The Shallow, Strange, and Stupid Prosperity Gospel
Job 22
January 17, 2016
Well, I’m sure you can tell by the title
What we’re going to be talking about tonight.
The simple fact that the prosperity gospel
(as certainly by now you’ve already realized)
Is shallow, strange, and just down right stupid.
Tonight we begin round 3 of the dialogue between Job and his friends.
They rebuke, he answers, and now it is the third time through the lineup.
What started out as a plan to comfort Job
And help him see his problem and how to fix it has taken a drastic turn.
It is no longer about Job, it is now about winning the debate.
Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar are defending their theology.
Their entire belief system has been called into question by Job.
And they are bent on using Job’s predicament
To prove their theology is accurate.
The more they talk the more prosperity gospel they spew,
And it allows us to continue to get a good look
At this dangerous belief system.
And tonight, as you noticed from the title,
I’m going to once again show you how shallow, how strange,
And how stupid this theology is.
That being the case, I want to remind you again \
Of one of the foundational facts about the book of Job.
When God speaks at the end of this thing and reveals the final verdict,
You have to be familiar with what He says.
Job 42:7 “It came about after the LORD had spoken these words to Job, that the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has.”
Again I remind you that at the end of this book
God is going to reveal that the corporate testimonies
Of Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar are not right.
God Himself reveals that.
This is certainly helpful to us as we seek to discern all that we are hearing
Well tonight let’s examine Eliphaz’s third rebuke of Job
And as we do I want to show you
Some of the realities that comprise the prosperity gospel.
#1 SHALLOW DOCTRINE
Job 22:1-11
One of the things we are confronted with yet again from Job’s friends
Is precisely how shallow their prosperity gospel actually is.
(1-3) “Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded, “Can a vigorous man be of use to God, Or a wise man be useful to himself? “Is there any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous, Or profit if you make your ways perfect?”
Eliphaz asks a series of questions
And the answer he is searching for is obviously “no”
“Can a vigorous man be of use to God?” NO
“Is there any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous?” NO
“or profit if you make your ways perfect?” NO
His point is this.
• God doesn’t benefit from your righteousness.
• Therefore there is no real upside for God to tip the scales one way or the other.
• God gets no benefit if He calls the righteous wicked or if He calls the wicked righteous.
According to Eliphaz this only means that
God can be and always is perfectly just.
A politician may not want to vote against a specific piece of legislation because it might affect the money he receives from the lobbyist. Thus, his potential gain, causes him to act unjustly.
According to Eliphaz God doesn’t do that.
And certainly we have no argument there.
But it is where Eliphaz goes with this that we find peculiar.
(4) “Is it because of your reverence that He reproves you, that He enters into judgment against you?”
I hope you recognize the jump Eliphaz just made.
• God is just and has no temptation to judge any other way.
• Therefore, if God is judging you, there can only be one reason.
• You must be wicked, why else would God do this?
THIS IS WHY I TELL YOU THAT THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL IS SHALLOW.
ELIPHAZ CAN ONLY SEE ONE PURPOSE FOR SUFFERING
AND THAT IS PUNISHMENT
That is an extremely shallow view of suffering.
• We learn from Scripture that suffering is a tremendous tool in the hands of God.
• We learn from Scripture that God uses it often and on both the wicked and the righteous.
• And we learn that Suffering has a number of uses and purposes at the hands of God.
Certainly one of those purposes is PUNISHMENT.
One would only need to read the prophets of the Old Testament
To see how God repeatedly told the children of Israel
That He was going to punish them for their sin
And that punishment would entail great suffering.
We aren’t denying the use of suffering in that capacity.
But that certainly isn’t the only use.
The Bible tells us that suffering is used to PROVE OUR FAITH
1 Peter 1:6-7 “In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”
James 1:12 “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
It is obvious that suffering is one of the ways
In which God tests the sincerity of our faith.
In addition we know that suffering is a great PURIFIER.
The writer of Hebrews said:
Hebrews 12:11 “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”
Peter said:
1 Peter 4:1-2 “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.”
There are few things that can cause you to focus on what really matters
Like a little suffering.
It has a way of purifying us and preparing us
For the ministries God has in store for us.
We know that suffering helps EQUIP US FOR MINISTRY
2 Corinthians 1:3-5 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.”
It is a common reality that suffering raises your level of compassion.
It helps you sympathize and comfort those who suffer.
And then sometimes (as with Job, or Joseph) suffering is for a purpose that may be beyond our human understanding.
God is just simply accomplishing His purposes
And suffering is the means by which He does that.
