I'd like to preface this by saying that I like Joel Osteen. He's happy, he's upbeat, he's friendly, and he seems genuinely... Well, genuine! I'm not a hater by any stretch of the imagination. I am a born again, Bible believing, Baptist. I am a preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ and wanted to have a front-seat opinion of this fellow for myself. Having never seen him on television, his books are the best way for me to get to know what he believes, what he teaches, and what he emphasizes.
My sole purpose in reading this book was to find out about the man. The book was quite engaging, but it's important to know the man behind the pages when your read a book like this. He uses quite a few personal illustrations and this book helped me to get acquainted with him and his ministry.
Firstly, Mr. Osteen is:
1. Funny!
- His humor is actually quite witty! Sarcasm is so 2007.
2. Caring
3. Engaging
- His STYLE (not content) reminded me of one of my favorite preachers ever - Curtis Hutson. He had an anecdote, illustration, or funny story for every point he made. I'll never forget to "keep a bottle of Windex handy" and several other things because he drove the point home so well!
Secondly, Mr Osteen is NOT:
1. A gospel preacher
- I did not one time in the entire book hear Mr. Osteen share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Bear in mind what God's Word says in I Cor. 15:1-4, that the gospel of God is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I was disappointed to think that a man with a ministry to millions of people around the world would think so little of the gospel that could save their souls. I'm not saying that Joel doesn't believe the gospel. I DON'T KNOW! He never said one way or the other.
2. A Bible Expositor
- On the few occasions that Mr. Osteen expounded the Scriptures, there were blatant errors in his belief system. I mean, you don't have to be a Bible scholar to understand that "In his presence is fulness of joy" means that in God's presence there is fulness of joy! Not, "When you're happy, God will be near to you." or, "Sometimes you just have to fake it until you make it." Joy doesn't bring us into God's presence, God's presence brings us joy. There were several times the Bible was just twisted and used to make a point. That ought never to be. We must study God's Word to find out what He wants to say to us, not use His Word to fit "the way I feel things ought to be!"
3. Doctrinally sound
- I would like to say one thing on this point. After the entire book, I have no idea what he believes on the person of Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus Christ was only mentioned when there was a story to be told that applied to some particular topic. I also listened intently for phrases like "The Lord Jesus Christ", or "The Lord Jesus", or anything that would show Mr. Osteen's submission to Jesus as God or Saviour. Nothing like that ever came from his mouth. Whenever someone makes a small deal of Jesus Christ, they have a big problem. I think it would have been nice to know how he feels about the one who will one day judge his eternal soul, but it never came up. I guess maybe Jesus is an example to him, but that's about it.
Here's my other bookend to this review. I honestly knew NOTHING about this man when I picked up the book. When I put it down, I felt like I knew him pretty well.
Believe me, I have NO ax to grind with this guy, it just seems like Jesus Christ is not the main thing he's got going on.
For a guy that calls himself and evangelical preacher / pastor / teacher, that's not a good thing!