Finis Dake’s Errors on Physical Healing and Financial Prosperity in the Atonement

Introduction: Understanding the Stakes

Finis Jennings Dake was an influential Pentecostal minister and author whose annotated study Bible and numerous books have impacted millions of Christians worldwide. While Dake made valuable contributions to biblical scholarship in some areas, his teachings on physical healing and financial prosperity contain serious theological errors that have caused significant harm to believers’ faith and lives.

The purpose of this report is to carefully examine Dake’s teachings on these subjects, comparing them with traditional conservative Christian theology. We will see how Dake, while using correct theological terminology, has redefined these terms in ways that diverge from orthodox Christianity—a practice common among cultic movements. Most importantly, we will explore how these teachings can devastate believers when life’s harsh realities don’t align with Dake’s promises.

Consider a parent who fervently prays for their sick child, believing with all their heart that God has guaranteed healing in the atonement. When that child dies despite their prayers, the parent is left not only with grief but with crushing guilt—believing their lack of faith killed their child. Or consider the faithful Christian who gives sacrificially, prays earnestly, and yet faces bankruptcy and poverty. According to Dake’s teaching, this person must conclude either that they have hidden sin or insufficient faith. These are not hypothetical scenarios; they represent real spiritual damage that occurs when theology goes wrong.

Part I: Dake’s Teaching on Physical Healing in the Atonement

What Dake Actually Teaches

Finis Dake’s position on physical healing is unambiguous and extreme. He teaches that physical healing is not merely available through the atonement but is guaranteed to every believer who exercises proper faith. Let’s examine his actual words from his various publications.

This definition might seem acceptable at first glance, but Dake goes much further. He explicitly states that it is always God’s will to heal every believer:

Dake leaves no room for God’s sovereign will or the possibility that God might choose not to heal. He categorically states that sickness originates with Satan and sin, never with God’s purposes:

Most significantly, Dake teaches that healing is as much a part of the atonement as forgiveness of sins, making them equally guaranteed:

The Dangerous Implications of Dake’s Healing Theology

Dake doesn’t stop at claiming healing is available; he makes it a matter of spiritual obligation and faithfulness. Consider this troubling statement:

Think about what this means: according to Dake, if you’re sick, you have “no excuse.” The clear implication is that sickness is always a faith failure or a sin problem. He reinforces this by stating:

This mechanistic view of healing—where God must heal if we push the right spiritual buttons—reduces the Sovereign Lord of the universe to a cosmic vending machine. It also places an unbearable burden on sick believers, making them responsible for their own suffering.

Dake’s Attack on “If It Be Thy Will” Prayers

One of Dake’s most problematic teachings concerns prayer for healing. He vehemently opposes adding “if it be thy will” to prayers for healing:

He goes even further, calling such prayers sinful:

This teaching directly contradicts Jesus Christ’s own example in the Garden of Gethsemane, where He prayed, “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). If Jesus, the perfect Son of God, submitted to the Father’s will in prayer, how can Dake call such submission “sinful” and “unbelief”?

Part II: The Traditional Conservative Christian View of Healing

God’s Sovereignty in Healing

Traditional conservative Christianity has always maintained that while God can and does heal, He remains sovereign over when, how, and whether to grant physical healing. This view is based on several biblical foundations:

1. God’s Purposes Transcend Physical Health

Scripture teaches that God’s primary concern is our spiritual well-being and His glory, not necessarily our physical comfort. The Apostle Paul himself experienced this truth personally. Despite his powerful ministry of healing others, Paul had a “thorn in the flesh” that God chose not to remove:

“And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).

Conservative theology recognizes that God sometimes allows suffering for purposes we may not understand this side of eternity. These purposes might include:

• Developing spiritual character and perseverance (Romans 5:3-4; James 1:2-4)
• Demonstrating God’s power through weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
• Participating in Christ’s sufferings (Philippians 3:10; 1 Peter 4:13)
• Serving as a testimony to others (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)
• Preparing us for eternal glory (2 Corinthians 4:17)

2. The Already/Not Yet Nature of the Kingdom

Conservative theology recognizes that while Christ’s atonement secured ultimate victory over sin, sickness, and death, we don’t experience the fullness of these benefits until the resurrection. We live in the tension between the “already” of Christ’s victory and the “not yet” of its complete manifestation.

Paul makes this clear in Romans 8:22-23: “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”

Our bodies are not yet redeemed. We have the firstfruits of the Spirit, but we still await the full redemption that will come at Christ’s return. Until then, we live in bodies subject to decay, disease, and death.

3. Biblical Examples of Godly People Who Were Sick

Scripture provides numerous examples of faithful believers who experienced sickness without it being attributed to sin or lack of faith:

• Timothy: Paul advised him to “use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities” (1 Timothy 5:23). Paul didn’t rebuke Timothy for lack of faith or command him to claim healing.
• Trophimus: Paul “left at Miletum sick” (2 Timothy 4:20). If healing were guaranteed to all believers, why didn’t Paul heal him?
• Epaphroditus: He “was sick nigh unto death” while serving the Lord (Philippians 2:25-27). His sickness wasn’t due to sin or unbelief but came through ministry service.
• Job: A righteous man who suffered terrible physical afflictions, not because of sin but as part of God’s sovereign plan to demonstrate faith under trial.

The Purpose and Scope of the Atonement

Conservative theology teaches that while Christ’s atonement is the ultimate basis for all of God’s blessings to humanity, including physical healing, not all benefits are immediately or automatically applied to believers in this life.

