The Gospel According to Joel Osteen
Title: The Gospel According to Joel Osteen
Category: Church Issues
Subject: Gospel, False; Osteen, Joel
The Gospel According to Joel Osteen
With over 25,000 attendees, the largest average weekly attendance for any church in the United States is Lakewood Church in Houston, TX. The pastor of Lakewood Church is Joel Osteen, the forty-one year old son of Lakewood’s founding pastor, John Osteen (1922-1999). A non-denominational charismatic church, Lakewood has moved into the former Compaq arena, a facility with seating capacity for approximately 16,000.
Joel Osteen is televised nationally on a broadcast called, “Discover the Champion in You,” where he is frequently joined by his wife, Victoria. This remarkably appealing couple radiates charm, good looks and an upbeat message. Furthermore, when one watches Osteen, the immediate impression is that he is a very polished public speaker who is keenly aware of how to make a good impression.
Since Osteen is the pastor of the largest church in America, I was very eager to read his book, Your Best Life Now (hereafter BLN). The book offers insight into the history of Lakewood Church and the substance of Osteen’s theology.
The Lakewood Church Story
Central to understanding Osteen’s message is the story of Lakewood Church. John Osteen, Joel Osteen’s father and founder of Lakewood church, was originally a Southern Baptist Pastor who earned a Bachelors degree from John Brown University (1943) and a Masters Degree from Northern Baptist Seminary (1944). From 1950 – 1956, John Osteen was the pastor of Central Baptist Church in Baytown Texas. During his tenure there, he served on the executive committee of the Baptist General Convention of Texas from October, 1952 – October, 1955. It was also during his tenure at Baytown that the elder Osteen was divorced from his first wife and eventually remarried. John Osteen was without a pastorate for a brief time and was a member of South Main Baptist Church in Pasadena, TX from August 29, 1956 through January 10, 1957.
John Osteen accepted the call to serve as interim pastor of Houston’s Hibbard Memorial Baptist Church in 1957, eventually becoming the church’s official pastor. In 1958 while at Hibbard Memorial, John and Dodie Osteen gave birth to a daughter, Lisa, who had serious physical impairments. In BLN, Joel Osteen recounts this as being a dark hour for his parents which led them to discover that God is a “God of miracles” (213). Thankfully, Lisa survived. Joel Osteen goes on to say that some people at Hibbard Memorial, which he does not mention by name, became upset because his father was preaching messages about “hope, healing, and living in victory” (213). However, what Joel does not mention in BLN is that it was also during this time at Hibbard Memorial that John Osteen was “baptized in the Holy Ghost,” something made clear on the Lakewood website (www.lakewood.cc/john_osteen_tribute.htm).
Joel Osteen avoids explicitly mentioning his father’s “baptism of the Holy Ghost” in BLN, and instead vaguely mentions that the church was upset because “the supernatural God Daddy described didn’t fit into their denominational guidelines” (172). As a result, John Osteen took about 100 members from Hibbard Memorial and began the Lakewood Church in 1959.
Though Joel Osteen never specifically mentions the Southern Baptist Convention, the SBC is most certainly the denomination he has in mind in some of his criticisms. Characterizing his father’s dispute in the Hibbard Memorial Church as simply a matter of the congregation’s reluctance to believe in a miracle-working God, he fails to mention the serious theological difference that Southern Baptists have with our Pentecostal brothers concerning the entire concept that the “baptism with the Holy Ghost” is an experience separate from salvation. In this way, the younger Osteen’s presentation of his father’s break with Southern Baptists is skewed and leaves the uninformed reader with a less than adequate understanding of the issues involved. Hibbard Memorial Baptist is no longer in existence having merged with another Houston area church. It is interesting to note, however, that the Hibbard Memorial Church minutes from 1958 indicate the church voted to retain John Osteen as pastor by a vote of 205-47!
