The Balaam Syndrome

If you send in your love offering of $100, then we will send you this “free” gift, a packet of mustard seeds. If you plant them in this special soil from the Holy Land (yours free with your $125 love offering), then they will produce a glorious plant that will bear miraculous fruit. If you give $200 dollars, then we will provide you with a personal prophecy that you can speak over your mustard seeds that will ensure that they grow both faster and taller (cause we know you’re in a hurry and need results now).

We now have the opportunity to buy free things from ministries that will change our lives, heal us, make us rich, and save our loved ones. After all, it is God’s will that we all be billionaires living extravagant lives in excess. If you are not walking in such divine prosperity, then, obviously, something is wrong with your spirituality, your faith, well . . . you.

The Balaam Syndrome is an increasingly common blight plaguing the contemporary Church. Material wealth is now proudly worn as a badge confirming one’s “genuine” spirituality and faith. If you don’t own one of these badges yet, don’t fret. You can purchase a free prophecy that will, eventually, if you keep giving and believing, impart one to you. Then, you can be part of this elite spiritual club – well, if you really believe.

Something is strangely amiss here. To be sure, the Bible has a lot to say about giving and finances; there’s no argument there. Christians should be taught what the Bible has to say about such matters. There is a lot of wisdom there to be gleaned. But where does the Bible establish wealth as the deciding gauge of someone’s spirituality?

It seems that if material wealth necessarily indicates one’s piety and commitment to Christ, then Bill Gates would be America’s most faithful pastor and we’d all be worshipping weekly at our local Wal-Mart SuperCenters. Come to think of it, maybe he is, and maybe we do?

But I’m not completely convinced yet. I mean that I’m not so sure that I can say Chinese Christians, faithfully living under religious persecution, and earning around $40 per week for working exceedingly long hours, are somehow less spiritually adept than wealthy American Christians. Well, maybe they don’t pray enough? Or maybe they don’t believe strongly enough? Or maybe they just aren’t “true” believers?

Surely, it could have nothing to do with the economic climate of America versus China. I mean, if a true American Christian had been born in China, surely he or she would be wealthy by now. Right?

Wealth and health doctrine, because it is often accompanied by power and popularity, can be an extremely enticing message. Who doesn’t want to be healthy and wealthy? And by the way, I believe in divine healing and in the notion God wants us to prosper (although I detest that so many construe this in only materialistic terms). And what can even be more enticing is that genuine spiritual gifts are often prostituted for financial gain. Gifted pastors, prophets and teachers misuse their gifts to gain money, power and popularity. Well-meaning, but misled followers recklessly throw their sparse finances at these dazzling displays of signs and wonders. Again, I am not speaking against generosity, miracles, signs & wonders, or spiritual gifts; I’m speaking against their abuse.

The rub comes in when people naively equate spiritual gifts with spiritual character. It is just as erroneous as equating material wealth and genuine faith. People, then, blindly follow these “spectacular” ministers and buy into a lie because they believe that gifts and money is God’s stamp of approval on these prophetic peddlers.

This is the Balaam Syndrome – merchandising ministry. The Bible uses Balaam to illustrate this deceptive doctrine in reference to false teachers:

“By abandoning the straight path, they have gone astray and have followed the path of Balaam, the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness . . . Woe to them! For they have traveled in the way of Cain, have abandoned themselves to the error of Balaam for profit, and have perished in Korah's rebellion” ( 2 Pet 2:15; Jude 11).

Balaam had pimped out his gifts to the highest bidder (see Num 22-31). Because of his “spectacular ministry,” people were willing to pay him for his services. The Moabite king, Balak, had hired Balaam to curse the children of Israel. Of course, it backfired. But the lesson is obvious. People, even kings, are often attracted to gifted people because of greed and power. And too often these gifted individuals are willing to prostitute their gifts because of the love of money. Money is simply appealing and motivating.

Paul said we should be nothing like those kinds of people. “For we are not like so many others, hucksters who peddle the word of God for profit, but we are speaking in Christ before God as persons of sincerity, as persons sent from God” (2 Cor 2:17). He goes on to warn that “those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains” (1 Tim 6:9-10).

This inordinate fascination with money and material prosperity is leading many astray, displacing the (one, genuine) faith. It appeals to our fallen nature, our greed. And because it is sweetened with cleverly-skewed Scripture, it becomes an easy poison to swallow.

Please hear me. I am NOT saying that God wants us impoverished or sick, nor am I suggesting the Bible has nothing good to say about giving, sharing, financial prudence, or miracles. I am simply saying that contemporary Christianity – particularly the American flavor – has become so enamored and misled by materialism dressed up in spiritual garb, that it has become detrimental and something entirely different than what is described as godly in the Bible.

A lot more could be said regarding this important subject. For further reading I suggest Merchandising The Anointing by Rick Renner and Thus Saith the Lord? by John Bevere.* I want to thank my dear friend Tammy for being bold enough to bring it into our little blogosphere; she inspired this tirade (er, I mean discussion).

Material prosperity should never be the gauge by which we measure someone’s Christian walk. Selling what God has freely given should never be named among God’s people. Money should never be put forth as the panacea for all problems. Enough said.

*It should be noted that by listing these books as suggested reading, I am in no way categorically endorsing everything they teach. I do think there are elements in them that would be informative though. There are some things in them with which I would take exception, however.