Word of Faith
Encyclopedia
Word of Faith is a family of Christian
churches as well as a label applied by some observers to a teaching movement kindred to many Pentecostal
and charismatic churches and individuals worldwide. The basic doctrine preached is that of salvation
through Jesus Christ and what that salvation entails. It is based on Jesus’ teachings concerning the Kingdom of God
and the Kingdom of Heaven
and the state humans can receive through the atonement and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This state of new being or creation (found in the biblical passages and ) can be received only through faith in the Word of God.
The Word of Faith movement has many distinctives; although it shares teachings in common with prosperity theology
, they are not the same thing. Additionally, many beliefs that the movement holds as essentials are often the target of criticism for having views that according to some Christians diverge from Christian orthodoxy. It emphasizes speaking, stating, or confessing verses found in the Bible
, called the Word of God. The belief is that if one believes the Word of God and confesses it then the believer shall receive what they confess. This act of believing and speaking is said to be described by Jesus in . The term word of faith itself is derived from the biblical passage which speaks of "the word of faith that we preach."
. A New England
Bible teacher, schoolmaster, and prolific writer, Kenyon authored eighteen books that are used still today by many who call themselves Word of Faith. Word of Faith teaching emerged as a reaction to traditional Pentecostalism, which taught the idea of the power of God displayed in the present day by acts of healing, miracles, and so on. These spiritual manifestations were unpredictable and took place as "the Lord willed." In contrast to this, Kenyon taught that supernatural acts could be guaranteed to happen based on a covenant between God and his people.
At the core of Kenyon's teachings was the concept of the Old and New Testaments as blood covenants. A blood covenant is a contract that binds two parties together as one "blood", or family, and pledges them to the mutual interest and prosperity of one another. This kind of covenant would be symbolized by a "covenant cut" and the spilling of blood, for example with circumcision in . In , a covenant is established by God with Abram
and his descendants, the future Israel
. God pledges himself to the well being of Israel including protection from violence, sickness, poverty (which meant overall financial prosperity), etc. In return Israel was expected to "fully obey" and pledge itself to the interests and service of God; for example, in blessing the nations in . With the belief that Christians are heirs to that covenant by identification with Abraham's descendants through Jesus Christ in . From Kenyon's perspective, interpreting the scriptures in this way meant that the supernatural could be guaranteed whenever necessary to fulfill God's "covenant promises" to his people.
Kenneth Hagin was heavily influenced by Kenyon’s writings. Hagin has been referred to as the “father” of the modern Word of Faith movement. He elaborated on Kenyon’s theology of covenant confession, preaching a four-part formula for receiving God’s promises: “Say it; do it; receive it; tell it.” Many Bible preachers and teachers have been influenced either directly or indirectly by Kenneth Hagin and his teaching. The most recognized include Kenneth Copeland
, Benny Hinn
, Creflo Dollar
, Joyce Meyer
, Jerry Savelle
, Bill Winston, Joel Osteen
, Charles Nieman
, Jesse Duplantis
, Jason Mckay
, Keith Moore and Hobart Freeman
.
Because Isaiah speaks in the present tense ("we are healed"), Word of Faith teaches that believers should accept the reality of a healing that is already theirs. Accepting this healing is done by confessing the verse or verses found in the Bible declaring they are healed (i.e. Word of Faith) and then believing them fully without doubt. It is not an act of denying the pain, sickness, or disease, but an act of receiving the gift mentioned in Isaiah 53:5. According to adherents, sickness is an attempt by Satan
to rob believers of their divine right to total health.
Some argue that Jesus and the apostles were also financially wealthy, owning homes, having monetary resources and businesses. The following arguments have been offered for this claim:
This is contrary to the traditional view of Jesus, who is often viewed as being a poor, wandering teacher. Based on the concept that Jesus and His apostles were arguably wealthy, as well as the historical examples of His people having great wealth, and the promises for financial prosperity throughout the Old and New Testaments, Word of Faith proponents teach that modern believers also have access to the "blessing" and may also become financially wealthy. Teachers like Kenneth Copeland
assert the Prosperity Gospel is validated by the teachings of the Apostle John
: "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth" . Copeland posits that “as the seeds of prosperity are planted in your mind, in your will and in your emotions...they eventually produce a great financial harvest."
's concept of positive thinking
. Noted Word of Faith teachers, such as Kenneth E. Hagin
and Charles Capps
, have argued that God
created the universe simply by speaking it into existence , and that humans have been endowed with the ability (power) to speak things into existence. Thus, making a "positive confession" (by reciting a promise of scripture, for example), and believing that which one says, generates power which enables those things to come into fruition. This teaching is interpreted from . Word of Faith preachers have likened faith
to a "force".
Likewise, according to Word of Faith teaching, "negative confession" can yield negative results, and hence believers should be conscious of their words. This is argued on the interpretation of , "Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and they that love them will eat the fruit thereof", also , "...saith the Lord, as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do", among other scriptures.
by Walter Martin devotes an entire appendix to the alleged heretical teachings. Martin and other objectors disagree with Word of Faith's views on healing, prosperity, and faith. The book also raises questions regarding the movement's teachings on several issues, including: the atoning work of Christ, soteriology, and theodicy. Despite the criticism by several prominent theologians, authors, and online critics, the movement continues to air television programs and publish articles and books. Furthermore, within the Christian sphere, the Word of Faith movement is the fastest growing branch of Pentecostal Christianity.
and relabeled them. Thus, the Word of Faith movement, in McConnell’s view, constitutes a "Trojan Horse
". This argument was the primary conclusion reached by McConnell’s master’s thesis published as a book, A Different Gospel.
