

So why does "Prophet Kyle" think Christians are broke (you only get two reasons here, you have to wait on the edge of your seat for the other three)? The first reason I expected, the second was a little kookier.

His first reason? Christians ain't tithing! You don't tithe, you don't get no blessings man! It says so right there in Malachi 3:9-10:

You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. (Malachi 3:9-10)

Chalk Malachi 3:9-10 up in the pantheon of most often misused and abused verses in all of Scripture. It warrants yet again pointing out that Malachi was written to a specific nation under an obsolete Old Covenant. While tithing appears before the Old Covenant, the context here is of "the whole nation of you", i.e. Israel, not America. We are told to bring the full tithe into the storehouse. What is the storehouse for Christians? Well the church bank account via the offering plate of course! Where does it make that link in the New Testament? Well it doesn't but "Prophet Kyle" has seen it revealed to him so it must be true. It is kind of a huge leap to go from a national blessing based on an Old Testament practice to an individual blessing based on giving sufficiently and cheerfully to a local religious group but that is why I am not a prophet apparently.

His second reason? Um...

2. Christians who have participated in the occult are broke. People who consult psychics receive a curse of poverty. Isaiah 8:19-21 says: "When they say to you, 'Seek after the mediums and the wizards, who whisper and mutter,' should not a people seek after their God? Should they consult the dead for the living? To the law and to the testimony; if they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. They shall pass through the land hard-pressed and hungry; when they are hungry, they shall be furious and curse their king and their God as they look upward."

This Scripture clearly states that people who consult psychics and mediums (consulting the dead) suffer poverty and lack. If you have ever been to a psychic or consulted mediums, palm and/or tarot card readers, or played with Ouija boards, you are under a curse that includes poverty. You should have someone who is skilled in deliverance to lead you through cleansing prayers so that you can be set free.

Not even sure what to do with that one. I wonder what to make of people who faithfully "tithe" to  the local church joyfully and have never been to a psychic or medium and yet are poor by American standards? Maybe they are really not sincere enough because obviously if you are less than prosperous it is your own dang fault. Also I missed the part where there are certain curses that are permanent unless a specialized "skilled deliverer" lifts it for you. You read stuff like this and posts on the sidebar praising Jan Crouch and Joyce Meyer and people wonder why most of the church doesn't take charismatics seriously.

Here is (one of many reasons) why this teaching is so dangerous. What does it mean to be prosperous? The term "prosperous" in some charismatic teaching is like the term "fair" in leftist politics. No ever says how much is "fair" but it is always more. However much a "rich" person pays in taxes, in order for it to be "fair" it needs to be more. To the average American, being prosperous seems to mean having more stuff than you have now. Do you have a Toyota? You should have a Lexus. Do you have a 2000 square foot home? You should have one that is 3000 square feet. It is a teaching based on envy and on coveting. It says to Christians in America that the incredible prosperity essentially every single American has compared to people in the vast majority of the rest of the world is not enough. That is unhealthy and unbiblical.

The second reason it is so dangerous is more insidious. This sort of unbiblical teaching says to people who are not sufficiently "prosperous", an amorphous term, that they are somehow to blame by being insufficiently pious. Look at he garbage in this article. If you are not "prosperous" it is because you don't give enough at church or perhaps because you have been involved in the occult. If you ever went to a psychic you are not gunna be prosperous according to "Prophet Kyle" because you are under some sort of curse. Good news though, you can get out of this curse: " You should have someone who is skilled in deliverance to lead you through cleansing prayers so that you can be set free." Want to bet "Prophet Kyle" is one of those "skilled" individuals? Want to be bet he can "deliver you" via "cleansing prayers" for a small fee? After all, prophets gotta be prosperous too! If you are someone who is poor by American standards but faithful by God's standards (often mutually exclusive), you don't need to be scolded by "prophets" because you are not rich enough.

The history of the church from the earliest days to present has been that most of the church has been anything but prosperous. In fact the more faithful the church has been, the greater the persecution and the less the prosperity. Ask the Anabaptists in Europe how prosperous they were. According to "Prophet Kyle" they must be not giving enough at church or maybe were consulting psychics without the benefit of having a "prophet: around to "lead them in cleansing prayer". Most Christians now and throughout history have hardly been prosperous. More important, and more Biblical, is that they be faithful and I see no connection anywhere in the New Testament between being faithful and monetary blessings.

"Prophet Kyle" should stick to "Intercultural Studies".

