Critique of the Covenant of Increase

Critique stems from both a theological and a cultural, practical position. Some scholars and pastors feel that promoting a doctrine of prosperity and increase is in fact unbiblical, representing a false and un-Christlike Gospel. The evangelical magazine Christianity Today, founded by Billy Graham, has presented several articles that offered a critical perspective on the Prosperity Doctrine from a theologically Christian perspective. For the Lausanne Theology Working Group, prosperity teaching incorporates numerous unbiblical notions. First, the idea that material wealth is always a sign of God’s blessing is problematic, as wealth “can be obtained by oppression, deceit, or corruption.”¹ Though the Lausanne group affirms the Prosperity Gospel’s defense that asceticism or fatalism are not scripturally based, the article highlights that poverty is not a curse or a punishment, as such figures as Job aptly illustrate. Secondly, the article in Christianity Today points out that it is “dangerously contradictory to the sovereign grace of God” to attribute material or other success to “our own striving, wrestling, negotiations, or cleverness.” This “positive thinking,” or “positive theology,” is seen as an emphasis on humankind’s ability to overrule God’s power in shaping and influencing lives. Other naysayers feel that the Prosperity Doctrine provides an overly simplistic and watered-down version of the Gospel. Instead of engaging in the complexities of Scripture, these critics posit that teaching prosperity offers “God lite… in this view, God’s interventions are limited to granting our materialistic and selfish desires,” and the way to material blessing is paved by an easy-to-follow financial plan of tithing and donating to the church.²

Cultural and economic concerns also factor into the condemnation of the Prosperity Gospel. As a movement that claims millions of adherents, some critics speculate that the overly positive approach to monetary blessing “pumped air into the housing bubble” and thus contributed to the economic downturn.³ Groups like the Lausanne Theology Working Group have decried the spread of prosperity teaching in poverty-stricken parts of the world, such as Africa, as it “vastly enriches those who preach it, but leaves the multitudes no better off than before, with the added burden of disappointed hopes.”⁴ Though the socioeconomic situation is vastly different in the United States, critics point to similar problems of disillusionment that can happen when material wealth is viewed from the perspective of “God wants you rich!” Additionally, in times of financial downturn, some scholars and pastors are distressed at what they see as the indifference of preachers of prosperity toward the financial hardship of individuals. The New York Times called the Prosperity Doctrine “the Gospel of Getting Rich” and has commented that false hope and further burden could be created when televangelists worked to convince congregants that in times of famine, they would still experience material blessing if they upheld their end of the covenant.⁵ The critique here is that the covenant includes tithing, and sometimes sowing beyond the tithe, which could put believers into even more financial hardship.

Despite the criticism, Living Word Christian Center feels that the Prosperity Gospel and the Covenant of Increase are both Biblically based and highly relevant to Christian life. Several pastors at the church have commented that they bemoan the fact that the media is misinformed about prosperity teaching and that the true nature of the endeavor is distorted in most reports about the movement. Tim Burt, one of LWCC's pastors in 2011, spoke of the need to define “prosperity” before any further understanding of LWCC’s alignment with the Prosperity Doctrine can be achieved. To Pastor Tim, prosperity is not limited to material wealth, but is rather “an improvement in your life, in your spirit, in your soul, in your body… you wouldn’t think twice about taking a health class and learning about nutrition.”⁶ Pastor Mac seconds the idea that the Covenant of Increase is not, for him and for Living Word, singularly related to material gain. Furthermore, wealth and material possessions that increase in an individual’s life are not meant for personal consumption. In fact, in his Sunday Sermons, Living Word’s senior pastor makes it explicitly clear that the promise of wealth is “not for personal consumption… you can enjoy it when God brings it into your life but ultimately it’s for advancing the kingdom, for doing the work of God.”⁷ Pastor Tim Burt concurred and pointed out that Living Word is engaged in serious missionary and outreach work, all of which takes resources. For both pastors, the purpose of increase and prosperity is to better the individual lives of Living Word’s congregants, but also to make further giving possible.

Regardless of criticism, Living Word Christian Center finds the teaching of the Prosperity Gospel to be a critically important piece for understanding the individual’s relationship with God. The Covenant of Increase is so important a topic to LWCC that the words are emblazoned across the front stage’s back wall, central for all of the congregation to see and contemplate. However, the definitions of “prosperity” and “increase” matter to the pastors at Living Word, who bristle against much of what the media and critical pastors say about the movement. Interestingly, those like pastor Rick Warren who feel that teaching prosperity is “baloney” often posit that the Prosperity Gospel encourages the worship of the god of Mammon, the false god of wealth and riches.⁸ Conversely, Pastor Mac holds that those who cannot part with 10% of their income in order to uphold a covenant are in fact worshiping the god of Mammon, and that teaching prosperity and the importance of the tithe frees individuals from Mammon and allows them to fully enter into a relationship with God in which they will be blessed and enriched.