WHAT KIND OF PREACHER AM I?

Prosperity Preaching: Deceitful and Deadly
by John Piper

When I read about prosperity-preaching churches, my response is: "If I were not on the inside of Christianity, I wouldn't want in." In other words, if this is the message of Jesus, no thank you.

Luring people to Christ to get rich is both deceitful and deadly. It's deceitful because when Jesus himself called us, he said things like: "Any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:33). And it's deadly because the desire to be rich plunges "people into ruin and destruction" (1 Timothy 6:9). So here is my plea to preachers of the gospel.

1. Don't develop a philosophy of ministry that makes it harder for people to get into heaven.

Jesus said, "How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" His disciples were astonished, as many in the "prosperity" movement should be. So Jesus went on to raise their astonishment even higher by saying, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." They respond in disbelief: "Then who can be saved?" Jesus says, "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God" (Mark 10:23-27).

My question for prosperity preachers is: Why would you want to develop a ministry focus that makes it harder for people to enter heaven?

2. Do not develop a philosophy of ministry that kindles suicidal desires in people.

Paul said, "There is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content." But then he warned against the desire to be rich. And by implication, he warned against preachers who stir up the desire to be rich instead of helping people get rid of it. He warned, "Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs" (1 Timothy 6:6-10).

So my question for prosperity preachers is: Why would you want to develop a ministry that encourages people to pierce themselves with many pangs and plunge themselves into ruin and destruction?

3. Do not develop a philosophy of ministry that encourages vulnerability to moth and rust.

Jesus warns against the effort to lay up treasures on earth. That is, he tells us to be givers, not keepers. "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal" (Matthew 6:19).

Yes, we all keep something. But given the built-in tendency toward greed in all of us, why would we take the focus off Jesus and turn it upside down?

4. Don't develop a philosophy of ministry that makes hard work a means of amassing wealth.

Paul said we should not steal. The alternative was hard work with our own hands. But the main purpose was not merely to hoard or even to have. The purpose was "to have to give." "Let him labor, working with his hands, that he may have to give to him who is in need" (Ephesians 4:28). This is not a justification for being rich in order to give more. It is a call to make more and keep less so you can give more. There is no reason why a person who makes $200,000 should live any differently from the way a person who makes $80,000 lives. Find a wartime lifestyle; cap your expenditures; then give the rest away.

Why would you want to encourage people to think that they should possess wealth in order to be a lavish giver? Why not encourage them to keep their lives more simple and be an even more lavish giver? Would that not add to their generosity a strong testimony that Christ, and not possessions, is their treasure?

5. Don't develop a philosophy of ministry that promotes less faith in the promises of God to be for us what money can't be.

The reason the writer to the Hebrews tells us to be content with what we have is that the opposite implies less faith in the promises of God. He says, "Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' So we can confidently say, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?'" (Hebrews 13:5-6).

If the Bible tells us that being content with what we have honors the promise of God never to forsake us, why would we want to teach people to want to be rich?

6. Don't develop a philosophy of ministry that contributes to your people being choked to death.

Jesus warns that the word of God, which is meant to give us life, can be choked off from any effectiveness by riches. He says it is like a seed that grows up among thorns that choke it to death: "They are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the . . . riches . . . of life, and their fruit does not mature" (Luke 8:14).

Why would we want to encourage people to pursue the very thing that Jesus warns will choke us to death?

7. Don't develop a philosophy of ministry that takes the seasoning out of the salt and puts the light under a basket.

What is it about Christians that makes them the salt of the earth and the light of the world? It is not wealth. The desire for wealth and the pursuit of wealth tastes and looks just like the world. It does not offer the world anything different from what it already believes in. The great tragedy of prosperity-preaching is that a person does not have to be spiritually awakened in order to embrace it; one needs only to be greedy. Getting rich in the name of Jesus is not the salt of the earth or the light of the world. In this, the world simply sees a reflection of itself. And if it works, they will buy it.

The context of Jesus' saying shows us what the salt and light are. They are the joyful willingness to suffering for Christ. Here is what Jesus said, "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth. . . . You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:11-14).

