All Nine Chapters - Index and Summary Chapter 1 - Introduction To The Prosperity and The Word-Faith Gospels. HERE Chapter 2 - Alleged Biblical Support For The Prosperity Doctrine. HERE Chapter 3 - The Never Mentioned Verses. HERE Chapter 4 - Uninformed People in The Scriptures? Chapter 5 - The Word of Faith Doctrine and New Thought. HERE Chapter 6 - Joel Osteen - The Blind Leading The Blind. HERE Chapter 7 - How Words Precede Form. HERE Chapter 8 - God and Money. HERE Chapter 9 - The Crown Without The Cross? HERE If God intended His followers be rich and healthy in this life, then it is fair to assume that the giants of the Old and New Testaments not only knew this but were also fully aware of what they needed to do in order to achieve both riches and good health. So let's travel back in time and see if we can find some evidence that positive confession brings positive results, and whether negative statements result in negative results - both bedrock principles of the Word-Faith movement Positive Confession in The Scriptures? The first problem we run across is the fact that although numerous people in the Bible petitioned the Father when they needed something, there is no indication that they ever told Him when and how He should respond. Much to the contrary, Scripture repeatedly relates the Lord telling certain people what it was He intended to do and what was expected of them. Moses did not dream up the plagues of Egypt and then tell God that this is what he wanted done - it was the Father who told Moses what He was going to do. For example, in Exodus 10:12 Moses stretched out his hand and summoned a plague of locusts only on God's say so. In Exodus 14 he parted the waters of the Red Sea only after receiving specific instructions. Then the Lord said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up on the land of Egypt and eat every plant of the land, even all that the hail has left." (Exodus 10:12 NASB) "As for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the sons of Israel shall go through the midst of the sea on dry land. "As for Me, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and I will be honored through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. (Exodus 14:16-17 NASB)
Joshua embarked on his military conquest of Canaan after he had been "commissioned" (Deuteronomy 31:14) to lead the army into Canaan It is the Lord your God who will cross ahead of you; He will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua is the one who will cross ahead of you, just as the Lord has spoken. (Deuteronomy 31:3 NASB) 'But charge Joshua and encourage him and strengthen him, for he shall go across at the head of this people, and he will give them as an inheritance the land which you will see.' (Deuteronomy 3:28 NASB) Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall give it to them as an inheritance. (Deuteronomy 31:7 NASB)
Gideon did become an outstanding military commander, but God had already told the young man what He planned to do. The Lord looked at him and said, "Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?" He said to Him, "O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father's house." But the Lord said to him, "Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man." (Judges 6:14-16 NASB)
The role of the humans in all these instances was to believe and act on what God had specifically revealed to them. And then there is at least one case in which the petitioners knew exactly what the Father was capable of, but had no clue as to what His course of action would be. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego Note what Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego said to the king when they were consigned to a blazing furnace because they would not worship the golden image Nebuchadnezzar has set up...
"... our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. "But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." (Daniel 3:17-18 NASB)
Although the three young men knew that nothing was beyond their God, they did not 'positively confess' that they would be rescued. Because the Lord had not made His intentions known they had absolutely no idea whether or not He would intervene. Yet we think we are superior to these outstanding men of faith and arrogantly claim that the Lord will do this and that. In short we are telling the Lord what He should do and when He should do it. When, oh when, will we realize that we we cannot dictate terms to the Almighty, but can only humbly pray in submission to His will. In The Old Testament Negative Confession Did Not Cause Negative Circumstances Moses: Moses tried very hard to back out when the Lord appeared to him in the burning bush and told him to go the Pharaoh and persuade him to give the Israelites their freedom. Moses however, was very reluctant to undertake a mission of that magnitude because, as he said, he was a nobody.
