In the next couple of days, I'd be sharing the above book, and it's a book on balanced approach to biblical prosperity. What's God's mind about prosperity, and why we should be careful prosperity principles in the Bible should not be abused and how to avoid false practices, as it were, the possibility of abuse is very possible.

It is a 196 paged book, and has 9 chapters. Get the book here and we can roll smoother.

These topics includes

1. Was Jesus poor? (read to see that my Jesus was not a broke man)

2. The purpose of prosperity (another classic)

3. Should preachers prosper? (Mouth watering I tell ya!)

4. 24 principles from the Epistles regarding money, givin and receiving (A must read) .

5. Our authority in the area of finances.

And most importantly,

6. Avoiding abuses and false practices

Here are the few points he made;

1. Financial prosperity is not the only measure of God’s blessing. Hagin wrote: “If wealth alone were a sign of spirituality, then drug traffickers and crime bosses would be spiritual giants. Material wealth can be connected to the blessings of God or it can be totally disconnected from the blessings of God.”

2. . The “hundredfold return” is not a biblical concept. Hagin did the math and figured out that if this bizarre notion were true, “we would have Christians walking around with not billions or trillions of dollars, but quadrillions of dollars!” He rejected the teaching that a believer should claim a specific monetary payback rate.

3. Preachers who claim to have a “debt-breaking” anointing should not be trusted. Hagin was perplexed by ministers who promise “supernatural debt cancellation” to those who give in certain offerings. He wrote in The Midas Touch: “There is not one bit of Scripture I know about that validates such a practice. I’m afraid it is simply a scheme to raise money for the preacher, and ultimately it can turn out to be dangerous and destructive for all involved.”

4. Jesus was not a poor man

5. We cannot move this gospel with out money and God sure wants His kids prosperous.

6. Poverty does NOT produce piety (reverence and devotion to God)

7. Jesus defeated the works of the devil, including povery and lack

Hagin wrote: “Overemphasizing or adding to what the Bible actually teaches invariably does more harm than good.” 

This thread is of necessity to draw a fine line between abusing a biblical principle, and saying these principles are not biblical at all! Join me and Papa Hagin, as we try to let folks know, prosperity is of God, but abusing these principles by Preachers or anybody as the case maybe,are all together a different ball game.

Cheers

Cc:LambanoPeace
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"He has the Midas touch" is an expression people sometimes use when describing an ambitious and seemingly successful individual. "Everything he touches turns to gold!"

Usually this expression is uttered admiringly, almost enviously, recognizing the skill and good fortune of a person in achieving financial goals and amassing material possessions.

According to Greek mythology, Midas was a king who lived in Phrygia in the eighth century B.C. He was very wealthy and had more gold than anyone in the world. He stored the yellow coins and bars in huge vaults underneath his palace and spent many hours each day handling and counting his treasure.

But no matter how much gold Midas collected and put into his vaults, it was not enough. He always wanted more, and he spent much of his time dreaming about how to obtain still more gold.

According to the legend, one day a being dressed in white appeared to Midas and granted him a wish. The king instantly wished for the "golden touch"—that everything he touched would turn to gold.
The next morning when Midas woke up, he found that his plain linen bedcovers had been transformed into finely spun gold! He gasped with astonishment and jumped out of bed. Then he touched the bedpost, and it turned to gold. "It's true," he cried. "I have the golden touch!"

He rushed through the palace, brushing against walls and furniture along the way, all of which turned to gold at his touch. Out in the garden, he went from bush to bush, touching roses and other flowers, smiling as they turned to gold.
This is the part of the legend most people remember. Many people seem to be fascinated with the idea of being able to create gold—unlimited wealth—at the touch of a finger. Obviously, this is what people are thinking about when they refer to the "Midas touch."

But the Midas myth doesn't end here with everyone living happily ever after.

[size=20pt]If You Get What You Want, Will You Want What You Get?[/size]

Finally, tiring from the excitement of touching various items and seeing them turn into gold, Midas sat down to read while he waited for breakfast. But the book he picked up immediately turned to gold. Then when he tried to eat a peach, a spoonful of porridge, and a piece of bread, they each turned into hard golden lumps! Even the water in his cup turned to gold.
The king grew alarmed. "If even my food turns to gold, how will I ever eat again?" he worried.

Just then, Midas' daughter, Aurelia, came into the room. She was the only thing he had loved as much as his gold. Aurelia ran to her father, threw her arms around him, and kissed him. Much to Midas' horror, she grew strangely still and turned from a loving, laughing little girl into a golden statue.

The king howled in anguish, overcome by the horror of what was happening before his very eyes. He had gotten what be asked for, but he suddenly realized he didn't want what he was getting.
Fortunately, this is still not the end of the Midas myth. There is yet another part to the story.

[size=20pt]Rediscovering True Riches[/size]

The being dressed in white suddenly reappeared and asked,
"Well, King Midas, are you not the happiest of men?"

"Oh, no," moaned the king, "I am the most miserable of all creatures."
"What? Did I not grant your wish for the golden touch?"

"Yes, but it is a curse to me now," Midas wept. "All that I
truly loved is now lost to me."

"Do you mean to say that you would prefer a crust of bread or a cup of water to the gift of the golden touch?" asked the glowing white being.
"Oh, yes!" Midas exclaimed. "I would give up all the gold in the world if only my daughter were restored to me."

According to the myth, the being dressed in white told Midas to go bathe in a certain spring of water that would wash away his golden touch. He was also to bring back some of the water to sprinkle on his daughter and any other objects he wished to change back to their original form.

So the legendary King Midas gladly gave up his golden touch and rejoiced in the restoration of the simple things of life— family, food, and natural beauty. Midas realized that these are the things that have greater value than gold.

The truth is, we do not live in a fairy-tale world. There is no Midas touch or magical formula for material success. But there are opportunities for those who are willing to be diligent and faithful in the work of their mind and hands. And there are biblical principles concerning prosperity and blessing that God honors according to His Word.

[size=20pt]Finding Balance Between Extremes[/size]

[i]During my more than sixty-five years of ministry, I have often dealt with the issue of prosperity for believers, insistently emphasizing a balanced, scriptural approach. I have observed many teachings and practices that have both helped and hindered the Body of Christ. I have seen some faithful men of God stay the course and move accurately with the truth of the Word and the Spirit, resulting in great blessing for a host of believers. Unfortunately, I have also seen many others become sidetracked by extremism, ultimately shipwrecking their ministries and hurting and disillusioning many people in the process.

It has been my experience that with virtually every biblical subject, there is a main road of truth with a ditch of error on either side of the road. The Church has not always been a very good driver, often having great difficulty staying in the middle of the road. Just about anywhere you go on the Bible pathway, you'll find people off in the ditch on one side of the road or the other.

Throughout the history of the Church, there have been extreme applications of almost every basic truth or doctrine, including issues such as baptism, resurrection, the Trinity, ministry gifts, divine healing, and the walk of faith. The topic of money and prosperity is no exception. [size=16pt]There are those in the ditch on one side of the road who teach that Jesus lived in abject poverty, that money is evil, and that biblical prosperity has nothing at all to do with material things. And in the other ditch, there are people who are preaching that getting rich is the main focus of faith, that God's main concern is your material well- being, and that money is the true measure of spirituality. [/size]

Where is the truth? It's found far away from both extremes, on much higher ground.
In this time of affluence and abundance, there is increasing concern among responsible Christian leaders over the alarming increase of confusion, error, and extremism regarding the prosperity message. I feel compelled to speak out to the Church at large about these issues and especially to address the subject of finances and giving. This book is an effort to bring clarity and understanding to those honestly seeking to find the main road of truth concerning biblical prosperity.

I suspect that there are a great many people—Christians and non-Christians alike—who, like the mythical Midas, have discovered that there is no lasting joy in things money can buy and that prosperity without eternal purpose leads to disappointment and dissatisfaction.

I want to share with you the truths I have learned through careful study and application of God's Word and by diligently listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit. I pray the truths in this book will help you gain a balanced, practical, and biblically sound understanding of the subject of prosperity and also help you maintain that balance as you travel the road of God's best.
—Kenneth E. Hagin

[size=20pt]Chapter 1: SEND NOW PROSPERITY[/size]

Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity.
—Psalm 118:25

I believe in prosperity.

Yes, by that I do mean spiritual well-being and physical health. But I also mean material or financial blessing.
When the Apostle John declared, "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even asthysoulprospereth" (3 John 2), I believe his intent and meaning was to refer to three distinct areas of life—material, physical, and spiritual. His fervent desire was that we should thrive and flourish, or prosper, in every aspect of our being. This is the proper application of prosperity—balanced, sound, complete, and evenly emphasized.

Some people have argued that the phrase "that thou mayest prosper" does not refer to financial prosperity. They contend the phrase was nothing more than a common greeting, or idiom, of the day that simply meant, "May things go well for you."
The Greek word translated "prosper" or "prospereth" in this text is "euodoo." Euodoo is comprised of the words "hodos," which means a road, and "eu," which means good. Thus the Greek word eudoo (translated "prosper" literally means a good road or a good journey. So even if in this instance the word did not mean specifically to prosper financially, at the very least it meant to have a good and prosperous journey.

I have a hard time understanding how anyone could have a good and prosperous journey if he didn't have adequate provisions for the trip—if he was broke, lacking, and in poverty and want every step of the way.
Besides, this word translated "prosper" is the same Greek word the Apostle Paul used in First Corinthians 16:2 when he directed the believers in Corinth to set aside some money each week as God hath prospered him. Certainly and without doubt, the word prosper can be and is used in Scripture in reference to financial prosperity.

[size=20pt]Poverty Does Not Produce Piety[/size]

As I said in the Introduction, the Church seems to have a hard time staying in the middle of the road on just about any Bible subject. When it came to the topic of prosperity, the church people of my day were off in the ditch on one side of the road. They had been taught that poverty produced piety and that God didn't want His people to have anything.
I always heard preachers say, "I don't want any of this world's goods," because they thought there was something wrong with this world's goods.

But Psalm chapter 50 proves why it's not wrong to have this world's goods.

For every beast of the forest IS MINE, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. . . . If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for THE WORLD IS MINE, and the fulness thereof [that means that everything that's in the world is God's].
—Psalm 50:10,12

Mark those verses in your Bible. Meditate on those verses and confess them.

The Lord showed me these verses because He had to get my thinking straightened out. I thought it was wrong to have anything. I thought a person ought to go through life with the seat of his britches worn out, the top of his hat worn out, and the soles of his shoes worn out, living on Barely-Get-Along Street way down at the end of the block right next to Grumble Alley!

That's the kind of thinking many people in the church world have today. But they're not thinking in line with God's Word.
Sadly, too many Christians (preachers included) remind me of young birds just hatched, sitting in the nest, eyes shut and mouth wide open, waiting for momma to come and feed them. They will swallow whatever is poked into their mouths. Many people in the Church have been [size=16pt]religiously [/size]brainwashed instead of New Testament-taught. Without knowing what the Bible says, and having limited spiritual discernment, they are tossed by every wind of doctrine.
So in time, even erroneous teachings become traditions not easily changed. They are passed down from one generation to another, and the new generation accepts the error without question because that's "what we've always believed."

[size=20pt]Learn To Think in Line With God's Word[/size]

You see, a lot of times, our thinking is wrong. It's not in line with the Bible. And if our thinking is wrong, then our believing is going to be wrong. And if our believing is wrong, then our talking is going to be wrong.
You've got to get all three of them—your thinking, your believing, and your speaking—synchronized with the Word of God.

God has given us His Word to get our thinking straightened out. In my case, God knew my thinking was wrong because, as I said, in the denomination I'd been brought up in, we were taught that it was wrong to have anything . I began my ministry in this particular denomination, and they were great about praying for the pastor: "Lord, You keep him humble, and we'll keep him poor." And they thought they were doing God a favor!
Then in 1937, I was baptized in the Holy Ghost and spoke with other tongues. I got the "left foot of fellowship" from my denomination and came over among the Pentecostals. They were doubly that way about praying for the pastor. In other words, they doubled up on their praying: "Lord, You keep him humble, and we'll keep him poor"!

[size=20pt]What Does God's Word Say?[/size]

The idea that God wants His children poor, having no material things, is totally unscriptural. The Bible has a great deal to say about money—about receiving it to meet personal needs and giving it to support the work of God and to bless others.
It is significant that many of God's servants throughout the Bible were wealthy. I'm not talking about just being spiritually prosperous, either. I mean financially rich! The Bible says, "And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold" (Gen. 13:2). That verse doesn't require much interpretation, does it?

First Kings chapter 10 tells of the queen of Sheba coming to visit King Solomon to see if he was as wise and great as she had heard. After testing him, asking many hard questions, she told him, "Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard" (1 Kings 10:7).
Job was also very wealthy. God's Word says, "His substance also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the men of the east"
(Job 1:3).

During the trials and suffering he endured, Job lost his great wealth. But God restored Job's riches! How do I know? The Bible says, "So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses (Job 42:12).

In Second Chronicles 26:5, we read that as long as King Uzziah sought the Lord, God made him to prosper. It seems clear that God is not against prosperity; otherwise, He would have been violating His own principles when He prospered Uzziah and others.
It is important to realize that God is not against wealth and prosperity. But He is against people being covetous.

[size=20pt]Qualifications for Walking in Prosperity[/size]

God wants to prosper His children. He is concerned about us and wants us to have good things in life. He said in His Word, "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land" (Isa. 1:19). But God doesn't want us to put "eating the good of the land" first.

Moses was an example of someone who didn't put material things first. For example, Moses, who was raised by an Egyptian, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter when he grew up.

By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward.
—Hebrews 11:24-26

Think about what Moses refused! He was the son of Pharaoh's daughter—and he was in line for the throne! Moses had prestige, honor, and wealth. He had all the things the world had to offer. Yet Moses esteemed the reproach of Christ as greater riches than all the treasures of Egypt. Moses saw a difference between the people of God and the people of the world.
Some people are more interested in making a dollar than they are in serving God. But spiritual things must come first if you are going to be spiritual. You must esteem the things of God —spiritual things—more than earthly things.

One qualification for prospering is to esteem earthly things lightly. You cannot put earthly things above spiritual things and expect to prosper as God desires you to.
No, it's not wrong to have money. It's wrong for money to have you. It's wrong for money to be your ruler or master or for you to consume finances on your own lusts.
God wants you to prosper financially! But your prosperity depends on your putting first things first. There are qualifications involved.
In the Old Testament, God told the Israelites to keep His statutes and walk in His commandments (Deuteronomy 28). God desires the same for us today. To put God's Word first and to walk in the truth is spiritual prosperity.

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, John writes,
"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth" (3 John 2). In the next two verses, John goes on to say that he had no greater joy than to hear that God's people are indeed walking in the truth of God's Word.
God told the Israelites, "Walk in My statutes and keep My commandments. Do that which is right in My sight, and I'll take sickness away from the midst of you, and the number of your days I will fulfill" (Exod. 15:26; 23:26). That's physical prosperity or divine healing and health.
The Lord also talked to the Israelites about their "basket and store" being blessed, their barns being filled, and about them being the head and not the tail (Deut. 28:1-14; Prov. 3: 1 0 ) . That's material prosperity. But notice their physical and material prosperity depended upon their spiritual prosperity.

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest PROSPER and BE IN HEALTH, EVEN AS THY SOUL PROSPERETH.
—3 John 2

[size=16pt]John is talking about financial or material prosperity, physical prosperity, and spiritual prosperity. Notice that material and physical prosperity are dependent upon spiritual prosperity.[/size]

[size=20pt]Put First Things Firs[/size]t

The first Psalm is so beautiful and further confirms that God wants His people to prosper.

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall PROSPER.
—Psalm 1 : 1 -3

So, you see, God wants us to prosper. However, our need is to evaluate things as they should be evaluated—to esteem earthly things lightly and to put first things first.
Folks could have faith for healing or for anything the Word of God promises—prosperity, a healthy, happy family, long life
—if they would just put first things first.