What will make the world taste (the salt) and see (the light) of Christ in us is not that we love wealth the same way they do. Rather, it will be the willingness and the ability of Christians to love others through suffering, all the while rejoicing because their reward is in heaven with Jesus. This is inexplicable on human terms. This is supernatural. But to attract people with promises of prosperity is simply natural. It is not the message of Jesus. It is not what he died to achieve.

Pastor John

By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: www.desiringGod.org.
Email: mail@desiringGod.org. Toll Free: 1.888.346.4700.

I absolutely believed I was going to hell

Polygamous sect ousts boys for worldly vices

By Erik Eckholm
Sunday, September 9, 2007

ST. GEORGE, Utah : When his parents discovered his secret stash of DVDs, including the "Die Hard" series and comedies, they burned them and gave him an ultimatum: Stop watching movies or leave the family and church for good.

With television and the Internet also banned as wicked, along with short-sleeve shirts - a sign of immodesty - and staring at girls, let alone dating them, Woodrow made the wrenching decision to go.

Ten months ago, with only a seventh-grade education and a suitcase of clothes, he was thrown into an unfamiliar world he had been taught to fear.

Over the past six years, hundreds of teenage males have been expelled or felt compelled to leave the polygamous settlement that straddles Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah.

Disobedience is usually the reason given for expulsion, but former sect members and state legal officials say the exodus of males also remedies a huge imbalance in the marriage market. (The expulsion of girls is rarer.) Members of the sect believe that to reach eternal salvation, men are supposed to have at least three wives.

"In part it's an issue of control," Paul Murphy, an assistant Utah attorney general, said of the harsh rules. But underlying the expulsions, he added, is a mathematical reality. "If you're going to have plural marriage, you need fewer men," he said.

State officials say efforts to help them with shelter, foster care or other services have been frustrated by the youths' distrust of government and fear of getting their parents into trouble.

But help for the teenagers is improving. In St. George, a nearby city where many of them end up, two private groups, with state aid, have opened the first residence and center for banished boys. It was established to offer psychological counseling and advice on things they never learned, like how to write a check or ask a girl out politely, as well as provide a transitional home for eight who will attend school and work part time.

The polygamous settlement is largely controlled by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and allies of its jailed prophet, Warren Jeffs, who is about to stand trial on charges of sexual exploitation.

Woodrow, now 16 and living with a sympathetic aunt and uncle, is one of the luckier youths, though he rarely sees his parents and says, plaintively, "I really miss them." Some boys end up in unsupervised group rentals they call "butt huts" because of the crowded sleeping, while others live in cars or end up in jail.

Utah officials said they only realized four years ago that hundreds of youths from the sect were roaming on their own and often in distress. While most have construction skills to help earn a living, few have more than a junior high education.

"The house is a milestone, but it's just a start," said Murphy, the assistant attorney general who has worked with state and private agencies to muster help. "We're finally reaching out, but it's been painfully slow."

The church settlement is essentially one town crossing the border, a jumble of walled compounds, trailers and farm fields at the base of spectacular red bluffs. Nearly all of the 6,000 residents follow the dictates of Jeffs, who they believe speaks for God. Women wear ankle-length dresses, and children are taught to run away from outsiders.

Jeffs, 51, is in jail in Purgatory, Utah. His trial is scheduled to start Monday on charges of being an accomplice to rape, for his alleged role in forcing a 14-year-old girl to marry an older cousin. He faces several other sex-related charges in Arizona.

But his allies still control the church, former members say, and teenage boys continue to trickle out of the community, by force or by choice.

Andrew Chatwin, 39, the uncle who took Woodrow in, left the sect 10 years ago. He explained how the expulsions usually happen: "The leaders tell the parents they must stop this kid who is disobeying the faith and Warren Jeffs. So the parents kick him out because otherwise the father could have his wives and whole family taken away."

The sect, which has smaller outposts in other states, has no ties to the mainstream Mormon church, which outlaws polygamy. Leaders of the sect refuse to speak to the press, and the mayors of Colorado City and Hildale both declined to comment. Jeffs's defense lawyer did not respond to calls or e-mail messages.

With Jeffs and other polygamists, the authorities in Utah and Arizona have prosecuted sexual crimes, but they have not pursued cases involving the neglect of teenagers, in part, Murphy said, because the youths invariably refuse to testify.

