Yes, I believe God wants to prosper us. It’s clearly in the Bible.
However, preaching a gospel that is excessively centered around sowing seeds so you can get rich & gain an abundance of material possessions is a perverted gospel (Phil 1:15-18)
And that is the trap that many American preachers have fallen into, and sadly, they have perverted the world with a twisted Christianity that keeps people from the true gospel.
The way the Americans preach the “hyper prosperity gospel” is a hindrance to the great commission because people become obsessed with chasing their blessing instead of blessing the lost & poor with the true gospel. This self-centeredness is contrary to the heart of Christ & what we read in the new testament.
Truth be told, the hyper prosperity gospel is a wretched stench in the nostrils of God!
Luke 12:15
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed & covetousness; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”’
Matthew 6
“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
👉 If Churches are more excited about getting rich, being blessed, obtaining material things than they are about growing their relationship with God, growing in righteousness & reaching a lost & dying world. Then they are corrupted!
Jesus rebuked & warned the church of Laodicea about trusting in worldly, materialistic, false prosperity in Revelation 3:17-18
“Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
👆 Keep in mind this rebuke was written to established Christians, not unbelievers!!!
Jesus and the apostle’s message was centered around growing in righteousness, reaching the lost and completing the great commission. Their message was not centered around getting materially rich.
Jesus said if we seek his kingdom & righteousness, everything else we need will be given by our Heavenly Father (Matt 6:33)…
Jesus Didn’t teach us to seek material things & blessings, He taught us to seek Him & then He will bless us!
And If God gives us finances or material things it’s NOT so we can boast in the lust of the eyes, the Lust of the flesh & the pride of life…. but it is so we can be a blessing to others (like God said to Abraham in Gen 12:2 )…
If God prospers us with material things, it is so we can advance the gospel/covenant (Duet 8:18).
Jesus heavily rebuked the religious leaders of His day for exploiting & taking advantage of the poor (Luke 20:47). The hyper prosperity gospel does this same thing, it preys on the poor, desperate & vulnerable.
Its the same exact evil that Jesus sharply rebuked in the temple with a whip, just a different package. A new demon for a new day… It turns Gods house of prayer into a den of thieves (Matthew 21:13)…
Jesus said corrupted leaders exploiting the poor will be judged & punished very severely (Luke 20:47)
Biblically If you want to enrage the heart of God & stirr his judgement upon your life – then take advantage of the poor (Prov 22:22-23) The hyper prosperity gospel does this by manipulating poor people for the very last pennies they possess & they manipulate them to do so by promising them blessings…
Leaders are called to set an example like Jesus in the apostle Paul, it is more blessed to give than it is to receive… both PAUL and Jesus preached this, but they didn’t preach it to take an offering for themselves, rather they lived this & gave sacrificially to the people they were shepherding (Acts 20)
As I have traveled the world in a quest for pure and true revival, I do believe the Americans have perverted the world with a corrupted, greed filled, selfish “ME” centered gospel. I’ve seen it almost everywhere I go.
We need to repent & get back to a pure gospel 🙇♂️ On judgment day we will give an account for everything…
💥 We need to get back to the great commandment (loving God with all our heart)…
💥 We need to get back to the great commission (reaching the lost & completing Christ’s mission)
💥 We need to get back to the pure untainted gospel that Jesus & Paul preached.
May we be more on fire for God’s Heart and for the Harvest than we are for using the gospel to fulfill our lust to get rich…
If we do this, God promises to take care of our needs & bless us so we can help others.
😭 May we Americans repent of our corruption and use our remarkable global influence to spread a pure & true gospel in the nations once again!
We are in a time of global shaking and God is purifying His church
& Judgment starts in the house of God.
May we be zealous and repent…
🙇♂️🙇♂️🙇♂️🙇♂️🙇♂️🙇♂️
-Joshua Lindquist
— in Nairobi, Kenya.
