JOYCE MEYER – GIVING NEW MEANING TO “HEAVENLY THRONE”

Years ago, I (Dee) had an interesting discussion with a pastor of women.  This female pastor expressed grave concern about the influence of Joyce Meyer within women’s ministries.  She said that she was convinced that many women who claim to be Christians had a very poor grasp of simple doctrine because if they were even slightly educated about the Bible they would not be able to listen to Meyer.

Who is Joyce Meyer and why do so many women (and men) follow her?  Meyer is just another ho-hum faith teacher who pals around with the usual suspects, such as: Benny Hinn, Creflo Dollar, and Kenneth Copeland.  There is nothing to distinguish her from the rest of the pack except that she is female.  Joyce is a theological illiterate, not to mention a money grubbing, high living woman who believes she is not a sinner and cannot speak anything in error.  These facts alone should cause thinking Christians to condemn her.

And yet many so called Christians hang on to every word she utters, spending millions of dollars to buy her books and to attend her conferences.  Why?  We believe that many Christians wish to have an excuse to pursue greed.  Charlatans we have previously discussed, along with Meyer, give them permission to do so because of their own idolatrous lifestyles.  Some Christians look for excuses not to deal with their own sin nature.  How many Christians do you know who believe they are just a little bit better than others?  Meyer preaches theology to promote such an attitude.  In fact, perhaps this why “prosperity pimps” do so well.  They give Christians an excuse for their sin.

Joyce Meyer has no theological training.  In fact, she barely finished high school.  She has a couple of honorary doctorates – one from that esteemed institution, Oral Roberts University.  She has some sort of “earned” doctorate from a non-accredited university.  Like the other “teachers” in the Word of Faith movement, rigorous Scriptural study under the guidance of well-founded professors is non-existent.

The best way to assess these prosperity preachers is to analyze their words and teachings.  The following examples of Joyce Meyer’s “theological” teachings have been weighed and judged to be “lightweight.”  They can be found at:

http://www.pfo.org/wan-star.htm

1. Did you know that Jesus had to do more than die on the cross for our sins?  Also, are you aware that Jesus gives folks like Meyers special knowledge that is not found in the Bible?

“In it she stated that at age 36, she received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and sometime later felt a flipping and a turning in her stomach. This, she said, led to an understanding of her justification and a deeper revelation of Jesus’ spirit death in hell, where He became sin and was tormented by demons. She also states that when “God yelled down through the universe, ‘That’s enough. Let Him loose,’” Jesus was able to rise. She admits this understanding does not come from the Bible, saying it came from our spirit man”.

“To make matters worse she strangely echoes Kenneth Copeland’s view…All the hosts of hell was [sic] upon Him. Upon Him. They got on Him. They got Him down in the floor and got on Him. And they  were laughing and mocking.” “Sunday morning, here comes the Son.  Sunday morning, God gets Himself together.  Ho, hoooo.  Justice has been met, somehow the thing’s been taken care of.  And ol’ God gets His voice together and He hollers out three words and they go roaring through the universe and entering the gates of hell.  He said,  ‘It is enough! It is enough!” (audio tape,  From the Cross to the Throne, sermon recorded at Life Christian Center in Saint Louis, Mo.] reference1999 – Personal Freedom Outreach)”. 

 

2. Did you know that Meyers is not a sinner? Lucky her!

“I’m going to tell you something folks, I didn’t stop sinning until I finally got it through my thick head I wasn’t a sinner anymore. And the religious world thinks that’s heresy and they want to hang you for it. But the Bible says that I’m righteous and I can’t be righteous and be a sinner at the same time … All I was ever taught to say was, ‘I’m a poor, miserable sinner.’ I am not poor, I am not miserable and I am not a sinner. That is a lie from the pit of hell. That is what I was and if I still am then Jesus died in vain. Amen?”

 

3. Meyer, despite her lack of education is also a punctuation expert. She uses her “expertise” to change orthodox theology.

