God Gives You The Ability To Prosper

[DanielNegreanu 141]

God Gives You Ability To ProsperDEUTERONOMY 8:18 NIV18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. I don't want to sound critical, but I have heard so many preach using this verse that God wants to prosper His people for one sole purpose: so that we can give the money to God so He can afford to proclaim the Gospel to all the world. But I just don't buy it.I do believe that God desires for His people to be givers. Being selfish is the worst thing you can do. And it is true that usually the biggest enjoyment you can get from something is to give it away to someone thrilled with it.But surely God is not waiting around to go ahead with His operation till we get enough money to finance Him. And surely God is not worse than a normal earthly parent. What earthly parent would give their children some toys on Christmas, then tell them that the ONLY reason they were given those gifts is so they could give them away to the neighbor kids?I already said that God does not desire selfishness. If you are not a giver, you are not in God's will for you. But God does not give you things just to require you to give them all to someone else.Deuteronomy 8:18 is simple: it is saying that God is the One making you prosper , and He is doing it because He had said that He would -- not because we deserve it!I especially like:1 TIMOTHY 6:17 NKJ17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.God is not the kind of being who will make you just barely scrape by -- He gives RICHLY all things to ENJOY. God gives to us because He enjoys it and because He keeps His word!

[HangukMiguk 8]

wow, dude. that's an in-your-face to those who say poker players can't be christians because they horde their winnings and have unbalanced wealth.did you just write this one yourself daniel?

[BearCanada 0]

God Gives You Ability To ProsperDEUTERONOMY 8:18 NIV18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. I don't want to sound critical, but I have heard so many preach using this verse that God wants to prosper His people for one sole purpose: so that we can give the money to God so He can afford to proclaim the Gospel to all the world. But I just don't buy it.I do believe that God desires for His people to be givers. Being selfish is the worst thing you can do. And it is true that usually the biggest enjoyment you can get from something is to give it away to someone thrilled with it.But surely God is not waiting around to go ahead with His operation till we get enough money to finance Him. And surely God is not worse than a normal earthly parent. What earthly parent would give their children some toys on Christmas, then tell them that the ONLY reason they were given those gifts is so they could give them away to the neighbor kids?I already said that God does not desire selfishness. If you are not a giver, you are not in God's will for you. But God does not give you things just to require you to give them all to someone else.Deuteronomy 8:18 is simple: it is saying that God is the One making you prosper , and He is doing it because He had said that He would -- not because we deserve it!I especially like:1 TIMOTHY 6:17 NKJ17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.God is not the kind of being who will make you just barely scrape by -- He gives RICHLY all things to ENJOY. God gives to us because He enjoys it and because He keeps His word!

I like this post alot. Again, in a previous post I have said that I identify my self as a spiritual agnostic. I do not identify as a christian, although I have many times been spiritually inspired by the teachings of Jesus. Anyway, my belief structure isn't what I came on here to post about. I think there is value (no pun intended) in discusing spiritual wealth versus monetary wealth andwhat is needed in terms of generosity. Many organizations and causes are resource poor as much as they are struggling finacially. In some cases money can help provide those resources but in others it is dedicated people who are needed. Africa is finally coming into the mainstream press but there are so many horrible attrocities going on there that the world is ignoring. If we (North America) were suffering like they are while the rest of the world looked away I can not imagine how that would add to the feelings of hopelessness and despair. Africa is dealing with genocides, aids, famine, poverty, rape, gastly human rights violations and the spread of diseases leaving thousands upon thousands of children with no parents, no schooling, no home, and no healthcare and litterally no future. I guess I should apologize for sounding preachy or just depressing. I have asked myself what I can do. The place I have chosen to start is to raise awareness and occasionally give money. If everyone did that, the children of Africa would be a lot futher ahead today then they were yesterday. Tying this back into the original post, (because clearly I got off on a rant there), I can't help but think of Bono in the rattle and hum movie during the performance of "Bullet the Blue Sky" I think when he says "well, the God I believe in isn't short of cash mister!" So Ithink Daniel is right, it's not about wealth and money it is about generosity of the spirit, the soul and of self. Thanks for this post. It has given me much to think about.

[nbliss16 0]

Deuteronomy 8:1818 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. I believe it is important, espically with verses from the Old Testament, to view them in context that is consistant with the entire scope of the chapter or book itself, rather then looking at them in a singular manner. This verse refers more to Gods covenant promise to Abraham that all peoples will be blessed through him. When you say "it is saying that God is the One making you prosper, He is doing it because He had said that He would -- not because we deserve it!", it is a little misguided. It sounds like you are stating that earthly wealth is a biproduct of the eternal covenant. The "wealth" is not the promise of the convenant. So what then is the promise of the covenant? The "covenant" is the one that God promised to Abraham in Genesis 17:4-7 ""As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The fullfillment of this covenant is not found in "wealth" or "prosparity". It is found in Jesus Christ alone. That is what the "kings" and "everlasting covenant" refer to. God is promising us Christ for eteranity. His desire for his people is for his son, and not for wealth on earth. God desires for us eternal wealth. You can't desire both God and money. Here are some scriptural examples:"No one can serve two masters. 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 both God and Money."- Matthew 6:24"For all that is in the world-- the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions--is not from the Father but is from the world."- 1st John 2:16"22But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."- Romans 6:22-23You also said something else that struck me as intresting:"But surely God is not waiting around to go ahead with His operation till we get enough money to finance Him. And surely God is not worse than a normal earthly parent. What earthly parent would give their children some toys on Christmas, then tell them that the ONLY reason they were given those gifts is so they could give them away to the neighbor kids? I already said that God does not desire selfishness. If you are not a giver, you are not in God's will for you. But God does not give you things just to require you to give them all to someone else."I would like to reply to this part of the post in just a second...