Similar criticisms were made by William DeArteaga and Robert Bowman. Formerly of the Christian Research Institute, DeArteaga concedes some new thought influence in Kenyon's teaching, but he argues that Kenyon's views helped the church rediscover some biblical truth
s. The primary work in defense of this theory is DeArteaga's Quenching The Spirit. Arguing similarly but in an opposite direction is Bowman, whose Word-Faith Controversy is more sympathetic to Kenyon's historical background yet more critical of his doctrine than DeArteaga.
Baptist evangelist Justin Peters, an outspoken critic of the Word of Faith movement who wrote his Master of Divinity thesis on Benny Hinn
and has appeared frequently as an expert on Word of Faith pastors in documentaries and TV news stories, traces the movement's origins to the metaphysical cults of the late 19th and early 20th centuries ( Phineus Quimby's
New Thought
Movement, Mary Baker Eddy's
Christian Science
) in his seminar "A Call for Discernment".
In contrast, Pastor Joe McIntyre, now head of Kenyon’s Gospel Publishing Society in Washington State, argues that the primary influences of Kenyon were A.B. Simpson and A.J. Gordon of the Faith Cure branch of the Evangelical Movement. McIntyre’s version is told in the authorized biography, E.W. Kenyon: The True Story.
One of the earliest critics of the teaching was Oral Roberts University
professor Charles Farah
, who published From the Pinnacle of the Temple in 1979. In the book, Farah expressed his disillusionment with the teachings, which he argued were more about presumption than faith.
That same year, Pentecostal scholar Gordon Fee
wrote a series of articles denouncing both the health and the wealth gospels. In 1982, one of Farah's students, Daniel Ray McConnell, submitted a thesis to the faculty at Oral Roberts University arguing that Kenyon was the father of the teaching, that Hagin had plagiarized his doctrines from Kenyon, and that the unique doctrines of the Word of Faith were heretical. McConnell's thesis was published as the book A Different Gospel in 1988.
One of McConnell's classmates, Dale H. Simmons, published his own research in earning a doctorate at Drew University
. Simmons argued that Kenyon was influenced by heterodox metaphysical movements and the Faith Cure movement of the nineteenth century. In 1990, The Agony of Deceit was published as a conglomeration of critiques of Word of Faith doctrines. One of the authors, Christian Research Institute founder Walter Martin, issued his personal judgment that Kenneth Copeland was a false prophet and that the movement as a whole was heretical.
In 1993, Hank Hanegraaff's
Christianity in Crisis charged the Word of Faith movement with heresy
and accused many of its churches of being "cults
." He accused the Word of Faith teachers of "demoting" God and Jesus, and "deifying" man and Satan
. Hanegraaff is derided within the Word of Faith community as a present-day "Christian Witch Hunter." Hanegraaff has focused a significant portion of his anti-heresy teaching since the 1990s on addressing and refuting Word of Faith teachings.
Other critics, such as Norman Geisler
, Dave Hunt and Roger Oakland, have denounced Word of Faith theology as aberrant and contrary to the teachings of the Bible. Critics have also condemned the teachings on wealth, arguing that the Bible condemns the pursuit of riches.
The "health and wealth" teachings had been heavily criticized, with opponents arguing that Word of Faith teachers tend not to stress some scriptures warning against emphasis on material prosperity and telling of the importance of helping the poor.
John Piper points out that Christ warned the apostles that they would suffer great persecution for the sake of his name (except John, all eleven, after Judas Iscariot, suffered martyrs' deaths). In a January 2006 sermon entitled "How our Suffering Advances the Gospel," Piper stated bluntly that "the prosperity gospel will not make anybody praise Jesus; it will make people praise prosperity."
essentially be spirit as well and ‘in God’s class’, and thereby ‘gods’. Kenneth Copeland says Adam was "not a little like God ... not almost like God ...", and has told believers that "You don't have a God in you. You are one." Based primarily on the , which says "I have said, Ye are gods
and all of you, children of the Most High"; this was also corroborated by Jesus making reference to this scripture in . A common theme in Word of Faith preaching is that God created man as "an exact duplication of God's kind." In all of this, there is no argument of man's ability to exist and operate independently of God, but rather, the emphasis is on what the believer can become in God.
Suffer the Children, a documentary highlighting some of the teachings of the Word of Faith movement, has a video clip of Creflo Dollar teaching the "little gods" doctrine to his congregation based on the notion that "everything reproduces after its own kind":
The promulgation of this teaching is one of the most contentious doctrines to its critics, who consider it heresy
. Mormon
scholar Stephen E. Robinson
, whose religion teaches that man can become gods after eons of exaltation, has declared the "little gods" teaching heretical as well. Conversely, Christianity regards this Mormon teaching as heretical also, and entirely unsupported by the Bible. Many Evangelical critics have asserted that the teaching is, in fact, cultic; Hank Hanegraaff, for example, contends the 'little gods' doctrine is on a par with the teaching of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
and Jim Jones
. Justin Peters, whose first encounter with Word of Faith doctrine came at the age of 16 when a faith healer "slayed [him] in the spirit" in an attempt to cure his cerebral palsy
, states in A Call for Discernment that the reason the Word of Faith movement holds so tenaciously to "health and wealth" tenets is because of the "little gods" teaching: "A god should never be sick, and a god should never be poor." In response, Word of Faith defenders have claimed the teaching is simply underscoring the biblical view of the believer's "true identity in Christ".