“And in Luke 23:43, Jesus said unto him, ‘I say unto you today you shall be in paradise with me.’ There’s no punctuation in the original translations of the Bible. We have punctuated it and in this particular Scripture it was punctuated wrong. They put in there: ‘I say unto you comma today you shall be in paradise with me’ making it appear that the minute Jesus died on the cross He went straight to paradise. No, no no. He did not. The way it should read is: ‘I say unto you today comma. I’m telling you today. Today I’m telling you that you are going to be in paradise with me.’ But He didn’t say, ‘You’re going to be there today.’ He said, ‘I’m telling you this today’” (ibid.).

Joyce Meyer is  “living large”.  She believes that God has blessed her by giving her lots of stuff, including a $23,000 toilet bowl (she has definitely outdone Leroy Thompson, who purchased a $16,000 dog)…

“ Her ministry revenues have steadily increased from 1998 where they took in 40 million, to 1999 they brought in 55 million, to 2000 — 70 million, to 2001 near 80 million, to 2002 near 90 million. Today her Life in the Word organization estimates to take in $95 million this year. The ministry says it spends about 10 percent – $880,000 a month – on charitable works around the globe.

Meyer’s house, the largest of the five, is a 10,000-square-foot Cape Cod style estate home with a guest house and a garage that can be independently heated and cooled and can hold up to eight cars.  The three-acre property has a large fountain, a gazebo, a private putting green, a pool and a pool house where the ministry recently added a $10,000 bathroom.” http://www.letusreason.org/Popteac17.htm

“Televangelist Joyce Meyer, who’s yet to meet a plastic surgery procedure she doesn’t like, installed a $23,000 marble-topped antique commode in her new ministry center complex.  Her “throne” must really be special.  You can view it at this link: 

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/42538

Here are more examples of Meyer’s “twisted theology”.

 

Did you know that words contain power?  Yep, that’s right, words, not God, contain power.  This is an ancient Egyptian metaphysical construct that has crept into some Christian circles.  This means pagan, folks! http://www.pfo.org/wan-star.htm

“Meyer, in her new book, writes, “Words are containers for power” (The Name, The Word, The Blood, pg. 37).  Word-Faith teachers advocate that through speaking and positive affirmations we can create our own reality.  They usually refer to Genesis 1 and show that God spoke the world into existence and extrapolate that we, too, can speak creative words and can speak reality into existence. 

The fact that the premise breaks down because we are not God does not deter Meyer from saying, “Remember then, that the Word of God is both spirit and life, use wisdom and begin speaking life to your situation” (ibid., pg. 38)”.

 

Did you know that bad spirits can linger at the Holiday Inn? And you thought the only thing you needed to worry about is poor housekeeping! http://www.pfo.org/wan-star.htm

According to Joyce, “My husband and I stay in various hotels because of our travels in ministry. Quite frequently when unpacking and settling into a hotel room I will ‘plead’ the blood or ‘put’ the blood on the room, to cleanse or remove any wrong spirits that may be there from other guests. I do this by praying, by speaking the blood in my prayer” (ibid., pg. 111)”.

 

Did you know that Satan could take money out of your wallet? And you thought it was your kids! http://www.pfo.org/wan-star.htm

“We laid hands on the check and prayed. I went and got all of our checkbooks and my pocketbook and Dave got his wallet and we laid hands on them and put the blood on them, asking God to protect our money, to cause it to multiply and to see to it that Satan could not steal any of it from us” (ibid.).