The primary purpose of the atonement was to deal with sin and its eternal consequences. Physical healing, while sometimes granted as a blessing, is not guaranteed in the same way forgiveness of sins is guaranteed to those who believe. Consider the differences:

Aspect	Forgiveness of Sins	Physical Healing
Timing	Immediate upon faith	According to God’s sovereign will
Guarantee	Promised to all who believe	Not guaranteed in this life
Duration	Eternal	Temporary (all eventually die)
Conditions	Faith alone	Subject to God’s purposes
Biblical Examples	All who believe are forgiven	Many faithful believers remained sick

The Role of Prayer in Healing

Conservative Christianity strongly affirms the power and importance of prayer for healing. James 5:14-16 instructs believers to pray for the sick, and we have many biblical and historical examples of God healing in response to prayer. However, traditional theology maintains several important qualifications:

1. Prayer is Request, Not Command

When we pray for healing, we are making requests of our Heavenly Father, not issuing commands or claiming guaranteed rights. Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy will be done” (Matthew 6:10), acknowledging God’s sovereignty even in our requests.

2. God’s “No” is Also an Answer

Sometimes God’s answer to our prayers for healing is “no” or “not yet.” This doesn’t mean we lacked faith or had hidden sin. It means God, in His infinite wisdom, has purposes beyond our immediate understanding. As Paul learned, sometimes God’s grace in our weakness is more valuable than the removal of our affliction.

3. Faith Trusts God’s Wisdom

True faith doesn’t demand that God act according to our wishes but trusts His wisdom regardless of the outcome. The three Hebrew young men facing the fiery furnace exemplified this faith: “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods” (Daniel 3:17-18).

They believed God could deliver them, but their faith didn’t depend on Him doing so. This is mature faith—faith that trusts God’s character and wisdom regardless of circumstances.

Part III: Dake’s Teaching on Financial Prosperity

Prosperity as a Guaranteed Right

Dake’s errors extend beyond physical healing to encompass material prosperity. He teaches that financial prosperity is God’s will for all believers and that poverty, like sickness, is always a result of sin, lack of faith, or satanic oppression. Let’s examine his actual teachings on this subject.

Notice how Dake links health and prosperity together as equally God’s “highest will” for believers. He elaborates on this theme extensively in his chapter on “Freedom from Poverty and Want”:

Dake argues that God’s creative purpose included material prosperity for all humanity:

Attacking Traditional Views of Poverty and Humility

Dake is particularly critical of traditional Christian teachings about contentment and the spiritual dangers of wealth. He dismisses concerns about praying for wealth as “unbelief”:

He goes so far as to suggest that accepting poverty is actually opposing God’s will:

The Mechanistic Formula for Prosperity

Like his teaching on healing, Dake presents prosperity as a mechanical formula—if believers follow certain steps, God must prosper them:

He particularly emphasizes tithing as a guarantee of prosperity:

While tithing and generous giving are biblical principles, Dake turns them into a guaranteed formula for wealth, ignoring the many faithful tithers throughout history who remained poor.

Part IV: The Traditional Conservative Christian View of Prosperity

Biblical Balance on Wealth and Poverty

Traditional conservative Christianity takes a balanced approach to material wealth, recognizing both its potential blessings and dangers. This balance is rooted in Scripture’s nuanced teaching on the subject.

1. Neither Poverty Nor Wealth is Inherently Spiritual

The Bible presents both wealthy and poor people as godly examples:

• Wealthy godly people: Abraham, Job, David, Joseph of Arimathea
• Poor godly people: The widow of Zarephath, Ruth (initially), the early apostles, Jesus Himself (“foxes have holes… but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head” – Matthew 8:20)

Proverbs 30:8-9 expresses the ideal balance: “Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”

2. Contentment is the Biblical Goal

Rather than promising prosperity, the New Testament emphasizes contentment regardless of circumstances. Paul writes:

“Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:11-13).

Notice that Paul’s famous declaration “I can do all things through Christ” is specifically about being content in both abundance and need, not about gaining prosperity.

Similarly, Paul instructs Timothy: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content” (1 Timothy 6:6-8).

3. Warnings About the Dangers of Wealth

Far from promising prosperity to all believers, the New Testament repeatedly warns about the spiritual dangers of wealth:

• “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil” (1 Timothy 6:9-10)
• “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19:24)
• “Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24)
• “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth” (Luke 12:15)

These warnings don’t mean wealth is inherently evil, but they certainly contradict Dake’s teaching that prosperity is God’s highest will for all believers.

God’s Priorities vs. Material Prosperity

Conservative theology teaches that God’s priorities for believers focus on spiritual rather than material wealth:

1. Spiritual Riches Over Material Wealth

The New Testament consistently emphasizes spiritual riches over material prosperity:

• “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3)
• “Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?” (James 2:5)
• To the church in Smyrna: “I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich)” (Revelation 2:9)

2. Eternal Treasures Over Temporal Wealth

Jesus explicitly commanded His followers to prioritize eternal over temporal treasures:

“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).

3. God’s Provision vs. Prosperity

While God promises to provide for our needs, this is different from promising prosperity:

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

Note that Paul says “need,” not “want” or “desire.” God promises provision, not prosperity. Jesus taught similarly:

“Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:31-33).

The promise is for “these things”—basic necessities—not wealth and abundance.

