What do you think about Joel Osteen and his Church?
What do you think about Joel Osteen? Is he a real Pastor or one of those prosperity TV preachers making money hand over fist selling his books, CDs and DVDs?
Those the Bible talk about making money? Is the rich going to Heaven? Is Joel Osteen a Christian? Is Lakewood Church a real Church or a Motivational Weekly Seminar?
What do you think?
Those the Bible talk about making money? Is the rich going to Heaven? Is Joel Osteen a Christian? Is Lakewood Church a real Church or a Motivational Weekly Seminar?
What do you think?
Tags: and, chris, church, god, joel, lakewood, lily, making, osteen, preaching
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Rebecca Griffey on -
I haven't really watched too much of him. All I know is that he sounds like a motivational speaker to me. I'm not saying that's wrong or anything, but it seems that he's trying his best to encourage people. I don't think he's a real pastor, but i also don't think he's in it for the money.
What do you think?
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Permalink Reply by Chris and Lily Stevenson on -
I believe he is truly a man of God who is teaching people what God teaches us and that is to be positive, not just think positive but act positive in all things. God is a positive. If you think negative you will do end up with negative actions, if you think positive you will end up with positive action, it is a given. There is a HUGE difference between just thinking positive and repeating positive things, no that is not what God says and niether is that walk Joel Osteen teaches.
I have not yet read his book, but I plan on.
Joel Church is a Church of God for sure, I believe many people come to Christ in his Church and he never misses an alter call to give he opportunity for people to repent and accept Jesus Christ in their hearts.
Is he making money, Yes and their is nothing wrong with making money unless how you make that money. Selling books that uplift people and bring people closer to God or even bring people to God is a blessing. I am sure he gives to many in need.
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Permalink Reply by Chris and Lily Stevenson on
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Nike,
Well said, I agree 100%
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Permalink Reply by Disciple Mike on -
Im not going to judge Joel's heart, only God has that authority but I will say (in my opinion) he isnt a preacher of God. He is a Doctor Phil to me that sprinkles Gods word in his messages(out of context). He doesn't know the scriptures and He admits He doesnt in several interveiws. He is a motivational speaker is all. His dad was a preacher, he is not. And in my opinion he is the very defintion of prosperity gospel or otherwise known as the cotton candy gospel.
Any gospel that doesnt preach the sufferings is a false gospel..
shalom...
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Permalink Reply by Chris and Lily Stevenson on
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Joel Preaches the suffering, is Preaching is direct result of the suffering we all have as people, he preaches hope out of the suffering, if that is not scripture then I go it all wrong.
Does some one need to know ALL scripture to preach Gods message of his love and salavation? You need to know only one of many verses to do that. We all know John 3:16 and many of us put in on our t-shirts, websites and even wave it around on national TV during sporting events. Are we not preachers of the word, we live our lives and shine as Christ did and we preach the word.
I believe he knows a lot about God's scripture, he is a Pastor and to run a Church in the USA, you need to become a Pastor, so he has studied. The questions is does he know the word in his heart and does he preach from his heart Gods word, I believe YES.
He preaches, Hope, he preaches Gods promise of a better life, he preaches giving and caring at the same time he talks about getting off your feet and doing something, nothing comes without hard work, it is a given as a Christian to know that your hard work must be Gods work first. What you do for a living or your business must be Godly and that is what he preaches.
As a Christian we know there is suffering, we all suffer as we carry the cross, life does not get easier when you accept Jesus as you Lord and Savior, however the blessing do come and the joy in your heart will always be there when you truly accept God in your life and heart.
Becoming successful does not mean you are not suffering and again God wants us to succeed and be able to do his work.
Also I need to mention success is what you believe it is, there is nothing wrong with getting a job, work 8 to 12 hours a week and provide food and shelter for your family and live in a modest home, drive a modest car and not have cable TV, that is success; we live like KINGS anyway most of us in the USA, most of us have enough and that is fine, however if you want to have more so you can do more and do the things you want, the things that God has in store for you, you can.
If you feel deep inside that there is something more to be done, the do it, do it for the Glory of God and let his commandments guide you in his word.