[nbliss16 0]

"But surely God is not waiting around to go ahead with His operation till we get enough money to finance Him. And surely God is not worse than a normal earthly parent. What earthly parent would give their children some toys on Christmas, then tell them that the ONLY reason they were given those gifts is so they could give them away to the neighbor kids? I already said that God does not desire selfishness. If you are not a giver, you are not in God's will for you. But God does not give you things just to require you to give them all to someone else."The operation, I take it you are referring too, is the spread of the Gospel. It is interesting to look at this. Jesus talks about it in Matthew 24:14:"And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."When you say that "God is not waiting around to go ahead with His operation till we get enough money to finance Him." I take it you mean that God is all powerful and is capable of doing it (meaning spreading the Gospel) on his own. But that is not the way that he set things up. Look at Matthew 28:19:"19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..."Man has a role. This verse makes it clear that it is to go. God desires to use us to accomplish this amazing task! We do need to go. We do need to send as well. This is indeed no small task. Here are some facts (from the book Operation World):- 60% of the worlds population currently has no scripture in their native language.- 97% of the persons who inhabit the least evangelized countries live in the 10/40 window (the 10/40 window refers to the Eastern Hemisphere between 10 and 40 degrees north of the Equator. It refers to the region of the world with the least exposure to Christianity.)- Of the 2.7 Billion people in the 10/40 Window, it is believed about 1.2% are Christian. - 2.4 billion people -- 40% of the world's population -- live on less then $1.40 per day in The 10/40 Window. So, according to the facts, God doesn’t need us to finance God. There you are correct. But, without question, we are needed to finance the spread of the gospel and the joy and love it brings. God has made it this way. “And surely God is not worse than a normal earthly parent.” Man, this made me laugh a little. Wouldn’t it sound strange to say “Surely normal earthly parents are not as good as God.”? God is not a man. He is God. To compare him to the actions of people is far off base. Here is what God says about it in Isaiah 29:16a:“You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay…” (or man to be like God).Here might be another analogy: What earthly parent would give their children everything they had every day of the year, then tell them that the ONLY two things they had to do was to love them in return, and to love other people like they themselves would want to be loved?I do agree that God does not ask us to be selfish. But it sure doesn’t mean God isn’t! To be selfish means to “Caring supremely or unduly for one's self” The chief end of God is to glorify God and enjoy himself forever. God did not create us to give us his money, wealth, and gifts. He created us for himself:Isaiah 43:6-7, "Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth (says the Lord), everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory."In view of God's infinitely admirable beauty, power, and wisdom, what would his gift to a person involve? Or to put it another way: what could God give us to enjoy that would show him most loving? There is only one possible answer, isn't there? HIMSELF! If God would give us that which is best and most satisfying, that is, if he would love us perfectly, he must offer us no less than himself for our contemplation and fellowship and joy:Psalm 16:11 "In thy presence is fullness of joy. In thy right hand are pleasures for evermore." Doesn’t that make something like wealth and money seem so insignificant?

[GamblinLeaf 0]

Amen DN.Two of my favorite verses are Deuteronomy 28:8 and 2 Corinthians 1:20.The first one says, "The LORD will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand ..."And in Corinthians, Paul says, "For all the promises of God in Him (Christ) are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us."Not some of His promises. Not just a handful, or just the ones He feels like honoring that day, but ALL. This is really a wonderful statement. The Bible is chock full of promises for provision for our needs, for abundance (both materially and in other ways such as relationships, family, etc.), for health and much more. It is glorifying to God when His children receive good things.Too often I'll come across a christian who is not doing well in some area of their life, perhaps their health is not good, and their attitude is one of, "Well God must have some purpose for this", or my favorite, "The Lord moves in mysterious ways." No! That is not in the Bible. What IS in the Bible are promises upon promises of God's blessing on those who worship Him, and Him only. And all of those promises are Yes and Amen in Christ. If we lack something in our lives, it is due to a deficiency on our end, not because God doesn't want us to have it. God is a loving Father who wants to bestow abundant blessing on all those who worship Him. And that is Good News indeed!

[nutzbuster 7]

Awesome D.

[speedz99 145]

What's a devotional?

[copernicus 0]

What's a devotional?

I'm not sure but the last time i saw the word it was next to Don Rickles Anus

[brvheart 1,752]

I'm not sure but the last time i saw the word it was next to Don Rickles Anus

Nice 'civil' discussion Copernicus... as usual.

[copernicus 0]

Nice 'civil' discussion Copernicus... as usual.

Whats uncivil about that? Just pointing out a fact.

[speedz99 145]

Nice 'civil' discussion Copernicus... as usual.

Or you could have ignored the joke and answered my question...

[cu in 4years Dan 1]

i like the last few lines.i see so many Christians go about in pity and say "God suffered so we must too".but why would God give us all these great things if he didnt want us to enjoy ourselfs?

[weishan14 0]

What's a devotional?

A devotional is usually a short reading or discussion on things relating to a relationship with God. It is a time of sharing insights into scripture and/or the nature of God. As a Christian, I try to spend a few minutes each day in devotions. I think about God throughout the day, but this is a time that is devoted (hence; devotional) to Bible reading and prayer . It is a great way to start and/or end the day, centering my mind on God and thanking Him for the way He is working in my life.