The point to all this being is that for anyone to take the view that
Your suffering must be a result of your sin
Is taking a really shallow view.
But that is the view of Eliphaz and the prosperity gospel.
It sees no reason for suffering beyond the punishment of the wicked.
And Eliphaz believes this so strongly that
He actually begins to try and guess Job’s iniquity.
(5-11) “Is not your wickedness great, And your iniquities without end? “For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause, And stripped men naked. “To the weary you have given no water to drink, And from the hungry you have withheld bread. “But the earth belongs to the mighty man, And the honorable man dwells in it. “You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the orphans has been crushed. “Therefore snares surround you, And sudden dread terrifies you, Or darkness, so that you cannot see, And an abundance of water covers you.”
Those are some pretty harsh accusations against Job.
Your lack of compassion and benevolence
Has brought upon you the wrath of God.
NOW HERE IS WHERE THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL GETS TRICKY.
IT SOUNDS SO CLOSE TO TRUTH
TURN TO: PSALMS 109:1-20
Can you hear David saying basically the same thing as Eliphaz?
Well, why is David right and Eliphaz wrong?
Because David is talking about the actual wicked who really did oppress the poor and who suffered as punishment for their sin.
Eliphaz is talking about a man who is suffering and therefore merely assumes he is wicked because he can’t see any other reason for suffering.
It is a slight difference, but it makes all the difference.
The prosperity gospel is extremely shallow.
Its Shallow Doctrine
#2 STRANGE DELIGHT
Job 22:12-20
This is a second often seen reality of the prosperity gospel.
Eliphaz begins by thinking he has Job’s mindset all figured out.
We already saw what he thinks Job did,
Now Eliphaz is going to reveal why he thinks Job was ok with doing it.
(12-14) “Is not God in the height of heaven? Look also at the distant stars, how high they are! “You say, ‘ What does God know? Can He judge through the thick darkness? ‘Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see; And He walks on the vault of heaven.’”
Eliphaz is explaining why Job thinks it’s ok to sin.
It’s because he thinks God is so far away, vaulted behind the clouds
And unable to really see everything that is going on.
He thinks that Job commits all this sin because God will not see him.
I don’t know what Job ever said that would cause him to think this,
But he does none the less.
And that leads Eliphaz to ask Job a question.
(15-16) “Will you keep to the ancient path Which wicked men have trod, Who were snatched away before their time, Whose foundations were washed away by a river?”
He is sure that Job is wicked and here asks, how long are you going to keep being wicked?
You know that wicked men don’t last, how long are you going to continue walking down their path?
Eliphaz goes on regarding the wicked:
(17-18) “They said to God, ‘Depart from us!’ And ‘What can the Almighty do to them?’ “Yet He filled their houses with good things; But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.”
Here he says these wicked are recipients of God’s goodness,
For He has “filled their houses with good things”
And yet they still tell God, ‘Depart from us!’”
And that is why Eliphaz smugly says: “the counsel of the wicked is far from me.”
Can’t you hear him?
• I’d never walk the path of the wicked, but you obviously are Job!
• They are destroyed for their ways and you are on their path.
Now, can I give you again a passage Eliphaz might have preached?
TURN TO: PSALMS 1
That sounds exactly like what Eliphaz is saying doesn’t?
I never walk in the counsel of the wicked, and that is why I am blessed, you on the other hand have taken their path and you are on the short road to destruction.
Now, if Eliphaz read Psalms 1 to you
The question would be how could you argue with him?
Well again, because he is so shallow in his understanding.
Just because the wicked suffer
Does not mean that everyone who suffers is wicked.
You cannot take passages of the Bible and apply them however you like.
Yet this is commonly done.
But that isn’t even the strange part yet.
I told you that the prosperity gospel also has STRANGE DELIGHT
Look at verses 19-20 “The righteous see and are glad, And the innocent mock them, Saying, ‘Truly our adversaries are cut off, And their abundance the fire has consumed.’”
Now listen to what Eliphaz is saying.
• Job, I know you are sinful
• I know you have oppressed the poor
• I know that is why you are suffering
• I know you did it because you don’t think God sees
• That is a dangerous path
• A path I would never walk
• And quite frankly when the wicked like you reach the end of that path and are destroyed, I am “glad”.
He actually says he will rejoice at the destruction of the wicked,
On the day when all that they have is consumed by the fire.
Strange isn’t it?
Yet, that is a common reality of the prosperity gospel.
• Their entire system is set up on people getting what they deserve.