Determine in your heart to put spiritual things first and to esteem earthly things lightly. Put God first, even before your own self. You'll be blessed spiritually, physically, and in every way—you and your family as well.

[size=20pt]The Good of the Land[/size]

I left my last church in 1949 and went out into what we call field ministry. I went from church to church holding revival meetings. I'd been out there for a year, and I got hold of the verse that said, "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land" (Isa. 1: 19). But, boy, I sure wasn't eating the good of the land!
I had worn my car out. I had to sell it for junk. I had three notes at three different banks, and I got just enough from the sale of the car to pay the interest on the notes, renew them, and buy the kids a few clothes.

I had all of this written down, and I went to the Lord in prayer about my financial situation. I was away from home holding a meeting. I was fasting, and every day I talked to the Lord about my situation.

I said, "Lord, You see that I obeyed You when You told me to leave that church I was pastoring and to go out on the field. I did what You said to do. And You said, 'If you'll be willing and obedient, you'll eat the good of the land.'
"Now, Lord, here's what my church paid me, plus they furnished the parsonage—the best parsonage we ever lived in. All the utilities were paid, and probably half of what we ate was paid for because people just constantly brought food to the parsonage for us."
And then I said to the Lord, "They also sent us to every convention we needed to attend. The church paid our way there and back, and a lot of times, they would buy me a new suit and my wife a new dress." They wanted us to go to those conventions looking good because we were representing them.
I showed the Lord the figures I had written down. "But now, Lord," I continued, "here is my gross income for this year. This is every penny I received this year." It was $1,200 less in actual cash than what I received the previous year.
Besides that, now I had to pay traveling expenses, my own rent, and utilities just from the money I received holding meetings in the field. Besides that, I had to pay my own way to the conventions that were necessary for me to attend.
So, you see, all that took a big chunk out of my salary— about half of it.

I added, "Lord, see how much better off I would have been if I had stayed where I was? And they wanted me to stay. The church board said, 'Brother Hagin, if you'll stay with us, we'll just vote you in as pastor indefinitely. Just stay here till Jesus comes.'"

Actually, I would have liked to have done that because we were the most comfortable we had ever been in all of our years of pastoral work.
We were living in the best parsonage. We were getting the most salary we had ever received. The church was doing well. But the Lord said, "Go," so I went.
I said, "Now, Lord, I obeyed You. If You hadn't spoken to me, I was perfectly satisfied from the natural standpoint to stay where I was." (I said from a natural standpoint, not from a spiritual standpoint, because when we're spiritual, we want to obey God. But the flesh is not always willing.)
I told the Lord, "I obeyed You. But now we're living in a three-room apartment. My children are not adequately housed. They're not adequately clothed. They're not adequately fed. We're sure not eating the good of the land."


[size=20pt]You Must Be Willing and Obedient[/size]

I was telling this to the Lord and quoting Isaiah 1:19. And about the third day, the Lord said to me in just the same way He talks to other believers—we call it the still, small voice. He said, "The reason you're not eating the good of the land is that you don't qualify."
I said, "What do You mean, I don't qualify? I obeyed You. That scripture said if you would be willing and obedient..."
"That's what it says," the Lord answered. "You qualify on the obedient side, but you don't qualify on the willing side. So you don't qualify."
I don't mind telling you ahead of time, God's Word is always true! The Bible said, ". . . yea, let God be true, but every man a liar. . . " (Rom. 3:4). And if you're not eating the good of the land, it may be because you don't qualify.
So the Lord told me, "Yes, you obeyed Me, all right, in leaving that church, but you weren't willing."

Now don't tell me it takes a long time to get willing. I know better! When the Lord said that to me, I got willing in ten seconds! I just made a little adjustment in my spirit. Then I said, "Lord, now I'm ready. I'm ready to eat the good of the land. I'm willing. I know I'm willing. You know I'm willing. And the devil knows I'm willing."

Of course, a part of being willing and obedient is keeping your motives pure. God sees the heart of man, and He knows what attitudes are motivating him (1 Sam. 16:7). If a person's motive is not right, he needs to repent and make the necessary adjustments. God is not going to bless someone whose motives are impure. No, that person has to be willing and obedient and have the right motives.
I got the willing and obedient part settled. And I knew I had the right motive. But on the other hand, if I was going to eat the good of the land, the Lord still had to change my thinking. My thinking had to get straightened out and come in line with what the Word says on the subject of prosperity.
These are some of the reasons why people are not eating the good of the land. And it could simply be because they're not abiding in God's Word—the Book that tells them how to do it!

[size=20pt]Chapter 2 OUR AUTHORITY IN THE AREA OF FINANCES[/size]

As I continued to wait before the Lord concerning my finances, spending time in the Word with prayer and fasting, He said to me, "Go back to the Book of beginnings."
Now that I was willing and obedient, He was showing me how to get my thinking straightened out. I knew what He was talking about when He said the Book of beginnings—He meant the Book of Genesis.
The Lord went on to tell me that He made the world and the fullness thereof. He created it. He said to me, "Then I created My man, Adam." And the Lord saw that it was not good for man to be alone, so He created Eve.

The Lord said to them, "I give you dominion over all the works of My hands" (Gen. 1:26,28). Over how much? Over all the works of His hands!

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. ... And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them HAVE DOMINION over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and OVER EVERY CREEPING THING THAT CREEPETH UPON THE EARTH.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and HAVE DOMINION over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and OVER EVERY LIVING THING THAT MOVETH UPON THE EARTH.

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
—Genesis 1:1,26-30

After the Lord showed me these scriptures in Psalm 50:10-12 and Genesis 1, He said, "There's another scripture that says, 'The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts'" (Hag. 2:. He then said, "They're all Mine, not because they're in My possession, but because I created them.
"But who do you think I created the cattle upon a thousand hills for? Who do you think I created the silver and the gold for?
"Who do you think I created the world and the fullness thereof for? For the devil and his crowd? No. I made them for
My man, Adam.


"But," the Lord continued, "My people have wrong thinking."

You see, the devil can run a nightclub, and he and his crowd don't mind spending thousands of dollars to put up an electric sign to let everyone know what it is. But if someone puts up a nice sign for the church, there are people who will object to that. The devil's got them hoodwinked.
How come the devil and his crowd have most of the silver and gold since the Lord made it for Adam? Did you ever wonder about that?
The Lord said, "The silver and gold are not all here for the devil and his crowd. I made it all for My man, Adam, but then he committed high treason against Me.
Adam sold out! Adam committed treason. He surrendered it all to Satan.

And the devil, taking him [Jesus] up into an high mountain, shewed unto him ALL THE KINGDOMS OF THE WORLD in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power [authority] will I give thee, and the glory of them: FOR THAT IS DELIVERED UNTO ME; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
—Luke 4:5-8

When the Lord created Adam, Adam was in one sense the god of this world because God created the world and the fullness thereof and turned it over to him (Gen. 1:26,28).
But we read in Second Corinthians 4:4 that Satan is the god of this world. Well, Satan wasn't the god of this world to begin with. So how did he become the god of this world? Adam committed treason and sold out to him. Now Adam didn't have a moral right to disobey God and sell out to Satan, but he had a legal right to do it.

Notice Luke 4:6 and 7. We know Adam turned his dominion over to Satan because Satan said to Jesus, ". . . All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: FOR THAT IS DELIVERED UNTO ME; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine."
Some people say, "Well, that wasn't even Satan's to give." But if it wasn't Satan's to give, then it wouldn't have been a temptation to Jesus. And if it wasn't a temptation, then why does the Bible say He was tempted (Luke 4:2)?

It's ridiculous to think Jesus wasn't actually tempted by the devil. Although we know that Jesus is Deity, we must also realize that in His humanity, He was tempted (Heb. 4:15). Satan showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time and said to Him, "All this authority will I give Thee and the glory of it, for it is delivered unto me." Who delivered it to him? Adam did!
The Lord told me all this and related it to faith for finances. As I was praying and waiting before Him, He said to me by the Holy Spirit: "The money you need is down there. It isn't up here in Heaven. I don't have any American dollars up here. I'm not going to rain any money down from Heaven because if I did, it would be counterfeit. And I'm not a counterfeiter."

Afterward, I remembered what Jesus said in Luke 6. Give, and it shall he given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall [size=16pt]MEN [/size]give into your bosom. . . .
—Luke 6:38

You see, when men give unto you, God's behind it, all right, but that verse says, ". . . shall MEN give into your bosom. . . . " That's why the Lord said, "The money you need is down there. I'm not going to rain any money down from Heaven. I don't have any money up here. If I did rain money out of Heaven, it would be counterfeit. And I'm not a counterfeiter."
After the Lord showed me this, He said, [size=18pt]"Whatever you need, you just claim it."[/size]
***i had to pause and speak in other tongues when i read the above colored)***

The reason we have a right to claim our needs met is, Jesus came to the earth and defeated Satan. We're in the world but we're not of the world (John 15:19), yet we still have to live in this world. So we must use our God-given authority to enforce Satan's defeat and enjoy the blessings of God that we have in Christ, including financial prosperity.

Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet [or able] TO BE PARTAKERS OF THE INHERITANCE OF THE SAINTS IN LIGHT.
—Colossians 1:12
***spoke in tongues again***

That's something that belongs to us in this life!

Now notice the next verse. Here is the inheritance of the saints in light that the Father gives as a result of Jesus' defeating Satan.

Who [the Father] HATH DELIVERED US FROM THE POWER OF DARKNESS, and HATH TRANSLATED US INTO THE KINGDOM OF HIS DEAR SON.
—Colossians 1:13

Notice this scripture says, ". . . HATH delivered us. ..." In other words, Jesus is not going to deliver us; He already has delivered us.

The rest of that verse says, " . . . from the POWER of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son." Notice that word "power" again. There are several different Greek words that are translated "power" in the New Testament. This one in Colossians 1 : 13 means authority. ***Exousia, i remember schooling shedemidemi on the word power, it is atimes exousia or dunamis-according to context of the writer.

In other words, God hath delivered us from the authority or dominion of darkness. Well, what's the authority or dominion of darkness? That's Satan's kingdom. Remember what Jesus said through the Apostle John in First John 5:19: ". . . the whole world lieth in wickedness." He's talking about spiritual darkness and spiritual death.
We're in the world, all right. But we're not of the world. The whole world lieth in darkness, but God hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the Kingdom of His dear Son (Col. 1:13)! That's our inheritance!
Now let's look at Colossians 2.

And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened [or made alive] together with him [Christ], having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled [put to nought or reduced to nothing] principalities and powers [the evil forces of the enemy], he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
—Colossians 2:13-15

Hallelujah! We are the triumphant ones because of what Jesus did. He didn't do it for Himself; He didn't need it. What Jesus did, He did for me. He did it for you. He did it for us! He became our Substitute. He took our place. And when He defeated the enemy, praise God, it was written down to our credit that we defeated the enemy in Him. Therefore, we have the authority to tell Satan to take his hands off what belongs to us—including our finances.***Thanking my Jesus/speaking in tongues***

Yet some folk are going around talking about the "warring" Church. They don't know that Jesus has already whipped Satan!
"Yes," someone said, "but don't you know Paul told Timothy to be a good soldier [2 Tim. 2:3]? Therefore, we're soldiers, and we're in the army."
Yes, but it's an occupation army! In other words, we just come in "mopping up" behind what Jesus has already won! Hallelujah! It's a triumphant Church, not a warring Church!
*** Shouting and jumping...that's what my Jesus did.

You see, Jesus made a show of principalities and powers openly. That is, He made a show of them before three worlds— Heaven, earth, and hell—triumphing over these powers through the Cross (Col. 2:15)!
The Word declares we are more than conquerors and that we have overcome the world through Jesus Christ. The Word declares that we are redeemed from the curse of the Law—from poverty, sickness, and spiritual death.
The Word also says we have been given authority over the devil in Jesus' Name and that we can use that authority and claim our financial needs met. So learn to think and speak in line with what the Word says. You can have what the Word says you can have, and you are who the Word says you are. You are born of God!***Somebody shout Hallelujah!!!***

YE ARE OF GOD, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
—1 John 4:4

Now in the Old Testament, there are long pages of genealogy—and it was necessary for the Israelites to have their genealogy recorded. There were pages and pages of "So-and-so begat So-and-so" (all those names you can hardly pronounce!).
After a while, you can get tired of reading all those names, and you just want to skip over them and start reading something else!
But in the New Testament, we can write our genealogy in four little words: [size=18pt] "I am of God." Hallelujah! [/size] If you have been born again, say this out loud: "I am of God!" (1 John 4:4).
Look in First John again in the third .

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the SONS OF GOD: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
—1 John 3:1

That's who we are! We know exactly who we are. According to the Word, we are "of God"! We are sons of God. We are new creatures in Christ Jesus. His Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God (Rom. 8:16).
Praise God, "Ye are of God, little children . . ." (1 John 4:4).
That's our genealogy!

*following

[size=14pt]The real truth behind the so-called "balanced approach to biblical prosperity"[/size]

https://www.nairaland.com/1939255/bankruptcy-prosperity-gospel-exercise-biblical/7#27271247

https://www.nairaland.com/1939255/bankruptcy-prosperity-gospel-exercise-biblical/7#27274369

https://www.nairaland.com/1939255/bankruptcy-prosperity-gospel-exercise-biblical/7#27282991

https://www.nairaland.com/1939255/bankruptcy-prosperity-gospel-exercise-biblical/7#27283565

https://www.nairaland.com/1939255/bankruptcy-prosperity-gospel-exercise-biblical/8#27284476

Crack on!
Y'all want this party started? Right? Y'all want this party started ... quickly! Right?
C'mon, let's get moving! Let's get this party started!!
E don enter Gobe

"... We shall not flag or fail.
We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France,
we shall fight on the seas and oceans,
we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be,
we shall fight on the beaches,
we shall fight on the landing grounds,
we shall fight in the fields and in the streets,
we shall fight in the hills;
we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving,
then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old...”
- transcript of Winston Churchill’s Blood Sweat and Tears speech

Some people are not teaching scriptures no more but doctrine of men, that's what another man taught. ...doctrines of men and they want to use scriptures to justify what another man teaching because they believe in that man. Smh!!!

Goshen360:
Some people are not teaching scriptures no more but doctrine of men, that's what another man taught. ...doctrines of men and they want to use scriptures to justify what another man teaching because they believe in that man. Smh!!!

Doctrines of men huh? Using scriptures to justify what another man teaches shey? If anything we discuss here cannot be found in the Bible, please bring it to my attention, until then, sit back and let me teach you.

When your colleagues do massive copy and paste and peddle falshood from other books and web pages, you never seem to call it doctrines of men! You'd simply applaud, because they are singing the tune you wan to hear. Godwin, change na!

@BabaGnoni, nice try!
Let folks get the book, and read. I must thank you all for this book, what made you post the above links is to make folks see things your way, but no...when they get the book, they'd learn the truth, you all are afraid and I know why! The book explains giving as it should be, and principles, while it also pronounced wrong practices and abuse.

You lot would rather have the brethren not give at all than to let them read the book. Question is why don't you all want folks to give?

I'd get to work soon, sit comfortably, and put all those topics from that book up. I am taking this to Facebook too.

Time for early morning prayers. God bless you

Booked

Booked


This land is not for sale!

[size=20pt]Those Born of God Are Overcomers![/size]

Now look at that next statement in First John 4:4: "... and have overcome them...." Overcome who? All those demons and evil spirits that John talked about in verses 1 through 3. He said, "You've overcome them."

"Well," someone asked, "if I've overcome them, how come I'm having so many problems with them?" Because you don't know you overcame them! And because you don't know it, you don't act on it!***Simple!! Perishing for lack of knowledge.
Notice it didn't say you were going to overcome them. This verse clearly says, that we have overcome them. That's past tense:
" . . . [ye] HAVE overcome them . . ." (1 John 4:4). How can that be? Because of the rest of that verse: You've overcome them because greater is He that's in you than he that's in the world!

