In every generation, the church of Jesus Christ faces many dangers. Some of these arise from without (Acts 20:29). However, the most dangerous of them are those which arise from within (Acts 20:30). The authors of the Bible were wise to these dangers when they warned about deceptive false teachings and dangerous false teachers. Other warnings abound calling upon the church to be vigilant and discerning in order to safeguard the precious deposit of the ‘faith that was delivered to the saints once for all’ (Jude 3 CSB). So strong are the apostolic admonitions that all those who preach another gospel are declared as ‘accursed’ (Gal 1:8 NASB).
In our day, in the twenty-first century, the church still faces many doctrinal dangers as warned about by the apostles in the New Testament. The call to be discerning and vigilant applies to us today just as much as it did to them then. Chief among these dangers are the teachings that have come to be known as the prosperity gospel and word of faith theology. These teachings are really a constellation of mutually self-reinforcing doctrines which hold, essentially, that health and wealth in this life are guaranteed to Christians as a direct consequence of the atoning work of the Son of God on the cross. These blessings of material prosperity are to be seized by exercises of ‘faith’ that range from financial giving to speaking words of positive proclamation.
A cursory glance at local churches on the African continent reveals that this teaching has crept into many congregations and become their functional doctrine. Even churches that boast very solid statements of faith have become infiltrated by this health-and-wealth doctrine so as to undermine their very own stated beliefs. It is becoming harder and harder to trust that just because a congregation bears the name ‘Presbyterian’ that it will adhere to the doctrines set forth in the Westminster Confession. Just because a congregation bears the name ‘Anglican’ does not mean it adheres to the Thirty-Nine Articles. Just because a congregation bears the name ‘Baptist’ does not mean that it conforms to statements such as the 1689 London Baptist Confession, the New Hampshire Confession, or others like it.
Therefore, there is a need for a formal statement to help draw a clear line between those who hold to the prosperity gospel and word of faith theology and those who do not. What follows, then, are a series of affirmations and denials to that end. The goal is not to cause unnecessary division but to help clarify where different congregations and denominations truly stand with regards to this dangerous teaching. Our hope is that many will sign off on this statement and work to safeguard God’s people from this plague.
For the Triune God’s glory alone.