Critics, such as Christian apologist and CARM founder Matt Slick and Bible critique author W. Gary Phillips, believe referencing scriptures and , where it is said that men are gods, is using these Scriptures out of context. The biblical application of these verses is addressed to the Judges of Israel where they were called gods, not because they were divine, but because they represented the true and only God when they judged the people. The Hebrew and Greek words used in both Scriptures for "gods" can also be applied to magistrates and used to describe someone as "mighty". One of the problems with this alternative interpretation, however, is that when Jesus quotes this passage in the new Testament, he seems to suggest the idea of deity instead: "If God called those to whom He gave His word Gods — and you cannot deny the scriptures — how can you say I blaspheme because I say I am a son of God?"
E.W. Kenyon, a founder of the doctrine that later became known as Word of Faith, was the first to explicitly articulate the doctrine in a number of his works, including What Happened From The Cross To the Throne and Identification: A Romance In Redemption. This doctrine was later supposedly taken up by Hagin, Copeland and many of their followers. The doctrine asserts that Jesus’ bodily sacrifice was but the beginning of atonement, which continued with Jesus’ suffering in Hell
. Copeland claimed that Jesus took on humanity’s "satanic nature" and was "born again" in Hell. Hagin's teaching was featured in his book The Name of Jesus (1978 edition), yet in a 1991 letter to the Christian Research Institute, Hagins son Kenneth Hagin Jr denied this interpretation and claimed Hagin Sr had never taught the notion of a born again Jesus or the adoption of Satan's nature. D.R. McConnell has labeled the teaching heresy, believing it compromises the teaching that Jesus' blood atoned for sin.
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
churches as well as a label applied by some observers to a teaching movement kindred to many Pentecostal
Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
and charismatic churches and individuals worldwide. The basic doctrine preached is that of salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
through Jesus Christ and what that salvation entails. It is based on Jesus’ teachings concerning the Kingdom of God
Kingdom of God
The Kingdom of God or Kingdom of Heaven is a foundational concept in the Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.The term "Kingdom of God" is found in all four canonical gospels and in the Pauline epistles...
and the Kingdom of Heaven
Kingdom of God
The Kingdom of God or Kingdom of Heaven is a foundational concept in the Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.The term "Kingdom of God" is found in all four canonical gospels and in the Pauline epistles...
and the state humans can receive through the atonement and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This state of new being or creation (found in the biblical passages and ) can be received only through faith in the Word of God.
The Word of Faith movement has many distinctives; although it shares teachings in common with prosperity theology
Prosperity theology
Prosperity theology or gospel is a Christian religious belief whose proponents claim the Bible teaches that financial blessing is the will of God for Christians. Most teachers of prosperity theology maintain that a combination of faith, positive speech, and donations to Christian ministries will...
, they are not the same thing. Additionally, many beliefs that the movement holds as essentials are often the target of criticism for having views that according to some Christians diverge from Christian orthodoxy. It emphasizes speaking, stating, or confessing verses found in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, called the Word of God. The belief is that if one believes the Word of God and confesses it then the believer shall receive what they confess. This act of believing and speaking is said to be described by Jesus in . The term word of faith itself is derived from the biblical passage which speaks of "the word of faith that we preach."
Origins
One of the first proponents of Word of Faith was E. W. KenyonE. W. Kenyon
Essek William Kenyon was a pastor of the New Covenant Baptist Church and founder and president of Bethel Bible Institute in Spencer, Massachusetts.-Biography:...
. A New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
Bible teacher, schoolmaster, and prolific writer, Kenyon authored eighteen books that are used still today by many who call themselves Word of Faith. Word of Faith teaching emerged as a reaction to traditional Pentecostalism, which taught the idea of the power of God displayed in the present day by acts of healing, miracles, and so on. These spiritual manifestations were unpredictable and took place as "the Lord willed." In contrast to this, Kenyon taught that supernatural acts could be guaranteed to happen based on a covenant between God and his people.
At the core of Kenyon's teachings was the concept of the Old and New Testaments as blood covenants. A blood covenant is a contract that binds two parties together as one "blood", or family, and pledges them to the mutual interest and prosperity of one another. This kind of covenant would be symbolized by a "covenant cut" and the spilling of blood, for example with circumcision in . In , a covenant is established by God with Abram
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
and his descendants, the future Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. God pledges himself to the well being of Israel including protection from violence, sickness, poverty (which meant overall financial prosperity), etc. In return Israel was expected to "fully obey" and pledge itself to the interests and service of God; for example, in blessing the nations in . With the belief that Christians are heirs to that covenant by identification with Abraham's descendants through Jesus Christ in . From Kenyon's perspective, interpreting the scriptures in this way meant that the supernatural could be guaranteed whenever necessary to fulfill God's "covenant promises" to his people.
Kenneth Hagin was heavily influenced by Kenyon’s writings. Hagin has been referred to as the “father” of the modern Word of Faith movement. He elaborated on Kenyon’s theology of covenant confession, preaching a four-part formula for receiving God’s promises: “Say it; do it; receive it; tell it.” Many Bible preachers and teachers have been influenced either directly or indirectly by Kenneth Hagin and his teaching. The most recognized include Kenneth Copeland
Kenneth Copeland
Kenneth Copeland is an American author, public speaker, and televangelist. He is the founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministries, which preaches a “prosperity gospel”: "Prosperity gospel assures followers that the more they give including in the form of tithes to the church, the more they will receive...
