WHERE THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL MOVEMENT GOT IT ALL WRONG

SAGE BROADCAST

WHERE THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL MOVEMENT GOT IT ALL WRONG

‘The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the Lord Almighty (Haggai 2:8 NIV). 

What is the prosperity gospel movement? 

This is a movement within charismatism particularly, the proponents of whom equate Christian faith with material, and particularly, financial success. 

Prosperity gospel preachers, often erroneously equated with word of faith preachers, believe that financial blessings and material well-being are always the will of God for them, and that faith, positive confession and donations to spiritual causes will increase one's material well-being.

Prosperity gospel movement is an offshoot of word of faith movement. Even though both have faith as their basic tenet, the two are not the same. Prosperity gospel preachers are often materialistic as they believe that their financial success and material wealth are what account for their divine blessings. 

Rev. Kenneth Hagin, who is held to be the father of the word of faith movement, for instance, was popularly known for being a faith preacher but he was not noted for being materialistic. In fact, "before he died in 2003 Kenneth Hagin summoned many of his colleagues to Tulsa to rebuke them for distorting his message. He was not happy that some of his followers were manipulating the Bible to support what he viewed as greed and selfish indulgence…" (Read his book, The Midas Touch, 2000). 

Note the difference

Prosperity gospel preachers stress financial success and material well-being whereas word of faith preachers stress divine health and physical well-being.

The glorious gospel

What is the glorious gospel?

By 'glorious gospel' I mean the good news of God's glory in man. Christ is God's glory in man. In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Christ in you is the hope of glory. 

Neither the prosperity gospel nor the word of faith is the spiritual solution for a fallen world but the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which is, Christ in you, the hope of glory. 

Christ is the hope of divine health for the sick as well as divine wealth for the poor. Christ is the complete, eternal possession that God has willed to those who receive him in their hearts. 

True Christian faith acknowledges God to be the all-sufficient one, provider of power for divine health and wisdom for divine wealth. Do you believe this? Have you received this truth in your heart? Whatever you believe is possible for you, but whatever you receive is inevitable for you. I have received God's word for my divine health and divine wealth, so I walk in them. 

Where lies the problem?

The problem lies in our definition of wealth.

What is wealth?

Wealth has always not been simple to define. Wealth is derived from the word "worth". It refers to something of value or importance. I will define wealth as a great amount of valuable substances. Wealth comes in various forms such as knowledge, skill, expertise; land, minerals, property, etc. Money is not part of wealth. Money is an item used to measure the value of one's wealth. 

More often than not, when people talk about wealth, they mean material resources. Sadly, the prosperity gospel proponents think likewise. Hinging on God's declaration in Haggai 2:8, "The silver is mine and the gold is mine", they crave plenty material possessions. They explain that all natural resources in the universe belong to the Father, hence, being heirs of the Father, they are entitled to a lot of material possessions. To them, plenty material possessions indicate that they are greatly blessed. This is where they got it all wrong.

What prosperity is not

Prosperity is not the acquisition of plenty material possessions. That is materialism. Materialism results in lavish lifestyle.  

What is prosperity?

Prosperity is the manifestation of inward satisfaction with the riches of Christ in your heart through benevolence. Prosperous people tend to be benevolent. Since they are happy and satisfied with the eternal possessions that they have obtained through Christ, they love to share their wealth with those who are less endowed. So, Christian prosperity classes should focus on sharing than acquiring and storing. 

Any person who is into acquisition and storage of plenty material possessions indicate that they are hungry for wealth, but not satisfied with wealth. Christ is your wealth! 

When you truly comprehend that Christ is your wealth, you will be content, praiseful and benevolent with the substances that you possess. Blessedness shows out through benevolence.

#SecretOfTheAge

Comments

  1. Minister Godson FrancisNovember 30, 2022 at 11:57 PM

    Wow.. This is expositive enough... This is balance.. I'm blessed

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sage WordDecember 1, 2022 at 12:06 AM

      I'm honoured to receive this compliment. Thank you Minister Godson Francis.

      Delete

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