Joel Osteen

Thanks to the wonderful world of podcasts we have many choices as to what we can listen to regarding Christian content. I listen to not only the podcasts of sermons from my own church but those by well known apologists and evangelists on my iPod while I am out working.

Admitedly I do listen to Joel Osteen and I have read much of the feedback regarding Joel, both positive and negative. Much of the negativity comes from other Christians who complain that his message is not only unbiblical but outright heresy.

I would like to weigh in on my thoughts regarding Joel and let the chips fall where they may. Let me start out with what I don’t like about Joel’s style. Those that are pro Joel need not fear because I will go into the positive aspects a little later.

First off, I don’t like the beginning recitation where the entire congregation is led to say a repeated mantra at every service. One line bothers me especially and that is “today I will be taught the word of God”. Not so fast. Maybe I won’t hear anything remotely biblical.
Secondly, he sounds scripted like a candidate reading a speech. It’s not terrible but it doesn’t sound like an annointed word being led by the holy spirit.
I also don’t like the spinning globe in the background and the lack of crosses in the sanctuary.

Now let’s get to the better stuff. I first started listening to Joel at a very down period in my life. His messages were very positive and if you boil them down to the bare essence his message is ultimately to not let bad things in life get you down and have faith that God has it under control. This is a good thing, people.

If I was to call a Christian friend in a depressed moment I would hope he would do the biblical thing and lift me up and encourage me.
You see, what other Christians seem to complain about is that his messages are too and to a degree, they have a point.

But I challenge anyone to show me a Christian who is not faced or concerned with the very issues Joel addresses. Christians live in homes and 10 to one they would like a nicer one. I would bet that Christians also strive for success and advancement in the workplace.

When I hear from a Christian who lives in the wilderness wearing camel hair and living off the land then just maybe I may see some credibility in their argument. When I speak to other Christians guess what? They have jobs, they have adversities and challenges and many of them lack faith that they will pull through. From time to time, I even have a lack in this area.

It seems not only do Christians have issues with his discussions about attaining success in life they are also concerned more with what Joel doesn’t say. Many Christians seem to want a speaker who will continuously berate them and constantly remark on the dangers of hellfire.

I for one am a full believer in Jesus Christ and his work on the cross. I don’t need a constant reminder of hellfire because I am already a bible believing Christian. For those who are new to osteen, perhaps they will see Christians as being regular folk with the same needs they have and how encouraging the message actually is. Not, it isn’t always gospel but he does mention Jesus every single sermon.

In fact, he closes each sermon with a condensed sinner’s prayer. I’m not a huge fan of the sinner’s prayer but for some, it can be a decent tool.
Ultimately I do believe we should be focused on spiritual gain over material, without a doubt. But the fact remains we are in a completely different society than that of the bible writers. We have homes with mortgages, employers, and yes, money. We need it to live and we need it to eat. We aren’t walking around the desert eating manna as it falls from the sky.

Years ago I remember seeing the advent of what we would call the motivational speaker. Anthony Robbins made quite a good living encouraging people to be the best that they could with relationships, work, and other life matters.

Joel Osteen is not all that different than Anthony Robbins with the exception he does it with a God centered purpose. There are times when Joel focuses more on material advancement without spiritual development and for some, Joel may be the only sermons they are hearing and that isn’t necessarily a good thing.

But the simple matter is this, most churches today do not operate anything like those of the bible days. There is an excellent book that is very critical of how we do church today called Pagan Christianity. And from it’s pages one can easily see we have come far afield of the practices they held. However the first century church had many of it’s own problems. If you doubt it, just read the bible.

Is Joel osteen the pastor you should get the majority of your gospel message from? Not really. You should be fed from variety of sources. We don’t eat at one restaurant and neither should you.

The bible teaches we are to encourage one another and Joel has a knack for it and when I need a God centered pick me up, he has some good words regarding faith and keeping a positive attitude.
That isn’t to say there isn’t a lot of doctrine he gets wrong but I have yet to see a preacher or speaker be 100 percent correct.

If you want a hellfire preacher that constantly knocks you around, you can find one. Then again, maybe you just need a friend to encourage you in a difficult time who will tell you God is in your corner and to keep him first and the rest may fall into place.

Then again, maybe when you face adversity you wre the type that would welcome the arrival of Job’s friends who have a negative spin on just about everything.

Without Jesus we are headed toward hell. But after we find the Lord we have to deal with hell on Earth and having a positive influence isn’t a bad thing.

Peace and love, out!

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