Gospel of Prosperity and its Weakness

Pentecostal churches are a worldwide phenomenon. They are Christian churches that have great emphasis on the supernatural happenings such as, wealth, health, prosperity, healing, deliverance, prophesy, among others. These supernatural happenings are looked upon as new ways of God responding to the needs and sufferings of humanity. They are exalted as signs of God liberating his people from suffering and poverty as well as ways of evangelization and spread of Christianity. The Pentecostal churches appear to give answers to the needs of the people as it uses a theology that addresses the religious need of the people. They put emphasize on spiritual powers such as deliverance, fighting the evil spirits, healing and prophesy.. Wonders, signs and miracles from God matter a lot in the life of the adherent for they always expect God to act in very supernatural ways. These supernatural utterances have fueled the growth of Pentecostal churches. These churches have also been so vocal through the media where they air their services through Televisions, radios and news papers. Through the media they frequently depict the healings and deliverances taking place as well as proclaim personal and national prophesy. Some pastors or Evangelists have oil that they give at a price declaring that the oil has healing powers. Others give their accounts number claiming that if you send money to their accounts you will receive instant blessings from God. This study focuses on the Gospel of prosperity and its weaknesses. The theory guiding the study is rational choice theory (RCT) by Finke, Adam Smith & Stark. The study objectives are to assess the core message in the preaching of Pentecostal churches, to analyze the place of the cross and the sufferings of Christ in the Pentecostal churches. The study employed descriptive survey study research, Sample and Sampling Procedures. The study used questionnaires and interviews to collect data. Key Words: Pentecostal churches, Gospel of prosperity