Now, for all you Pastors who like to "Cast Visions" for your "Seeker Friendly" Churches:

New from Los Lobos Ministry Records, the run away hit single Casting Vision from the worship team at Word Of Life Fellowship in El Diablo, TX!!

Lyrics:

Starting kinda early, face is on the screen
About to spout a "supernatural" dream
It's time to speak the sublime, put my trust in fate
I wanna see the crowd fill the off'ring plate

Blinding eyes when I'm casting vision
Full of lies when I'm casting vision
Ooh, comes from me fluently, it's ambiguity
My casted vision makes the best of me

Pushin' on the poor so they'll, sow a seed
My mind is racing, filled with avarice 'n greed
Tonight's the night, I'm gonna take the Word and twist it
I'm cryin' all of these tears but the Lord's not in it

Blinding eyes when I'm casting vision
On the rise when I'm casting vision
Nooo, accountability, i'm ruling sovereignly
My casted vision always seems to make the best of me, the best of me, yeah-eah eah-eah-hey

Ooh-ooh (oooh) ooh-ooh, casting vision
(Oooh) Greed,  casting vision
(Oooh, double vision) i must be out of my head, must be out of my head
(Oooh, double vision) I keep on casting vision, woa-oah
(Oooh, double vision) see me casting casting, casting vision
(Oooh, double vision) oh-oh my my casting vision
(Oooh, double vision) casting vision, yeah-ah-ah eah-eah eah-eah ah
(Oooh, double vision) I get casting vision, oooh

This song is dedicated to Vision Casting "Pastors" everywhere, but Mark Driscoll in particular, and those like Slayton, who have quoted this line:

Lyrics:

Going to church, right down the street.
Don’t hear God’s Word no more.
The Pastor says we don’t feed no sheep
So Get busy and amuse those goats.
Don’t be lazy, you’re here to satisfy
the leader’s god given vision supreme.
If you dare to question him
Then there’d certainly be a scene LOOK OUT!

(Chorus)
Another one’s off the bus
Another one’s off the bus
And another one’s off
And another one’s off
Another one’s off the bus
Hey, he’s gonna get you too
Another one’s off the bus

One by one, people disappeared
Never to be seen again
Thought this whole darn thing, was all a joke
But I changed my mind when
Saw the pastor, jump on the bus
Tear out screeching down the street.
People were getting squashed like bugs
and piled up like dead meat. LOOK OUT

(Chorus)
Another one’s off the bus
Another one’s off the bus
And another one’s off
And another one’s off
Another one’s off the bus
Hey, they don’t care ‘bout you
Another one’s off the bus

The pile behind, Mark Driscoll’s church,
Grew higher by the day
Some truly tried to follow his plan
And were thrown under anyway
Well his vision was not complete,
He was enraged at all of us,
I told Mark to stop playing God,
And now I’m under the bus!

(Chorus)
Another one’s off the bus
Another one’s off the bus
And another one’s off
And another one’s off
Another one’s off the bus
Hey, he’s gonna throw you too
Another one’s off the bus

---

Lyrics written by Joshua, Christina and Chris Rosebrough

It must be February, because the Seeker-Driven churches are rolling out their racy sex and relationship "sermons" in their never ending quest to be relevant. Here's one example from Potential "Church":

Get A Tattoo Onstage During The Sermon!!

Because nobody can listen to a regular sermon anymore...

So, let's think about this for a minute:

The God who created the entire universe from nothing, who was born to a virgin, lived an amazing life full of miracles, teachings and healings, then willingly gave His life on the cross to pay for the sins of all the world, then rose victoriously from the dead... all of that is not good enough to get people's attention?

But if someone get's a tattoo onstage during the sermon-that's gonna make the Gospel message a lot better? If only we would have known this before!

“I didn’t want to repent of my sins, but now that some lady got a tattoo during a sermon, I believe. Plus, it’s easier to pay attention to a sermon while being completely distracted. ”

— Said Nobody Ever

Closing thoughts: If pastors continue this downward spiral, where will it end up? If we say that "people are different nowadays" and "we need a gimmick to get people to church these days" aren't we just setting ourselves up for even more ridiculous and embarrassing stunts? And if a person comes to church only because they were attracted to the spectacle that made it "new" and "relevant," what kind of person are we attracting, and why are they really showing up?