Part V: The Dangerous Consequences of Dake’s Teachings

When Healing Doesn’t Come

The most devastating consequences of Dake’s theology occur when believers face the reality that healing doesn’t always come despite their faith and prayers. Consider the psychological and spiritual damage:

1. Crushing Guilt and Self-Blame

When Dake teaches that “there is no excuse for children of God to be sick,” what happens to the believer with chronic illness? They’re left with only two conclusions: either they have hidden sin, or their faith is deficient. This creates a vicious cycle where the sick person desperately searches for the sin or lack of faith causing their illness, often becoming more focused on their supposed spiritual failures than on Christ.

2. Destroyed Faith in Prayer

When believers are taught that God must heal if they have enough faith, and healing doesn’t come, many conclude that prayer doesn’t work at all. They’ve been set up for a crisis of faith by false promises. Instead of learning to trust God’s wisdom in both “yes” and “no” answers, they lose confidence in prayer entirely.

3. Isolation and Shame

Sick believers in communities influenced by Dake’s teachings often experience isolation. Their continuing illness is seen as evidence of spiritual failure, leading to subtle (or not so subtle) shunning. They become modern-day Jobs, with “friends” insisting they must have sinned to deserve their suffering.

4. Denial of Medical Treatment

Some followers of Dake’s teaching refuse medical treatment, viewing it as a lack of faith. While Dake himself didn’t explicitly forbid medical treatment, his teaching that “spiritual means to heal sicknesses and diseases is all that God has provided for man” has led some to reject medical help, sometimes with fatal consequences.

When Prosperity Doesn’t Come

Dake’s prosperity teachings create similar damage in the financial realm:

1. Financial Recklessness

Believers convinced that God guarantees prosperity often make foolish financial decisions, believing God must honor their faith with wealth. They may:

• Give beyond their means, expecting a supernatural return
• Quit stable jobs to “step out in faith”
• Start businesses without proper planning, believing God must prosper them
• Accumulate debt, believing God will provide supernatural debt cancellation

2. Spiritual Confusion About Suffering

When financial hardship comes—as it does to most people at some point—believers influenced by Dake’s teaching are spiritually unprepared. Instead of seeing trials as opportunities for growth or trusting God’s sovereignty, they see them as evidence of spiritual failure.

3. Judgment of Poor Christians

If poverty is always a result of sin or lack of faith, then poor Christians must be spiritual failures. This creates a harsh, judgmental atmosphere where struggling believers are blamed for their circumstances rather than supported in their trials. It’s particularly cruel when applied to Christians in developing nations or those facing systemic poverty.

4. Prosperity Preachers Exploiting the Desperate

Dake’s teachings have been used by unscrupulous prosperity preachers to exploit desperate people. Promising that “seed faith” offerings will result in miraculous financial returns, these preachers often target the poor and desperate, enriching themselves while their followers sink deeper into poverty.

Theological Damage

Beyond individual harm, Dake’s teachings damage core Christian doctrines:

1. Distortion of God’s Character

Dake’s God becomes a cosmic vending machine, obligated to dispense healing and wealth to anyone who inserts the right amount of faith. This mechanistic view robs God of His sovereignty and reduces Him to a formula to be manipulated rather than a Person to be trusted.

2. Undermining the Gospel

When physical healing and material prosperity are presented as guaranteed benefits of salvation, the gospel becomes about temporal benefits rather than eternal life. People come to Jesus for what they can get rather than for who He is. When the promised benefits don’t materialize, they conclude Christianity is false.

3. Destroying Biblical Community

The New Testament envisions a church where members “bear one another’s burdens” (Galatians 6:2) and “weep with them that weep” (Romans 12:15). But if sickness and poverty are always due to sin or unbelief, compassion is replaced with judgment. The suffering are blamed rather than comforted.

4. Misunderstanding Sanctification

Biblical sanctification often involves suffering that produces spiritual growth. But in Dake’s system, suffering is always negative, something to be eliminated rather than something God might use for our good. This robs believers of the biblical framework for understanding and growing through trials.

Part VI: How Dake Redefines Biblical Terms

The Cultic Pattern of Redefinition

One of the most insidious aspects of Dake’s teaching is how he uses orthodox Christian terminology while redefining the terms. This is a classic technique used by cults and aberrant Christian groups—maintaining familiar language while changing the meaning. Let’s examine how Dake does this:

1. “Faith”

Traditional Definition: Trust in God’s character and promises, accepting His will whether or not we understand it.

Dake’s Redefinition: A force that obligates God to act according to our desires; the absence of any doubt about receiving what we want.

This redefinition turns faith from humble trust into presumptuous demand.

2. “God’s Will”

Traditional Definition: God’s sovereign purposes, which may include allowing suffering for reasons beyond our understanding.

Dake’s Redefinition: Always and only health, wealth, and success for believers.

By redefining God’s will so narrowly, Dake makes any suffering outside God’s will, which contradicts numerous biblical examples and teachings.

3. “Atonement”

Traditional Definition: Christ’s death that paid for our sins and made possible our reconciliation with God, with physical benefits to be fully realized in the resurrection.

Dake’s Redefinition: A transaction that guarantees immediate physical healing and material prosperity to all who claim it by faith.

This redefinition confuses the ultimate benefits of the atonement (which include physical resurrection and freedom from all suffering) with what God promises in this present age.

4. “Prayer”

Traditional Definition: Communication with God that includes petition, thanksgiving, confession, and submission to His will.

Dake’s Redefinition: A tool for claiming guaranteed benefits; saying “if it be thy will” is sinful unbelief.