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: BECAUSE GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN YOU, THAN HE THAT IS IN THE WORLD.
—1 John 4:4

Paul wrote to the Church at Colossae and said it's "... Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).

To whom God would make known what is the RICHES OF THE GLORY OF THIS MYSTERY among the Gentiles; which is Christ IN you, the hope of glory.
—Colossians 1:27

This is the mystery: Through the Holy Ghost, Christ indwells us, and we are the Body of Christ. He is the Head, and we are the Body.
Now, can your head have one experience and your body another experience? No, it's impossible. In the same way, the Lord Jesus' victory is our victory. When He overcame demons and evil spirits and put them to nought, that's all marked down to our credit. Notice it says, "YE . . . have overcome them ..." (1 John 4:4).

[size=16pt]Then why do people have so much trouble with evil spirits? Because of their wrong thinking! [/size][/b]They don't know that in Christ, they've overcome demons and evil spirits. And because they don't know it, they don't act on it. [b] But believers do have authority over Satan. They just need to believe and exercise that authority in every area of their lives, including the area of finances.*** for those who preach miracles are ended with the apostles and that God heals whoever he chooses and let's those who He didnt choose to heal, die.***

[size=20pt]Jesus Defeated the Works of the Devil— Including Poverty and Lack[/size]

There's another passage of Scripture that would help us in our thinking along this line.

And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect [mature] : yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, THAT COME TO NOUGHT.
—1 Corinthians 2:4-6

Remember what we read in Colossians 2:15: "And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it."
Jesus spoiled principalities and powers! If you look in the margin of a good reference Bible, it will tell you, "He put to nought principalities and powers." He reduced them to nothing. In other words, He reduced them to nothing as far as their being able to dominate us. Therefore, they can't dominate us financially, either.
Since these principalities and powers are dethroned, why then are they still ruling in the world? Because the world doesn't know that they're dethroned. They don't know about it, and, therefore, they can't act upon it!***see why we must preach this gospel?***
That's the reason Jesus said He was anointed by the Spirit (and so are we) to preach deliverance!

Someone asked, "What do you mean, preach deliverance?"

Preach to the captives, "You're delivered! Jesus delivered you! These powers have come to nought! They're dethroned powers!"

Ye are of God, little children, and HAVE OVERCOME THEM: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
—1 John 4:4

"Well, I'm trying to overcome them," someone said.

No, you don't try. You just accept by faith what Jesus did. What He did, He did for you! Christ's victory is your victory. Glory to God!***Speaking in tongues

[size=20pt]Exercising Our Authority[/size]

That's why when the Lord told me to claim the money I needed, I understood what He meant. He was telling me to believe and exercise my spiritual authority in the area of finances.

The Lord had said to me, "The money that you need is not up here in Heaven. I don't have any money up here. The money that you need is down there. It's Satan who's keeping it from coming, not Me. "Satan is going to stay there till Adam's lease runs out."
(Then, thank God, Satan is going to be put in the bottomless pit for a little while, and finally cast into the lake of fire.)*** Hallelujah somebody!
The Lord said to me, [size=16pt]"Don't pray about money like you have been. Whatever you need, claim it in Jesus' Name. And then you say, 'Satan, take your hands off my money.' And then say, 'Go, ministering spirits, and cause the money to come."'[/size]***Screams!...Leaves my sit, walks outside speaking in tongues, myy colleagues thinks i've lost it***

This was way back in 1950. And from that day to this, I've not prayed about money. I'm talking about for me individually—personally. Now when it comes to RHEMA Bible Training Center, that's a different thing. We present the needs of the training center to people to help us, because that's not just my responsibility.
It's the same way with the local church. It's not just one person's responsibility. We all should believe God, not just the pastor.
And yet, right on the other hand, the pastor has a responsibility, too, because he's in authority. He has to do certain things and make certain decisions in the church. And that's a great responsibility.

[size=20pt]Angels Are Ministering Spirits[/size]

In 1950 when I began to see how faith worked in the area of finances, it was all new to me.
In fact, I said to the Lord, "What do You mean? I can understand the part about how we can exercise authority over the enemy, claim the finances we need, and tell Satan, 'Take your hands off my money.' But, what do You mean about the part,
'Go, ministering spirits, and cause the money to come'?"

The Lord said, "Didn't you ever read in My Word where it says that angels are ministering spirits sent to minister for those who are heirs of salvation?" (Heb. 1:14).*** Thank God for Jesus
Because I thought it said "minister to us," I had to get my Bible and read it. Isn't it strange how we can read Scripture for years and years, and read right over things and not get what the Word said?

But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister FOR them who shall be heirs of salvation?
—Hebrews 1:13,14

Notice verse 13 says, "But to which of the ANGELS. . . . " So He's talking about angels. Now look at verse 14: "Are they not all ministering spirits. . . ?"

Now notice what it said. "Are they not ALL [How many of them? All of them.] ministering spirits. . . ?"
They are spirit beings. They are ". . . ministering spirits, sent forth to minister FOR them who shall be HEIRS OF SALVATION"
(Heb. 1:14).

Well, that's us! These angels are ministering spirits that are sent forth to minister for us. "For" us means they were sent to do something for us!
Now over in Satan's kingdom, we could say that Satan is the chief. And, you see, all these demons and other spirits are doing his work. You hear folks say sometimes, "Satan influenced me to do that." Well, he might not have been there present at the time, but one of his ambassadors was. These demons and evil spirits influence people. They'll even influence Christians, if Christians will let them.
Well, just as demon spirits influence people, good spirits or ministering spirits can influence people too.

[size=20pt]I Put Into Practice What I Received[/size]

After the Lord showed me this, I went to the church where I was holding the meeting and stood there on the platform. I'll be honest with you, since this was a new revelation to me, my knees were shaking.
I was trembling, not because I was afraid like someone would be afraid of a rattlesnake or a bad storm. I'm talking about
a holy, reverential fear. Remember the Apostle Paul said, "And I was with you in . . . fear, and in much trembling" (1 Cor. 2:3). What I experienced was a different thing entirely from tormenting fear It was a holy fear.

You see, what the Lord had shown me was new to me, and my head was telling me, "That's not going to work." I just stood on the platform, and I said privately, "Well, now, let's see. It takes $150 a week to meet my budget." (That doesn't sound big now, but that was big then.)
I was supposed to be at that church one week. So I said, "In Jesus' Name, I claim $150 this week." And then I said, "Satan, take your hands off my money in Jesus' Name." Then I also said,
"Go, ministering spirits, and cause the money to come." That's it
—that's all I did.*** Screams again! almost jumping up

Later I said to the pastor, "Now, Brother, don't make any special pull for money. When you get ready to take up my offering, just say as little about it as you can. Don't say a lot about it."
'Well," the pastor said to me, "you know our custom. We take up an offering on Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday nights for the evangelist. We're accustomed to taking up pledge offerings.
If I just say, 'This is Brother Hagin's offering' and pass the plate, you won't get more than a dime."
I said, "If I just get a dime, you won't hear me say a word."

I had preached in that same church a year before. This was a different pastor this time, and the only other difference in the church was they had two more church members this year than the year before. The church was about the same size. They hadn't gotten anyone saved.
The last year when I preached at this church, they paid me
$57.15 a week for two weeks. That's $114.30 total. And when they gave me that offering, they thought they'd hung the moon!
The pastor who was there then had taken up to thirty or forty minutes for that offering, saying, "Who'll give another dollar?. . ." (Don't misunderstand me. That's all right to do if the Lord leads you to do that. In fact, I have been anointed at times to take up such an offering.)*** i always knew this was right!
But now that I'd seen how faith worked for finances, I said to this pastor, "Don't take up any pledge offering."

"Well, uh . . . If that's the way you want it," the pastor said.

"That's the way I want it."

The meeting started and was going well, and the pastor asked me: "Could you stay longer?"
I said, "I've got another meeting coming up, but I was going to take a little time off between meetings to go home."
But in the process of time, he persuaded me to stay on through Wednesday night of the following week, which gave us about a ten-day meeting.
So I changed the amount I had claimed—the amount I
needed to meet my budget. Instead of $150, now I was claiming
$200. I didn't pray about it. I claimed what I needed in Jesus' Name, and said, "Satan, take your hands off of my finances." Then I said, "Go, ministering spirits; cause the money to come."
At the end of the meeting, the pastor counted up the offerings collected for me, and found that the amount that had come in was $243.15! He was amazed. "That beats anything I've ever seen," he said. "That's the most we've ever collected. And no pull—we just passed the plate!"

Now my experience of moving into prosperity didn't happen overnight. From that time on, I made the same request of each pastor I preached for. The result was the same. With no emphasis or pressure, the amount of my offerings began to increase, and the needs of my family and my ministry were met.
I began putting into practice the revelation the Lord had given me. Anytime you get a revelation from God, don't just run out and preach it. Even though the Lord showed me that revelation in 1950, I didn't start preaching it till four years later in
1954. *** i have had an experience as this once ***

[size=20pt]Prove All Thing[/size]s

If you get any revelation from God, friends, check it in line with the Word, and then put it into practice for yourself before you start preaching it. If it won't work for you, it won't work for anyone else. *** Wise Counsel***

Then not only that, share your revelation with those who are over you and who are more mature in the ministry.*** Thank you sir for the advice***

In December 1954, I held a meeting for Brother A. A. Swift in New Jersey, just across the river from New York. He was an Assemblies of God minister and an executive presbyter of the Assemblies of God denomination. He was in his 70s at that time and had served as a missionary in China. He later oversaw a Pentecostal Bible school for nearly seventeen years.
I stayed with Brother Swift in his parsonage and had wonderful times of fellowship with him. Respecting his maturity and experience, I began sharing a little bit of what God had shown me and laid on my heart. After a while, he said, "I see the Lord's been talking to you. I received that revelation in 1911 in China."
Brother Swift got out his notes on the subject of prosperity and gave them to me. They fit perfectly with what I had received from the Lord. Later I wrote a book entitled Redeemed From the Curse of Poverty, Sickness, and Spiritual Death, based in part on the excellent study notes he gave me.
When my meeting in Brother Swift's church was over and we were saying good-bye, this respected man of God said to me,
"Brother Hagin, preach that message everywhere you go!"

So I began including a message on the subject of prosperity in some of my revival meetings. In some places, the poverty mentality was so strong that my message was not well received. But in some places, people were intrigued and hungry for the exposition of the Word on this subject. There was also great interest among some of the ministers I met.
One pastor listened in rapt attention as I shared what God had revealed to me about how believers could claim the finances they needed based on the Word of God. He was an older gentleman who had devoted his life to the ministry. Most of the time, he and his family had lived in dire poverty, with shabby clothes, a clunker of a car, and a run-down old house.
As I spoke, tears welled up in his eyes and streamed down his face.
"Do you see it, my brother?" I asked.

He slowly shook his head and said wistfully, "Oh, Brother Hagin, I wish I could believe that God wanted me to have anything."
*** Sadly, alot of Christians are in this state. ***

[size=20pt]How Much More[/size]

I wish he could have believed it too. He was a good man, honest and sincere. Who knows what he might have been able to accomplish for the Kingdom of God if he'd had more resources.
I thought about what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount.
"If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, HOW MUCH MORE shall your Father which is in heaven give good things unto them that ask him?" (Matt. 7:11).

How many parents want their children to go through life poverty stricken and in want and need? No, parents will work their fingers to the bone to see that their children get a better education, receive special care, and have more than the parents themselves had. They want their offspring to have good things. Jesus said, "Do you think God will do less for His children than an earthly father? No, He will give good things to those who ask Him."
Faith in God and His Word that is acted upon will bring results every time. I could tell you story after story of how the Word worked for me even in the midst of dire circumstances.

Yet there is a man-ward side and a God-ward side to receiving the blessings of God. You remember we read Isaiah 1:19: "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land."

Before you can effectively exercise your faith for finances or any of God's blessings, you must be willing and obedient. Then you must think and believe in line with God's Word and walk in the light of it. When you do, your faith will bring into manifestation what God has provided for you in His great plan of redemption.

[size=20pt]WAS JESUS POOR?[/size]

One of the arguments used by those who oppose the idea of material prosperity for Christians is that Jesus was poor during the time He lived on earth. They say He lived an impoverished life from the time He was born in a stable and laid in a manger bed, throughout His ministry when He had no home, until He was crucified and buried in a borrowed tomb.

The idea of Jesus' poverty has been repeated so often and passed down for so long that most people never stop to question
it and see if it is scripturally valid. But that does not make it right. In fact, I believe that this commonly accepted teaching is totally contrary to the clear teaching of Scripture.
The truth is that in no way did Jesus live a "destitute, inferior, indigent, needy, impoverished, feeble, pitiful, lacking, insufficient" life. Those terms are all used in defining the meaning of the word "poor."
Yes, on the night Jesus was born, Joseph and Mary had to take shelter in a stable. They wrapped Jesus in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger. But nowhere in the Gospel accounts does it say they were in the stable because they didn't have enough money to rent a room.

At that particular time, so many people had converged on the little town of Bethlehem for the tax census decreed by the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus, that there was no room in the inn. In other words, by the time Joseph and Mary arrived, every motel had a No Vacancy sign posted. So not having a room in overcrowded Bethlehem was certainly no indication of poverty.
Next, let's look at the two primary scriptures used to substantiate the idea that Jesus was poor.

And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
—Luke 9:58

For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sokes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
—2 Corinthians 8:9

The verse in Luke is often interpreted to mean that Jesus lived such an impoverished life that He never owned a home or had a place to stay after He began His earthly ministry. We'll take a closer look at the true meaning of this verse a little later in this chapter.

[size=20pt]When Did Jesus Become Poor?[/size]

The passage in Second Corinthians undeniably declares that Jesus became poor and experienced poverty. But when? Was it during His entire earthly life? During His years of ministry? Exactly when did Jesus become poor?


I suggest to you that Jesus was not a poor man during the thirty-three years of His earthly life, including the three years of His earthly ministry. He was made poor upon the Cross when He became our Substitute and paid the penalty and price for our sin.
Isaiah 53, the great substitutionary chapter of the Bible, speaks of how Jesus bore our sins and everything connected to them. Jesus took upon Himself what belonged to us so that we could receive what belongs to Him.

Surely he hath borne our GRIEFS [the word translated "griefs" is the Hebrew word "choli," which means diseases], and carried our SORROWS [this is the Hebrew word "makob," which means pains]: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the CHASTISEMENT OF OUR PEACE was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. AH we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. . . . Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief [The Amplified Bible says, "He has put Him to grief and made Him sick"]: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
—Isaiah 53:4-6,10

The word translated "peace" in verse 5 is the Hebrew word "shalom," which has the following meanings and connotations: safe, well, happy, welfare, health, prosperity, and rest. In other words, this passage tells us that God allowed Jesus to bear our sins and sicknesses so that by His stripes, we could have healing, peace, safety, wellness, happiness, rest, and prosperity.
There are other important "substitutionary" verses to consider.

For he [God] hath made him [Jesus] to be SIN for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the RIGHTEOUSNESS of God in him.
—2 Corinthians 5:21

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made A CURSE for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: that THE BLESSING of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
—Galatians 3:13,14

At Calvary, Christ took on sickness to provide us health. He was made sin so we could be made the righteousness of God. He was made a curse so we could receive the blessing.
Let's look again at Second Corinthians 8:9. "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sokes he became POOR, that ye through his POVERTY might be RICH."

We see that by His sacrifice on the Cross, Jesus took our poverty to provide us the riches of His grace. He became poor that we might be rich, which means abundant provision!
When did Jesus take on sin, sickness, the curse, and poverty? On the Cross! He did this so we could receive health, righteousness, blessing, and prosperity. He took the punishment that belonged to us so that we could receive the blessings that belong to Him.
The reason I am so certain this is what the Scriptures are saying is because the Gospels, when properly examined and rightly divided, do not portray Jesus as a poverty-stricken individual. On the contrary, Jesus is seen as a Man whose needs were met and who was regularly involved in meeting the needs of others.

