Main Title: Following Lawrence Lim who shared about his sexual sins in a sermon on 10 Nov 2024, 2 Sundays ago, Joseph Prince, in his sermon, 17 Nov 2024, last Sunday, arrogantly implied that no accountability is needed for the restoration, especially of the Pastor, who commits sexual sin, or any other sin by anyone
Sub Title: Joseph Prince slandered Paul when he said that when Paul knew that the Corinthians visited prostitutes, he did not confront them about these sins; on the contrary, Paul assured them of who they were in Christ
– By Rev George Ong (Dated 21 Nov 2024)
Announcement No 1:
Joseph Prince may or may not be preaching this Sunday.
If he doesn’t,
the next time he will probably be back to preach
is on Christmas Day.
Because Joseph Prince would be taking his vacation
probably from this or next week onwards,
you are likely to hear much less from me in December.
I must thank him for giving me a break.
Announcement No 2:
See the Appendix:
On the issue of sexual sins,
we need to maintain a healthy balance
between the holiness of God and the grace of God.
Announcement No 3:
Note the Article on my Website
contains much more material,
and they are important too,
than on YouTube.
(This article was also sent to Rev Dr Ngoei Foong Nghian, General Secretary, National Council of Churches of Singapore (NCCS) office, and for the attention of the Executive Committee Members.)
In a sermon on 10 Nov 2024, 2 Sundays ago,
Lawrence Lim said:
“Many have failed.
Many have failed in the area of sexual purity.
I am one of them.
No time to share with you my horrid life.
But God can turn it around, Amen.
I failed horribly, my friend.
But God turned it around.
So, you know when I was young,
watch a lot of James Bond movie.
That’s why think like, O Wah, you know,
a real man is a man who sleeps with many, many women.
Goes around, sleeping around.”
Lawrence Lim shared on 10 Nov 2024,
2 Sundays ago, in his sermon
about his sexual escapades.
Lawrence Lim said,
“God turned it around”
for him.
But is that all that is required if a Pastor falls into sexual sin,
especially, if we assume that Lawrence Lim committed such sins
after he became a Pastor in New Creation Church.
I will comment more on this
at a later stage in the ensuing discussion.
My greater issue is not so much with Lawrence Lim
but with what Joseph Prince said on 17 Nov 2024,
the following Sunday
after Lawrence Lim has made his confession
about his sexual sins on 10 Nov 2024.
In a sermon on 17 Nov 2024, 4 days ago,
Joseph Prince said:
“But we tell the person, no, no, no, no,
you have fallen, okay.
You need some time.
You need some time, bro.
You need some time.
Must do penance, Amen.
How long penance, bro?
Don’t know.
Until I am satisfied.
So, you make yourself God.
No, just that, you know,
I don’t think he can be restored just like that.
How were you restored, brother
in all your sins, when you were like a sheep, gone astray?
Was it instantaneous?
Or did God give you a probation?
That’s different story.
So, when they hear good news
like what we are preaching,
they are saying we are giving people license to sin.
No friend, this is the gospel.
This is the way God handles sin.
You know, in all the scriptures
where people are involved in sin,
there is a group of people, the Corinthians
who were going to the temple (prostitutes)
and they were committing;
now this temple is not God’s temple, okay.
In Corinth, it is a pagan temple.
And part of their ritual
is that there are temple prostitutes.
And they were going to them.
And believers who were saved was also doing that.
Now, it’s a good time.
If you know that’s true, right
and you are the Apostle Paul,
and you come down there,
what do you say?
You backslidden Christians,
I’m telling you right now, you are going to hell.
You’ve lost your salvation.
Pastor Lawrence loves it.
He loved this kind of preaching.
You’re going to hell, Bro.
I don’t care you were saved before.
I’m telling you you’ve lost your salvation.
It’s amazing how when someone sins, right,
or they fall into sin, they’ve lost their salvation.
But the person who fall into sin judging,
bitterness, resentment, pride,
never fall into sin.
Everyone is wrong but themselves.
When they fall into sin, they are more merciful.
Or their son or daughter fall into sin,
they are very merciful.
What is the gospel that we are preaching?
You know, they were going to temple prostitutes.
You know how Paul handles it?
Read the Book of Corinthians.
He says what!
That’s all the fiery preaching you need to hear.
Then he says
know you not Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Know you not.
It seems like for every sinful situation involving believers,
his approach was don’t you know.