This redefinition turns prayer from humble request into presumptuous demand.

The Danger of Redefined Terms

When theological terms are redefined while keeping their familiar form, several dangers arise:

1. Believers Think They’re Orthodox

Christians reading Dake’s works see familiar biblical terms and assume they’re reading orthodox theology. They don’t realize the definitions have been changed until they’re deeply influenced by the false teaching.

2. Scripture Appears to Support False Teaching

When terms are redefined, Bible verses can be made to seem to support almost anything. Dake quotes numerous scriptures, but when read with his redefined terms, they appear to support his prosperity gospel though they actually teach something quite different.

3. Dialogue Becomes Difficult

When Christians use the same words but mean different things, meaningful theological dialogue becomes nearly impossible. A Dake follower and a traditional Christian might both affirm “faith in God’s promises” while meaning completely different things.

Part VII: Examining Dake’s Proof Texts

Misuse of Old Testament Promises

Dake frequently cites Old Testament promises to Israel as if they apply directly to New Testament believers without qualification. Let’s examine some key examples:

Exodus 15:26 – “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.”

Dake presents this as a universal promise to all believers, but context shows this was part of God’s specific covenant with Israel under the Mosaic Law. It was conditional upon keeping “all his statutes”—the entire Mosaic Law. No one since Christ has been under this covenant, and even those who were under it (Israel) repeatedly failed to keep it and experienced the diseases mentioned.

Psalm 103:3 – “Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases”

Dake uses this to prove that healing is as guaranteed as forgiveness. However, this is David’s personal testimony of praise, not a universal promise. David himself later experienced illness and death. The psalm is celebrating God’s character as one who can and does heal, not promising automatic healing to all believers.

Isaiah 53:4-5 – “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows… and with his stripes we are healed”

This is Dake’s primary proof text, but his interpretation has several problems:

• Matthew 8:17 shows this was fulfilled in Christ’s earthly ministry of healing, not necessarily guaranteeing healing to all believers for all time
• Peter’s use in 1 Peter 2:24 is clearly metaphorical, speaking of spiritual healing from sin: “by whose stripes ye were healed” is followed immediately by “For ye were as sheep going astray”
• The context in Isaiah interweaves physical and spiritual language poetically, not making specific promises about physical healing for all believers

Misuse of New Testament Passages

Mark 11:22-24 – “Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”

Dake presents this as a blank check for believers to get anything they want. However:

• The context is about faith for God’s work, not personal desires
• This must be balanced with other scriptures about prayer being according to God’s will (1 John 5:14)
• Even Jesus submitted His will to the Father’s (Luke 22:42)
• No biblical character ever lived with the ability to have “whatsoever he saith” without qualification

John 14:12-14 – “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.”

Dake interprets this as every believer having the same healing power as Jesus. However:

• The “greater works” likely refers to the greater scope of the gospel spreading worldwide, not necessarily greater miracles
• The apostles did do miraculous works, but even they couldn’t heal everyone at will (see Paul’s thorn, Timothy’s stomach, Trophimus left sick)
• Church history shows that while God has continued to heal, no one has consistently demonstrated the healing ministry Jesus had

3 John 2 – “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”

Dake presents this as God’s highest priority for all believers. However:

• This is John’s personal greeting to Gaius, not a promise from God
• The Greek word translated “wish” is a common greeting formula, like saying “I hope you’re doing well”
• It’s descriptive of John’s desire for his friend, not prescriptive of God’s guarantee to all believers
• John himself, according to tradition, suffered persecution and exile—hardly prospering by worldly standards

Ignoring Contradictory Passages

Perhaps most tellingly, Dake’s system requires ignoring or explaining away numerous clear passages that contradict his theology:

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 – Paul’s thorn in the flesh

Dake claims this wasn’t a physical ailment, despite Paul saying it was “in the flesh” and that he asked three times for its removal. The fact that God said “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” directly contradicts Dake’s teaching that God always wants to remove physical ailments.

1 Timothy 5:23 – Paul’s advice to Timothy about his stomach problems

If healing is guaranteed to all believers with sufficient faith, why didn’t Paul just tell Timothy to claim his healing? Why recommend wine for medicinal purposes?

Philippians 2:25-27 – Epaphroditus sick near death

This faithful minister became sick through his service to God, nearly died, and Paul says God had “mercy” on him in healing him. If healing is guaranteed, why would it require special mercy?

2 Timothy 4:20 – “Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick”

Paul, who had extraordinary healing gifts, left a fellow worker sick. This directly contradicts the idea that healing is always available to all believers.

Part VIII: The Biblical Response to Sickness and Poverty

A Biblical Theology of Suffering

Rather than promising escape from all suffering, the Bible provides a framework for understanding and enduring suffering in a fallen world:

1. Suffering is Part of Life in a Fallen World

Since the Fall, suffering has been part of human existence. “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble” (Job 14:1). This includes believers. Jesus promised, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Note that Jesus promises tribulation, not exemption from it.

2. God Uses Suffering for Our Good

Romans 8:28 promises that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” This “all things” includes suffering. God doesn’t cause all suffering, but He can use all suffering—including sickness and poverty—for our spiritual benefit.

