The Motivational Feel Good Gospel

Dear reader, we live in an age when the truth is often obscured or mixed with error to deceive the unaware. This weeks entry will attempt to tackle some (but not near all) of the issues facing the Church today. Most of our points here will be in 'bullet' form so please be forgiving of the style. We suggest you read all of the scriptures quoted in context, so please at the very least read the chapter that they are from. If you don't have the time to read the whole entry, just look up the scriptures offered here and do your own study. Thanks for your time and we hope the Lord blesses you as you open your mind to the truth that is in Him.

We feel especially qualified in discussing many of the topics here because we fell for the WOF teachings, prosperity gospel, Norman Vincent Peale, power of positive thinking, 'blab it and grab it' type teachings etc etc etc... but the Lord has disciplined us and called us to a study of His Word and the 'scales' are beginning to fall from our spiritual eyes. We believers are all alike, that is, everyone who is called by His name needs to learn not to go beyond what is written (1 Corinthians 4:6). As you read these points keep in mind we are talking about an inordinate focus; we are certainly not arguing against legitimate faith in the power, mercy and provision of God. Also be aware the lines between some of our points will overlap. Lets begin.

Many preachers in our churches sound more like motivational spruikers than ministers of the Gospel. It's seems their message is focused on:

• What God can do for you. How many times do we have to hear a sermon or teaching on how to get our prayers answered, how to be wealthy, how to be well, how to get something from God etc etc. We rarely hear what our obligations are and they are myriad but consider just this one small piece of scripture and look in His Word for others; Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect Romans 12:1-2. Do you think we can achieve this by treating God like he is some sort of vending machine in the sky?
• Being seeker-friendly & culturally relative. We have stated before that it is not completely 'evil' to be seeker-sensitive, but when that becomes the norm in the church, then we are at risk of losing our 'saltiness' (Matthew 5:13). In recent weeks we have seen reports of; nude church, pole-dancing for Jesus, multiple examples of worldly music used in church services (some from occult sources), prize give-aways for attending church and the list goes on and on but I hope our point is made. You see brothers and sisters, we are salt & light (Matthew 5:13-16 and we are not supposed to be like the world around us and it is especially disrespectful to the Lord if act in a worldy manner during church or church associated events ministries. What does God say: They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them 1 John 4:5. We are not of the world.
• Feelings/experience. It is a very sad indictment against this 'new' (its not so new, some of it has its roots in the ancient Gnostic teachings) movement that many are placing the realm of experience above scripture. Feelings or experiences are not of themselves something 'bad', but when the focus is on them, they are what people will follow/believe. Rather we are to be led by the Spirit and to let God's Word to be our guide. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit Galatians 5:25 & Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path Psalm 119:105. If you cannot 'feel' something, it does NOT mean God is not there and if you are only going to church once a week to get a 'recharge', you might need to examine yourself. We are approaching 'shaky ground' when we place experience above the Scriptures. This does not mean only our experience but also that of others; for example, when people write a book about having been to hell, do we then treat that like it is scripture or do we stand by what the Word says about the subject?
• Finances. What does the Bible have to say about wealth? People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction 1 Corinthians 6:9, & from the Master Himself; It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God Mark 10:25. We must be careful not to fall into idolatry with the consistent push of the 'prosperity doctrine/gospel'. We are not all going to be wealthy, no matter how much we 'demand' to be financially blessed.
• Being positive. Don't be fooled, this focus on being ever positive and never negative has crept into our culture in the last 50-60 years through positive thinking proponents/business motivators via New Age type teachings which have their roots in eastern mysticism. How much do you think of what the Old Testament Prophets had to say would now be considered "negative"? 95%?. Research for yourself the roots of this lie...start with the author Norman Vincent Peale. We used to be part of the leadership in a church where the pastor's sermons and lifestyle seemed to be focused more on this author than on the Holy Scriptures. It sounded good to us at the time but lead us astray for many (wasted) years. Some years earlier I had worked for an organisation who promoted this type of think and grow rich type philosophy and it didn't even occur to us (being very naive) that something was wrong when this attitude permeated our church.
• Positive affirmations. The continuous repetition of affirmations or prayers won't get you that new car, whether you can "smell that new interior" or not. Continuously proclaiming things about yourself do not necessarily make them so. In fact, we are warned not to partake in this "pagan babbling". And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words Matthew 6:7. Avoid this heresy. Simply let your needs be known to God through prayer and be mature enough to accept His response.
• The power within. We need to be careful when we are told to release the power within. Do not misunderstand this point; I mean when we are encouraged to reach into ourselves for the answers/solutions/power. What does the Word say about our hearts and this practise? The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9 & But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves 2 Corinthians 4:7. Don't fall for it, it is a con.

• Focus on the self How often do you listen to your pastor/preacher/teacher and the focus is on themselves. I, me, me and God etc etc. Not only do they focus on themselves, they encourage the listener to do the same. He rules by His might forever; His eyes keep watch on the nations; Let not the rebellious exalt themselves Psalm 66:7 & For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life Galatians 6:8. Pastors please point your flock to Jesus by your words and deeds. Be the servant of all. Like our saviour.
• Signs & wonders. Many false, many with no Biblical precedent, most untested; this tends to bring true miracles into disregard/disbelief/bad repute. Caution is suggested in this area since we do not want to disrespect the work of the Holy Spirit but we are warned to test the spirits to see whether they are from God; 1 John 4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. So we must pray for discernment, learn to discriminate [not such a bad word as the social engineers of this age might have you believe] and make correct judgements (1 Corinthians 2:14 & John 7:25). We know many people who have been/are willing to accept almost anything that comes across the pulpit/TV/Podcast/Book without checking it against the Word and keep in mind our earlier statement about our qualifications in this area.

So often then, the message is anything but the weightier things of God and it is rarely the full counsel of the Holy Scriptures. So how does God's Word address this type of attitude, this inordinate focus on the items in the list above? Paul, in his epistle to the Corinthians said "Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready" (1 Corinthians 3:1,2). These then are very worldly or fleshly traits. Worse still, some might be operating under the influence of the enemy; The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons 1 Timothy 4:1.

If you are in a fellowship which focuses on the above items, and they are claiming to demonstrate the power of God, please understand you are more likely to be witnessing the works of the flesh rather than those of the Holy Spirit. Worse still, you might be witnessing demonic power. Don't take my word for it (Acts 17:10-11), check your Bible and compare it to what is happening in your church.