Have you guys read the Time magazine article, "Does God Want You to Be Rich"
Link: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1533448,00.html
Edit* oops, I cant seem to get the link to work, so just go to www.time.com and search "does god want you to be rich" in their search engine/.
I watched the start of a Lakewood church service and I must say, it made me cringe. Where in the Bible does it say that by becoming a Christian, you are always happy, always prosperous, always joyful and well-off? Joel Osteen just kept saying: The Lord will bless you. He will do this, He will do that, He will open heaven and bless, bless bless. We will be happy, rich, this, that, blessings and blessings.
What, is God like a vending machine so we can get everything we want? It isn't about what God can do for us, but what can we do for God. After all, His primary purpose for saving us was so that He could be glorified by us, and so that we could praise Him.
Taking up my cross involves sacrifice, but a joyful sacrifice because we know what we will inherit instead of wordly wealth. When that man sold his entire belongings to buy that field full of treasure, he didn't do it grudgingly but was joyful in it.
Doesn't it say in the Bible that it is easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven?
Obviously, I am not saying that the Lord does not bless. Being in His presence is the most incredible feeling you can ever experience. He gives us such incredible things. But God isn't there to give us everything we want; we have been created primarily to praise Him and Him alone.
Lord, not what I can get from You, but what You want from me.
Luk 14:25 And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,
Luk 14:26 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
Luk 14:27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
Luk 14:28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
Luk 14:29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,
Luk 14:30 Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
Luk 14:31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
Luk 14:32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.
Luk 14:33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
Luk 14:34 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned?
Luk 14:35 It is neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Act 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
must....MUST....MUST!!!!
there is no way around that, blessings from the lord...isent the beatitudes a sort of a way map of what a blessing is...
Mat 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Mat 5:5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Mat 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Mat 5:7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Mat 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Mat 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Mat 5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Mat 5:12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Mat 5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
i dont see money there...i dont see blessed are the happy.... i dont see blessed be those who will get money....
christian
brethren
that article is also being discussed in the news and current events section so y'all can check it out
A lot of rich people are in hell today. Not all will go, but most will.
We think small.
When we think of God blessing someone we immediately think 'money'.
If that is the only blessing anyone wants from God, they don't want much.
Sinners become rich without God, do we say they are 'blessed'?
Let's seek after the true riches. God bless.
http://www.miniature-earth.com/
This is an interesting little film. In the eyes of most of the world, most of us if not all of us using this forum would be considered "rich." How many of us see ourselves that way?
I went to this site, pulled up the Photo Essay: God and Dollars. Some how I cannot visualize Jesus in the midst of all that glitzy hulabaloo. Reminds me of the cascinos we saw recently in Shreveport LA. Wonder how much difference there really is in the two - in God's eyes, e.g.
ginnyrose
I belive that God wants us to be financially prosperous.
The common problem with Christians is that when many become prosperous in the natural realm they allow their spirit to get poor.
God's blessings encompass all parts of us: mentally, physically and spiritually. I do admit that there is an overemphasis on financial blessing, yet I dont think that it should be balanced out by stamping out financial prosperity all together. We all want to prosper financially. Heck if you dont want to prosper financially, then send your money my way, I'll put it to use for the Lord here in the Philippines.
i say this...if god wanted me to have money...i would already have them, if i he wants me to get money i will get them... but no matter money or no money..it shouldent be of any consern... it shouldent get your feelings down if you dont have money..it shouldent make you feel like you havent succseded in life... i im in christ... and as one man said if i get some money in my hand i get rid of it very very fast...or else it maybe find its way into my heart.....
and something very important...if i im a christian... a follower of christ... i will never own a cent again in my life .every dollar cent dime belong to christ...and i do belive every piece of money we own we are going to be held acconteble at the judgement seat what we did whit it.... i have some dicipline in my own life whit this.. i have to do more in this area...
Amen!!!
