I am constantly amazed, as well as saddened, by the ploys that some TV preachers use to get the money out of your pockets and into theirs.
The old statement, "If you give money to me, God will bless you," is so overused, it's nearly worn out. Not many people simply "buy" into that overly simplistic "give and get" idea.
So, consequently, many TV preachers have had to become more creative in their "give to get" teachings. The TV preachers still play on the "return" aspect of money. In other words, they still say that when you give, you will get a return.
Whatever Happened to Simply Giving? Whatever happened to giving for its own sake? I remember a few ministers and ministries over the years who simply said, "This is our ministry, and this is who we are reaching. Will you help us reach these people for Christ by giving us donations?" There were no "give to get" tactics employed. And, in many cases people gave to ministers and ministries--and still do--not to get something in return but simply because they believed in that particular ministry.
But, most of the so-called TV ministries are simply worthless as they preach the power of wealth, health, and prosperity instead of the life-changing power of Christ. So, who would want to give to them simply for the sake of giving? No one. Thus, their ministries are predicated completely upon the "Greed Gospel," with the main tenet of belief being "Give to Get."
What's the Return?
Instead of preaching that if you accept Christ, He will lift you out of your sins, make you a child of God, and divert you from eternal hell, many of these so-called preachers tell you that Christ will heal your car, fix your refrigerator, make you beautiful, and give you a new set of lawn furniture. While this may sound silly, I have actually heard each of these over the years. Not the least of the "returns" that preachers promise is good, old-fashioned money.
The Superstitious
It is simply astounding to me how the promise of money can transform seemingly intelligent people into superstitious people who believe that if they "discover" the right formula, they will get rich. I remember many years ago a man gave money to a questionable ministry in which the preacher promised the famous "hundredfold." In other words, if you give one dollar, God is obligated to give you $100 in return. Such a deal. This man was poor, couldn't keep a job because he was lazy, had a wife and a couple of children that he was not providing for. So, when he heard the TV preacher promise the "hundredfold return," he sent the preacher several hundred dollars expecting tens of thousands back! Not only that, but without so much as a single day of Bible college, he felt that it was time for him to start his own church.
The short story of what happened after that is simply that he never got his "hundredfold return," and though he attempted to start a church, his message soon ran everyone away: what was his message? The "hundredfold return" of course. When he started taking in the people's money and they got nothing in return, the church folded.
The Silliness
If people would just think for a moment, they'd be able to see the silliness of the superstitious "return" teaching. The teaching is simply, "If you give, you will get." So, let's think for a moment. If the preacher on the TV really needed more money, and since he is the one who is teaching the "give to get" superstition, shouldn't he be the one who is giving so that he can get more?
If the "give to get" teaching were true, the TV preachers would be giving you their money so that God would give them the "hundredfold return."
Now, as I said, I think that most Christians today are savvy enough not to buy into that idea, and so some of the TV preachers have had to become more creative, and I want to point out just two of the most recent ones that I have heard.
TV Preacher # 1 The Threat
There is a woman preacher that appears regularly on TV. She has an enormous following. One day as I was channel surfing, I saw her wrapping up one of her messages. She looked sternly into the camera and made an unusual threat. She said that God was about to lift His "anointing" off certain members of her TV viewing audience. She went on to explain why.
She said that she had been teaching many new and exciting things and many people were understanding her and being blessed by her teachings. However, she said that many people are enjoying her teachings without having put anything into her ministry. So, she said that if they didn't send money to her, God was going to "lift His anointing off" these people, and they would no longer be able to "understand" what she was talking about and they would "no longer be blessed" by her deep teachings because God would not allow them to understand her words. However, if they wanted to continue to "hear" her and "understand" her and continue to be "blessed" by her deep teachings, then they had to send her money. Simply put, no money, no anointing.
TV Preacher # 1 The Promise
Our next subject is a man. Just today I heard him as he closed his TV "service," and, of course, he talked about money. Now, his tact was a quite a bit different than the woman preacher. Instead of making a threat, he made a promise.
Build a Money Bridge
He told his viewing audience that God's powerful anointing was upon him. God was doing great and magnificent things in his ministry. He said that people were getting rich and blessed under his ministry. How could the TV viewer "get" his anointing? How could the TV audience get the prosperity that he had? Simple: "build a bridge from them to him," and then cross over that bridge and partake of the anointing on his life once they cross over that bridge. What is that bridge? Money.
Apparently, for this preacher, money is the bridge that will connect you to "his anointing," and then you'll be able to partake in his unique anointing and enjoy the wealth that comes from that anointing. You simply need to build a money bridge so that you can mystically cross and enter into his "anointing."
Now, it is my guess that most--if not all--of the people who read this Coffee Talk are the kind of people who do not get caught up into this sort of "give to get" false teaching anyway, and so this article serves more as a point of interest than as a caveat.
But no matter where you are on this, we can all agree that such a "Greed Gospel" as the one that many TV preachers promote is simply shameful. And, if we know people who are caught up as part of the TV viewers of such "preachers," we should pray for them and ask God to open their eyes to the false teachings therein. Also, we should warn them ourselves and not simply allow the wolves in sheep's clothing to continue to fleece the sheep.
Send comments about this, or any, Coffee Talk to Rick Walston at: CES @ ColumbiaSeminary.edu
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