Is The C3 Movement A “Cult Of Prosperity”?

13 Sunday Jan 2013

Posted by churchwatcher in C3 Ministry, C3 Values, Pringle's Doctrine/Gospel, Uncategorized

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Phil Pringle is heavily influenced by the prosperity cults. He endorses, speaks or works alongside some of the most heretical persons such as Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, Joel Osteen, Benny Hinn, Joyce Meyer, Brian Houston, Yonngi Cho, Kong Hee, Kenneth Hagin, John Avanzini, Pat Robertson, Oral Roberts, John Maxwell, Rick Warren, Dale Bronner, Bill Johnson, T.D Jakes, Tommy Tenney and so on. The article below addresses false teachers who Pringle either endorses or who is influenced by their ministries.

The below article uproots Pringle’s false Christianity and does a solid job presenting readers with the facts of scripture. Unlike Pringle, we encourage readers to pull out their bibles (or visit our resources on the left) to do a bible study on this article below.

The Bankruptcy of the Prosperity Gospel: An Exercise in Biblical and Theological Ethics

Study By: David Jones

Download Word Doc

Just over one hundred years ago, the renowned pastor and statesman Charles H. Spurgeon spoke these words to the then-largest congregation in all Christendom:

I believe that it is anti-Christian and unholy for any Christian to live with the object of accumulating wealth. You will say, “Are we not to strive all we can to get all the money we can?” You may do so. I cannot doubt but what, in so doing, you may do service to the cause of God. But what I said was that to live with the object of accumulating wealth is anti-Christian.¹

Over the years, however, the message being preached in some of the largest churches in the world has changed. Due, in part, to the rise of several ungodly philosophies and movements,² a new gospel is being taught today. This gospel has been ascribed many names, such as the “name it and claim it” gospel, the “blab it and grab it” gospel, the “health and wealth” gospel, the “word of faith” movement, the “gospel of success,” the “prosperity gospel,” and “positive confession theology.”³

No matter what name is used, though, the teaching is the same. Simply put, this egocentric gospel teaches that God wants believers to be materially wealthy. Listen to the words of Robert Tilton, one of the prosperity gospel’s most well-known spokesmen: “I believe that it is the will of God for all to prosper because I see it in the Word [of God], not because it has worked mightily for someone else. I do not put my eyes on men, but on God who gives me the power to get wealth.”⁴

Teachers of the prosperity gospel encourage their followers to pray, and even demand, of God “everything from modes of transportation (cars, vans, trucks, even two-seat planes), [to] homes, furniture, and large bank accounts.”⁵ By closely examining the faulty theology and errant biblical interpretation of the teachers of this movement, this study will prove that the prosperity gospel teachings regarding the acquisition and accumulation of wealth are ethically incorrect.

The Theology of the Prosperity Gospel

“Theology is important,” wrote scholar Millard J. Erickson, “because correct doctrinal beliefs are essential to the relationship between the believer and God.”⁶ A corollary to this statement is that an incorrect theology will lead to incorrect beliefs about God, His Word, and His dealings with men. The thesis of this paper is that the prosperity gospel is constructed upon a faulty theology. Consequently, many of its doctrines, including the teachings concerning wealth, are erroneous. While it is beyond the scope of this study to examine in detail all of the specific doctrines of prosperity theology, there are four crucial areas of error relating to their teachings on wealth that may be isolated and examined. These areas are the Abrahamic covenant, the Atonement, giving, and faith.

Prosperity Theology and the Abrahamic Covenant

The theological basis of the prosperity gospel is the Abrahamic covenant.⁷While this is good in that prosperity theologians recognize that much of Scripture is the record of the fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant, it is bad in that they do not maintain an orthodox view of this covenant. Prosperity theologians hold an incorrect view of the inception of the Abrahamic covenant; what is more germane to the present study, however, they hold to an erroneous view concerning the application of the covenant.⁸

Researcher Edward Pousson best stated the prosperity view on the application of the Abrahamic covenant when he wrote, “Christians are Abraham’s spiritual children and heirs to the blessings of faith…. This Abrahamic inheritance is unpacked primarily in terms of material entitlements.”⁹ In other words, according to the prosperity gospel, the primary purpose of the Abrahamic covenant was for God to bless Abraham materially. Since believers are now “Abraham’s spiritual children,” they consequently have inherited these financial blessings of the covenant.

Prosperity teacher Kenneth Copeland wrote, “Since God’s Covenant has been established and prosperity is a provision of this covenant, you need to realize that prosperity belongs to you now!”¹⁰ Referring to the prosperity theology of Kenneth Hagin, author Harvey Cox wrote, “Through the crucifixion of Christ, Christians have inherited all the promises made to Abraham, and these include both spiritual and material well-being.”¹¹ To support this claim, prosperity teachers such as Copeland and Hagin appeal to Gal. 3:14, which says “that the blessings of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus. . . .”¹² While it is not an understatement to say that the problems with this argument are legion, two glaring problems need to be addressed. First, in their appeal to Gal. 3:14, prosperity teachers ignore the second half of the verse, which reads, “That we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”¹³ In this verse Paul clearly was reminding the Galatians of the spiritual blessing of salvation, not the material blessing of wealth.

Second, prosperity teachers claim that the conduit through which believers receive Abraham’s blessings is faith. This completely ignores the orthodox understanding that the Abrahamic covenant was an unconditional covenant.¹⁴That is, the blessings of the Abrahamic covenant were not contingent upon one man’s obedience. Therefore, even if the Abrahamic covenant did apply to Christians, all believers would already be experiencing the material blessings regardless of prosperity theology.

Prosperity Theology and the Atonement

A second cracked pillar upon which prosperity theology stands is that of a faulty view of the Atonement. Theologian Ken Sarles wrote that “the prosperity gospel claims that both physical healing and financial prosperity have been provided for in the Atonement.”¹⁵ This seems to be an accurate observation in light of teacher Kenneth Copeland’s comment that “the basic principle of the Christian life is to know that God put our sin, sickness, disease, sorrow, grief, and poverty on Jesus at Calvary.”¹⁶ This misunderstanding of the Atonement stems from two errors that proponents of the prosperity gospel make.

First, many who hold to prosperity theology have a fundamental misconception of the life of Christ. For example, teacher John Avanzini proclaimed that “Jesus had a nice house, a big house,”¹⁷ “Jesus was handling big money,”¹⁸ and He even “wore designer clothes.”¹⁹ It is easy to see how such a warped view of the life of Christ could lead to an equally warped misconception of the death of Christ.

A second error of prosperity theology, which also leads to a faulty view of the Atonement, is the misinterpretation of 2 Cor. 8:9. Without exception, this is the verse to which prosperity teachers appeal in order to support their view of the Atonement. The verse reads, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”²⁰ This problem with this interpretation is, of course, that in this verse Paul was in no way teaching that Christ died on the cross for the purpose of increasing anyone’s net worth materially. In fact, Paul was actually teaching the exact opposite principle.

Contextually, it is clear that Paul was teaching the Corinthians that since Christ accomplished so much for them through the Atonement, then how much more ought they empty themselves of their riches in service of the Savior. This is why just five short verses later Paul would urge the Corinthians to give their wealth away to their needy brothers, writing “that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack.”²¹ Commentator Philip E. Hughes wrote of 2 Cor. 8:9, “The logic implicit in the statement of this great truth is too obvious for anyone to miss it.”²² Apparently, however, the champions of the prosperity gospel have indeed missed it.

Prosperity Theology and Giving

One of the most striking characteristics of the prosperity theologians is their seeming fixation with the act of giving. Students of the prosperity gospel are urged to give generously and are confronted with such pious statements as, “True prosperity is the ability to use God’s power to meet the needs of mankind in any realm of life,”²³ and, “We have been called to finance the gospel to the world.”²⁴ While at face value these statements do indeed appear to be praiseworthy, a closer examination of the theology behind them reveals that the prosperity gospel’s emphasis on giving is built on anything but philanthropic motives. The driving force behind this emphasis on giving is what teacher Robert Tilton referred to as the “Law of Compensation.”²⁵ According to this law, which is supposedly based on Mark 10:30,²⁶ Christians need to give generously to others because when they do, God gives back more in return. This, in turn, leads to a cycle of ever-increasing prosperity.