(source: "Fighting for the Faith" website)

Hillsong’s “Sleazy Silent Night!”

The following video is wrong on so many levels. 

But beyond the ridiculous nature of this one particular song/video there's the more serious problem that this "thing" claims to be the church...   

Hillsong leads the way when it comes to "churches" featuring worldly, gigantic and expensive spectacles to attract a large audience. They are laughing all the way to the bank, too, as this global empire continues to gobble up followers around the world.

“Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world-the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life-is not from the Father but is from the world.”— 1 John 1: 15-16

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what it the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

— Romans 12: 1-2

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God.”— 1 Thessalonians 4: 3-5

Closing thoughts: For those of you who say "but this was a performance at a special concert event---this wasn't an actual worship service; you need to see this in it's proper context..." Here's a question; why would a "church" have an event/concert with moral guidelines that are different from the moral guidelines that govern a worship service? Why be "a little more like the world" to attract people to a spectacle (like this video) and then "re-adjust" things for a Sunday morning service? If this video is supposed to be sleazy on purpose to somehow try and teach a lesson, Hillsong doesn't mention it anywhere-and this is from their own YouTube channel. It seems that this is just a very obnoxious version of Silent Night to grab the attention of the crowd. Note: A few hours after this video was posted, it was "made private" by Hillsong; the video on this page now is a copy the "Fighting for the Faith" website put on Vimeo. (This is the typical response of many "Seeker Sensitive" and "Emergent" Church websites.....they try to hide their true beliefs and practices.  South Norfolk Baptist did this when they were called out about their endorsement of several "Emergent" and heretical 'church' websites).

The next video was taken at Perry Stone's Church. (This, and several of the following examples of outrageous idolatry being practiced in "Seeker Sensitive" 'churches,' is courtesy of Museum of Idolatry).  We're pretty sure this isn't a Christian form of worship. In fact, it resembles the type of worship used for the Golden Calf. But, this time the Golden Calf has been replaced with a replica of the Ark of the Covenant.

Bizarre!!

More "Ark Worship" insanity from Perry Stone's "church":

Marketing God

Like Beer and Sports Cars

You-know-what sells sports cars and beer but who would have thought that churches would resort to "selling God" using the same marketing ploy. Once again it's the "what can God do for you" approach to getting people to fill the pews. Today's sermons are all about helping you with your marriage, pleasure, job, family, investments. Gone are the centuries of Christianity in which churches taught about the character of God and the worship of him. If an approach pragmatically gets people in the pews and is thought to enhance evangelism, well then that's all that matters today.

Listen in this CNN segment of the video as the pastor essentially says "IF I've offended you then I'm sorry, but I'd do it again in a heart beat, therefore I'm not really sorry after all".

The pastor whose church mocked the community with the 'rap remix' often calls Christians who disagree with his methods 'Pharisee' and claims that everyone who complained about his racy postcards were more of the same. How does he know that they are Christians that he's offended? as opposed to common folk who just as readily don't want their small children watching a R-rated movie than see his church's postcards. Some perhaps are Roman Catholics who externally care about morality and mention God in their complaints. All of these people need OUTREACH not a church who mocks them.

Unfortunately these types of sermons have become the norm in today's seeker centered churches, and the church in the video is far from alone in their approach.

(Courtesy of Museum of Idolatry)

Good Friday is a time to for churches to preach how Christ was lifted up on the cross so that people may know that are forgiven of their sins. Resurrection Sunday is a time for churches to proclaim "He is risen indeed".

But for some reason, Gateway Church decided to advertise their Easter with this tasteless erectile dysfunction ad spoof:

Another Relevancy Fail……..

(Courtesy of Museum of Idolatry)

Someone needs to send an email to the folks at Liberty Church and let them know that Nsync ain't relevant no more.

