We’ve all heard it. Pastors, preachers, people who call themselves “prophets,” telling us that if we give a certain amount of money, God will bless us double the amount we gave. Or that God wants us to be happy, He wants to put more money in our bank account, He wants to see us prosper in the world.
Maybe you’ve read a book by a famous pastor, about how to make your life great, and how to live life to the fullest. Maybe you are familiar with these teachings and have heard them for yourself.
This is the prosperity gospel, a movement that has swept the world and promises a life of wealth, health, success, and ease, saying that this is what God has and wants for you.
And this is the danger of the prosperity gospel: it is self-focused.
As soon as we start listening to and believing the things that come from the teachers of this “gospel,” it immediately becomes about us. What we can get from God; what He can do for us.
Sadly, my friend, this movement that has taken the world by storm, is the exact opposite of the teachings of Jesus and the Bible. It is the opposite of how God calls Christians to live.
Taking Up Our Cross
One thing about the prosperity gospel is that it goes against the very character and actions of Jesus. In the four Gospels in the Bible, we read about how Jesus gave up His throne, His place in heaven, to come to earth. He left His place of comfort, in order that we be saved. And that’s not all. He was born in a place that was only suited for animals. He lived His life as a human being and experienced the things that we experience: temptations, challenges, pain, and then was put to death in the worst way recorded in history. Jesus didn’t live for comfort or to receive physical blessings from God. He gave that all up, even though He was and is worthy of it all, so that He might serve and sacrifice His life. That is what God is calling us to do as well.
Jesus clearly tells His disciples in Matthew 16:24: “If any of you wants to be My follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow Me.”
If we want to be followers of Jesus, sacrifices will have to be made. More often than not, as Christians and followers of Jesus, we must give up the things that bring us comfort. Whether that be finances, physical comfort, our homes, relationships, and for some, even our own lives. As a missionary in East Africa, I have met so many people that have been kicked out of their homes or have been disowned by their families, because they chose following Jesus over comfort.
If you examine each of the disciples’ (not including Judas Iscariot) lives, after Jesus ascended into heaven, all of them, except for John, were martyred because of their faith and obedience to God. Peter was crucified upside down on a cross; Andrew was also put to death on something similar to a cross; Matthias was burned to death; and Simon was killed for refusing to make a sacrifice to an idol. We see other followers of Jesus, such as Stephen, who was stoned to death and Paul, who was beheaded, also gave up everything to follow Christ.
The life Jesus calls us to live is not one of comfort, but of sacrifice.
Focusing on Jesus
One way the prosperity gospel is so destructive to our faith is that it takes our eyes off Jesus. As I mentioned earlier, as soon as we start thinking, listening to, and following the ways of the prosperity gospel, we become me-focused.
If we look at Jesus’ example again, we see in Matthew 20:28 that He says: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
We see it practically before He was crucified, how He washed His disciples’ feet, which was the job of a slave. Even though Jesus was God, He didn’t come to earth looking for glory, praise, or recognition. His focus was on serving and loving people. His focus was not on Himself. His focus was on doing the will of God, even to the point of death. And as His followers, we are called to do the same. Not to focus on money, wealth, prosperity and what we can get for ourselves.
Matthew 6:24 says: “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”
It is impossible to love and serve God with our focus being on the things of this world.
God As Our Father
As I share about the damage and the truth about the prosperity gospel, I want us to be careful of one thing. While I believe the prosperity gospel is not the true Gospel, I am not saying that God is not a Good Father, or that He doesn’t love to bless us. He doesn’t withhold good gifts from us or get annoyed and angry when we come to Him with requests and our needs. That is not what I’m saying.
We see all throughout Scripture that God is a Good Father to us. Jesus says in Matthew 7:9-11: “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask Him.”
James 1:17 says: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
As our Father, God takes care of us, He provides what we need, and wants us to come boldly to His throne. He is a Father who gives good gifts, and He is the God of joy. However, it is dangerous when our focus is on the gifts themselves, instead of the One who gave them. It is only when we have our focus and hearts set on Him that we can truly enjoy the gifts He has given to us.