As Gloria Copeland put it, “Give $10 and receive $1,000; give $1,000 and receive $100,000;… in short, Mark 10:30 is a very good deal.”²⁷ It is evident, then, that the prosperity gospel’s doctrine of giving is built upon faulty motives. Whereas Jesus taught His disciples to “give, hoping for nothing in return,”²⁸prosperity theologians teach their disciples to give because they will get a great return. One cannot help but agree with author Edward Pousson’s observation that the stewardship of “the prosperity message is in captivity to the American dream.”²⁹

Prosperity Theology and Faith

A final area of prosperity theology that merits investigation is that of the doctrine of faith. Whereas orthodox Christianity understands faith to be “trust in the person of Jesus Christ, the truth of His teaching, and the redemptive work He accomplished at Calvary,”³⁰ prosperity teachers espouse quite a different doctrine. In his book, The Laws of Prosperity, Kenneth Copeland wrote that “faith is a spiritual force, a spiritual energy, a spiritual power. It is this force of faith which makes the laws of the spirit world function. . . . There are certain laws governing prosperity revealed in God’s Word. Faith causes them to function.”³¹ This is obviously a faulty, if not heretical, understanding of faith. Later in the same book Copeland wrote that “if you make up your mind . . . that you are willing to live in divine prosperity and abundance, . . . divine prosperity will come to pass in your life. You have exercised your faith.”³² According to prosperity theology, faith is not a theocentric act of the will, or simply trust in God; rather it is an anthropocentric spiritual force, directed at God. Indeed, any theology that views faith solely as a means to material gain rather than the acceptance of heavenly justification must be judged as faulty and inadequate.

The Biblical Interpretation of the Prosperity Gospel

As has already been demonstrated in this paper, the hermeneutics of the prosperity movement leaves much to be desired. Author Ken Sarles wrote of the prosperity teachers that their “method of interpreting the biblical text is highly subjective and arbitrary. Bible verses are quoted in abundance without attention to grammatical indicators, semantic nuances, or literary and historical context. The result is a set of ideas and principles based on distortion of textual meaning.”³³ Indeed, a survey of the volumes of literature produced by the prosperity teachers yields numerous examples of such misinterpretations. As was the case in the theological study of this movement, an analysis of all such examples of misinterpreted texts would fall beyond the scope of this study. However, it is possible to choose one verse as an example and to examine both the prosperity gospel and orthodox interpretations of the text.

A suitable verse for this study is 3 John 2.³⁴ In this verse, the Apostle John wrote, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”³⁵ This verse is interpreted by prosperity teachers to mean that God wants all believers to “prosper in all things.” Furthermore, their interpretation of this verse makes clear their claim that material prosperity is inseparably linked to spiritual growth. Oral Roberts, regarded by many to be the father of the prosperity gospel movement, claimed at the beginning of his ministry, during a time of search for direction, that God miraculously led him to 3 John 2, which he understood as a revelation of the prosperity gospel.³⁶

Another faith teacher who has built his ministry around this faulty interpretation of 3 John 2 is Kenneth Copeland. Author Kenneth Kantzer noted that “Copeland misinterprets this [verse] as a universal promise,”³⁷ and writer Bruce Barron remarked that “the Copelands use these words so often that they appear to be the key verse of their ministry.”³⁸ A careful study of 3 John 2, however, reveals that this verse is not a carte blanche approval of prosperity gospel teachings.

Those who use 3 John 2 to support the prosperity gospel are committing two crucial errors, the first contextual and the second grammatical. First, con-textually, one is wise to note that John’s purpose in writing 3 John 2 was not to teach doctrine; it was simply to open his letter with a greeting. This is not to say that doctrine cannot be derived from a nondoctrinal passage, for all Scripture is profitable for doctrine, but it is to say that one must be sensitive to the original author’s intent. Therefore, the claim that 3 John 2 teaches the doctrine of prosperity ought to be regarded as suspect at best. Second, one is wise to note the meaning of the word “prosperity” as it occurs in this verse. The term translated “prosperity” is a form of the Greek word eujodovw. This word, which is used only four times in Scripture, does not mean to prosper in the sense of “gaining material possessions,” but rather means “to grant a prosperous expedition and expeditious journey,” or “to lead by a direct and easy way.”³⁹ The wording of modern translations such as the New International Version even reflect this nuance of the word.⁴⁰ Therefore it is evident that teachers who understand 3 John 2 to teach prosperity theology are misinterpreting the text.

Conclusion

Through this study of the theology and the biblical interpretation of the prosperity gospel, one may discern five clear reasons why this movement’s teachings concerning wealth are incorrect:

1. The prosperity gospel is built upon a faulty understanding of the Abrahamic covenant.

2. The prosperity gospel is built upon a faulty understanding of the Atonement.

3. The prosperity gospel is based upon a faulty understanding of the biblical tachings on giving.

4. The prosperity gospel is based upon a faulty understanding of the biblical teachings on faith.

5. The prosperity gospel, in general, has been constructed upon faulty biblical interpretation.

Aside from these five specific theological and biblical arguments against the prosperity gospel, and without even considering the practical implications of this movement,⁴¹ there is perhaps one general, summary reason why the prosperity gospel is a wayward gospel: its faulty view of the relationship between God and man. Simply put, if the prosperity gospel is correct, grace becomes obsolete, God becomes irrelevant, and man is the measure of all things. Whether it is the Abrahamic covenant, the Atonement, giving, faith, or the biblical interpretation of any given verse, the prosperity teacher seeks to turn the relationship between God and man into a financial quid pro quo transaction. As scholar James R. Goff noted, God is “reduced to a kind of ‘cosmic bellhop’ attending to the needs and desires of his creation.”⁴² This is a wholly inadequate and unbiblical view of the relationship between God and man and the stewardship of wealth.

Note: This article was originally published in Faith and Mission Vol 16, p. 79ff. Published with permission.

¹Tom Carted, ed., 2,200 Quotations from the Writings of Charles H. Spurgeon (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1988), 216.

²While it is impossible to trace the prosperity gospel back to an exact starting point, there are at least three movements from which it draws its ideas. One is the experience-centered Christianity which was birthed in the mind of nineteenth-century theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher and has come to fruition in the form of the twentieth-century Charismatic movement. A second philosophy that gave rise to the prosperity gospel was the “positive thinking” school of Norman Vincent Peale. Indeed, scholar Harvey Cox wrote concerning the prosperity gospel that “it owed much to the ‘positive thinking’ of the late Norman Vincent Peale.” Harvey Cox, Fire from Heaven (Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1995), 272. The third modern movement that has influenced the prosperity gospel is simply the “American dream,” or materialism.

³For the purpose of this paper, the phrase “prosperity gospel” will be used.

⁴Robert Tilton, God’s Word about Prosperity (Dallas, TX: Word of Faith Publications, 1983), 6.

⁵David Pilgrim, “Egoism or Altruism: A Social Psychological Critique of the Prosperity Gospel of Televangelist Robert Tilton,” Journal of Religious Studies, 18.1-2 (1992): 3.

⁶Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1985), 28.

⁷This important covenant is mentioned numerous times in the writings of the prosperity teachers, i.e., Gloria Copeland, God’s Willis Prosperity (Fort Worth, TX: Kenneth Copeland Publications, 1973), 4-6; Kenneth Copeland, The Laws of Prosperity (Fort Worth, TX: Kenneth Copeland Publications, 1974), 51; idem, Our Covenant with God (Fort Worth, TX: Kenneth Copeland Publications, 1987), 10; Edward Pousson, Spreading the Flame (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1992), 158; and Kenneth Copeland, The Troublemaker (Fort Worth, TX: Kenneth Copeland Publications, n.d.), 6.

⁸Prosperity teacher Kenneth Copeland articulated his movement’s view of the inception of the Abrahamic covenant best when he wrote that “after Adam’s fall in the Garden, God needed an avenue back into the earth;… since man was the key figure in the Fall, man had to be the key figure in the redemption, so God approached a man named Abram. He reenacted with Abram what Satan had done with Adam. . . . God offered Abram a proposition and Abram bought it.” Kenneth Copeland, Our Covenant with God, 10.

⁹Pousson, 158.

¹⁰Kenneth Copeland, The Laws of Prosperity, 51.

¹¹Cox, 271.