[size=20pt]Gifts of Treasure[/size]

Let's start at the very beginning of Jesus' life. As a very young child, Jesus received some very costly and valuable gifts from the wise men, or magi, who traveled from Persia to find and worship the newborn "King of the Jews" whose star they had seen in the east. The Gospel account makes it clear that the gifts they brought to present to Jesus were not just cheap trinkets.

And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had OPENED THEIR TREASURES, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
—Matthew 2:11

Other translations of the same verse confirm that the wise men brought rich and valuable gifts. The Williams translation refers to their "treasure sacks," and The Amplified Bible says
"treasure bags." The Modern Language translation says "treasure chests," The Twentieth Century New Testament says "treasures," while the Knox translation renders it "store of treasures."

Herod the king, whom the Roman authorities had allowed to be the local Jewish ruler, became very jealous and suspicious of the infant King who possibly one day would dethrone him. So he ordered the slaughter of all the male children in the region of Bethlehem who were two years old or younger.
Being warned by an angel in a dream, Joseph took Mary and the baby Jesus and fled by night, making the long trek into Egypt. So it is possible—even probable—that the "prosperity" of the wise men's gifts assisted Jesus' family in the move to Egypt and perhaps sustained them all the months they were there.

[size=20pt]Jesus Had Ministry Partners[/size]*** WinsomeX, Shedemidemi, PastorKun, Nora544 etc... take notes please***

When Jesus launched His public ministry, He called twelve disciples to travel with Him. For three years, He and His little band traveled all over Palestine, throughout the region of Galilee, down the Jordan River to the hills of Judaea, and up to Jerusalem.
Even in those days, when travel meant walking or riding an animal, sometimes sleeping under the open skies or seeking shelter in the homes of friends, keeping that many people on the road must have involved considerable expense. Food and clothing for a dozen or more people, day after day, week after week, required that Jesus have enough funds to pay their way.
Where did the money come from? The Bible tells us that Jesus had ministry partners who helped provide His support.

And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, and certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, and Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and Susanna, and MANY OTHERS, WHICH MINISTERED UNTO HIM OF THEIR SUBSTANCE.
—Luke 8:1-3

Notice how verse 3 reads in some other translations.

The Wuest version says, ". . . and others, many of them, who were of such a nature that THEY KEPT ON SUPPLYING THEM with food and the other necessities of life out of their possessions." The Williams translation renders the verse, ". . . and many other women, who CONTINUED TO CONTRIBUTE TO THEIR NEEDS out of their personal means." The Phillips translation says, " . . . and many others who USED TO LOOK AFTER HIS [JESUS'] COMFORT from their own resources."


Does this sound like Jesus and His disciples were poor and destitute, a traveling band of beggars who lived off the land, hand-to-mouth? Absolutely not. Their needs were met through the generosity of many partners who faithfully and consistently supported Jesus' ministry financially.

[size=20pt]Was Jesus Homeless?[/size]

Contrary to traditional thinking, Jesus did have a place of residence. The passage most often cited by people in an attempt to prove that Jesus never owned a home or had a residence is found in Luke chapter 9. Let's read all the related verses in context.

As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked,
"Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?" But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they went to another village. As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."
—Luke 9:51-58 (MV)

Reading in context, we learn that in verse 58 Jesus was simply saying, "At this time in My life, I am on the move. I'm going forward on My way to fulfill My mission. I'm not settling down on this earth, but I'm on My way to be taken up to Heaven."
Notice that there are other scriptures that seem to indicate that Jesus did have an earthly home or residence.

When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali. . . .
—Matthew 4:12,13 (NIV)

The Williams translation of verse 13 says, "But he left Nazareth and made His home in Capernaum. . . ." Wuest renders the same verse, "And having abandoned Nazareth . . . He established His permanent home in Capernaum. . . ."
Now look at Matthew 9:1. It says, "Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town" (NIV).
Williams translates this verse, "And He got into a boat and crossed to the other side, and went into His home town." The Wuest version says, "And having gone on board the boat, he crossed over and entered his own city."
How does someone have his "own town," his "home town," and his "own city" unless he lives there? And how does he live there unless he has a place to live?

Mark 2:1 is also very interesting. It reads, "A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home" (NIV).
In the Williams version, the verse reads, "After some days He came back to Capernaum, and it was reported that He was at home." Wuest's translation says, "And having again entered Capernaum, after some days He was heard of as being at home."
Jesus couldn't "come home" or be reported as being "at home" if He didn't have a home.
The argument that Jesus didn't have a home cannot be used as proof of the poverty of Jesus because Scripture indicates that Jesus did indeed have a home.

[size=20pt]Fishing for Gold[/size]

There are other scriptural indications that Jesus didn't live a poverty-stricken life. For example, when it was necessary, God's miracle power operated through Jesus to meet His needs and the material needs of others.

When they came to Capemaum, the collectors of the half- shekel tax went up to Peter and said, "Does not your teacher pay the tax?" He said, "Yes." And when he came home, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their sons or from others?" And when he said, "From others," Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are free. However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel; take that and give it to them for me and for yourself."
—Matthew 17:24-27 (RSV)

Two other passages in Matthew also illustrate God's miracle- working power to provide for people's material needs. Matthew
14:15-21 tells the story of the feeding of the five thousand men with five loaves and two fish. Matthew 15:32-39 relates the story of the feeding of four thousand men with seven loaves and a few fish.
During His ministry on the earth, time and again Jesus demonstrated that the resources necessary to meet every need were available to Him.

[size=20pt]Assisting the Poor[/size]

Another reason I believe Jesus was prosperous is that the Bible indicates that Jesus' ministry assisted the poor financially on a regular basis.
The Apostle John's account of the Last Supper is one of the most powerful and moving passages in the New Testament, filled with important and significant events. John chapter 13 tells about Jesus washing the feet of His disciples, foretelling His betrayal, giving the new commandment to love one another, and warning Peter of his imminent denial of the Lord.

But people sometimes overlook three very important verses regarding Judas that emphasize the fact that Jesus' ministry had sufficient means to assist the poor financially—apparently on a regular basis.
When Satan entered into Judas and put it into his heart to betray Jesus, he got up from the supper to go out. John 13 records the story.

. . . Then said Jesus unto him [Judas], That thou doest, do quickly. Now no man at the table knew for what intent he spake this unto him. For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, BUY THOSE THINGS THAT WE HAVE NEED OF AGAINST THE FEAST; OR, THAT HE SHOULD GIVE SOMETHING TO THE POOR.
—John 13:27-29

Why would the other disciples have thought Judas was going to buy something or give money to the poor unless that was something he had been sent to do before, or perhaps was in the habit of doing on a regular basis? Obviously, neither of these possible actions seemed unusual or noteworthy to the eleven, probably indicating that they had seen both things occur with some frequency in the past.
Buying provisions for a feast and giving to the poor were apparently ordinary events to the disciples. And a person can't do either of these without having money.

[size=20pt]Judas the Treasurer[/size]

We know Jesus had some money at least, because He had a treasurer who regularly embezzled money from the funds entrusted to his keeping.
John 12:6 says, ". . .As keeper of the money bag, he [Judas] used to help himself to what was put into it" (NIV).
The Williams translation of John 12:6 reads, ". . . as the carrier of the purse for the Twelve he was in the habit of taking what was put into it."
I believe it is reasonable to assume that poor, penniless, destitute people don't have a treasurer or designated person to carry their money around. Jesus and the disciples had enough funds that they put someone in charge of handling them.

Also, the Gospel account suggests there were enough funds in the treasury that Judas could steal some from time to time without it being immediately noticed. A treasurer couldn't regularly embezzle money from the bag unless there was a continual supply of money going into it. If there was enough money in the bag for Judas to embezzle on a regular basis and still have enough to sustain the group, Jesus could not have been poor.

[size=20pt]Jesus Distinguished Himself From the Poor[/size]

During a visit to the Bethany home of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, Jesus said to the guests at the supper, "You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me" (John 12:8 NIV). Notice that Jesus didn't call Himself poor. He made a definite distinction between the poor and Himself.

Some people have mistakenly thought that this statement implied that Jesus was saying that helping the poor is unimportant.
However, the Old Testament reference He was quoting strongly indicates that this is not what Jesus meant. Deuteronomy 15:11 says, "There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land" (NIV).

In effect, Jesus was saying, "There will always be poor people who need help, and you should help them as much as you can. But I'm only going to be here a very short time, and this woman [who anointed His feet with expensive ointment] took advantage of a very limited opportunity. You will always have opportunities to help the poor, but I won't be here very much longer."
The point is that not once did Jesus identify Himself as one of the poor. He did not say, "There will always be poor people like Me." Instead, He made a definite distinction between the poor and Himself.

[size=20pt]Expensive Perfume[/size]

We find another scriptural indication that Jesus wasn't poor in the fact that He was not the least bit bothered when perfume worth a year's salary was used to anoint His feet.*** My Jesus sure got swag

Let's examine this story as it is written in Luke's Gospel.

Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? IT WAS WORTH A YEAR'S WAGES." He did not say this because he cared about the
poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.
"Leave her alone," Jesus replied. "It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."
—John 12:1-8 (NIV)

A poor man, not used to having anything, more than likely would not have had a relaxed attitude to a "year's salary" being poured over his feet. But Jesus was not intimidated, concerned, or uncomfortable in the slightest about the value of the perfume Mary used to anoint His feet. How could this be?

[size=20pt]Consider Who Jesus Really Was[/size]!

Jesus was—and is—the Creator of the universe and of this world! The Gospel of John declares, "All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made" (1:3).
Colossians 1:16 proclaims, "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him."
Now consider Jesus' real home, the place He created for Himself and, eventually, for us to dwell in. Remember, everyone endeavors to make his own home a place that is suited to his own tastes, a place where it is comfortable for him to live. Jesus' home was described for us in the Book of Revelation.

. . . the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates. . . . The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious . stone. . . . The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.
—Revelation 21:10-12,18,19,21 (NIV)

Who could design and create such a magnificent dwelling place? Psalm 24:10 gives us the answer: "Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory."
Let's look at some Bible passages that help us catch a glimpse of the majesty and power of God. (And remember, if these things were said of God, they also pertain to Jesus. John 10:30 says, "I [Jesus] and my Father are one," and John 14:9 says, ". . .he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. . . ."

Melchizedek referred to God as

". . . the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth."
—Genesis 14:19

Moses said that

" . . . the earth is the Lord's."

—Exodus 9:29

Joshua said God is

"Lord of all the earth."


—Joshua 3:11


King David said,

"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all."
—1 Chronicles 29:11,12 (NIV)

God, speaking about Himself to Job, said, "Who has a claim against me that I must pay? Everything under heaven belongs to me."
—Job 41:11 (NIV)

The Psalmist David declared,
"The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein."
—Psalm 24:1

David also said,

" . . . the earth is full of thy riches."
—Psalm 104:24

God said of Himself,

"For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon
a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains:
and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry,
I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof."
—Psalm 50:1042

God said to Isaiah,

" . . . The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool."
—Isaiah 66:1

Through Haggai, God said,

"The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts."
—Haggai 2:8

Zechariah referred to God as the

"Lord of the whole earth."


—Zechariah 4:14;6:5

Paul said twice in First Corinthians 10,

". . . the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof."
—1 Corinthians 10:26,28

Writing in Philippians, Paul said that Jesus,

"... being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
—Philippians 2:6-11

Jesus was with the Father at the dawn of creation and lived in Heaven with the Father and the angels. Revelation 21:21 says that the streets of Heaven are pure gold. Gold to Jesus is what asphalt is to us!
Jesus created this world with all its gold, silver, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and every kind of natural resource. The cattle upon a thousand hills are His. He created it all. No wonder He wasn't the least bit bothered by a little perfume being poured upon His feet.


[size=20pt]Jesus Never Lacked[/size]

At the end of Jesus' earthly ministry, His own disciples testified that they never lacked anything.

Then Jesus asked them, "When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?" "Nothing," they answered.
—Luke 22:35 (NIV)

If the disciples testified that they had experienced no lack as they carried out their ministry assignments, we can assume that they had a full supply and abundant provision. At the very least, they had enough—an adequate supply for their needs. And that's not poor!


[size=20pt]Jesus Wore Nice Clothes[/size]

When Jesus was crucified, His clothes were nice enough that the soldiers divided them among themselves and gambled for His coat.

Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose
it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.
—John 19:23,24

Would Roman soldiers cast lots for the tattered and torn rags of a beggar or the shabby, worn clothes of a poor man? No, of course not.


[size=20pt]Was Jesus Poor or Prosperous?[[/size]/b]

Let's go back to our original question. I believe the Bible addresses this issue in detail and offers a clear and compelling answer. Based on the verses we have examined in this chapter, do you think Jesus fits the definition of the word "poor"? In other words, do you think Jesus was indigent, impoverished, needy, wanting in material goods, destitute, feeble, dejected, worthy of pity or sympathy, inferior, pitiful, second-class, second-rate, lacking, or insufficient?

On the other hand, consider the definition of the word "prosperous"—marked by success or economic well-being, enjoying vigorous and healthy growth, flourishing, successful, robust, progressing, favorable.
[b]Which definition best describes the biblical Jesus? Let's review the information about Jesus we discovered in God's Word:

1. As a child, Jesus received gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
2. Jesus had many partners who faithfully and consistently supported His ministry financially.
3. The Bible indicates that Jesus had a house or a residence.
4. When it was necessary, God's miraculous power operated through Jesus to see that His needs and the needs of others were met.
5. The Bible indicates that Jesus' ministry assisted the poor financially on a regular basis.
6. Jesus had a treasurer who regularly embezzled money from the funds entrusted to him.
7. Jesus distinguished Himself from the poor. Jesus was not the least bit bothered when perfume worth a year's salary was used to anoint His feet.
8. The testimony of Jesus' own disciples at the end of His earthly ministry was that they never lacked anything.
9. When Jesus was crucified, His clothes were nice enough that the soldiers gambled for them.


I believe these scriptural facts are compelling proof that Jesus was not poor, but was a prosperous man. Now I am not suggesting that He lived a lavish or extravagant lifestyle—that would not have been practical for Him. But Jesus had His needs met during His life on earth, and He was able to do what God asked Him to do.

Jesus' prosperity should not surprise us. The Old Covenant promised prosperity to those who walked in the will of God (see Deuteronomy 29:9; Joshua 1:7; 1 Kings 2:3; 1 Chronicles 22:13; 2 Chronicles 20:20 and 26:5; Job 36:11; Nehemiah 1:11, and Psalm 1:1-3).

Do you think that Jesus met the qualification of walking in God's will? Of course, He did. He declared in John 6:38, "For I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me."
Do you think that the Father kept His Word and blessed Jesus because He walked in the Father's will? Absolutely! Numbers 23:19 says, "God is not a man, that he should lie . . . hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make
it good?"

[size=13pt]Jesus was not poor. He walked in prosperity according to the Abrahamic Covenant.[/size]

[size=20pt]Chapter 6: AVOIDING ABUSES AND FALSE PRACTICES[/size]

Money is a necessary commodity in today's civilization. For the overwhelming majority of people, the days in which the members of a family worked together to be largely self-sufficient—building their own house, growing their own food, providing their own water and fuel, creating their own clothing, and using "natural" means of transportation—is a distant memory.

Today all the products and services needed for even an ordinary lifestyle must be purchased. Going through a single day without spending money for something is difficult, if not impossible. Just as this dependence on money affects the way most people live their day-to-day lives, it also has a major impact on the way churches and ministries carry out their work.

[size=20pt]Finding Money for Ministry[/size]

Fundraising has become a fact of life—a necessary part of every effective Christian organization if it is to survive.

