THE WORD-FAITH MOVEMENT
WOLVES IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING
By: Victor T. Stephens
"For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears." (Acts 20:29-31)
A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF WORD-FAITH THEOLOGY
Let's now examine the following chief issues encompassing Word-Faith theology.
1) The Force of Faith
2) The Divinity of Man
3) The Demotion of God
4) The Atonement of Christ
5) Confession and Health
6) Confession and Wealth
Before we begin our study, let's bear in mind that Word-Faith teachers engage in the clever and subtle manipulation of the scriptures that give their false teachings a surface presentation of authenticity. However, if we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us and study the scriptures in proper exegetical context (John 16:13; 2 Tim. 2:15), it will become evident that Word-Faith theology deviates from the veracity of God's Word.
THE FORCE OF FAITH
Let's examine Hebrews 11:1.
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Heb. 11:1)
Referring to this verse, Word-Faith teachers claim that faith is a force, an invisible substance that one can tap into to acquire anything we desire --- health, wealth, success, etc. They propose that spoken words are the "spiritual containers" that activate the force of faith, either positively or negatively. Positive words of faith incite God to act on our behalf, and negative words incite Satan to cause havoc in our lives. Whatever we confess with the mouth, one can create in their reality.
Spiritual laws supposedly execute the force of faith autonomously of God's sovereignty. Even God, they say, had to use the force of faith to create the heavens, the earth, and mankind. Kenneth Copeland, regarded as today's chief Word-Faith representative, claims that:
"God cannot do anything for you apart or separate from faith" on the grounds that "faith is God's source of power.... God used words when He created the heaven and the earth.... Each time God spoke, He released His faith --- the creative power to bring His words to pass. (Kenneth Copeland, "Freedom from Fear", Pages 11-12; "The Power of the Tongue", p4)
Copeland's clone and "spiritual son" Creflo Dollar echoes these same distortions.
"Now, God used faith substance to make everything that He made... in every one of those words they were filled with faith substance, because words are nothing but containers.... Every time God speaks, He can't help but to speak words that are filled with faith.... God's guts are called faith stuff.... Everything in Him is faith. What's in His heart is faith. If you were to cut God open, you're seeing nothing but faith. Every time He opens His mouth, He automatically fills those words with His faith material. (Creflo Dollar, "Changing Your World," September 20, 1998)
So, what's wrong with these teachings? Firstly, and noticeably, the Word-Faith Movement's unbiblical theology brands the fingerprints of the New Thought cultic teachings of Phineas P. Quimby, Mary Baker Eddy, and E.W. Kenyon.
Secondly, faith is not a force carried by spiritual containers (spoken words).
Thirdly, there are no scriptures in the Bible that indicate or suggest that "God's guts are called faith stuff." In Hebrews 11:1, "substance" is from the Greek word "hypostasis" and is more accurately defined as:
"An assured impression, a mental realizing extended from man to God." ("The Analytical Greek Lexicon," Page 419)
We must discern any theology that defines faith in an alternative manner as dangerously faulty.