¹²Gal. 3:14a (NKJV).

¹³Gal. 3:14b (NKJV).

¹⁴That the Abrahamic covenant is an unconditional covenant can be demonstrated by four facts. First, the covenant ceremony in Genesis 15 was unilateral. In fact, Abraham was asleep. Second, no conditions are stated in the covenant. Third, in the restatement of the covenant in Gen. 17:7,13, and 19, the covenant is called “everlasting.” Finally, the covenant was confirmed despite Abraham’s continued disobedience and lack of faith.

¹⁵Ken L. Sarles, “A Theological Evaluation of the Prosperity Gospel,” Bibliotheca Sacra 143 (Oct.-Dec. 1986): 339.

¹⁶Kenneth Copeland, The Troublemaker, 6.

¹⁷John Avanzini, “Believer’s Voice of Victory,” program on TBN, 20 January 1991. Quoted in Hank Hanegraaff, Christianity in Crisis (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 1993), 381.

¹⁸Idem, “Praise the Lord,” program on TBN, 15 September 1988. Quoted in Hanegraaff, 381.

¹⁹Avanzini, “Believer’s Voice of Victory.”

²⁰2 Cor. 8:9 (NKJV).

²¹2 Cor. 8:14 (NKJV).

²²Philip E. Hughes, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishers, 1962), 300.

²³Kenneth Copeland, The Laws of Prosperity, 26.

²⁴Gloria Copeland, God’s Will Is Prosperity, 45.

²⁵Theologian Ken Sarles rightly noted that “the Law of Compensation [is] the bedrock of the prosperity movement.” Sarles, 349.

²⁶In Mark 10:29-30, Jesus stated, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sister or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time—houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life” (NKJV). Other verses that the “Law of Compensation” is based upon include Eccl. 11:1, 2 Cor. 9:6, and Gal. 6:7.

²⁷Gloria Copeland, 54.

²⁸Luke 10:35 (NKJV).

²⁹Pousson, 159.

³⁰J. D. Douglas, and Merrill C. Tenny, eds., The New International Dictionary of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1987), s.v. “faith.”

³¹Kenneth Copeland, The Laws of Prosperity, 19.

³²Ibid.,41.

³³Sarles, 337.

³⁴Sarles says that this is an “often quoted verse” in the prosperity movement. Sarles, 338. Hanegraaff wrote that 3 John 2 was a “classic example” of prosperity misinterpretation. Hanegraaff, 223. Gordon Fee called 3 John 2 “the basic Scripture text of the cult of prosperity.” Gordon Fee, “The ‘Gospel’ of Prosperity,” Reformation Today 82 (Nov.-Dec. 1984): 40. Bruce Barron wrote that 3 John 2 was “the ‘Old Faithful’ of prosperity proof texts.” Bruce Barron, The Health and Wealth Gospel (Downers Grove, IL: Inter Varsity Press, 1987), 91.

³⁵3 John 2 (NKJV).

³⁶For a full account of Roberts’ miraculous revelation concerning 3 John 2, see Barron, 62.

³⁷Kenneth S. Kantzer, “The Cut-Rate Grace of a Health and Wealth Gospel,” Christianity Today, vol. 29, June 1985, 14.

³⁸Barron, 91.

³⁹Joseph Henry Thayer, The New Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1981), s.v., “eiio86w.”

⁴⁰“Dear Friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well” (3 John 2, NIV).

⁴¹There are numerous practical implications that arise from the prosperity gospel view on wealth. While it would take a lengthy treatise to explore and explain them all, three are important enough to be considered here. First, the prosperity gospel incorrectly implies that poverty is a sin. Teacher Robert Tilton even said that “being poor is a sin.” Robert Tilton, “Success in Life,” program on TBN, 27 December 1990, quoted in Hanegraaff, 186. Likewise, Kenneth Copeland wrote that “poverty is under the curse of the Law.” Copeland, Laws of Success, 51. Second, the prosperity gospel “appeals to the poor and the sick to put more faith in the ultimate fulfillment of their desires than in the Word of God.” Sarles, 343. Third, when the prosperity gospel does cause positive changes in a believer’s life, the prosperity teacher gets most of the credit, and when the believer does not experience prosperity, the blame is usually left upon that individual. For example, Robert Tilton offered several reasons why some believers did not experience blessings: “Individuals lacked faith, refused to follow his directions, and criticized Tilton’s ministry.” Pilgrim, 7.

⁴²James R. Goff, Jr., “The Faith That Claims,” Christianity Today, vol. 34, February 1990,21.

Source: David Jones, The Bankruptcy of the Prosperity Gospel: An Exercise in Biblical and Theological Ethics, http://bible.org/article/bankruptcy-prosperity-gospel-exercise-biblical-and-theological-ethics, Accessed 09/01/2013.

Note: C3ChurchWatch has permission to published this article.

Phil Pringle & Pat Mesiti Conning C3 Church To Give Cash

02 Wednesday Jan 2013

Posted by churchwatcher in C3 & Pringles Associations

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2006, c3, c3 church, c3 global, c3 of, c3 oxford falls, c3global, C3i, c3i global, c3iglobal, C3OF, cash, ccc, cccglobal, ccciglobal, false, false doctrine, false teaching, false testimony, false theology, false witness, finance, finances, giving, giving message, giving sermon, giving talk, hillsong, hillsong church, lie, mesiti, mislead, money, pat mesiti, phil pringe, Pringle, sacred finance

If a leader or teacher is misleading a congregation to tithe, this should inform you that they are either:

1. A false teacher. Or

2. an unqualified teacher.

Pat Mesiti and Phil Pringle can fall under either category.

At the bottom of this article is an old transcript of Phil Pringle allowing Pat Mesiti to con people to give money to Pringle’s organisation. Pringle allowed Mesiti to manipulate people to give money to Pringle. Pringle did not correct Mesiti’s content or conduct. He allowed Mesiti to mangle many scriptures and have him use greed and fear to convince people to give up their cash to Pringle. In the process, Pat Mesiti publicly misled the members of Christian City Church.

MESITI’s MISLEADS

Mislead 1: The Statement God Never Made

“… God said to Adam and Eve, he said ‘you can have any tree you want, except that one there, that’s mine.’”

God said that? We encourage you to read Genesis 2 and 3. This is blasphemy. Phil Pringle and Pat Mesiti had no problem lying about God. God said nothing about the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil being His in Genesis. They made this up to convince people to give them their cash.

Mislead 2: Mesiti Witnesses Against His Own False Theology

Later, Mesiti says (emphasis ours):

“Little while ago I was speaking at a church, this was quite awhile ago actually ….(laughter)….we won’t go there…..anyway….”

He is alluding to Hillsong. The fact that he was speaking at Hillsong tells us this was before his fall, (hence why he does not talk about it). Mesiti then slips this (emphasis ours):

“And I get there and the worship’s going on …and then they receive the offering…and the Holy Spirit says to me…”I want you to take that 2 and a half thousand dollar cheque and put it in the offering”….and I said ‘Lord, this is all I’ve got’.

All Mesiti has got? In slipping this, he has undone all that he is trying to do: convince C3 Church members that they need to give money to God so “your barns will be full.” How can he teach that God wants people to give him cash so he can bless them financially back? He isn’t practicing what he is preaching. Why did he have no money? He continues…

“Within a month’s time …I was at a meeting..and a man came up to me and said….’this is not for the ministry….this is not for any of the ministries you’re involved with …this cheque is for you…and he gave me a cheque for $25,000 US….”

Is this simply band aid cash before he was publicly exposed visiting prostitutes? His heavily edited and faulty account only proves he is a false witness to his own false theology. In fact, when you read the entire script below, he exposes his own false theology.

Mislead 3: Teaching The Bible Says Something When It Doesn’t

Pat Mesiti later said:

“We’re the pearl of great price. God never argued….Jesus never debated the issue. He just did it. And we in turn are asked to value something. One of those things we’re asked to value…is the House of God.”

We need to understand that the Bible talks about the House of God being Christ and His Church (the church being the people). Not so with Pringle and Mesiti. They often define the ‘House of God’ being the building.

Not only does Mesiti force people not to question his teaching by forcing obedience on them, Mesiti and Pringle provide the illusion that God or the bible says “we’re asked to value… the House of God.”

Really?