A Less Extreme Prosperity Gospel
Essentially, Joel Osteen advocates a form of the “prosperity Gospel” in BLN, a theology he learned from his father. For example, chapter 14 is titled “The Power in Your Words.” In this chapter, Joel Osteen concludes by saying, “Friend, there is a miracle in your mouth” (125), a phrase which mirrors the title of one of John Osteen’s books, “There is a Miracle in Your Mouth.” I want to be clear that Osteen’s version of the prosperity Gospel is not as extreme as Kenneth Hagin or Kenneth Copeland. Much of his book simply encourages people to be “positive.” In this sense, Joel Osteen is a Pentecostal version of Robert Schuller!
To be balanced in my critique, Joel Osteen does make some valid points in BLN. It is indeed the case that far too many people go through life with an extremely critical spirit. Osteen also challenges Christians to strive for excellence and reminds his readers that “we represent the Almighty God, and He does not appreciate laziness or sloppiness” (285). I concur. As one involved in education, some of my most frustrating moments come when students capable of “A” work settle for “C” or “B” grades and turn in hastily prepared assignments. Christians should indeed strive to give our very best for Jesus Christ.
The single greatest weakness in BLN is Osteen’s emphasis on humanity as made in the image of God while excluding the negative consequences of the Fall. Repeatedly, he reminds his readers that they are “made in the image of God.” As one concerned with the sanctity of human life, I agree. There is an innate value to every human. It is also true that the image of God in humanity has been marred by a historic space-time Fall, something Osteen never addresses. In this sense, he has a truncated view of man that emphasizes the positive and omits the negative. For example, Osteen says, “You must learn to cast down those negative thoughts and begin to see yourself as God sees you – a winner, an overcomer” (62). Instead of saying “sin,” he apparently prefers the less offensive terms “faults and weaknesses” (57). At this level, Osteen shares a theological flaw common to all prosperity preachers. In this emphasis on the image of God while excluding the deleterious effects of the Fall, I hear a distant echo of the “New Thought” teachers of the mid-1800’s, the historical precursor to many concepts present in the prosperity Gospel. In fairness, Osteen seems to have a sincere desire for people to be saved and includes a prayer at the end of the book encouraging people to “repent” of their sins (310). Thus, he apparently believes people are sinners and need to be forgiven. However, salvation is only necessary because mankind is fallen (Romans 3:23). If preaching excludes a healthy doctrine of sin, then calling people to repentance becomes nonsensical.
Osteen’s prosperity message shares another weakness with the broader community of “prosperity preachers”: It is not universally applicable. It is no coincidence that the “prosperity Gospel” is most popular in the United States, the wealthiest country in the world. In contrast, the simple Gospel of man’s sinfulness and God’s provision for redemption through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ is not constrained by culture or context. The Gospel is equally applicable to a wealthy Houston businessman or to someone dieing in an AIDS shelter in sub-Saharan Africa. On the other hand, the prosperity Gospel may sound appealing to a wealthy businessman, but it offers no hope to an AIDS victim in Africa.
Romans 5:8 says, “But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” Proactive preaching that helps people achieve victory in life will address the nasty reality that we are rebels in need of a savior. I genuinely hope that Osteen’s future ministry will include a more comprehensive approach that addresses our sinful nature.
Strange Science, Strange Theology
The lack of theological precision present in Osteen’s theology became more evident during the May 25, 2006 broadcast from Lakewood Church and an Osteen message titled, “The Generational Blessing.” In the message, he summarizes a purported study from the United States military in 1993. According to Osteen, the study was designed to see if anything beyond physical traits is passed down from one generation to the next. I will quote Osteen at length:
Well, they took white blood cells from a volunteer and they carefully placed them in a test tube and they put a probe from a lie detector test down in that test tube. And of course, the probe measures a person’s emotional response. And they had this same volunteer go a couple of doors down and watch some very violent scenes on television. . . . And when this man watched the scenes, even though the blood that was being tested was in another room, when he got all up tight and tense, that lie detector test shot off the page. It was detecting his emotional response even though the blood was no longer in his body. . . Their final conclusion was: The blood cells seem to remember where they came from. And I was thinking about if sickness and addiction and wrong mindsets can be passed down, how much more can God’s blessing and favor and good habits be passed down through our blood?
