Home Christian News Prosperity Theology Beliefs Are in the Church. Not Sure to What Extent

Prosperity Theology Beliefs Are in the Church. Not Sure to What Extent

In the LifeWay article announcing the findings, McConnell said, “A number of high-profile evangelical leaders have condemned the prosperity gospel. But more than a few people in the pews have embraced it.”

Study Asks Vague Questions to Determine Adherence to Gospel Theology

Is LifeWay suggesting that the 69 percent of Christians who said they believe “God wants me to prosper financially” embrace prosperity theology and demonstrates an increase in the heresy?

“The verb is hinging on what God wants,” McConnell conceded. “We’d have to do additional research to know fully what that means. Some will buy into all of the aspects of prosperity theology and some are kind of picking and choosing. That’s going on in the American church where we kind of pick and choose the elements of the Bible or the elements that my church teaches or teachers that we find online and we kind of buy into those. And sometimes we make up our own. We’re picking up things in the culture and putting it into our theology and so these are just three aspects that relate to prosperity theology.”

Is it possible that those who answered “yes” to question three also believe that God will bless them in non-financial ways, or might bless them through a lack of money?Researchers didn’t ask.

While McConnell told us the idea that prosperity is a measuring stick to indicate God’s blessing is “a very American framework or Western ideal,” he would not call it unique to America. However, he maintained that in parts of the world where people prioritized the group they’re part of rather than the individual, “it’s possible there would be different responses.”

In some of those cultures, prosperity gospel is seeing its greatest gains.

African pastor Conrad Mbewe, wrote for the Gospel Coalition:

“We need to address prosperity theology here in Africa because it has replaced the true gospel of salvation with a kind of “gospel” that is no gospel at all. This is happening in what once were mainstream evangelical circles. Everywhere, especially on radio and television, almost all you hear is this message about how God in Christ wants us to be physically healthy and materially prosperous. You hardly ever hear sermons about sin and repentance. So salvation has now become deliverance from sickness and poverty. It is temporal rather than eternal. Prosperity theology is like the Arabian camel that gave the impression it simply wanted a little space in the tent, but now the whole of it is inside and the true gospel is outside. This erroneous teaching is filling churches across the continent with people who have no desire for true biblical salvation or godliness. Sadly, it’s spreading like an uncontrollable bushfire.”

Joe Paglia, Director of Operations for Leadership Resources, called the problem “very prevalent,” in Africa and “sadly, it’s one of the U.S.’s largest exports.”

McConnell says the study “gives us a couple of perspectives but definitely there’s more that can be done on this topic.” But he also stands by the perspectives the research revealed.

“What it says is prosperity theology has crept into many protestant churches and into our thinking,” McConnell said. “Whether it’s been taught by prosperity theology teachers or whether it’s simply our culture and the fact that our culture is always using a financial measuring stick for success, whether it’s either of those reasons, it has crept into a lot of believers’ thinking.”

Some hard numbers on exactly how many might help pastors find effective ways to combat the heresy.  

Sadly, they won’t find that information in this study.