, Benny Hinn
Benny Hinn
Toufik Benedictus "Benny" Hinn הין; born December 3, 1952) is a televangelist, best known for his regular "Miracle Crusades" – revival meeting/faith healing summits that are usually held in large stadiums in major cities, which are later broadcast worldwide on his television program, This Is Your...
, Creflo Dollar
Creflo Dollar
Creflo Augustus Dollar, Jr. is an American Word of Faith teacher, pastor, and the founder of the non-denominational World Changers Church International based in Fulton County, Georgia. Creflo Dollar Ministerial Association , Creflo Dollar Ministries, and Arrow Records...
, Joyce Meyer
Joyce Meyer
Joyce Meyer is a Charismatic Christian author and speaker. Meyer and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her ministry is headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri.-Early life:Meyer was born Pauline Joyce Hutchison in south St. Louis in...
, Jerry Savelle
Jerry Savelle
Jerry Savelle is president of Jerry Savelle Ministries International , a ministry of many outreaches devoted to meeting the needs of believers all over the world.-Ministry:...
, Bill Winston, Joel Osteen
Joel Osteen
Joel Scott Osteen is an American author, televangelist, and the senior pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. His ministry reaches over seven million broadcast media viewers weekly in over 100 nations around the world.-Biography:...
, Charles Nieman
Charles Nieman
Charles Nieman is a pastor of the Abundant Living Faith Center in El Paso, Texas, USA, a non-denominational megachurch.His church was rated as the 31st fastest growing church and 41st in size in 2008 by Outreach Magazine....
, Jesse Duplantis
Jesse Duplantis
Jesse Duplantis is an Evangelical Charismatic Christian minister based in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., and the founder of Jesse Duplantis Ministries.-Biography :...
, Jason Mckay
Jason McKay
Jason McKay is an Irish professional boxer from Banbridge, County Down, fighting out of Belfast...
, Keith Moore and Hobart Freeman
Hobart Freeman
Hobart Freeman was a charismatic preacher and author, who ministered in northern Indiana and actively promoted faith healing.- Early life :Hobart Edward Freeman was born in Ewing, Kentucky, and grew up at St...
.
Healing
The Word of Faith teaches that complete healing (of spirit, soul, and body) is included in Christ's atonement and therefore is available here and now to all who believe. Frequently cited is , "by his stripes we are healed", and , which says that Jesus healed the sick so that "it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the Prophet, 'Himself took our infirmities, and bore our sicknesses'."Because Isaiah speaks in the present tense ("we are healed"), Word of Faith teaches that believers should accept the reality of a healing that is already theirs. Accepting this healing is done by confessing the verse or verses found in the Bible declaring they are healed (i.e. Word of Faith) and then believing them fully without doubt. It is not an act of denying the pain, sickness, or disease, but an act of receiving the gift mentioned in Isaiah 53:5. According to adherents, sickness is an attempt by Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
to rob believers of their divine right to total health.
Prosperity
Word of Faith teaching holds that God wants his people to be financially prosperous, as well as have good health, good marriages and relationships, and to live generally prosperous lives. Word of Faith teaches that God empowers his people (blesses them) to achieve the promises that are contained in the Bible. Because of this, suffering does not come from God, but rather, from Satan. As Kenneth Copeland's ministry has stated, the idea that God uses suffering for our benefit is considered to be "a deception of Satan." and "absolutely against the Word of God." Additionally, if someone is not experiencing prosperity, it is because they have given Satan authority over their lives. God is not able to do anything at all unless the person invites Him to.Some argue that Jesus and the apostles were also financially wealthy, owning homes, having monetary resources and businesses. The following arguments have been offered for this claim:
- Jesus' ability to travel without apparently working to earn a living for three years
- Jesus and the apostles references to owning homes
- Jesus had a treasurer (Judas IscariotJudas IscariotJudas Iscariot was, according to the New Testament, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. He is best known for his betrayal of Jesus to the hands of the chief priests for 30 pieces of silver.-Etymology:...
) - Jesus consorting with the upper echelons of society
- The businesses that each of the apostles apparently owned/worked in
This is contrary to the traditional view of Jesus, who is often viewed as being a poor, wandering teacher. Based on the concept that Jesus and His apostles were arguably wealthy, as well as the historical examples of His people having great wealth, and the promises for financial prosperity throughout the Old and New Testaments, Word of Faith proponents teach that modern believers also have access to the "blessing" and may also become financially wealthy. Teachers like Kenneth Copeland
Kenneth Copeland
Kenneth Copeland is an American author, public speaker, and televangelist. He is the founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministries, which preaches a “prosperity gospel”: "Prosperity gospel assures followers that the more they give including in the form of tithes to the church, the more they will receive...
assert the Prosperity Gospel is validated by the teachings of the Apostle John
John the Apostle
John the Apostle, John the Apostle, John the Apostle, (Aramaic Yoħanna, (c. 6 - c. 100) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of James, another of the Twelve Apostles...
: "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth" . Copeland posits that “as the seeds of prosperity are planted in your mind, in your will and in your emotions...they eventually produce a great financial harvest."
Faith and confession
Within the Word of Faith teaching, a central element of receiving from God involves "confession". This doctrine is often referred to as "positive confession" or "faith confession" by practitioners, and "name it and claim it" or "blab it and grab it" by detractors. The teaching should not be confused with Norman Vincent PealeNorman Vincent Peale
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale was a minister and author and a progenitor of the theory of "positive thinking".-Early life and education:...