Gordon Lindsay was one of the leading ministers of the Pentecostal movement and the healing revival in the twentieth century. He was also the founder of the ministry organization now known as Christ for the Nations. A prolific writer and publisher, Rev. Lindsay often spoke out about the perils and problems ministers face in finding money for ministry. Some of his comments are included in an earlier chapter. In his book The Charismatic Ministry, he wrote the following:

[Money] is an important element in promoting Christian work. Its availability to a considerable extent governs the scope of our activities. It is, therefore, natural that a minister looks for ways and means by which he can secure necessary funds for the work that he feels called to do.

But here lurks many pitfalls in which the unwary may stumble. The line between the permissible and the objectionable is sometimes very thin. Some men have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for missions, and their work is to be highly praised. Others have raised comparatively insignificant amounts, and the manner in which it was done or the way they used it, has called forth strong condemnation.
If people are told that the money is to be used for a certain purpose, and it is spent largely for other things, such as for promotion, then it is being raised under false pretenses. This is a sore point. Certainly there are costs in raising missionary money. Anyone who says otherwise doesn't speak the truth. But if the greater proportion of the funds so raised are used for overhead, then something is wrong. . . .

The manner of taking offerings in a campaign is extremely important. If every service or a considerable number of services is occupied with a lengthy appeal for large offerings, the effect upon the people of the community is likely to be unfavorable. The ministers so engaged will soon be regarded as employed mainly in money raising.
Lindsay also commented on the use of "gimmicks" he had seen over the years that were used by various religious groups as a means of fundraising. He stated the following:

Gimmicks which included relics, bones, holy water, indulgences, etc., cursed the Medieval Church. They were widely used at that time as money-raising devices designed to appeal to people's ignorance and superstition. Today certain preachers are resorting to gimmicks to entice people to part with their money. . . .

What we are referring to as gimmicks is the use of articles that purport to have some mysterious power or supposed virtue in them—a sort of charm or fetish—the use of which has no Scriptural foundation. . . .

What are some of these gimmicks? The number apparently is endless, for new ones are heard of frequently. The partial list includes such things as follows: a "blessed purse" that causes money to multiply "supernaturally"; the "gift" of prosperity; "magic pictures" in which the image reappears after the person has closed his eyes . . . ; a special "prayer carpet"; "holy oil" or "holy water" that is supposed to carry a special virtue; cloths which "supernaturally" change color; "blessed nails";
"blessed pictures"; "blessed sawdust" on which an angel is supposed to have walked; a barrel of water in which an angel comes down and "troubles it"; "bottled demons," etc. *** Really?***

These are only a few of the long list of gimmicks which have been offered to the public.
The Reformation actually had its beginning when Martin Luther became convinced that all the gimmicks the church used—the relics, the saints' bones, splinters from the "true cross," etc.—were phony and had no virtue. May God help the minister to abide in the simplicity and purity of the gospel and not attempt to mislead people with such things.


Lindsay was also quoted by the respected author, David Edwin Harrell, Jr., in his study of the Pentecostal movement, All Things Are Possible. Noting the concern of responsible leaders of the healing revival over the "improper emphasis on money," the book recorded Lindsay's warning against a covetous spirit.

But this revival can be greatly retarded if there is a continual auctioneering for money in the campaigns. There are some who are short-sighted enough to have destroyed their usefulness to the kingdom of God by an offensive handling of finances.

Harrell also quoted Donald Gee, who, as we noted earlier, was an influential British Christian editor who came to believe that the healing movement had harbored frauds and promoted exploitation. He declared, "It has to be confessed that in a few regrettable cases commercialism vitiated [debased] the testimony."

In his own book A Way To Escape, Gee said, "Good and faithful preaching of the full gospel has been weakened by unscriptural appeals for money, to the stumbling of many."
The warnings of these and other Christian leaders need to be heard and heeded again by every honest minister and Christian organization today. Unfortunately, the same kinds of abuses and mistaken practices involving money that have plagued the Church since the days of the Apostles are still flourishing today.


No minister is immune to temptations regarding money. The devil is sure to come around when there are opportunities to compromise scriptural standards and our personal principles of financial integrity. It would be easy to rationalize and make excuses for improperly seeking support when we're under financial pressure or when an admiring crowd could easily be influenced into giving a substantial personal "love offering."

The spiritual dangers of giving in to this kind of temptation are tremendous. The Bible issues a stern warning that could apply in such a situation: "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall" (1 Cor. 10:12).

There are a number of teachings and practices in the Church today, particularly among Charismatic groups, that can lead to misunderstandings and hurtful problems. Many times, these errors are the result of people taking a Bible verse, or part of a verse, out of context or by carrying an application too far. Sometimes there has been an overzealous attempt to make a New Testament application of some Old Testament phrase or technicality that absolutely does not apply. Taken to the extreme, these teachings can become abuses and false practices.

Let's examine several specific examples that are being taught in various places across this country and in some other nations as well. While there may not be any malicious intent on the part of those who have promoted these teachings, I believe these teachings have the potential to injure and victimize innocent people.

[size=20pt]Is Financial Prosperity a Sign of Spirituality?[/size]

One teaching supposes that financial prosperity is a sure sign of spirituality. This teaching suggests that throughout the Bible, God has rewarded faith and holiness with material blessings. The implication is that if a person is not experiencing financial abundance, there must be a spiritual deficit in his life— probably caused by not giving enough.

For example, the teacher might quote Matthew 6:33 and say, "If you're not having 'all these things' added to your life, you must not be seeking first the Kingdom of God." This is the same kind of abuse as telling a person who has not received healing for a sickness or disease that evidently he just doesn't have enough faith.

The truth is that receiving a financial windfall is not a sure and absolute indicator of the blessings of God. It could also be an indicator that the person robbed a bank or "got lucky" gambling in Las Vegas! If wealth alone were a sign of spirituality, then drug traffickers and crime bosses would be spiritual giants. The Bible says that those who suppose that gain is godliness ate "men of corrupt minds," filled with perverse disputings and destitute of the truth (see First Timothy 6:5).

While several scriptures do link material prosperity with the blessings of God, numerous other verses make a sharp distinction and differentiation between material wealth and spiritual blessings.
Proverbs 10:22 says, [color=#990000]"The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it." But the Apostle James writes,"Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away . . . Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor
of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?" (James 1:9,10; 2:5). [/color]

In Paul's first letter to Timothy, he gives him some advice.

But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition . . . Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.
—1 Timothy 6:6-9,17

Several verses in the Book of Proverbs indicate that there are some types of blessings that are more beneficial and desirable than material blessings, if and when such a choice were ever necessary.

Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.
—Proverbs 15:16

Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right.
—Proverbs 16:8

Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.
—Proverbs 28:6

In short, material wealth can be connected to the blessings of God or it can be totally disconnected from the blessings of God. Certainly, financial prosperity is not an infallible gauge of a person's spirituality.

[size=20pt]Giving To Get[/size]

A popular teaching in recent years has been that giving should be mechanically linked to getting. If you need something, give something. Sow a car to get a car. Sow a suit to receive a suit.*** ***

This is another example of taking a basic truth and carrying it to the extreme. Like any other biblical truth, there is a ditch of error on both sides of the road.
There are some people who do not seem to realize that God wants to bless them. They have no understanding at all of the practical application of the law of sowing and reaping in their personal lives. As a result, giving for them is strictly a matter of duty. They may give, but they have no faith or expectation whatsoever about receiving anything from God. This is unfortunate because they undoubtedly miss out on some of the blessings that God has for them.

On the other side of the road are the greedy folks who are attempting to use their giving to manipulate God. They try to make the offering plate some kind of heavenly vending machine —put in your offering, pull the handle, and get your blessing back! This is certainly the wrong motive for giving.
*** I couldn't help but laughed***

Some people go so far with this kind of thinking that they get into foolishness, giving away their car in the hope of getting another, presumably better, car. These people sometimes end up walking for a long time! *** ***

I am quite sure that there could be an occasion when God would deal with an individual about giving his car to some person or ministry. If that person then gave away his car out of obedience and love, as unto the Lord, I believe God would bless him in return, perhaps with another vehicle. But God's specific personal direction for one individual does not become an across- the-board doctrine for the whole Church. There is no spiritual formula to sow a Ford and reap a Mercedes. *** Very important write up

Many preachers have used the story of the widow of Zarephath as an example of a person giving out of her need and being prospered in return. According to First Kings 17, there was a famine in the land, and this poor widow was down to her last handful of flour and few drops of oil. She was about to prepare one last meal for herself and her son and then starve to death.
Elijah, the prophet, asked her to prepare a cake of bread for him first and then cook for herself and her son. He told her that the Lord said, "The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land"
(see First Kings 17:14 NIV). When she obeyed by giving bread to Elijah, her supply was miraculously multiplied; she received bread.
Jesus referred specifically to this event in the very beginning of His earthly ministry. He said, "I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah's time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian" (Luke 4:25-27 NIV).

The Bible clearly teaches that God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). His love and blessings are available to all. But there is no absolute spiritual law that says every individual will experience the love and blessings of God in exactly the same way.
I believe that healing is for all. But Jesus declared that not all people will be healed in the way that Naaman the leper was. I believe that prosperity is for all, but Jesus said that not all people are going to be prospered the way the widow of Zarephath was. God did not tell every sick person to dip seven times in the Jordan River, and He didn't tell every needy person to give their last bit of food to Elijah. There are no one-size-fits-all rules for healing and prosperity.

If the Lord speaks to you in a clear and compelling way to give your coat to someone, then do it. But give it out of love and obedience to God. In that case, I believe God will reward you and not leave you shivering in your shirt sleeves. But be sure of your motives in giving your coat. Don't do it just because you heard the testimony of some other person who gave away a coat and was blessed with a new leather jacket. Don't say, "I want a leather jacket, too, so I'll give away my coat."
Our motives are crucially important. We need to be willing to give in obedience to God even if we never receive one thing in return. We must keep our hearts right and guard against covetousness. At the same time, we need to realize that God does want us to have faith, expecting Him to meet our needs.

[size=20pt]Naming Your Seed[/size]

Some ministers have put a great deal of emphasis on the practice of "naming your seed." They have told people, "When you get your offering out, give it a name. If a farmer wants to harvest corn, he plants corn. If he wants to harvest cotton, he plants cotton. So name your offering as seed for what you want to receive."***Really? ***

I'm not sure that "naming your seed" is necessarily scriptural. I can't find any verses that specifically support the practice. Perhaps for some people it is a way of being specific about what they are believing God for. It is good to be specific with our faith, but I also believe it's important not to try to restrict the benefits of a particular offering to a specific result.

I am not saying that sowing seed is wrong; I am simply addressing the practice of naming your seed. The Bible plainly points out that God intends for us to sow and reap, and that includes sowing and reaping in the area of finances.
The Bible teaches that God will bless His children when they are walking according to His Word (Deut. 28). I believe the primary means whereby God will bless you is through the law of sowing and reaping. In other words, when you are faithful to simply give your tithe and offerings, God is faithful to ". . . open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it" (Mal. 3:10). *** Kunle, trustman, Drummaboy, Shedemidemi etc food don done o ***

As I stated in a previous chapter, the tithe is ten percent of your income. Offerings are whatever amount you purpose in your heart to give, or what the Holy Spirit leads you to give, over and above the tithe. Tithes and offerings are the primary pattern of giving and receiving that God has ordained for the prospering of His children. *** some boys dey vex already***

I personally don't "name my seed," saying that I'm giving my offering in order to reap such-and-such. I just believe God to supply all my needs. I believe that the Lord is my Shepherd and that I shall not want. So I give because I love the Lord.
Because "naming your seed" is not a Bible-based practice, I would urge preachers to be careful not to use this as a gimmick to persuade people to give.

A fellow minister once said, "Being focused on what we receive as a result of our giving corrupts the very attitude of our giving nature. Our focus must not be on what we receive as the result. Rather, our focus needs to be on giving as an expression of our love for our Lord and Savior and the fact that it pleases Him."
For several years, I have conducted All Faiths' Crusades in churches and auditoriums across the country. I have made it a practice to present the work of RHEMA Bible Training Center at some time during the crusade and to use the proceeds or offerings from the meeting for the school. These funds have helped keep the doors of the school open, since the tuition received from students only pays for about a third of the actual operating costs. *** a bible school o, not a university, yet some folks want CU to be free and yet, don't want folks to give tithes and offerings and seeds ***

But raising funds for RHEMA is not my sole purpose in conducting crusades—nor is it even my first priority. Although it is a worthy cause that is deserving of support, I do not invest my time and effort just to get an offering for the school.
I have a list of purposes, arranged by priorities:

1. To get people born again

2. To get people filled with the Holy Spirit

3. To get people healed

4. To help establish believers in faith

5. To present RHEMA Bible Training Center for financial support *** i remember vividly that the above were Joagbaje's reasons for the crusade he has earlier this year, but them Kunle, drummaboy AKA WinsomeX, shedemidemi etc nailed him to the cross harder than Jesus was. ***

I believe every believer should have a similar prioritized list of purposes for giving; such a list might look like this:
1. Because I love God

2. Because I want to obey God

3. Because I want to support the Great Commission and the Church

4. Because I want to see people blessed

5. Because I am planting seed for my own needs


[size=20pt]The Hundredfold Return[/size]

The idea that God will reward our giving by paying a one- hundred-to-one return on what we give to His work has become a very popular concept. It is almost commonplace to hear ministers refer to it at offering time, urging people to "give generously and believe God for a hundredfold blessing."

The basis for this concept is a passage of Scripture included in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, but he shall receive an HUNDREDFOLD now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.
—Mark 10:28-30

Notice that there is nothing said in this passage about tithes or offerings. The context refers to people who have made an absolute commitment to follow the call of God upon their lives, leaving their former possessions, families, and lifestyles behind
(see also Matthew 19:27-29 and Luke 18:28-30).

Jesus responded to Peter by saying, "Every man who sacrifices his all for My sake, and the Gospel's, shall receive a hundredfold in this life of houses, brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, wives, children, lands, and persecutions" (Mark
10:29,30).

What did Jesus mean? Was He literally promising each disciple a hundred pieces of real estate for each one they had forsaken, and a hundred brothers or sisters for each sibling left at home, and a hundred fathers and mothers or wives and children? ***Papa Hagin sure got some amazing sense of humour***
In studying the lives of the disciples, we find no record of any of them ever acquiring such possessions—except for persecutions.
Did Jesus' words fail to come true? Was He exaggerating? I don't think so. There is no account of any disciple ever complaining about the Lord's broken promises. Instead, they testified that His record was true!

What did Jesus mean when He said they would receive a hundredfold of houses and family? Wiser men than me who have spent lifetimes studying the Scriptures and the life and times of Jesus have given their interpretation. To these itinerant evangelists who would become missionaries to the world, traveling alone with little more than the clothes on their backs, He promised that houses in strange lands would open their doors to them—a hundred, if need be. He promised that as they preached the Gospel of the Kingdom and won souls to Christ, they would enjoy fellowship with countless brothers, sisters, mothers, and fathers—a multiplied family of faith.
Is the hundredfold return available for us today? Yes, of course, it's available for all who have left everything to commit their all for the sake of Christ and the Gospel! *** Amazing right?***

Does the hundredfold return mean that when we give an offering, we should get out a calculator and compute the monetary payback we expect to receive at the rate of one hundred to one? In other words, if we give a dollar to God's work, are we promised that He will give us a hundred dollars back?
Let's consider a hypothetical example of what would happen if an individual actually had this happen just seven times in his life. Since the purpose of prosperity is to provide believers with the resources to do God's work, we'll assume that once this individual began his giving with a dollar and received his multiplied return, he "reinvested" the total amount back into the Kingdom of God by giving again.

Here's how that scenario would play out with the hundredfold return working a mere seven times:
$1 x hundredfold return = $100

$100 x hundredfold return = $10,000

$10,000 x hundredfold return = $1,000,000

(Note: If the hundredfold return worked just three times from an initial dollar offering, the donor would be a millionaire!)
$1,000,000 x hundredfold return = $100,000,000

(That's a hundred million dollars!)