Or you know it here but not in your heart.
It seems like every time he deals with a sinful situation,
it’s always don’t you know.
If it’s sexual,
it is always don’t you know
your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.
It’s the temple of the Holy Spirit.”
First, Joseph Prince said;
“It’s amazing how when someone sins, right,
or they fall into sin, they’ve lost their salvation.
But the person who fall into sin judging,
bitterness, resentment, pride,
never fall into sin.
Everyone is wrong but themselves.
When they fall into sin,
they are more merciful.
Or their son or daughter fall into sin,
they are very merciful.”
Come on, Joseph Prince, what are you trying to drive at?
It seems you make decisions based on the lowest denominator
of human convenience and mortal comfort.
Joe, your leadership decision
should not be based on your convenience and my comfort,
or my convenience and your comfort.
It should be based on what is the best course of action
that a godly leader should take
regardless of who does what.
By bending to your comfort and my convenience,
it shows you are no leader at all.
You are only choosing a decision
that suits your earthly ease.
Next, what Joseph Prince implied
is that there is no need for the restoration of someone
who have fallen into sin – all sins,
especially, if he is a Pastor,
who have fallen into sexual sin.
Joseph Prince also didn’t even mention
that the one who falls into sin,
be it sexual sin
(when it comes to the Corinthians who visited prostitutes)
or any other sin,
he or she needs to confess and repent before God.
This is simply because of his teaching
that every sin, past, present and future,
including the sins of adultery, homosexuality or murder,
have all been forgiven by God at the cross
without the need to confess.
This means that any member of New Creation Church
who commits adultery must not confess to God
that he had sex with another woman,
other than his wife,
because all future sins, including the sin of adultery,
are already forgiven.
Joseph Prince also teaches
that if a member of New Creation Church
were to visit prostitutes,
as in the case of the Corinthians,
he doesn’t have to confess and repent
because the Apostle Paul didn’t ask them to.
All the member needs to do is to remind himself
about who he is in Christ
and about the fact
that he is the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
Any right-thinking believer will know
that such horrendous teachings of Joseph Prince
will give believers a licence to sin.
Yet, this is what Joseph Prince arrogantly denied
when he said.
like what we are preaching,
they are saying we are giving people license to sin.”
What Joseph Prince said in his sermon is so crafty
that it needs to be unpacked.
Why did Joseph Prince bring in penance?
Is he a Roman Catholic?
If not, then why did he bring in an irrelevant point here?
You know the answer
– to deflect from the need to deal with our sins.
And is Joseph Prince aware
that in the Protestant Evangelical Church,
there is a practice whereby a group of Pastors
(usually more senior and experienced)
will hold another Pastor who have fallen into sexual sin
for a period of accountability
before he can be released back into the ministry?
Of course, Joseph Prince is aware.
This practice has immense benefits.
Though the Pastor may have repented
of his sexual sins before God
– but because he is in a leadership position
– it is wise to have a group of seniors to help this Pastor
walked through the process of restoration
before he can be released back into the ministry.
But from the arrogant way
Joseph Prince puts things across in his sermon,
shows he is even against such a practice
because he said:
“But we tell the person, no, no, no, no,
you have fallen, okay.
You need some time.
You need some time, bro.
You need some time.
Must do penance, Amen.
How long penance, bro?
Don’t know.
Until I am satisfied.
So, you make yourself God.
No, just that, you know,
I don’t think he can be restored just like that.
How were you restored, brother
in all your sins, when you were like a sheep, gone astray?
Was it instantaneous?
Or did God give you a probation?
That’s different story.”
Then, let me ask Joseph Prince
– what if one of his male Pastor,
who is running the children’s ministry
of New Creation Church,
commits a ‘worse form’ of sexual sin
– homosexuality or paedophilia,
no need for such a restoration?
Once “God turned it around,”
using Lawrence Lim’s words,
for the homosexual or paedophile,
that’s enough?
And Joseph Prince
would straightaway release that person
into the children’s ministry
without a period of restoration by a group of people?
Come on, Joseph Prince don’t pretend to be silent
– speak up, now!
Going by what he said,
Joseph Prince is such an irresponsible man
that he would put that person back into the ministry
without a period of restoration,
and if the person were to revert back to his sin of Paedophilia,
he would be putting every child in the children’s ministry
in stark danger.
What about homosexuals.
No need for a period of restoration?
