Is the Prosperity Gospel On the Verge of Bankruptcy?

Recent events have challenged some that follow the "prosperity gospel." This "gospel" teaches that a sign of God's approval is in the form of financial benefits to be spent on one's self. Now I believe that God will prosper those that are in obedience; I believe that Abraham's blessings are for the body of Christ; however, those blessings are designed not just to meet our daily needs, they are for the feeding of the poor, the support of missionaries, the spreading of the Gospel message, and for like minded endeavors. They are not so the televangelist may live in a multi-million dollar home with servants. They are not so one can own several luxury automobiles. Look at some of the recent events:

• In Fort Worth, Texas, a review board ruled December 7 that Kenneth Copeland Ministries' $3.6 million jet did not have tax-exempt status. The ruling came after the ministry, whose 1,500-acre campus includes a $6 million church-owned lakefront mansion, refused to release the salaries of Copeland, his wife, and others.

• In suburban Atlanta, Georgia, a sheriff's deputy served an eviction notice November 14 at Bishop Thomas Weeks III's Global Destiny Church. Court documents indicate the bishop, the ex-husband of televangelist Juanita Bynum, owed half a million dollars in back rent. The church has lost roughly half of its 3,400 members since Weeks and Bynum's 2007 fight in a hotel parking lot, in which Weeks was accused of pushing, choking, and beating his then-wife.

• In Tampa, Florida, Without Walls International Church--which once attracted 23,000 worshipers--has shrunk drastically after co-pastors Randy and Paula White announced in 2007 they were divorcing. The church faces an uncertain future after the Evangelical Christian Credit Union began foreclosure proceedings November 4 and demanded repayment of a $12 million loan on the church's property.

• In suburban Minneapolis on November 18, Living Word Christian Center pastor Mac Hammond won the first stage of a court battle with the Internal Revenue Service to keep his salary private. Yet in 2008, he was forced to put his private jet up for sale and cut Living Word's hour-long television show in half to save money amid falling contributions.

We need prosperity as it takes money to preach the Gospel and feed the poor; however, we need the right type of prosperity. We need a prosperity that puts God first, others second and self last. That is a message that is lacking in most prosperity teachings. If the purpose of being blessed was to bless others, I wonder if the tape sales, conference fees and partnerships would be at the same level. Maybe it is time for the "prosperity gospel" to file bankruptcy so the real prosperity gospel can give to others.