There are many Word of Faith televangelists that say that we are all “little gods.” These false teachers, ravening wolves in sheep’s clothing (Mat 7:15), claim that the Bible says we are all gods. This heresy is also taught by New Age teachers. One can remember the movie clip where Shirley MacLaine and John Heard are standing on a beach and shouting “I am god!” A prime doctrine of the New Age Movement, based on Eastern Mysticism, states that we are all gods12. But, is it really so?
Word of Faith teachers quote Jesus’ words in John 10:31-39:
“Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him. Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand” [emphasis mine].
In this passage, Jesus is quoting Psalm 82:6, “I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.” The Word of Faith leaders that teach this heresy are twisting this scripture around to suit their own false doctrines. Taken out of context and not understanding (or deliberately misapplying) the underlying Hebrew word rendered ‘gods’, the verse may seem to indicate that Jesus is actually assigning deity to humans. That is patently not so, for we read in Mark 12:29, “And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord.” Jesus quoted the Shema in Deuteronomy 6:4-5. Taking these passages into account, we humans cannot be little gods because the Lord (Yehovah) is One God.
Let us further illustrate the point that these false teachers are indeed teaching false doctrine. In the passage in the Psalms, the Hebrew term for ‘gods’ (lower case ‘g’ in most versions) has several definitions according to Brown-Driver-Briggs: “rulers, judges, divine ones, angels, gods.” HALOT definition: “a god, any god at all, judges.” Webster (1828): “a prince; a ruler; a magistrate or judge; an angel.” In the Authorized Version, the word rendered gods, אלהים, elohim, is rendered judges once in Exodus 21:6 and three times in Exodus 22:8-9. The word is rendered judge in 1 Sam 2:25, and is rendered mighty is Genesis 23:6 and 1 Sam 14:15. Not every one of these definitions may be applied in every case, for the context determines the meaning.
In the Psalm, in context we read, “I said, ‘You are gods, And all of you are children of the Most High, but you shall die like men, And fall like one of the princes’” (NKJV). The indicated writer of this psalm, Asaph, is stating what God said to Israel. If Asaph was assigning deity to the ‘gods,’ then why does he say in the same sentence and same breath that they are children of the Most High and that they will die just like the other leaders (princes) of Israel at their appointed time? The term, Most High, Elyon (עליון) in the Hebrew is a title for Yehovah God (e.g. Gen 14:18, Deut 32:8, Psa 78:56, 83:18, Dan 3:26, and many others). The context tells us that these ‘gods’ are simply men in a high office; they are magistrates, judges, or rulers and not Deity.
In the context of the passage in John, Jesus said in verse 35, “If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came . . .” The ‘them’ of this verse are those to whom God gave the Scriptures. God first gave the scriptures to Moses on the mount who then gave them to the children of Israel. Thus all Israelites and Jews were those “unto whom the word of God came.” The children of Israel were not deity, they were simply men. The point here is, if in the Scriptures, God called some of the leaders of Israel gods, then the Scripture stands and cannot be broken, and if that is so, then why did those leaders of Israel want to stone Jesus for claiming to be the Son of God? In other words if those Jewish leaders (Pharisees—John 9:13) were called gods, then why should not Jesus be called the Son of God? That is the entire context of this passage. Jesus was not saying that all humans are gods, but that some humans were appointed leaders of Israel and in the Psalms, they were referred to as gods (lower case ‘g’; lower case theta ‘θ’ for θεοι, in the Greek.)
The Word of Faith women and men are teaching a false Gospel. This is the same damnable heresy that the Serpent used to deceive Eve. These men and women are teaching a lie from the father of lies, Satan. They are Satan’s children and his prophets and thus they should be accursed. What does the Scripture say about those that teach a false Gospel?
Gal 1:6-9 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, (7) which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. (8) But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. (9) As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
Here is a partial list of those teachers (some are deceased): Benny Hinn, Morris Cerullo, Paul and Jan Crouch, Kenneth Hagin, Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, Charles Capps, John Avanzini, Joyce Meyer, Jesse Duplantis, Frederick K.C. Price, Creflo Dollar, Leroy Thompson, Bill Wilson, Paula White, and others.
I implore you to read and heed these words I write. If any man or woman tries to teach you that we humans, or that we Christians are ‘gods,’ or ‘little gods,’ they are false teachers. Run from them as quickly as you can. For,
2Pe 2:1-2 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. (2) And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
Jud 1:4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Again, this is the same lie that the serpent used to deceive Eve and Adam in the Garden of Eden: “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Gen 3:4-5), [emphasis mine]. Satan is using these false teachers to deceive the world, and even the very elect if that were possible (Mat 24:24). Though these false teachers may not know it or admit it, they are the Devil’s own people (John 8:44). Therefore,