You will not find this teaching in the bible that we are to value a physical building known as a ‘House of God’. This is another lie to get Christians to give money to Phil Pringle’s organisation.

THE FLATTERY

Mesiti flattered Pringle before the C3 congregation. Notice how Mesiti links the favour of God to Phil Pringle’s apparent material success. Is this how a Christian measures God’s grace?

“You know, Pastor Phil being number one on the podcast does not surprise me, because how many know the favour of God is on this man of God? Can you give me a good ‘amen’?”

Mesiti acknowledges how much Pringle’s teaching impacted him and his life, mangling Psalm 133 in the process. So much so, he seems to link Pringle as a Messianic figure.

“… After being under his teaching – under his ministry, means the favour of God is on us, because whatever falls on his beard, the oil (PP: “ooh!”) coming down from the beard of our Lord, did you like that? (PP “more oil, more beard”).”

The favour of God is on Pat Mesiti because he was under the teaching of Phil Pringle (and Pringle’s oily Messianic beard)? Pringle did not correct this bible garble.

THE GREED

Mesiti also mangled the scripture Proverbs 3:9. Mesiti said,

“I’m going to ask you to honour the Lord, value the Lord with your offering, and bring the Lord his firstfruits… your barns will be full.”

This is biblical incompetence on Mesiti’s part. Proverbs is written to Jews who were under the ordinances of God. If they obeyed the commandments of God, God would indeed materially bless them as a nation. If they didn’t, He would curse them. However, Mesiti’s use of this passage is inciting people to give money so they can get. This is the greed factor that prosperity preachers often use to motivate people to give money to them. Pringle did not correct this bible garble.

THE FEAR-MONGERING

The church is grafted into the promises of Israel revealed in Christ – but the Church is not Israel. The Law was designed to point out to Israel the fact that none can fulfill it’s requirements. Only one man perfectly honoured the Lord and His Laws and that was Jesus. What Jesus accomplished was far greater than material success. Jesus did not promise believers material blessings but something greater: eternal life.

Because Christ freely gave Himself, so we can freely receive His salvation, we are called to freely give NOT OUT OF COMPULSION. Scripture clearly calls us to give cheerfully through what He has done on our behalf. (2 Corinthians 9:7.)

Instead of allowing the gospel being the motivating factor, Mesiti binds and curses the congregation by placing them under the death and condemnation of the Law, offering no freedom in Christ. By reading a portion of Malachi 3 telling Christians to tithe, the association is connected to the fact that if one does not tithe, the believer is cursed. This is not Christianity and is a false theology that destroys people. Pringle did not correct this bible mis-application.

THE DECEITFULNESS OF PAT MESITI AND PHIL PRINGLE

In closing, Pringle endorses the teaching and mentions this in his prayer to his ‘god’,

“People who have got debts they can’t manage…are gonna find ways out of it. But Lord the foundation of your prosperity in our life…is the tithe. So father as we bring this sacred finance to you …we thank you Lord that it unleashes power and principles into our world that are unstoppable.”

Sacred finance? This is Pringle’s god and not Christ. What Pringle calls “sacred finance”, Jesus opposes saying, “The deceitfulness of riches choke the Word” (Matt 13:22). According to Pringle, these “sacred finances… unleashes power and principles into our world that are unstoppable”. Really? And the bible says that where?

According to Pringle the monetary tithe is “the foundation of your prosperity in our life”. To pray such a thing to a God is disgraceful. At least Pringle is honest that Jesus is not his foundation.

In the end, did Pat Mesiti message on money choke the Word? Yes it did. Did Pringle endorse Mesiti’s unbiblical teachings that choked God’s Word? Yes he did. With this in mind, it is best to know not to trust Pat Mesiti or Phil Pringle when there is a bible in front of them. They are not qualified to preach.

Below is the full transcript of the giving sermon.

Everybody say ‘firstfruits’ (firstfruits)

Wednesday 30 August, 2006 – 17:30 by Hill$ong Squad in Default

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(Phil Pringle) “We are going to receive our tithe and offering right now, as everybody could get ready to give.

Pat Mesiti is going to come and encourage us with our giving this morning. Thank you very much Pat. God bless you.

(Pat Mesiti) Morning church. (Good morning) Are you excited? (yeah)

You know, Pastor Phil being number one on the podcast does not surprise me, because how many know the favour of God is on this man of God? Can you give me a good ‘amen’?

And you know, after being under his teaching – under his ministry, means the favour of God is on us, because whatever falls on his beard, the oil (PP: “ooh!”) coming down from the beard of our Lord, did you like that? (PP “more oil, more beard”).

I was thinking of growing my moustache, but I’d look too much like my mum. (PP:laughter) and my mum wouldn’t really approve.

Turn to the Word now, now that I’ve got your attention.

Church, if you need an offering envelope, please raise your hand.

If you’re giving by credit card – before you fill anything out, can you just let me share for 2 or 3 minutes from the Word of God, because we can just go through the same old motions, you know, of oh, this is my tithe; I’ll just write it out…

And you know, if you want something (inaudible) God before, you’ve got to do something you haven’t done before.

And….that’s how I’ve worked.

And I want to read a passage of scripture from Proverbs Chapter 3:9….it says this…

Honour the Lord….can you all say that with me ‘honour the Lord’ (honour the Lord) with your possessions (with your possessions) ..and the firstfruits (and the firstfruits) of all your increase (of all your increase) …..don’t repeat everything or we’ll be here all day.

But honour the Lord, that literally can be translated there to mean this… value the Lord with your possessions. (PP:’wow’).

Now that’s not talking about the tithe; we get to that in the next portion.

But value the Lord, do you value, do I value the Lord?

You see, I’ve discovered in life that one of the principles of life is this. You can tell how much you value something by the price you’re willing to pay. (PP: ‘that’s the truth’)

So to the guy who says to the girl, ‘honey, I’ll climb the highest mountain, swim the deepest ocean, cross raging rivers, but if it’s raining on Sunday can you get your own way to the restaurant.’

Doesn’t really value.

And then I’ve discovered this about value, that in the absense of value, you’ll always argue price.

When you value something you don’t argue over price, you see, the Lord never argued the price of what it would cost to redeem our soul.

And we are here as recipients of God’s value towards us.

We’re the pearl of great price. God never argued….Jesus never debated the issue. He just did it.

And we in turn are asked to value something.

One of those things we’re asked to value…is the House of God.

Can I get an ‘amen’?

And God says in His Word; He says ‘bring the whole tithe’.

Notice it doesn’t say ‘give the tithe’. It says ‘bring it’.

Because, this may be a shock, but titheing isn’t giving; you can’t give back to God, what’s already His.

You can only take it from him.

And you see, there are some things that God has reserved for Himself, which brings us to the second portion, that says…’and with the firstfruits, ‘everybody say ‘firstfruits’ (firstfruits) …that’s the first portion…it goes way back, way back, way back into Genesis.

This is not law, this is Genesis. This is pre-law, where we get the covenant of marriage from.

And God says ‘honour me…bring to me…the firstfruits…the first portion…the tithe.’

I’ve often wondered, when I’ve read the book of Genesis; when God said to Adam and Eve, he said ‘you can have any tree you want, except that one there, that’s mine.’

I wonder if there was ten trees in the garden.

Folks this morning…I’m going to ask you to honour the Lord, value the Lord with your offering, and bring the Lord his firstfruits, and watch this, here’s what he says……everybody say ’so’ (so) …so your barns will be full.

A little while ago……..how many of you liked that bit in the scriptures?

You see God never asks you to give something where he doesn’t fall back. God is El Sheddai, the God of plenty, not El Cheapo the Lord, the tightwad…

Amen?

Little while ago I was speaking at a church, this was quite awhile ago actually ….(laughter)….we won’t go there…..anyway….

But I remember I was speaking at a church and I received a cheque from a corporate function I spoke at …and the Lord said to me…”I want you to put that in the offering tonight”.

And I went….’but I’ve already tithed and I’ve already given to the building fund ..and I need this’.

And God says ..”well, I need it too”.

And I’m arguing with God and then I got to church late, hoping that the offering would be over with….(laughter).

Don’t laugh at me…some of you do that…

And I get there and the worship’s going on …and then they receive the offering…and the Holy Spirit says to me…”I want you to take that 2 and a half thousand dollar cheque and put it in the offering”….and I said ‘Lord, this is all I’ve got’.

