Your best life now?

Is that what the Gospel is all about? Is the goal of the Christian life really to be happy, healthy, and successful? That's what Joel Osteen teaches, in his super-successful book, Your Best Life Now. Simply obey God's commands; follow these seven steps; God is keeping score; but don't worry, there are no serious consequences if you fail--you'll just miss out on living "your best life now."

The problem with this message, says Dr. Michael Horton, professor of Systematic Theology at Westminster Seminary, is that the Christ of the Bible is totally unnecessary. “'How can I be right with God?' is no longer a question when my happiness rather than God’s holiness is the main issue...Salvation is not a matter of divine rescue from the judgment that is coming on the world, but a matter of self-improvement in order to have your best life now." Osteen has replaced the Gospel with the Law, but has made the hoops you have to jump through "easier." "Joel Osteen is the next generation of the health-and-wealth gospel. This time, it’s mainstream."

Your best life now? Or salvation by works? I see this as further evidence of mainstream American evangelicalism's drift toward Roman Catholicism. Sure, the evangelicals don't have any of the trappings of formality, reverence, or ritual, but they've got it where it counts.

(Horton's excellent essay discussing Osteen's teachings can be found here.)