Our loyal readers remember our series on the Prosperity Preachers just last month, and we intended to keep them informed should any “breaking news” occur.
Our loyal readers remember our series on the Prosperity Preachers just last month, and we intended to keep them informed should any “breaking news” occur.
I (Dee) would like to take a moment to thank Deb who has carried this blog for the last month. I had a total knee replacement in late December and was not prepared for the degree of pain I experienced as well as the extended lack of mobility (even though I am a nurse). Prior to the surgery, I thought I might be out of commission for just a couple of weeks. That was naïve, and the two weeks morphed into a month. Deb graciously carried on without complaint, often cheerily saying that she was “having lots of fun”! So, I want to tell all who read this blog how wonderful it is to have such a great friend and co-writer. Friendships like this are hard to find, and I am certainly blessed by Deb. Thanks, “pardner!”
American Christians seem to be fixated on who looks good, who has the bigger church, and who gets invited to be interviewed by Larry King. Words do not seem to matter so long as the package is pretty. Dee found that Dallas was the buckle of the belt. Bible belt, you may ask, since it so often claims this title? Nope, the buckle of the “he who has the most, wins” philosophy. Back in those days, Prestonwood Baptist won in the “most people” and “biggest building” category. But Chuck Swindoll had a run at the “most” title and won “most people present for the first day of a new church” and the “instant mega church” category. This occurred when he decided to start a church to the north of Dallas in Frisco.
Why pick on Joel Osteen? We believe he is one of the most dangerous men of the prosperity gospel crowd. He has achieved great success. Barbara Walters called him one of the “10 most fascinating people of 2006”. That same year he was chosen as the “Most Influential Christian of 2006” by the readers of Church Report Magazine. Osteen is a media darling and is interviewed by the likes of Larry King and most other talk/news shows.
Since we have been focusing on the prosperity preachers, I decided to tune into the Believer’s Voice of Victory produced by Kenneth Copeland Ministries (KCM) yesterday morning. Kenneth Copeland was chatting with Frederick K.C. Price. Here’s what I watched:
Do a quick search of “Joyce Meyer” and “commode” and you’ll be astounded at the list of references. If you ever wondered why Joyce Meyer’s “commode” drew so much attention, take a look at a Senator Grassley’s comments in a CNN video we found at this link:
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.
“Slain in the spirit” is a strange phrase. The person is not slain but merely knocked over onto his back. The question is — what spirit? It certainly has nothing whatsoever to do with the Holy Spirit. No such thing is ever mentioned in the Bible.
“He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely, He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”
Have you ever heard of Justin Peters? He is a Baptist evangelist who wrote his Master’s of Divinity thesis on Benny Hinn. Furthermore, he is an expert on the Word of Faith preachers and an outspoken critic who has appeared in documentaries and TV news stories covering this controversial movement.