I believe that’s what Joseph Prince would strongly recommend
for Paul Cain.
Joseph Prince boasted more than once
that Paul Cain gave a prophecy about his ministry.
But as you know, Paul Cain was later exposed
to be a homosexual.
Please refer to this article
Joseph Prince’s Ploy of using Paul Cain’s ‘Prophecy’ & Martin Luther to Authenticate his Ministry is Exposed – By Rev George Ong (Dated 10 Nov 2023)
Subtitle: Paul Cain who prophesied about Joseph Prince was exposed as a false prophet – Homosexual & Drunkard
by clicking on the link below
https://www.revgeorgeong.com/rev-george-ong-joseph-princes-ploy-of-using-paul-cains-prophecy-martin-luther-to-authenticate-his-ministry-is-exposed/
Imagine having a homosexual, Paul Cain,
prophesying over Joseph Prince?
No wonder Joseph Prince turned out to be a false prophet.
Coming back to the case of Lawrence Lim,
Joseph Prince must tell us as the Senior Pastor
whether Lawrence committed those sexual sins,
before or after he was married,
and supposedly slept with many women,
before or after he became a Pastor
in New Creation Church.
And if Lawrence Lim committed those sexual sins
after he became a Pastor in New Creation Church,
you can be assured
that he did not confess his sexual sins before God
(as confession of sins to be forgiven by God
is disallowed by Joseph Prince as all sins are forgiven).
You can also be assured that Lawrence Lim
did not go through a period of restoration by the leadership
as Joseph Prince is against it.
All that Lawrence Lim needs to say
is that “God turned it around” for him.
But the restoration of a Pastor
who had committed sexual sins
is certainly needed as expressed by John Piper.
In a teaching session, John Piper said;
“Is it possible to restore a Pastor who sins sexually
but who is repentant?
Or is such a Pastor disqualified
because he no longer meets the qualification
of above reproach?
I’m afraid if I answer this the way I should,
it will give so much license to restore Pastors too quickly.
But since I should, I should.
Ultimately, I think the answer is yes.
A Pastor who has sinned sexually can be a Pastor again.
But and I said that just because of the grace of God,
and the fact that above reproach can be restored, probably.
But here’s the catch.
To restore it and to have trust.
You see, forgiveness comes quickly,
expensively and immediately on repentance.
But trust doesn’t, cannot.
If a Pastor has betrayed his people,
has wounded the church grievously,
wounded his wife grievously,
he can be forgiven like that, wiped away.
The blood of Jesus covers it.
But as far as reestablishing trust
which is essential to a shepherd-sheep
and a wife-husband relation,
how long does that take?
Decade?
So a long time. A long time.
Till memories are healed.
I’m very practical.
This is what I would say.
A man who commits adulteries say, in ministry
should immediately resign
and look for other work.
And he should make no claim on the church at all.
Get another kind of job and go about his life, humbly,
receiving the discipline and receiving ministry,
whether in that church or another church.
And the church should turn that around
if it believes it should, not him.
There are so many who fall,
insert themselves quickly in another kind of ministry.
And that’s just in evidence
they don’t fathom what has happened.”
In dealing with the sexual sins of Pastors,
you would have noticed that what John Piper said
are miles apart from what Joseph Prince said.
In a teaching session, Mike Winger said;
“Restoration to God, not ministry is our goal.
This is super important.
If a guy has fallen
and the first thing he wants to do
is get back in ministry,
that’s a huge sign that he’s not okay.
Restoration to God is the goal, not restoration to ministry.
Ministries that have become dependent on Pastors
may rush the restoration.
Because they are like what are we going to do this,
really hurts us.
Even worse, if he has populated his board with Yes men
who lack the ability to stand up and sit him down.
People online may also rush
to restore a Pastor who has fallen
because they just want to be blessed again.
They are like I really like his ministry.
I want to be blessed again.
But they are not thinking deeper about this.
When you take a Pastor
through restoration of his walk with God,
it involves going really deep into all the real issues,
and reestablishing patterns of behaviour
and unveiling repentance on issues
the guy doesn’t even know about
because the one sin that God exposed
is not the only sin that has to be dealt with.
That’s never the case.
Don’t rush.
I once visited a church.
And I sat attending this church on the day
that they were sharing
that one of their Pastors had committed adultery
And they brought him before the congregation
to do 2 things.
