This past week I had the privilege of sitting down with some high schoolers and discussing the “Prosperity Gospel” in modern America and it’s contrast with scripture.  For those unfamiliar,  the “Prosperity Gospel” is a term used to refer to the preaching that focuses on God “blessing” his people with material things, health, etc.

Here is a quote from a “popular” American preacher who regularly preaches the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel.  I’m omitting names as the point of this post is not to vilify anyone but rather open eyes to what’s going on…

“It’s God’s will for you to live in prosperity instead of poverty.  It’s God’s will for you to live in health and not in sickness all the days of your life”

The message that God wants you to have material things, wealth, cars, money, and to simply “be happy” is the message being pushed all across the globe by “prosperity gospel” preachers.  People find it ever so attractive (as you might expect) as preachers exclaim over and over again God’s plan for your life, and how it involves financial prosperity and good things.  As one preacher said, “Make church relevant… I find today people are not looking for theology.”

As believers, as people searching for truth, we must first hear these things and react like the Bereans do in Acts 17:11.  We must examine God’s word and see if what’s being said and taught is true.  With these prosperity teachings becoming more and more prevelant in modern preaching, television, and literature - it’s key to examine and refute false teaching.

A quick glance at Romans 5:3-4,  James 1:2-3, and 2 Corinthians 8:1-2 give us some quick Biblical perspective that flies in the face of this modern popularity.  The biblical perspective of suffering, poverty, trial and hardship is not one where these things are to be “absent” from our lives, but rather embraced with JOY as an opportunity for persevearane, character, and hope.  The Macedonians had great affliction and poverty yet had an overwhelming joy in the midst of it.

Their joy was in God, not circumstances, and certainly not material things.  It comes down to what your treasure is.  Is it money, health, prosperity?  Or is it God?  In fact, Christ himself said in Luke 14:33 that anyone who does not renounce all he has cannot be his disciple.  Seems quite the contrast to the popular prosperity teaching.  Not to mention countless warnings about riches, including the likes of 1 Timothy 6:9 that warns us that the desire for riches is a trap and a temptation.

Across the globe there is so much more “cost” to the faith of believers.  They’re lives are filled with persecution, hardship and death.  Where is their prosperity gospel?  I wonder how America would look, how Christianity would look if there was great cost associated with faith.  If people didn’t have the luxury of simply showing up to church once every couple weeks or arbitrarily calling on and abandoning the name of Christ in American leisure.

The prosperity Gospel is dangerous because it teaches us to treasure things above Christ.  God’s word doesn’t teach that.  It teaches that we may suffer, we may be broke or lack many things the world has, and yet that is our opportunity to take joy, our opportunity to hold Christ higher than all else, to shine our light before men, and to treasure the only true Treasure that exists.

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”  - Matthew 13:44-45

Here’s an audio clip from a sermon by John Piper, a pastor in Minnesota whom I greatly respect and admire. His website is www.desiringgod.org, also available in our “friends and links” section.