Don’t you feel better?! Yes, you do. Why? Because so many of us can easily worry about provision…our next paycheck, social security check, or donation. It’s easy to do because most of us have never had enough. In fact, most of us don’t think it’s possible for us to have more than enough. But I want to say this to you, Jesus came to teach us how to prosper. What?!!! I know. I can hear the alarm bells going off in your head. You’re thinking, I thought He came to show us the way of salvation. He did. The problem: We’ve reduced what salvation actually means. The Bible’s version of salvation is bigger than ours. We have been taught a lie hidden in the virtue signaling of religion — the false teachings of Asceticism and Gnosticism.
What?, some of you may ask. What are Asceticism and Gnosticism? Asceticism is the pursuit of that which is spiritual through the denial of the material. Gnosticism is similar, but different. Gnosticism will replace the natural with the spiritual; it believes the natural is bad, including the material, and that which is spiritual is good. Today, much of the Church has been indoctrinated by those two branches of false teaching. Yes, most denominations, preachers, and Christian leaders will admit the falsehood of both Asceticism and Gnosticism. Yet, in practice, they perpetuate those false teachings through their mindset — the material, especially any form of material wealth is bad and must be denied, the spiritual is good and must be pursued to the exclusion of material wealth.
First, I want to start by asking you a question: Did you know that the very first power God gave to His covenant people was the power to prosper? In Deuteronomy 8:18, NKJV, we read, “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.” Moses wrote that scripture verse. Following Moses was Moses’s servant, Joshua. In Joshua 1:9, Berean Standard Bible, we read, “This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do.” Both pursued wealth, talked about wealth, and were incentivized by God in their pursuit of wealth.
From those scriptures, we can irrefutably claim wealth is from God, God wants us to have wealth, and gives us the means whereby we can acquire wealth. But there’s more. The Bible doesn’t stop there. Rather, it continues to promote the idea of acquiring wealth. In Isaiah 48:17, NKJV, we read, “I am the LORD your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you by the way you should go.” Again, God demonstrates its His will to bless His people with wealth. On this point, the scripture is clear: wealth is a blessing, poverty is a curse. Prosperity comes from our obedience to God, poverty comes from our disobedience to God.
“ 1) giving alms, 2) prayer, and 3) fasting. That’s how we seek God’s kingdom first and lay up treasure for ourselves in heaven.”—Scott Wallis
That understanding did not change with Christ’s coming. No! Jesus was sent to preach the Good News to the poor. Luke 4:18 NLT. What Good News? Jesus came to deliver the poor from their poverty. I realize that may be contrary to what you’ve heard. But let me explain. In Jesus’s sermon on the Mount, we can actually hear the Good News He brought to the poor. What do I mean? This was Jesus’s message to those who were poor. What does He say to them? “Look at the birds in the sky! They don't plant or harvest. They don't even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren't you worth much more than birds?” Matthew 6:26, CEV. Jesus highlighted a truth which is plainly visible everyday: God cares about and takes care of the birds by feeding them. They have everything they need for a happy life. Mankind is better. Then, he points to King Solomon, a man possibly wealthier than any other in history, and says, “Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are [the lilies of the field].” Matthew 6:29, NLT.
Jesus did not preach against prosperity; rather, He calls our attention to it. He pointed our attention to nature, which clearly reveals God’s will to prosper and bless mankind. Why does God want to bless mankind? We are better. We — mankind — are the pinnacle of God’s creation, even the angels do not compare to us. So, yes, it’s God’s will to bless us; it’s written into our very DNA to prosper. Even the least of us is better, higher, and greater than any other of God’s creation. That’s why God wants us to prosper: He knows who we are and who He made us to be. All creation is eagerly and earnestly waiting for us to clearly hear God’s message to us — I want to bless you, I want to prosper you, I Am for you.
How does God practically demonstrate that He’s for us? He gives us power to get wealth. Yet, the idea in the Hebrew is more than acquiring wealth; it’s more like creating wealth, generating wealth, and having power to increase wealth. Yes, God wants us to be wealthy. There’s something inside of us drawn to wealth. Have you noticed that? Wealth is always attractive. That’s why people pursue wealth, for those things wealth can bring them. Yet, Jesus doesn’t stop with the accumulation of wealth, He shows us how to keep wealth…eternally.
How can wealth be kept forever? Jesus plainly states, “Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.” Matthew 6:20, NLT. Often, we just pass over this verse, not paying attention to what it’s really saying. Jesus wasn’t against wealth; rather, He taught us how to keep it — store your wealth in heaven. How do we do that? “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” Matthew 6:33, NLT. How do we seek the Kingdom of God? Jesus gives us three practical ways of doing that: 1) giving alms, 2) prayer, and 3) fasting. That’s how we seek God’s kingdom first and lay up treasure for ourselves in heaven. Oh, and by the way, God will also bless us on earth, as we do those things. Why? To establish His covenant (New Covenant) in the earth.
As King Solomon concludes, “God {Elohim} has given riches and wealth to every man, and He has enabled him to enjoy them, to accept his lot, and to rejoice in his labor. This is a gift from God.” Ecclesiastes 5:19, Berean Annotated Bible. Now, receive His gift to you.
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