Osteen then makes a case that one can pass down a “generational blessing” to the next generation by making decisions that change one’s DNA. He says, “In your blood, being formed in your DNA, is that fortitude, that strength, that excellent spirit and it’s going to be passed down from generation to generation.” Furthermore, negativity is “junk that can get into your blood and be passed down.” I want to emphasize that Osteen was not speaking metaphorically, but was referring to the DNA carried within each cell of our body.
This entire line of thinking would be laughable if it were not for the fact that the person making these statements is not some obscure preacher, but the pastor of the church with the largest average weekly attendance in the United States. The “study” that Osteen cites sounds more like an urban legend than legitimate science. I know of no reputable scientist who argues that material removed from a live human body is affected by that human’s choices after its removal. Using Osteen’s logic, if I donate my blood in a blood transfusion, does that mean my choices affect the recipient of my blood? If Osteen is correct, we can end the scourge of drugs and poverty by simply transfusing blood from successful people into those who are struggling.
More troubling than Osteen’s venture into the realm of strange science is the strange theology he advocates. Though it is hard to pinpoint the origin of Osteen’s fixation on changing our DNA by making positive choices, he does align himself with the theological oddities of the “Prosperity Gospel,” including the ideas that our words have power and an overemphasis on financial prosperity. It is strange theology indeed that emphasizes changing one’s DNA as opposed to the change brought by the New Birth (John 3:3).
The Bible does not emphasize in any passage of Scripture human ability to change one’s DNA. Instead, the Bible emphasizes the change wrought in the human heart by Jesus Christ who “loves us and loosed us from our sins by his blood” (Revelation 1:5). While I have no idea where Osteen found the “study” to which he referred, I am quite certain Paul says the gospel is that Christ died for our sins, he was buried, and he was raised on the third day (I Cor. 15:3-4). I hope Osteen’s future messages will focus on the blood of Jesus and not our own blood.
With over 25,000 attendees, the largest average weekly attendance for any church in the United States is Lakewood Church in Houston, TX. The pastor of Lakewood Church is Joel Osteen, the forty-one year old son of Lakewood’s founding pastor, John Osteen (1922-1999). A non-denominational charismatic church, Lakewood has moved into the former Compaq arena, a facility with seating capacity for approximately 16,000.
Joel Osteen is televised nationally on a broadcast called, “Discover the Champion in You,” where he is frequently joined by his wife, Victoria. This remarkably appealing couple radiates charm, good looks and an upbeat message. Furthermore, when one watches Osteen, the immediate impression is that he is a very polished public speaker who is keenly aware of how to make a good impression.
Since Osteen is the pastor of the largest church in America, I was very eager to read his book, Your Best Life Now (hereafter BLN). The book offers insight into the history of Lakewood Church and the substance of Osteen’s theology.
The Lakewood Church Story
Central to understanding Osteen’s message is the story of Lakewood Church. John Osteen, Joel Osteen’s father and founder of Lakewood church, was originally a Southern Baptist Pastor who earned a Bachelors degree from John Brown University (1943) and a Masters Degree from Northern Baptist Seminary (1944). From 1950 – 1956, John Osteen was the pastor of Central Baptist Church in Baytown Texas. During his tenure there, he served on the executive committee of the Baptist General Convention of Texas from October, 1952 – October, 1955. It was also during his tenure at Baytown that the elder Osteen was divorced from his first wife and eventually remarried. John Osteen was without a pastorate for a brief time and was a member of South Main Baptist Church in Pasadena, TX from August 29, 1956 through January 10, 1957.