$100,000,000 x hundredfold return = $10,000,000,000 (ten billion dollars)
$10,000,000,000 x hundredfold return = $1,000,000,000,000
(one trillion dollars)

$1,000,000,000,000 x hundredfold return =

$100,000,000,000,000 (one hundred trillion dollars!)

At the time of this writing, the man with the most financial wealth in the world is considered to be Bill Gates of Microsoft; his net worth is estimated to be as much as $85 billion. So a person for whom the hundredfold return worked as described above would have 1,176 times more money than Bill Gates!

***Wow ***

Perhaps you know of a Christian who has been very generous in his giving and has strong faith in God's ability and willingness to give prosperity to His children. Let's say that over the years this person accumulates a net worth of ten million dollars. Most people would agree that this individual is quite wealthy—that financial prosperity is a reality to him.
However, this wealthy Christian's ten million dollars is a microscopic fraction of what could be realized on the hundredfold return on an initial dollar offering reinvested seven times as described above. In fact, that ten million dollars would have to be multiplied ten million times to equal the hundred trillion dollars hypothetically received by the individual who had his single dollar returned a hundredfold just seven times over.

Consider also that almost any Christian who is faithful in tithes and offerings would not have begun with a single dollar, but hundreds of dollars! If the hundredfold return worked literally and mathematically for everyone who gave money in an offering, we would have Christians walking around with not billions or trillions of dollars, but quadrillions of dollars!

[size=20pt]Interpret the Word of God Correctly[/size]

Please understand that I am not trying to be cynical, nor am I trying to take away anyone's faith concerning God meeting his needs. But I believe it is important that we be realistic and sound in what we teach. We must "rightly divide" the Word of God and carefully seek the truth in interpreting the Scriptures.

Overemphasizing or adding to what the Bible actually teaches invariably does more harm than good. Over the years, I have seen believers leap to false and totally unrealistic conclusions regarding teachings such as the hundredfold return. Feeling that they have been promised remarkable, extraordinary, and phenomenal returns, some have ended up disappointed and disillusioned when the result didn't materialize as they envisioned. *** Sad huh? ***

Going back to the original question—should a believer expect a monetary payback at the rate of one hundred to one when he pays his tithes or gives an offering? Absolutely not!
Then why do some preachers teach that? Well, ministers are just human, like everyone else. Sometimes we make mistakes. Every now and then, an idea or concept comes along that sounds really exciting; people are really taken with it and eager to respond to it. It's easy to just jump on the bandwagon and go along with the crowd without taking the time to search out the Scriptures and examine the idea in detail.

Several years ago, I made that mistake with the concept of the hundredfold return. I picked up on what others were saying and started saying it too. When I took an offering, I would pray that God would bless the people's giving by sending them a hundredfold return. It sounded good. And people seemed excited and enthusiastic about it. But every time I said it, I felt vaguely uncomfortable. Something wasn't quite right, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
One morning I was getting up to come teach a class at RHEMA. I was sitting on the side of the bed putting on my socks. I had one on and was starting to put the other one on when the Lord said to me, "No one has ever received a hundredfold return yet on all their giving."
Well, that stopped me in my tracks—with one sock on and one sock off. I thought, Did I hear right? I believe I know the voice of the Lord. I've heard it many times.
"Well, Lord," I said, "Jesus talked about the sower who went out and scattered seed. Not all of it produced good results, but some produced a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, and some thirty."
The Lord pointed out to me that the parable I was referring to was not talking about money. The seed is the Word. The stony and thorn-infested ground has no return at all—some who hear the Word do not respond. But even in good ground, the amount of return differs. Some Christians don't grow and develop much
—maybe thirtyfold. Others may develop more. And some become great, devout, faith-filled, productive Christians—the hundredfold folks. In other words, they receive the maximum benefit from the Word of God they have heard.
And the other commonly used hundredfold passage that we looked at earlier isn't about giving money, either. Mark 10:28 through 30 is talking about Christian service. Jesus wasn't talking about multiplying tithes and offerings.

***I'm glad i met this book, it's breath taking***

I believe it is quite possible that there may be some individuals who have given a certain amount and received a multiplied return on it, perhaps even a hundredfold—but not on every dollar they have ever given to the Lord! God's word to me was that no one has ever yet received a hundredfold return on all their giving. Have you?

If your tithes and offerings last year were $5,000, did you receive a hundredfold return of a half million dollars? If you gave a total of $20,000, did you receive $2,000,000? Do you expect to?
I think you get the point. I did, too, and that's why I no longer tell people to expect the hundredfold return on their offerings. I just stay with what the Word of God says: "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken
together, and running over . . . " (Luke 6:38). I always claim the "running over" blessing.

[size=20pt]A 'Debt-Breaking' or 'Money-Multiplying' Anointing[/size]

From time to time, people ask me about some preacher who either claims—or is said by others—to be especially anointed to
"break the power of debt" over people's lives or to be able to "multiply people's money back to them." *** *** In most cases, this special anointing or ability can only be activated by giving an offering to this minister or the organization he represents. *** Really? ***
There is not one bit of Scripture I know about that validates such a practice. I'm afraid that it is simply a scheme to raise money for the preacher, and ultimately it can turn out to be dangerous and destructive for all involved. We need to be extremely careful about elevating certain ministers to higher- than-human status. Our focus should be on God rather than man.

Certainly, money can be more productive for the Kingdom of God when it is sown into a productive ministry. And there are gifted ministers skilled at building confidence and motivating people. But Christians should be giving to help get the Gospel out and to do God's work, not to get some "highly anointed minister" to multiply their money back to them.
I'm reminded of Paul and Barnabas. When they ministered in the city of Lystra, a lifelong cripple was raised up, leaping and walking. When the people of the city saw what had happened, they cried, "The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men." They called Barnabas Jupiter, and called Paul Mercurius. The Bible says the priests of the city brought oxen and garlands to offer a sacrifice to them (see Acts 14:8-18).
In order to restrain the people from worshipping them, Paul and Barnabas had to run among the people and testify that they were just men in the service of the Living God. It seems there is something about human nature that wants to elevate certain people to god-like status.
The Greeks had a mythical legend about a king named Midas who lived in the eighth century B.C., from the same general area as Lystra. You probably remember his story as the king with the golden touch; everything he put his hands on turned to gold.
Well, just as the people of Lystra asked if Jupiter and Mercurius had come down amongst them, today it seems some people are asking, "Is Midas in our midst?"
Unfortunately, too many are ready to believe that if they put money into the hands of a preacher with the Midas touch, so to speak, he will somehow, magically, bring increase and multiplication of their finances. This can quickly degenerate into wrong motives or covetousness. ***very very true***

Some people may be tempted to give, not just to bless God's work, but out of greed for the material gain they hope to get for their own selfish purposes.

A person who feels that he is in bondage to debt may give a minister most or all of the money he has out of desperation. He hopes against hope that the minister will help him get such a miraculous return from his offering that he can pay off his debts and get a fresh start.
I've heard of people with large credit-card debts or medical bills who had been told to expect "supernatural debt cancellation." Then, through a computer mistake or human error, they received a statement showing that they no longer owed anything or owed a substantially smaller amount.


In some cases, a bank deposit was posted incorrectly, giving them credit for a larger amount that was enough to pay off an indebtedness.
There is nothing "supernatural" about these kinds of events. Trying to take advantage of them will only lead to more trouble.
If some kind of mistake is made in which a Christian is credited with money that he knows doesn't belong to him, he has a moral, ethical, and biblical obligation to rectify the matter.

It's been said that as a young man, Abraham Lincoln worked as a clerk in a store. A woman came in one day and purchased some items. Lincoln added up her bill, and it came to two dollars and six and a quarter cents. She paid the bill, was entirely satisfied, and left. Later, Lincoln began to question his calculation. He refigured it and realized the bill should have been two dollars even. That night when he locked the store, he walked two to three miles to her home and paid her the six and a quarter cents.
The Bible says, "If you see your brother's ox or sheep straying, do not ignore it but be sure to take it back to him. If the brother does not live near you or if you do not know who he is, take it home with you and keep it until he comes looking for it. Then give it back to him. Do the same if you find your brother's donkey or his cloak or anything he loses. Do not ignore it" (Deut.
22:1-3 NIV).

For most people, getting out of debt is not an instantaneous or overnight process. They don't experience a single miraculous
"breakthrough" in which God dumps a big lump sum in their lap. Usually it involves many months—maybe years—of hard work, diligence, good money management, wisdom, living within one's means, and the blessings of God that come through faith.
The minister who claims to have a "debt-breaking" or "money-multiplying" anointing is in danger of being led deeper into error. Instead of presenting a balanced message of the full Gospel and fulfilling the call of God on his life, he may become a narrowly-focused "specialist," dealing only with money and financial gain. He may even develop into such a skilled fundraiser that he becomes a "hired gun," brought in by other ministry organizations to raise money for them (for a "cut" of the "take".

Instead of living to bless people, strengthen local churches, and advance the cause of Christ, such a preacher runs a great risk and faces great temptation of focusing only on what he can get for himself and his purposes. Somewhere along the way, his original call and mission gets laid aside. The Apostle Paul said, "But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast- away" (1 Cor. 9:27). That is much too high a price to pay for money.

[size=20pt] Is Giving to the Poor a Good Investment? [/size]

It grieves my spirit to hear that there are some ministers teaching—or at least giving the impression—that giving to them personally will bring a greater blessing to the donor than giving to the poor or supporting the local church's ministry to the poor. Again, these individuals imply that because they have a "special anointing" like Jesus, they have a gift—a Midas touch—to multiply money back to the donor and impart great blessings.

Some of these ministers actually suggest that there is not much blessing in giving to the poor by quoting Proverbs 19:17:
"He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again." "That's not too good an investment," they say. "Giving five dollars to a poor person is a loan to God, and He will pay you back five dollars. You get back just what you 'loaned' to God. But if you invest that five dollars in a ministry with a 'higher anointing,' you can expect a multiplied return." *** Meeehn, are these things for real?

Then they will say, "You know, Jesus said you will always have the poor with you . . ." (John 12: implying that the poor aren't worth much, that they're a dime a dozen.
This teaching is totally wrong and thoroughly unscriptural. Such suggestions are completely false interpretations of Proverbs 19:7 and John 12:8.

The idea that "loaning" a dollar to God by giving it to the poor will only bring a repayment of a dollar is not consistent with other Bible examples. John 5 tells how Jesus "borrowed" Peter's boat. He got into the boat and asked "the big fisherman" to put out from the shore a ways so He would have a platform to teach the crowd of people who had thronged about Him. Then Jesus repaid Peter for the loan of his boat.
Let's look at the following account in the Gospel of Luke.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
—Luke 5:4-7 (NIV)

How much was the use of Peter's fishing boat for an hour or so worth? It wasn't worth nearly as much as two overflowing boatloads of fish! Without question, Jesus repaid the loan with interest! He certainly wasn't a scrooge.

In the very next chapter of John's Gospel, we find the account of the feeding of the five thousand. You know the story:
A little boy gave his lunch of five small barley loaves and two fish to Jesus, who multiplied them to feed the multitude of hungry people. When everyone had eaten, the disciples gathered up the leftovers—twelve baskets full! (see John 6:8-12.)

I'm of the opinion that Jesus gave those twelve baskets of bread and fish to that little boy who had given his lunch to the poor, "loaning" it to God. Several people must have had to help him carry all that food back home. He was repaid for his loan with bountiful interest.
You see, people often quote just one verse of Scripture on a subject that seems to give a certain impression, but they ignore many others. You can't build a doctrine on any one scripture. The Bible says, "In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word he established" (2 Cor. 13:1).
The Bible has much to say about helping and ministering to the poor. Let's start with the verse some ministers misuse. In John 12:8, Jesus says, "You will always have the poor among you." What Jesus really meant is disclosed in the Old Testament verse He was quoting: "There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open-handed toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land" (Deut. 15:11 NIV).

So what Jesus was really saying, in essence, was this: "There will always be poor people to help, and you should help them as much as you can. You'll always have opportunities to help the poor, but I'll only be here a very short time."
[color=#990000][/color]

[size=20pt]Firstfruits[/size]

Many years ago, there was a teaching on firstfruits, which went back to the Old Covenant under the Levitical Law. It focused on the fact that the firstfruits were brought to the priests personally, and that these Old Covenant priests represented a type of present-day fivefold ministers because they were anointed. A serious problem develops when we begin referring to fivefold ministers as priests.
Remember, we mentioned earlier in this chapter that we don't pay tithes and give offerings in the same way they did under the Old Covenant. Under the Levitical Law, the people brought their firstfruits to the priest. But under the New Covenant, we have one High Priest—the Lord Jesus Christ.

Someone might ask, "What about the fivefold ministry? Aren't they priests? Don't those in fivefold ministry represent me to God?" No, they're not priests. [size=20pt] They don't represent you to God; they represent God to you! [/size] The Word of God says that we, as believers, have been made kings and priests unto God (Rev. 1:6).

The Book of Hebrews reveals how Jesus became our High Priest.

If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come—one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must also be a change of the law. He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears, one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life. For it is declared: "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek." The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
—Hebrews 7:11-19 (NIV)

You see, under the Old Covenant, the people could get to God only by going through the priest. But we don't have to go through anyone today. We don't have to go through a priest. We don't have to go through anyone except Jesus.
I came over among the Pentecostals in 1937. Then in 1940 there was a great controversy about firstfruits, tithes, and offerings. People believed that all the money belonged to the pastor. Well, some of us finally used some common sense and got straightened out. And God blessed us. But, you see, some people really had the idea that the pastor took in and handled all the money.
In fact, when I first started pastoring Pentecostal churches, I handled all of the church's money. But you can get into trouble doing that. You need some people to help you. This provides things honest in the sight of all men (Rom. 12:17). In one church I pastored, we had things set up very well. We had different funds for missions, building, buying flowers for the sick, and so on.

I remember one minister who became the pastor at a church I left. If I had known that church was going to consider him, I would have told them not to hire him. He didn't have a good record. He eventually stole every dime they had. They could have had him arrested for embezzlement. But as one of the deacons said, "We didn't want it in the paper." So they let him go, and eventually the church recovered.
Now some people are honest and sincere, but others are just trying to get more money. They don't have enough faith to believe God, so they try to work up some kind of system. They want all of the money to belong to them. Many people believe that all of the tithe belongs to the pastor. The last church I pastored thought that way. They said they wanted the Sunday morning and Sunday night offerings to go to me.
I said, "No, I'm doing real well; let's just take the Sunday night offering and put it in the church treasury because the church needs it."
The deacon board said, "We want you to have it."

"No," I said, "I don't need it. I'll take Sunday morning tithes and offerings, and we'll put the Sunday night offering into the general treasury because we need to do some building." This is probably a foreign concept to most people today. You see, in the
1940's churches were typically quite small. It was a common practice to give all the Sunday morning tithes and offerings to the pastor. *** Thank God he clarified for reference sake

As a result of putting the Sunday night offering into the general treasury, we were able to remodel the front of the auditorium, add some Sunday school rooms, and fix up the youth hall.
All the money does not belong to the pastor. It's so easy to get in the ditch on one side or the other. Let's stay in the middle of the road.
Making a New Testament application of Old Testament technicalities violates every principle of Bible interpretation, especially when there isn't a single New Testament usage of the word "firstfruits" in the context in which it is being preached by some ministers.

The concept of firstfruits is not used in the New Testament in reference to financial giving. There is not even the vaguest hint of it by any New Testament writer in reference to money or the support of ministers.

"Firstfruits" in the New Testament primarily refers to Jesus Christ. He is the Firstfruits—the first One to be raised from the dead—and represented all those who would follow after him.
Other New Testament uses of "firstfruits" refer to the "firstfruits of the Spirit" in the life of the believer. In other words,
"firstfruits" refers to the initial working of the Spirit in a believer's life—the first evidence of His indwelling us. It refers to those signs of His Presence in us now, as compared to what He will do with us later when we have our glorified bodies.