In April, six banished teenagers who brought what became known as the lost-boys suit against church leaders agreed to a settlement in which $250,000 would be used to promote education and emergency support for expelled youths. The money will be raised by selling some of the church's large property holdings, now in receivership because church officials never appeared in court to defend against the lost-boys lawsuit and others. The court-appointed agent controlling the properties also gave each of the plaintiffs three acres, or 1.2 hectares, of church land.

One plaintiff was Richard Gilbert, now 22. He had to leave Colorado City at age 16, he said, when he refused Jeffs's order to drop out of the public high school.

"I absolutely believed I was going to hell," Gilbert recalled.

For a time, Gilbert lived in the nearby town of Hurricane, Utah, where five youths rented a two-bedroom apartment but had as many as 19 sleeping there. Some boys, he said, had literally been dropped off with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

"A lot of guys go off the deep end," Gilbert said. "For me, it meant a ton of alcohol and partying."

Now he works in construction, has been married for a year and has a child.

Gilbert estimated that 100 boys from his school class, or 70 percent of them, had been expelled or left on their own. There was no way to verify the numbers.

"There are a lot of broken-hearted parents, but you question this decision at the risk of your own salvation," Gilbert said.

The problem of surplus males worsened in the 1990s when the late prophet Rulon Jeffs, Warren Jeffs's father, took on dozens of young wives - picking the prettiest, most talented girls, said DeLoy Bateman, a high school teacher who watched it happen.

Warren Jeffs, taking the mantle after his father's death in 2002, adopted most of his father's wives and married others. He also began assigning more wives to his trusted church leaders, former members said. Forced departures increased.

Shannon Price, director of the Diversity Foundation, an educational nonprofit group near Salt Lake City, estimated that 500 to 1,000 teenage boys and young men left Jeffs's sect in the past six years, based on the hundreds who have contacted her group and another nonprofit, New Frontiers for Families.

Established by Dan Fischer, a wealthy former sect member, the Diversity Foundation has been a rare source of aid for such boys as well as girls who have left the sect to avoid polygamy, helping many go to high school and college, and raising public awareness about their plight.

The new venture, an eight-bedroom house in St. George, is being run by the two nonprofits with private grants and $95,000 from the Utah Legislature.

The one thing nearly all the youths share is a strong work ethic and experience in construction. But many, moving from total control to total freedom, get in trouble with drugs, alcohol and crime.

"These are kids, and they still need a connection with adults who can nurture them," said Michelle Benward, clinical director of New Frontiers for Families.

And I thot only Anglicans had this problem!

Couple in same sex marriage ordered to part
2007/09/04
Cynthia Lee

The marriage of Mohd Sufian Mohamad (right) and Zaiton Aziz was not legitimate.

MALACCA: Three months short of their fifth wedding anniversary, a couple has been ordered to part as the husband was actually a woman.

Syariah judge Che Saufi Che Husin yesterday ordered a farak (part forever) between Mohd Sufian Mohamad, 40, and Zaiton Aziz, 43, as the marriage was not legitimate under syariah.

The couple arrived in court together in a Perodua Kancil, wearing matching yellow attire, and looked calm when the judgment was read to them.

They walked out of court together and left in the same car.

Sufian, 40, whose birth certificate bears the name Mazinah Mohamad, married Zaiton Aziz, 43, in December 2002.

They were alleged to have committed same-sex marriage and were charged under section 11 of the Malacca Islamic Family Enactment 2002.

The marriage, solemnised by imam Ishak Juki from the Bukit Cina mosque, had been deemed legal as all procedures had been adhered to.

However, problems surfaced a few months later when the Malacca Religious Affairs Department refused to register the marriage after becoming suspicious of the bridegroom’s gender.

Sufian was also ordered to amend his gender status and name in the National Registration Department according to the original birth certificate.

In announcing his ruling, Che Saufi said: "According to the first respondent’s (Zaiton) statement, she had never seen or touched her husband’s private parts and had taken him to be a man all along and that she felt good and satisfied together.

"This is astounding and illogical. It is abnormal to go through life as husband and wife as such."

He said the couple had also failed to prove the "husband" to be a hermaphrodite as claimed by Syariah lawyer Mohd Mokhtar Karim.

