What I like about Joel Osteen

My professor a few semesters ago told us about how he was gifted Joel Osteen’s board game for Christmas. They played it and found out that you couldn’t lose it; everyone always ends up rich and successful. To me, this is a synechdoche for Osteen’s philosophy in general: It worked out that way for him, so this must be the reality for everyone.

Yes, there is the typical opinion of Osteen held by many Christians today: He ignores the cross, the reality of human suffering, the dark parts of the Bible, as well as a solid and consistent interpretation method. And yes, I hold that opinion for the most part. As a theologian, he fails miserably.

But there are two things I’ve heard from him which at least made me respect him as a human, both of which people in ministry especially could glean from.

His response to the shooting at his church

A few months ago, a female shooter attempted to open fire at Osteen’s church in Texas. She was killed in the exchange and only two other people were injured: her son and another older man. When talking about the event, Osteen prayed for the son’s recovery and I heard (but now can’t find the article) that Lakewood was paying for his medical bills.

This could have been a move to villify or disparage the son of someone who had come and tried to execute a terrorist attack on his church. Instead, he acknowledged the reality of the pain and evil perpetrated and asked God for continued mercy and protection. I thought that was a good example to his followers to choose forgiveness and seek healing instead of revenge.

People get beat up all week long

The one that really made me reexamine how I judge his preaching was this one quote I saw in an interview (Which of course I can’t find now. But he says very similar things in this article).

He said something along the lines of, “People get beat up all week long. They don’t need to come to church to get beat up more; they need to come and hear some encouragement and hope that things can get better.”

It made me see some of his theology from his perspective. Sure, it’s not the most profound, and it may not be able to pull someone up out of the trenches of suffering or addiction, but it made me respect him more. Assuming he’s telling the truth and not just trying to rob people out of their money, it’s a posture many Christians could benefit from: Wanting to build people up and give them hope. How many of us have seen pastors just use the Bible to beat people up and have them leaving the church feeling worse than when they arrived? Is that really the good news that is supposed to change our lives?

In my own communication of the teachings of the Bible, I would tend toward going a bit deeper and getting more involved in the text, and acknowledging the reality of evil and suffering more, but I really don’t think that Osteen’s is a bad starting point. In that statement (disregarding some other statements he’s made in the past), he didn’t deny the reality of evil and suffering; he simply gave Christians a motive to encourage and uplift.

And of course, positive thinking and speech is commanded in the Bible. What else would Paul mean by “rejoice always,” or, “always be prepared to give an answer for the hope you have.”

Jesus joins us in our suffering, but His goal is not to leave us there.
He didn’t die so that we would spend eternity depressed and morose.

While I don’t affirm all of Osteen’s theological takes, I can say that my opinion of him has shifted in the past year. No longer do I think he’s merely a lying thief; I think that, if we take him at his word, he wants to help people and encourage them — something many pastors could take a note from.

And lastly, I wonder how much the shooting at his own church has changed his thinking on pain, evil and suffering. It will be interesting to see if this lends any more depth to his preaching in years to come.

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Day 42 of 100 Days of Blog

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Published on September 02, 2024 12:57
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