James 1:2-4 instructs: “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”

3. Suffering Produces Spiritual Fruit

The Bible repeatedly teaches that suffering can produce positive spiritual outcomes:

• Perseverance and character (Romans 5:3-4)
• Compassion for others who suffer (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
• Dependence on God (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
• Eternal perspective (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
• Christlikeness (Philippians 3:10)

4. Our Response to Suffering Matters

While we can and should pray for healing and provision, our primary focus should be on responding to trials in a way that honors God. This includes:

• Trusting God’s wisdom and love even when we don’t understand
• Seeking God’s purposes in our trials
• Maintaining faith and hope regardless of circumstances
• Using our suffering to minister to others
• Keeping eternal perspective

Proper Approach to Prayer for Healing and Provision

While rejecting Dake’s guaranteed healing and prosperity gospel, conservative Christianity strongly affirms prayer for healing and provision:

1. We Should Pray Boldly

James 5:14-16 encourages prayer for healing. Matthew 7:7-11 encourages us to ask, seek, and knock. We have a Heavenly Father who loves us and wants to give good gifts to His children. We should never hesitate to bring our needs to God.

2. We Should Pray Submissively

Jesus modeled submissive prayer in Gethsemane: “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). This isn’t unbelief; it’s recognition that God’s wisdom surpasses ours. True faith trusts God’s character and wisdom regardless of His answer.

3. We Should Pray Persistently

Jesus taught persistence in prayer through parables like the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8). We should continue bringing our needs to God even when answers don’t come immediately. However, persistence isn’t manipulation to force God’s hand but rather continued dependence on Him.

4. We Should Pray with Thanksgiving

Philippians 4:6 instructs: “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” Thanksgiving acknowledges God’s past faithfulness and current sovereignty regardless of our circumstances.

5. We Should Accept God’s Answer

Like Paul with his thorn in the flesh, we must be willing to accept when God says “no” or “not yet.” This doesn’t mean we failed or lacked faith. It means God, in His infinite wisdom, has purposes we may not understand this side of eternity.

Part IX: The Harm to Christian Witness

How Prosperity Gospel Damages Evangelism

Dake’s teachings don’t just harm individual believers; they damage the church’s witness to the world:

1. Creating False Converts

When the gospel is presented as a path to health and wealth, it attracts people for the wrong reasons. They come to Jesus for temporal benefits rather than for forgiveness of sins and eternal life. When the promised benefits don’t materialize, these false converts often fall away, sometimes becoming bitter opponents of Christianity.

2. Destroying Credibility

When Christians promise that faith in Jesus guarantees healing and prosperity, and observers see faithful Christians who are sick and poor, the church’s credibility is destroyed. Skeptics reasonably conclude that either Christianity is false or Christians lack the faith they claim to have.

3. Obscuring the True Gospel

The gospel is about God reconciling sinners to Himself through Christ’s death and resurrection. When this message is obscured by promises of temporal benefits, the life-transforming power of the true gospel is lost. People miss the eternal for the temporal.

4. Alienating the Suffering

Those who most need the comfort of the gospel—the sick, the poor, the suffering—are often repelled by prosperity teaching. They hear that their suffering is their own fault and that God would heal them if they just had enough faith. Instead of finding comfort in Christ, they find condemnation.

The International Impact

Dake’s teachings have been particularly damaging in developing nations where prosperity gospel has taken root:

1. Exploitation of the Desperate

In nations with widespread poverty and limited healthcare, desperate people are particularly vulnerable to prosperity gospel promises. They give what little they have to prosperity preachers, hoping for miraculous breakthrough, often becoming poorer in the process.

2. Blame for Systemic Problems

When poverty is attributed to lack of faith rather than systemic injustice, corruption, or lack of opportunity, it prevents addressing real problems. The poor are blamed for their poverty rather than helped.

3. Abandonment of Medical Care

In areas with already limited medical care, prosperity teaching has led some to abandon medical treatment entirely, viewing it as lack of faith. This has resulted in preventable deaths and unnecessary suffering.

4. Cultural Christianity

Prosperity gospel often produces a cultural Christianity focused on external success rather than internal transformation. Churches become filled with people seeking material benefit rather than spiritual growth.

Part X: Pastoral Implications

Counseling Those Damaged by Prosperity Teaching

Pastors and counselors frequently encounter believers damaged by prosperity gospel teaching. Here are key principles for helping them:

1. Validate Their Pain

Don’t minimize the real spiritual and emotional damage they’ve experienced. Acknowledge that they’ve been taught false doctrine that has caused real harm.

2. Rebuild Understanding of God’s Character

Help them see God as a loving Father who may allow suffering for reasons beyond our understanding, not as a cosmic vending machine who must dispense blessings for the right amount of faith.

3. Reframe Suffering Biblically

Teach them the biblical perspective on suffering—that it’s not always due to sin or lack of faith, and that God can use it for our good and His glory.

4. Restore Confidence in Prayer

Many have lost faith in prayer entirely. Help them understand that God answers prayer according to His wisdom, and that “no” is still an answer from a loving Father who knows best.

5. Address Practical Consequences

Some may have made poor financial decisions or neglected medical care due to prosperity teaching. Provide practical help and resources to address these consequences.

Teaching a Balanced Biblical Perspective

Churches must actively teach a balanced biblical perspective on healing and prosperity to counter prosperity gospel influence:

1. Teach the Whole Counsel of God

Don’t avoid difficult passages about suffering. Teach through books like Job, include Psalms of lament, and don’t skip over New Testament passages about suffering.

2. Model Contentment

Church leaders should model contentment rather than constantly pursuing or displaying wealth. Paul’s example of contentment in all circumstances should be our model.

3. Care for the Suffering

Create a church culture where the sick and poor are embraced and supported, not blamed or marginalized. This practical demonstration of love counters prosperity gospel’s harsh judgment.

