Myths and Mysteries - Prosperity

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This is the second message in a series of sermons that address common misconceptions people may believe that are not consistent with what the Bible teaches. This sermon speaks about the "myth" that God will provide wealth and prosperity to sincere Christians who not only trust Him, but obey all His commands.

Written Excerpts:

Psalm 112:1-3 (NKJV) Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, Who delights greatly in His commandments. ² His descendants will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed. ³ Wealth and riches will be in his house, And his righteousness endures forever.

Introduction:

Last Sunday we began a short series of messages on Christian Myths; common beliefs that many Christians hold that are not consistent with the teaching of the Bible. We already considered the myth: God wants His children to be happy, so whatever it takes to make me happy must be His will for me. Today I want to continue examining some common misunderstandings held by many Christians by taking a look at what some people have called the “health and wealth gospel.”

The myth of the health and wealth gospel is the belief that God’s children will be blessed with good health and riches if they obey God’s Word and have enough faith. We’ve already addressed the matter of health and suffering in a message several weeks ago, so I won’t revisit that topic except to remind us that the Bible gives ample evidence of the fact that suffering is a natural part of our world that has been cursed by sin. It also describes the ways that God uses suffering and adversity to grow our faith like nothing else can do. 

So, today I want to speak to you about the myth that goes something like this: “If I obey the Lord and follow His will for my life, He will bless me with riches and success.” I have heard some express the viewpoint, “Christians are the children of the King, so we should live like king’s kids.” Meaning: our lives should be rich, extravagant, and filled with material blessings.

Let’s begin with some "words of wisdom" relating to gaining riches and wealth.

Jolene Horn, Today's Christian Woman, "Heart to Heart." —While putting my 4-year-old daughter to bed one evening, I read her the story of the Prodigal Son. We discussed how the young son had taken his inheritance and left home, living it up until he had nothing left. Finally, when he couldn't even eat as well as pigs, he went home to his father, who welcomed him. When we finished the story, I asked my daughter what she had learned. After thinking a moment, she quipped, "Never leave home without your credit card!" (Today's Best Illustrations)

(Draper's Book of Quotations) [More interesting thoughts about riches and wealth.]

·     Every man serves a useful purpose: a miser, for example, makes a wonderful ancestor.
·     God has to take some people out of this world in order to set their money into circulation.
·     It's hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven, but easy for him to get on the church board of trustees. [If we have rich people on the board here at Wayside, then those people are really good at keeping secrets!]
·      The Scriptures first taught the futility of riches. It took income tax to drive the lesson home.

With the help of God’s Spirit, let us review what the Bible has to say about wealth, riches and material blessings.

I.    In the OT, wealth and riches are presented in both good and bad contexts.

 (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament) There is an ambivalent attitude in the OT respecting wealth and riches. On the one hand, riches are said to be
·      the blessing of Yahweh to the righteous (Ps. 112:1-3 ^(NKJV) Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, Who delights greatly in His commandments. ² His descendants will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed. ³ Wealth and riches will be in his house, And his righteousness endures forever.

cf. Pro. 10:22 ^(NKJV) The blessing of the LORD makes one rich, And He adds no sorrow with it.
Ex. 23:22-26 ^(NKJV) But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. ²³ For My Angel will go before you and bring you in to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites and the Hivites and the Jebusites; and I will cut them off. ²⁴ You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars. ²⁵ So you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. ²⁶ No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.

·     the reward of humble faith (Prov. 22:4 ^(NKJV) By humility and the fear of the LORD Are riches and honor and life.)… 

·     and the proper adornment of kings (e.g. Solomon - 2 Chr. 1:11-12 ^{(NKJV) 11} And God said to Solomon: "Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor have you asked long life--but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king-- ¹² wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and I will give you riches and wealth and honor, such as none of the kings have had who were before you, nor shall any after you have the like."….)

[This could also be viewed not so much as the proper adornment for kings, but the reward for expressing passion for divine assistance and guidance rather than seeking for riches in themselves.]

Conversely, riches [are bad when they] 

·     lead to self-confidence rather than dependence upon Yahweh (Hos. 12:8-9 ^(NKJV) And Ephraim [i.e. Israel] said, 'Surely I have become rich, I have found wealth for myself; In all my labors They shall find in me no iniquity that is sin.' ⁹ "But I am the LORD your God, Ever since the land of Egypt; I will again make you dwell in tents, As in the days of the appointed feast.)

