Are you prosperous? How do you define prosperity? How do you become prosperous? Good health, happiness, family, money, prestige, social status, and many other factors can contribute to prosperity. Prosperity can be amazingly simple and easy to acquire, or it can drive a man mad trying to reach the unreachable. Prosperity is successful, thriving, virtuous fortune and successful social status. Prosperity often produces wealth, including other factors that can be profusely wealthy, such as happiness and health. Second Corinthians in the New Testament defines prosperity by stating God can make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Galatians describes Spiritual prosperity that comes from the fruit of the Spirit, telling us that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control; against such things, there is no law. By following God’s will, obeying his commandments, and trusting in his promises, we can and will receive His blessing and experience the prosperity and abundance that God wants us to enjoy. This prosperity and abundance are not always money or material things. We must keep an open mind and clear eyes on what we desire and receive. One way to measure your prosperity is to start counting your blessings. Once you start paying proper attention to your blessing, it becomes obvious that you are more prosperous than you knew.
We often forget true prosperity and start looking at money, property, and material things as what makes us happy. Matthew 6:24 warns, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” First Timothy is very plain when it states that the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. The craving for money makes a man wander away from the faith and will pierce the man with pangs. Depending on where you study this topic in the Bible, you will see three thoughts on the subject. God wants the very best for us. Psalm 112 discusses financial prosperity: “Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endures forever.“ Another Bible verse is Proverbs 10:22, which says, “The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it.” Then in other parts, the Bible warns about pursuing wealth. In Matthew 19, Jesus tells a young rich ruler, “If you want to be perfect, sell your possessions, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” This ruler did not choose to follow Jesus. In James 5, Jesus again warns about what happens when riches take over a man, stating, “Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are cankered, and their rust shall be a witness against you and eat your flesh as if it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.” If a person does not pay attention, these contradictions could be hard to understand and lead a person in the wrong direction. But the answer is not that difficult. Like so many other things, Gods want us to follow His directions, follow His rules, and take everything in moderation. Matthew 6 tells us to follow God’s directions: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” When you focus on relationship with Jesus, you can know that God will be good to you and cause you to experience financial prosperity! And then Matthew 19 reminds us that “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and money.” God will entrust us with finances and wealth. It is our responsibility to keep God as our master and not allow money to become our master.