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Writer's pictureBible Brian

Physical wealth and spiritual health


A major problem with the so-called Prosperity Gospel is that the ones who benefit most from it are those who are best at selling it. Everyone else tends to end up spending more money on receiving it.


Unfortunately, at least from an earthly perspective, God does not operate a karma system. Sometimes, the most disgraceful people in the world live very prosperous lives, whereas bad things happen to good people often enough for us to ask the question "why do bad things happen to good people?"


Job's friends made the mistake of trusting in wealth as a measure of goodness. Job was suffering huge losses, so they assumed he had committed some secret evil. Then God came down, told them they were talking nonsense and ordered them to repent. We who have access to the Book of Job now know that his suffering was a result of the fact he was so righteous that God Himself bragged about him to Satan.


The bottom line is that just because someone is prospering physically does not mean they have a great spiritual life, nor does having a great spiritual life necessitate God's favour. Indeed, during His earthly life, it seems Jesus actually spent a lot of time completely homeless (Matthew 8:20; Luke 9:58). Let us therefore learn to echo the words of Paul: Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. - Philippians 4:11-13 (NKJV).

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