And God said….”well, that’s all you’re gonna have”

He said…”now you have an option……you can keep what’s in your hand..and I’ll keep what’s in mine….or you can let go of what’s in your hand..and I’ll let go of what’s in mine.”

(PP:’powerful’)

Within a month’s time …I was at a meeting..and a man came up to me and said….’this is not for the ministry….this is not for any of the ministries you’re involved with …this cheque is for you…and he gave me a cheque for $25,000 US….

So I got 100 fold ….and the exchange rate…..(PP:’amen) (applause)

Come on church…let’s receive our tithes. I’m gonna hand over to Pastor Phil ..to pray over the offering.

Let’s be generous this morning. Let’s bring our tithe..and let’s bring our first fruits to the Lord. Pastor Phil?

(Phil Pringle) Wonderful, thank you sir, God bless you. Amen. Folks let me pray for you…while you bring your tithes and your offering to the Lord.

Father, we thank you right now as we stand here. People who are trying to buy their homes in Sydney, feeling that the prices are high ….are going to find very real opportunities…for them to break through into a whole new era of living.

People who have got debts they can’t manage…are gonna find ways out of it.

People who are having arguments in their houses over money issues….

Father…you’ll bring solutions.

People will find their way to manage their finances better.

But Lord the foundation of your prosperity in our life…is the tithe.

The opening of windows over our lives…the opening of opportunities and blessing comes from what we’re doing right now.

So father as we bring this sacred finance to you … we thank you Lord that it unleashes power and principles into our world that are unstoppable.

So thank you for the blessing Father on every gift given right now in Jesus’ name..and everybody said ‘amen’.

God bless as you give folks.

Go ahead ushers, thank you.

If you’re on the internet ..watching today …you can go to the upper right hand corner of your web page and you’ll find a giving area.

And those of you who use the EFTPOS machine…you’re welcome to do so at the end of the service.

If you needed an envelope for your giving…because you didn’t have a newsletter….there’s a tear-off section on that you can get…but if you need an envelope…please make sure you get a hold of one….to fill out the details of your credit card if you’re using a credit card for giving.

Thank you.”

Length of offering talk – 7:50 min.

Source: By Hill$ong Squad, Everybody say ‘firstfruits’ (firstfruits), http://hillsong.bigblog.com.au/post.do?id=65489, 30/08/2006. (Accessed 14/11/2011.) *Cached link: http://web.archive.org/web/20070502235421/http://hillsong.bigblog.com.au/post.do?id=65489.

NOTE: SCREEN GRAB WAS TAKEN ON THE 14/11/2011.

Johann Tetzel Eat Your Heart Out | Andrew Kubala tramples on the blood of Christ at Presence 2012

28 Saturday Jul 2012

Posted by plebchristian in Sermon Reviews

≈ 8 Comments

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2012, andrew kubala, Andy Kubala, believe tv, bible twisting, blasphemy, buy salvation, c3 church, Chris Pringle, christian mccudden, Daniel Gorter, deception, discernment, eat your heart out, eisegesis, false doctrine, false teaching, fleecing, get smart conference, heresy, Johann Tetzel, John Bevere, Kong Hee, Mark Kelsey, miracle, myc3churchreview, Oxford Falls, Phil Pringle, Presence Conference, prosperity gospel, scripture, seed offering, sermon review, sow a seed, Steven Furtick, Sydney, trample on blood of Christ

Credit goes to C3CW for getting me access to the footage from Presence Conference 2012. Cheers.

[I apologise in advance for the occasional skipping. Its a little bit of a rough edit, but everything’s there.]

Here is my next review on the C3 Church movement. The theme of this review is ‘the price of a human soul’. I review Andrew Kubala’s statements at Presence Conference 2012, namely, that we can sow a financial ‘seed’ offering for the salvation of our loved ones. I point out that no amount of money can buy salvation, and that the redemptive price of a human soul is the blood of Jesus Christ ALONE shed on the cross. It is ONLY by Christ’s sacrifice that sinners are saved; this one offering accomplished salvation once for all and is never to be repeated.

Please share this video with anyone you know who attends a C3 Church affiliated with Phil Pringle or Andrew Kubala, especially if they attended this year’s Presence Conference 2012 (April 10-13, Darling Harbour Convention Centre, Sydney)

C3 College & Dave Sumrall Teaching ‘All Sorts Of Evil’

01 Wednesday Feb 2012

Posted by churchwatcher in C3 & Pringles Associations, C3 Culture, C3 Ministry, C3 Scripture Handling, C3 Teaching, C3 Values, Pringle's Behaviour, Pringle's Beliefs, Pringle's Doctrine/Gospel, Pringle's Laws, Pringle's Methods

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antcliff, bible college, builders, c3, c3 college, ccc, ccc college, college, dave sumrall, david sumrall, envy, false doctrine, jealous, levin, malicious talk, miracle seed, money, pat antcliff, Phil Pringle, Pringle, sca, school of creative arts, School of Ministry, seed, SOM, strife, sumrall, tanya levin, teaching, vision, vision builders, wells

“If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. ” 1Timothy 6:3-10

Tanya Levin wrote the following about Phil Pringle (emphasis mine),

“Pastor Phil Pringle had been impressed by American Howard Cargill’s fundraising presentation to his congregation at Christian City Church and recommended that Brian meet with Cargill. `You don’t make money out of offerings, Brian,’ Phil is reported to have said, `you make it from bible colleges.’ Educational institutions, any buildings that are deemed for education, are the ones that get the biggest tax breaks.” – Tanya Levin, People in Glass Houses – An Insiders Story of a Life In & Out of Hillsong, Money Changes Everything, 2007, pg 99.

Pringle has found another way to capitalise from his bible colleges. He advertises his college as follows (emphasis mine),

“Leadership andMinistry C3 College is not for the faint hearted ‚Äö√Ñ√¨ it is for those who want to enter more deeply into the adventure of a lifetime ‚Äö√Ñ√¨ the radical life that is following Jesus.The Leadership & Ministry stream is designed to equip you for local church ministry, as well as ministry in the market place and you will be trained by world recognised practitioners in the body of Christ. At C3 College you will have inspiring leadership training, informative and practical Bible teaching and receive skills for living your best life!” – C3 College, http://www.c3college.com/main/, (Accessed 07/02/2011).

Principal Pat Antcliff that oversees the C3 Colleges misinforms the public saying in 2009 (emphasis mine),

“Lives that make a difference can’t be lived like everyone else. People who want to be fruitful in the service of God, need to be prepared. At C3 College that is what we’re passionate about, that is what we do!

We teach students the knowledge and skill they need to serve God with excellence. Our trainers are current, fruitful practitioners in leadership, creative ministry, youth ministry, children’s ministry, pastoral care and other key areas of local church.

Our specialist ministry and leadership skills are built on a firm foundation of biblical and theological understanding and Spirit empowerment – but our training doesn’t stop here. Lives that make a difference have strong character and well formed Kingdom motivations, attitudes and convictions.

The mentoring and discipleship that happen at C3 College build these areas of a person’s life. Thousands of our graduates around the world are living extraordinary lives serving God. Anything worthwhile has a price tag – However, the rewards for paying the price to prepare yourself to serve God are eternal.” – Pat Antcliff, About C3 College, http://web.archive.org/web/20110128141514/http://www.myc3church.net/node/46, 25/11/2010. (Accessed 07/02/2012)

In June 2010, guest speaker David Sumrall (a world recognised practitioner) taught C3 College students about money. It is clear that Sumrall’s motive was to groom the students to sacrificially finance Phil Pringle’s Vision Builders event. Pat Antcliff, the principal of the School of Ministry, was present in this meeting and did not speak against David Sumrall teaching (37:06).

Read how Sumrall unashamedly twists scripture and uses behavioural methods to convince students to give sacrificially to Pringle’s church.

“How many students were here yesterday? Are you still saved? Of all the meetings that are gonna take place about the Vision Builders this week this is probably this probably the most important meeting.

You’re the leaders of the church. You’re the staff . You’re the students. You set the tone. What happens here is going to determine the hearts of the people later on this week. I cannot possibly emphasise to you enough that what happens here this morning is going to completely determine the outcome what happens the rest of this week.