Beware of False Teachers
Our job as followers of Jesus, is to be careful of what teaching we are listening to, believing, and receiving into our minds and hearts.
There are many teachers in the world today who claim to be preachers, pastors, or prophets of God. They claim to teach the real gospel, but in reality, it is a gospel that will lead people away from Jesus and to death. Jesus warned us about teachers like these in Matthew 7:15: “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves.”
So, what are we supposed to do, when we listen to teaching about God? Our job is to take the word we are hearing and compare it with Scripture and the teachings of Jesus. If they align, then we know we can accept the teaching and apply it to our lives.
Running the Race That is Set Before You
My final encouragement to you, my dear friend, is to set your eyes and focus on Jesus above all else and to live your life in obedience to Him. Do not get caught up in the other “gospels” that are being taught, but take up your cross and follow Jesus. Run the race that He has prepared for you faithfully.
Hey!! I enjoyed what you wrote about taking up your cross for Jesus and having to make sacrifices. God is indeed the number one person in our life before anyone else. But the Bible never says about not wanting us to prosper. It says in 3rd John 2, ” Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest PROSPER and be in health even as thy soul prospereth. It is God’s will for us to prosper. He gives us the key secret to prospering in Matthew 6:33 which says, ” Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.” This is also the secret to serving God before mammon. All the other things people chase after will come to you automatically because you are seeking His kingdom first. The Bible also calls us the sons of Abraham in Galatians 3:7 which says, ” Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.” This means we are part of the covenant God made with Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3. In that same verse, we see that we are blessed to be a blessing to others. God has blessed us so we can bless nations. People would come to the faith when they see God’s handprint on our lives. The main reason why people misunderstand this is because they haven’t read the Bible’s covenants for wealth. The covenant of seedtime and harvest, the covenant of giving, and so much more. People also tend to misuse this because they use the wealth for the wrong reasons. We are blessed to advance God’s kingdom not to get the iPhone 15 or 16. We also have to make sure that whatever we are doing is aligning with God’s plan for our lives. It is only when we follow the plan, that we get an expected end. When we have all the right revelation and understanding, we can begin to prosper even as our soul prospers.
Also, this doesn’t mean that there would be no tribulations or trials, on the way. The Bible tells us in John 16:33 ” In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world”. The Scriptures also tell us in 1st John 5:4 ” For whatever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” We have victory through Christ Jesus if only we have faith and patience through which we will obtain the promise. Hebrews 6:12
2 Corinthians 8:9 KJV
For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
Revelation 5:12 KJV
Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. This is our redemptive right in Christ, as God’s children.
Hey!
Thanks for sharing your heart on this topic 😀 Always good to share and discuss!
You’re right, sometimes prosperity teachings can get people really stuff-focused, and we start to judge others on physical fruit, which is really dangerous. But, we can’t blanket prosperity teachings either of course 😀 “I wish above all things that you may prosper’; many prosperity teachers aren’t just out for selfish gain, but to remind people that prosperity is what God wants for us, because we tend to forget, or be afraid of it.
Sometimes we can even get prideful on how little we have, and focus too much on our lack of stuff, judging how holy people are by how hard their life is, which is also dangerous! 😉
In this world we will have trouble, but take heart, he has overcome the world; that verse ends in hope, in a battle that has already been fought and won. He does want a good life for you– He gave everything that you might know life more abundantly! 😀
There are so many beautiful verses that remind us God does have beautiful plans for us, and while there might be trouble, we need not be worried, burdened, heavy or afraid. That doesn’t sound like trouble as the world knows it, does it 😉 He has overcome! He has GOOD plans for us! He will supply for all our needs and give us the desires of our heart as we delight in Him and trust Him; it has naught to do with how much we give or strive or even do hard things. Because in the end, as we learn to go through life’s hard things with God, we will learn and see… they cease to be hard in the end.