There is NOTHING wrong with being wealth and successful as a Christian.
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Permalink Reply by TruthSeeker JAM on -
I've voiced my experiences and opinions on 'prosperity' TV evangelists in prior forum threads (Exposing False Prophets (or 'profits!')..).
My only experiences with the Osteens is that I have read all of John Osteen's booklets a long time ago, and once attended a 3-day seminar at his Lakewood Church in 1980. BTW, one of his members and proteges back then was Robert Tilton.
Going back thru Christian Church history, I guess the original Apostles & disciples must have 'missed it!' Or being of little faith so as not to live luxuriously---that didnt happen until the church became centered in Rome with all the corruption that followed...
The O.T. patriarchs did prosper outwardly but under a different covenant. The new covenant was for us to be as Christ was on this earth during his earthly ministry. All he had was the clothes on his back and houses to take him in---pretty much the same for Paul and the rest of the apostles during their earthly walks.
I've been around the Christian walk long enough to have seen too many big-name TV evangelists fall into lust and ruin to believe that that is a good path to take!!
I believe that God wants his ministers to walk humbly (as Paul's thorn in the flesh 'was given' him), focused and totally dedicated to Him, not side-tracked by earthly wealth, stardom, etc.
I value the scriptures that warn the believers about such per:
1 Timothy 6:5 (Ampl)
".... men who are corrupted in mind and bereft of the truth, who imagine that godliness or righteousness is a source of profit [a moneymaking business, a means of livelihood]. From such withdraw"
1 Timothy 6:10 (Ampl)
"For the love of money is a root of all evils; it is through this craving that some have been led astray and have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many acute [mental] pangs"
I believe that Joel didnt start out that way (having heard his testimony of how he came about to take over his father's pulpit), but I hope that he doesnt end up like so many other 'outwardly' successful men of God with all the praise that gets heaped on them...
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Permalink Reply by Chris and Lily Stevenson on
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I agree TruthSeeker,
I see it as Jeol's burden, is success and fame is a burden to him if he lets it destroy is testimony. God has blessed him and his Church with much and much he will need to do for God by blessings others and I am not talking about money... yes giving we all do as Christians as it is comanded and we give with joy not so that we receive, God said we will receive but that is not why we should give.
I believe Joel right now needs prayer as we ALL do, it must be very hard for him and people do not see it that way, yes hard for Joel with all his money... money is not the road to happiness by no means; money is a tool we should use for God's work, it is not ours anyway, it is Gods, it all his Gods
Pray for Joel that he will stay in the word and pray for his family, pray for his Church and his mission, pray that it stays in Gods ways not his
Oh yes it is SO easy for any of us to loose sight of God in all the worldly focus, Joel Osteen is no exception. I believe he is doing a GREAT work in God that needs to be done in this world of depression, lazzness, foolish spending, negativity and envy... and I am talking about Christians as well.
Thanks you for you replies and insight
To Your Success and God Bless
Chris Stevenson
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Permalink Reply by TruthSeeker JAM on
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Having been in this walk for almost 30 years and having seen most of the big-name 'Faith preachers' and 'Full-Gospel' ministers in person, I never have had to pay to get into the auditorium or sanctuary to get a seat! They were compensated by love offerings and the selling of their books & tapes during their visits. Having known some of the ppl behind the scenes who worked these special speakers & seminars, a deal was cut B4 their showing up requiring a certain amount of $$ to cover their 'expenses.' If the voluntary offerings didnt meet their budget, the local church had to make up the difference!
Does that sound like men & women of 'faith?!' I thought that" God shall supply all their needs according to His riches & glory by Christ Jesus." Sounds more like strong-handling the local church rather than trusting God to meet their needs by preaching the Word in Faith!!
My main concern with Joel Osteen is the huge amounts of $$$ that he charges for those to get into his 'An Evening with Joel' meetings! The amount of the tkts varied on where the seat was located (front row the highest) and the locale of the meeting---i.e. CA cities the most, smaller venues less.
