Here is one extremely saddening article God Wants Me to Be Rich about Joel Osteen and Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, that has an average weekend attendance of 45,000 and an annual budget of $72.6 million. Couple of highlights:

"Osteen will tell you that his success is a result of God’s favor, that his message is God’s message, and that all that he has achieved is a blessing from God. Clearly, he is more than just an inspiring pastor; he is also a master marketer and—pardon me for saying this, Joel—a damn good chief executive."

"Last year, Lakewood generated $76 million in revenue, which amounts to just over $1,600 for every member of its congregation. Its take includes $44 million donated directly by congregants, who are asked to give 10 percent of their gross income; $10 million in product sales and sermon tapes; and $13 million brought in through direct-mail solicitations. The church’s greatest expense is the TV airtime it buys: $22 million last year to broadcast the show in more than 100 markets…An additional $13 million goes to administrative costs and salaries, and $9 million a year is spent on facilities and maintenance."

And the best reader comments I found:

"It's funny Osteen is preaching this message, because the person he links the "prosperity gospel" to was homeless, did not carry money on Him and depended on strangers to facilitate His meals, shelters, and companionship.  He called his apostles to drop their careers and follow Him and the early followers did not believe in earthly wealth and dispersed their resources so that no one would be left behind."

"I am not Christian, but I do find these mega-churches rather amazing. You have a silver tongued man and his pretty wife beside him coning thousands of worshipers out of millions of dollars. What an amazing business model. As the US economy falters and the masses become more uncertain of their worldly futures I am sure these self appointed silver tongued men will do quite well."

So I find it completely disgusting and repulsive that in a time when people in China, Africa, and the Middle East are being raped, tortured and killed for simply saying they are a Christian, a church like this will spend $22 million dollars on TV promotions.  As the article points out, Osteen is known for being a very liberal, lukewarm, middle of the road preacher.  He doesn't like to offend.  I think this is the kind of church/person Jesus was talking about when he said "I will spit you out of my mouth" (Revelation 3:16).  God be with the man come judgment day.

And for more information on America's impending destruction be sure to check out this gem of a story: Megachurches, Megabucks

This is another installment in my occassional series on the financial status of the United States.

Washington Post columnist Steven Pearlstein shares his thoughts on the future of our economy:

This thing's going down, fast and hard. Corporate bankruptcies, bond defaults, bank failures, hedge fund meltdowns and 6 percent unemployment. We're caught in one of those vicious, downward spirals that, once it gets going, is very hard to pull out of.

Pearlstein recently won the Pulitzer, precisely because he predicted that our nation was in financial trouble. And Steve doesn't blame Republicans or Democrats, he blames the American people for living a lifestyle beyond their means.

And in my mind the "prosperity doctrine" is just another byproduct of America's prosperity entitlement mentality. That somehow Americans believe God wants everyone to be rich, and God wants everyone to live a lavish lifestyle. I think we're going to find out real quick that this simply isn't true.

It's also one of the positives I see in this Recession. The curtain is being pulled back on the prosperity gospel, and more and more people are recognizing it for the fraud that it is. And perhaps people will stop going to church to learn how to be rich, but instead will start attending church to learn about the Love and Grace of God. 

Here's a fun article from a columnist in Michigan, mocking televanglists and their "prosperity gospel".

It's not a gospel you'll find after Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. It isn't tucked in near Revelation. You won't find it anywhere in the Bible. The basic idea is that God will grant financial and spiritual wealth to the faithful. What a deal. Just really, really, really believe and take the rewards to the bank.

After all, doesn't God help those who help themselves? No, wait. That's not in the Bible. Benjamin Franklin said that, and while he accomplished a lot, I don't think Franklin contributed anything to the Scriptures.

So far, the prosperity gospel seems to work well for the televangelists who are cashing in on all the stuff they sell and the Social Security checks little old ladies are donating to their churches. I'm not sure how prosperous the donors are getting.

Good point. You'd think after over 10 years of practicing the prosperity gospel, the members of City Bible church would all be filthy rich and overwhelmingly happy. But uh, you know, I think they're all pretty much living the same lives they were living a decade ago. And there's nothing wrong with that. But if you're not getting rich, then you've just spent the last 10 years of your life, listening to one boring repetitive sermon after another.

I keep remembering what Jesus told that rich guy: "Sell everything you have and give the proceeds to the poor. Then follow me." The rich guy declined.

The prosperity preachers apparently don't include that story in their sermons.

They don't. They also don't include the verse about camels going through needles. But then, the prosperity gospel isn't about the Bible. It's about the pastors preaching it.

Whatev. I really just enjoy the fact that the mainstream media is picking up on the "prosperity doctrine" and pretty much coming to the same conclusion that we all did four years ago. The prosperity doctrine is a sham. And a mockery. It's a smamockery!