4. Encourage Medical Care

While affirming God’s ability to heal miraculously, encourage appropriate medical care. God can work through doctors and medicine as well as through miraculous intervention.

5. Celebrate Faithful Suffering

Share testimonies not just of healing and provision, but also of faithful endurance through trials. Honor those who maintain faith despite ongoing suffering.

Part XI: Historical Perspective

How the Church Has Historically Viewed Suffering

Dake’s prosperity gospel is a historical aberration. Throughout church history, Christians have understood suffering differently:

1. The Early Church

The early church faced intense persecution. Rather than seeing suffering as lack of faith, they saw it as participation in Christ’s sufferings. The apostles rejoiced “that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name” (Acts 5:41).

Early church fathers like Ignatius, Polycarp, and countless martyrs embraced suffering and death rather than denouncing their faith. They certainly didn’t see suffering as evidence of spiritual failure.

2. The Medieval Period

While medieval theology had its own problems, the church consistently recognized that suffering could have spiritual value. The concept of suffering as participation in Christ’s passion was central to medieval spirituality.

Monastic movements often embraced voluntary poverty, seeing it as spiritually beneficial rather than as something to be overcome through faith.

3. The Reformation

The Reformers, while correcting many medieval errors, maintained that suffering was part of Christian life. Luther suffered from various physical ailments and depression but never saw these as invalidating his faith.

Calvin’s theology emphasized God’s sovereignty over all things, including suffering. The Reformed tradition has consistently taught that God may allow suffering for purposes beyond our understanding.

4. The Puritan Era

The Puritans wrote extensively about suffering, seeing it as God’s tool for sanctification. Richard Baxter’s “The Saints’ Everlasting Rest” was written while he suffered from chronic illness that he never overcame.

Puritan writings consistently emphasize finding God’s purposes in trials rather than demanding deliverance from them.

5. Modern Missions Movement

The great missionaries of the 18th and 19th centuries often suffered tremendously—disease, poverty, persecution—yet maintained faith. David Livingstone lost his wife to malaria, Hudson Taylor buried several children in China, and Adoniram Judson suffered terrible imprisonment and loss.

None of these heroes of faith would have accepted Dake’s teaching that their sufferings were due to lack of faith or sin.

The Recent Rise of Prosperity Gospel

The prosperity gospel is largely a 20th-century American phenomenon:

1. Origins in New Thought

Many prosperity gospel ideas have roots in the New Thought movement of the late 19th century, which taught that mind could control matter and that positive thinking could create reality.

2. E.W. Kenyon’s Influence

E.W. Kenyon (1867-1948) blended New Thought ideas with Christianity, teaching that believers could use faith as a force to manipulate reality. His ideas heavily influenced later prosperity teachers.

3. Post-War American Optimism

The prosperity gospel flourished in post-World War II America, a time of unprecedented economic growth and optimism. The American Dream became confused with the gospel.

4. The Charismatic Movement

While not all Charismatics embrace prosperity teaching, the movement’s emphasis on supernatural power and gifts provided fertile ground for prosperity gospel growth.

5. Television and Mass Media

Television allowed prosperity preachers to reach massive audiences with their message of health and wealth, often using their own apparent success as proof of their teaching.

Part XII: Theological Analysis

The Hermeneutical Errors

Dake’s biblical interpretation violates several basic principles of sound hermeneutics (biblical interpretation):

1. Ignoring Context

Dake routinely pulls verses out of context, applying promises made to specific people in specific situations as universal guarantees to all believers. He ignores:

• Historical context—who was being addressed and when
• Literary context—what comes before and after
• Cultural context—the cultural background of the passage
• Canonical context—how the passage fits with all of Scripture

2. Selective Reading

Dake emphasizes passages that seem to support his position while ignoring or explaining away contradictory passages. This “proof-texting” approach can make the Bible appear to teach almost anything.

3. Over-Literalization

While the Bible should be taken literally where intended, Dake often literalizes poetic or metaphorical language. Hebrew poetry, for instance, often uses parallelism and metaphor that shouldn’t be pressed into rigid doctrinal formulas.

4. Confusing Descriptive and Prescriptive

Dake often takes descriptive passages (describing what happened) as prescriptive (commanding what should always happen). Just because God healed someone in Scripture doesn’t mean He promises to heal everyone.

5. Anachronistic Reading

Dake reads modern Western ideas about health and wealth back into ancient texts written in very different cultural contexts where these concepts were understood differently.

The Systematic Theology Problems

Dake’s teaching creates problems for systematic theology:

1. Doctrine of God

Sovereignty: If God must heal and prosper all believers who have sufficient faith, His sovereignty is compromised. He becomes subject to human manipulation through faith formulas.

Wisdom: Dake’s system implies God cannot have wise purposes for allowing suffering, reducing His wisdom to what humans can understand.

Love: Ironically, while claiming to exalt God’s love, Dake’s teaching implies God lacks the love human parents have when they sometimes say “no” for their children’s good.

2. Doctrine of Salvation

Nature of Salvation: Dake confuses salvation (primarily spiritual and eternal) with temporal physical and material benefits.

Assurance: If health and wealth are signs of salvation, then sick and poor Christians must doubt their salvation.

Glorification: Dake collapses the future glorification of our bodies into the present, ignoring the “already/not yet” tension in Scripture.

3. Doctrine of Humanity

Effects of the Fall: Dake minimizes the ongoing effects of the Fall on believers, suggesting we can escape all consequences of living in a fallen world.