As the leaders go so the people go. Look to the person next to you and say ‘I’m a leader’. Bible school students I taught you yesterday that if pastors want to develop a prosperous church what are the things that has to happen is that the pastor has to be generous. This is where it begins with you as a student. As a student you say ‘I don’t have much money so why should I give’. Because this is where you begin to learn generosity. This is where you begin to practice generosity. This is where you begin to understand spiritual laws of reproduction that everything reproduces after its own kind. This is where the tone is set.

I like to dig and study in the bible and sometimes I get going after little rabbit trails that take me months to play with in my own devotions. One time I just started going after generational offerings.

And I got a little time today so I can relax – is that alright?

I started going after generational offerings. I told you a little about one yesterday in Romans chapter fifteen. That as Paul closed out an entire section of ministry of his life , he was saying ‘Alright I am done with this entire section of the world. When I’m finished with this offering, I’m headed to Spain’. He spent the last several years of his life just raising an offering from all of the Gentile churches to go to the poor Christians in the church of Jerusalem – to bring healing between the Jew and the Gentile churches – a generational offering.

And he went out to the church of Corinth. And I talked to you yesterday – that the church he had most trouble with was the church in Corinth because the church in Corinth never supported him. Their hearts had never followed their money to his leadership. And so when he is raising this generational offering, of all the other churches, he had to take the most time trying to teach the church in Corinth about giving – because they were the worst givers. Because he had never allowed them to support him and – probably a right decision. But he said you know, ‘Was this so wrong that I did that I sin when I did not allow you to support me’. But he said, ‘I’m still not going to let you’. And then you read on a little bit farther, (as I showed you in the scriptures yesterday in second Corinthians) , the reason! He said ‘Even now when I send to you Timothy you think ‘clever fellow that he is, he sent Timothy to exploit us’.

You know there are people who have such terrible attitudes. And the reason they have these attitudes is the pastor has never led them in giving… Are we still here?”

So he looks at the church in Corinth and he makes a very interesting statement. It’s one of those verses you honestly wish was not in the bible. I’m very serious. Second Corinthians chapter eight. Begin with verse eight. He said ‘I am not commanding you’ – and I am not commanding you today to give an offering. It should not be given under compulsion.

‘I am not commanding you but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others – for or because you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. That though he was rich, for your sakes he became poor – so that you through his poverty might become rich’. He said ‘Hey! Look at the love of Jesus! Look at the sincerity of His love. He gave up everything to bring blessing to your life. He says “So now I’m looking at you church of Corinth. We’re trying to raise this last offering. I’m never going to be with you again. I’m never going to influence you again.

I’m leaving this entire section of the world and I’m going to go Spain. This is my last hurrah. And I’m trying to make peace with your future so that the Judeazers will no longer come and torment you. I’m trying to let you see that your heart needs to follow your money to the people that gave spiritual birth to you. And I’m trying to let them receive this offering. And ‘A gift given in secret soothe in anger and healing ’. So this is the last ‘hurrah’. Please. I am not commanding you. But let me test the sincerity of your love.”

I would look at you as leaders of the church. Of all people, you know the depth of this vision. You know the sincerity of this vision. Of all people in this church you live with it every day. But sometimes, sometimes staff begin to take things for granted. Sometimes with staff you allow a few little problems. Maybe your supervisor got upset with you because you were late for work two weeks ago and they got after you. You allow little human things to interfere with the sincerity of your love.

I looked at a deacon one time and we just finished pledges to take the church completely out of debt. And I started with my board. I asked each of them to write down an amount and pass it up to the head of the board table. I said ‘It starts with us’. One man says ‘I’m not going to do it’. And I said ‘I know where your heart is. Thank you’. I said ‘I’m not commanding you. I just tested the sincerity of your love’. See if you look at peoples giving, you can see their future. Their money goes long before their body goes. Are we still here?

This is why Paul says ‘I am testing the sincerity of your love’. Now again, we don’t like this verse. We don’t even like this concept because it makes us very uncomfortable. But it is a true test. Our giving is the true test of the sincerity of our love. Not just for God, not just for our leaders, but for the entire work of God. Are we still here?

Another ‘generational seed’ – and then I’m gonna get into a special kind of a seed. Another generational seed was David at the very end of his life. And I talked with you a little about that the other day – this man of stewardship. At the end of his life, David and his generation was – I-I kind’a liked David’s generation . I always look at myself more like a David than a Solomon. David was the generation that broke the territory. The first man since Joshua to take new territory. The only man that ever pushed Israel back to the borders of the full promises. These weren’t the politest groups of people. Ok? These were the warriors. These were the men that shed blood. These were the men that sacrificed. These were the men that paid the price so that the next generation could enjoy blessing. At the end of their life, they showed again the sincerity of their love.

At the end of their life, at the end of their term as they turned it over to the next generation… David and the men that built the nation with him sowed what I would call a ‘generational seed’. People talk about how Solomon built Israel and made it such a wealthy place. Nah! I would not take any credit away from him but I would also say ‘Maybe don’t take any credit away from a ‘generational seed’. Because David and his men at the end of their lives, gave the largest offering in the history of Israel – broke the back of poverty off of that nation for a next generation – tested the sincerity of their love.

Another seed that’s fascinating to study is what I teach my people especially my people that are living hand to mouth – I call the ‘seed of daily provision’. When our people just get born again and they are coming out of poverty, they’re selling vegetables at the side of the street or they’re selling little hamburgers off the little shop in front… We have one lady who started selling little hamburgers. She has never graduated from college. She has nothing. Just started selling little hamburgers . Two for one. Twenty five pesos – two for one. She is now selling three thousand hamburgers a day. Now she is becoming a wealthy woman. But she got hold of a little principle. – the ‘seed of daily provision’. This is based on the widow of Zaraphat. Every day she gave her first to God. Everybody say ‘Give first’. [Audience: Give first]

Some of you that are working and you doing daily wages, I would just sow a seed everyday first. And watch what God does for you. But the seed I want to talk to you today about – and it’s a wonderful seed. I call it the seed of wealth. Now people but stumble at the word but hold steady. Genesis chapter twenty six. Lets begin with verse one.

Now there was a famine in the land–besides the earlier famine of Abraham’s time–and Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines in Gerar. The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my commands, my decrees and my laws.” So Isaac stayed in Gerar.

When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.” … When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. So Abimelech summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.”

Then Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us.” So Abimelech gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who molests this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.” Isaac planted crops in that land – and now this is interesting! This only happens now! He made the promise up here in verses one to three. Verse eight, he’s been there a loooong time. He’s been there what? He’s been there a long time during a famine. Now maybe you’ll begin to understand why later on we’ll read ‘He became rich’. All of the wealth of Abraham was lost in this long time.

Isaac planted crops in that land and in that same year – now there’s no more ‘long time; – and in that same year reaped a hundredfold, because the LORD blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy. He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him (welcome to life). So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth.

Isn’t it amazing when people envy you they try to destroy your wealth. We’ll get into that in a little bit. “Abimelech said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.” So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them. Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they disputed with him. Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the LORD has given us room and we will flourish – we will flourish in the land.”

Let me walk you through very quickly ‘the seed of wealth’. In just a little while you’re going to be asked to show the sincerity of your love. You’re going to be asked to commit to sow a seed. But I also want you to understand that this is not just a test of the sincerity of your love. This is a determination of your future as I talked to you yesterday. When you sow a seed you are not throwing money away – you are sowing a seed. That’s why in my church I don’t even like to use the word ‘offering’ because in people’s religious minds it’s just throwing money away. And the unbeliever relative’s say ‘Why are you giving all that money to the church? You’re throwing money down a rat-hole.’

I tried to stop using the concept and the word ‘offering’ in my vocabulary and keep referring to it as a seed so the people can understand that everything they are doing is working on their future. Who’s future? Now I want to talk to you about a seed of wealth for your future. In verses seven to ten we find a seed of wealth being sown. But the seed of wealth was only sowed – well lets go back up to verse three – a seed of wealth was only sown from a life of obedience. It was sown from a what? We already showed you earlier that Abraham obeyed. Look at verse three. God said

“Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.”

