A Quick Look at Joel Osteen by Dr. Bruce Oyen

Joel Osteen

Guest Article

Editor’s Note:

Men in every age have expressed resistance to those who have faithfully defended the truth when it was unpopular to do so.  This month’s News and Nuggets contains a guest article  from a good friend, Bruce Oyen.  We commend Dr. Oyen for his willingness to stand against popular opinion.

WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!

By Pastor Bruce Oyen
Grace Baptist Church
Rochester, WA

       This article is a warning about the teachings of Joel Osteen, who is a well-known TV preacher, and who is the pastor of America’s largest church, Lakewood Church, located in Houston, TX.

       Having heard and read much criticism of Osteen’s teachings, I decided to find out for myself what he teaches. So, I bought and read his book, “IT’S YOUR TIME.” The book was published in November, 2009 by Free Press, a division of Simon and Schuster. This article is being written in April, 2010.

        As one who believes the Bible is the Word of God, I compared Osteen’s book with the teachings of the Bible. Having frequently read the Bible, perhaps 50 times, from a historic fundamentalist perspective and with a lot of sound theological reading and studying in my background, it made it easy to note any serious deviations from the Bible’s teachings.

       While reading the book, I used a yellow highlighter to mark any statements that were questionable. It turned out that many of Osteen’s statements were questionable - so many, in fact, that I had to go through the book and select only some of the highlighted statements from the many to use in this article. That is unfortunate, in light of the fact that the book was written to help its readers in their daily lives. It didn’t take much reading of the book to conclude that it should not be recommended because it won‘t be helpful to its readers. Rather, it will be harmful to them.

       Having said these things, let me present to you several of Osteen’s statements that are not Biblical.

       “It’s time to reaffirm your belief that you are one of our Father’s children. You are made in His image and He loves you.”  From the Introduction, page xii.

      The problem with this statement is that Osteen did not point out anywhere in the Introduction an important fact: the only ones who are children of God, at least in the spiritual sense, are those who have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. It is a grave mistake to give unbelieving readers the impression that they, too, are Christians. In John 1:12 we are told “But as many as received him (Jesus Christ) to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” It is not until the very end of the book that Osteen tells readers how to become Christians, and yet the readers are addressed as though they are Christians.

      “Tune out the negative messages. Quit telling yourself: I’m never landing back on my feet financially. I’m never breaking this addiction. I’m never landing a better job.  Instead, your declarations should be: I am closer than I think. I can raise this child. I can overcome this sickness. I can make this business work. I know I can find a new job.” Page 6.  “Is today the day for you to accomplish your goal, to land your dream job, to find love, to restore your health? You are closer than you think to a better life, a richer relationship, a healthier body.” Page 7.  

            Here Osteen promotes positive thinking, a main characteristic of his book. This has its place in life, but you will notice that he presents it as bringing assured results. Many persons have died thinking they can overcome their sicknesses, even if they have sought medical treatment.

       “Every dream that’s in your heart, every promise that has taken root, God not only put there but has every intention of bringing it to pass.” Page 18.

        This is false because he overlooks the fact that some of our “dreams” do not come from God. Some come from ourselves, some from friends and family, and some might even come from the devil himself.

        “Maybe you are living in a small apartment and all of your friends have nice homes. This attitude will serve you: I’m not discouraged. I know my time is coming.”  Page 18.

         The problem with this claim by Osteen is that he implies there is something wrong with living in a small apartment. The fact is, God wants some of his children to live in small apartments. There is no shame in doing so. Christians need to learn the truth of Philippians 4:11:  “Not that I speak in respect of want: For I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”  But this is a hard lesson for Americans to learn because we want the bigger and the better of nearly everything. Osteen promotes “prosperity theology,” which is very appealing to American Christians, and living in a small apartment does not fit into that theology.

        “God created everyone of us to be successful.”  Page 31.

        What about those born with severe mental and physical disabilities, and who, therefore, are completely dependent on others for their daily survival?

        “I want to declare over you a new season in your health. The winds are shifting. Hard times may have held you down for awhile, but they will not last forever. When all is said and done, you will not be decreased; you will be increased.”    Page 44.

        Here Osteen makes false claims, for he is not a prophet of God who can predict what God has in mind for anyone’s health or anything else. But the book contains many such false declarations.

        “When you sense it is your season, you need to declare it. Words have creative power. You need to hear it, and so does the enemy. You may not feel well, but it’s good to announce: ‘Health is coming my way. I will live and not die.’ ” Page 47

 Here we see clear evidence of Osteen’s Word-Faith, Positive Confession theology, sometimes called “name it and claim it,” or “gab it and grab it.” The last sentence is mind boggling.  One wonders how many persons have followed this false system of belief and died while doing so.

        “God does not want you to spend your whole life working for someone else. God wants you to own your own company. He doesn’t want you to spend your life cleaning an office. God wants you running that office. He doesn’t want you to live in a small apartment the rest of your life. God wants you to have a nice home.”  Pages 112, 113.

        This is more clear evidence of Osteen’s unscriptural “prosperity theology.” Do most of Osteen’s followers really believe such statements? If so, it reveals how woefully lacking in knowledge of the Bible they are.

         The foregoing statements are only a few of many proofs of the author’s unsound and harmful beliefs. Readers might wonder if anything good can be found  in the book. The answer is, “Yes.” But there is so much in the book that is not good that it can’t be recommended. Just because we might find some edible food in a garbage can, it doesn’t mean it’s a good idea that we eat out of one.