Russell Moore denounces prosperity preachers: Christians should not normalize Christianity

Evangelical leader Russell Moore said he's horrified of prosperity preachers as he asserted that Christianity should never be shaped to conform to the general acceptance of the world.

The 44-year-old theologian, ethicist, and president of the SBC's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission talked about prosperity gospel preachers on his Signposts podcast on Friday.

Moore shared that watching these prosperity pastors speaking on television gives him the same experience as if he's watching a horror movie. He recounted one such female pastor who sat on a golden throne and declared that she'd still choose to be a Christian even if the Gospels were proved to be unreal.

"That's easy to say from a golden throne on television," said Moore. "That is not easy to say in first century Ephesus when identifying yourself with a crucified and resurrected Messiah means that you are going to lose your standing in the marketplace."

Moore also mentioned the plight of the persecuted Christians in Sudan as well as the unregistered house church members in China.

"And, in fact, that is never what Christianity has proposed itself to be," said Moore, who rejected the idea that one should turn to Christianity in order to attain material success.

New York Times best-selling author megachurch pastor Rick Warren also wrote on his blog Aug. 8 to warn Christians of the "fatal mistake" of assuming that faithfulness could bring material and worldly success. He mentioned the tragedies suffered by Paul, John the Baptist and millions of faithful Christians, who came to the end of their lives jailed, beheaded or with losing everything they once had.

"One of the most dangerous things we could do, I think, as the Church is to normalize Christianity, and normalize the Gospel," continued Moore.

The South Baptist leader urged Christians to accept the fact that they remain minorities.

"Christianity isn't normal anymore, and that's good news," he wrote on his website.