More thoughts on TBN, MacArthur and money

I think Dave Black made a very valid point regarding the frenzy in the blogosphere over MacArthur's post about TBN (somebody please help Dr. Black format his blog so that we can link directly to his posts!):

I see it's "go after the prosperity preachers" week. I'm all for it -- if the purpose is to bring greater civility, clarity, and theological precision to the discussion. But there is a bit of a problem here. You see, we evangelicals have never found it easy to superimpose morality on others without coming across as a wee bit arrogant. There's nothing that ecstatifies us quite like burning witches and excoriating fools. Sure, the Reverend Ike types are building their empires off the hard-earned (and foolishly donated) money of the average, gullible evangelical. But they're not the only ones. Goodness, didn't anybody read that report about what the Christian CEOs of the largest NGOs are making?

I'm not saying that confrontation is wrong. I'm just saying that every honest Christian struggles with materialism -- the temptation to use our relationship with God to get more of this or that, whether it be physical healing or money in the bank. In fact, Jesus' apostles were remarkably materialistic. The age in which they lived was just as decadent as ours -- phallic worship, astrology, pleasure-seeking, and the grossest forms of materialism. The disciples followed Jesus for some good reasons and for some bad reasons -- like the hope of getting a business advantage (by sitting on His right hand!).

I could mention other things -- for instance, 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 are clear that Christian leaders are to be free from the desire for sordid gain. But mostly I just want to say this: If we're going to point the finger at the money-grubbing health-and-wealth preachers out there and their so-called prosperity gospel -- and there are plenty of them to go around -- our own lives had better be free of materialism and the love of money.

I don't think "ecstatifies " is a word. But I digress. We certainly are in full "torches and pitchforks" mode. While the vile "gospel" preached by TBN and other deserves the indignation and vocal correction by John MacArthur, John Piper and others, I think Dr. Black makes an important point here. There is plenty of materialism and love of money in the most orthodox of churches and in many a pious Christian. That is not to minimize at all the damnable heresy of the prosperity preachers, on TBN and elsewhere, who tell the lost and elect alike that the cross is not enough, that we get to use God as our ATM with prayer as the pin number, that if we contribute enough God is required to bless us with money and heal our aches and pains. I stand by every word I said and agree with everything MacArthur said. I also have to say that we have plenty of issues with money and materialism in the church and if I may go a step further, the way we exalt and obsess about money in the church makes the job of these prosperity preachers far easier.

How have we denied ourselves, really sacrificed? The prosperity Gospel makes so much sense in America because it is what we see week to week. Not just in $130 million religious campuses or in megachurches. I am talking about the local church that spends tons of money to replace carpet that might be ugly but works, adding video effects to make the "worship" more meaningful, spending tons of money on staff and denominational bureaucracy. Granted it is not mixed in with the Gospel but when we justify frankly frivolous and/or pride driven giving and spending in the local church, we need to pay attention to our own materialistic hearts and attitudes and ask what role that plays in the spread of prosperity preaching.

The false gospel of prosperity

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. (1 Peter 5: 1-3)

I was asked by someone why I labeled the “Health, wealth and prosperity” movement a heresy. It is a fair question. I have complained before about the casual way we throw words like “heresy” around, so here are my reasons for labeling the HWP movement a heresy. I will admit I have no use for the HWP preachers and it is hard for me to look at this objectively. I would strongly recommend a number of articles by John Piper, who minces no words about his feelings on the prosperity “gospel”, especially this one: Prosperity Preaching: Deceitful and Deadly

First, we never, ever see someone preaching anything like the HWP in the New Testament. NEVER In fact, we see the opposite. We see the earliest church speaking of self-sacrifice, of humility and quiet living. Preaching prosperity is not something that calls people to a life of self-sacrifice and humility, it is a call to something that the Bible says is an impediment, not an aid, to the Gospel.

When it comes to health, you certainly don’t see great health being a hallmark of the apostles life. Paul suffered immensely and tradition holds that the apostles universally died horrible or at least solitary deaths. On a few occasions we see examples of miraculous healings in the Bible, but it is impossible to draw a normative line between the apostles healing people for the purpose of preaching the Gospel and today’s false teachers who are not healing anyone. In fact Paul wrote that he had prayed for an issue of suffering to be removed (the thorn in his flesh in 2 Cor 12: 7-10) but it was not granted. Was Paul not a faithful Christian? In fact he rejoiced in this weakness, for in our weakness we are strong. Material prosperity and physical health is not a evidence of God’s providential blessings.