's concept of positive thinking
Positive Thinking
Positive Thinking... or Positive Thinking may refer to one of two songs:*Positive Thinking *Positive Thinking...
. Noted Word of Faith teachers, such as Kenneth E. Hagin
Kenneth E. Hagin
Kenneth Erwin Hagin was an influential American Pentecostal preacher. He is often referred to as the "father" of the "Word of Faith" movement. Many of his followers often refer to him affectionately as "Dad Hagin", "Pappa Hagin" and more commonly "Brother Hagin".- Personal life :Kenneth E...
and Charles Capps
Charles Capps
Charles Capps is a Christian preacher and teacher in the Word of Faith movement, and has had great influence on the movement through his books and teaching. He and his wife Peggy are headquartered in England, Arkansas...
, have argued that God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
created the universe simply by speaking it into existence , and that humans have been endowed with the ability (power) to speak things into existence. Thus, making a "positive confession" (by reciting a promise of scripture, for example), and believing that which one says, generates power which enables those things to come into fruition. This teaching is interpreted from . Word of Faith preachers have likened faith
Faith
Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing, or a belief that is not based on proof. In religion, faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition,...
to a "force".
Likewise, according to Word of Faith teaching, "negative confession" can yield negative results, and hence believers should be conscious of their words. This is argued on the interpretation of , "Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and they that love them will eat the fruit thereof", also , "...saith the Lord, as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do", among other scriptures.
Critics and controversy
Word of Faith's orthodoxy has been questioned and criticized by various ministers, authors, and bloggers. The book The Kingdom of the CultsThe Kingdom of the Cults
The Kingdom of the Cults, first published in 1965, is a religious book by Baptist minister Walter Ralston Martin. By 1989 it had sold over 500,000 copies and was one of the ten best-selling American spiritual books. It has been described as being regarded by evangelicals as "the authoritative...
by Walter Martin devotes an entire appendix to the alleged heretical teachings. Martin and other objectors disagree with Word of Faith's views on healing, prosperity, and faith. The book also raises questions regarding the movement's teachings on several issues, including: the atoning work of Christ, soteriology, and theodicy. Despite the criticism by several prominent theologians, authors, and online critics, the movement continues to air television programs and publish articles and books. Furthermore, within the Christian sphere, the Word of Faith movement is the fastest growing branch of Pentecostal Christianity.
Critics
One popular critic and opponent of The Word of Faith, D.R. McConnell of Oral Roberts University, has charged in a thesis entitled Kenyon Connection, that Kenyon adopted the teachings of New ThoughtNew Thought
New Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.Although New Thought is neither...
and relabeled them. Thus, the Word of Faith movement, in McConnell’s view, constitutes a "Trojan Horse
Trojan Horse
The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the stratagem that allowed the Greeks finally to enter the city of Troy and end the conflict. In the canonical version, after a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse, and hid a select force of men inside...
". This argument was the primary conclusion reached by McConnell’s master’s thesis published as a book, A Different Gospel.
Similar criticisms were made by William DeArteaga and Robert Bowman. Formerly of the Christian Research Institute, DeArteaga concedes some new thought influence in Kenyon's teaching, but he argues that Kenyon's views helped the church rediscover some biblical truth
Truth
Truth has a variety of meanings, such as the state of being in accord with fact or reality. It can also mean having fidelity to an original or to a standard or ideal. In a common usage, it also means constancy or sincerity in action or character...
s. The primary work in defense of this theory is DeArteaga's Quenching The Spirit. Arguing similarly but in an opposite direction is Bowman, whose Word-Faith Controversy is more sympathetic to Kenyon's historical background yet more critical of his doctrine than DeArteaga.
Baptist evangelist Justin Peters, an outspoken critic of the Word of Faith movement who wrote his Master of Divinity thesis on Benny Hinn
Benny Hinn
Toufik Benedictus "Benny" Hinn הין; born December 3, 1952) is a televangelist, best known for his regular "Miracle Crusades" – revival meeting/faith healing summits that are usually held in large stadiums in major cities, which are later broadcast worldwide on his television program, This Is Your...
and has appeared frequently as an expert on Word of Faith pastors in documentaries and TV news stories, traces the movement's origins to the metaphysical cults of the late 19th and early 20th centuries ( Phineus Quimby's
Phineas Quimby
Phineas Parkhurst Quimby , was a New England philosopher, magnetizer, mesmerist, healer, and inventor, who resided in Belfast, Maine, and had an office in Portland, Maine...
New Thought
New Thought
New Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.Although New Thought is neither...
Movement, Mary Baker Eddy's
Mary Baker Eddy
Mary Baker Eddy was the founder of Christian Science , a Protestant American system of religious thought and practice religion adopted by the Church of Christ, Scientist, and others...
Christian Science
Christian Science
Christian Science is a system of thought and practice derived from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and the Bible. It is practiced by members of The First Church of Christ, Scientist as well as some others who are nonmembers. Its central texts are the Bible and the Christian Science textbook,...
) in his seminar "A Call for Discernment".
In contrast, Pastor Joe McIntyre, now head of Kenyon’s Gospel Publishing Society in Washington State, argues that the primary influences of Kenyon were A.B. Simpson and A.J. Gordon of the Faith Cure branch of the Evangelical Movement. McIntyre’s version is told in the authorized biography, E.W. Kenyon: The True Story.