Nature of Faith: Faith becomes a force to manipulate reality rather than trust in God’s character and promises.

4. Doctrine of the Christian Life

Sanctification: Spiritual growth through suffering—a major biblical theme—is eliminated.

Prayer: Prayer becomes demand rather than request, manipulation rather than submission.

Community: The body of Christ bearing one another’s burdens is replaced with judging one another’s faith.

Part XIII: Responding to Common Prosperity Gospel Arguments

Argument 1: “God Wants His Children to Prosper”

Prosperity Gospel Claim: “Would earthly fathers want their children to be sick and poor? How much more does our Heavenly Father want us healthy and wealthy!”

Biblical Response:

While God does love us infinitely more than earthly parents, His definition of what’s good for us differs from ours. Good earthly parents sometimes:

• Allow their children to experience consequences of their actions
• Permit struggles that build character
• Say “no” to requests that would be harmful
• Allow temporary discomfort for long-term benefit

God’s perspective is eternal, not temporal. He’s more concerned with our spiritual health than our physical comfort. Paul explains: “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17).

Argument 2: “Jesus Healed Everyone Who Came to Him”

Prosperity Gospel Claim: “Jesus healed all who came to Him, proving it’s always God’s will to heal.”

Biblical Response:

While Jesus did heal many, several factors must be considered:

• Jesus’ healings were primarily to authenticate His messianic claims (John 20:30-31)
• Not everyone in Israel was healed, only those who came to Jesus
• Jesus Himself said miraculous works would be signs for establishing the gospel (Mark 16:20)
• Even in Jesus’ hometown, He “could there do no mighty work” because of unbelief (Mark 6:5), showing healing isn’t automatic
• The apostles, despite having healing gifts, couldn’t heal everyone (Paul’s thorn, Timothy’s stomach, Trophimus)

Argument 3: “By His Stripes We Are Healed”

Prosperity Gospel Claim: “Isaiah 53:5 and 1 Peter 2:24 guarantee physical healing through the atonement.”

Biblical Response:

Context is crucial:

• 1 Peter 2:24 continues: “that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness”—the context is spiritual, not physical
• The next verse says, “For ye were as sheep going astray”—clearly spiritual healing from sin
• While physical healing may be a secondary benefit, the primary reference is to spiritual healing
• Ultimate physical healing comes at the resurrection, not necessarily now
• Even if physical healing is in the atonement, not all benefits of the atonement are experienced immediately (we still die physically)

Argument 4: “You Just Lack Faith”

Prosperity Gospel Claim: “If you’re not healed or prosperous, you lack faith.”

Biblical Response:

This cruel accusation is refuted by:

• Paul’s thorn (2 Corinthians 12:7-9)—he had tremendous faith but wasn’t healed
• Job’s suffering—God Himself called Job “perfect and upright” (Job 1:8)
• The heroes of faith in Hebrews 11—many suffered and died without receiving promises (Hebrews 11:36-39)
• Jesus in Gethsemane—His prayer wasn’t answered as requested, but not due to lack of faith
• Christians throughout history who maintained faith through suffering

Argument 5: “Poverty is a Curse”

Prosperity Gospel Claim: “The Bible says poverty is a curse. Why would God want His children under a curse?”

Biblical Response:

While extreme poverty involving starvation is indeed tragic, the Bible presents a nuanced view:

• Jesus said, “Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God” (Luke 6:20)
• James says God has “chosen the poor of this world rich in faith” (James 2:5)
• Paul learned to be content in “want” and “need” (Philippians 4:11-12)
• The early church in Jerusalem shared possessions because many were poor (Acts 2:44-45)
• Wealth brings unique spiritual dangers (1 Timothy 6:9-10; Matthew 19:23-24)

Part XIV: A Better Way—Biblical Hope in Suffering

The True Christian Hope

Christianity offers something far better than guaranteed health and wealth—it offers hope that transcends circumstances:

1. God’s Presence in Suffering

Rather than promising to remove all suffering, God promises to be with us in it: “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned” (Isaiah 43:2).

The promise isn’t that we won’t go through waters and fire, but that God will be with us when we do.

2. Purpose in Pain

Christianity uniquely offers meaning in suffering. Our pain isn’t meaningless but can be used by God for good (Romans 8:28), to shape us (Romans 5:3-4), and to minister to others (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

3. Eternal Perspective

Paul writes: “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). Christianity offers hope beyond this life, making present sufferings bearable.

4. Christ’s Example

Jesus, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2), shows us how to endure suffering with hope. We have a Savior who understands our sufferings because He suffered too.

5. Ultimate Victory

While not promising immediate deliverance from all suffering, Christianity promises ultimate victory: “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:4).

Practical Pastoral Wisdom

How should churches minister to those suffering while avoiding prosperity gospel errors?

1. Pray Boldly but Humbly

Encourage prayer for healing and provision while maintaining submission to God’s will. Model prayers that trust God’s wisdom whether He says yes, no, or wait.

2. Provide Practical Support

Rather than blaming the suffering for their plight, actively support them. The early church’s care for widows and the poor should be our model.

3. Celebrate All Testimonies

Share testimonies not just of healing and provision, but also of grace in ongoing trials. Honor those who maintain faith despite unanswered prayers.

4. Teach the Full Counsel of Scripture

Don’t avoid difficult passages about suffering. Help people develop a biblical framework for understanding trials before they face them.