To tell them that he had been exposed
and the he had committed adultery
and for him to take the microphone
and then he lectured the congregation
on how they should keep themselves pure.
I kid you not. I kid you not.
This is deflecting, by the way.
And then they kept him in ministry.
He didn’t even take a break.
I have no words.
Don’t rush.
This is the opposite of don’t rush.
This has to be restoration between you and God
with no plan to get back in the pulpit.
This is why you can’t rush it.
If at any point, the guy it’s like
Hey how long till I can get back in there,
then it’s like stop, go back to start.
That’s a big red flag.
Social media people I see online
calling for restoration 5 seconds after a guy falls,
is incorrect.”
In the light of what Mike Winger said,
“Even worse, if he has populated his board with Yes men
who lack the ability to stand up and sit him down.
People online may also rush
to restore a Pastor who has fallen
because they just want to be blessed again,”
you can be assured
that if Joseph Prince were to fall into sexual sin,
probably, no one will know about it
as all his Pastors
who are Yes men will not dare to blow the whistle,
and all his multitudes of supporters
will push for his quick restoration.
Next, Joseph Prince then went on to share about
how the Apostle Paul dealt with the Corinthians,
who committed sexual sin by visiting prostitutes.
He said that all that Paul did was to remind them,
“Know you not
your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.” (1 Cor 6:19a)
Joseph Prince said;
“You know, they were going to temple prostitutes.
You know how Paul handles it?
Read the Book of Corinthians.
He says what!
That’s all the fiery preaching you need to hear.
Then he says
know you not your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Know you not.
It seems like for every sinful situation involving believers,
his approach was
don’t you know.
Or you know it here but not in your heart.
It seems like every time
he deals with a sinful situation,
it’s always don’t you know.
If it’s sexual,
it is always don’t you know
your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.
It’s the temple of the Holy Spirit.”
Joseph Prince told a blatant lie that all Paul did
to the Corinthians who visited prostitutes
was to tell them,
“Know you not
your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.” (1 Cor 6:19a)
At this juncture, let me surface what he wrote in his books
about the same topic that Joseph Prince said about Paul
which is even more outlandish.
In ‘Unmerited Favor’,
Joseph Prince wrote,
“Paul had the perfect opportunity
to teach the Corinthians
to confess their sins of fornication
when he wrote to them as they had clearly sinned.
But what did Paul do instead?
He said,
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?” (1 Cor 6:19)
He did not say,
“Do you not know that your body
was the temple of the Holy Spirit?
Now, go confess your sins
and restore your fellowship with God
and perhaps He will put His Spirit back in you.”
There was not even one mention
that they had to confess their sins.”
Is Joseph Prince’s portrayal of Paul,
who would not even raise a whimper
even though the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians chapter 6
were sinning by fornicating with prostitutes,
true?
The truth is, Paul, had reprimanded them
for not dealing with sexual sin,
just a chapter earlier
in 1 Corinthians chapter 5 (1 Cor 5:1-5):
1 Corinthians 5:1-5 NIV
1 “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that even pagans do not tolerate: A man is sleeping with his father’s wife. 2 And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this? 3 For my part, even though I am not physically present, I am with you in spirit. As one who is present with you in this way, I have already passed judgment in the name of our Lord Jesus on the one who has been doing this. 4 So when you are assembled and I am with you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present, 5 hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.”
Paul lambasted the Corinthians
that they should be mourning over the sexual sin
of this particular Corinthian (1 Cor 5:2; Matt 5:4).
The fact that Paul told them
to mourn over this particular sexual sin
showed that Paul took a serious view
of such sins in the community.
Paul even demanded that this guilty man
should have been put out of their fellowship
as he could not tolerate such sexual sins.
This is entirely at odds
with what Joseph Prince had tried to paint Paul
– that he didn’t even bother to raise the issue of sexual sin
with the Corinthians
in 1 Corinthians chapter 6.
The injustice that Joseph Prince has done to Paul
is that he is painting Paul to be schizophrenic.
One moment,
Paul was fuming angry
over the sexual sin (incest) of the Corinthians
in 1 Corinthians chapter 5,
and the next moment,
just only one chapter later,
he was angelically lenient in 1 Corinthians chapter 6
over another type of their sexual sins (visiting prostitutes).