The Bible does not teach us that Christians should seek or expect a life of comfort and prosperity. This world will hate us and we should not be too comfortable in this life. Jesus told His disciples that they will find trouble in this world but that we should take heart because we know that He has overcome the world:

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. (John 16: 33)

How you can read that and expect a life of anything but tribulation is beyond me. I always get a bit nervous when things are going too well. The message of the Bible is not one that calls us to, gives an expectation for or inculcates a desire to be wealthy and prosperous. Think about the message of the parable of the pearl of great value:

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. (Matthew 13: 45-46)

That pearl of great worth was the Kingdom, not some earthly treasure. The merchant was willing to give up all that he had because that pearl (i.e. the Kingdom) was so much more precious.

In several accounts, Jesus sends His disciples out with nothing but the shirt on their backs...

And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And he said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. (Luke 9: 1-4)

I am not thinking that they were expecting to live a wealthy life or a prosperous life but they certainly were expecting to live a joyful life and that joy was not connected to health or prosperity! They were concerned with seeing men saved, not making a buck.

We see the example of the earliest church giving all that they had (Acts 2:45) and doing so to help their neighbors, not because of an expectation of getting something back in return but out of love for our brothers and sisters.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:11 and 2 Thessalonians 3:12, we see that Paul is calling on us to live a quiet life, to mind our own business and to work with our own hands. Not a life of lavish prosperity.

The Christian life is a quiet one, a life of modesty, contentment, self-sacrifice, of caring for others more than ourselves, of humility. It is not a life focused on blessings here and now, although each of us is blessed abundantly with what we need. What we really need and what the world tells us we need are not one and the same. The preaching of the HWP movement is based on worldly desires and we are warned against that…

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2: 15-17)

In fact, I think that being prosperous is one of the worst things that can happen to a believer. The greater our comfort and prosperity, the blurrier the cross becomes. God draws us to Himself often through our suffering and if you look around the world, the places where the church is persecuted and in hiding, the Gospel thrives. In places of comfort and apathy, the Gospel witness is hindered.

The HWP preachers are preaching the desires of the world with religious language. Perhaps even more dangerous, in many cases they twist the words of Scripture to fit their own agendas. For example, I was referred by the person putting forth the original question of why I consider the HWP movement a heresy to the ministry of a man named Joseph Prince. His “Daily Devotion” for today, Healthier, Stronger Each Day, implies that by partaking of the Lord’s Supper, you will experience mystical healing. From the devotional based somehow on Acts 2:46:

Now, I am not saying that you must take the Holy Communion every day. But if you feel led to and you want to, go ahead! The thing about taking the Holy Communion daily is this: If you are sick, you can be made well on a gradual basis. This means that you get healthier and stronger from day to day — first thirtyfold, then sixtyfold, then a hundredfold!

You see, while you can receive healing through the prayer of faith (Mark 11:24), it sometimes puts pressure on you because it requires you to believe that you receive it all — complete healing — the moment you pray. There is nothing wrong with the prayer of faith, but you may find yourself saying, “I must believe I receive it all, now! I must believe I have it all, now!”

But the Holy Communion allows you to receive a measure of healing every time you partake in faith, so that you get better and better. The more you take it, the better you become. There is no pressure to believe that you receive it all at once. Isn’t God good? He meets you at your level of faith!

The truth is that you can faithfully eat the Lord’s Supper and in fact not get stronger and healthier. That is not at all what it is about. That is one of the most egregious misuses of Scripture that I have seen in a long time and I say that as someone who used to be a mormon, so I know misuse of the Scripture when I see it. In another section of his webpage, he lists out “prooftexts” that allegedly support prosperity preaching. Here is the problem with all of those texts. When God blesses us and gives us riches, that is clearly not in material possessions. We read rich, we think money. In context and in example, that is quite apparently not what the Scriptures meant. I am richly blessed with eight kids. I am richly blessed with a godly wife who stays home and cares for and teaches those kids. I am richly blessed with enough food to eat and a home in which to sleep. None of that helps my checking account balance.


Men like Mr. Prince often cannot help but exalt themselves, as evidenced by descriptions of him on his webpage in the "About Us" section which really should be called "About Me". He uses humble language to describe himself like: Pioneer, humorous, anointed, dynamic. It culminates with this:

Over the years, Joseph’s ministry as pastor, teacher and conference speaker has helped to set many people free from guilt and condemnation, and caused them to fall in love with Jesus afresh as they see His love, goodness and grace.