 

Did you know that demons stink?  Perhaps Febreze could come up with a freshener!  http://www.letusreason.org/Popteac17.htm

“She makes her position clear by saying “words are containers for power they carry creative or destructive power positive or negative power so we need to be speaking  right things over our lives and about our futures if we expect to have good things happen because what you say then is what you  probably end up having tomorrow. We need to warfare with words. I believe that praise and worship is warfare. We talked about this last night, how when we are praising and worshipping God that there’s actually a, an odor that comes off of us that is offensive to the enemy. And I don’t know if you ever had the opportunity to smell a demon possessed person but I have, and I tell you it is a stench; and I was saying about that this morning and I thought you know people that are demon possessed have an offensive odor to me and I’m glad because I am holy ghost possessed that I’ve got an offensive odor to the devil.” (broadcast on the Bible Answerman  Jan.2003)”  

The following examples come from http://www.equip.org/articles/the-teachings-of-joyce-meyer

 

Did you know that accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior is not enough to get you into heaven?  Meyers has some insider information.

“Moreover, in her 1991 booklet, Meyer asserts that salvation is impossible without believing Jesus suffered in hell as the believer’s substitute. Meyer writes, “There is no hope of anyone going to heaven unless they believe this truth I am presenting. You cannot go to heaven unless you believe with all your heart that Jesus took your place in hell.

 

Did you know that certain words can knock you out of your chair onto your rear?

“you gotta come on out in the deep….Oh, I think that word’s anointed right now. Deeeep!!! Mmmmmm! One lady was in a conference recently in St. Louis, and she said “I am telling you, every time you said the word “deep” the fire of God hit me in the pit of my guts.” The lady, she kept falling out of her chair and being on the floor, you know? And she said later, “every time you said ‘deeeeep’ it was like I just couldn’t stay in my chair!”

 

Did you know that angels tell you exactly what you are supposed to say by whispering into your ear?

“Now spirits don’t have bodies, so we can’t see them. Okay? There probably is, I believe there is, and I certainly hope there is several angels up here this morning that are preaching with me. I believe that right before I speak some anointed statement to you, that one of them bends over and says in my ear what I’m supposed to say to you.”

So, you thought the only thing you needed to worry about bad jewelry is your skin turning green.  Think again!

“There are many different signs and emblems that people wear as jewelry that are straight from the devil, and they absolutely do not know it, and I’m quite sure there are going to be people here today that probably even have some of these things in your possession. You may even be wearing one. And what they do is they draw evil spirits.”

 

Did you know that Meyers cannot fall into error?  What a racket!

“In lieu of the biblical admonition to test everything by the objective Word of God (1 Thess. 5:21; 2 Tim 3:16), Meyer further asserts that God would never allow her to fall into error. Turning instead to her subjective feelings she says, 

‘I am going to tell you something right now. I no more believe that my God is going to let me stand around and believe a lie than I believe that I am going to turn green in the next two minutes. God is my source and He loves me and I am after God with my whole heart. And if I am accidentally, or any other way, getting into error, I am going to have a bell go off on the inside of me that is going to be so loud that not only am I going to hear it, but so is everybody else.’”

 

Did you know that you can blame the devil for your sins?

“Also problematic are some of Meyer’s beliefs regarding spiritual warfare. According to her, for instance, generational spirits supposedly torment families for generations with specific sins, and she even believes that a demon of lust torments her family. On one occasion she says,

“I told you that there was a spirit of incest in my family bloodline….And the thing that I want you to understand today is when there’s a spirit like that in a bloodline, until some person believes on Jesus and takes the blood of Jesus and draws it across that natural bloodline, that devastation goes on for generations and generations….Well see, my father’s grandfather had problems and so his father had problems and so my dad had problems and so I had problems and so if  I wouldn’t have stood and believed Jesus, my kids would have had problems and their kids would have had problems and so on and so on.”

Scripture, however, does not support the existence of a demon or spirit of lust, nor any demon of a particular sin. It is true that certain sins (e.g., alcoholism) are perpetuated and can affect families for generations (see Exod. 20:5; Num. 14:18), but these are the consequences of sin ¾ not generational spirits. James’ epistle is clear that we sin because of our own evil desires (v. 1:14). Demons cannot force us to sin; however, they can influence our behavior through temptation (e.g., Gen. 3:1-6). Nonetheless, we are ultimately held accountable for our actions (e.g., Ezek. 18:4, 20). If this were not so, we would have license to exclaim, “the Devil made me do it!”