John Osteen accepted the call to serve as interim pastor of Houston’s Hibbard Memorial Baptist Church in 1957, eventually becoming the church’s official pastor. In 1958 while at Hibbard Memorial, John and Dodie Osteen gave birth to a daughter, Lisa, who had serious physical impairments. In BLN, Joel Osteen recounts this as being a dark hour for his parents which led them to discover that God is a “God of miracles” (213). Thankfully, Lisa survived. Joel Osteen goes on to say that some people at Hibbard Memorial, which he does not mention by name, became upset because his father was preaching messages about “hope, healing, and living in victory” (213). However, what Joel does not mention in BLN is that it was also during this time at Hibbard Memorial that John Osteen was “baptized in the Holy Ghost,” something made clear on the Lakewood website (www.lakewood.cc/john_osteen_tribute.htm).
Joel Osteen avoids explicitly mentioning his father’s “baptism of the Holy Ghost” in BLN, and instead vaguely mentions that the church was upset because “the supernatural God Daddy described didn’t fit into their denominational guidelines” (172). As a result, John Osteen took about 100 members from Hibbard Memorial and began the Lakewood Church in 1959.
Though Joel Osteen never specifically mentions the Southern Baptist Convention, the SBC is most certainly the denomination he has in mind in some of his criticisms. Characterizing his father’s dispute in the Hibbard Memorial Church as simply a matter of the congregation’s reluctance to believe in a miracle-working God, he fails to mention the serious theological difference that Southern Baptists have with our Pentecostal brothers concerning the entire concept that the “baptism with the Holy Ghost” is an experience separate from salvation. In this way, the younger Osteen’s presentation of his father’s break with Southern Baptists is skewed and leaves the uninformed reader with a less than adequate understanding of the issues involved. Hibbard Memorial Baptist is no longer in existence having merged with another Houston area church. It is interesting to note, however, that the Hibbard Memorial Church minutes from 1958 indicate the church voted to retain John Osteen as pastor by a vote of 205-47!
A Less Extreme Prosperity Gospel
Essentially, Joel Osteen advocates a form of the “prosperity Gospel” in BLN, a theology he learned from his father. For example, chapter 14 is titled “The Power in Your Words.” In this chapter, Joel Osteen concludes by saying, “Friend, there is a miracle in your mouth” (125), a phrase which mirrors the title of one of John Osteen’s books, “There is a Miracle in Your Mouth.” I want to be clear that Osteen’s version of the prosperity Gospel is not as extreme as Kenneth Hagin or Kenneth Copeland. Much of his book simply encourages people to be “positive.” In this sense, Joel Osteen is a Pentecostal version of Robert Schuller!
To be balanced in my critique, Joel Osteen does make some valid points in BLN. It is indeed the case that far too many people go through life with an extremely critical spirit. Osteen also challenges Christians to strive for excellence and reminds his readers that “we represent the Almighty God, and He does not appreciate laziness or sloppiness” (285). I concur. As one involved in education, some of my most frustrating moments come when students capable of “A” work settle for “C” or “B” grades and turn in hastily prepared assignments. Christians should indeed strive to give our very best for Jesus Christ.
The single greatest weakness in BLN is Osteen’s emphasis on humanity as made in the image of God while excluding the negative consequences of the Fall. Repeatedly, he reminds his readers that they are “made in the image of God.” As one concerned with the sanctity of human life, I agree. There is an innate value to every human. It is also true that the image of God in humanity has been marred by a historic space-time Fall, something Osteen never addresses. In this sense, he has a truncated view of man that emphasizes the positive and omits the negative. For example, Osteen says, “You must learn to cast down those negative thoughts and begin to see yourself as God sees you – a winner, an overcomer” (62). Instead of saying “sin,” he apparently prefers the less offensive terms “faults and weaknesses” (57). At this level, Osteen shares a theological flaw common to all prosperity preachers. In this emphasis on the image of God while excluding the deleterious effects of the Fall, I hear a distant echo of the “New Thought” teachers of the mid-1800’s, the historical precursor to many concepts present in the prosperity Gospel. In fairness, Osteen seems to have a sincere desire for people to be saved and includes a prayer at the end of the book encouraging people to “repent” of their sins (310). Thus, he apparently believes people are sinners and need to be forgiven. However, salvation is only necessary because mankind is fallen (Romans 3:23). If preaching excludes a healthy doctrine of sin, then calling people to repentance becomes nonsensical.