Verse six “So Isaac stayed in Gerar”. You are not going to sow a seed and get blessing if you are not going to live an obedient life. Now there are Christians that want to come along and teach you that the law of the seed violates almost every other scriptural law – but it doesn’t work that way. The law of the seed, the law of sowing and reaping works in conjunction with all the other biblical principles.

Isaiah 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land.

If you’re willing and what? [audience: obedient]. There has to be a principle of obedience in your life. Now when you look at Isaac, forgive me. He got as close as he could to disobeying and still obeyed. He was in the land of Gerar. In today’s world you’ call it the Gaza Strip. He was as close to Egypt as he could get and still be in the promised land. He was (forgive me), as close to disobedience as you could get – and still be in the Promised Land. But he was still in obedience!

Now I’ll show you later that that bought some more troubles for him. And you’ll find that when you get as close to disobedience as you can get and still not disobey, there’s always going to be people that will help try to push you over. So I’ve tried to live my life as far away from the edge as possible so that when people push I don’t fall over. We read you earlier how these guys were trying to push you out of the land. It always happens when you get as close as you can and still obey. So please, I am not recommending that you live in the land of Gaza – that you live in the land of Gerar. I’d recommend that you get as far – get up in Telaviv. Get as far as you can away from Egypt.

But here he was – and he understood a principle: “My father was blessed because He obeyed. I’m going to stay in this land. I’m going to obey. I may be a close to the edge as possible but I am going to obey.” Everybody say obey. [Audience: obey!]

So the first thing – if you’re going to sow a seed of wealth, take a good look at your life and make sure that there is no rebellion and there’s no disobedience in your life – that you are living where God wants you to live. [Puts hands to ears to hear audience’s response]

I can’t hear you. [Audience: Amen!]

Secondly – it is a seed that is sown from a family at peace. It is a seed that is sown from a family at peace. The bible teaches us that where you find strife you find every evil thing. Where you find strife you don’t blessing. Where you find strife you find every evil thing. Now I want you to notice he was not a family at peace. Now he did not have peace in his family for two reasons.

Number one – he had not peace in his family because he was living with a temporary attitude. And a temporary attitude messes up your relationships. “What do you mean ‘a temporary atiitude’?”

Nobody who has a permanent attitude of “This is where I stay”, walks around and lies about his relationship with his wife. Nobody said “This is my sister”, when it’s really your wife – if you think you’re going to have any long term relationship here. People only lie and exaggerate in temporary situations. How many people know what I am talking about?

I think that Isaac got focused on a few words: “Stay in this land for awhile”. I think he stayed in Gaza, as close to Egypt as possible because God – he focused on the second half of the sentence rather than the first half of the sentence. He focused on “for a while” and not “stay in the land”. And then he was afraid of these people. And because he was afraid of these people AND he had a temporary attitude, he lied about his wife. Now how many ladies are here? Will you raise your hands? How many married ladies in here – will you raise your hands?

How will you feel, in a strange country, in a strange place, and your husband said “Listen, I am not going to act like I married you”? In other words ladies, you’re on your own. “I’m not going to protect you. I am not going to act like a husband to you. Sweetheart, you’re on your own. You’re going to fend off all those advances on your own. I put no protection. I do not put my name on you.

Now let me ask you a question. What kind of relationship you think he had with her for a while?

I can just imagine coming home at night. “Hey sweetheart give me a kiss.” “Yeah! You want to own me now huh? When you’re out there in the market you don’t know me! When you come home, oh yeah!”

Do you think there was any peace in their house? Mm-mm! (Suggests no.)

No peace – I promise you. Single guys – you do not understand this yet. But as a married man, if you act like “She’s not mine”, that rips a woman’s insides apart. Makes her completely insecure. Makes her feekl completely afraid. So here he is. His temporary attitude – his fear of the people of the land and it has done nothing. These attitudes have done nothing but bring strife into his own family. Now you begin to understand verse eight – when Isaac had been there a long time.

I personally believe that in that long time, living in a famine, Abraham – all of Abraham’s wealth – that had been passed by inheritance to Isaac, was lost. Because in a few moments, I will show you in this way he became rich. He what? [Audience: became rich]

That means wealth started. That means something had been lost. That family strife delayed blessing in his life. God said “You stay in the land and I will bless you”. It was a long time before any blessing happened. Why? Strife! The temporary attitude! The fear that brought strife within his family. Only when that thing got fixed; only when the king exposed it – and I believe that was the grace of God that made it very uncomfortable for Isaac. But it was the grace of God that he got caught cos of his life. Finally the king said “That’s not your sister, that’s your wife!”

“Yeah it really is.”

“Why did you lie to us?”

“I was afraid.”

“NO BODY TOUCH HIM ANY MORE!”

And now, he’s very confident and secure. “Come hear sweetie, I’ll hold you in my arm.” Now it probably took him a few weeks probably even a few months to get her feeling good again. [Laughter] I don’t imagine that happened instantly. At least it wouldn’t with my wife. I would have some penalties to pay for awhile on that one. And every guy hear who is married understands exactly what I mean. I mean you don’t just don’t walk back up and “- Hi sweetie! Come here! You’re mine now!” “Rmm – when’s the next time you’re gonna walk away from me? Hmm?”

But when that peace was finally there, when the fear was no longer there, when he finally got over his fear of the people and his temporary attitude, then he planted the seed.

So when you ask “Why was there the delay?” – he had to get the strife out of his family. So if you’re going to sow a seed of wealth, you have to sow it from a life of obedience and you have to sow it from a family at peace. From a family at what? [Audience: Peace]

Thirdly, the seed that is sown is a reallocated asset. Verse twelve: “Isaac planted crops in that land”. Now again, Isaac had been raised his entire life to be a herdsmen. He was not a farmer. To plant crops, ties him to the land. He’s no longer thinking “God, how quick can I leave? You said “I only had to stay here for a while. God, how quick can I leave? You said “I only had to stay here for a while”. Now he’s finally putting down roots, literally. He’s planting a crop. He’s saying “My contemporary attitude is over”.

Now some of you: you can’t prosper because you won’t STICK some place. “When’s God gonna lead me out? When’s God gonna lead me out? When’s God gonna lead me out?”

I looked at one of my assistant pastors one time and he said “Pastor, why doesn’t God prosper me? All the other pastors on staff are prospering”. I said “Because you’re a TUMBLEWEED! You’re always talking about going someplace else!”. … … Are we still here?

I said “Why don’t you just understand God told you to be HERE? Settle in HERE!”. Are we still here? That one was free.

But in addition to getting over the temporary attitude, putting down roots so-to-speak, he had to do something he had never done before. The grain he would have had, he would have used to feed his family and to feed his flocks and herds. He had not been a farmer. It had never been in their family history, to be a farmer. They were herdsman. They constantly moved around. He had to do something he had never done before, (and that’s a whole ‘nother study), and he had to be willing to reallocate an asset that he had set aside for something else, literally for consumption. And instead of consuming an asset, sow an asset. Everybody say “instead of consuming… [Audience: Instead of consuming] … sow” [Audience: Sow].

Now forgive me but some of you here as you lead the way today, you’re going to some seeds that are going to be a re-allocation of assets.

You’ve saved money to buy an I-Pad. Some of you students, you’ve been saving your money to buy an I-Pad. There’s none for sale anyway, I tried all day yesterday to buy one. I’ve been to 3 Apple stores. Don’t worry about it.

Some of you saved money to buy an I-Pad. You’re gonna sow it. Notice how quiet it just got in here? Some of you, you’ve been saving money for a new car. You’re gonna re-allocate that asset and sow it. Some of you families, you’ve been saving money to buy a house. You’re gonna take that money and sow it.

And it’s gonna take a step of faith for you because it’s something you’ve never done before. But a seed of wealth is not a seed that is just …. “Ahhh… doesn’t mean anything to me”. It’s a seed that is a re-allocation of a consumption.

Fourth thing. A seed of wealth is a seed that is going to bring a harvest of wealth and of envy. Verses twelve and thirteen: “Isaac planted crops in that year and in that same year reaped a hundredfold, because the Lord blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became – very wealthy”. We’ve talked about that. Verse fourteen: “He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines – envied him. Now envy is a funny word.