This Purpose-Driven Church Has "Friends in Low Places"

Imagine showing up at church to find that your pastor has decided to stage his very own American Idol contest.

A church member decked in country and western garb walks on stage and begins singing "I've got friends in low places".

In a western twang he belts out such inspired lyrics as:

“I've got friends in low places
where the whiskey drowns
and the beer chases my blues away.”

As soon as this 'church' song is finished the music minister stands up and calls people to worship the Lord.

Does this sound too insane to be true?

It's not! Here is the video to prove it!

This is from NewSpring Church in Anderson, South Carolina.  

Perry Noble is their pastor and he is a disciple of Rick Warren. (See the PDF file below the update, to read his open letter to Rick Warren.)

After watching this video please scroll down and read the update. This story gets better.

** Update ***

This story gets weirder by the minute.

We received a tip from a reader that “Pastor” Tony Morgan of NewSpring Church commented on the “American Idol” sermon series at his blog. Here is what he said:

"The vote for next weekend's opening song included Brick House by the Commodores. I'm just praying that God loves funk."

Yep, "Pastor" Tony was personally pulling for the funk song ‘Brick House’. This is a song that is about the female anatomy. And yes, this song was sung in their church as part of their American Idol contest. Here are some of the lyrical highlights of ‘Brick House’:

Verse:?1. She knows she got everything
a woman needs to get a man, yeah.
How can she use, the things she use
36-24-36, what a winning hand!

Verse:
2. The clothes she wears, the sexy ways,
make an old man wish for younger days
She knows she's built and knows how to please
Sure enough to knock a man to his knees

We're sure these lyrics fit perfectly with the other sermon series they did called  “Girls Gone Wild.” How lewd is it that they named an entire sermon series after a series of porn videos.

---

Golly those Purpose-Driven Churches sure are relevant.

(Courtesy of the Museum of Idolatry)

“Sin City” Comes To Church:

ESPN Sports Center-like "Church" Entertainment

What function does this Sports Center-Like entertainment fulfill in a Christian Church service? Does it draw people closer to Jesus? Does it help them understand sound Biblical doctrine? Is it a form of prayer or Christian fellowship? What is its function?

30 Second Theology...From Commercials NOT The Bible

(January 28, 2015)

Super Bowl Sunday is right around the corner so how on earth can a seeker-driven vision casting leader expect to compete with that? Well...here's an idea, preach on "spiritual principles' found in everyone's favorite commercials. That will is a sure fire relevant way to draw a crowd. But, there's one small problem. Pastors are told by God's Word to "preach the word" (2 Tim 4:2) Apparently, Craig Groeschel doesn't think that applies to him.

Wrecking Ball of a "Praise Song"

Could someone explain to us the purpose of having a church's praise band perform Miley Cyrus', Wrecking Ball? Newspring Church, under the "pastoral care" of Perry Noble did exactly that.

Makes perfect sense if you think about it. Miley Cyrus is a paragon of Christian virtues and morality...cough...well...she was rated G years ago when she was Hannah Montana. But, clearly she's made some effort to shed the G rating and is now rated..PG-13...no....R....no...X.

Video from Newspring's church performance is posted below AND notice how they projected the lyrics so that the people at Newspring Church could sing along, just like a praise song.

“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)

Perry Noble Drops the N-Word

On Christmas Eve (2014), not only did Perry Noble claim that the Hebrew language has no word for "command" (see this episode of F4F to hear and see this debunked), Perry Noble also dropped the N-word.

The video is posted below:

Strut Your Stuff For Jesus??

(Courtesy of: Museum of Idolatry)

The video posted below is from Elevate "Church" in Frisco, Texas, pastrix Sheila Craft presiding.

There are so many things that are wrong with this short video. To help you see these problems we will ask a few questions.

1. Is this an example of what the Apostle Paul admonished in Titus 2:3-5 or the opposite?

“Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure...”

2. Is the message that "pastrix" Sheila is giving Biblical or is it a "lovers of self" type message that scratches itching ears?