Notice the emphasis here. Who is being exalted here? He may sprinkle the name of Christ all over the place but make no mistake that his focus is on himself, how powerful a preacher he is, what a great healer he is, how “anointed” he is. The focus of “Joseph Prince Ministries” is Joseph Prince. I have seen this same sort of megalomania from men ranging from prosperity preachers to “faith healers” like Benny Hinn to famous “revival preachers”. Invariably, no matter how much pious religious language they use, the object of their truest adoration is themselves. I honestly pray for those deceived people who become “Ministry Partners” and in exchange for their contributions get plastic cards designating their contribution level, ranging from “Destined to Reign Partner” to “Gospel Revolution Partner” and culminating in that highest honor, the platinum card declaring the holder to be a “Joseph’s Inner Circle Partner”. Notice that the highest level of faithfulness gets you into Joseph’s inner circle for the low, low price of $500 (or more!) per month. Only six grand a year to be counted among Joseph Prince’s Inner Circle! I can’t make this stuff up.

In the end, those preaching HWP are preaching something that God has not declared and they are making promises on God’s behalf that God has not made. They are making claims, couched in religious terms and sprinkled with out of context verses, to augment their statements and those claims are aimed not at making disciples of Christ but attracting followers for themselves. Followers who will “sow” money into the pockets of these men.

Jesus did not die on the cross so you could have a new BMW. He died so that you would be forgiven of your sins and receive that which is the most valuable, not earthly prosperity but eternal life. When someone presumes to say “God has said” when God has not, he speaks as falsely as the serpent who said "Did God really say?" in the Garden. Ascribing to God promises that God has not made is quite frankly heresy. If I am prosperous, I should praise God. If I am dirt poor and destitute, I should praise God. The measure of God’s faithfulness to us is measured by the cross, not by the balance in our checkbook. My duty to praise God is based on His grace, not on my prosperity.

Let me close with a couple of videos from John Piper on the prosperity "gospel"...

I wish Piper would just come out and tell us what he thinks...

Seriously though, the "prosperity Gospel" is no Gospel at all, it is another gospel and is anathema. We need to put aside false pretenses of brotherhood with false shepherds and wolves among the sheep and call them what they are. These men slander the name of Christ with their false teaching and need to be called to repent.

(HT: Brian at Voice of the Sheep)

Tough Questions, Man Pleasing Answers

In Detroit on AM 1500 from 4-6, the broadcast is from a local guy Paul Edwards. Paul is a pretty solid, Reformed guy. He tends to have pretty good guests on the show and covers interesting topics. What follows his show though, not so much. The show is called Tough Questions, Bible Answers by Pastor Jerry Weinzierl from Grace Christian Church in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Pastor Jerry and his wife "Pastor" Joy Weinzierl are proponents of the "prosperity" gospel that has gained so much traction in recent years, driven by dissatisfaction with "merely" being saved (you know you are in trouble when you get a husband and wife "pastor" team). Sure you saved me by grace from an eternal hell, but what are you doing for me now!

Today Pastor Jerry got an a roll about why he preaches prosperity, taking a brief shot at Calvinism with a typical mischaracterization. That didn't bother me, I have come to expect that sort of stuff. What bugged me was the way he apparently sees the Gospel as something to be packaged. I was driving when I heard him and I am only paraphrasing here. The summary of what Jerry Weinzierl was saying was: Some people say we should go about preaching how the Christian life might, and indeed probably will, lead to suffering and persecution in this life

Yeah, like that's going to get the job done.

In other words just preaching the Gospel like Paul and Peter and the other apostles did is inadequate because people just aren't interested in that stuff. Whatcha need to do is explain why joining our church will lead to you making more money and healing your bunions. The Gospel just ain't good enough, because being saved for eternity is not an adequate lure, I need something right here and right now.

What about the work of the Holy Spirit that he is always talking about? I guess it is really about the appeal of the message and the delivery, not the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit that precedes salvation. God is most glorified when we are weakest, when we are broken, not when we are fat and happy and wondering what all the fuss is about. I used to be semi-amused by Pastor Jerry. Not anymore.

After listening to Pastor Jerry tell me that we need to preach prosperity to get people interested in Jesus, this is a great time to a refresher on the "prosperity gospel" from John Piper....