“I try to leave them better off than they were before,” is how Joel Osteen defined the endgame for his multi-million dollar ministry of self-help and empowerment during a twelve minute segment on CBS’ 60 Minutes titled, “Joel Osteen Answers His Critics.” Far from answering his critics, the segment may have given Osteen critics more fodder.
In twelve short minutes Osteen managed to admit that his ministry is more about show than substance, that he has an aversion to doctrine and theology, that he has no gifting as a teacher of God’s word, that he would rather inspire and motivate people than fulfill the biblical mandate given to pastors to reprove and rebuke, and that what he teaches is closer to Dr. Phil and Oprah than it is to Jesus or St. Paul. In plainer words, Joel Osteen, by his own admission, may be well-qualified as a motivational speaker but lacks many of the qualifications to be considered a shepherd and pastor of God’s people.
Byron Pitts, the correspondent for CBS News who interviewed Osteen for the segment, was relentless in pointing out where Osteen’s teaching diverges from Scripture and historic orthodoxy. At one point Pitts read for Osteen an extended excerpt from Osteen’s just released, Become a Better You, after which Pitts noted, “[There’s] not one mention of God in that. Not one mention of Jesus Christ in that.” To which Osteen responded, “There is Scripture in there that backs it all up,” a response which betrays the flippant yet dangerous way in which Osteen handles Holy Scripture.
Osteen doesn’t understand that we don’t bring our conclusions about life and living to the Bible and seek Scripture to support them. We start with the Bible, handling the text very carefully, allowing the Holy Spirit, the author of the text, to give to us His conclusions about life and living. The Bible isn’t supporting documentation for principles you’ve dreamed up to produce your best life now.
Osteen readily admits that he is ill-equipped to handle Scripture properly, telling Pitts, “…there’s a lot better people qualified to say, ‘Here’s a book that’s going to explain the scriptures to you.’ I don’t think that’s my gifting.” He spends Wednesday through Saturday in his study at home preparing his weekly message. One might imagine that he is diligently studying the Scriptures. Not so. He told Byron Pitts, “…when I think about it, Sunday’s in a few days and I gotta get back up here and feed everybody and be my best and inspire them and have some good stories, keep them listening…” No where in Scripture is the man of God commanded to “be my best” and “inspire them” and “have some good stories” or even to “keep them listening.” On the contrary, the word of God makes it clear that we are not sufficient in ourselves to proclaim God’s word (2 Corinthians 3:5,6), it isn’t our goal to inspire but rather to “reprove, rebuke, and exhort,” and we accomplish that goal, not with “some good stories,” but with “all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:1-6). Doctrine is not even on Osteen’s radar. Osteen told Pitts his calling is not to impress people with “Greek words and with doctrine.” Rather, he views his calling as helping people “have the right thoughts today.” While Osteen may not consider teaching God’s word his gifting, God nonetheless demands that those who lead God’s church have an ability to teach His word (1 Timothy 3:2; 2 Timothy 2:24). Osteen has disqualified himself on this point.
Osteen measures the success of his ministry not by the spiritual growth of his congregation but by “hundreds of people tellin’ ya ‘You changed my life.’” The tragedy is that the message which has supposedly changed so many lives is a placebo. Osteen described the substance of his message as one which encourages people to “be positive in a negative situation and it will help you stay filled with hope.” Pitts pointed out to Osteen that there are many theologians who find his message dangerous, to which Osteen responded, “”I don’t know what can be so dangerous about giving people hope.”
Hope is dangerous when it’s a false hope. Keeping a positive mental attitude while my house burns down around me may give me hope, but the only thing that can save me is to get out of the burning house. Hope sustains, but it doesn’t save. Osteen points people to their hopes as their salvation rather than to Jesus Christ as the only one who can deliver us from our sins (“negative situations” in Osteen’s parlance). Genuine assurance in the midst of life’s tragedies and trials comes not from my believing in myself, but from believing in the One who raised Christ from the dead, knowing that I have been raised with Christ through faith in the powerful working of God, that God has cancelled the record of debt that stood against me by nailing it to the cross of His only Son (Colossians 2:8-15), making it impossible for anyone to bring a charge against me or to separate me from the love God has for me in Christ (Romans 8:31-39). In all of life’s negative situations I am more than conqueror, not because I have altered my state of consciousness through repeated positive confessions, but because God always causes me to triumph based on the completed work of His Son on my behalf.