• They have no capacity for the suffering of the innocent,
• And so when they see people suffering, they are just getting what they deserve.
It is a strange delight that Eliphaz has.
It most certainly isn’t the heart of God.
When James and John wanted to call down fire on the Samaritans, Jesus said:
Luke 9:54-56 “When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But He turned and rebuked them, [and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.”
When John was shown the judgment of the wicked, God didn’t tell him to rejoice:
Revelation 10:10-11 “I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it, and in my mouth it was sweet as honey; and when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. And they said to me, “You must prophesy again concerning many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.”
When Jonah saw that God didn’t judge the Ninevites he was unhappy, this is how God responded:
Jonah 4:10-11 “Then the LORD said, “You had compassion on the plant for which you did not work and which you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. “Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?”
Beyond that we are familiar with passages like:
Ezekiel 33:11 “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”
You get the idea.
Any belief that allows someone to see another person’s suffering
And not only dismiss it, but even glory in it, is a perverted belief.
Such is the prosperity gospel.
We see shallow doctrine
We see strange delight
#3 STUPID DECLARATIONS
Job 22:21-30
Here then comes Eliphaz’s advice to Job.
(21-26) “Yield now and be at peace with Him; Thereby good will come to you. “Please receive instruction from His mouth And establish His words in your heart. “If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored; If you remove unrighteousness far from your tent, And place your gold in the dust, And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks, Then the Almighty will be your gold And choice silver to you. “For then you will delight in the Almighty And lift up your face to God.”
Now, we certainly know the initial problem is the one it has always been.
They are calling for repentance as the solution to Job’s problem.
But Job was righteous and therefore repentance was not the answer.
But, just for argument sake, if Job had sinned,
This at least would be initially good advice.
I mean yielding to God and listening to God and returning to God and removing unrighteousness and forsaking your idols and finding your fulfillment in God…
That’s a really good idea.
Delighting in the Almighty is the whole idea.
Many of you have read and loved what Asaph said
At the end of the infamous 73rd Psalm.
Psalms 73:25-28 “Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, That I may tell of all Your works.”
I mean Eliphaz could have even preached that passage to Job.
That isn’t the stupid part.
It comes next:
(27-30) “You will pray to Him, and He will hear you; And you will pay your vows. “You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And light will shine on your ways. “When you are cast down, you will speak with confidence, And the humble person He will save. “He will deliver one who is not innocent, And he will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”
Talk about a really bizarre turn of events.
Eliphaz just told Job that he should leave behind
All his earthly treasures and find contentment in God.
In the very next breath Eliphaz says:
And then when you pray God will hear you and whatever you decree,
It will be done for you.
God’s light will shine on your ways and you will speak confidently.
I hope this all sounds familiar to you.
It is what is called today: “The Word of Faith” movement.
I can’t go all the way with you here,
But it is based on a couple of faulty notions.
• Namely that as believers we are now divine and thus have all divine authority.
• And now have the ability (just like God) to speak what we want and see it come
to fruition.
The prosperity gospel preachers love to push this.
• Just speak to your cancer and tell it to be gone.
• Speak to your check book and tell it to fill up.
• Speak to your situation and tell it to change.
And of course (as we have said) they love to quote Bible verses like “whoever says to this mountain…”
They talk about all the power that is in your tongue.
After all God created the world with a spoken word
And now that we are divine like Him we can do the same.
BUT HERE IS WHAT IS SO STUPID ABOUT THAT.
• First, that they would put themselves on the same level as God. That’s not just stupid, that’s blasphemous.
• Secondly, that goes against the very notion of repentance and contentment which are basics of the gospel.
I mean Eliphaz just told Job to let go of everything so that God would give him the power to speak and have anything he wants.
The only thing missing is for Eliphaz to tell Job
To send in all that gold as see faith money.
That is a stupid declaration.
And yet it is the prosperity gospel.
It flies in direct contrast to the passage we studied last Sunday night.
1 Timothy 6:3-10 “If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
And there again you get the idea.
It’s just the same old junk.
They take a little truth, misapply it, and then boldly proclaim it.
And yet at the end of the day
The theology they construct is shallow, strange, and stupid.
All they could do was take a righteous man who was suffering
• CONDEMN him for sin he didn’t commit,
• LAUGH at him for a judgment he wouldn’t receive,
• And INSTRUCT him to repent so that he could have prosperity God never promised.
Such is the prosperity gospel.
Instead be compassionate to those who suffer.
Instead prophesy again to those who are perishing.
Instead preach contentment to those who love this world.
That was the gospel message of Jesus.