·     derive from deceit and treachery (Jer. 5:26-27 ^(NKJV)'For among My people are found wicked men; They lie in wait as one who sets snares; They set a trap; They catch men. ²⁷ As a cage is full of birds, So their houses are full of deceit. Therefore they have become great and grown rich.) 

·     [become the primary goal of life (Prov. 28:20 ^(NKJV) A faithful man will abound with blessings, But he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.)]

cf. Prov. 28:22 ^(NKJV) A man with an evil eye hastens after riches, And does not consider that poverty will come upon him.

cf. 1 Tim. 6:9-10 ^(NKJV)But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. ¹⁰ For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

[In our Wed. night Bible study on the “gifts of the Spirit,” we noted that a person doesn’t have to possess a lot of money in order to have the “gift of giving.” Similarly, neither does one have to possess a lot of money in order to have the “love of money!”]

·     cannot redeem a soul (Ps. 49:6-7 ^(NKJV) Those who trust in their wealth And boast in the multitude of their riches, ⁷ None of them can by any means redeem his brother, Nor give to God a ransom for him)

cf. 1 Pet. 1:18-19 ^(NKJV) knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.  

·     cannot last (Ps. 49:16-17 ^(NKJV) Do not be afraid when one becomes rich, When the glory of his house is increased; ¹⁷ For when he dies he shall carry nothing away; His glory shall not descend after him.) 

cf. 1 Tim. 6:7 ^(NKJV) For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.

You cannot take it with you! 

II.  In the NT, material wealth is often contrasted with the more important eternal/spiritual wealth.

Matt. 6:19-21 ^(NKJV) "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matt. 13:22 ^(NKJV) Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

Luke 12:15 ^(NKJV) And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."

1 Tim. 6:6-8 ^(NKJV) Now godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷ For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. ⁸ And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. ⁹ But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. ¹⁰ For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

III. Those who emphasize wealth as a sign of God’s blessing on Christians are mistaken.

(The Complete Book of Everyday Christianity) The prosperity gospel now being preached worldwide is not satisfied with a comfortable existence or merely praying for our daily bread. We can critique it on at least three grounds. First, it encourages perverted motives: focusing on profitability. Second, it misinterprets God’s deepest concerns for us: material well-being rather than total well-being. Third, it misinterprets God’s promises to Israel as immediately applicable to Christians without being fulfilled and transfigured in Christ (compare 1 Tim. 6:6-10). 

There are a number of passages in the NT and OT that teach us that wealth is not necessarily the sign of God’s blessing. God “sends the rain on the just and the unjust.”

Neither is wealth the primary objective of life for the follower of Christ. Our primary objective in living the Christian life is to become like Christ. There’s absolutely nothing in the life of Christ that indicates a goal of obtaining riches.

Conclusion:

Many Christians over the years have been deceived and misguided into thinking that success, defined by material wealth and possessions, is the most important goal in life. Many have also presumed that the measure of success they may experience in those pursuits are an indication of God’s approval and blessing.

But…

 Luke 12:18-21 ^(NKJV) So he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry."' ²⁰ But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?' ²¹ So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

There’s so much more we could say on this topic…

e.g. – Those who are blessed with wealth and riches often are used by God to given generously to the work of God’s Kingdom around the world. We all have known people who love the Lord with all their hearts and use their wealth to generously support the needs of others and the promotion of the gospel.

Next week when we emphasize Faith Promise giving for missions, we’ll be talking about the kind of support this church has given for God’s work. God does promise to bless those who are generous for His work and His glory.

The question for us to answer is this: “Do we have riches, or do riches have us?”

Orin Philip Gifford – Ahab sold himself for a vineyard; Judas, a bag of silver; Achan, a wedge and a garment; Gehazi, silver and raiment. Are you for sale? (Draper's Book of Quotations)

Billy Sunday – The fellow that has no money is poor. The fellow that has nothing but money is poorer still. (Today's Best Illustrations)

For our closing hymn today we are going to sing a song that emphasizes our spiritual riches.

A Child of the King