One of the earliest critics of the teaching was Oral Roberts University
Oral Roberts University
Oral Roberts University , based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the United States, is an interdenominational, Charismatic Christian, comprehensive university with an enrollment of about 3,790 students from 49 U.S. states along with a significant number of international students from 70 countries...
professor Charles Farah
Charles Farah
Charles Farah, Jr. was a Professor of Theology and Historical Studies at Oral Roberts University. He taught in the school of theology at Oral Roberts University from 1967 to 1991 and from 1994 to 1995...
, who published From the Pinnacle of the Temple in 1979. In the book, Farah expressed his disillusionment with the teachings, which he argued were more about presumption than faith.
That same year, Pentecostal scholar Gordon Fee
Gordon Fee
Gordon Donald Fee is an American-Canadian Christian theologian and an ordained minister of the Assemblies of God . He currently serves as Professor Emeritus of New Testament Studies at Regent College in Vancouver, Canada.-Biography:...
wrote a series of articles denouncing both the health and the wealth gospels. In 1982, one of Farah's students, Daniel Ray McConnell, submitted a thesis to the faculty at Oral Roberts University arguing that Kenyon was the father of the teaching, that Hagin had plagiarized his doctrines from Kenyon, and that the unique doctrines of the Word of Faith were heretical. McConnell's thesis was published as the book A Different Gospel in 1988.
One of McConnell's classmates, Dale H. Simmons, published his own research in earning a doctorate at Drew University
Drew University
Drew University is a private university located in Madison, New Jersey.Originally established as the Drew Theological Seminary in 1867, the university later expanded to include an undergraduate liberal arts college in 1928 and commenced a program of graduate studies in 1955...
. Simmons argued that Kenyon was influenced by heterodox metaphysical movements and the Faith Cure movement of the nineteenth century. In 1990, The Agony of Deceit was published as a conglomeration of critiques of Word of Faith doctrines. One of the authors, Christian Research Institute founder Walter Martin, issued his personal judgment that Kenneth Copeland was a false prophet and that the movement as a whole was heretical.
In 1993, Hank Hanegraaff's
Hank Hanegraaff
Hendrik "Hank" Hanegraaff also known as the Bible Answer Man is an American author, radio talk-show host and advocate of evangelical Christianity. He was born in the Netherlands and raised in the United States since childhood. He is married with 12 children...
Christianity in Crisis charged the Word of Faith movement with heresy
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
and accused many of its churches of being "cults
Cults
Cults is a suburb on the western edge of Aberdeen, Scotland. It lies on the banks of the River Dee and marks the eastern boundary of Royal Deeside.Cults, known for its historic granite housing, sits approximately six miles from the coast of the North Sea...
." He accused the Word of Faith teachers of "demoting" God and Jesus, and "deifying" man and Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
. Hanegraaff is derided within the Word of Faith community as a present-day "Christian Witch Hunter." Hanegraaff has focused a significant portion of his anti-heresy teaching since the 1990s on addressing and refuting Word of Faith teachings.
Other critics, such as Norman Geisler
Norman Geisler
Norman L. Geisler is a Christian apologist and the co-founder of Southern Evangelical Seminary outside Charlotte, North Carolina, where he formerly taught. He holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from Jesuit Loyola University...
, Dave Hunt and Roger Oakland, have denounced Word of Faith theology as aberrant and contrary to the teachings of the Bible. Critics have also condemned the teachings on wealth, arguing that the Bible condemns the pursuit of riches.
The "health and wealth" teachings had been heavily criticized, with opponents arguing that Word of Faith teachers tend not to stress some scriptures warning against emphasis on material prosperity and telling of the importance of helping the poor.
John Piper points out that Christ warned the apostles that they would suffer great persecution for the sake of his name (except John, all eleven, after Judas Iscariot, suffered martyrs' deaths). In a January 2006 sermon entitled "How our Suffering Advances the Gospel," Piper stated bluntly that "the prosperity gospel will not make anybody praise Jesus; it will make people praise prosperity."
'Little gods' controversy
Many Word of Faith teachers have sought to emphasize the full meaning of the believer's status as a child of God (through Christ) by using phrases such as "little gods" to describe them, a practice that has garnered some criticism from some other segments of the Christian community. Kenneth Hagin wrote that God "made us in the same class of being that he is himself," and that the believer is "called Christ" because "that's who we are, we're Christ!" According to Hagin, by being "born again", the believer becomes "as much an incarnation as Jesus of Nazareth". Hagin like Kenyon reasons that that humans are made in God’s image. Since God is spirit, then humans mustessentially be spirit as well and ‘in God’s class’, and thereby ‘gods’. Kenneth Copeland says Adam was "not a little like God ... not almost like God ...", and has told believers that "You don't have a God in you. You are one." Based primarily on the , which says "I have said, Ye are gods
Elohim
Elohim is a grammatically singular or plural noun for "god" or "gods" in both modern and ancient Hebrew language. When used with singular verbs and adjectives elohim is usually singular, "god" or especially, the God. When used with plural verbs and adjectives elohim is usually plural, "gods" or...
and all of you, children of the Most High"; this was also corroborated by Jesus making reference to this scripture in . A common theme in Word of Faith preaching is that God created man as "an exact duplication of God's kind." In all of this, there is no argument of man's ability to exist and operate independently of God, but rather, the emphasis is on what the believer can become in God.
Suffer the Children, a documentary highlighting some of the teachings of the Word of Faith movement, has a video clip of Creflo Dollar teaching the "little gods" doctrine to his congregation based on the notion that "everything reproduces after its own kind":
Dollar: "If horses get together, they produce what?"
Congregation: "Horses!"
