Let me start this off by saying, I have nothing against Oprah. I don’t watch her show very often, but the few times I have, she seems to genuinely care for people and has a giving heart.
But just because she’s famous, just because she’s been on TV for 30 years, just because she outwardly cares about people, does not mean that her views on religion are correct.
What I’m about to write about doesn’t mean MY views on religion are correct, either. In fact, don’t take my word for it, don’t take a celebrity’s word for it. The point is: what does the Bible say about it? Does the Bible back her up, or anyone else’s claims, about what God is or how God expects us to live?
The point of this post is to bring attention to the fact that famous people are just that, people. They don’t have all the answers, they aren’t the end-all answer to your prayers, they are simply sharing what they believe with the rest of the world. And unfortunately, their high profiles and massive exposure convince some people that they know what they are talking about.
The clips from this video show a woman, a powerful woman by OUR standards, try to divert attention away from the one true God. She is trying to tell people that religion is about so much more than God and His son, Jesus Christ. That it’s about an attitude, a self awareness and though she’s correct in some respect, God does promote positive thinking: Matthew 21:22: If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer – Oprah makes it sound like you can attain your life’s goals, your heart’s desire WITHOUT God. That there are many ways of obtaining that inner peace, of true salvation WITHOUT God.
That is simply not true. Though she may believe this, it doesn’t make it true.
Oprah goes on to share her defining moment – the verse where she hears that God is a jealous God. And because she is human, because she is flawed in that she is self-centered and egotistical, she thinks God is jealous of HER.
Deuteronomy 6:15 is talking about worshiping false gods. God is a jealous God in the fact that He wants to be your ONE true God. He doesn’t want to see you put your faith, your energy, your time into something that takes your attention, your focus, away from Him and His message.
This false God doesn’t have to be an entity – it can be a habit, a past time, a human, a material object, anything that you deem more worthy of your attention than God. God wants to be your one and ONLY God – that is what He means about being a jealous God.
There are soooo many distractions out there. There are sooo many people, famous or otherwise, who try and convince us that God is not real, or is not the only answer, or doesn’t exist … I don’t know why they say this, whether it’s confusion or a simple desire to divert our attention from God, but I DO know that Christians have to be more diligent nowadays. Christians have to be stronger than the tricks the adversary throws our way. Christians must control their minds and view “experts” or “celebrities” cautiously because if what they are preaching goes against the Bible, or they take a select verse out of the Bible and purposefully distort it to their own end, then we must be strong enough to discern the difference and not allow it to turn us away from God.
Turn off the TV, turn back to God.
P.S. I am not endorsing the book advertised in this clip. I haven’t read it, I really have no interest in reading it. The point I took away from this clip is this: just because someone is well known, or is respected by a large number of people, doesn’t mean they are RIGHT. ALWAYS question people and be aware of their motives. Even me. Look it up. Research God’s message on your own. Don’t be gullible. Don’t be naive.
Write From Karen 