Health and Wealth?

Please do not be angry if you have been taught differently, but there is a very false sort of teaching which was given from the pulpit in many churches, and it has hurt many who turned to Jesus, and were led to believe that the teaching was His.

For future reference, know the 4 gospels, the book of Acts, the letters, and Revelation by personally reading them each several times, preferably in a small group with other believers, and the Holy Spirit will ensure that you understand them much more rightly. That way, if your Pastor, Minister, Priest, or other leader preaches things wrongly, you can speak with them about it and show them the scriptures that they are mistaking. If it is an honest mistake, they can correct the record, and will be willing to. Or maybe they will correct you.

But as for the 'Health and Wealth' heresy, or 'Name It and Claim It' doctrine, it is not Jesus' teaching. Jesus taught that this world system is corrupt and evil, that we are not to involve ourselves in it, and that we - as Christians - are now citizens of the Kingdom of God, living for a time in the Kingdom Satan has claimed. We are not to embrace this world's principles, because they are Satan's, and we are not to adopt its practices.

Didn't Jesus get baptised and then go out into the wilderness for 40 days?  Didn't Satan come to Jesus during those days and try to tempt him to worship him instead of God the Holy father?  And didn't he offer Jesus the things of this world?  That means that the things of this world were the bribe that Satan offered Jesus.

We are not to see how big of a fortune we can build up. Our wealth is to be stored up in heaven, in the form of good deeds done, sacrifices made, faith held on to in hard circumstances, work done in telling others about our Lord, and good Christian behavior as we do it. And oh, boy, am I going to be in trouble. But, still, that's how we ought to do it.

It's also not acceptable for a Christian to seek a fortune because we are going to spend a whole bunch of it on really nice Christian charities. That's a lie that we tell ourselves. Will you 'share' the power of wealth with Jesus?  All of the gold on the planet was created by Jesus and the Father.  Are we going to offer Him some of it in order to both live well while we are here, and then receive salvation at the end of our life?

Are you going to share your power - which you derive from your wealth - with Jesus?  That must mean that there is power in wealth, and that Jesus needs it.  And you are going to share part of it with Jesus?  How nice of you to sit in comfort and reach out to share a bit of your wealth with Jesus.  Or even a lot of your wealth. 

Guess what.....you are offering Jesus the same thing that Satan did.  You will offer Jesus some of what is 'yours' to give if He, in turn, will give you salvation.  Satan wanted Jesus' obedience.  You want Jesus's salvation.  Both you and Satan thought it a good plan to offer part of your worldly power to Jesus in order to receive from Him the thing you wanted.  Shades of Annias and Saphira.  Give up some of what you possess to receive all of what Jesus offers.  That was Annias and Saphira's mistaken plan, right?  And the Holy Spirit killed them for telling that lie.

You can't bribe Jesus.  You can't give some of what is yours in this world (but not enough to put you in any sort of financial bind) and expect Jesus to think you gave the full measure of commitment.  You didn't, and He knows it.  You were investing in your 'spiritual future'.  But you were keeping aside plenty of Satan's 'worldly power and wealth' to see you through the days of this present worldly life. 

Can you imagine this scenario:  12 Christians decide to fast for 10 days while praying that the day will come quickly when Jesus can claim this long awaited Kingdom which his Father has promised Him.  But one of the 12 Christians keeps excusing himself to use the restroom, but then secretly goes out behind the bushes and makes a roast beef sandwich for himself, and then eats it.  Then he goes back and rejoins his brothers in solemn prayer and fasting. 

Such is the rich person that spends part of his time - part of it - praying, working, and fasting for the kingdom of God.  If giving $10.00 to the Christian missionary fund is good because it is essential to spread knowledge of Jesus to the far ends of the Earth, then how can you justify the $20,000,000.00 that is sitting in your bank account?  Wouldn't that money be just as useful for the spreading of the gospel to the far ends of the earth as the $10.00 donation was?

Here is the rich Christian's conundrum: how can you have more than you really need when even one of your fellow Christians doesn't have even enough to get by?  Or when there are people that don't even know about the Gospel yet, then how can you live in self centered luxury? 

How can we avoid this pit? Avoid wealth. As you get it, give the extra away. What is the extra? Don't keep up with the Jones's. The Jones's are citizens of this world. You are citizens of the next world. Those worlds have different standards.

Here's something you could consider: look around at your church parking lot's cars, and then compare it with other church's. If the cars are more expensive at your church, change churches. Find a church where your car is going to be one of the nicest cars in the lot. Check out their church fundamentals. If they preach solid doctrine, in keeping with the scripture, and are reminded to walk the walk as well, then consider joining that church.

Next, get rid of your car and get one that is in the lower 10% at that church. When you can't get less car and have the car still run, you are probably in a defensible position if the Lord should ask you how you came to choose your car. (Assuming you even need a car, that is).

Next, apply that principal to the other areas of your life: your house, your toys, your college choices, etc.

What!! Apply that philosophy to where my dear children will be educated?? Yes. Your children can gain more by being pleasing to God than by attending an Ivy League school. You as a Christian parent have done a much better thing in raising a child to please God than by sacrificing all you have to give your children an Ivy League education. Those schools belong to the world system so totally that nearly all of the princes of this world have attended them. Think of that! And just how rich does your child need to be anyway? Didn't you raise them to be Christian? So, if you did, they will be quite satisfied to have the minimum material things necessary. Their focus will be on the things of God.

No, Christians, we just need to get out of debt, stay out of debt, and focus on the kingdom of God. I know that is what I should aspire to.  I know that is what I read in God's Word.  All other things we need will be added to us, as God deems us to need them. "Enough and a little to share" is plenty of wealth for us to have down here. This place will pass, or more likely we will pass from it, and then we will be in our real home. God willing.

That takes care of wealth. As far as health goes, prayer, wise living habits, good food choices, and regular exercise will go far. It will go very far in fact. Where it doesn't suffice, we can pray some more, and avail ourselves of whatever medical help is within our price range.

It is possible that there could be a treatment that would help if only we could afford it. But, God can decide to allow us the funds, or not. We brought death and disease into the picture, not him. We brought sin into play, not him. So, if there is tragedy, if there is misery, if there is death, we have ourselves to blame, not God.

And the death we brought on ourselves through our human sin will overtake us all, not usually at a time we would have chosen. And it may be slow, painful and ugly. It may seem unfair. It may choose a seemingly innocent victim. But for Christians, it is only sleep. Only sleep.

So, we try to find healing, as we offer or receive loving care and prayer, and we just do that, because that is what we can do. In the end, we all know that we will see that God is not only just, but merciful and kind. We all know that, somewhere in our hearts.

So, why don't we 'name and claim' something for the people in this world who do not even have the mininmum?  Then let's see what we can do about being the hands that provide it, on behalf of Jesus and in His name, for His glory, not ours?  That's a form of 'name it and claim it' that Jesus might approve.