Another use of the word "firstfruits" is totally figurative. It has to do with the first individuals to be born again in a certain location.
After examining many teachings that have led to misunderstandings and hurtful problems in the Body of Christ, let's look at the Biblical way to prosper.

[size=20pt]The Biblical Pattern— Receive and Give[/size]

One of the most interesting passages in the Old Testament describes how the Israelites who had been carried captive into Babylon finally were allowed to return home to Jerusalem. They gathered together inside the walls, Ezra the priest read to them from the Law of Moses, and the Levites explained it to them.
Let's read the account in Nehemiah chapter 8.

So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading . . . Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength . . . And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.
—Nehemiah 8:8,10,12


Notice what happened. After the people heard the Word of God, Nehemiah told them to celebrate with joy. They ate. They drank. They shared with those who had nothing.
In the New Testament, Jesus said to His disciples, "... freely ye have received, freely give" (Matt. 10:. This is the biblical pattern. This is really what Christianity is all about. You receive, and then you give.
Let's look at another scripture passage that mentions giving to the poor.

Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.
—Isaiah 58:6-8


What impression do you get from these verses about the reward of giving to the poor? Will the giver just get back what he gives or a bountiful reward?

As I mentioned earlier, one of the ideas put forth by some preachers is that because they are Jesus' representatives and anointed like Him, you are to give to them personally in order to get a greater return on your giving. Is this in agreement with or contrary to what Jesus and Paul taught under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament? *** food for thought ***

[size=20pt]What Jesus Said About Giving to the Poor[/size]

Some of the money-oriented doctrine going around implies that only highly anointed ministers represent the Lord.
Let's read in the Gospel of Matthew to find out who represents the Lord.

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
—Matthew 25:34-40

Notice here that Jesus said He was represented by the poor!

When Jesus appeared to Saul of Tarsus, who was persecuting the Church at large, He said to him, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" (Acts 9:4). In this instance, Jesus said He was represented by the whole Church.
Jesus Himself, in unmistakable terms, declared that poor Christians and the whole Body of Christ at large represent Him just as much as a fivefold minister!
In First Corinthians 10:31, the Apostle Paul wrote, "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." So when you give to the poor, do it as unto the Lord. God will bless that. When you tithe and give offerings to your church, do it as unto the Lord. God will bless that. When you give an offering personally to a minister or to anyone else, do it as unto the Lord. God will bless that.

Realize that you don't have to respond to some sensationalized, goose-bump-raising offering in order to give productively and effectively into the Body of Christ! Paul instructed us to give as we purpose in our heart. Sure, there may be occasions when we are led by the Spirit of God to support a particular individual or cause. We should obey the Spirit of God.

But most of the time, we should be systematic in our giving. We should support our local churches on purpose with our tithes. We should find ministries that are producing good results and purpose to sow faithfully into those ministries.
Any giving may be profitable to the giver, and any giving may be unprofitable to the giver. What counts is that the giver does it as unto the Lord.

[size=20pt]Will There Be an End- Time Transfer of Wealth?[/size]

There has been quite a bit of discussion in the last couple of years about a coming transference of wealth from the world to the Church. The idea is based on part of a scripture that says,
" . . . the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just" (Prov. 13:22). Apparently, some have interpreted this to mean that the day will come when God's people will have plenty of money for the work of God—money transferred to us from the wealth of the worldly.

First of all, I really don't see anything about this in the New Testament, especially in terms of what we are supposed to be actively believing God for. And I'm always wary about building a doctrine or basic belief on a single scripture. Jesus said, ". . .in
the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may he established"
(Matt. 18:16).

I'm sure that as the Church does its job and gets people born again, there will be more people giving their tithes and offerings for the work of the Lord. But I think we need to be careful about coveting the world's money. We shouldn't be so concerned about getting sinners' money transferred into our hands. Our concern should be getting their hearts transferred into the Kingdom. We should be focused on their receiving what we have (eternal life), not on our receiving what they have (material goods).

Paul said to the Corinthians, "I seek not yours, but you" (2 Cor. 12:14). As a minister, he was not focused on their money, but on their souls.
The Apostle John said the following about some ministers who traveled with the Gospel: "Because that for his name's sake they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles" (3 John 7).

Other translations of this verse emphasize the point:

"... accepting nothing from the heathen" (Goodspeed)

". . . taking nothing from the people of the world" (Beck)

".. . and declined to take anything from pagans" (Moffatt)

"... and they accept no help from non-Christians" (Phillips)

Our job is not to try to get the wealth of the world. Our job is to faithfully use the wealth we already have to get the Gospel out. If all Christians would simply tithe and give offerings, the Church would have more than enough funds to accomplish whatever it needs to do. Statistics indicate that twenty percent of church members provide eighty percent of church revenue and that the average American Christian gives only six percent of his income to the Lord's work. Imagine where we would be if those percentages were where they ought to be! *** imagine where we would have been as a church if folks quit arguing tithes and seeds and offerings?

The Bible does teach that when the Church returns with Jesus after the Tribulation and He sets up His Millennial Kingdom on earth, we will be inheriting all of the wealth of the sinners at that time. I don't see anywhere in the New Testament where we are supposed to be focused on getting their money now. Instead, we should be concentrating on seeking the hearts of the unsaved and faithfully using the finances we already have.

[size=20pt]The Use of Gimmicks[/size]

Looking back over more than sixty-five years of ministry, I can remember a lot of gimmicks preachers have used to attract attention and get a larger response from people to their ads and appeals. Although you might suppose there are a lot of new gimmicks today, a great many of them have been around for decades. I've seen some of them come and go two or three times.

Some gimmicks are absolutely ridiculous, and the fact that they seem to work just illustrates how unlearned and superstitious many people are. They are prisoners of the soulish realm and do not live in the spiritual realm.
Years ago, someone on the radio talked about a red string he would send you for an offering of $10. It was supposed to have special power in it. If you were fat, wearing the string around your waist would cause you to lose weight. If you were skinny, wearing the red string would help you gain weight. *** Really? ***

Then someone came up with the idea of blessed billfolds that had been prayed over. People could get them by sending the minister a $25 offering. People were supposed to put the billfold in their pocket and expect God to miraculously fill it up with money. After carrying it a while, people were supposed to open the blessed billfold and find that money had been supplied to pay their bills.
I know it seems impossible that anyone would be deceived by something so silly, but many sent in their money and used those red strings and blessed billfolds. *** Pray for God's people o
Other gimmicks may seem more believable and convincing.

Back in the 1950s, I heard a radio preacher ask people to send him an offering and a prayer request. He promised to take every letter of request that he received with him on a trip to Jerusalem and pray over them in the empty tomb where Jesus had been buried. I heard that he got sackfuls of mail; thousands of people wanted him to pray over their requests in that special place.
There is absolutely nothing in the Scriptures to suggest that God will hear and answer a prayer from the tomb in Jerusalem anymore than He will heat you praying in your bedroom, or at work, or anywhere else where you cry out to Him in faith. The important thing is not who prays where, but that you believe God, based on His Word. ***na wa o ***

The Jerusalem prayer deal was simply another gimmick. What that radio preacher really wanted was more people to send in offerings. And he wanted more names he could put on his mailing list to promote with other mailings and appeals.
Sometimes the gimmick is very subtle, and even the person promoting it may be deceived into thinking that what he's doing
is genuine. A few months ago, I was glancing through a church paper that had been sent to me (I get a lot of them). One of the upcoming meetings the church was promoting was a special "double portion" night. It said, "Come believing and receive your double portion!"
This item got my attention because I remembered hearing about "double portion" services fifty years ago. It seemed like one person thought of doing it, and then everyone across the country got on the bandwagon.

The problem with "double portion" services is that the idea that every believer can receive a double portion from the Lord is not scriptural. A double portion of what?

The concept is developed from the Old Testament story about Elisha and Elijah, who were both called and anointed in the office of prophet. Elijah said, "Ask what I shall do for you before I be taken away from you" (2 Kings 2:9). Elisha answered by saying he wanted a double portion of Elijah's spirit.

The rest of the account tells how Elisha met the condition of seeing Elijah go up in the chariot of fire and how the mantle of Elijah fell on him. And the biblical record shows that Elisha did receive a double portion of Elijah's anointing, and he performed twice as many miracles.
There are at least two reasons, or conditions, that qualified Elisha to receive a double portion. First, he was called and anointed to be a prophet, just like Elijah was. And second, Elijah told him to ask for what he wanted from him.

What qualifies the people at one of today's special "double portion" services to be asking for a double portion? Are they asking for a double portion of material things? Or are they asking for a double portion of spiritual things? Either way, there's no biblical basis for it at all. God has already promised to provide all their needs. How can they get a double portion of all? ***hmmmm, quite edifying***

Every believer has an anointing of the Spirit within. The Bible says, "But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you . . ." (1 John 2:27).

So why have a "double portion" service? No doubt most ministers who use this idea want it to be a blessing to people, but they may well be promising something they can't deliver. And part of the reason for scheduling the special service is to get more people to attend and participate in the church service.
I believe ministers need to be really careful about what they sponsor and promote. And they always need to be sure their motives are pure.

[size=20pt]Chapter 7: BALANCE AND SOUND TEACHING[/size]

Throughout this book, I have tried to stress the importance of providing a proper emphasis on important Christian truths. On so many of these issues, there have been people who emphasized a particular idea or concept so much that they carried it to an extreme. Their attitude seemed to be, if a little bit of this is good, then a whole lot must be better.
When this happened, usually another group rose up to correct the overemphasis. Unfortunately, often their "correction" was to the opposite extreme—because "too much" of this idea is so offensive, let's get rid of it altogether. You might say they tended to "throw the baby out with the bath water."

The result was that a great gulf was created between the two extreme positions, and often misunderstandings and animosity arose. People in both camps got so caught up in the conflict that they forgot the original motivation of both sides, which was to do good and bless people. And in their overzealousness, both sides often lost sight of the original truth!

My way of describing this is to call the basic truth—the biblical position—the middle of the road, and the extreme applications as the ditches on either side of the road. It has been my experience that a person doesn't have to travel very far before he sees people off in a ditch on one side of the road or the other. For some reason, it seems like the hardest thing in the world for the Body of Christ to stay balanced on a subject.

Take note that it is not just bad people who get into a ditch. Good people—sincere, well-meaning Christian believers whose zealousness for the truth is commendable can allow their zeal to exceed their wisdom. I believe that even some of the Christian leaders whose failures made national headlines in past years did not intentionally set out to hurt anyone or to fall into error. They went out on tangents and got away from the main purpose and central truth of the Gospel. Once off track, it was all too easy to go downhill in a hurry.

Let's look at some examples of basic Bible truths and their extreme applications—the middle of the road position and the ditches on either side of the road.

Subject Water Baptism

Error and Extreme The Ditch on One Side of the Road You can't be saved unless you're baptized using a special formula.

The Truth The Middle Of the Road Baptism is an ordinance of the Church that communicates our identification with Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.

Error and Extreme Ditch on the Other Side of the Road Baptism has no relevance or importance today whatsoever.

Subject Divine Healing

Error and Extreme The Ditch on One Side of the Road Healing has been done away with. The day of miracles is past.

The Truth The Middle Of the Road: God does heal today, but natural means of help are appropriate and acceptable also. ***Shedemidemi take notes

Error and Extreme Ditch on the Other Side of the Road Divine healing is the only legitimate way to go. Using doctors or medicine is a sin.

Subject Ministry Gifts

Error and Extreme The Ditch on One Side of the Road We don't need pastors and ministers any longer. God is going to use everyone equally. ***frosbel take note***

The Truth The Middle Of the Road:The ministry gifts Christ gave are still here today. Their job is to equip the saints to do the work of the ministry and to further each Christian's walk with God by feeding them the Word.

Error and Extreme Ditch on the Other Side of the Road Those with ministry gifts are a superior class of Christians. They should rule over all other Christians and run not only the church, but also the lives of all believers.

Do you recognize some or all of the varying positions on these basic issues? You may be aware of some extreme views on other doctrinal points as well. Finding, and staying, in a balanced position on basic issues such as these is obviously not an easy task. To this day, some churches struggle to stay out of the ditches of error when it comes to administering the ministry gifts.

[size=20pt]Ministry Gifts Should Produce Balance[/size]

One of the pioneers of Pentecostalism who helped the movement get established on a firm biblical foundation was an Englishman named Donald Gee. He spoke so eloquently about the problems of extremism and excesses that he became known as the "Apostle of Balance." I was privileged to meet him many years ago and hear him speak. I read many of his articles and books and always found them to be full of wisdom and insight. I loved and appreciated his ministry.


In the 1930s Gee wrote the following profound counsel about how the ministry gifts interact to produce balance and soundness.

One of the most charming things that meet us on the very threshold of studies on the ministry-gifts of Christ, is their wise variety.
It is true that the first on the list, the apostle, seems to embrace almost every type of ministry; but there are prophets, whose ministry is inspirational and appeals to the emotional elements of human nature; and then to balance these are teachers, whose ministry is logical and appeals to the intellectual faculties. . . . Then there are evangelists whose ministry will be almost exclusively without
[outside] the church: and pastors whose ministry will be almost exclusively within the church—both equally needed and honorable.


This matter of balance in ministry is vitally important to effective, aggressive ministry without, and well-rounded growth within; far more important than most believers realize . Many assemblies have no vision but that of a one-man ministry, which is expected to fulfill every requirement—evangelistic, pastoral, teaching, prophetic. One man is expected to have marked success in evangelism, be a splendid organizer, a good pastoral visitor, a competent Bible teacher, possessing in addition gifts of healing and inspired utterance. The marvel is that so many men seem to approximate at least in some measure to these exorbitant and unScriptural demands. Usually it is at terrific strain to themselves; and it may easily result in their never reaching a first-class competence in what is their truly God-given line of ministry.

Other assemblies and individuals do not even seem to have the desire or vision for one man to fill every needed line of ministry; they only appear to see one line of ministry, and have neither time, nor appreciation, nor encouragement for anything beyond their own line of things. For instance, some assemblies and individual believers have no vision or enthusiasm for anything but evangelism in the narrowest sense of that term, and almost ignore teaching and teachers. On the opposite hand, there are others who would, if they had their way, have so much Bible teaching that they would turn any assembly into little more than a Bible school, and completely ignore an aggressive outside testimony.

Both the above types may quite likely unite in "despising prophesyings" (1 Thessalonians 5:20), and have no time nor place for the gifts of prophecy, tongues, or interpretation. Yet at the other extreme there are those who place such an undue value and importance upon these very gifts that they do not consider a preacher to be in the blessing and liberty of the Spirit at all unless his ministry is continually sprinkled with manifestations of this description; and they like every meeting of the assembly to be dominated by these features. In each and every case there is a serious lack of balance.

What is needed is an appreciation of the varied ministries Christ has placed in the church, and a realization that each and all of them are essential to well-rounded activity and growth. It is no uncommon thing to hear teachers disparage evangelists by calling them superficial" or "sensational": and then to hear evangelists stigmatize teachers as being "stodgy" and "dry." Both types may unite in calling prophets fanatical and extreme; and then the inspirational folk retaliate by calling the equally God-given ministry of their brethren "carnal" and "fleshly" when, rightly understood, it is nothing of the kind.
***i had to laugh ***

All such attitudes are wrong. It is perfectly true that there can be extremes in evangelism which are superficial: there can be extremes in teaching which are heavy and barren: there can be extremes in prophesying which are most undeniably fanatical. Yet the true remedy is not to be found in repressing therefore any particular one of these lines of diverse ministry, for thereby we may all too easily quench the Spirit of God also.