Everything wrong with Osteen’s teaching and ministry stems from the way he views serious theology as optional. If all we knew about Joel Osteen is the casual way in which he approaches and handles the word of God, we would know enough to steer clear of his ministry, a ministry which purports to prepare people for their best life now yet can do nothing to prepare them for an eternity beyond this life because all Osteen knows is this life. He hasn’t taken the time to engage Scripture at a deep enough level to realize that “if in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”
jeff thought you might want to read what i have been learning about joel osteen. val
Once again, Joel Osteen’s utter failure to uphold Christian truth in an age of apostacy only further supports what is all too clear about his teaching: it is spiritually bankrupt.
Here is a link to articles our ministry has created on Osteen’s heretical compromise that is anointed as “Christianity” today.
http://www.spiritwatch.org/behindsmile.htm
SAVED BY HOPE…Perhaps the hope Pastor Osteen refers to is somewhat connected to the Bible and God and Christ since he does refer to the Bible and it’s contents in his preaching.
Does hope save? either it is involved or it is not: Romans 8:24
For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
He does preach of compassion and prayer; are these not two major
themes of the Bible as well as the life of Christ?
How did Christ touch people; with doctrine or compassion?
He rebuked the Pharisees (Mt. 23:33) for their man made doctrines and traditions of men and expressly made known to them the weightier matters as : law, mercy, justice, and faith.
It is evident to see that Pastor Osteen’s ministry touches people; is it with doctrine compassion?
What really matters; is it the ‘my doctrine is better than your doctrine’
or is it compassion (and that which deals with compassion, such as the concepts which Jesus stated in Mt. 23:33 ?
Jesus taught and emphasized those things which people need to know ‘to live here now’. The ‘golden rule’ is a concept which has been known and taught by world religions (as well as ancient), which is the way of a compassionate life.
Perhaps what people who attend Pastor Osteen’s church are receiving is what they need to know to live here now. Isn’t that what Jesus did?
Church doctrinal statements are lengthly documents. The Apostle Paul’s was brief : Acts 16:31..Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved…Acts 17:2,3..this Jesus whom I preach unto you is Christ. Acts 9:22…proving that this is very Christ. Acts 18:5 …testified to the Jews that Jesus was Christ Acts 18:28 …shewing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.
The ‘Christ in you’ which Paul preached was not a doctrinal statement. It was the the embodiment of compassion. Should our emphasis be upon ‘doctrinal correctness’ or upon compassion derived from the ‘Christ in you’ ?
In a Detroit news article (12-25-07), a local Pastor stated that the way we find Jesus is to reach out to others in need.
Perhaps Pastor Osteen will teach those who listen to him to grow in the compassion of the ‘Christ in you’ and live a good life now.
Perhaps one of Pastor Osteen’s favorite verses is Romans 14 :19
Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
Patti,
Thank you for posting Joel Osteen’s clarification on what he said on Larry King Live.
There is a difference between being *jugmental* and being *discerning*. This is what the Apostle Paul was calling for when he told the church in Thessalonica: “Despise not prophesyings (preaching/teaching of the word). Prove (test) all things (in the preaching). Hold fast to that which is good (in the teaching). Abstain from every appearance of evil (what is bad in the teaching).
I am not judging Joel Osteen. To judge is to say that you have inside knowlege of all facts that can lead you to render a final verdict. The final verdict on all of our ministries will be rendered by the Judge of all the earth. What my article on Joel Osteen does is examines his own words, compares them with the standard of Scripture, and attempts to discern based on the authority of Scripture what is good and what is bad about the teaching of Joel Osteen.
God has not called his ministers to be motivators. He has called us to be faithful to proclaim His truth whether or not anyone even listens or responds. The major issue Scripture has with ministries like Osteen’s is that Osteen has been captured by a philosophy that says ITS UP TO US to get the results and so therefore we can and must do WHATEVER IS NECESSARY to get people to respond. This is pragmatism, and pragmatism is totally foreign to Scripture.
