Joseph Prince & Faulty Cars – By Samuel Zee (Dated 2 July 2021)
Rev George Ong’s Comments:
This article was written by someone who is strongly against Joseph Prince’s grace theology but because of the nature of his ministry, has very good reasons to remain anonymous. A pen name – Samuel Zee is used instead.
Joseph Prince & Faulty Cars – By Samuel Zee
Would one have to consider very hard to have a car with these features?
A car that boasts that it has:
a. The most comfortable riding experience of any vehicle on wheels;
b. A top speed that would thrill all speed junkies;
c. A braking system that guarantees you will never rear-end anybody; and
d. Adaptive cruise control so that it would make your driving so easy you won’t even need to pay attention during the journey;
e. And it costs even less than a motorcycle; and
f. Review rating for this car is close to a perfect ‘5’.
I would not fault anybody for thinking that this should be the ONLY type of car on the road.
This car is likened to the hyper-grace gospel that is preached by Joseph Prince.
Buyer beware!
1. A comfortable ride
One of the first things most inexperienced car buyers look for is to check if it is comfortable sitting inside. Is there enough leg room, are the bucket, leather seats comfortable, does it have all the bells and whistles on the dashboard etc.
When they are happy that it is indeed comfortable and has all the desired visual features, many then look no further than just a cursory look to convince themselves that this is the right car.
Similarly, many people are hooked by this particular Joseph Prince brand of hyper-grace teaching that Christianity is a very comfortable ride; that we can only reign, that Christianity is effortless. Who doesn’t want such a Christianity? Not only do I not need adjustments in my life, but it promises me a good life on this earth. Just like the uninitiated and inexperienced buyer, why would I not want it?
But the Bible differs with Joseph Prince here. Tribulation, persecution, counting the costs are common themes in the Bible that are not factored in Joseph Prince’s theology.
2. No Speed Limitations
Sellers of good cars tell you what the top speed is, as though people really will test it to the limits. This car even has a breakthrough technology that no other car possesses. To many, on the face of it, this is an impressive indicator of the car, at least to the uninitiated.
Similarly, Joseph Prince postulates that his hyper-grace theology is like no other. According to this teaching, there is no need to confess one’s sins and repent in the way that the Bible calls repentance. Confession of sins not only is not necessary, but according to this teaching, will make us even more sin conscious, thus driving us further from God.
This, in essence, takes out the speed limits, nothing to slow us down when we sin, to come before God and repent and change our ways. True repentance as the Bible teaches, confession of sins and forsaking of ones’ sinful ways cause us to take stock, slow down and adjust our ways; whereas the no-confession-no-repentance type of theology causes us to ignore the speed limit and directional signs intended for our protection.
For example, on watching pornography
Joseph Prince teaches that when a Christian is addicted to pornography, he is not supposed to confess his sins to obtain forgiveness but he can just declare that he is the righteousness of Christ as he watches pornography to kick the habit. If this is the true gospel, then it should work for all sins, right? Then what do we tell the serial rapist? That as he rapes, he says he is the righteousness of Christ? Just saying this already sounds ridiculous and makes a mockery of the gospel of Christ.
3. A superior braking system
A good braking system gives one the confidence that when needed, we can avert a fatal head-on collision, because we are going too fast and in the wrong direction.
In our Christian walk, our braking system is like the Holy Spirit pulling the brakes on us when we are going too fast for our own good or just going in the wrong direction. The Holy Spirit convicts us when we sin and by our sensitiveness to his leading, we make corrections and adjustments to the direction we are taking in our decisions and in life.
By Joseph Prince’s theology, any conviction of the Holy Spirit is construed as condemnation from the devil. He removes the distinction between the 2 and labels both as the devil’s work, something that we must resist. With this one stroke, any conviction of the Holy Spirit in our lives is immediately muzzled and to be ignored. The Holy Spirit then has no way to warn you of the direction and the speed at which you are travelling towards a disaster.
