INSTANT REGRET: Joel Osteen Lets Paul Washer Preach at Lakewood

I like to start with something funny and I heard about these two men, Archie and Jack. They had debated their whole life as to whether Jesus was white or whether he was black. Archie was certain he was white, Jack was just as certain he was black.

As fate would have it, they died on the same day, rushed to the pearly gates, said, St. Peter, please tell us. We've been arguing our whole life, is Jesus white or is he black? About that time, Jesus stepped up and said, Buenos Dias.

Christ, the Judge, and the Opening Joke

It's a tremendous privilege for me to be here this afternoon with you. Before we begin with any further speaking, I would also like to go to the Lord in prayer and I would ask you to pray. There's so much going on here this afternoon, so much that you don't understand.

But I'll tell you where I'm coming from. I'll preach as a dying man to dying men and women and youth, and I will preach as though I will never preach again. And I will tell you things that you will misunderstand.

And I will tell you things that make you so angry with me.

Preaching as a Dying Man and the Call to Repentance

I believe there's enough pushing people down already. So when people leave one of our services or read one of my books, I want them to leave saying, you know what, I can be better. I can rise higher. The only thing that's holding some people back is who they're spending time with.

Life is too short to spend it with negative, can't do it, jealous, critical, small minded people. You need some eagles in your life, people that soar, people that are doing great things, people that have a great attitude.

And faith alone in Jesus Christ is preceded and followed by repentance. A turning away from sin, a hatred for the things that God hates and a love for the things that God loves, a growing in holiness and a desire not to be like Britney Spears, not to be like the world and not to be like the great majority of American Christians, but to be like Jesus Christ.

I don't know why you're clapping. I'm talking about you.

Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make you my Lord and Savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again.

The Danger of Easy-Believism and False Conversion

The problem is not liberal politicians. It's evangelical preachers. If they're ever challenged regarding their conversion because of a lack of fruit or overwhelming worldliness, they defend their hope of salvation by once again affirming the sincerity of their prayer and the confirmation of their religious leaders.

If any counseling is done, a person is usually admonished to turn from his or her backsliding and to begin serving the Lord again. However, the validity of their conversion is never examined or ever challenged.

So many people, for example, children evangelism, I would not let my child attend ninety eight percent of the Sunday school classes and vacation Bible schools in this country, and I'll tell you why a bunch of children are brought in and they're told wonderful stories about Jesus.

And then how many of you children love Jesus? I mean, except for the kid in the back with the leather jacket and the signs on his back that have been imprinted by a cult, you know, satanic cult, every other kid in that class can stand up.

I love Jesus. Well, how many of you want to go to heaven? Oh, I do. How many of you want to pray this prayer? I will. And then they're marched off to baptism. And a lot of time the baptismal is dressed up like some kind of a happy party time with graffiti so that they really enjoy it.

And then when they're old enough to rebel against their parents, they do. And they live in gross immorality and sin. And then when they're about twenty five or thirty after college, they decide they need to straighten things out because morality is really a better way to go.

So they rededicate their life and they continue attending church once a week, having just enough morality to dim their conscience and send them straight to hell.

Children, Baptism, and a False Assurance of Salvation

Do you feel like you're cheating people by not telling them about the hell part?

No, but part. No, I really don't, because it's a different approach.