It’s up to us to be faithful to proclaim God’s word, and to trust that “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.” The word of God, faithfully proclaimed, will give live and draw sinners. But Osteen is putting more faith in the packaging of the message than the message itself (see what Paul said about this is 1 Corinthians 2:1-5).
http://justintapp.blogspot.com/2005/07/why-joel-osteen-is-okay.html
Osteen’s Apology
After many criticized his comments, Osteen wrote a letter of apology:
“I believe with all my heart that it is only through Christ that we have hope in eternal life. I regret and sincerely apologize that I was unclear on the very thing in which I have dedicated my life. Jesus declared in John 14; I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me. I believe that Jesus Christ alone is the only way to salvation. However, it wasn’t until I had the opportunity to review the transcript of the interview that I realized I had not clearly stated that having a personal relationship with Jesus is the only way to heaven. It’s about the individual’s choice to follow Him.” (italics and bolds are mine).
Lead them to water and they shall drink….If this person says he is not the preacher that people are dissecting him for, but that he is using the inspiration that the scriptures have inspired in him (perhaps the Lord gave him the gift of being a motivator to lead the throngs to Jesus Christ and Salvation) to motivate people , and then tells them that a personal relationship with Jesus is the only way to heaven, and salvation comes only thru Jesus..what is wrong with that?
He states its the individuals CHOICE to follow. I think thats what he was trying to express on Larry Kings show. I remind you, when asked if a person is going to heaven or hell, we are told not to make that judgement. Larry clearly wanted to know if a Jew or other person of faith would go to hell for not believing as Olsteen did. Then when he said that he really didn’t know, as ONLY GOD knows ones heart, everybody wants to call him out for it. Let me remind you of the thief on the cross….it was at his moment of death on that cross next to Jesus, that he asked forgiveness, having true remorse for his sins, that he asked the Lord to remember him in paradise that day..and Jesus did. Now, had Larry King asked anyone in the crowd that same question that day, perhaps a believer would have said OH that thief? He will surely got to hell! He is hangin there and has not accepted Jesus as his savior.. So, we really do not know where a person will go by the outward appearance, and I think thats what Olsteen was saying. He clarifies above what he believes in his apology. Olsteen is not claiming to be a preacher, and even says so, he is just sharing his love of God and motivation, and delivering the Salvation Prayer for those who seek to follow our Lord….From there, well, they can begin that walk with the Lord and that personal relationship. Find a church body they are comfortable with. Thats a start. God Bless and May we not be so judgemental of our brother! We must remember to remove the speck from our own eye, before we try to remove it from our brothers.
Joel Ol 12:26: Everyone must love himself, make money, be rich. Do not love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind. Make yourself a better you. Don’t follow the example of Jesus Christ. Don’t worry about your neighbor. Let him take care of himself. God is great but worry about now, not your eternity with God. Keep lifting yourself up.
Matt 16: 24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
Richard,
Great review of Joel’s book, I have not read it myself, but reading what you had to say certainly makes me want to look into it. Thanks.
Ed
Good to hear from you again!
I recall in times past when we all received a steady diet of messages of this sort. “What we believe and why we believe it”, or “Baptist Distinctives”. Not much time is given over to this area in todays churches. I suspect they are to controversial. You know, we might “offend” someone. Like our country, our churches have become a melting pot. The problem is while the melting has been occurring we have also simmered away our power.
Stay at the plow lad.
God bless you,
Don
CBC Roseville, Pastor Johnson spent the first Sunday night session on Bbile Doctrine going over the importance of theology, and should be on for an interview.
Interested readers can listen at home to his very good message here:
Doctrine, does it really matter?
http://www.cbcroseville.org/resources/sermons%5Caudio%5Cstub%5C2007-Sept-09p.m3u
It really does matter, a church that doesn’t teach it isn’t a church at all, but a place where stories are told. Osteen doesn’t deserve the title of Pastor if he can’t handle the Word of God.
boy it is so good to hear some people of integrity discussing Joel Olsteen. There is a youtube on Joel olsteen of a young prophet/evangelist standing outside Joels church and preaching to his sunday morning crowd to repent as they are going into church.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Nu9k60-GgVk
Thanks for the mature comments Paul. You said exactly what I felt that Osteen is not truly born again or he would be so excited to tell people that Jesus is the “only” way to heaven!