Dollar: "If dogs get together, they produce what?"
Congregation: "Dogs!"
Dollar: "If cats get together, they produce what?"
Congregation: "Cats!"
Dollar: "So if the Godhead says 'Let us make man in our image', and everything produces after its own kind, then they produce what?"
Congregation: "Gods!"
Dollar: "Gods. Little "g" gods. You're not human. Only human part of you is this flesh you're wearing."
The promulgation of this teaching is one of the most contentious doctrines to its critics, who consider it heresy
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
. Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
scholar Stephen E. Robinson
Stephen E. Robinson
Stephen Edward Robinson is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon scholar and apologist.- Biography :...
, whose religion teaches that man can become gods after eons of exaltation, has declared the "little gods" teaching heretical as well. Conversely, Christianity regards this Mormon teaching as heretical also, and entirely unsupported by the Bible. Many Evangelical critics have asserted that the teaching is, in fact, cultic; Hank Hanegraaff, for example, contends the 'little gods' doctrine is on a par with the teaching of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , born Mahesh Prasad Varma , developed the Transcendental Meditation technique and was the leader and guru of the TM movement, characterised as a new religious movement and also as non-religious...
and Jim Jones
Jim Jones
James Warren "Jim" Jones was the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple, which is best known for the November 18, 1978 mass suicide of 909 Temple members in Jonestown, Guyana along with the killings of five other people at a nearby airstrip.Jones was born in Indiana and started the Temple in...
. Justin Peters, whose first encounter with Word of Faith doctrine came at the age of 16 when a faith healer "slayed [him] in the spirit" in an attempt to cure his cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
, states in A Call for Discernment that the reason the Word of Faith movement holds so tenaciously to "health and wealth" tenets is because of the "little gods" teaching: "A god should never be sick, and a god should never be poor." In response, Word of Faith defenders have claimed the teaching is simply underscoring the biblical view of the believer's "true identity in Christ".
Critics, such as Christian apologist and CARM founder Matt Slick and Bible critique author W. Gary Phillips, believe referencing scriptures and , where it is said that men are gods, is using these Scriptures out of context. The biblical application of these verses is addressed to the Judges of Israel where they were called gods, not because they were divine, but because they represented the true and only God when they judged the people. The Hebrew and Greek words used in both Scriptures for "gods" can also be applied to magistrates and used to describe someone as "mighty". One of the problems with this alternative interpretation, however, is that when Jesus quotes this passage in the new Testament, he seems to suggest the idea of deity instead: "If God called those to whom He gave His word Gods — and you cannot deny the scriptures — how can you say I blaspheme because I say I am a son of God?"
Jesus died spiritually
Often referred to as JDS, there is a teaching that to atone for sins, Jesus had to die both physically and spiritually. As an outcome of his ‘dying spiritually’, the Word of Faith movement argues Jesus thus needed to be born again, as any other sinner, and that although Jesus Himself was never a sinner, Jesus was forsaken by God just as if He had committed every sin in human history.E.W. Kenyon, a founder of the doctrine that later became known as Word of Faith, was the first to explicitly articulate the doctrine in a number of his works, including What Happened From The Cross To the Throne and Identification: A Romance In Redemption. This doctrine was later supposedly taken up by Hagin, Copeland and many of their followers. The doctrine asserts that Jesus’ bodily sacrifice was but the beginning of atonement, which continued with Jesus’ suffering in Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. Copeland claimed that Jesus took on humanity’s "satanic nature" and was "born again" in Hell. Hagin's teaching was featured in his book The Name of Jesus (1978 edition), yet in a 1991 letter to the Christian Research Institute, Hagins son Kenneth Hagin Jr denied this interpretation and claimed Hagin Sr had never taught the notion of a born again Jesus or the adoption of Satan's nature. D.R. McConnell has labeled the teaching heresy, believing it compromises the teaching that Jesus' blood atoned for sin.
See also
- Full GospelFull GospelThe term Full Gospel is often used as a synonym for Pentecostalism, a Protestant movement originating in the 19th century. Early Pentecostals saw their teachings on baptism with the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, and divine healing as a return to the doctrines and power of the Apostolic Age...
- Kenneth Hagin
- Kenneth CopelandKenneth CopelandKenneth Copeland is an American author, public speaker, and televangelist. He is the founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministries, which preaches a “prosperity gospel”: "Prosperity gospel assures followers that the more they give including in the form of tithes to the church, the more they will receive...
- Oral RobertsOral RobertsGranville "Oral" Roberts was an American Pentecostal televangelist and a Christian charismatic. He founded the Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association and Oral Roberts University....
- Health and Wealth Gospel
- Benny HinnBenny HinnToufik Benedictus "Benny" Hinn הין; born December 3, 1952) is a televangelist, best known for his regular "Miracle Crusades" – revival meeting/faith healing summits that are usually held in large stadiums in major cities, which are later broadcast worldwide on his television program, This Is Your...
- Joyce MeyerJoyce MeyerJoyce Meyer is a Charismatic Christian author and speaker. Meyer and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her ministry is headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri.-Early life:Meyer was born Pauline Joyce Hutchison in south St. Louis in...
- Trinity Broadcasting NetworkTrinity Broadcasting NetworkThe Trinity Broadcasting Network is a major American Christian television network. TBN is based in Costa Mesa, California, with auxiliary studio facilities in Irving, Texas; Hendersonville, Tennessee; Gadsden, Alabama; Decatur, Georgia; Miami, Florida; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Orlando, Florida; and New...
