The Heresy of Joel Osteen
Joel Osteen was born on 03/05/1963 in Houston. He attended the Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma where he radio and television communications studied. In 1982 he returned to Houston and founded Lakewood, a ministry that the preaching of His Father (John Osteen) broadcast on television. John Osteen encouraged Joel to preach for many years, but he always refused and preferred to work behind the scenes. On January 17, 1999 made Joel his first sermon. That same week his father died suddenly of a heart attack. Two weeks later Joel began preaching and later that year he was installed as the new Senior Pastor of Lakewood Church. The services of Lakewood Church in over 100 countries around the world and reach over seven million viewers. Every week more than one million people download the sermons from him. On July 16, 2005, after completing a $ 95,000,000 major renovation Lakewood Church moved into the former Compaq Center, and every week Joel delivers God’s message of hope and encouragement to more than 38,000 attendees. Osteen’s popularity led him into the top ten from ABC News the most fascinating people of 2006 and was named “Most Influential Christian in America” in 2006 by The Church Report . Joel Osteen is involved in vaccination programs for infants and youth centers for problem teenagers looking for a new life and a new start. Joel is also author of the books: Your Best Life Now: 7 Steps for a full life. and Become a Better You: 7 Keys to improving your life, with a first printing of four million copies. On April 4, 1987 he married Victoria L. Iloff and had two children, Jonathan and Alexandra. Now Victoria is co-pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston and an inspiration and mentor to women everywhere. Joel is also called “The Smiling Preacher ‘, because he has always a big smile on his face and maybe a little because his service always begins with a joke. It is a popular man and many visit their church no longer because they prefer to watch Joel Osteen service on TV. What is it that makes Osteen so popular? Osteen sees himself as a coach, a motivator for the people. He teaches them how they can help themselves. The message is: The deliverance of the unfortunate, by doing your best. He makes a real teaching from that. He therefore has written a book Become a Better You. Actually this is nothing more than a self-help program that suits the New Age movement. If you follow instructions, God will make your life successful. If you do the best you do, then God does the rest. God wants you happy, rich, happy, etc. This is of course the famous prosperity gospel. Furthermore, he preaches only encouraging things like: “We have our faults, but the good news is that God still loves you. There is no condemnation and God does not look at your mistakes, but to that one or two things that go well. He looks at your heart. ” Osteen preaches no sin, Jesus, or the cross, it is mainly about self-help and how you can change. If you come to believe you will feel peace, forgiveness and love. But isn’t it so that persecution awaits us? The extraordinary success of Joel is therefore the core of his message, that our God is a good God who desires to bless those who are obedient and faithful to Him through Jesus Christ. Osteen says he chooses to focus on the goodness of God rather than sin. When asked why he doesn’t use bible scriptures in his sermons and his books he says that he sees himself more as a “life coach”. Osteen explains that he tries to teach Biblical principles in a simple way, emphasizing the power of love and a positive attitude. Osteen himself finds it unnecessary to preach about sin, the cross or hell. That is something for other preachers to each his own piece. His play is to encourage and motivate people. It is his job to the lives of the people here on Earth to improve, they are already a Christian so I have nothing more to say about it. He keeps it in “simple thoughts” It is noteworthy that Osteen ignorant of the Bible, and wants everyone to keep as a friend. He is kind to everyone. In the talk show Larry King in 2005 he said in response to the question whether people who reject Jesus go to hell, “I do not know, I do not know if the Muslims are wrong, I believe God will judge them by their heart. ” In my Bible is really something else: 18 He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. Joh. 3:18 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me. John14: 6 Osteen is one of the teachers that the Bible warns us for. People will gather around them teachers who will tell them what they want to hear. They want to be tickled. They do not want the word to box a person’s ears. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. 2 Tim 4:3-4 You could draw a comparison with the sinking of the Titanic. The ship is sinking but the band is still playing happily. So it is here. One is not convinced of sin, so they laughing and go under and die.
