The Heresy Hunter

Joel Osteen on Theology

In in interview in the Kansas City Star this weekend Joel Osteen was asked this question:

You have said you are not a theologian and your sermons are not deep in theology. So how do people who come to your church get deeper into the Word of God?

I believe God has a plan for each one of us. I wasn’t trained in seminary; I was trained by my father. (Osteen attended one year at Oral Roberts University before leaving to work with his father.) I put a lot of effort into my sermons. Wednesdays through Saturdays I’m getting ready for Sunday.

At the church, Wednesday nights we have Bible study lessons. Plus we have a whole list of classes and seminars. We have a New Beginnings class for people who make decisions for Christ. God didn’t make all of us alike. What I’m called to do is teach people how to live their everyday lives. When we can make the Bible practical; we can help people live abundant lives.

Lakewood Church has a weekly attendance of 45,000 people. That's in addition to the millions who watch him every week on TV, many of them making his broadcast the only "church" they attend. Now, if he has 45,000 attending Bible classes, then maybe some of them are getting deeper into God's Word - although I would wonder what they are actually teaching them. And what about the viewers who don't go to church at all? For them Osteen's gospel-lite is no Gospel at all.

Labels: Joel Osteen

posted by Bob Hunter @ Monday, February 18, 2008