Next, Paul had also said to the Corinthians
in 2 Corinthians 12:21
that he may have to mourn
if the Corinthians didn’t repent of their sexual sins:
2 Corinthians 12:21 ESV
21 I fear that when I come again my God may humble me before you, and I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they have practiced.
If Paul would go to the extent
of mourning over their sins of impurity,
sexual immorality and sensuality
which they have practised
and may not have repented from in 2 Corinthians 12:21,
do you think he would not have raised the issue
and confronted the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians chapter 6
when he found out they were patronising prostitutes?
How could Paul be so inconsistent
in his response towards sexual sins
– that he may mourn over such sins in 2 Corinthians 12:21,
and yet, did not even bother to confront them
over the same sexual sins in 1 Corinthians chapter 6,
but instead, assured them of their salvation,
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?” (1 Cor 6:19)
– as claimed by Joseph Prince?
What’s more is that
Paul treated sexual sin, among other sins
so seriously
that he commanded the church not to associate with
and even eat with the sexually immoral and others.
He even commanded the wicked to be expelled:
1 Corinthians 5:9,11,13 NIV
9 “I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people—”
11 “But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral… Do not even eat with such people.”
13 “…Expel the wicked person from among you.”
If Paul was that strict over sexually immoral people,
how could he not have confronted the Corinthians
over their sexual sin of patronising the prostitutes.
Furthermore, Paul’s concern over sexual sins
was not just directed to the Corinthians alone
but also the Church in Thessalonica as well:
1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 NIV
3 “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, 5 not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; 6 and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you before. 7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. 8 Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.”
Paul warned the Thessalonians
that it is God Himself who viewed sexual sins
with such seriousness
that He will
“punish all those who commit such sins…” (1 Thess 4:6)
What sins?
Sexual immorality (1 Thess 4:3-5).
What is the punishment?
If one compares 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8
with 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Ephesians 5:5-6 and Galatians 5:19-21
(all four passages were written by the same author, Paul):
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NIV
Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men… will inherit the kingdom of God.
Ephesians 5:5 NIV
… No immoral, impure… has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
Galatians 5:19, 21 NIV
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery… I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
– the punishment for such sexual sins
is not inheriting the Kingdom of God
– meaning hell.
Yet, Joseph Prince sarcastically and mockingly said
that Paul would not do that
when he said;
“In Corinth, it is a pagan temple.
And part of their ritual
is that there are temple prostitutes.
And they were going to them.
And believers who were saved was also doing that.
Now, it’s a good time.
If you know that’s true, right
and you are the Apostle Paul,
and you come down there,
what do you say?
You backslidden Christians,
I’m telling you right now, you are going to hell.
You’ve lost your salvation.
You’re going to hell, Bro.
I don’t care you were saved before.
I’m telling you you’ve lost your salvation.”
Joseph Prince had lied against Paul
when he said Paul would not warn the Corinthians about hell
and that their salvation is at stake
when they committed sexual sins.
Paul must have warned the Thessalonians
that in order to avoid being punished by God
with eternal destruction,
they would have to confess and repent of their sexual sins.
Paul, in his attitude and tone toward sexual sins,
was as severe to the Colossians
as he was to the Thessalonians:
Colossians 3:5-6 NIV
5 “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.
If Paul had taught that sins
that include sexual immorality, impurity and lust
could invoke God’s wrath in the case of the Colossians,
how could Paul had been that lenient to the Corinthians
in their sexual sins of patronising prostitutes
that Joseph Prince had falsely painted?
How could Paul not have warned them
to confess and repent of such sins
so as to escape God’s wrath?
In ‘Unmerited Favor’,
Joseph Prince wrote (regarding 1 Corinthians chapter 6),
“Paul had the perfect opportunity
to teach the Corinthians
to confess their sins of fornication
when he wrote to them as they had clearly sinned.
But what did Paul do instead?
He said,
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?” (1 Cor 6:19)
He did not say,
“Do you not know that your body
was the temple of the Holy Spirit?
Now, go confess your sins
and restore your fellowship with God
and perhaps He will put His Spirit back in you.”
There was not even one mention
that they had to confess their sins.
Instead, Paul reminded them of their identity in Christ,
and even in their failures,
(George Ong’s inclusion: Notice the craftiness of Joseph Prince; he sneakily substituted failures for the sin of patronising prostitutes so as to downplay the seriousness of it; notice how slimy he is)
he maintained that their body is (present tense)
still the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Paul apparently believed that to remind believers
to be conscious of who they are
and what they have in Christ continually
is the key to victory over their sins.”