Me wrote: "David, honestly, your statement about Mal. 3:8-12, whether or not it was written to believers implies that God somehow changed His idea of tithing and blessing between now and then. Simply untrue."

Me, As a counselor I thought that you would know that when a patient simply makes an assertion, it does not make it true. Your assertion "Simply untrue" is just such a statement. If you would take the time to research the tithe on this blog, you will find many reasons given against the Mandatory Tithe being required to receive God's blessings. In my view, we need you to leave assertionism behind and come forward with well-interpreted Scripture.

Me wrote:"There's also the fact that Pastor Frank Damazio has completed his PhD work at ORU, which holds the highest accreditation available to a school of theology in the states…"

Me, It is true that FD just received a degree from ORU. ORU's Office of Verifications just informed me that he earned a 3.95 GPA while doing this, too. Good job! At the same time, he did not earn a Ph.D. degree as you claimed; he earned a Doctor of Ministry degree, a degree which is far less academic and much more practical than the typical Ph.D. degree, as joebib has previously pointed out on this blog.

Me wrote: "As far as I know, you've no such credentials, and therefore wouldn't really be a credible source for such criticisms as you so flippantly distribute on this site."

Me, I do not make my posts "flippantly" on this blog. It is true, however, that I do not hold a degree beyond a Bachelors of Religion. At the same time, I do not base anyone's final credibility on the letters after their name. I base my assessment on what they say and the way that they document what they say. I have a friend, as just one example, who does not have a doctorate but is published in learned journals and who has read every article in The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible 4 vol. set, along with 1-2 solid commentaries on every book of the Bible, and much more. On the flip side, there are many atheists with advanced degrees who reject both God and Jesus Christ…

I would prefer you to dialogue with me about my content, sources and hermeneutics rather than dismissing so easily what I say because I don't have an advanced degree.

Me wrote: "After all, he's [David] spent so many hours of his life and time on this earth bashing…churches and pastors with cancer [Pastor Wendell Smith]."

Me, If I understand you correctly, you are saying that because Wendell Smith has cancer, than I should not criticize his teachings. Is this right? As a counselor, if you'll think about it, I think that you will recognize what you just said to me as a good example of pure guilt manipulation: don't criticize Wendell Smith because he has cancer. Do you actually encourage your patients to use guilt to manipulate others?

Where does the Bible say that because someone is sick that others should not disagree with their teachings? I don't know of any verse supporting that idea.

I have prayed, along with many others, that God would heal Wendell, but just because he may continue being sick, does not mean that God is giving him, or any other person with an unfortunate sickness, a license to teach whatever they want and to use the Bible or the gospel of Jesus Christ in whatever way they choose.

Someone recently said, "Very Few people on this blog will comment on what they DO believe, they just want to criticize you for your beliefs." Well, I would like to think that we frequently comment on what we DO believe and then criticize you for your beliefs. Anyways, here is what I believe in regard to one subject…giving.

I believe that giving is one of the most important things we, as Christians, can do to spread the gospel. Honestly.

Give. Everything.         

It's really that simple. Unfortunately, due to the miss-teachings of many prosperity preachers I must now clarify what I mean by "give". So allow me to present my "Give, but do NOT give" guideline.

Give, but do NOT give…a guideline

Give, but Do NOT give 10% of your income to your church to fulfill an Old Testament ritual. Give 10% to your church, but do it to fulfill New Testament direction from Jesus…and than tack on an extra 10% for fun. Or give 5% with a cheerful heart. Or give $20 bucks with a smile on your face. Give whatever you feel God wants you to give.

Give, but Do NOT give only to your church…give 10% of your income to your church, give another 5% to a local charity, then give $20 bucks to the guy standing on the corner, go buy the single mom down the street food, and also buy coffee for the businessman in a suit standing behind you in line at Starbucks, give to orphans in Africa…give to anybody and give to everybody.

Give, but Do NOT give only money (despite what "they" tell you, giving money is easy)…give of your time…give of yourself…give love…give hugs…give 1 night a week to serving food at a homeless shelter, give another night to read books to sick kids at the Children's Hospital, spend your Saturday afternoon mowing your neighbors lawn, spend a hot day passing around water bottles to those stuck outside in the heat, spend another day stuffing envelops for a local charity… treat others like Christ treated you.

Give, but Do NOT give so that God will bless you. Give because of what God has already done in your life. Give because Christ died so that you might be saved. Give because your eternity will be spent in heaven. Give because if you have Christ you have all the blessing you need. (And yes, if you give God will bless you… but do NOT attach the American definition of "blessing" to what God will do for you…God may just end up "blessing" you with disease, tragedy, and pain…and yet… still bring Himself glory.)

In summation, I believe that we should give… everything… and in doing so find complete contentment in what we already have from Jesus (Forgiveness, Mercy, Grace, Salvation) thus giving all the glory to God. 

