Word Of Faith Movement
Questions about False Doctrine
“Is the Word of Faith movement Biblical?”Word of Faith teaching is decidedly unbiblical. It is not a denomination and does not have a formal organization or hierarchy. Instead, it is a movement that is heavily influenced by a number of high-profile pastors and teachers such as Kenneth Hagin, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Paul and Jan Crouch, and Fred Price.The Word of Faith movement grew out of the Pentecostal movement in the latter 20th century. Its founder was E. W. Kenyon, who studied the metaphysical New Thought teachings of Phineas Quimby. Mind science (where “name it and claim it” originated) fit well with the emerging Pentecostal movement and its emphasis on the supernatural, so he combined them and created a peculiar mix of orthodox Christianity and mysticism. Kenneth Hagin in turn studied under E. W. Kenyon and made the Word of Faith movement what it is today. Although individual teachings range from completely heretical to completely ridiculous, what follows is the basic theology most Word of Faith teachers align themselves with.At the heart of the Word of Faith movement is the belief in the “force of faith.” It is believed words can be used to manipulate the faith-force, and thus actually create what they believe Scripture promises (health and wealth). Laws supposedly governing the faith-force are said to operate independently of God’s sovereign will and that God Himself is subject to these laws. This is nothing short of idolatry, turning our faith-and by extension ourselves-into god.From here, its theology just strays further and further from Scripture:
It claims that :God created human beings in His literal, physical image as little gods. Before the fall, humans had the potential to call things into existence by using the faith-force. After the fall humans took on Satan’s nature and lost the ability to call things into existence. In order to correct this situation, Jesus Christ gave up His divinity and became a man, died spiritually, took Satan’s nature upon Himself, went to hell, was born-again, and rose from the dead with God’s nature. After this, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to replicate the Incarnation in believers so they could become little gods as God had originally intended.Following the natural progression of these teachings, as little gods we again have the ability to manipulate the faith-force and become prosperous in all areas of life. Illness, sin, and failure are the result of a lack of faith, and are remedied by confession-claiming God’s promises for oneself into existence. Simply put, the Word of Faith movement exalts man to god-status and reduces God to man-status. Needless to say, this is a false representation of what Christianity is all about. Word of Faith teaching does not take into account what is found in Scripture. Personal revelation, not Scripture, is highly relied upon in order to come up with such absurd beliefs, which is just one more proof of its heretical nature.Countering Word of Faith teaching is a simple matter of reading the Bible. God alone is the Sovereign Creator of the Universe Genesis 1:3Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.1 Timothy 6:15For at just the right time Christ will be revealed from heaven by the blessed and only almighty God, the King of all kings and Lord of all lords.and does not need faith-He is the object of faith Mark 11:22 Then Jesus said to the disciples, "Have faith in GodHebrews 11:3By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God's command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.God is spirit, and does not have a physical bodyJohn 4:24For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth."Man was created in the image of GodGenesis 1:26, 27Then God said, "Let us make human beings[a] in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground."So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.Genesis 9:6If anyone takes a human life, that person's life will also be taken by human hands. For God made human beings in his own image.but this does not make him a little god or divine. Only God has a divine nature Galatians 4:8Before you Gentiles knew God, you were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist.Isaiah 43:10, 44:6"But you are my witnesses, O Israel!" says the Lord. "You are my servant.You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God.There is no other God- there never has been, and there never will be.Isaiah 44:6This is what the Lord says-Israel's King and Redeemer, the Lord of Heaven's Armies: "I am the First and the Last; there is no other God.Ezekiel 28:2 "Son of man, give the prince of Tyre this message from the Sovereign Lord:In your great pride you claim, 'I am a god! I sit on a divine throne in the heart of the sea.'But you are only a man and not a god, though you boast that you are a god.Psalms 8:6-8You gave them charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority- the flocks and the herds and all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea, and everything that swims the ocean currents.Christ is Eternal, the Only Begotten Son, and the only incarnation of God John 1:1, 2, 15In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.He existed in the beginning with God├ö├ç┬¬├ö├ç┬¬├ö├ç┬¬ John testified about him when he shouted to the crowds, "This is the one I was talking about when I said, 'Someone is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.'"John 1:14, 18So the Word became human[a] and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness.[] And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father's one and only Son├ö├ç┬¬├ö├ç┬¬├ö├ç┬¬├ö├ç┬¬.No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God,[a] is near to the Father's heart. He has revealed God to us.John 3:16"For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.1 John 4:1Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world.In Him dwelt the fullness of the Godhead bodilyColossians 2:9For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.(Or in him dwells all the completeness of the Godhead bodily).By becoming a man Jesus gave up the glory of heaven but not His divinity though He did choose to withhold His power while walking the earth as man.Philippians 2:6-7Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form.
