The ministries that are to be avoided are the ones that take the prosperity message to the extreme and eventually become lovers of money and lovers of pleasure, more than lovers of God. You will recall that the scripture teaches us that the love of money is the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10). The main thrust of their gospel message is, “it’s all about me” and “what God can do for me?” It’s not at all a message of serving God, serving His body, and seeking to please Him. Remember that I started this section by stating that God’s word is always balanced. God does want to bless us, but He does that so that we can be a blessing to others. For our Lord Jesus has taught us that it is more blessed to give than to receive. And then the third characteristic listed, are ministries that have a form of godliness but deny its power. All four of the ministry examples that I have quoted earlier, have no power of God manifested through them. It is all man’s wisdom. Now more than ever before, false prophets and false teachers have risen to prominent positions in the church. Pastors of churches must be vigilant to protect their flocks in this hour, and warn those entrusted to their care about false ministries. The Lord’s shepherds, who know His word, can very quickly expose false visions and extreme teachings for what they are, by showing that they are contrary to God’s written word and are thus able to protect the flocks that the Lord Jesus has placed into their care. Sadly, not all shepherds can rightly divide the word of truth and are thus themselves vulnerable to being deceived, which leaves their flocks just as vulnerable. Sadly, the church today is ripe for the event called the falling away. All that is needed for that to happen, is the catalyst that will trigger that falling away to occur.
Michael E.B. Maher
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