I love the story of the Widow's mite, I wonder if God Blessed her with lots of money.
hmmhmm wrote:
i say this...if god wanted me to have money...i would already have them, if i he wants me to get money i will get them... but no matter money or no money..it shouldent be of any consern... it shouldent get your feelings down if you dont have money..it shouldent make you feel like you havent succseded in life... i im in christ... and as one man said if i get some money in my hand i get rid of it very very fast...or else it maybe find its way into my heart.....and something very important...if i im a christian... a follower of christ... i will never own a cent again in my life .every dollar cent dime belong to christ...and i do belive every piece of money we own we are going to be held acconteble at the judgement seat what we did whit it.... i have some dicipline in my own life whit this.. i have to do more in this area...
I agree with much of that. Hmmmhmm if you dont mind I would like to use something you said to spring-board off of. "...if god wanted me to have money...i would already have them" I cannot say that if God wanted us to have money that we would already have it. Many times the reason why we dont have money is not because God doesnt want us to have it but that we will as you said let it creep into our hearts. It may be for that reason why many people are not financially prosperous though God wants them to be. Many have not proven themselves faithful with little therefore that is all they have, little. God wants to put his finances into the hands of the faithful who will not allow it to distract them.
As a missionary I have found out how important it is to have finances to spread the gospel. Look at Coca-Cola, they are everywhere in the world. One reason is because they have the finances to do it. I have many ideas and plans for the gospel and for ministering but the limiting factor is finances.
Right now I am building a large chicken coup in a tribal area desinged to reach out to the people of that community. "People dont care how much you know until they know how much you care." One way of showing that we care is to help meet their need with finances, but how can that be done if all Christians were poor?
I have just finished building the chicken coup but now I am lacking the finances to purchase the 400 chickens to fill it. A person can say that God doesn;t want us to prosper financially but maybe that person hasnt seen the poverty ridden areas of the world. Let that person tell these people that it is God's will for them to starve, to live exposed to the elements, to not be able to afford even the basic medial needs, unable to purchase decent clothing for their children, having to live their entire lives never leaving a 5 mile area since they cannot afford to travel. Let that person tell these people that they can never achieve the goals, desires and dreams that God has placed upon their heart but are unable to fulfill due to a lack of finances. I can give you a list of people amongst the nations who feel called to be a missionary but are unable to step into that calling for a lack of finances. That person can serve a God of "just enough" all he or she wants but I serve the God of "more than enough."
I am currently being supported 100% by Christians. If my partners prosper financialy then they are able to sow more into my ministry, but if they are in lack and poverty they are unable to do so. Yes I fully believe that God wants His people to prosper. There are some months that I do not receive adequate support from my partners, but I have noticed that it is not because God doesn't want me to prosper or to be in lack for that month but because of a lack of sufficient prayer.
Faith works my friends. My pastor had been beliveing for a personal jet for years. After continuing in his declaration of faith for several years he finally received what he was believing for. Many people would call that financially blessed. He believed; God provided. Is that wrong?
By the way this post was not geard towards you hmmmhmmm I just used something that you said to spring-board into something that was buring within me. I dont assume that you hold the view that I appose int this post.
Be blessed and encouraged.
well whit getting money, to clarify what i meen is if anyone as a beliver thinks a blessing from god is money (for personal use/entertainment/materialism) then its wrong...
and by that i also meen that one cant measure in money how blessed anyone is... like some say god want you to have money a car and a brand new home! if it was like that its to bad for christians in countrys where they dont have our western standard, i belive if we as christian get money...ritches then its for to be used for the kingdom...
In other words your saying God wants us to be broke, have a dirty busted home and poor transportation. Wow, that makes God very apealing.
If you believe that God does not give a believer money for personal use, entertainment and materials, then you, who earlier said that every cent you have is belongs to God should be a prime example. Otherwise you would be in disobedience if you ever took a vaction, went to the theater, bought a coffe, went to a resturant, wear even semi-nice clothes, buy a souveneer, buy a cell phone, make a personal phone call on the cell phone, went to a theme park, bought a car, bought a house any nicer than the bamboo homes of those in poverty ridden nations, bought a watch, bought sunglasses, have a hair cut, purchased a semi-expensive Bible...etc, etc, etc. But you are not just saying that about yourself, but about every Christian.
Sounds to to me like Christianity should go back to monastacism and follow in the footsteps of people like Antony and Pachomius.
I guess the blessing of Abraham was not from God and Deuteronomy 28 has some form of figurative meaning other than what it plainly states.