For those keeping score allow me to also state, "Jesus is my Lord and Savior".

Kenneth Copeland Ministries is fighting back against Senator Grassley's investigation. In a letter responding to the investigation, Copeland's ministry states:

"The church is deeply concerned that the information Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is seeking could be used to subject the church and its members to public stigma, scorn, and obloquy,"

Yeah, I had too look up it up too; "obluquy" means "censure or blame".

Anyway, we'll see how Senator Grassley responds. It doesn't appear that Copeland is getting much help from other  ministries.

"We don't think it's the best approach to wrap yourself in the First Amendment," Kenneth A. Behr, president of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) told Cybercast News Service. "We believe that financial transparency is one of the cornerstones of financial integrity."

It's been fun to watch this play out. My guess is that the IRS is preparing a lengthy audit of all of the churches under Grassley's investiation. And we'll likely see the results of those audits sometime in 2009.

There are two certainties in life, Death and Taxes. And while Christ cheated Death, he still couldn't get past Taxes. I think Kenneth is screwed.  

Matthew 22:21 - Give to Caeser what is Caeser's, and to God what is God's.

Monday, March 31, was the deadline for certain pastors to submit information to Senator Chuck Grassley (R) regarding Grassley's investigation into their financial practices.

As a follow up, NPR did a short piece with a Professor of Religion from the Unversity of Rochestor on the "Prosperity Gospel".

It is a fairly well balanced segment, explaining the belief of the prosperity doctrine and how that belief has potentially run afoul of certain tax laws.  The professor ends the segment by calling Prosperity Doctrine churches "corporations". She concludes that when a corporation pretends to be a non-profit it can get into trouble.

Lastly, here is a good article listing where all the pastors stand in their complaince with the investigation.

Norm! sends in an excellent two minute clip from Pastor John Piper where Piper discusses his hatred for the Prosperity Gospel.

John Piper and the Prosperity Gospel

It's a brilliant sermon. And is the best explanation for why this blog continues.

"The Israelites were a religious people. Pilgrimages to Bethel, Gilgal, and Beer-sheba, the sacred precincts of Israel, were commonplace (Amos 4:4; 5:5). Freewill and thanksgiving offerings and tithes were performed regularly (4:4), and there were many religious assemblies and festivals (5:21–23). By all criteria, then, the Israelites assumed that they were performing the cultic and ritual requirements necessary to appease Yahweh. 

Furthermore, they considered their wealth and security as evidence that Yahweh was pleased. They assumed that their steadfast devotion to cultic ritual exempted them from the requirements of righteousness and social justice and from the consequences of wrongdoing. Through sacrifice they could guarantee divine favor and their own survival. The peace and prosperity the nation enjoyed must have, to many Israelites, validated their lives, values, and assumptions as the chosen people of God. 

Yet the people had turned the official view around and were reasoning in reverse: their prosperity proved that they were righteous. The distinction, while a fine one, is nevertheless important: the obligation of the covenant was to pursue righteousness and justice; prosperity would follow as a by-product of God’s pleasure. The pursuit of wealth rather than righteousness was an unacceptable short cut, and wholly abhorrent to Yahweh, according to the prophet. 

‘Amos’ severe judgment is a repudiation, not of the cult [worship system] itself, but of the cult as it was practiced in the eighth century B.C.E. …One’s conduct in the marketplace must always conform to one’s attitude in the holy place’ (King 1988: 89). 

And Israel’s did not. Amos decried the social injustice, the oppression of the poor, and the lack of any moral or ethical values on the part of the rich and powerful. According to Amos, the spokesman of Yahweh, Israel was a violent, oppressive, and exploitative society. The poor had to sell themselves into slavery to pay off trivial debts (2:6; 8:6). The rich falsified weights and measures (8:5) and traded dishonestly (8:6). Even the courts, the last bastion of hope for the poor, were corrupt. Judges were bribed to cheat the poor out of what little they had (2:7; 5:10, 12). In fact, Israel was no longer capable of acting with justice (3:10; cf. 5:7, 24; 6:12). Truth and honesty were now hated (5:10).” 

Source: Bruce E. Willoughby, Amos, the book of, The Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol. 1, pgs. 203-212 (for entire article)

As you may have noticed, the country is experiencing a little bit of financial Armageddon right now.

I would love to write about my theories on what is happening to the U.S. economy, but honestly, I do not really know what I am talking about.

So let me refer you to Calculated Risk; the best Financial Blog out there. I've been reading the blog for a couple of years now, and this guy has accurately predicted most of the country's current financial turmoil. From the drop in Housing to the failure of the credit markets, this guy saw it coming. 

And if anything good comes out of this economic downturn, I hope it is that the curtain is pulled back on the Prosperity Gospel to revel it as the hokey doctrine it is.