PROSPERITY

Is Prosperity Wrong?

Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the LORD blessed him.  The man began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the Philistines envied him. Genesis 26:12-14

THE ELDER,   To the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth:  Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth.  I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. 3 John 1:1-4

God delights in the prosperity of His servants and has caused many of them to prosper, doesn’t have a problem with prosperity in the lives of His people.  He who sends the rain on the just and unjust doesn’t allow His people to have any other god’s but Him. So those who make prosperity or the love of money their god will not see His favor but rather His wrath. Now the enemy, who is a liar and a thief, steals the prosperity of God’s people and others because he is envious. But God only takes away the prosperity of His people when they do something wrong or disobey Him. His word is unchanging:

"When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:13-14

Unrepentant sin and doing evil and wicked things brings judgments and poverty upon the lives and land of God’s people. But if it is repentant off God forgives the sin and heals the land and brings back prosperity. His word is unchanging:

"And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. Deuteronomy 8:18

"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. 2 Chronicles 16:9a

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8

Those who teach that suffering and poverty are the will of God are purposely ignorant of the Word of God. It’s is true that innocent and blameless Job lost all his worldly possessions and suffered greatly as a result of the physical sickness that the devil afflicted him with. Nevertheless God’s word is unchanging:

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all. Psalm 34:19

"Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name.  He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble;  I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation." Psalm 91:14-16

Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord-that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. James 5:11

Yes, although many are the afflictions of the righteous, the LORD delivered Job out of them all and restored double all his real losses. And He has promised to do the same for anyone who is righteous, set his love upon the Lord, knows His name and calls upon Him. And God unlike others keeps His word! He will give to the enduring and persevering righteous the end intended by the Lord because the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. And yes, because our God is a good and powerful God we can have victor today in all things. If something doesn’t work it must be because we are doing something wrong. We need to go back to the manufacturer’s manual, the Bible, and see what is wrong? There is no sickness, diseases, poverty, loss or judgment in heaven. Heaven has no shortage of any good thing. Heaven is full of abundance which God wants to make real on earth according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. God’s desire and will for His children, just like any earthly parent, is for them to be health, wealth, rich, prosperous and successful and He gives them the power to make it so!

So if good things are lacking in the lives of God’s children including perfect health and abundant blessings, they need to go to the Word of God and check out what they are doing wrong including considering their ways? For if they build God’s house He will remove drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of their hands and will open the windows of heaven and pour out such a blessing that there will be no room to contain them! God’s word is true:

Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,  That there may be food in My house,  And try Me now in this,"  Says the LORD of hosts,  "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing  That there will not be room enough to receive it. "And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes,  So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground,  Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,"  Says the LORD of hosts; Malachi 3:10-11

Yes, through the LORD'S mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is His faithfulness.  The LORD, Himself, is our portion" therefore we can put our trust in Him and hope in Him!  The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him.  It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. God’s word is unchanging:

My soul still remembers And sinks within me.  This I recall to my mind,  Therefore I have hope.  Through the LORD'S mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.  "The LORD is my portion," says my soul,  "Therefore I hope in Him!"  The LORD is good to those who wait for Him,  To the soul who seeks Him.  It is good that one should hope and wait quietly  For the salvation of the LORD. Lamentations 3:20-26

May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble; May the name of the God of Jacob defend you;  May He send you help from the sanctuary,  And strengthen you out of Zion;  May He remember all your offerings, And accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah  May He grant you according to your heart's desire,  And fulfill all your purpose.  We will rejoice in your salvation,  And in the name of our God we will set up our banners!  May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.  Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed;  He will answer him from His holy heaven  With the saving strength of His right hand. Psalm 20:1-6

God who desires that we should be without inadequacies...we should be perfect and complete... will exalt us. He will perfect us. Wipe away our tears. Suppress the whirlwind snowstorm of poverty and debt-trap. He will give us the shield of financial prosperity as we wait upon Him. (Nothing is wrong with prosperity, of course, but there are two huge qualifiers. First, those who prosper need to remember the ultimate source of all their good things. Second, if some prosper while neglecting the needs of the poor, then God no longer takes delight in their prosperity.)  Poverty, like a snowstorm, attempts to destroy our life. In our worldly life, financial discrepancies, Debt- burdens penury... perplex us. According to Ecclesiastes 7:12, "money (wealth/riches) is defense" Ecclesiastes 10:19 says, " money answers everything." That is why God is ever ready to save us from the terrible whirlwind of poverty by providing us with financial strength for He is our refuge and strength in time of trouble. His word is unchanging:

"The Lord is in His holy temple, The Lord's throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men." Psalm 11:4

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Romans 8:31-32

"Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time." 1 Peter 5:6