Donald Trump & Paula White. Photo credit: Christian Today
The liberal Washington Post has an excellent piece by Michael Horton who is an author, speaker and J. Gresham Machen professor of Theology and Apologetics at Westminster Seminary. Dr. Horton expresses his concern that Donald Trump’s inauguration will help to mainstream the heretical Word of Faith (WOF) movement. He points out that “Trump has surrounded himself with cadre of prosperity evangelists who cheerfully attack basic Christian doctrines. The focus of this unity is a gospel that is about as diametrically opposed to the biblical one as you can imagine.” According to Dr. Horton, WOF is “another religion.” Clearly, WOF is not historic, orthodox biblical Christianity for the reason that in the Faith system man is glorified and the God of the Bible is humiliated.
Now listen as a Christian theologian examines WOF teaching and reveals the reasons evangelicals should be alarmed by the people President-elect Trump chose to pray during his inauguration. Dr. Horton writes:
Donald Trump’s upcoming inauguration will include Paula White and possibly other members of his inner circle, Darrell Scott, “Apostle” Wayne T. Jackson and Mark Burns. They’re all televangelists who hail from the “prosperity gospel” camp. They advocate a brand of Pentecostal Christianity known as Word of Faith.
Inaugurations are always curious rituals of American civil religion. It would not be surprising to see a non-Christian religious leader participating. But what’s problematic for me as an evangelical is how Trump’s ceremony is helping to mainstream this heretical movement.
The prosperity gospel — the idea that God dispenses material wealth and health based on what we “decree” — is not just fluff. It’s also not just another branch of Pentecostalism, a tradition that emphasizes the continuation of the gifts of healing, prophecy and tongues. It’s another religion.