I ask myself as I seek out and read these articles with relish…..is envy my motivation?
Richard,
It’s not that Osteen doesn’t quote Scripture. The problem is the careless way he handles Scripture, using it as a pretext to support principles he has derived from Jungian psychology, rather than taking Scripture in its context and deriving the principles from the text.
If you really believe that Joel Osteen has matured as a Christian leader, I have to question the depth of your own understanding of God’s word. Joel Osteen is really a babe in Christ (if indeed he is in Christ at all) and by his own admission on CBS’ 60 Minutes he has no business pretending to lead a congregation of God’s people, let alone the millions outside of his church he is leading down a path of deception.
There you go Paul! It’s good so see you putting your passion in the right things (not baseball 🙂
There is no doubt that Joel Osteen and the Gospel have very few things in common. I was thinking that it would not be such a bad idea to send missionaries to sit outside his church and tell people the truth.
My friend moved in Houston and he’s telling me that this is a serious issue. He is a teacher there (high school). The scary part is that many kids agree with Joel.
God wants us holy, not “feeling good about ourselves”. A gospel that does not challenge people to be holy is not the true gospel.
How can one understand God’s grace if he/she does not understand how sinful we are?
May God have mercy!
Become a Better You
A Review by Richard Young
Has Anyone Read This Book?
Reading Joel Osteen’s new book, Become A Better You, one major question comes to mind, and it has nothing to do with Joel Osteen, have any of the critics actually read this book? I found the book to be of the best motivational Christian books I have ever read. To some this would be damning with faint praise, but what do preachers do every weekend but try to motivate people to do what they should do? When some “religious people” get on their “high horse” they want to claim special spiritual abilities in leading people to a closer walk with the Lord. Again the question begs to be asked, what is leading but motivating people to do what you want them to do? Joel Osteen’s latest book released today is an excellent example of a pastor motivating people to do whatever necessary to change their lives. The steps to the journey he describes is to follow the example established by Jesus Christ as well as many Godly people as described in the Scriptures.
One of the things mentioned by interviewers in the last day or so is the lack of Christian references in his writings. This is what begs the question, have they read the book? I found nearly a hundred and thirty scriptural references in the book. Joel himself only list sixty-six scriptural references in the book. But in reading the book he did not include many references to passages found all over the Bible. He uses the Scriptures like pastors have for centuries, as examples of a path to Godly living followed by people through all of time. Joel is encouraging people to follow seven steps that will help them live better lives through faith in God and following Biblical principles. These principles are not enunciated in the same way people have pronounced them in the past, but they are principles much like the ones used for two thousand years.
The rub between Joel Osteen and evangelicals is elaborated in the pages of the book. But Joel understands human attitudes in the twenty-first century. In times passed people were told they should draw closer to God because to fail to do so would bring them eternal damnation. This argument, however accurate, does not hold water in today’s American culture. Telling people they are going to hell will create a response of, “I’m already there, I don’t believe in Hell or Hell is whatever we make it to be.” So Joel creates a different motivation to draw closer to God. If we draw closer to God, our lives will be better in every way. He uses the seven steps of the book to elaborate on how God wants to help us have an abundant life on earth.
Joel’s new book demonstrates his maturing as a Christian leader and writer. This book is much deeper than his first one, taking the reader much deeper than previous writings. His first book seemed to be sermons with a little editing and elaboration. He could have taken any series of sermons and turned them into a book and the result would have sold hundreds of thousands of books. But he has held himself to a high standard than that. This book seems to be a writing project from the beginning. I don’t doubt there will be a series of sermons which are used to supplement and add to the book. But this time the sermons will enhance the book rather than the other way around. I look forward to future efforts by him in the future.
Richard Young
Author Rise of Lakewood Church and Joel Osteen
Paul
I never had listened to Osteen until you and Ben had been discussing him several months back. Evidently, I haven’t missed a thing. Do you suppose this style qualifies as ~~ “syrupy slush and mush”~~ G.B. Vick, circa 1971?
Job 24:2 (King James Version)
Some remove the landmarks; they violently take away flocks, and feed thereof.