Malacca Hospital gynaecologist Dr Nor Hasinah Mohd Said had said a physical examination carried out with two other specialists revealed that Sufian was not a man.

Chromosome and blood tests also confirmed that Sufian was a woman.

Taiwanese Film Taps Into Dark Side of Homosexuality

Homosexuals are at the mercy of “beasts” living within them, suggests a controversial new film by a respected Taiwanese filmmaker.

by Hudson Tsuei, Christian Today Correspondent

Posted: Monday, September 3, 2007, 9:16 (BST)

Homosexuals are at the mercy of “beasts” living within them, suggests a controversial new film by a respected Taiwanese filmmaker.

New motion picture ”I Saw a Beast” features a nightmarish rendition of the world of homosexuals, where self-destructive desires and lust consume those who inhabit it.

"This film is unlike other homosexual movies filmed before,” critically-acclaimed director Liu Yi-hong said to Taiwan-based United Daily News (UDN). "The film dwells on the darkness in the [homosexuals’] inner-being."

Liu said that the protagonist of his film can only find solutions through redemption in Christ – unlike characters in similar movies who are instead trapped by their lust.

Loosely based on the true-life testimony of a believer, the story centres around the protagonist, who must overcome both church prejudices and self-loathing to find the courage to leave the homosexual lifestyle.

Chen Yi-hua, Liu’s wife and the film’s producer, said she expects the film to generate much controversy after its release, especially from more conservative-minded Christians.

"This movie is not going to satisfy everyone, but will emphasise to people that there are more important things worth pursuing than to follow lustful desires," said Chen, who left her senior-level position at a Christian media company to help her husband with filming.

While most critics have denounced the use of nudity in the film, others have criticised the film for its prevailing dark undertones.

Generally, discussion of homosexuality is still considered taboo in Taiwan’s more traditional Chinese society, especially within Taiwanese churches.

Liu, however, is not the first Taiwan-based director to delve into the touchy subject.

In 2005, fellow national Ang Lee won best director at the Academy Awards for his controversial hit “Brokeback Mountain”, which was blasted by evangelical Christians worldwide for its sympathetic portrayal of homosexuals.

Though it was banned in China, “Brokeback” ironically received accolades from state media for its financial success at the box office.

Liu, who turned to Christianity six years ago, maintains that his upcoming film will not condone homosexuality, but rather teach about how God can heal those with homosexual tendencies.

“God is actually the real main character of this movie,” Liu emphasised to Christian Today, while pointing out that the film’s characters often call on God’s name for power.

Synopsis:

The story revolves around “Jun”, who leaves the church after spending years struggling with her homosexual tendencies.

Jun initially sees herself as liberated and openly flaunts her homosexuality while beginning a clandestine affair with her partner, Patty, who is already married and has a child.

Patty is too afraid to come “out-of-the-closet”, and chooses to remain with her temperamental and abusive husband.

After falling into depression, however, Patty confronts her husband with her homosexuality and leaves.

The two lovers begin their new lives together, but all is not well. Jun is troubled after seeing herself in a dream as a beast overcome with insatiable lust.

Wracked with guilt, and perhaps struggling with demons from the past, Jun seeks redemption with the help of a sympathetic pastor – whose prayers and gentle guidance ultimately allow Jun to overcome her struggle to leave her lifestyle behind.

Feeling betrayed, Patty does not readily accept Jun’s change of heart and silently plots revenge, which brings tragic consequences for everyone involved.

The film, which is scheduled for limited release in Taiwan, is not recommended for younger audiences due to sexually-explicit scenes, nudity and mature subject matter.

At the moment, the film has not been rated.


On the Web: Official website of "I Saw a Beast" (in Chinese) at www.isawabeast.com

Christian Today correspondents Ian Huang in Taipei, Taiwan; Joseph Leung in Vancouver, Canada; and Claudia Cheng in San Francisco, Calif., contributed to this report.

Ana with students from Japan

These two lovely Japanese girls came over to visit us at home. After chatting for a while, Ana woke up from her sleep and join in the conversation. They will be in Singapore for 4 weeks to improve their English Language. When the photo was taken they have already been here for 2 weeks. Apparently this year's batch of students are better in their level of English, compared to last year's.