 

Did you know that you need to provide exorcisms prior to witnessing?

“Along similar lines, she believes that there are “mind-binding” spirits who keep multitudes of believers in a perpetual state of unbelief. Through deliverance, however, the attacks of mind-binding spirits will disappear. In her case, “when the spirits left, the ability to believe came rushing back.”    

And you thought you needed to only be aware of bad drivers!

“Meyer overemphasizes and distorts the parameters in which God permits Satan and his angels to work, by attributing practically every negative experience to demonic activity. There is even a demon of accidents. For example, she recounts experiencing a close call while pulling into and out of a fast food restaurant parking lot. She shouts, “‘I rebuke the spirit of accidents, in the name of Jesus!’”

 

Tune in tomorrow when we will wrap up our coverage of Joyce Meyer.

Comments

JOYCE MEYER – GIVING NEW MEANING TO “HEAVENLY THRONE” — 22 Comments

  1. Actually, an antique commode was probably a chest of drawers, which is what the word “commode” referred to prior to the coming of the modern toilet.

    That’s what Joyce Meyers & her supporters in a few websites claimed it was, too. They claimed it was part of a 68 piece furniture set purchased for $261,498.

    The thing is, although it’s not as interesting as being a $23,000 toilet, is it any better? $261,498 is a lot of money!!!

  2. They sold Joyce Meyer books in my former “conservative” mega church bookstore. but they would repudiate her beliefs if asked about them directly.

  3. I have never watched Ms. Meyer, and know little about her. The 2 minutes I have watched left me cold as a cucumber.

    O.K. I’ll admit that I probably have a bias against women preachers. But EVERY time I see one on T.V. I want to puke.

    Listening to Kenneth Copeland’s wife is like listening to nails on a chalkboard. I have to say the same about Meyer. So, as you can see, I am not stickng around long enough to see how much error these women can spew from their mouths.

    My wife enjoyed the Beth Moore studies, and I watched a bit. MUCH better.

    I also have found Kay Arthur good. I met her in 1978 when I was 17 at Reach Out Ranch.

    Ruth Graham Lotz (sp?) is also not very motivating to me.

    Interestingly, I don’t feel that way in other areas. Margaret Thatcher was class all the way. Could listen to her for hours!

    Jean Kirkpatrick (RIP) would have made a great President.

    Phyllis Schlafley (sp?) has an unusual presentation and demeanor but is a truly accomplished person. (Note: You should read her resume sometime. It would blow your mind).

    I also like Ann Coulter, Laura Ingraham and a couple of other commentators on T.V.

    I really enjoy Camile Paglia. She is a great writer and interesting person to hear. I would love to see her come to know the Lord.

    Hillary Clinton? What did I say about nails on a chalkboard?

    But female TV preachers have not caught up.

    It’s just more irritating to hear how doctrinally off this Meyer woman is.

    I am in a conservative church, and we would never sell or give out a book by this woman.

    But we wouldn’t give one out by Ms. Weatherford Crumpler, or Ms. Pennington Russell or any of their ilk either.

  4. “Listening to Kenneth Copeland’s wife is like listening to nails on a chalkboard.”

    Anonymous, that’s a very good assessment of Gloria! B-O-R-I-N-G!!!

    For the most part, I agree with what you have shared, and for future reference it’s “Anne Graham Lotz” whom I know on a casual basis. Her son-in-law was my daughter’s Bible teacher when she was a high school senior at a wonderful Christian school. He was FANTASTIC!

    Thanks for commenting. We will try and wrap up our coverage of the prosperity gospel on Friday.

  5. Deb:

    Sorry I got Ms. Lotz’ name wrong. Ruth was her mom. Duh!!!!

    And also let me say that I appreciate her very much (unlike Copeland and Meyer). I just don’t care for her speaking style.

    Suzy Orman is another one that drives me bananas. She must have 10 sub-points for each major point she is making and 4 sub-sub points. Can’t follow the woman.