Envy is a bad attitude that seeks to destroy what you have. How many of you would like God to bless you – and make you rich? [Sumrall puts up his hand with audience.] Wave your hand at me. Are you sure? [Long pause]

Are you sure? You know what I noticed in my life? When my wife and I were poor and struggling and we had nothing, nobody bothered us. Nobody bothered me! I laughed at my wife and said to her, “Sweetheart. When we drove ten year old cars and we wore old clothes and we had nothing and you know – we were struggling for everything? Nobody bothered us! Now that there’s a harvest season in our life, it is AMAZING!” And you want to look at people and go “You know, you sure didn’t think about me for twenty years when I had nothing. Now that we have a nice car and are buying a house…”, you know, went out and bought my wife a gold watch for our twenty-fifth anniversary, (I figured any woman who could put up with me for twenty five years ought a have a gold watch!).

So I saved my money and bought her a solid gold – gold bracelet, everything – ahhmm… what was it – Franck Muller Conquistador in rose gold, cos red’s her favourite colour. She wore that watch the first day! – Board member walked up – “Pastor SUMRALL! Is your wife wearing a gold watch?” I said “Yeah! I brought it for her twenty-fifth anniversary. Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Well I just don’t think it’s appropriate.”

I said, “Well she’s not your wife, so don’t worry about it”. [audience laughs and applauses]

Now you’re going to have to understand. You sit here now and go “Yeah! I’m going to sow a seed of wealth!” But you’re going to have to understand, with that harvest of riches that God will bless you with, there comes envy. And envy will not be a quiet thing. They will work to destroy what you have. Now for sake of time I won’t go through it all, but how many times have they plugged up the wells? Now when you plug up the wells, and a guy owns flocks and herds – what happens to the flocks and herds when there is no water? They DIE!

So they weren’t just trying to take something away from him, they were trying to destroy everything he had. Now you’re going to have to understand that some Christisn’s out there… [gets theatrically frustrated and places bible frustratingly on forehead – audience laughs] … that when they see you blessed…

[Sumrall preaches really loud] Now they don’t know the price you pay. They don’t know the obedience. They don’t know the work of having a family at peace. They don’t know the sacrifice of sowing and a reallocated asset. They don’t care about any of that because they are not willing to do any of that. But when you do it and God brings you your harvest, and it’s not just a harvest that comes one time, you CONTINUE to grow richer. See, a seed of wealth is a seed that keeps growing. It keeps what? [Audience: Growing!]

It’s not like a ‘one time harvest’, it’s like… you… you get a harvest of something that continues to expand and – (my goodness! That’s a whole ‘nother study that I don’t dare get into today!)… it’s an expanding harvest. It’s like getting a-a little thing of bread and you stick a bunch of yeast to it and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger! That’s the kind-a harvest you get when you sow this ‘seed of wealth’.

But there’s always somebody trying to pop your bread. There’s always somebody trying to destroy what you’ve got and you have to be willing to face that. Now the thing that they will do, is they will try to push you into the place of disobedience. They kept stopping up the wells, trying to make him move away from the land. Where is water when you are in Gaza? Where is the closest water? Egypt.

This is why you don’t want to get too close to [long pause] disobedience. Because when the time of envy happens, the pressure that will come against your life is a pressure that will destroy your prosperity and now you don’t want to move because of fear – now you want to move because of frustration.

“How do I continue to take care of everything God’s given me when these people are trying to destroy everything? I’m just gonna get out of here!”

And they try to push you in to the place of disobedience. And once you get into the place of disobedience, what happens to the blessings? They stop.

So I want to encourage you today – as you the seed, move to the place of obedience and move as fr into the place of obedience as possible. As far in as possible. Because when the envy comes – and it will come, I promise you – and I wish I can take that away from you and say “Oh no! No! No! It’ll never!” – it will come! They will do everything they can to drive you away from the place God told you to be and bring blessing. They will drive you to the place of obed- uh, disobedience.

Obedience… family peace… sow the seed and understand verses twelve and thirteen – that his wealth continued to grow. It is going to be a seed – and I don’t know how to explain how it happens cos it happens in every person’s life differently. I can show you people in my church – people your pasters met: George (and Marie M?). They started with us years and years ago, long then we all walked and remembered. They never graduated college. And in the Philippines, if you haven’t graduated from college you’re basically going to be a [undecipherable] driver or a bus driver for the rest of your life, or a janitor. You have not future. They never graduated college.

They started a little export business making (I don’t know what you call them – knick-knacks – something that I don’t particularly have an affection for. [Audience: Laughs] Ok… It just takes up space and you have to hire a maid to dust them you know.) But they make knick-knacks and they make Christmas tree decorations – that kind of stuff. They just started making this little stuff that didn’t look like anything. And now today they supply Target, Maisees, Saxfifth Avenue, Bombay, (I think it’s called Combombay(?) or something like that). But the biggest companies in the United States – Walmart – they’re supplying them!

Companies come to them and say “Listen! We want to have it manufactured in China. But we want you to make the samples. So we’ll pay you ten times the normal price and you make an entire container of samples for us that we’ll use for quality control. I said “George, you need to go start a factory in China”. [Sumrall pulls a mopey face in response to own advice]

He’s brought a mountain now. He opened a restaurant for his son who is a professional chef and now they’re franchising it. Everything they touched just – it’s wealth that continues to grow. But I’ve watched that family. I’ve watched the life of obedience they’ve lived. I’ve watched the family peace that they’ve had. And I’ve watched every time we stood up and said: “We’ve got a vision to fulfill”.

I’ve watched them give the biggest seed they’ve ever sown in their lives and said “Pastor, what a privilege to be able to give into God’s vision. I’ve watched other people that have forgotten how they got where they are today. Owch! They got where they are because that’s how they started. But after sowing into the vision for seven years or ten years… it becomes so… ho-humm! [Sumrall pulls droopy-mocking face. Long pause.] Are we still here?

And they say “Why doesn’t God bless me like he used to bless me?”. Because you’re not acting like you did when He blessed you. It starts with us. Would you stand with me please.

[Music set up on stage starts.] Did you learn something? [Pause.] Would you join your hands together? In just a moment, you’re going to have an opportunity to make a commitment. You’ve heard all the cliché words: “Let it be the biggest commitment that you’ve ever made in your life – yadi-yadi-yadi-ya.”

But you know what? They’re all true because they are all about your future. (Pause.) Look at the person next to you and say “They’re all true…” [Audience: They’re all true…] … Because they’re all about my future [Audience: Because they’re all about my future.] You know, just because you heard something a thousand times doesn’t make it untrue. Truth is truth! [Piano music starts in background. Ryan Smith is still setting up guitar and mic.]

I got up this morning. First thing I did was text my wife, “Kiss me baby”. Now don’t you tell anybody I said that [laughter] because my wife would be embarrassed, OK? But it’s ‘our little thing’. As many times as I text her “Kiss me baby!” it’ll make her smile, and I just think about kissing her. Just because I’ve said it ten thousand times doesn’t make it not true. Just because a truth has been said to you a hundred times doesn’t make it not true. Never get ho-hum with truth because that’s when you start going into a different direction. I want you to follow me in a simple prayer: – I almost started talking in Tagalog. Look I’m sorry, I had to catch myself. Say this with me:

Father. [audience repeats]. In Jesus name [audience repeats] I recognize my place [audience repeats] as a leader [audience repeats] in this house [audience repeats]. I recognize the spiritual principles [audience repeats] and the laws that work [audience repeats]. I ask you today: [audience repeats] let the sincerity of my heart [audience repeats] be shown to you [audience repeats] that I am committed to your vision [audience repeats]. I am committed [audience repeats] to changing lives [audience repeats], that what we talk about here today, [audience repeats] is not just money [audience repeats] it’s something that’s going to change a life [audience repeats]. It’ s something that’s going to bring people to heaven [audience repeats], people I’ll never see until that day [audience repeats]. Let the sincerity of my heart [audience repeats] be proven today Lord [audience repeats] as I sow this seed [audience repeats] in Jesus name… [audience repeats] …” – David Sumrall, Combined Students & Staff Meeting Of C3 Colleges, http://www.c3churchglobal.com/video/dave-sumrall-teaching-at, C3 Oxford Falls, 16/6/2010.

NOTE: ALL SCREEN GRABS WERE TAKEN BEFORE THE 02/01/2012.

EDIT – 07/02/2012: More screen grabs added (07/02/2012). This was to quote Pat Antcliff and the C3 College Website.

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