Joel Osteen Biffs It On Mormonism

Here is Joel Osteen claiming that Mormons are Christians. Many from the Seeker-sensitive Purpose Drive Church for the Carnal Nature of Mankind like CEO Steven Furtick actually defend this heretic all because Osteen is popular and has a very large church. It seems that large numbers must pardon heresy and false teachings as long as the "church" is growing: see Furtick's blog about numbers.

You can watch the video here: Joel Osteen Biffs It On Mormonism

People following Furtick need to beware the poison water this false teacher is selling.

2 Peter 2:1-3 (New International Version)

2 Peter 2

False Teachers and Their Destruction

¹But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. ²Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. ³In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

Please Stop Pickin’ on Joel by CEO Steven Furtick

It seems CEO Steven Furtick has completely thrown spiritual discernment out along with Bible study groups(see this for Furtick's rant against those who crave God's Word). Now this CEO is defending Joel Osteen with his ever so loving methods of ranting against those of us who actually take the Word of God serious when it says to reprove and rebuke in 2 Timothy 4:1-3.

As in, Osteen.
As in, the pastor of the largest church in America.
As in, the guy that all seminary students seem to love to hate.

Yep, I hear it all the time. Guys take one systematic theology class, a semester of Greek, and all of a sudden they’re self appointed theological traffic cops.(source)

It seems that large numbers must mean something with the church in Furtick's world. Notice the attack upon those who truly study the Word of God in order to seek the truth.

But to all of you mean spirited name callers who have made a career of condemning celebrity preachers:
Who the heck do you think you are to criticize a man who is impacting a city like Pastor Joel is impacting Houston?
Or like Rick Warren is impacting the Saddleback Valley?
(Insert name of controversial preacher and city here… )

Osteen preaches to 40,000 people weekly…
You couldn’t get 40,000 people to come hear you preach if you gave away free Escalades at the door. (source)

Celebrity preachers? Name callers? Let's see what else Furtick has in store for us!

“Yeah, but Joel Osteen’s preaching isn’t Christ centered enough. And he didn’t make a bold stand for the exclusivity of the Gospel on Good Morning America that time. And, for crying out loud, he reads a stupid email forward at the beginning of every message before he does that �This is my Bible… ‘ thing… “(source)

It's seems that Furtick must have missed it when Osteen blessed the Mormon Church. I guess since the Mormon's have huge numbers then God must be blessing the Mormon Church!

If you’re concerned about a lack of cross centered preaching, then preach the cross yourself instead of wasting valuable time opining about how someone else should do it better.
If you think Osteen’s messages are too fluffy and lacking in Biblical content, then devote yourself to teaching God’s Word with passion and depth, and get after it. But don’t hate on a man you’ve never met and analyze the entire content of his ministry based on a 27 minute weekly broadcast. That’s illogical, narrow, and unfair, and you know it.
Don’t hurl insults at someone with a big church simply because you can’t make your church grow, and although you’d never admit it, you’re jealous.
That’s right… most of the time the motive isn’t defense of the Gospel… it’s jealousy and presumption.(source)

In other words, CEO Furtick is telling us not to let those pesky doctrines get into the way when it comes to the church. We should accept all who claim to be Christian no matter what twisted doctrines they teach as long as they are:

1. a celebrity preacher
2. have a large church

There you have it! CEO Steven Furtick's carnal knowledge at it's best.

You know, I think it’s absolutely essential that Christians think critically about what is being taught in Christian pulpits. We must preserve sound doctrine. We must guard against erroneous theologies.

But we must also guard against the kind of spiritual smugness that makes the world look at us and go:
“I thought they were wearing the same jersey… ” (source)

And the pot called the kettle black...

Steven Furtick: The man of change!

Steven Furtick CEO of Elevation Church rides more than the ever shifting sands of the seeker-sensitive purpose driven doctrine! In the above pictures(click for a better view) taken from the years 2006 to 2009, you will see how this seeker sensitive "hip" CEO changes with the times.

2 Timothy 3:1-8 (New American Standard Bible)

2 Timothy 3

"Difficult Times Will Come"

¹But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.

²For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

³unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,

⁴treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

⁵holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.

⁶For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses,

⁷always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

⁸Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith.

STEVEN FURTICK CALLS JOEL OSTEEN GREAT MAN OF GOD

CEO Steven Furtick decrees Joel Osteen as a great man of God.

In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. (2 Peter 2:3)

Lust For Numbers Makes Strange Spiritual Bedfellows

A while back Apprising Ministries brought out that sadly today there are so many in the apostatizing evangelical community who are burying their heads within the spiritual sand of whatever offshoot—rooted in the semi-pelagian Church Growth Movement—it is that highjacked their particular brand of Christian sandbox.

So while apostasy sweeps through the landscape of the visible church they remain content to think everything is wonderfully progressing toward some utopian unity as they each follow their own personal Pied Pipers, whether it be PDL Pope Rick Warren or Rob Bell, the Elvis of Emergence Christianity, or Joel Osteen for his brand of Word Faith-lite.

The sad fact is that mainstream evangelicalism in America today is nauseatingly lukewarm. And far too many evangelical leaders have been unwilling to take serious theological stands that would require the Lord to back up His Word or else they would personally be destroyed. Yet to do so is not presumption, rather it is actually true Biblical faith that pleases God.(source)

Read more here: STEVEN FURTICK CALLS JOEL OSTEEN GREAT MAN OF GOD

Another language catastrophe

James Duncan from Pajama Pages asks the question,"Why can’t these Turnstile leaders use words from God’s Word when they describe the church?" referring to their poor choice of words to describe the body of Christ. He brings up some good points in his blog Another language catastrophe.

The typical defenders of these seeker-sensitive purpose driven CEO's always point to the numbers rather than the substance when questioned.

"Furtick tweets that 649 people chose to publicly declare Christ as their Savior"(source)

and

"Just wait what he posts or critiques when he hears about Newsprings 906 baptisms and their 276 salvations that happened today"(source)

My question is do these people even understand what salvation means? Are they even taught repentance? It's easy to repeat a prayer or buy into a mob mentality just to fit into these "hip" and "cool" seeker sensitive churches.

From sitting under Perry Noble, I can testify that repentance from sin is not explained at NewSpring Church. Steven Furtick is just as confused as Noble when it comes to repentance and salvation.

Just saying the name "Jesus" is meaningless without the drawing of the Holy Spirit. Every defender of Furtick, Noble, and Cooper always refers back to these huge numbers are proof God is working in this Churches for the Carnal Nature of Mankind. I deal with this issue in Confessing Christ, false professions, and the numbers game.

Furtick and Noble defenders really need to ponder this passage and ask these questions," How did Jesus not know these people when they did such wonderful works in His name? Clearly it seemed that Jesus was blessing them and working within them? How did Jesus not know them?"

Matthew 7:21-23 (New American Standard Bible)

²¹"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.

²²"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'

²³"And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO

PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'