God's Evaluation Of The Message Of Health & Wealth False Teachers
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There is a teaching that has found its way into the church ever since the times of the Apostles of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul in writing to Timothy warned him against these preachers and a particular kind of teaching that was false but still was found very appealing to so many. Sadly, these same kind of teachers exists in our churches today and their false teaching is still attractive to many who are in our churches.
Listen to what the Bible says,
“If anyone teaches false doctrine and does not agree with the sound teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ and with the teaching that promotes godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing, but has an unhealthy interests in disputes and arguments over words. From these come envy, quarreling, slander, evil suspicions, and constant disagreement among people who’s minds are depraved and deprived fo the truth, who imagine that godliness is a way to material gain.” 1 Timothy 6:3-5 (CSB)
In this passage there are many descriptions of the kind of teaching that makes these preachers classified as a false teacher. Some of those descriptions are not being in agreement with the teaching of Jesus, doesn’t and doesn’t promote godliness. But there’s one particular teaching that is specifically identified and needs to be carefully considered. Why? Because it is destructive and still very much at play in the church of North America.
What is it? Simply this:
That Godliness Is A Way To Material Gain!
It is a teaching that says:
if you act in a godly way God will reward you with wealth.
That it is God’s will for all His people to be wealthy.
If you don’t have wealth it is because you don’t have enough faith.
The Apostle Paul is very clear about this kind of teaching. Paul says it is false and comes from false teachers. He describes these teachers as being:
Conceited: They think more highly of themselves than they ought to.
Understands nothing: They not only lack truth but they lack the ability to discern truth.
Having unhealthy interests in disputes: They love conspiracy theories.
Argue over words. They like to take words and ascribe different definitions to them!
These Teachers Are The Source Of All Kinds Of Problems. Problems Like:
Envy: These kind of teachers and the message they give lends itself to becoming envious of others and what they have.
Quarrels: Literally fights. Fights breakout because of them and their message.
Slander: They build themselves up by tearing other people down.
Evil Suspicions: Always suspicious of people feeling that everyone is trying to take what they got.
Disagreements with people: This evil suspicion doesn’t lend itself to living in harmony or agreement with others but instead causes arguments.
Two Basic Descriptions About These Teachers:
The Are Depraved: Literally means the corruption of ones morals. The moral fiber of these teachers is corrupted and falling a part. They are morally bankrupt. They have no Godly values that guide them.
They Are Deprived Of The Truth: To be deprived is to be severely denied something of importance. It is very much like that of neglecting a child of love, or clothing or food. It is a serious neglect. But in this case these teachers are deprived of what really is truth. There teaching holds no truth.
The Apostle Paul warns us to stay clear of these kinds of teachers. We are not to entertain their teaching. Ther motives are for their own person material gain. You’ll often hear them teach you that if you give to their ministry then God will reward your sacrifice with giving you a hundred fold return. In other words they are trying to tell you that if you give to them financially then God will make you rich.
The only we read of Jesus telling people to sell all that they have and give it away was to a rich young ruler found in Mark 10:17-27. But there’s a big difference from what Jesus did and what these health and wealth teachers teach! They teach for you to give them money. But Jesus taught that we should give what we have to the poor. You see Jesus doesn’t want our money and He doesn’t need our money. What does Jesus want:
