All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others
Judgment of the Prosperity Gospel
Living under God's blessing is NOT the same as the prosperity gospel that is being taught in today's world. There will come a day when God will judge the prosperity gospel. In following such teachings, we are letting the Light of Jesus grow dim. Consider this: The devil knows how to bless too. America is being blinded . The churches are blinded. Men are refusing to hear the council of God. Why is this? Where does the believer stand spiritually? Where do we stand with Jesus?
We must call the church (the body of Christ) to repentance because we have hid the Light of Christ.
1 Samuel 3:1-3
1And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.
2And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;
3And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep;
1 Samuel 2:29
29Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
God will judge sin. The light IS going out in the church.
We have allowed wrongs. We've failed to keep the light burning. The dead don't worship God. Our light is not shining. Somebody has got to turn the light back on. We must be watchmen to stand against such nonsense. To stand against the gospel of greed. It seems we want to take the best and give God the rest.
The benefits of God are far greater than the benefits of sin. We must preach the truth that the Light of Christ will shine and darkness will be exposed. Woe to you who are blind, naked, destitute. It's time to Rise Up, turn the light back on. You are the light of the world.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by geoff on
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It is sooo easy to get focused on the things of this world. But that is not God's best for us. He wants us to shine in the darkness, and He has told us the best way to do that:
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death works in us, but life in you. But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE," we also believe, therefore we also speak, knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4:7-18 (NASB)
It might not be easy being an earthen vessel, a jar of clay (or in my case, a cracked pot -- teehee) But why would any Christian pray for prosperity? If our 'momentary light affliction' might result in even one more person being brought to Christ, maybe we should pray instead, "Lord, You do whatever it takes, no matter what the cost."
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Permalink Reply by Stacey Osana Arquines on
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less is more and be grateful for what you have and share and be humble and know who God is and Love your Savior Lord Jesus Christ for dying on the cross that you may live in joy of the Lord and in love for and of God to truly worship and praise His holy name with humility and grace in all faithfulness and pure love Amen
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Permalink Reply by David Velasquez on
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These questions were asked by a good pastor friend of mine (Chris) and I have decided to throw them in here since they pertain to your topic.
Since we have been discussing the prosperity message a little, i want to discuss one of the reasons i feel they get off in their doctrine. it relates to a line of reasoning they hold to. they beleive since we are children of abraham and share in the "covenants of promise", they hold that all the benefits of the abrahamic and mosaic covenant belong to us. so they say things like, abraham was rich, we should receive that benefit. they say that since the law promised that our land crops would be blessed, our businesses will be prosperous. etc. etc. they also apply the "curses" of the mosaic covenant to believers, but here i would like to focus on how they apply the "promises" and benefits of those covenants to the nt believer. in the discussions about "christians under law?" we talked about the curses.
-so, is their logic correct?
-do all the promises of prosperity in the abrahamic and mosaic covenants apply to us? Do we have the promise of blessed crops? Do we have the promise of victory over our national enemies? Do we get the promise of living at peace in our land? etc, etc.
-how do we decide which promises of the abrahamic and mosaic covenants to apply to NT believers???
-2 Corinthians 1:20 "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us." does this mean we can claim any promise we find anywhere in the old testament???
This might seem like an odd way to approach the errors of the prosperity message, but i believe it is one of, if not the, main sources of their error. the way they understand the old testament covenants in relation to the New covenant believer.
It is not an easy thing to navigate around, but i thought i would throw it out for meditation.
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Dear Mary
Please don't take this the wrong way , but I must call to question one of your statements
You stated that " I have to have money before I can bless someone. "
The people who have blessed and taught me the most about the love of God have never given me a dime.
One example that stands head and shoulders above the rest is of a woman we used to go visit every Sunday when I lived in DC. She lived in the projects in th SW section of DC. She was bed ridden and had been that way long before I came to know her. She had a form of arthritis that left her arms and legs almost totally useless. She had to depend on others for ALL of her needs as she could not even feed herself.
She lived with a daughter that didn't do much at all to help her so she depended on a couple of ladies in our church to come over each day to help. Yet every time we went over to see her she was full of joy and had nothing but praises for her Lord and Savior. She died one Sunday after the others had gone for their usual visit. I so deeply regret that I didn't go with them that final Sunday. They told us that there was a glow on her face that they couldn't really describe. They said it was like the look on the face of a child that was getting ready to have the most wonderful experience of their lives. She sang a song for the people that went and they said there was no hint of the shortness of breath she experienced from lying on her back for so long. It was like she knew the time to meet Him face to face was at hand.
You see Mary , to me that woman gave me the most incredible and extremely practical gift I'd recieved since I came to accept the Lord. She demonstrated , in some of the most trying of circumstances , that the grace of God was indeed sufficient. I cannot begin to count the number of time when I was feeling sorry for myself or 'abandoned' by God , that the Lord caused me to pause and burn with shame as I remembered this " warrior of the faith".
She didn't just talk about a faith in God , she lived it. I used the memories of this womans faith to help carry me through some rough times as the Lord was trying to get me to that place of peace and rest that she experienced. I'm no ways near where she was but I have a simple yet strong confidence in the truth that the Lord will meet all our needs as we walk in a way pleasing to Him.
