Answer:
In the prosperity gospel, also known as the “Word of Faith,”
the believer is told to use God, whereas the truth of biblical
Christianity is just the opposite—God uses the believer. Word of Faith
or prosperity theology sees the Holy Spirit as a power to be put to use
for whatever the believer wills. The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit
is a Person who enables the believer to do God's will. The prosperity
gospel movement closely resembles some of the destructive greed sects
that infiltrated the early church. Paul and the other apostles were not
accommodating to or conciliatory with the false teachers who propagated
such heresy. They identified them as dangerous false teachers and urged
Christians to avoid them.
Paul warned Timothy about such men in 1 Timothy 6:5, 9-11.
These men of “corrupt mind” supposed godliness was a means of gain and
their desire for riches was a trap that brought them “into ruin and
destruction” (v. 9). The pursuit of wealth is a dangerous path for
Christians and one which God warns about: “For the love of money is a
root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered
from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (v. 10). If
riches were a reasonable goal for the godly, Jesus would have pursued
it. But He did not, preferring instead to have no place to lay His head (Matthew 8:20)
and teaching His disciples to do the same. It should also be remembered
that the only disciple concerned with wealth was Judas.
Paul said covetousness is idolatry (Ephesians 5:5) and instructed the Ephesians to avoid anyone who brought a message of immorality or covetousness (Ephesians 5:6-7).
Prosperity teaching prohibits God from working on His own, meaning that
God is not Lord of all because He cannot work until we release Him to
do so. Faith, according to the Word of Faith doctrine, is not submissive
trust in God; faith is a formula by which we manipulate the spiritual
laws that prosperity teachers believe govern the universe. As the name
“Word of Faith” implies, this movement teaches that faith is a matter of
what we say more than whom we trust or what truths we embrace and
affirm in our hearts.
A favorite term in the Word of Faith movement is “positive confession.”
This refers to the teaching that words themselves have creative power.
What you say, Word of Faith teachers claim, determines everything that
happens to you. Your confessions, especially the favors you demand of
God, must all be stated positively and without wavering. Then God is
required to answer (as though man could require anything of God!). Thus,
God's ability to bless us supposedly hangs on our faith. James 4:13-16
clearly contradicts this teaching: “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or
tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on
business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen
tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little
while and then vanishes.” Far from speaking things into existence in the
future, we do not even know what tomorrow will bring or even whether we
will be alive.
Instead of stressing the importance of wealth, the Bible warns against
pursuing it. Believers, especially leaders in the church (1 Timothy 3:3), are to be free from the love of money (Hebrews 13:5). The love of money leads to all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10).
Jesus warned, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a
man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).
In sharp contrast to the Word of Faith emphasis on gaining money and
possessions in this life, Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves
treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break
in and steal” (Matthew 6:19).
The irreconcilable contradictions between prosperity teaching and the
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is best summed up in the words of Jesus
in Matthew 6:24, “You cannot serve both God and money.”
Recommended Resource:
Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century by Hank Hanegraaff.
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