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.” (2 Timothy 3:1–5)

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:3–4)

3. Then there is the issue of female pastors...does the Bible permit pastrix Sheila to be a pastrix?

“As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says.” (1 Corinthians 14:33–34)

“Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor” (1 Timothy 2:11–15)

Could it be possible that the reason these women are strutting their stuff in a "church" and mistakenly think this is a godly thing for them to be doing because the pastrix who is teaching them is a rebellious heretic and the message she is teaching isn't what the Bible actually teaches? Are these women demonstrating the fruit of repentance in their lives through the sin convicting work of the Holy Spirit? Does this glorify Jesus or does it glorify themselves? What do you think?

Frustrated worship leader writes only bridges

JACKSON, Miss. — Sean Whalen, an aspiring Christian musician, has discovered that he has the ability to write song bridges, but not verses or choruses.

“It’s been frustrating, but I’m growing to appreciate my God-given talent,” he says.

Bridges are the parts of the song that are neither chorus nor verse, but provide a third distinctive element in the middle of the song.

“They have to sound different yet similar to the rest of the song,” he says. “A bland bridge can sap the excitement from a worship time.”

Whalen believes God gave him a bridge-writing talent to force him to “seek community and collaboration with other Christian composers,” so he hopes to find a partner to write verses and choruses around the 93 or so bridges he has already written. Anyone interested in collaborating with Whalen can reach him at SeanWhalen@cleaneyes-pureheart.org.

Secretary makes sure pastor receives no calls

FLAGSTAFF — It’s a familiar refrain around Forest Glen Christian Center — Cheryl Pomeroy, executive secretary to the senior pastor, saying, “I’m sorry, he’s not available. May I take a message?”

Thus the death knell rings for another caller to Pastor James D. Amberson.

“In a good week, nobody gets through,” Pomeroy says, sitting at her desk behind neatly stacked papers and photographs of her twin daughters. Pomeroy, observers say, now holds the unofficial title of most effective church secretary in the country. Her elimination rate — the number of calls she doesn’t pass through to Amberson — exceeds 97 percent, far above the national average of 72 percent.

Pomeroy’s road to the top began when she was hired as an office assistant. A year later she became office manager, and after five years of faithful labor, she was promoted to secretary to the senior pastor. Last year her title was changed to Executive Secretary of the Entire Church Office Realm upon her request.

Her success causes some suspicion.

“She runs voice identification tests on his wife and kids,” said another secretary in the office whose knuckles appeared to have been bruised by swats from a ruler. Pomeroy admits to using voice ID to “ward off weirdoes,” but says she’s never used it on family members or known associates.

For his part, Amberson enjoys his clueless existence.

“As far as I’m concerned, the phone is quiet all day,” he says. “Nobody calls, so I sit in here tossing a ball up in the air, re-writing old sermons, that sort of stuff. I very much appreciate the tranquility.”

Real Preachers of Genius: Seeker-Sensitive Mega Church Guy

Tired of the gimmicks... and the Hawaiian shirts in church? The "me-centered" gospel is bringing in the people, but where does it lead to? There must be something more!

Do you prefer your praise and worship to be shaken, not stirred? No worries; the folks at Granger Community Church are happy to oblige with this rendition of James Bond's Skyfall:

How easy is it to write "7-11" cheap "contemporary praise and worship" ditties?  Easy, because they are so theologically tissue thin, anyone can write one in 5 minutes or less!!!!

CHURCH BECOMES "PURPOSE-DRIVEN" IN LESS THAN 40 DAYS!

Church Streams Services On Facebook Live For Unreached People Group In The Pews (courtesy of Unverified News)

“Technology is wonderful… except when it is not.” There was a time when the only phone in church was the one in the church office. Over the last decade there has been a shift. Now there are usually dozens or hundreds of phones in the church sanctuary, and many churches have ditched their landline.

If you show up on any given Sunday to many churches these days, you will find a number of congregants on their phones. Some of these may be using their favorite Bible app to follow along with the preacher or taking notes. But there are quite a few that are scrolling through their social media accounts while the preacher is delivering the sermon.

So New Direction Nazarene Church in Columbia, S.C. had an idea.