Joseph Prince is blatantly twisting the text,
as he is quoting 1 Corinthians 6:19a,
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?”
out of context
and hiding the other half of the truth
in 1 Corinthians 6:18 from you:
1 Corinthians 6:18 NIV
18 Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.
He has also deliberately left out 1 Corinthians 6:9-10:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NIV
Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men… will inherit the kingdom of God,
and only quoted 1 Corinthians 6:19a.
We have already gone through 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
– that Paul has clearly warned that believers
who are sexually immoral and adulterers,
who patronised prostitutes
will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
If Paul had already taught that sexual sins were so serious
that they could even bar believers
from entering God’s kingdom in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NIV
Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men… will inherit the kingdom of God,
how could Paul have been so lenient with the same Corinthians
in the same chapter 6, in 1 Corinthians 6:19a,
when they have committed the sexual sin of visiting prostitutes
as Joseph Prince had painted?
Joseph Prince has also deliberately left out 1 Corinthians 6:18
and just quoted 1 Corinthians 6:19a
– and quoting it out of context:
1 Corinthians 6:18-20 NKJV
18 “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Paul had clearly commanded the Corinthians
to flee sexual immorality in 1 Corinthians 6:18,
not only because sex with prostitutes
is a sin against their own body (V18),
but also because their body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit in (V19a).
Paul had also earlier said in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 and 15-16
that sexual immorality, such as patronising prostitutes,
is a sin, and those unrepentant
will be barred from entering the Kingdom of God.
So in the light of
V 9-10 (sexually immoral and adulterers will not enter the Kingdom of God),
V 15-16 and V18 (flee sexual immorality as it is a sin against your own body),
“…do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you…?” in V19a
is placed there by Paul,
as an indictment against the Corinthians,
and not as an assurance of salvation
to comfort them
as falsely postured by Joseph Prince.
The indictment is that
one who commits sexual immorality with prostitutes
sins against his own body (V18),
and God treats this seriously
as their body is the very temple of the Holy Spirit (V19a).
Because their body is the temple of the Holy Spirit,
they must honour and glorify God with their bodies
as they have been bought with the price of the blood of Christ (V19b-20).
And what is unmistakably implied by Paul
is that if they commit sexual immorality with prostitutes
with their body,
which is the temple of the Holy Spirit,
they are dishonouring God by sinning against their own body
and demeaning the temple of the Holy Spirit.
No wonder Paul had earlier said
that those who are sexually immoral and adulterers
will not enter the Kingdom of God
in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10.
Joseph Prince has committed a heinous act
by completely and deliberately misrepresenting
what Paul said and meant.
When Paul had used V19a
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?”
as an indictment against the sexually immoral,
Joseph Prince switched it completely around
and postured it as comfort of assurance
to those who have sinned by visiting prostitutes.
How can such blatant distortion of scriptures be stomached?
How can such gross and deliberate misrepresentation of scriptures
be allowed to be committed
without the Church ever speaking out?
I ‘Buay Tah Han’ (in Hokkien) already
(meaning, cannot take it anymore),
I don’t know about you?
Joseph Prince, in his statement in V19a,
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?”
has been clearly quoted out of context,
which I have already unveiled and proven.
And now Joseph Prince is making a false conclusion
when he wrote,
“Paul apparently believed that to remind believers
to be conscious of who they are
and what they have in Christ continually
is the key to victory over their sins,”
based on that out-of-context statement that he made in V19a.
Let me repeat in case you missed this.
Joseph Prince made the statement in V19a,
“…do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit
who is in you…?”
which he quoted out of context.
And now he is making a false conclusion,
“Paul apparently believed that to remind believers
to be conscious of who they are
and what they have in Christ continually
is the key to victory over their sins,”
based on that out-of-context statement that he made in V19a.
This is nothing but deceptive and devilish Bible exegesis
to hoodwink the people of God!
Joseph Prince has brazenly misrepresented Paul
and implied that that’s what he would do with sexual sin,
not only in the case of the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians chapter 6
but in every case of Paul’s dealing with believers.
How can Joseph Prince,
who have committed one deception after another,
not invoke the righteous anger
of every Bible-believing minister of God?
How can pastors who truly honour God’s word
remain nonchalantly quiet
for the many evils that Joseph Prince has committed
against the Holy word of God?