But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" (Exodus 3:11 NASB) God's reply: And He said, "Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain." (Exodus 3:12 NASB)
And when Moses protested that he was not eloquent but "slow of speech and slow of tongue" (Exodus 4:10), the Lord gently reprimanded him. "Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? "Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say." (Exodus 4:11-12 NASB)
Gideon: When God told Gideon that he would save his people from the Midianites like Moses he did not believe he was capable. He said to Him (An angel of the Lord) , "O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father's house." (Judges 6:15 NASB) God's reply: "Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man." (Judges 6:16 NASB)
King Jehoshaphat: When a "great multitude" came against king Jehoshaphat, he was so afraid that he called a fast and gathered everyone together to seek God's help (2 Chronicles 20:2-4). In his prayer he admitted they were virtually powerless against this army and did not know what to do. Their only hope was in the Lord who had promised them this land. "O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this great multitude who are coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You." (2 Chronicles 20:12 NASB) God's response : 'Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God's.... 'You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.' Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out to face them, for the Lord is with you." (2 Chronicles:20:17)
Summary None of these negative statements had even the slightest adverse effect on the situation. The Father certainly did not reprimand any of the men for not having enough faith or confessing victory. Much to the contrary the Father assured them that He would be with them. And so He was. Moses successfully led the Israelites out of Egypt, Gideon led the men to astounding victory, and king Jehoshaphat's enemy alliance turned on each other and utterly destroyed themselves. (Vs. 22-25) Healing David's Prayer For His Son. In 2 Samuel 12 the Lord told David that his son, born as a result of his adulterous affair with Bathsheba, would die. This because, as the Lord said, he (David) has given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme (V.14).
As any parent would be, David was grief stricken when the child became ill. However, he did not rebuke the illness nor claim any healing miracles. Recognizing that God's will in the matter would prevail David, as verse 16 tells us, "besought (Heb bâqash) God for the child" and fasted, and "lay all night upon the earth". The Hebrew word bâqash translated into the English besought, is defined by Strong's as to search out (by any method; specifically in worship or prayer)... by implication to strive after: ask, beg, beseech, request etc.
Elijah and The Widow's Son. 1 Kings 17:17-24 records the incident of a widow's son who died of a serious illness... Now it came about after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his sickness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. (1 Kings 17:17 NASB)
The woman was obviously deeply grieved about this, but what was Elijah's reaction? Did he employ 'positive confession' for the boy? Did he 'claim' him back? Or did he simply plead with God for healing? He called to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, have You also brought calamity to the widow with whom I am staying, by causing her son to die?" Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and called to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, I pray You, let this child's life return to him." The Lord heard the voice of Elijah, and the life of the child returned to him and he revived. (1 Kings 17:20-22 NASB)
While we do not know why Elijah stretched himself out upon the child 'three times', we do know that he did not claim healing but instead urgently petitioned the Lord for the life of the boy.
New Testament Examples Today, a preacher with a (often honorary) degree from Oral Roberts University or Kenneth Hagin's Rhema Bible Training Center thinks they are 'entitled' to innumerable blessings. However, if one is to believe that material prosperity is a sign of God's blessings, then the logical assumption is that these modern day preachers are more blessed than the servants of God who wrote the New Testament and on who's shoulders the church was built. They owned nothing and had nothing. Worse... most of them were eventually martyred. If the authors of the New Testament were that ignorant of a doctrine that some today claim is an integral part of the Gospel, then what assurance do we have that they were authorities on any aspect of the Christian faith. What else did they not know? John the Baptist: John the Baptist had the honor of declaring the day of the Messiah to the people of Israel. Jesus not only called John "much more than a prophet" and the greatest of men, but contrasted him with those who live in places, are richly clothed and live in luxury. (Luke 7:24-27) Now John himself had a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. (Matthew 3:4 NASB) When the messengers of John had left, He began to speak to the crowds about John, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? "But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces! "But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one who is more than a prophet. "This is the one about whom it is written, 'Behold, I send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.' (Luke 7:24-27 Nasb)