The Word of Faith movement is deceiving countless people, causing them to grasp after a way of life and faith that is not biblical. At its core is the same lie Satan has been telling since the Garden:Genesis 3:5"God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil."Sadly, those who buy into the Word of Faith movement are still listening to him. Our hope is in the Lord, not in our own words, not even in our own faithPsalm 33:20-22We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord,for our hope is in you alone.Our faith comes from God in the first placeEphesians 2:8God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God.Hebrews 12:2We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.(Or Jesus, the originator and perfecter of our faith.) Because of the joy (Or Instead of the joy.) awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honour beside God's throne.and is not something we create for ourselves. So, be wary of the Word of Faith movement and any church that aligns itself with Word of Faith teachings.
“What does the Bible say about the prosperity gospel?”In the prosperity gospel, also known as the "Wordof Faith," the believer is told to use God, whereas the truth of biblical Christianity is just the opposite-God uses the believer.
Word of Faith or prosperity theology sees the Holy Spirit as a power to be put to use for whatever the believer wills.
The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is a Person who enables the believer to do God’s will.
The prosperity gospel movement closely resembles some of the destructive greed sects that infiltrated the early church. Paul and the other apostles were not accommodating to or conciliatory with the false teachers who propagated such heresy. They identified them as dangerous false teachers and urged Christians to avoid them.Paul warned Timothy about such men in 1 Timothy 6:5, 9-11. These men of "corrupt mind" supposed godliness was a means of gain and their desire for riches was a trap that brought them "into ruin and destruction" (v. 9). The pursuit of wealth is a dangerous path for Christians and one which God warns about: "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs" (v. 10). If riches were a reasonable goal for the godly, Jesus would have pursued it. But He did not, preferring instead to have no place to lay His head (Matthew 8:20) and teaching His disciples to do the same. It should also be remembered that the only disciple concerned with wealth was Judas.Paul said covetousness is idolatry (Ephesians 5:5) and instructed the Ephesians to avoid anyone who brought a message of immorality or covetousness (Ephesians 5:6-7). Prosperity teaching prohibits God from working on His own, meaning that God is not Lord of all because He cannot work until we release Him to do so. Faith, according to the Word of Faith doctrine, is not submissive trust in God; faith is a formula by which we manipulate the spiritual laws that prosperity teachers believe govern the universe. As the name "Word of Faith" implies, this movement teaches that faith is a matter of what we say more than whom we trust or what truths we embrace and affirm in our hearts.A favorite term in the Word of Faith movement is "positive confession."
This refers to the teaching that words themselves have creative power.
What you say, Word of Faith teachers claim, determines everything that happens to you.
Your confessions, especially the favors you demand of God, must all be stated positively and without wavering.
Then God is required to answer (as though man could require anything of God!). Thus, God’s ability to bless us supposedly hangs on our faith. James clearly contradicts this teachingJames 4:13-16
13 Look here, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit." 14 How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog-it's here a little while, then it's gone. 15 What you ought to say is, "If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that." 16 Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil. Far from speaking things into existence in the future, we do not even know what tomorrow will bring or even whether we will be alive. Instead of stressing the importance of wealth, the Bible warns against pursuing it.
Believers, especially leaders in the church (1 Timothy 3:3), are to be free from the love of money (Hebrews 13:5). The love of money leads to all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10). Jesus warned, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (Luke 12:15). In sharp contrast to the Word of Faith emphasis on gaining money and possessions in this life, Jesus said, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal" (Matthew 6:19). The irreconcilable contradictions between prosperity teaching and the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is best summed up in the words of Jesus in Matthew 6:24, "You cannot serve both God and money."