    Now Stacey, on What Not to Wear – I like her.

  6. Wow! I have never seen a person’s words so taken out of context. Thank you very much for confirming for me just how much Joyce Meyer is on the Lord’s side. Your opinions of her statements are not Biblically sound, you just sound like a hater! I pray that more people see this commentary and see your anger towards a successful woman of God who is transforming lives and get the same feeling I do. God bless you and may God continue to use your discourse to prove Joyce RIGHT!!!

  7. Lo

    I would ask you to explore Meyer’s teachings and compare them to Scripture. She does not teach sound Christianity. The Bible tells us that we are to call out false teachers and Meyer, unfortunately, appears to fit the bill. When one points out failings, poor theology, and financial mismanagement, one is not hating. One is being wise.

    By using the word, “hatred” you are using a technique that is outlined in the book, “The Subtle Tyranny of Spiritual Abuse”. When someone disagrees with you, instead of responding to the charges, you make the person bringing the concerns “the problem.” So you accuse them with words such as hatred, bitterness, gossip, arrogance, deceived, etc.It is rather boring since it is so predictable.

    We stand by our claims. You have done nothing to carefully outline your argument against our presented evidence. Your response seems to indicate an emotionalism not based on thoughtful faith but a knee jerk response. Argue the points, if you can.

    My final question is this. You claim Meyer is on the “Lord’s side”. Which Lord?

  8. Ken
    You are so right. Cults develop when people accept the stuff these pimps push and neglect their responsibility to compare what is being taught against Scripture.

    Why? My guess is that they, too, want to be able to justify their underlying greed for more and more stuff and love having a “preacher” to blame for it. One day, they will stand before Jesus, houses, surgeries, hairdos and clothes all burned up or, more likely, having tried and tried to get the stuff that old Joyce has and failed miserably,and will have to answer Jesus’ asking them, Why?

    My guess is that, at the end of their lives, they may once again reflect on this nonsense and regret giving their lives over to such a vain pursuit.

    Thanks for your most perceptive comment.

  9. This is a great collection of Meyer quotes and especially good for being entertaining to read! Thanks for taking the time to put it up, though I’m not sure what year it’s from.

    I’m doing a fairly indepth critique of a 2002 book by Meyer at http://www.joycevsjesus.com if you’re interested.

    Since Meyer started taking all the money from her book sales out of her “ministry” and keeping it for herself several years ago, she is being sold as another “self help” writer. Consequently, she has moved away from her flakey Pentecostal origins and donned the garb of the Oprah priesthood, at least in her teachings, which are even more insidious now than they were before.

  10. Ken,

    Thanks for your comment and for your investigation of Joyce Meyer.

    I’ll be sure to check out the link you provided.

  11. At a time when I needed it most, I’ve discovered the books and teachings of Joyce Meyer.

    Can any of the previous writers give me an example of anything they’ve done to help people like me finding God again?

    While you are spending your time judging a person like Joyce, she is devoting her time teaching God’s love and prommisses to thousands of people like me.

    If you are really people from and in God, why don’t you approach Joyce in His love, and discuss some of the concerns you have about her teachings with her, instead of doing it behind her back on some website she probably doesn’t have the time to read and reply to?

    And stop envying the way in wich God is blessing her financially. Throughout the Bible we find examples of how He blessed people (who worshipped Him and who seeked His wisdom through prayer and devotion and in all honesty try to do and live according to His will) financially and/or with earthly belongings (Abraham,King Solomon, King David and others)

    God bless,
    Anya.

  12. Anya,

    Thanks for your comment, even though I wholeheartedly disagree. Let’s see…you said addressing our concerns about Meyer’s teachings via the internet is “doing it behind her back”? Hmmm….. In case you haven’t noticed, the blogosphere is the most direct way of addressing issues head-on. Anyone with access to the internet can read about our concerns if they so desire. What would you suggest instead? Writing Joyce a letter or giving her a call? I wonder how effective that would be…

    Obviously, you have misunderstood our intent in pointing out serious concerns with Meyer’s interpretation of God’s Holy Word. While we hope Meyer will be more careful with how she explains passages of Scripture, we are more concerned about warning those who are under her influence to be aware of her theological missteps. The Bible admonishes Christians to do this.