Joseph Prince has falsely portrayed Paul
as a nice grace teacher to the Corinthians
that even the sin of patronising prostitutes
was too little a matter to be raked up.
In ‘Grace Revolution,’
Joseph Prince wrote,
“Apostle Paul, who wrote two-thirds of the epistles to the churches, never once-taught on confession of sins.
In fact, in his letter to the Corinthians Christians, many of whom were committing sins like visiting temple prostitutes,
he didn’t tell them to go and confess their sins to get right with God.
Rather he reminded them of who they were in Christ – “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Cor 3:16 KJV)”
Joseph Prince gave the false impression
that Paul who was very lax about their sexual sin,
did not treat such sins seriously,
and never asked them to confess and repent of their sins.
And worse, Joseph Prince said that
Paul even affirmed and assured them
that they are in Christ,
despite the evil that they had done
and had not repented of.
This is a false portrayal of what Paul did
in the Corinthian Church
and all the epistles.
Tell me, if you are a pastor of a church,
and one day when you found out
that many of your church members are patronising prostitutes,
how would you respond?
Calm and collected as if nothing had happened?
Assuring them of their salvation and their position in Christ
with no action taken to ask them to confess or repent
of such sins?
If that’s what you do,
you ought to be sacked and go do something else!
I will tell you how Joseph Prince would respond
when he comes to know of people
in his New Creation Church
who are visiting prostitutes.
He would respond in a nice and cool way,
as he has described in his book.
He would assure those who had sex with prostitutes
that their righteousness in Christ
cannot be removed from them
because of the finished work of Christ.
And no matter what they do,
even if they were visiting prostitutes,
they never have to worry about their salvation.
And Prince would not even raise the issue
about their sins of visiting the prostitutes
and the need to confess and repent of such sins
to get right with God.
Joseph Prince is clearly saying
that if a believer visits prostitutes,
he doesn’t have to confess and repent.
All he needs to do is to remind himself
about who he is in Christ
and about the fact
that he is the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
Any right-thinking believer will know
that such liberal and horrendous teachings of Joseph Prince
will give believers a licence to sin.
Yet, this is what Joseph Prince arrogantly denied
when he said.
like what we are preaching,
they are saying we are giving people license to sin.”
This is unbelievable
– You don’t have to be a theologian or pastor
to know that what Joseph Prince is advocating
is horrendously repulsive and sickening.
And now do you know why New Creation Church
has become so huge?
Besides genuine believers,
there must be the many goats
who love to attend such a church.
They could have the best of both worlds.
They could visit prostitutes once in a while,
when the flesh gets the better of them,
and at the same time enjoy a salvation
that is permanently assured by Joseph Prince.
Even the sheep in Joseph Prince’s church
would soon be tempted to go that wayward way
and be corrupted to become goats.
These people have been deceived,
as there is no such thing as a saved sexually immoral person
in contrast to an unsaved sexually immoral person.
Sexual immorality,
whether committed by a Christian or non-Christian,
is still sin,
and their destiny is the lake of fire:
Revelation 21:8 NIV
8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars – they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
If God allows the sexually immoral
who are unbelievers to go to hell,
and if He allows the sexually immoral people
who are believers but unrepentant
to go heaven,
God will have a lot of explanation to do with the unbelievers.
“What kind of a God are you?
Both are sexually immoral,
but one (unbeliever) goes to hell
and the other (believer) to heaven!”
Sin committed by believers
is just as serious as sin committed by unbelievers.
In fact, it is more serious for a Christian to commit sin
as compared to an unbeliever
since he belongs to the Light,
and hence, there is less excuse for a Christian
to sin and more gravity
when a believer does.
In ‘Grace Revolution’,
Joseph Prince wrote,
“And when you have sinned, what do you say?
That’s the time to say by faith,
‘I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus’” (see 2 Cor 5:21).
What Joseph Prince teaches is that when you sin,
any sin, big or small,
whether it is the sin of pornography
or sex with prostitutes, etc,
you don’t have to confess your sins
but you need to confess you are righteous
while you are engaging in the act of sinning,
by declaring,
‘I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.’
Just imagine this tragic scene of a married Christian
who has embraced Joseph Prince’s teachings,
and who is committing the sin of having sex with a prostitute.