Osteen’s prosperity message shares another weakness with the broader community of “prosperity preachers”: It is not universally applicable. It is no coincidence that the “prosperity Gospel” is most popular in the United States, the wealthiest country in the world. In contrast, the simple Gospel of man’s sinfulness and God’s provision for redemption through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ is not constrained by culture or context. The Gospel is equally applicable to a wealthy Houston businessman or to someone dieing in an AIDS shelter in sub-Saharan Africa. On the other hand, the prosperity Gospel may sound appealing to a wealthy businessman, but it offers no hope to an AIDS victim in Africa.
Romans 5:8 says, “But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” Proactive preaching that helps people achieve victory in life will address the nasty reality that we are rebels in need of a savior. I genuinely hope that Osteen’s future ministry will include a more comprehensive approach that addresses our sinful nature.
Strange Science, Strange Theology
The lack of theological precision present in Osteen’s theology became more evident during the May 25, 2006 broadcast from Lakewood Church and an Osteen message titled, “The Generational Blessing.” In the message, he summarizes a purported study from the United States military in 1993. According to Osteen, the study was designed to see if anything beyond physical traits is passed down from one generation to the next. I will quote Osteen at length:
Well, they took white blood cells from a volunteer and they carefully placed them in a test tube and they put a probe from a lie detector test down in that test tube. And of course, the probe measures a person’s emotional response. And they had this same volunteer go a couple of doors down and watch some very violent scenes on television. . . . And when this man watched the scenes, even though the blood that was being tested was in another room, when he got all up tight and tense, that lie detector test shot off the page. It was detecting his emotional response even though the blood was no longer in his body. . . Their final conclusion was: The blood cells seem to remember where they came from. And I was thinking about if sickness and addiction and wrong mindsets can be passed down, how much more can God’s blessing and favor and good habits be passed down through our blood?
Osteen then makes a case that one can pass down a “generational blessing” to the next generation by making decisions that change one’s DNA. He says, “In your blood, being formed in your DNA, is that fortitude, that strength, that excellent spirit and it’s going to be passed down from generation to generation.” Furthermore, negativity is “junk that can get into your blood and be passed down.” I want to emphasize that Osteen was not speaking metaphorically, but was referring to the DNA carried within each cell of our body.
This entire line of thinking would be laughable if it were not for the fact that the person making these statements is not some obscure preacher, but the pastor of the church with the largest average weekly attendance in the United States. The “study” that Osteen cites sounds more like an urban legend than legitimate science. I know of no reputable scientist who argues that material removed from a live human body is affected by that human’s choices after its removal. Using Osteen’s logic, if I donate my blood in a blood transfusion, does that mean my choices affect the recipient of my blood? If Osteen is correct, we can end the scourge of drugs and poverty by simply transfusing blood from successful people into those who are struggling.
More troubling than Osteen’s venture into the realm of strange science is the strange theology he advocates. Though it is hard to pinpoint the origin of Osteen’s fixation on changing our DNA by making positive choices, he does align himself with the theological oddities of the “Prosperity Gospel,” including the ideas that our words have power and an overemphasis on financial prosperity. It is strange theology indeed that emphasizes changing one’s DNA as opposed to the change brought by the New Birth (John 3:3).
The Bible does not emphasize in any passage of Scripture human ability to change one’s DNA. Instead, the Bible emphasizes the change wrought in the human heart by Jesus Christ who “loves us and loosed us from our sins by his blood” (Revelation 1:5). While I have no idea where Osteen found the “study” to which he referred, I am quite certain Paul says the gospel is that Christ died for our sins, he was buried, and he was raised on the third day (I Cor. 15:3-4). I hope Osteen’s future messages will focus on the blood of Jesus and not our own blood.