A Review of Joyce Meyer's False Teachings:

Joyce Meyer is into the Word of Faith movement (Prosperity, Name it and Claim it). She teaches that she is not a sinner, that the atonement of Christ on the cross was not complete, that all believers will attend the Great White Throne Judgment, and Christ had to be born again in hell. Following are a few of Joyce Meyer's quotes:

(False teacher/prophet quotes are in purple and indented, my
comments are in plain text and scripture is in teal. False teachers rarely use scripture. I have only included those portions I intend to comment on.)

Jesus paid for our sins in Hell

"During that time He entered hell, where you and I deserved to go (legally) because of our sin. He paid the price there . . . no plan was too extreme . . . Jesus paid on the cross and in hell". (The Most Important Decision You Will Ever Make, by Joyce Meyer, Tulsa: Harrison House 1991, chapter 4, pg 35).

Jesus was born again in Hell

"God rose up from His throne and said to demon powers tormenting the sinless Son of God, 'Let Him go.' Then the resurrection power of Almighty God went through hell and filled Jesus . . . He was resurrected from the dead -- the first born-again man" (from same book as above, pg. 36).

"There is no hope of anyone going to heaven unless they believe this truth I am presenting. You cannot go to heaven unless you believe with all your heart that Jesus took your place in hell" (from same book as above, pg 37)

Joyce revised portions of the above booklet in her 2nd printing in May 1993 and in 1996 and changed some of the words but the same false teachings can still be found so she is still teaching the same false gospel. The first edition was never recalled nor has she admitted any error within it.

What does scripture say about Jesus paying for our sins in hell?

"For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." (Psalms 16:10)

The word "Hell" is the English translation of Sheol or Hades and is often translated as "the grave" or "the realm of the dead". Before Christ Died there were two sections of hell called "Paradise" and "Torments". Believers went to the Paradise side and unbelievers went to the other side which we call "Torments" (see the story of Lazarus and the begger in Luke 16:26).

When Jesus died on the cross, and took away the sins of those who had died before him, he went down to the "Center of the earth" to "release the captives" and took them with him to heaven (Ephesians 4:7-10). So the paradise side of Hell no longer exists. When believers die today they are "Present with the Lord". Where is the Lord today? In heaven. (2 Corinthians 5:8)

Jesus Christ himself refuted that teaching while talking to the prisoner hanging on the cross:

"And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." (Luke 23:42-43)

Keep in mind that this was near the end of the day. And a little bit later on his last breath Jesus cried out in a loud voice:

"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." (Luke 23:46)

Does this sound like Jesus had to go to hell first or that God sent him there after receiving him?

And again:

"For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." (Matthew 12:40)

Did Jonah go to hell when the whale swallowed him? No. He was divinely protected by God.

Where did Jesus atone for our Sins?

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

So this occurred on the cross when Jesus said, "It is finished", (John 19:30) a Greek term which means, "paid in full". If it was paid in full on the cross then why would Christ have to travel to hell to finish paying our debt?

This "Jesus was born again in hell" message is the same message taught by Joyce Meyer's mentors and others in the Word of Faith movement:

Joyce Meyer claims she is not a sinner

"All I was ever taught to say was, 'I, a poor, miserable sinner.' I am not poor. I am not miserable. And I am not a sinner. That is a lie from the pit of hell!" ("What Happened from the Cross to The Throne?" an audio by Joyce Meyer.) This is no longer available online but its the same message as given by Copeland/Kenyon.

What does the bible say about Joyce Meyer's claim that she is not a sinner?

" If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. . . . If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has not place in our lives." (1 John 1:10)

What does scripture say about those who preach another Christ?

"If someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough. . . . For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerating as apostles of Christ." (2 Cor. 11:4)

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. (1 Tim. 4:1,2).

"If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. . . . For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." (1 Tim. 6:3, 9)

Has Joyce Meyer changed her Mind?

Joyce claims that she no longer believes some of the things she said in her earlier ministry. However, if you go to any book store you will see that she is still selling those same books, CDs, podcasts, etc., that are teaching doctrinal error.

How to Find False Teachings of Joyce Meyer?

Joyce Meyer's radio and TV messages appear quite benign--that is until you buy her books or tapes and that is where her scriptural errors are more readily perceived. So if you are listening to her program and enamored by her teachings you might want to dig a little deeper for the truth.

Endtime Prophets gets about 3 times as many hits from people searching for Joyce Meyer's false theology than any other false teacher on this site. It's obvious a lot of people are concerned with her teachings?

The author of this site listens to Joyce Meyer's programs occasionally on TBN to find more false teachings but she can't even listen for 5 minutes without hearing scripture being taken out of context.

If you are having concerns about her teachings just record her programs and then stop the tape and read the verses she quotes in context (read the whole chapter to see what it's really about) and you should be able to see that she is taking scripture out of context and not following the true meaning of Scripture.

Joyce Meyer is also among those who claim Jesus Died Spiritually (along with Kenneth Hagin, Kenneth Copeland, Jan Crouch, et. al.) see : Jesus Did NOT Die Spiritually A collection of quotes from the book Christianity in Crisis re the theory that Jesus died in Hell.

Also see another article on this site: Joyce Meyer's Erroneous Teaching on the Judgment of Believers.

Conclusion

Joyce Meyer is a false teacher preaching a false gospel (along with all other Word of Faith teachers), because she is preaching a false Christ, which means she is a heretic:

Heretic: a dissenter from established church dogma. (Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary)

Other Websites Exposing Joyce Meyer's False Teachings

Joyce Meyer just did it again.... Reaction from a Christian Perspective! This analysis of Joyce Meyer's teachings explains how she reads herself into scripture, as if she is god.

Joyce Meyer - False Teacher A collection of her quotes exposing her false teachings.

Did Jesus go to Hell between his death and resurrection? This article explains that there used to be two temporary sections called "Hell" (Abraham's bosom or "paradise" and Hades the abode of unbelievers) and explains why there is no longer two divisions in Hell/Hades.

Lori Eldridge
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