Jesus didn't seem to have a problem with the woman dumping expensive perfume on His feet, though others thought it better to have sold it.
Sow and you will reap, give and it will come back, 30 60 100 fold return: principles of the kingdom. Look at Malachi 3:10-12, I dont think nations will "call you blessed" or consider you a "delightful land" if you are poverty ridden. If God did not want us to be blessed in many ways including financialy, then He would never have created the spiritual principal of reaping and recieving back good measure pressed down and shaking together and running over, both examples taken from the idea of natural increase I might add.
In Philippians 4:12 Paul talks about his ability to get along in both poverty and prosperity, which means there were times when he was prosperous.
Heck I'm not normally a prosperity teach, I normally leave that subject for other people, but I just got passionate about it all of a sudden. I'll just end it with a short story
A few years back the Chinese government studied the American society and ecomony to find out what makes it so prosperous. After much research they came to the conclusion that America prospers because of Christianity. Now, though they are not in favor of Christianity they turn more of a bind eye to it than they did in the past. That's a good testimony.
I may have taken your view to an extreme and gotten a bit passionate and added some sarcasm but please dont take it personal, I just got in a flow and just decided to go with it.
Pardon any mispelled words since I dont have the time to proof read it....off to bed.
be blessed.
well you draw my post the the extreme..maybe god wants you ta have a lot of money to buy cars houses go to the movies and watch them maybe he wants you to sit and drink coffe...i dont know..maybe he went to calvary for that ..he went and died so that we now can be blessed and have all this stuff that anyway is going to burn.... you cant take anything whit you... but thats just me... if you cant be happy whit just god... we have to look at what we value in life...is it money or christ? you cant serve boyh mamon and god...you have to make a choise...and there is no compromise..and if god dosent seme apeling to you... if his sacrifice on the cross isent appeling enough for you... then i dont know what to say to you,
but of course i belive we can have money , we can enjoy this world if it isent sin.... but some people run whit that and make it the center of all things in the gospel... it isent about me...or you..or money..its about god
christian
I firmly believe that its God's heart desire that everyone of his children experience properity in its greatest sense.Being rich as a christian is not tantamount to putting your trust, hope and faith in your worldly possessions. God is a jealous God... He cannot share his position in ourlives with any other thing--money and riches... nothing should consume ourlives more than the love we have for Jesus.
Unfortunately,being rich tends to be very sticky, and mind-diverting from totally trusting in God and depending on his providence.
God wants us to be prosperous, but our love for him should never shift from him to the persuit of riches.
Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. col 3:2
Mark 4:19 (New International Version)
19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.
Hebrews 13:5 (New International Version)
5Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
"Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you
God also wants us blessed
Psalm 128:2
You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours
Proverbs 8:18
With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity
Proverbs 21:21
He who pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor
Job 36:11
If they obey and serve him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment
He will bless the works of our hands
our wealth should be directed towards advancing his kingdom.
yes i belive that , but as i said we have to be careful we dont tell people belive in jesus and you will get stuff becuse our god blesses whit money mercedeses and big houses! but if you as a resault of doing gods will get money out of it, be blessed, and if you as a resault of doing gods will stand there whit nothing...be blessed... in the new testament i dont see anything really about money...about financial prosperity... i only see jesus warning us... that its going to be harder for you whit money to get into the kingdom of god than a camel thru a neidles eye.... and he that dosent leave everything and follow CANT be his deciple...to me that has a very strong meening, but as i said god can bless you whit things...of course he can...but not always!!! we cant say that as a standard, its to bad for paople in africa and other places where mothers see thair children starve to death if they cant be "blessed" of our prosperity god who gives us all this stuff that is often of no other use then to draw attention away from god himself....
thats just how i understand the bible...i see a clear message in the bible to hold everything in this world whit such lose hand that you at any moment can let go of it becuse you have to walk in a "narrow" road thru a narrow door...do you know why the door is narrow? BECUSE YOU CANT BRING ANYTHING WHIT YOU, but enjoy your stuff now, becuse later they will burn
christian
hmmhmm wrote:
but of course i belive we can have money , we can enjoy this world if it isent sin.... but some people run whit that and make it the center of all things in the gospel... it isent about me...or you..or money..its about god
christian
I agree 100%
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