Pastor Jim Lindsey explains, “We are a mission-minded church. I am always looking for ways to reach people with the Gospel… especially people who have never heard about Jesus. Studies tell us that there are approximately 6,400 unreached people groups. And many of those are in America. God showed me one Sunday that some of those people are in our sanctuary. There are many who sit right there during the service and never hear a thing. Their heads are down., and for the longest time I thought they were praying, or sleeping. But it turns out they are on Facebook. My spirit was moved by this. I collaborated with our team, and we decided to use this as an outreach opportunity.”

Pastor Lindsey’s outreach director Bobby Fleet new exactly what they needed to do. “We have these people who are right there in the pews, but they never engage with the sermon. But they are engaging with their social media account. Why not use Facebook Live to stream the service from the pulpit to their phone 25 feet away? That way while they are scrolling through political memes and funny ‘fail’ videos, they can still catch the sermon. This was a home run missions project. It didn’t cost us a dime, no one had to get a passport, and everyone could keep their vacation days for Disney.”

The outreach is a success. Gina, a 30-something member of New Direction appreciates the fact that the church cared enough about her generation to provide a ministry that she can be a part of. “I sort of felt bad, scrolling through my Insta during the service. But now I’m able to just stay in my phone and peek the live window whenever I want. I really feel like I am a part of the church now. When the pastor says something I like, I just send up a heart.”

KMART SEEKS "REVIVAL";  REPLACES MARTHA WITH RICK WARREN:

John Hagee Reveals Top 10 Prophecies Deciphered From Super Blood Wolf Moon Eclipse (courtesy of “Unverified News”)

Rev. John Hagee is a leader among those interested in prophecy, especially prophecy in regards to natural phenomenon, and more especially for those interested in how those prophecies relate to America. He has written numerous books on the subject, with a special look towards unique lunar events. One of his more popular series was about the prophetic significance of the blood moons.

But the blood moons are not done bleeding prophecy. In fact, there is an event tonight that is called a “Total Eclipse of a Super Blood Wolf Moon” A “super moon” occurs when the moon appears larger because it is closer to the earth. It is a “wolf moon” because it is the first full moon in January. It is a “blood moon” because it appears red due to the way the light is refracting through the earth’s atmosphere. It is a total eclipse because the earth will be passing between the moon and the sun. That’s a lot going on. But John Hagee says, “You have no idea.” During a prophecy presentation on tonight’s event, Hagee became so excited that he collapsed on the platform. But before he did, he gave these 10 prophecies for 2019…

1 - Chick-fil-A will be open on Sundays after being purchased by the Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

2 - Chick-fil-A will no longer be open on Saturdays.

3 - The NCAA will do away with the College Football Playoffs. Instead, the championship trophy will be mailed to Clemson University and the University of Alabama on alternating years.

4 - Joel Osteen and John Piper will participate in a pulpit swap one Sunday in July.

5 - President Donald Trump and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will admit that it was all an experiment to test the patience of the American people, then resign, and give us our nation back.

6 - There will be no more vegetable recalls because people will finally stop eating these dangerous food items.

7 - Jason Momoa will be offered the starring role in a remake of Pippi Longstocking… and then lose the part after it is discovered he wears a wig.

9 - Christian actor Kirk Cameron will be accused of being overly appropriate with his female co-stars.

10 - Satire news sites like The Babylon Bee and Unverified Source will overtake traditional news organizations like CNN and FOX as the public looks for more accuracy in their news.

Looks like 2019 is going to be fun.

Pastor Steven Furtick Signs Contract Extension With Huge Performance Bonuses (courtesy of “Unverified Source”)

High-powered positivity preacher Steven Furtick has signed a huge multi-year contract with Elevation Church. The announcement was made yesterday, and details of the contract were released today. The package includes the basic seven-figure pastoral salary, and normal mansion allowance. But as is becoming common in the 21st century, there are some bonuses included.

Obviously there is a $50,000 signing bonus. This isn't a bonus to actually sign the contract. Rather, it is a bonus for signing limited edition church merchandise. If Furtick signs 500 items that will be sold as premium souvenirs in the church coffee shop, he will receive $50,000.

