The Downfall of Pastor Jim Bakker: Ego and Corruption

Pastor Jim Bakker amassed wealth through preaching prosperity, but his downfall resulted from succumbing to ego and financial corruption.

### The Downfall of Pastor Jim Bakker: A Warning Against Ego
* 😇 Pastor Jim Bakker became famous for preaching that "**God wants you to be rich**" to over 14 million families worldwide, receiving **huge offerings**.
* 💸 Bakker amassed **significant wealth** through these offerings, but his downfall began with a **sex scandal**.
* 🏛 During the investigation of the scandal, it was revealed that Bakker was engaging in **financial corruption**.
* 📖 "The Ego Is the Enemy" describes ego as an unhealthy belief that **one's self is the most important existence**, leading to **destructive behaviors**.
* 📚 The Bible also warns against **worldly desires** and living according to the **flesh**.
* ❌ Ignoring these warnings can lead to a downfall similar to **Jim Bakker's**.
* 🔥 Montesquieu's quote "**What you boast so proudly of will ultimately lead you to destruction**" serves as a reminder to fight against the ego.
* ⛪ Romans 6:6 teaches that we must **crucify our old self ruled by sin**, which aligns with the message of **combating the ego**.

Pastor Jim Bakker, when I immigrated to the United States in 1983, at that time, he was a famous figure in the United States. Pastor Jim Bakker appeared on his wife's gospel singer, and they held hands. Pastor Jim Bakker came out and conducted the program and preached. What shocked me was that through this television network, more than 14 million families in the United States and around the world received his sermons. In the process, with such a huge offering, if two people from one of the 14 million families gave together, it would be nearly 20 to 30 million. People received grace and sent their offerings there, so wouldn't an enormous amount of money have come in? So, he accumulated a tremendous amount of wealth. The message he delivered was just one: God wants you to be rich. You are a child of God, a king.

Are children of the king going to live in this world? The consistent message is this: because they deliver a message that people really want to hear, around 14 million households listened to the sermon, received grace, and sent tremendous offerings. However, soon after, they collapsed. The beginning of the collapse this time was a sex scandal. With a woman committing a sexual sin, it was exposed, and now it has started to crumble. During the investigation of the sex scandal, this person, while preaching graciously on the surface, was actually accumulating a huge amount of negative money in the background. This has now come to light. Unfortunately, due to financial corruption and such things being revealed, they ended up in prison. It wasn't just for a short time, but for a long time. As far as I remember, Pastor Bake went to jail for quite a while due to this scandal, turning American society upside down.

Isn't that so? So, these days, now, various corruptions, financial corruptions, these kinds of things are being exposed. In that process, I remember vividly when I was young, seeing Jim Bakker's splendid mansion being shown continuously. At that time, I was really furious. He lived in a huge mansion and installed an air conditioner in the dog house. We didn't even have an air conditioner at home back then. I was in my 20s, full of vigor, feeling like a worthless existence, getting extremely angry. Because a huge amount of donations came in, he committed financial corruption and ended up spending money recklessly, installing an air conditioner in the dog house. Isn't this a terrible thing that happened just because there was nowhere else to spend the money? What a pitiful fall for someone like Jim Bakker, right?

Did I lose it? What's wrong? I know you can answer the question. There is a book called The Ego Is the Enemy. The ego mentioned here is a bit different from what the psychologist Freud talks about. There is a passage where the author directly explains what the ego is saying. I will read that part for you. The ego mentioned in this book refers to an unhealthy belief that one's self is the most important existence. This is not a Christian book; it's a general book. So, this ego lurking within me, what does it say? Believing that oneself is the most important existence is a belief that we need to fight against, an enemy that we need to drive out. Therefore, the subtitle of this book is One Thing to Discard at the Turning Point of Life: The Ego. What happens if we don't discard this ego? Because I am more important than anyone else, I always have to succeed and achieve more.

I should enjoy it, and more than anyone else, I should receive recognition. Amazingly, there is a proposal. I'm still dreaming about the issue of Lee Chan-soo. I saw a lecture related to his book on YouTube. Let me read you a passage. The more ambitious a person is, the more they believe they are a special existence living in their own worst part. The more ambitious a person is, the more powerful they are. You easily make yourself collapse, stop growing, and even ruin people around you. This is exactly your problem. Let me ask you again. You should live a life not dominated by the burden but controlled by the ego. Isn't Pastor Jim Bakker's downfall because he missed this point? In fact, isn't this a continuous warning message from the Bible? Look at 1 John 2:16.

All things are the desires of the flesh, the desires of the mind, and the desires of this life. They are not from the Father but from the world. Check how deeply the enemy called ego is hidden within you. Isn't it Pastor Jin Baek who talks about the desires of the flesh, the desires of the mind, and the desires of this life in the Bible? Holding hands with the ego inside oneself, praising together, why fall into a situation of having a sexual relationship with another woman? It's because the ego within oneself comes out simultaneously. Therefore, put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. Isn't this the ego mentioned in the book? The ego, Romans 8:13, For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

People are indeed children of God. Isn't this Bible verse about living a life that does not indulge in ego but rather living a life that controls ego? If we ignore this warning, we cannot avoid falling into the shameful place where Jim Bakker and all of you have walked. Today, we must deeply understand this warning. I remember finding something in this book, but I didn't take notes, so I can't recall exactly where I saw it. It seems like it was in a book. Montesquieu engraved it on the ceiling, which is so important that I even asked for it to be shown on the screen. Here is the quote: What you boast so proudly of will ultimately lead you to destruction. What are you boasting about now, Lord?

What in the world that I am boasting about, not inside but through my ego, will eventually lead you to destruction. Yes, when I meditate on this Montai Gall, let's look at Romans 6:6. This is the Bible of modern people. Our old self was crucified with Christ so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. Do you know what this word is warning us about? We must fight against this old self, as mentioned in the Bible, through the ego.

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Pastor Jim Bakker gained immense wealth through TV sermons and offerings, promoting a message of prosperity.

His ministry attracted around 14 million families, leading to a significant accumulation of money.

However, his downfall began with a sex scandal, which exposed financial corruption and led to a lengthy prison sentence, greatly impacting American society.

The Reckless Spending and Pitiful Fall of Jim Bakker

Jim Bakker's reckless spending of donations, including installing an air conditioner in his dog's house, sparked outrage and a sense of injustice.

His extravagant use of funds and the exposure of financial corruption led to a pitiful fall from grace.

The incident serves as a poignant example of the dangers of the unhealthy belief in one's self-importance and the need to discard the ego.

The Impact of Ambition on Personal Growth and Relationships

Ambition can lead to a belief of being a special existence but can also cause self-destruction and harm to others.

Pastor Jim Bakker's downfall is seen as a result of missing the point of living a life controlled by the ego, as warned in the Bible.

The presence of ego is highlighted as the cause of sinful desires, emphasizing the need to put it to death for spiritual growth.

The Bible verse warns against indulging in ego and the destructive consequences of boasting.

It emphasizes the need to fight against the old self ruled by sin.

The message calls for living a life that controls ego and does not succumb to sin.