And knowing that his adulterous sin with prostitutes
has been forgiven at the cross
(because he had learned that from Joseph Prince
that all his future sins, including sex with prostitutes,
have been forgiven),
and still in bed with the prostitute,
committing the adulterous act,
he follows the advice of Joseph Prince,
and keeps repeating,
“I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.”
After repeating that ‘magic’ phrase several times,
he continues to have sex with the prostitute.
After the entire adulterous act is over,
he caps it off by shouting one last time
on a victorious and triumphant note,
“I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.”
Just think
– how would the unbelieving prostitute respond
when she hears a so-called Christian shouting
“I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus,”
while he is having sex with her?
She would think that he has gone mentally deranged.
Or, if she thinks he is sane,
she will never ever become a Christian,
as she is witnessing for herself that a Christian
can shout out the name of Jesus Christ shamelessly
and pronounce that he is righteous in Christ
while enjoying the forbidden sex with her,
a prostitute.
If one combines what Joseph Prince had written
in ‘Grace Revolution’, and ‘Unmerited Favor’
and how he has always advised believers that when they sin,
not to confess their sins
but to confess they are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus
while in the act of sinning,
he is strongly implying
that that’s what Paul would have advised a believer to do
when he is in the act of having sex with a prostitute.
This is appalling!
Joseph Prince is not only slandering Paul
but he is also grossly misrepresenting him
to be a scandalous preacher.
If such repulsive teachings of Joseph Prince
don’t evoke outrage in the Church leadership
to do something about it,
then I would seriously doubt
whether they are really spiritual leaders in the first place.
Merely occupying positions of leadership
does not make one a leader.
And if such disgusting teachings don’t cause believers
to leave New Creation Church or stop listening to his sermons,
it all means that they have deliberately and wilfully chosen
to be deceived by him.
If that is the unrepentant state that they chose to be in,
then no one, not even God can help them.
In conclusion and to recap,
First, Joseph Prince implied
there is no place for the restoration of a Pastor
who had committed sexual sins such as adultery
– meaning he can serve in the ministry straightaway
as long as “God turned it around” for him,
whatever that means.
This is diametrically opposed
to the advice of John Piper and Mike Winger,
who represent the opinions of most of the Evangelical leaders.
Second, Joseph Prince said that
when believers, including Pastors, visit prostitutes,
as in the case of the Corinthians,
they do not have to confess and repent of their sins
because Paul did not ask them to.
And all that Paul did
when he discovered they have visited prostitutes
was to assure them of their salvation
and who they are in Christ:
“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Cor 3:16 KJV)”
Rev George Ong
Appendix 1:
On the issue of sexual sins, we need to maintain a healthy balance between the holiness of God and the grace of God.
One point that must be clarified
is that this passage does not mean
that a Christian who lusts,
instantly forfeits his or her salvation,
since no adulterer will inherit God’s kingdom,
and since Jesus equated lust with adultery (1 Cor 6:9-10, Matt 5:28).
Again, this is the Straw man argument
that Joseph Prince specialises in using against us,
by misrepresenting and falsely attaching this view
to those who believe that we can lose our salvation.
The plain fact is that there is no scripture
which teaches that the moment a Christian lust,
the Holy Spirit departs from him,
or that he forfeits his sonship and salvation in Christ.
It also does not mean,
like what Joseph Prince would want to accuse us with,
that if a believer were to die one second
after his sin of having an immoral thought
even though he does not commit such sins habitually,
God would cast him into hell.
When Paul warns
that no adulterer will inherit God’s kingdom (1 Cor 6:9-10),
he was talking about the future,
not immediate consequences.
The words “will inherit” are future tense.
To claim, based on that warning,
that any Christian who lusts or commits adultery,
instantly forfeits his or her salvation,
is unwarranted.
The truth is, the Christian who commits adultery
places his future and ultimate salvation in jeopardy.
The Holy Spirit, who indwells him,
however, does not abandon him,
but instead convicts him to bring him to repentance,
a wonderful indication of God’s grace.
On the other hand, would you, as a sensible believer,
want to take any risk
to prolong the sin that has engulfed you
without repenting at the earliest opportunity,
and gamble away your eternity?
In fact, by procrastinating to repent time and again,
your heart may become so hardened to such a state
that it may become impossible for you to repent.
You are also not God,
and hence,
you do not know when your last day on earth is.
So, the fine and delicate balance
between the holiness of God and the grace of God
must be maintained in a healthy tension,
so that we don’t stray
into an extremist and unbiblical position.