Other performance bonuses include the following...

$10,000 if he uses the phrase "It is your season" every week in a sermon.
$1,000 for every sermon where he misuses the success of Old Testament characters to guarantee success for 21st century Christians.
$25,000 for every week that he is able to avoid shaking hands with attendees after church services.
$5.00 for every Like & Share of his Instagram inspirational video clips and graphics.
$25 for every time he repeats what he believes to be an earth-shattering point during his sermon then pauses waits for the audience to cheer like he hit a homerun.
$100 for every time he can make a positive point without using the Bible.

Gina Radner, Furtick's agent said the contract and bonuses are in line with what you see in other professions. " Lebron James is worth it. I think Steven is worth it. And I think most of his followers would agree. Especially the women. We wanted his support to reflect the positivity he brings to everyone he meets... well... everyone he meets through social media and the main stage of conferences. His lifestyle needs to reinforce his message. We think this contract will enable him to exude the prosperity he preaches."

Furtick is known for his bumper sticker theology marked by short quips that work off of the 'not this, but that" formula. For instance, he recently tweeted the following...

"Confidence is not a personality type; it's a decision."

"You can't always get a new start to your story, but you can write a new ending."

"You didn't just spend $20 on my book, you invested $20 to read an amazing piece of positive literature written by a guy who knows how to make you feel better about your lousy situation."

"I think we can all agree that Pastor Steven is worth every million he makes," says Kayla Bender, who has been on the front row for all of Furtick's sermons 8 years running.

Furtick's publicist assured the preacher's fans that this preaching contract is not Steven's entire source of income. "Steven still has his book deals, as well as speaking engagements, and his endorsement deals with tight clothing manufacturers. The small contract he signed with the church would obviously not be enough to support him. So rest assured that he has supplemental income elsewhere."

Joel Osteen Preaches Through The Book Of Romans During Meet & Greet  (courtesy of “Unverified News”)

Joel Osteen is a “topical” preacher if there ever was one. But he doesn’t mix it up much. On any given Sunday his topic is ‘life improvement.’ He can preach positivity and prosperity out of many different Bible passages. Not all… but enough. And when he feels like he is getting in a Bible rut, he can always pull out some of his best-selling self-help books. The way he preaches, most of his congregation won’t know the difference.

This focus on positivity preaching has caused Osteen to become the target of jokes and attacks from Bible preachers across the nation. Pastor Joel isn’t one to go for negativity, so he decided to do something positive to combat the image that he can’t preach the truth like a real preacher. He explains, “It would be easy for me just to debate the Bible people. But I’m not one to argue… especially when it comes to truth. So I decided to do something that would make everyone happy.”

Osteen decided to do something normal preachers do. “I read somewhere that Bible preachers do what they call a series, where they preach through a book of the Bible.,” says the Lakewood Church pastor. “I know a lot of these preachers really think highly of the book of Romans. So I decided to preach through the book of Romans. I’ll be honest, I didn’t know how long it would take or if my people would stay with me through the entire series. So I decided to preach during the meet and greet. Two birds. One stone.”

The sermon on Romans lasted the 45 seconds. it takes for members to shake hands and greet the people around them. After the brief time of fellowship Osteen flashed a huge smile and continued, “Well, I hope you enjoyed the sermon on Romans. I’ll tell you what, now I know why they call it ‘exhaustive preaching.’* I am exhausted. I didn’t know if I was going to get through it. I thought I may have to extend it into the offering time. But I stayed positive, and finished it out. If it is alright with you, I may try to do this more often. I was thinking about preaching through the book of 3 John next year.”

Pastor John MacArthur, one of the leading evangelical preachers in America did his best to commend Osteen for his attempt. “I applaud Mr. Osteen. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for him to read much of the book of Romans, much less preach it. It is hard to talk about sin and smile as much as he does. So I am sure that was a difficult 45 seconds. It takes me 45 weeks to preach through Romans. If he needs a retreat after that, I’d be glad to host him for a week and exchange sermon ideas.”