The Loaves and Fishes: In Luke 9 and the parallel account in Matthew 14, the disciples told Jesus that it was late and perhaps time to let the crowds go into the villages to buy food. Jesus' reply was to tell the disciples to feed the multitude. This left the disciples scratching their heads and doing some mental arithmetic because they only had five loaves of bread and two small fish between them ... and were not slow to say so. This account in the Gospel of John has Philip telling Jesus that "Two hundred shillings' worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one may take a little" (John 6:7)
Although this will be read as a 'negative confession' by the name-it-claim-it camp, the disciples were simply stating conditions exactly as they were... rather than pretending they were something else. Which, as we know, led to Jesus performing one of His most amazing miracles, multiplying the small amount of food to the extent that the entire crowd was well fed. John 21:3-6: After the disciples admitted they had been fishing but had caught nothing, Jesus directed them to cast their nets on the right-hand side of the boat. Doing so they hauled in a catch so large that it was difficult for them to haul the nets in. Apparently negative statements do not always result in negative results. Peter: When a lame man asked him for a coin, Peter replied... "I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene--walk!" (Acts 3:6 NASB)
Was Peter lying or did he in fact not have any money? And, if not, why not? Paul The apostle Paul, who received his commission directly from the Lord and wrote the majority of the books of the New Testament said, For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. (1 Corinthians 15:9 NASB)
Weakness Paul also said that the Lord gave him a thorn in his flesh to keep him from, as he expressed it, 'exalting himself'. While it is not clear what exactly Paul's thorn in the flesh was (2 Corinthians 12:7) the general consensus of opinion is that it was some kind of chronic or recurring health issue. Yet, whatever it might have been, Paul did not rebuke the illness or confess that he was already healed. Rather Paul pleaded with the Lord to remove what ever it was that plagued him... When told that the Lord's grace was sufficient for him for His power was "perfected in weakness." And the apostle went on to write Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Boasting about a weakness? Now there's a new one for the the Word Faith crowd. Hardships In his first letter to the Corinthians he contrasted the false and self-confident teachers in Corinth with the true apostles. In words dripping with irony he told them... You are already filled, you have already become rich, you have become kings without us; and indeed, I wish that you had become kings so that we also might reign with you. For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor. To this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty, and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated, and are homeless; and we toil, working with our own hands; when we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure; when we are slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now. (1 Corinthians 4:8-13 NASB)
And what was it that they did through it all? Did they make positive confessions? Claim God's blessings? "See" themselves rising to new levels? Actually none of the above! The Bible tells us that through it all they endured, blessed and entreated. Incidentally, the phrase "unto this present hour" indicates that these trials had been unchanged from the beginning of their ministry. Also See 2 Corinthians 6:4-5, 10. The Book of Acts The New Testament tells us that several of the churches went through many financial hardships, with absolutely no evidence that Paul or any of the other apostles rebuked them for their lack of faith.
And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. (Acts 2:44-45 NASB) And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales and lay them at the apostles' feet, and they would be distributed to each as any had need. (Acts 4:32-35 NASB)
Much to the contrary Paul made it clear that materially helping ones brethren was something that all believers were obliged to do. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. Yes, they were pleased to do so, and they are indebted to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in material things. (Romans 15:26-27 NASB) On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come. When I arrive, whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; (1 Corinthians 16:2-3 NASB)
The 'Hall of Faith' in Hebrews: Those that claim the problems believers face in this life are due to a lack of sufficient faith flatly contradict the Scriptures. The book of Hebrews speaks extremely highly of countless people of the Old Testament that suffered tremendously and even died for their faith.
And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. (Hebrews 11:32-40 NASB)
Continue On To Chapter 5 - New Thought The New Thought Movement is a spiritual movement which developed in the United States in the late 19th century. It consists of a loosely allied group of religious denominations, secular membership organizations, authors, philosophers, and individuals who share a set of metaphysical beliefs concerning the effects of positive thinking, the law of attraction, healing, life force, creative visualization etc.
In short, New Thought very simply believes that your thoughts play a crucial role in the kind of life you experience - the cornerstone for most modern formulas for happy and successful living. Sound familiar? It Should HERE |