"Give more, get more" - Have we overreacted to the Prosperity Gospel?
Firstly it’s difficult if not impossible to critique a sermon based on its title (a derivation of “you can’t judge a book by its cover”)
The title reminds me of the title of a definitive book on gun control entitled “More Guns Less Crime” which on the surface sounds like if you dumped a load of handguns on the street in a high crime area that the murder rate will go down.
Certainly God blesses His people (Ephesians 1:3). And just as certainly there are trials many of which lead to pain, suffering and death.
The prosperity gospel basically makes material blessings paramount and teaches a tight correlation between what is given and those self-same material blessings.
Were I to teach on giving I would emphasize the points of:
- Responsibility & duty (2 Corinthians 9:7)
- That there is a link between commitment and generosity (2 Corinthians 8:5)
- AND I would offer no direct link between material blessings and the amount given.
The author wrote:
Throughout the Old Testament we are told that God rewards faith that expresses itself in generosity. In Deut 15:10, which speaks about taking financial care of your disadvantaged brother in the Lord, Scripture tells us to “give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart.” But it is the next phrase that should catch our attention, “…then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.”
Did you catch that? God promised to bless the common, average Israelite citizen with material blessing and success at their employment, investments, and endeavors if they lived a lifestyle of generosity.
Silly me. I thought the Mosaic Covenant was conditional, in that if Israel obeyed the Law out of a pure heart and love for God, He would bless them materially in the land He promised them as they lived as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
Silly me, I thought the Mosaic Covenant, where God’s Law was written on tablets of stone, was superseded and dissolved by a New Covenant, written on the fleshly tablets of our hearts.
Silly me, I thought that meant that we shouldn’t look for blessings from a conditional covenant:
- Written only to Israelites
- Written only for Israelites
- Written to govern their earthly theocratic kingdom
- Which covenant has now been dissolved by a new and better covenant
to govern our lives today, as we:
- Are not Israelites
- Are not living in an earthly theocratic kingdom
- Are not living under the conditions and terms of the conditional, Mosaic Covenant
People make the same mistake when they pull OT verses commanding Israel’s corporate repentance and apply them to America.
Silly me, I thought context mattered when citing a verse from Scripture. I suppose not. There is a greater hermeneutical issue at the core of the author’s problem. In the end, he agrees that “give more, get more” is correct. He wishes to avoid the extremes that (1) that God doesn’t bless, or (2) that all He does is bless.
I believe it is dangerous to suggest that if we give, we’ll get more from God. The motivation of Christian charity is to glorify God, who provided a Savior for us. It is not to “get more.” I am not suggesting the author advocates this. I’m just saying his case is presented very poorly. Who on earth would encourage tithing for selfish reasons!? That is dangerous and misguided theology! No matter how nuanced the matter may be in the Pastor’s mind, it will not come across that way to the congregation. The Deacons of the church were right to cry foul on that message.
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
Silly Tyler!
Why is it that my voice always seems to be loudest when I am saying the dumbest things?
No. We haven’t. These word of faith preachers prey on the most helpless, desperate and vulnerable. They ask widows to send in what little they have left so that by taking their money these frauds can afford to live in lavish homes, fly around in their jets and stay in expensive hotels.
Proverbs 3:5-10 (KJV)
5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
9 Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
10 So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
Is that just written to Israelites in their theocratic kingdom?
Give a $5 spot and kiss it goodbye…God has no interest in your finances! Be blessed brother…
who battles the Prosperity Gospel preached a series from 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 on Biblical views on money where he makes it clear that God blesses (including…GASP…financially) those that give to His kingdom
The first sermon is here:
http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/47-51/the-biblical-view-of-money-p…
The sermons are The Biblical View of Money Pts 1-4, and A Biblical Model For Giving Pts 1-4
And here is a link to MacArthur’s sermon “Abusing the Poor”
Here is one of the concluding paragraphs in MacArthur’s sermon Abusing the Poor:
“So I say, woe to you who sell your miracle water and your miracle cloths that promise to heal the desperate if they send you their money. Woe to you wealthy self-indulgent preachers who become rich on the backs of the lonely poor, disillusioned diseased and desperate who are told to give you their money as an act of faith so that God is obligated to make them healthy and wealthy. Woe to you who indulge in ten thousand dollar a night hotel rooms, claim revelations from God, spend 112 thousand dollars a month on your private jet with money taken from the most desperate people. Woe to you, you will not escape judgment.”
Obviously a person who deceives the flock to give and then uses it as ill-gotten gains is evil. That is not the point of this thread.
The point of it is the question “does the Bible teach that a person who gives to the Lord financially is blessed in some fashion financially?”
Mark,
There’s a difference between saying God can and God does. The Bible never promises the NT believer financial reward for giving to God.
Why is it that my voice always seems to be loudest when I am saying the dumbest things?
I take serious issue with the title of the message in question, namely - “Give More, Get More.”
It is a serious mistake to motivate a Christian to tithe in expectation of receiving financial blessings. We ought to give back gratefully a portion of the blessings God has given us. Our motivation should not be to “get more.” Our motivation ought to be to glorify and praise our Savior. The title of this message is very ill-conceived and sub-Biblical, hence the outcry.
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
Mark,
The thread topic is labeled “ ‘Give more, get more’ - Have we overreacted to the Prosperity Gospel?” So sorry that I thought it was about “does the Bible teach that a person who gives to the Lord financially is blessed in some fashion financially?” I took the title at face value and assumed it was about the Prosperity Gospel and whether or not we overreacted to it. The prosperity gospel teaches that if you give more, you get more. The purpose for giving is to get a larger return. That is unbiblical. So my answer was No. We have not overreacted to the Prosperity Gospel.
The linked article is about “does the Bible talk about financial blessing for giving?”
If you want to ignore that and blast Joel Osteen a few more times, have fun.
The name of the linked article is “Uncomfortable Blessings”
Does anyone even read the articles…or just rant at the thread titles?
Discussion