When we don’t know the purpose of something, abuse is inevitable. In order to avoid the abuse of the financial blessings God is ready to release into your life, it important that you understand certain things about money and why God is about to release wealth into your life. This understanding is vital because many people are where they are because of what they know or don’t know. Also, what you believe can hurt or bless you. If you believe a lie about marriage, that believe will hurt your marriage. Similarly if you believe a lie about spiritual things, that believe will hurt your spiritual life. When Adam and Eve believed the lie of satan they got expelled from the estate that was designed and built for them. Therefore knowing the truth about money, which is one of the most influential forces on earth is vital if we don’t want to be hurt.
Let us start with the obvious. One of the greatest needs of life is money. The married couple will agree that they need more money. Many are locked up in prison because of this need. Even Christian missionaries and pastors will tell you that money is important. Arch Bishop Benson Idahosa of blessed memory once said, “Anointing without money is equal to frustration.” We all need money for various reasons. We need money for shelter; to pay the rent for the apartment we live in or for the mortgage payments of the house we have bought. We need money for food, and medical care. We also need money for self development like getting education for yourself or your children. Money is therefore a major force for self preservation to say the least. Therefore money is not inherently evil as some have come to believe. And when you hear people say, “Money is the root of all evil”, know that they are misquoting 1 Timothy 6:10 that says, “For the love of money is the root of all evil…”. It is the love of money that is the root of evil. It is the obsession for money that is the root of all evil.
Money, like many other useful things can be misunderstood and abused. Fire for instance is very useful and vital to man and modern civilization: we need fire to drive our cars and move heavy machines, we need fire to warm our homes, and run our factories where things are manufactured. Yet, when fire is out of control or wrongfully manipulated, it could be the most destructive force on earth.
It pertinent to note here that financial prosperity, by which I mean wealth, can affect you negatively without your knowing if you are not careful. The Bible calls this the “deceitfulness of riches” in Matthew 13:22, “He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.” For instance, money can give you false sense of security. This is why many rich people don’t pray anymore. They seem to have confidence in the health insurance they have and on the amount of security gadgets and guards they have put in place. They forget or are ignorant of the fact that riches are not dependable. The Bible says, “Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.” Proverb 23:5. If we are not careful, wealth can also bring pride, a vice that every child of God should avoid by all means because God has vowed to resist the proud. James 4:6 says “…Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” The tendency for the rich to trust in his/her riches is so great that the Bible warns against it:
Mark 10:25 KJV [25] It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Matthew 6:24 KJV [24] No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Proverbs 11:28 KJV [28] He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.
The deceitfulness of riches has hurt many. Men have killed for money. Many are in prison for money. Many have deserted their families and loved ones for money. Many people believe that enough money will cure all their problems and guarantee personal happiness. They are mistaken. Many rich people are not as happy and fulfilled as you think. Many have become suspicious of their friends and the people close to them thinking they are there for their money. Prenuptial agreements have become acceptable because of this suspicion. The Bible is very clear when it says, “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.” Ecclesiastes 5:10. We must understand that true fulfillment and happiness in life comes when we pursue the purpose of God in our lives. 1 John 5:12 says, “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” The life referred to here is the God kind of life; the blessed life, the life that guarantees fulfillment, the everlasting life. This life starts here the moment we become born again and wealth is one of the tools God has made available for you to live it.
It is also important that we understand that God is the owner of wealth. Both the wealth in our possession and the ones yet untapped. The Bible says, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” Psalm 24:1. In the book of Haggai chapter 2 and verse 8, the Bible says, “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.” God is the the giver of wealth, riches or what we may call financial prosperity. The wisdom and strength to get wealth is from God. Deuteronomy 8:18 confirms this when it says, “But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.”. A firm understanding of the truths in the above verses of scripture keeps us from all the vices that could result from wealth or what the Bible calls the deceitfulness of riches.
God’s financial blessings upon our lives is for a purpose. That purpose can be seen in the last scripture we just read. Let us read it one more time with emphasis on the italicized: “But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.” This scripture is telling us that the reason God has empowered his people to prosper is because he wants to bring to pass his covenant or promise. We find this promise in Genesis 22 and verses 17 and 18; “That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; [18] And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.” In other words, Deuteronomy 8:18 is saying God has empowered you to get wealth so that you can multiply and possess the gates of your enemies and become a blessing to the families of the whole earth. Moses left out the part of them becoming a blessing to the families of the whole earth because he was a character in time, in God’s broad agenda. He was focused on the tremendous transformation the children of Israel had undergone from the time they left Egypt to the very time he was addressing and reminding them to remember the Lord. Therefore, the purpose of financial prosperity for God’s children is for them to multiply and possess their God-given inheritance.
On another level, and this is more in line with God’s long term agenda, the purpose of financial prosperity is for the gospel of Christ to be preached all over the world. Let’s not forget that Abraham is the father of faith and we are the children of faith. The Bible says, “And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also.” Romans 4:11. Read also Galatians 3:27-29, “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. [28] There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. [29] And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Every born again child of God is a seed of Abraham and heir of the promise of possessing the gates of the enemies and becoming a blessing to the families of the whole earth. The ultimate purpose of financial prosperity therefore is for the gospel of Christ, which has the power to save, transform and bless, to be preached all over the world. Apostle Paul said in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Financial prosperity is a tool given to us by God for the gospel of Christ to be preached all over the world.
Every Christian has the mandate to spread the gospel and be a blessing to the families of the earth. Money, riches are tools to accomplishing this goal. When we lack this understanding, wealth and riches could be easily misused, abused and could become hurtful instead of being a blessing.
There are therefore just two types of achievers in the Christian world. The first are the GOERS. This are Christians that are directly in the frontlines of the gospel of Christ. They have heeded to the call of the great commission; “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. [16] He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” Mark 16:15-16. The goers are Christians that are totally committed to preaching the gospel of Christ. They include evangelists, pastors, missionaries and preachers of the gospel of Christ.
The second group of achievers in the Christian world are the SENDERS. These are the ones who make it possible for the goers to go. They are like the ground crew that prepare the plane for flight. Without them the goers cannot go. See what the Bible says about this in Romans 10:14-15 KJV “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? [15] And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”
The senders are the people that support the gospel of Christ by their giving: they are the tithers, the financiers and everyone committed to ensuring the success of the goers. Committed Christian volunteers often called “church workers” fall into this group as well. It is important to note that that even the ministry of our Lord when he was here on earth had senders; “And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, [2] And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, [3] And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance.” Luke 8:1-3 KJV
Becoming a goer doesn’t mean you are exempted from being a sender. It only means that you have committed your life, time, talent and resources to preaching the gospel. It means you are in the frontline of the gospel. It doesn’t mean you won’t pay your tithe or give to propagate the gospel. Similarly, becoming a sender doesn’t mean you are exempted from preaching the gospel. Every Christian is obligated to preaching the gospel. What this means is that, because you don’t have the time, training and specific calling to be a goer, you have decided to be committed and focused in ensuring that the goers have all the support you can provided. This support includes financial supports in the form of tithes and offering, prayers and encouragement.
The rewards of the goers and the senders are the same. Therefore when the bible says,”How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!” It’s referring to the senders as well because the senders are the ones that made it possible for the goers to go. Also when Daniel 12:3 says, “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” The Bible is referring to the senders as well. These are eternal rewards; rewards that will last forever that every Christian must take seriously.
Are you well positioned for financial prosperity? Are you willing to go and become an effective preacher of the gospel of Christ? Or are you willing to become a committed sender? God is the owner of wealth and the giver as well and he is looking for Christians that will be committed to his gospel. God wants to empower you for the sake of his gospel. The choice is yours. Jesus said, “(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. [33] But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Matthew 6:32-33. God bless you.