5. Point to Christ, Not Circumstances

Keep the focus on Christ and eternal life rather than temporal circumstances. Our hope is in Him, not in health or wealth.

Part XV: Personal Stories and Testimonies

Part XVI: Conclusion—The Gospel of the Cross vs. The Gospel of Glory

Two Different Gospels

At its core, the conflict between Dake’s prosperity gospel and biblical Christianity represents two fundamentally different gospels:

The Gospel of Glory (Prosperity Gospel):

• Come to Jesus for health, wealth, and success
• Faith is a force to get what you want
• Suffering is always negative and outside God’s will
• The Christian life is about victory and blessing now
• God must act according to our faith formulas

The Gospel of the Cross (Biblical Gospel):

• Come to Jesus for forgiveness and eternal life
• Faith is trust in God’s character and wisdom
• Suffering can have redemptive purposes
• The Christian life involves taking up our cross
• God acts according to His sovereign wisdom

Paul warned against those preaching “another gospel” (Galatians 1:8-9). While Dake may have been sincere, his teaching represents a different gospel than the one proclaimed by Jesus and the apostles.

The Damage Assessment

The harm from Dake’s teaching is immeasurable:

• Countless believers living with false guilt over illness and poverty
• Families destroyed by the belief that tragedy was due to lack of faith
• People who left Christianity when prosperity didn’t come
• Churches split over prosperity teaching
• The gospel’s credibility damaged in the eyes of the world
• Resources wasted on false promises instead of genuine ministry
• Spiritual growth stunted by avoiding the refining fire of suffering

The Way Forward

For those influenced by Dake’s teaching, the path forward involves:

1. Returning to Scripture

Read the Bible in context, not just isolated verses. Study whole books, understanding their historical and literary context. Let Scripture interpret Scripture rather than imposing our desires on the text.

2. Embracing Mystery

Accept that we won’t understand all of God’s purposes this side of eternity. “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12). Faith trusts God even when we don’t understand.

3. Finding Community

Connect with a church that teaches the whole counsel of Scripture and supports members through trials rather than blaming them. True Christian community bears one another’s burdens.

4. Developing Biblical Expectations

Expect that following Christ involves suffering (John 16:33; 2 Timothy 3:12) while also believing God can and does intervene miraculously according to His will. Hold these truths in tension.

5. Focusing on the Eternal

Remember that this life is temporary. Our ultimate hope isn’t in temporal healing or prosperity but in eternal life with Christ. “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:2).

Final Thoughts

Finis Dake was likely sincere in his beliefs, and his study Bible contains some valuable content alongside his errors. However, sincerity doesn’t make false teaching less dangerous. His promises of guaranteed healing and prosperity have caused immeasurable harm to Christ’s body.

The true gospel offers something better than health and wealth—it offers Christ Himself. It offers forgiveness of sins, eternal life, purpose in suffering, hope beyond circumstances, and a God who walks with us through every valley.

As attractive as prosperity gospel may seem, it ultimately fails because it cannot deliver what it promises. When suffering comes—and it will—prosperity gospel leaves believers either crushed by guilt or bitter against God. Biblical Christianity, in contrast, provides a framework for understanding and enduring suffering while maintaining hope.

May we reject the false gospel of guaranteed prosperity and embrace the true gospel of the cross. May we trust God’s wisdom when He says no to our requests. May we find His grace sufficient in our weakness. And may we keep our eyes fixed on the eternal glory that awaits, which will make all present sufferings pale in comparison.

“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

This is our hope—not that we’ll escape all suffering, but that nothing can separate us from God’s love. This is infinitely better than any promise of temporal prosperity.

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Bibliography and Sources

Primary Sources by Finis Jennings Dake:

• Dake, Finis Jennings. God’s Plan for Man. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1949.
• ———. Bible Truths Unmasked. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1984.
• ———. The Truth about Baptism in the Holy Spirit. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1983.
• ———. Revelation Expounded. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1950.
• ———. The Rapture and the Second Coming. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1977.
• ———. Ages and Dispensations. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1985.
• ———. Dake’s Annotated Reference Bible. Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, 1963.

Secondary Sources on Prosperity Gospel and Related Topics:

• Bowler, Kate. Blessed: A History of the American Prosperity Gospel. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.
• Fee, Gordon D. The Disease of the Health and Wealth Gospels. Vancouver: Regent College Publishing, 2006.
• Hanegraaff, Hank. Christianity in Crisis. Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 1993.
• Horton, Michael. Christless Christianity. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2008.
• Jones, David W., and Russell S. Woodbridge. Health, Wealth & Happiness: Has the Prosperity Gospel Overshadowed the Gospel of Christ? Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2011.
• MacArthur, John. Charismatic Chaos. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992.
• McConnell, D. R. A Different Gospel. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1995.
• Piper, John, and Justin Taylor, eds. Suffering and the Sovereignty of God. Wheaton: Crossway, 2006.

Biblical and Theological References:

• Carson, D. A. How Long, O Lord? Reflections on Suffering and Evil. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006.
• Grudem, Wayne. Systematic Theology. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994.
• Packer, J. I. Knowing God. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1973.
• Storms, Sam. Chosen for Life: The Case for Divine Election. Wheaton: Crossway, 2007.

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This report has been prepared for educational and theological analysis purposes. All quotations from Dake’s works are used under fair use provisions for purposes of criticism, comment, and scholarly analysis. The author affirms the importance of studying primary sources when evaluating theological claims and encourages readers to verify all quotations and examine the full context of cited passages.

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