I watched Oprah's interview of Joel Osteen last night. I'm not a big fan of Joel Osteen, and I'm certainly not crazy about Oprah. But there didn't happen to be another presidential debate on at the time, so I tuned in to watch the interview. It was.... interesting.
Joel's dad, John Osteen, was a powerhouse preacher. I still hear his sermons on the radio sometimes. That man preached the truth, and he didn't sugarcoat it, either! Joel, on the other hand, will hardly touch the tough issues.
To me, Joel is almost more of a motivational speaker than a preacher. His messages encourage and build up his audience, which is part of a pastor's responsibility, but many of Joel's sermons leave out an important part of the Gospel message: the need for repentance.
I think it's very strange that Joel's Lakewood Church in Houston doesn't have any pictures of Jesus or even a cross in the church. Church is supposed to be all about Jesus, so why are there no pictures of Him?
Oprah asked the usual questions, and Joel did his best to skirt the tough issues. Oprah asks, "Is there more than one path to God?" He says Jesus is the only way to God, but there may be more than one path to Jesus. Why not speak more boldly so that there's no question about it?
In John 14:6, Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." That's pretty plain, isn't it?
Then, Oprah hits him with the "BIG" question: "Is homosexuality a sin?" He sounded reluctant to come out and say it directly, but Joel said he does see it as a sin, based on the Scriptures. But then he talked like sin is really no big deal.
"Sometimes we look at gay being a bigger sin than being proud or not telling the truth," he said. "I don't think God categorizes sins.... To think that we're all going to be without one sin? I hope that's true, but I don't think any of us would make it to heaven."
That is true. Sin is sin, whether it's a lie or murder. But ALL sin is a very big deal, and people need to know that their sins WILL keep them out of heaven.
Preachers like Joel Osteen offer people a false security when they downplay sin. God hates sin, and anyone who continues to sin deliberately won't make it into heaven. In 1 John 3:6, it says, "No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him."
That doesn't mean we're all going to be perfect when we come to Christ. We're going to fall sometimes. But if we do sin, God forgives us if we will confess it and be quick to repent of it. 1 John 1:9: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
We will struggle with temptations and sin as long as we're in this life, but we can live a life without sin through the power of the Holy Spirit.
I'm not trying to condemn anyone. I just don't want my friends and others to be deceived into thinking sin isn't a big deal. I want them to know the full message of the Gospel: "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23)
Jesus preached a bold and direct message when He came to earth: Repent for the kingdom of God is near. But He did it out of love and compassion. He told the woman caught in adultery "....Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more."
I want to be like Jesus in sharing the Gospel. I want to be bold to proclaim the truth but do it out of love and concern for the lost. If you haven't made Jesus your lord and savior, I would just repeat those words that Jesus spoke.... "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more."
No comments:
Post a Comment