Wolves in Sheep's Clothing

Are there really such things as False Prophets or false teachers, out there in the world today? I hadn’t really given it much thought until recently, when I received an email from the Barnes and Nobel store about some new books by authors I was unfamiliar with. But there was one I thought I had heard of before, Joel Osteen. I didn’t know anything about him except that I had seen him speaking on T.V. a few times and I was wondering if he was a Christian preacher or what. So on a whim, I Googled him and found some unsettling stuff, one article was titled “Is Joel Osteen a False Prophet” and another was “Why I Called Out Joel Osteen and Joyce Meyer”. 

In the Bible there are many warnings of False Prophets, in Matthew 7:15-20, Jesus says this “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”

1Timothy 6:5 tells us “These people always cause trouble. Their minds are corrupt, and they have turned their backs on the truth, to them a show of godliness is just a way to become wealthy.” And in Galatians 1:6&7 we are told “I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ.”

In Romans 16:17&18 we read “I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naïve people.” And Colossians 2:8 where we read “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”

As I read through these articles I was greatly disturbed by the allegations, I had seen Joyce Meyer on T.V. before, but never really took the time to listen to what she was preaching. She and Osteen never seemed to be presenting the Gospel in a fashion that drew me in and made me want to watch and listen, actually it never really appeared like they presented it at all!

I had grown up in the Protestant and Methodist churches which never seemed to preach from the Bible and I didn’t really learn a whole lot until I found the Bible preaching church I now attend. I find that I am more drawn to speakers who quote the bible and go into detailed explanations, than those who use vague theology as a means of justifying their teachings, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses tend to do.

So as I began reading these articles, I became concerned, I had never heard of the Prosperity Gospel or the Word of Faith movement before and knew nothing about either. I believe Joyce Meyer is a proponent of Word of Faith and Joel Osteen is pushing the Prosperity Gospel. 

In the article about Osteen I learned that Joel had not been called by the Spirit or even God, to preach the Good News Gospel, but had been appointed by his mother when his father died some years after establishing the Lakewood Church near Houston Texas. So he was thrown into the position of heading a Charismatic mega church after being the media producer behind The John Osteen TV program whose television outreach had gone to a global market. With no Bible College or Seminary training he became a motivational speaker and author, after taking over for his father. He is very vague in his doctrine and doesn’t seem to use the bible as his source of inspiration or for facts, basically saying people can believe whatever they want, but can get wealth, good health and fame from God by working hard and donating to his church. So what once was a church based on relatively sound Bible doctrine became a source of wealth instead of a church founded on Biblical truth reaching out to a lost and hurting world!

What I found out about Joyce Meyers was equally troubling, not only does she live an extravagant lifestyle, spending millions on 5 homes for herself and her children along with a personal jet and expensive cars, all with the money earned from speaking engagements, books sales, and the donations to her ministry; but she preaches a false doctrine called Word of Faith. Although she seems to have had some formal training in ministry at Life Christian University in Florida (which is an unaccredited institution) and has been given an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity by Oral Roberts University which is an accredited institution, her teachings do not follow biblical theology. 

Her teachings border on science fiction, one such teaching, is that when Christ died on the cross, He went to Hell and became the devil. Yes, we all can agree He went through Hell on the cross, one can’t even imagine the pain and suffering He took on for us, but nowhere in the Bible does it say He went from being God to being the devil, then back to being God again! In 1 Peter 3:18-22, it does tell us that Christ suffered physical death, but was raised to life in the Spirit and went to preach to the spirits in prison who had disobeyed God long ago when He caused the terrible flood, before ascending to Heaven to sit in the place of honor next to God. Those people who died before Christ came to earth are often referred to as being asleep, but will rise along with everyone else on the day of Christ’s return to be judged.

Then there is her bold statement that she is in no way, shape or form, a sinner! When the Bible clearly says in Romans 3:22-24 “This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace through redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” 

She also preaches that we are “little gods” and if we put our minds to it, we can speak things into existence, such as good health or wealth, the Bible does tell us that we were created in the image of God, but nowhere does it say we have the power to “speak” things into reality just as God did when he created the world! She further insists that one must be careful of what they confess, because the wrong confession is a confession of defeat and failure, which will bring on defeat and failure. Confessing sickness or lack of finances will actually bring them on, you could lose your blessings from God if you make the wrong confession. The truth is, the only thing God requires from us is Faith in Christ and repentance of our sins along with trying to do what is right in the eyes of God.

There are many charismatic speakers, teachers and those that call themselves preachers out there in the world today, unfortunately too many are not out there presenting the truth of the Gospel, but seeking wealth and fame! It’s a really scary thought that Oprah Winfrey has gone from being a talk show host, with some strange takes on things, to a “Christian” with even stranger preaching! But what is she preaching? It’s not the Gospel, so just what is it? Apparently it’s a religion based on the song by John Lennon titled “Imagine” with the following lyrics:

Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today...

There is a huge movement towards a one world religion where all spiritual paths are equally valid (except if you believe in Jesus Christ of course), and Oprah is right in the forefront of that movement. She is basically saying there is no God, no Christ and we are all masters of our own fate! Actually I think she is into Star Wars big time, because she claims to believe in “the FORCE”! 

These are just a few of the many False Prophets and teachers out in the world today. We need to be careful and not let ourselves be led astray by “wolves in sheep’s clothing”! Open your eyes and take a good look around the world today! Where is the truth? So far I personally have found the Truth of God’s word in the Bible!