Next Friday, they may be following me to church. Taking them to attend the Young Adults service. Let's hope the people there dun frighten them with their corny jokes!!! which of course they blame me for teaching them such things.

Their purpose to attend is to meet and have more friends in Singapore and elsewhere. If the Lord wills, hopefully we can pray for them ... and the Lord will touch their lives. I have this burden for Japan that they will come to know Jesus and worship Him. Pray that their hearts will be open to be touched by the Holy Spirit.

He is amazing!

29 Aug 2007

Dear Prayer Partners,

1. Thank you for praying with me for the recent camp I preached for the Kuala Lumpur church.

2. They had about 30 plus campers, majority 15-17 years old. And a rare occurrence, there were more non-believers in the camp, with only 11-12 were believers. The majority was Mandarin-speaking and had a very basic level of English. Mine situation is of course the other way round – super low level of Mandarin and more English-speaking.

3. In February when they first invited me, I was asked to conduct a leadership camp. But sometime in June when they heard that many non-believers responded, the pastor asked to change it to an evangelistic camp. But 2-3 days before the camp started, we decided to change it to a motivational camp.

4. But as usual the Lord had His own plans! Through His Spirit, He touched many of them, especially the non-believers. It was the first time for them to encounter and experience the power of the reality Jesus in their lives. All the while, they had negative impressions of Jesus and Christians in general.

5. But as a result of this camp they are changing their minds as they had an exciting and personal encounter with the Spirit. Many of them were filled with the Spirit despite not understanding who He is. On the last day, they were joyously singing and shouting the song, Jesus One way. You could see the jubilations on their faces.

6. After the camp, a number of them attended church for the first time in their lives, and some requested for Bibles. PTL! Pray for their continual growth, that they will submit their lives to the resurrected Savior. Pray that they will have the strength to withstand family opposition to their faith in Christ.

7. Personally, I have been feeling this burden for the Chinese-speaking for some time. This camp had reinforced that burden and challenged me to improve my Chinese. I really need discipline, God’s special anointing, and a good Chinese tutor! (Any volunteers?!)

8. Pray for me to receive a stronger anointing to breakthrough in the lives of the people that we minister to. Pray also for greater financial support to do more ministries, as well as to pay for my studies.

9. Pray for us this week as we have an opportunity to minister to a group of Japanese students whom Jessie is teaching. Pray also that I will be able to complete my assignment for the doctorate programme.

God is amazing! He is awesome! Worship HIM!

Thank you for praying!

13 August 2007

Dear Friends,

1. Thank you for your prayers and encouragements! Since starting on my doctorate studies, I have been busy trying to complete my assignments. I allocated the past two months to complete it, and hence reduced my travelling. Unfortunately I have not been able to complete the whole assignment. I need your prayers to rush through it.

2. This week I am travelling to Kuala Lumpur to preach in camp. Please pray for the campers, about half (20) are not yet believers and they are more Chinese-speaking. Pray that I will have wisdom to relate with them and that the Holy Spirit will convict them with the Word of God.

3. Pray that they will have a powerful encounter and revelation of the true and living God that will cause them to willingly submit their hearts to Him. Pray that they will truly worship Jesus as the only Way, the only Truth and and the only Life.

4. After that camp, I will be back for a week or two before going up again to KL for another 2 weeks to teach in a Bible School there. Pray for my preparations as I would be teaching the pastors on Interpreting the Old Testament.

5. Thank you for your prayers for Anastasia. She is now about 19 months old! (Time really flies!) She is full of energy, running all over. Pray that she will grow up always making right choices to love and fear the true and living Triune God. I try to do it every day to dedicate her to the Sovereign Lord and to His royal service, and that she will indeed proclaim the resurrected Christ as her name Anastasia means resurrection.

6. Thank you for your prayers for Jessie. She has submitted her PhD thesis and is now awaiting her Oral defense or viva, probably scheduled early next year. Praying that all will go well and that she will be able to convocate in July 2008.

7. Now with the thesis out of the way, she is back to giving Bible Study and follow-up to others. Pray for divine wisdom and strength. Pray for me too as I continue to disciple different groups, that they will catch the vision of obeying the Great Commission of Christ in their generation.

All the glory, majesty, honor and power to Him, forever and ever.

You are invited to read and comment on my blog.
http://global-south.blogspot.com/