    Your ridiculous comment about “envying the way in which God is blessing her financially” is so predictable among those who have fallen prey to the prosperity gospel. I have heard it one too many times. Next time you contront critics of Meyers and the other prosperity pastors, try a different approach because that one doesn’t work, at least not here.

  13. Anya, show us some examples from the New Covenant of those who were blessed financially because of following Jesus.

  14. Deb,

    To be quite honest with you, I’ve never given the “prosperity gospel” issue any thought until after reading your comment to me in this regard. However, looking back on my life I have so much to be thankfull for…as God has always provided in all my needs, and I’m really not bothered by how much Joyce is earning and how she spends it. What impresses me though, is the fact that her ministry spends about $880,000 A MONTH on charitable works around the globe. Can any of us, or our organisations, equal that?

    I’m sorry to say, but how can I respect the viewpoints of people who’s intention it is to “point out serious concerns with Meyer’s interpretations of God’s Holy Word” while they find it neccesary to attack her in person in order to do so?

    God bless,
    Anya.

  15. Anya,

    Thanks for coming back and reading my response. God has always provided for me as well, and I am extremely grateful!

    A little over an hour ago I was listening to The Bible Answer Man, Hank Hanegraaf, on the radio. Someone called in with a question about the Word of Faith Movement. In his response, Hank affirmed that Joyce Meyer does not interpret Scripture correctly. He is correct. Thanks to the internet, we can get the word out to those who are willing to discern truth from error.

  16. Anya

    You should be concerned about how these multizillionaires affect how the world perceives Christianity. There is nothing in the Gospel that would lead us to believe that we should be in the business of Christianity. In fact, Jesus overturned the tables in the Temple because people were making money off the faithful.

    If you looked beyond the church door, you will see the world laughing at the Christians who cover for these prosperity hounds. The amount she gives to “missions” is a pittance to the intake of her ministry. It is probably less than 10% of her take. In 2003, her intake was in excess of $98 million. Today it well exceeds that number, and some estimate it to be above 130 million.

    For those who think we are jealous, I have one thing to say. They think we are jealous because her lifestyle means so much to them that they think everyone would want to live in such excess. Many of her followers are praying for the same jackpot for themselves and think everyone else is as well. That is unadulterated nonsense! However, keep praying for it and keep giving to Meyer. She keeps getting richer off the donations of the hopeful who believe that if they give, God is going to give them fancy houses, jets, Lexuses, etc. like He has given her.

    Jesus had no place to lay His head, yet He could have conjured up a mansion or two. Why didn’t He?

    Her theology is desperately poor, and she is one whom I would label a false teacher without hesitation.

    Her theology is tied up in her lifestyle and person. It is impossible to unravel the two. Scripture often gives examples of the person to illustrate sin. The man who was sleeping with his mother in Corinthians is one. Now why would Paul attack the person? Doesn’t that sound mean?

    Joyce Meyer is a prosperity pimp, and she relies on nice Christians who wouldn’t dare say something mean about God’s woman. She has got a racket going and nice Christian ladies help her keep it rolling.

  17. Deb
    I heard the same broadcast. he was talking about her appalling translation of Romans in which she says that God allows us to the word of faith to speak something into existence. This is part of a Egyptian metaphysical construct that poor readers of the Bible turn into a Scriptural mandate. If I confess it, it will come to past.
    Egads, what nonsense!

  18. I do know I have judged and critisized others and it has come right back to me. A saved soul is priceless! Lindy

  19. Lindy

    You are right. A saved soul is priceless and Meyer is teaching a false gospel. That is the reason for this post.