- E.W. Kenyon
- Prosperity theologyProsperity theologyProsperity theology or gospel is a Christian religious belief whose proponents claim the Bible teaches that financial blessing is the will of God for Christians. Most teachers of prosperity theology maintain that a combination of faith, positive speech, and donations to Christian ministries will...
- The Prayer of JabezThe Prayer of JabezThe Prayer of Jabez: Breaking Through to the Blessed Life is an inspirational Bruce Wilkinson published in 2000 by Multnomah Books as the first book in the "BreakThrough" book series...
- Chris OyakhilomeChris OyakhilomeChristian Oyakhilome is a Nigerian televangelist, faith healer and founding president of Believers' LoveWorld Incorporated also known as "Christ Embassy", a Pentecostal Christian ministry headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. The pastor's television programs feature his faith healing and been targeted...
- New ThoughtNew ThoughtNew Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.Although New Thought is neither...
- Abundant lifeAbundant lifeAbundant life is a term used to refer to Christian teachings on fullness of life. It is not an organized movement or a unique doctrine, but a name applied to the teachings and expectations of the groups and people who follow the teachings...
Support
- James-Dave.com, The Word of Faith: A Biblical Overview by James H. Boyd
- Faith and the Pharisees: Sincere Critics Have Been Sincerely Wrong by Ted Rouse (ISBN 1-890900-03-6)
- KCM.org, The Laws of Prosperity by Kenneth CopelandKenneth CopelandKenneth Copeland is an American author, public speaker, and televangelist. He is the founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministries, which preaches a “prosperity gospel”: "Prosperity gospel assures followers that the more they give including in the form of tithes to the church, the more they will receive...
(ISBN 0-88114-952-7) (now online as a PDF) - Quenching the Spirit: Discovering the Real Spirit Behind the Charismatic Controversy by William DeArteaga (ISBN 0-88419-432-9)
- The Tongue: A Creative Force by Charles CappsCharles CappsCharles Capps is a Christian preacher and teacher in the Word of Faith movement, and has had great influence on the movement through his books and teaching. He and his wife Peggy are headquartered in England, Arkansas...
(ISBN 0-89274-061-2) - What You Say Is What You Get by Don Gossett (ISBN 0-88368-066-1)
- ChristianBiblicalProsperity.com, Living a Life Filled with God's Prosperity
- TBM.org, Tom Brown gives a defense of the Word of Faith
- Victoryword.100megspop2com, Defending the Modern Faith Movement
- Hopefaithprayer.com, Explaining Faith Issues Blog
- Biblical-prosperity.blogspot.com , Articles supporting Word of Faith
- Articles on Word of Faith, Articles supporting Word of Faith. Shining light on JDS "Jesus Died Spiritually", Little gods, Healing, Prosperity
- God in a Box: The Sovereignty of God in the Word of Faith Theology by Chad Marinelli, D.B.S (ISBN 1-933582-32-4)
- http://justinpeters.org/, Expert on the Word of Faith
- http://www.worldviewweekend.com/worldview-times/article.php?articleid=7366] MP3 of a show discussing Word of Faith with Justin Peters an Expert on The Word of Faith.
Criticism
- Charismatic Chaos by John MacArthurJohn F. MacArthurJohn Fullerton MacArthur, Jr. is a United States evangelical writer and minister noted for his internationally known and broadcast radio program titled Grace to You...
(ISBN 0-310-57572-9) - Christianity in Crisis by Hank HanegraaffHank HanegraaffHendrik "Hank" Hanegraaff also known as the Bible Answer Man is an American author, radio talk-show host and advocate of evangelical Christianity. He was born in the Netherlands and raised in the United States since childhood. He is married with 12 children...
(ISBN 0-89081-976-9) - A Different Gospel by Dan R. McConnell (ISBN 1-56563-132-3)
- New Wine or Old Deception by Roger Oakland (ISBN 0-936728-62-0)
- Seduction of Christianity by Dave Hunt (ISBN 0-89081-441-4)
- Righteous Riches. The Word of Faith Movement in contemporary African American Religion by Milmon F. Harrison (ISBN 0-19-515388-X)
- The Word-Faith Controversy by Robert M. Bowman, Jr.Robert M. Bowman, Jr.Robert M. Bowman Jr. , Director of Research at the Institute for Religious Research, is an American Evangelical Christian theologian specializing in the study of apologetics.-Biography:...
(ISBN 0-8010-6344-2) - The Disease of the Health and Wealth Gospels by Gordon FeeGordon FeeGordon Donald Fee is an American-Canadian Christian theologian and an ordained minister of the Assemblies of God . He currently serves as Professor Emeritus of New Testament Studies at Regent College in Vancouver, Canada.-Biography:...
(ISBN 0-935789-00-6) - Unfeigned Faith by Judson CornwallJudson CornwallJudson Cornwall was a prolific Charismatic Christian preacher, pastor, and author of over 50 books on varied subjects such as worship, praise, spiritual warfare, and death....
(ISBN 0-8007-5057-8) - The Love of Power or the Power of Love by Tom Smail, Andrew Walker, and Nigel Wright. (ISBN 1-55661-454-3)
- The Atonement of Christ and the "Faith" Message, by Brian Onken
- The Atonement and Word Faith Theology by the Watchman Fellowship, an independent Christian research and apologetics ministry.
- Freedom From the Faith Movement, The Personal Testimony of Jeff Beard
- Modern Day Heroes of Faith, an analysis of Word of Faith as it is presented on Trinity Broadcasting Network.