For example, on Denying Christ
Joseph Prince has strongly implied publicly that one can deny Christ and not lose his salvation, totally contradicting what Jesus Himself says that if we deny Christ, He will deny us before His Father in heaven. The brakes on this were totally disabled and there is nothing to stopping one from going in this direction. Anybody who believes Joseph Prince over Jesus on this issue does so at his own peril.
Would any buyer of a car not care about how effective its braking system is? Why would any Christian remove this most significant safety feature from our Christian walk? Jesus said that he would send the Holy Spirit to guide us, but by this hyper-grace theology, we have shut off any conviction from the Holy Spirit, conviction that would save us from self-destructing.
4. Adaptive Cruise Control
Adaptive cruise control is a feature in newer cars that allows the car to gauge its distance from the car in front and keep its distance so that it will never rear-end the car in front; it will also keep the car in its lane so that it will keep the driver safe from colliding with another vehicle.
The Bible says in Psalm 119:160 that the entirety of His word is truth. Anybody reading that will naturally conclude that truth is embodied in the whole Bible.
For example, in artificially moving the demarcation between the Old and New Testament Joseph Prince has surreptitiously excluded parts of the Bible as being commandments for Christians in our day by creating this new theology that the New Covenant starts only at the cross and everything that Jesus said and taught before the cross are considered Old Covenant, and therefore, not binding to New Testament Christians today. Such passages in Scripture are downgraded from being commandments (to be obeyed) to being suggestive. If suggestive, then they are not commandments. If not commandments, then obedience is not considered absolutely necessary. This logic would cut across much of the commandments of the Bible, thus impairing significantly the comprehensive boundaries that God intended for His people throughout the whole of Scripture. When we don’t respect the boundaries that God provides and violate them, we will be bitten by the serpent (Eccl 10:8).
The Word is the tool that the Holy Spirit uses to guide our lives. Joseph Prince impaired the work of the Holy Spirit as I mentioned in (3) above, and here he impairs the work of the Bible to help keep us safe. Christians without these safeguards inherent in God’s design will easily get into shipwrecks easily.
5. And it is cheap, very cheap!
Buyer beware! The true gospel is not cheap, any way you look at how the Bible portrays it!
Jesus Himself says that if we don’t count the cost and carry the cross, be willing to give up even our closest family ties, we are not worthy to be His disciples.
Joseph Prince begs to differ with Jesus. One can declare himself a follower of Jesus, but will not do what Jesus says just because Joseph Prince says otherwise. I submit that that person would be very disappointed on the Day of reckoning with the Lord.
6. The reviews for this car is good
When I look up reviews online, even for those products that have a very high score, I notice very often that those who give high reviews do so for cosmetic reasons – The delivery was on time, the customer service was good etc.
We overlook the critical technical reviews to get a real picture of what should be the important factors whether I decide to buy the car or not.
Joseph Prince has many good reviews too. It is a feel-good gospel. But not to pay close attention to the ‘technical’ reviews, one may make a serious mistake in believing that the hyper-grace theology is the real gospel.
Rev George Ong gives this ‘technical’ review and you will save your life and that of your loved ones and friends by seriously considering it. No excuses will stand on that day for ignoring this.
7. What would you do?
If you knew of a car that did not have all the safety features that it claims to have, knowing that it is a death trap that one day will destroy all who ride in that vehicle:
a. Would you buy it?
b. Would you even ride in it?
c. Would you recommend a friend to buy it?
d. Would you recommend your loved ones to have one or ride in one?
I would not!
The hyper-grace gospel of Joseph Prince has misrepresented the true gospel of Christ in all of the above and more.
I used to think that being a Berean Christian, to search out Scripture for oneself if what we heard was true or not, was just a nice but not essential virtue to have, but in the light of the proliferation and very subtle nature of Joseph Prince’s teaching, it is actually a must have virtue.
I hope this speaks to somebody to study this for yourself. I think you owe it to yourself and your loved ones, at the least.
I appreciate all the work that Rev George Ong has done to expose the false and deadly teachings of Joseph Prince and his hyper-grace theology.
Samuel Zee (pen name)
Attending a Pentecostal Church in Singapore