The Prosperity Gospel
The prosperity gospel distorts and changes the message of Jesus Christ, the true gospel. The prosperity gospel teaches us that Christ died on the cross for our financial gain, while the true gospel teaches us that Christ died on the cross to atone for our sins. Instead of living a life dedicated to the Bible, traditional Christianity, and focus on Biblical concepts such as evangelization, helping the poor, loving God, living a pure sin-free life, etc., it draws focus to ourselves, how to create wealth and earn God’s blessing on our life.
In its watered-down form, the prosperity gospel simply tells us that the better we behave, the better that God will bless us. In its more advanced stage, the prosperity gospel distorts the true gospel to such an extent that it opposes true, historical Biblical Christianity.
For a while, many churches would stand guard and stay away from these types of teachings. But now, these teachings are infiltrating the modern-day church.
Jon Piper on the prosperity gospel
Secular stage hands are used to prepping shows for performances across America. But after working for Copeland’s show, they knew they “Did a bad thing” - Note contains profanity, but provides good insight here.
Top 10
Top 10 books on the prosperity gospel.
God, Greed, and the Prosperity Gospel - Costi W. Hinn. Riveting account of Costi travelling and working with his prosperity gospel uncle Benny Hinn. You can read amazing first hand accounts of the prosperity gospel lifestyle first hand.
Blessed - Kate Bowler - Scholarly and historical study on the Prosperity Gospel
Health, Wealth, and Happiness How the Prosperity Gospel Overshadows the Gospel of Christ David W. Jones and Russell S. Woodbridge - provides concise arguments to counter the prosperity gospel and false teachings
The Prosperity Gospel, Gospel of Greed - Jim Garnett - Very good account of the dangers of the prosperity gospel
Christianity in Crisis 21st Century - Hank Hanegraaff - Excellent account of how prosperity false teachers are creating a crisis in Christianity
Prosperity Seeking the True Gospel - Mbugua, Maura, Mbewe, Gruden, Piper - Has sections of the book written by different pastors including John Piper. Shows the dangerous effects of the prosperity gospel heading globally.
The Compromised Church - Frederick A Herschelman - Chapter two is dedicated to the prosperity gospel, it is also touched on in different sections of the book.
Exposing Mega Churches and the Prosperity Gospel Scam, Henry Bechthold - easy read book that provides interesting statistics, showing that if the prosperity preachers gave only a portion of their revenue to the poor, they could provide housing, three meals a day, health care, and job training for all of the homeless people in America.
Preachers of a Different Gospel: A Pilgrim’s Reflections on Contemporary Trends in Christianity - Femi B Adeleye - Details the dangers of the prosperity gospel in the African church, this book also applies to the Western Church.
God or Mammon? The Snare of the Prosperity Gospel by Robin Compston
Honorable Mentions
The Midas Touch - Kenneth E. Hagin - Kenneth Hagin, probably shouldn’t be on this list since he himself is associated with the prosperity gospel. However, this book made the list as Ken Hagin rebukes some of the excesses found in other prosperity gospel teachers. He addresses the hundredfold return, supernatural debt cancellation, the wealth of the wicked laid up for the just, the end time transfer of wealth, naming your seed, and the double portion.
Defining Deception - Touches on the prosperity gospel, moves on to different topics throughout the book.
The prosperity gospel brings with it it’s own slogans, lingo, and phrases. We have the idea of the 100 fold, giving to get, sowing and reaping, name it and claim it, God blesses the rich and curses the poor, divine health, favor, seed faith, positive confessions, etc.
The idea of seed faith is every prayer, tithe, thought, and emotion is a seed that is planted for future riches. The prosperity gospel revolves around the idea that you can wrestle divine favor from God if you give money to the pastor, speak the right words, or have enough faith.
Positive confessions and the name it and claim it theology tells us that we can control our destiny and God by proclaiming the right phrases and having the correct amount of faith.
The 100 fold concept tells us we will reap 100 times more than what we give. So, if you give 100 dollars, God gives you back 1000 dollars. If you give the church back that 1000 dollars, you get 100,000 dollars. Invest that back, and you get 10 million. If you reap one hundredfold on that 10 million, you get 1 billion. Send that to Ken Copeland, and you get 100 billion.
The problem with all of this is it has nothing to do with the Bible or reality. Successful business people like Warren Buffett, Elon Musk, and Jeff Bezos did not get that way by giving all of their money to a prosperity preacher, but rather by creating businesses, inventing, or investing. If you have $10,000 in your account and give $1,000 to the prosperity preacher on TV, you are not going to get $100,000 back. You are just going to end up with $9,000 in your bank account and the TV preacher can add a little jet fuel to his jet.
To complicate problems, nowhere in the Bible does it say that giving to a TV ministry is the equivalent to giving to God. The give to get concept is not Biblical. If you did want to tie some scriptures together to support a give to get concept, or tie a Biblical lifestyle to prosperity. You could use:
Jer. 17:7-8 KJV: Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
Ps. 41:1-2 KJV: Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble. The Lord will preserve him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies.
Josh. 1:8 KJV: This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
These commands are tied to honoring God, taking care of the poor, and finding life in the Bible. They are not tied into giving money to the guy on the TV set. There is no correlation. You might as well head to the local strip club and toss out dollars to the dancers and expect a hundred-fold return. The sad thing is, that the dancers might have a better theological view on God than the guy preaching about God on the TV set. And the dollars the strippers pick up are just as likely to generate you more money as the dollars that you send to a prosperity preacher.
Healing works under the same umbrella as the prosperity gospel. If you give the pastor some money, you will be healed of your cancer, diabetes, or whatever health problem that you have. Jesus healed in the past, and he heals today. However, the guy on the TV set does not heal; he only takes your money.
Jesus did not die on the cross to save our bank accounts. He died on the cross to save us from our sin. He died to save us from this world, so we can have eternal life with him.
If you are in a financial problem, pray to God, he can deliver you from that. If you are physically sick, pray. God can heal you. But put your faith and trust in God himself, not the guy on the television set. He is only there for your money.
1 Tim 6:10: For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
