subject: Your Inheritance Of Wealth And Riches [print this page] Poverty is not the will of God for any believer; however, there is a difference between the world's definition of poverty and God's.
You and I don't serve a God of lack and insufficiency. He is the God of the exceeding and the abundant. In fact, He wants to lavish you with His goodness (Ephesians 3:20). I like what Dr. Leroy Thompson says: "You can't think any bigger than God can deliver!"
From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible proves that poverty goes against everything God desires for Believers. Poverty is a spirit designed to keep Believers in financial bondage. The devil uses this spirit to hinder Christians from prospering and ultimately fulfilling their destiny of being a blessing to the entire world (Genesis 12:2, 3).
God favors prosperity. According to Psalm 35:27 and 3 John 2, He is pleased when you prosper in your spirit, soul and body. His desire is that you prosper economically, socially, emotionally, mentally and physically. That's total-life prosperity. If you truly want to live a life that is set apart for God (holy) and represents your right- standing in Him (righteous), renew your mind by studying God's Word concerning true prosperity.
Although God's perfect will is for you to succeed in all aspects of life, let's concentrate on your financial prosperity. Finances are a major dilemma for most people. Debt and insufficiency are common causes for divorce, depression, suicide, and murder. For this reason, I feel it is my duty to deal with this subject head-on.
As a believer, you are a member of God's family and have a royal, spiritual birthright (John 1:12; Galatians 4:4- 6; 1 Peter 2:9). Romans 8:17 in the Amplified Bible says, "... If we are [His] children, then we are [His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His inheritance with Him]." Not only does the Earth and everything in it belong to Jesus, it also belongs to you and me as part of our divine inheritance (Psalm 24:1; Psalm 115:16)!
You were made wealthy and rich before you came into existence. You've been predestined to prosper financially. Of course, the issue with prospering financially is that we tend to define this the way the world does, not the way God does. According to Ephesians 1:4-5, God chose to bless you before the foundation of the world as evidence of your right-standing with God, which was made available to you through Jesus' death and resurrection (2 Corinthians 5:21). You are blessed! But God will always keep you in a place where you need Him and He will use it to bring glory to His Kingdom and blessing to your life.
Self-made poverty, as the result of debt and irresponsibility, is not God's plan for you. Prosperity is...but, as I said before, the world's definition of prosperity (being able to buy whatever you want, purchase lavish vacations, pamper yourself time and time again) is different from God's. His prosperity might mean giving it all away to help someone in need, or spending every dime you have to take care of others. In fact, I think this is a given. That's why Taffi and I do so much to give back to our congregation. To whom much is given much is required and we must honor God with out prosperity first!
