JOSHUA 1:8 NLT
8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it
day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in
it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.
There are Bible passages (such as 2 Corinthians 9) that connect
generous giving with reaping a generous financial harvest.
But prosperity requires more than giving!
Someone may say that "buttermilk makes good pancakes" but we
understand there are other ingredients that must also be used
to make pancakes. "Buttermilk makes good pancakes" may be a
true statement, but it's not the whole truth.
Being a generous giver, (as opposed to being a selfish, self-
centered person) is part of prosperity in God's kingdom, but it
is not the complete picture.
God is a giver, and as His children we should be like Him.
Giving is something Christians will do naturally when we are
not bound by fear and doubt, for it expresses our true nature.
So I am not against giving. The Bible does teach that our
generosity affects our prosperity. But it is not the only
ingredient — not even the most important one.
The primary ingredient in prosperity is faith (Romans 4:16, 5:2).
Faith is what you believe, and therefore directs how you speak
and act.
The second main ingredient in prosperity, and just as
important, is obedience to God (Hebrews 5:9). We must follow
God's instructions.
Giving cannot cancel out or make up for disobedience. If God
has made it clear to you that you are supposed to do something,
yet you refuse to do it, and think that you can just give an
offering, and everything will work out great in your life, you
are mistaken.
Your mother may love you very much and give you her favorite
recipe for some food, along with all the ingredients and
utensils needed to make it. But if you refuse to follow her
recipe instructions you cannot expect it to turn out well, no
matter how much your mother loves you or how much it cost her
to provide you with everything you needed to make it.
You can give until you have nothing left to give, but unless
you walk in faith and obey what you know God has told you to do
— you will not live in the measure of prosperity God intended
for you to enjoy.
I am not saying you have to be mature and perfect in all you do
in order to prosper. We do not have to earn God's blessing by
our performance under the New Covenant. Instead we receive it
as a gift based on what Jesus did for us. But if we refuse to
follow God's instructions we still cannot expect things to turn
out good in our life.
We also need to understand that there are different levels of
faith we can operate in. As a child of God it is possible for
you to walk in faith and receive financial provision without
you having to give something in order to receive.
Someone might object and say that nothing happens on earth
without a seed being sown. While that may be true, Jesus our
Head and joint-heir has already sown His all and we are
partakers of His grace. We got credit for what Jesus did!
However, we still can choose to release our faith by an act of
giving in order to receive a harvest of provision. But when we
do that we still need to speak words of faith over our gift.
When you give you must also mix faith with your giving for it
to work as it should.
We all desire to be blessed and prosperous. The Good News
includes the fact that our great and generous Father God has
already blessed us in Christ Jesus.
As joint-heirs with Jesus, we already have been given
everything by God (Romans 8:17, Romans 8:32, Galatians 4:7,
Ephesians 1:3, 2 Peter 1:3, 1 Corinthians 3:22).
So our giving should really be a response to God's love — not
something we must do in order to get God to bless us.
Many people do need to be instructed and encouraged to give
because they are bound by selfishness. Fear has trapped them
and prevents them from expressing the love of God in their
hearts by generous giving. So the Lord has directed many
preachers to talk about giving, because it has been necessary.
But we don't have to give in order to earn God's blessing, for
we are already blessed in Christ. So we can freely and
cheerfully give because we know our Father God is our never-
ending source of supply. We can support every good work, as the
Lord leads us. (2 Corinthians 9:8, Colossians 1:10).
JOHN 2:5 NKJ
5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do
it."
John 2:5 actually gives all the instruction you need to prosper
(not only in this life, but throughout eternity). Whatever
Jesus tells you to do — do it!
SAY THIS: Lord please help me to understand all the ingredients
of the prosperity that pleases You.