Here are some typical prices:
____________________________________
Joel Osteen
Fri, Sep 05 7:30 PM
Verizon Center - Washington, DC
Save $100 On Joel Osteen Tickets
206 tickets available from $26 to $176 each.
http://www.ticketsnow.com/InventoryBrowse/TicketList.aspx?PID=65961
_____________________________________
Typical front row tkts at his 'Evenings' are around $100/each!! To me, this sounds like putting a 'price on the Gospel!!' Requiring ppl to pay to hear it, knowing that the widow with only her 'mite' (1/10 cent) could not hear the Gospel! Selling books and tapes and pocketing $ is acceptable to me, but charging $$$ just to hear what God has given and entrusted him with is very, very dangerous!
I'm afraid that Joel is already heading down the road---and remember, 'God is not mocked; whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reapeth.' And also the scripture and the warning in James 3:1 "Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment."
So pray for Joel that he wont fall into ruin where God will have to 'correct' him with His judgment....the bottom line is, God is NOT mocked!
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Permalink Reply by Disciple Mike on
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Stevensons....
"I believe he knows a lot about God's scripture, he is a Pastor and to run a Church in the USA, you need to become a Pastor, so he has studied."
I'm not so sure of this statement. I beleive this is in part truth but it depends on the denomination of the pastor. And in his case he is a non-denom pastor and I found many who have been ordained by other pastors with absolutely no theology training. In fact I have been aproached by some after witnessing to them and they asked me if I wanted to be ordained.
"He preaches, Hope, he preaches Gods promise of a better life"
My point exactly, He only preaches one side, he tickles the ears of the one starving for these things. Its all cotton candy in his message. Thats not Gods message. Its easy to lure someone by offering riches, thats not the Gospel. Just look to the apostles and Jesus Himself to find out what the true riches were and are intended to be. Its not money. True riches are what we take with us when we leave...
"God wants us to succeed and be able to do his work."
Again look at the apostles for the answer's unless of course you feel they didnt succeed. Because they didnt store up any riches...
Money isnt bad and people can do great things with it, but we must remember God doesnt need money to do anything, He just requires our faith...
Peace...
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Permalink Reply by TruthSeeker JAM on
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The most important advice that I can give to another Christian is "dont look to ANY man as a surrogate or hero between them and God!" I have seen too many men (& women) of God start out with a sincere heart and then fall, usually following pride from all the praise heaped upon them. As the scripture says, "Pride goes before a downfall." I believe most of these successful, outwardly wealthy ministers start out with a sincere heart---but then comes pride, distractions from the true Gospel, lust for power and wealth, and then they ultimately stray from the Gospel and fall into ruin. I could make a long list of such ppl!!
My advice to new believers and those that faithfully support a ministry that are believers to heed the scripture that I learned along time ago from seeing too many believers suffer shipwrecked faith and falling away:
"Cursed is the man that trusts in mankind."
Man will disappoint you 100% of the time! No man can focus on man and God at the same time---the focus should be on God, by reading and studying His word and meditating on it 'day & night' as the scripture says. Our only 'hero' is the Son of Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, and we should focus on His earthly ministry and His words recorded by witnesses that are illuminated by the Holy Spirit.
The Apostle Paul, picked by the Lord via blindness, sent to Damascus, who spent several years there under the teaching of disciples, and then launched out as the Apostle to the Gentiles, having been beaten, whipped, stoned, and imprisoned his whole life, given much revelation and visions of heaven yet spoke as "I know a man who' so as not to elevate himself, living with 'the thorn' of perpetual persecutions wherever he went, say per the scriptures: "Follow me (or imitate me) as I follow (or imitate) Christ."
I have no man, minister, celebrity, etc, on this earth that I really look up to! I have those that I admire for their lives as they live them, but I worship NO man. If one keeps this attitude then they will expect men to fail and not be swayed as they do, having their eyes on the only perfect One, the Lord Jesus Christ...
JAM
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Permalink Reply by Chris and Lily Stevenson on
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I agree completely. Man is fickle, weak, sinful, proud, selfish, greedy and men die!
God is Forever! God is Good always and his word is his love letter to us.
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Permalink Reply by Chris and Lily Stevenson on
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Does Joel Charge to enter in his Church Service too?
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