I very likely will never be rich in this worlds goods. many times I can barely pay the bills , but they get paid every time and on time.God always comes through. My hearts desire is that I can help others see that His grace is sufficient through trials ( and unforunately, errors )If I can, in some small way, influence anyone in that way I will consider myself to have bestowed on them as great a treasure as any that even Bill Gates could give them. Yet , even then it would actually be the Lord's doing, but at least I could have a part in it.
I guess that when I read that John said that he would that we prosper and been in health even as our soul prospers, I see that as an added incentive to place an infinitely greater importance on the prosperity of my soul that I do of any financial blessings. Jesus promised that if we seek His kingdom and righteousness first, He'll take care of everything else. Besides, the lady I mentioned above didn't have a dime to her name and she blessed so many people through just living out her faith.
Anyhow, I sincerely hope that I haven't offended in any way , it's just that I see things in a little different way and feel kind of strongly about it. God bless.
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Dear sister Mary,
Thank you for sharing with us. I want you to know that I think is safe to say that we all agree that God can bless according to His good pleasure His children with Spiritual and material blessings.
I do not believe anyone here is against the children of God prospering in any way. We believe we serve a good and Gracious God. However we do see an abuse of scripture by many that propagate the prosperity message.
Charles,
What a great reminder that our true treasures are the peace and Joy we can attain through Christ, regardless of our circumstances, trials and tribulations.
His grace is truly sufficient for the child of God.
Your brother in Christ- DV
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Permalink Reply by Michael Vernon McEntire on
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Sandra, you don't have to "claim" any scriptures, except by the faith that you have in the one, Jesus, in whom all of the scriptures are fulfilled. There are no scriptures about prosperity that you must claim. In Jesus, you inherit all of the blessings that pertain to Him. Indeed, all of scripture is about Jesus in some way or other, but to enjoy the blessings that Jesus enjoyed, we must live as Jesus lived: simply, in complete trust in the Father. Then we will receive all of the blessings, material and spiritual that the Father desires you to have, although that may not be exactly what you have in mind.
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Permalink Reply by Tikkie on
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What you have said is right.We should know the distinction between GOD'S Blessings and the Blessings taught by Man and others.We have to know HIS will and Be Guided by it.For the Best effective method is to be in constant touch with HIM through Prayers.May GOD Bless You and Guide You
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Permalink Reply by forgiven on
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I think about all the different 'splinters' of Christianity, so many different practises that seem right to one and wrong to another and it boggles my mind. Where do we 'start' to correct all the crazy stuff that we profess in the Name of Jesus? I think all of our theological differences pale to Jesus' intention for our Salvation. However, I think 'judgement' has already been passed for all of us. It is quite clear in John 3: 15-21. Salvation has an open invitation to all. It does not require rocket science. Those who believe Jesus will be with Jesus. Those who refuse Him 'choose' to do so, by their own profession. It is not our to judge or condemn, that is too big a job for us, and solely the Lord's affair. What is our job however is to offer the invitation to as many as possible, whether humbly, or as energetically as we are able. I think our 'job' is clearly defined in Revelation 22:17, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. (see 'free" http://www.thefreedictionary.com/free )
So many times many of us Christians unknowingly bar the gates of heaven to those around us with our rules and conditions for salvation, rules and conditions, a price that we ourselves were not required. We got in the door for free although we were unworthy sinners. The price was paid by jesus before we even knew Him. We should all be kind enough to let others in in equally free. If there is any other price, it is between each person and the maker. And He loves every single person on this earth whether they are a 'big sinner' or a 'little sinner'. JMHO
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Robert,
It is not our to judge or condemn:
Check out this discussion and feel free to give me your thought there, if you will.
http://www.allaboutgod.net/forum/topics/correcting-one-another-is-it
>>We should all be kind enough to let others in in equally free.
You are absolutely correct bro. Praise God that is right on. Love it. What you are seeing here though bro is a community of believers that love to discuss all things pertaining to God and Godliness. We discuss things in love and at times some topics can become a bit heated, but God is good and someone always step in and reminds us that above all, we should love one another.
1 Timothy 1:3
[ No Other Doctrine ] As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine,
Ephesians 4:14
that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
1 Timothy 4:1
[ The Great Apostasy ] Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons
2 Timothy 3:16
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
1 Timothy 4:16
Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you
What we believe about God is of extreme importance. Sound Doctrine is our ticket to freedom. The truth sets us free. Of course - Jesus set us free, but to walk in that freedom we must do the hard work of sorting through some doctrinal issues.
Blessings bro
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Well, I cannot say that I agree with that video. I do not think we need loss and suffering to be blessed by our Lord. I do not support much of the 'prosperity Gospel' which say's "you will be blessed with wealth by how much you give to the church". ..However I found this video very harsh almost to the point of having compassion for the author and his torment. Torment is not blessing. Black is still black, it is not white, sweet is not sour, figs do not grow on thorns. I do believe the Lord is able to bless us with prosperity through our hard work, as I believe what proverbs says is the reward of the sluggard. Jesus said that His burden is light and His yoke is easy....I do not find that in the words of this very ANGRY sermon. Jesus loves us. Why cant people preach that He loves us? I would rather hear about the overflowing love to the point of almost overwhelming than a sermon about the hatred this man feels. The Gospel is good news not bad news. Is prosperity gospel any worse than hatred gospel? May the Lord bless His pain. Our God is not the god of hatred. He does not hate anybody. Oh How He loves us, oh how He loves us so.
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