Indeed this has been actually done too often; men have dealt with the false and unprofitable at the terrible expense of cutting out the real at the same time. It needs an inspired touch to regulate inspired ministry. The divine plan is for each and every ministry which God has set in the church to correct and complement the other, thereby providing just the elements lacking and just the check needed to restore overbalanced tendencies on any one line
—the prophet to inspire the teacher, the teacher to steady the
prophet; the evangelist to continually remind us of the needy world outside dying for the gospel, the pastor to show us that souls still need much caring for even after they have been "won."

The apostle above all to inspire and lead the way to fresh conquests for Christ and His church. [The emphasis in the previous two sentences is mine.]1

***standing ovation***

Some seventy years later, this is still a wonderful word for the Church. Indeed, "the matter of balance in ministry is vitally important—far more important than most believers realize."

[size=20pt]The Money Balance[/size]

Now let's talk about the issue of balance when it comes to money. Again, people tend to end up in one of three positions:

Error and Extreme
The Ditch on One Side of the Road
• Money is an evil that all
Christians should avoid.
• God wants His children to be poor
• Poverty shows humility.
• Preachers should never talk about money

The Truth Middle Of the Road
• God wants to bless and prosper His children.
• We are to seek first the Kingdom of God as opposed to being materialistically oriented.
• Preachers should teach the truth of God's Word about money, but they shouldn't be self-serving.
• Preachers should keep their teaching on prosperity in balance with the many other truths of God's Word.

Error and Extreme Ditch on the Other Side of the Road
• Getting rich is the main focus of faith.
• God's main interest is your material well- being.
.• Material gain shows godliness.
• Preachers should teach about money more than any other subject.


I often have the opportunity to talk with pastors from all over the country. They tell me that one of the greatest frustrations they face is determining how to maintain balance on the issue of prosperity and financial blessings. If they stress keeping motives pure and not becoming covetous or greedy, it seems that people have trouble believing God for material things. On the other hand, if they stress and emphasize believing God for prosperity, people often tend to get overly materialistic.

Again, those who get off into a ditch on this issue are not necessarily bad people. But even sincere, honest people can allow their zeal for truth to exceed their wisdom.

What the hell this guy wants to teach? Teach it then and let's analyse it. Dnt put people in suspense.

[size=20pt]Pursuing Truth in a Balanced Way[/size]

A friend of mine, Bob Buess, published a book in 1975 entitled, The Pendulum Swings. A Baptist minister who received the infilling of the Holy Spirit, Brother Buess was also out on the evangelistic field during the same years I was, and from time to time, we would run into each other and have good fellowship together. His book has some important things to say about pursuing spiritual truth in a balanced, loving way, avoiding a legalistic, dogmatic spirit. In the preface to his book, Buess writes the following (all emphases are mine):

A few years ago I was interested in a certain teaching, so I began to pursue the Word of God to find more on this subject. I believed the Bible from cover to cover, but I allowed myself to disregard certain Scriptures. I blanked out certain truths. My mind became completely indifferent to certain verses in the Word.

My new dogma was no different from the old, but I began to defend my new doctrine. It was, in a subtle way, becoming a god which I had to defend and protect.
I was not an unusual case. It's easy for Christians to pursue a thought which the Holy Spirit aroused in them as they studied the Scriptures. In their excitement, they set out to explore the Word of God to see what could be found. When they find a few Scriptures to support this new-found idea, they soon can be running madly through the Bible trying to prove their theory. *** ***

Dogmatism begins to set in. Without fully realizing what they are doing, these people jump verses, throw out some, and ignore others to prove their point. . . .
People driven by this cause rush madly on in a pursuit of new arguments to promote their theory. As time passes they become harsh. . . .

The purpose of this book is to cause the reader[i] to slow down and look at the other side of some issues facing Christians today. [/i] It is to let the pendulum swing back into the will of God rather than let it be hung up in dogmas and legalism. It is to call for a re-examination of present studies from a nonpartisan viewpoint. It is a call to take seriously James 3:1 which condemns the teacher who dogmatically rushes ahead without balance in his teaching.

The Apostle Paul wrote a letter to the Galatian Christians who were leaving the simplicity of the gospel and reverting to rules and regulations. That Galatian spirit is working in the Body of Christ today, causing some believers to be legalistic in their approach to the Word and to be hard and dogmatic in dealing with truth and with people. . . .
People are caught up in confusion and error simply because teachers have rushed headlong into pet doctrines with no regard for the other side.
Seeing the other side requires that we pursue wisdom. Proverbs 4:7 says: "Wisdom is the principal thing, therefore get wisdom, and with all thy getting get understanding. . . . Jesus Christ Himself will deliver us from legalism, for He is wisdom (1 Corinthians
1:30).

I believe Buess's insightful comments still apply to us today and we would be wise to consider them.

[size=20pt]Extremes Are Sometimes Necessary[/size]

One problem I've seen through the years concerning the Church is that people holding different beliefs on spiritual issues often begin waning over their positions. I saw this happen firsthand during the days of the Healing Revival, which was from 1947 to 1958. Before it was over, extremism and error actually destroyed the ministry (and life) of more than one talented and effective man. And the momentum of that great revival was stopped when great numbers of people were disappointed and hurt by the excesses of some of its leaders.

Early in the revival, Donald Gee wrote an article in The Voice of Healing issuing a call for reason and responsibility. The article was entitled, "Extremes Are Sometimes Necessary." I have included it in its entirety (all emphases are mine).

One of the paradoxes of the truly Pentecostal witness is its emphasis upon the necessity of maintaining a proper balance in doctrine and practice, coupled with a complementary testimony that often urges to extremes in both.
Paul's teaching concerning spiritual gifts is all for balance and moderation— "I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the understanding also"; We are to avoid giving any impression of being "mad"; "By two, or at the most by three"; "God is not the author of confusion, but of peace"; "Let all things be done decently and in order" (1 Cor. 14:15,
23,27,33,40).

Yet at the same time he affirms in extreme language that he speaks with tongues more than they all; expresses a vehement preference for teaching at a ratio of 10,000 to 5; and says "ye may all prophesy" (1 Cor. 14:18,19,31)....

So many of us are inveterate [firmly established] extremists. If we see any ray of truth we push it to such an extreme that our constant pressing of it becomes offensive, vain and at last erroneous. If we discover any successful line of ministry we run after it to such an extent that it becomes nauseating and exhausted. We are for ever missing genuine usefulness by our constant failure to keep well-balanced. In the end men lose confidence in us, our intemperance grieves the Holy Spirit, and we are cast upon the scrap-heap of rejected and unprofitable servants. ***very apt... how terrible ***

But still more of us are in danger of missing a life of power by seeking to walk in monotonous middle-course that never ventures to an extreme at all. Our preaching lacks fire because it always is trying to present both sides of a case at the same time, and our methods are ineffective because they eschew [avoid] any offense against respectability or tradition. We may, if we like, pride ourselves upon our success in avoiding disaster but our safety has been achieved by remaining static. We have made practically no impact upon the community. If it be true that they have never charged us with madness it also is true that they never have reported that God is among us of a truth. Most probably they do not even know of our existence!

We rightly extol the importance of balance; we correctly affirm that the way of truth will not be found in extremes; we justly point out that persistent extremism is suicidal for both men and movements—but we desperately need to recognize that revivals are never launched without someone going to an extreme. Passionate intercession is positively unbalanced; so is much fasting; so is fervent preaching that makes sinners tremble; and feverish itinerating that makes a missionary or an evangelist seem beside himself. We do well to remember that our Lord's Own kinsmen thought that He had gone mad (Mark 3:21); and that He quoted "The zeal of Thine house hath eaten me up" (John 2:17) when He kicked over the table of the money-changers.

The Day of Pentecost so disturbed the emotional balance of the disciples that they seemed like drunken men. . . . Thirty years later a Roman Governor accused Paul of being mad. The charge was courteously and properly refuted but let us admit that Festus was no fool. Paul himself testified that at times he was beside himself (2 Cor. 5:13), and his superb sanity of teaching and outlook operated on a heavenly level.

There HAS to be an extremism to move things.... Miracles of healing occur when faith refuses to be logical, and blinds itself to arguments, based on plenty of contrary experience and more "balanced" teaching. Indeed we may well enquire whether there is not something extreme in any genuine miracle.

Where, then, lies the way of Pentecostal truth that embraces a legitimate extremism and an essential balance? I can only reply that we need the extremist to start things moving, but we need the balanced teacher to keep them moving in the right direction. We need extremism for a miracle of healing, but we need balanced sanity for health. We need extreme fervor to launch a movement, but we need the repudiation of extremes to save it from self- destruction. Only a wisdom from above can reveal the perfect synthesis. It takes Pentecostal genius to know when and where an extreme doctrine or practice must be modified to a more balanced view; and where, on the other hand, the broad lines of truth must be temporarily narrowed into an extreme emphasis upon one point to ensure a dynamic powerful enough to move things for God. The possession of that uncommon genius marks the God-sent leader who has emerged in truly great periods of revival.

[size=20pt]Extreme Emphases[/size]

In the past we have seen extreme emphases in many different areas of doctrine. Let's look at a few of these and then examine both the positive purposes and the dangers regarding extreme emphases.

[size=16pt]We have seen an extreme emphasis in the faith movement. [/size]
Some people have thought [/b]all believers should throw away their medicine and refuse to go to a doctor, cancel all their insurance policies, quit their jobs to "live by faith," and never borrow money under any circumstances.

[b][size=16pt]We have seen an extreme emphasis on the move of the Holy Ghost. [/size]
Some people have thought they were never supposed to have any kind of service other than a Holy Ghost meeting with people laughing and rolling on the floor every time they came to church.
***Really?? ***

Others have thought every minister was supposed to be holding Holy Ghost meetings all the time.

[size=16pt]We have seen an extreme emphasis on teaching that prosperity— especially material prosperity—is for Christians. [/size]Some have come to believe that demonstrating prosperity involves displaying a lavish, ostentatious lifestyle rather than being good stewards and efficiently harnessing abundant resources to promote the Gospel and to minister the goodness of God to all who are in need.

However, an extreme emphasis alone is not what causes problems. Sometimes an extreme emphasis is necessary to shock and awaken a sleeping, lethargic, and apathetic church to recognize a neglected truth that is necessary for progress to be made.
Often an extreme emphasis involves people in one ditch trying to pull another group of people out of the ditch on the other side of the road. [/u
]
An extreme emphasis then, simply excites people and stirs them up about a general truth that has been neglected or ignored. An extreme emphasis should get our attention. But then we need wisdom to make a productive and fruitful application of that general truth.
The problem is created when there is an extreme application made of what has been emphasized. In other words, people have failed to make a balanced application of what has been heavily emphasized. They have failed to integrate that truth into the rest of God's Word. The whole counsel of God's Word is what will keep us in balance.

So how does a minister integrate a certain truth that the Holy Spirit is emphasizing into the whole of the Word of God? I believe the answer is, by consciously presenting a balanced view of the subject, searching out as many scriptural foundation stones as possible, not just teaching on an isolated verse.

Even if ministers or students of the Word focus on a particular truth, it is still important to include other subjects in their spiritual diet. Just because a child prefers dessert, the wise parent does not fail to also put bread, meat, and vegetables on his plate.
I have followed a rule of thumb that has served me well in presenting the whole counsel of God's Word. [u] If the Bible gives a subject a lot of emphasis, with many verses in different books of the Bible, I've tried to emphasize that subject in my preaching and teaching. If the Bible says very little about another subject, I've made it a point not to place an extreme amount of emphasis on that subject or to be overly dogmatic concerning it.

[size=20pt]Don't Abandon Practical Wisdom and Common Sense[/size]

Not only should we as Christians apply biblical teaching and spiritual principles in our day-to-day living, but we also must not abandon practical wisdom and common sense. There must be balance in this part of our lives as well.
The faith walk does not ignore the natural laws of the universe, which actually are God's laws. As a rule, God does not supernaturally perform what we have the power to do for ourselves. Most people discover that only after they have done all they know and have the power to do does God step in and do what only He can do.

For example, there is no question that God can miraculously heal our human bodies. I personally was raised up from my deathbed and made completely whole. Over the years, I have seen many people healed of everything from headaches to cancers.
Just because God can and does heal doesn't mean that we shouldn't use common sense in taking care of our bodies, eating the right foods, exercising, working in a reasonable way, and getting proper rest. Nor should a person with a disease stop his medical treatment and abandon all reason and common sense. It would be folly, not faith, for a person with diabetes to keep eating large quantities of starchy, sugary foods, saying that he was trusting God to heal him.

In the same sense, it would be ridiculous for people to try to "look prosperous" by buying all kinds of luxurious items and charging them to credit cards that already have payments they can't afford. "I believe God is going to provide the money to pay off my debts somehow, some way," they say. "I'm expecting a miracle blessing. Maybe He'll help me to win the lottery!"


Obviously these people's expectations are based on mistaken understandings and wrong motives. There is no balance between faith and reality in their lives. With so little wisdom and spiritual discernment to draw upon, these people are easily deceived and led further astray by misguided or unscrupulous religious promoters.

[size=20pt]Is Prosperity Tied Solely to Giving?[/size]


In teaching prosperity, too many preachers seem to communicate the idea that receiving financial abundance is totally and exclusively tied to one thing—giving...usually to them! Don't misunderstand me. I believe in giving. I believe that giving is important. But it is not the only key to prosperity.

My son, Rev. Kenneth Hagin Jr., is pastor of RHEMA Bible Church in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. From time to time, he preaches about prosperity to his congregation, which includes a large number of young people, many of them students at RHEMA Bible Training Center. Ken includes a lot of scriptures from the Word of God that define prosperity and show that it is definitely included in God's will for His people today.

As part of the Bible lesson, Ken teaches about tithing and giving as vital elements of biblical prosperity.
He also stresses that knowing and doing what the Bible says has a direct relationship to our prosperity.
Joshua 1:8 declares, "This book of the law [the Word of God] shall not depart out of thy mouth; hut thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."
You see, the Bible doesn't just speak about God prospering us. The Bible also speaks of us making our own way prosperous. That's why Ken doesn't deal with just the spiritual aspect of prosperity. He also encourages young people to identify their skills and interests and to then seek God as to how He might be leading them vocationally. They should get the best education they possibly can and gain a broad range of knowledge about the world they live in. He advises adults who would like to advance on their jobs to take classes and get extra training.


Ken also teaches people to work hard and to be diligent in performing their duties on their jobs. In most cases, workers who take an interest in their work and do a good job are recognized and rewarded for what they do. It's true that we should trust in God as our Source rather than placing all our confidence in a job or the economy. But that doesn't mean that financial prosperity
is totally unrelated to a person's occupation.

While God can channel blessings to us from many sources, much of the time He uses our job as the primary channel. Typically, there is a direct relationship between one's personal financial prosperity and the amount of responsibility he or she takes on at work. Folks who work harder and in more specialized, skilled fields—those whose abilities ate in greater demand—receive a greater financial reward.

Paul told the Thessalonians, ". . . work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing (1 Thess. 4:11,12).
He also declared, "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men" (Col. 3:23).


Another important lesson Ken teaches his congregation is the importance of good associations. You can't stay around people who are filled with doubt and unbelief without doubt and unbelief nibbing off on you. You can't be with people who are critical and complaining all the time without being affected. You can't associate with people who lie and cheat without being tempted to compromise your own moral character. Back in the days when people burned wood or coal in stoves, there was an old saying, "You can't handle a stove pipe without getting your hands dirty."


[b][size=20pt]The Whole Counsel of God's Word[/size]

I believe pastors and teachers have a responsibility to teach the full Word of God, not just one part. All of the things Ken includes as part of his teaching on prosperity help bring a balance to the subject that isn't obtained by just talking about giving.

Some people become religiously imbalanced, stressing and practicing only certain truths and neglecting or ignoring others. Sooner than later, we need to learn that the Bible doesn't teach a lopsided, imbalanced message regarding prosperity. There is much more to the message than constantly saying, "If you want to be prosperous, give! If you want to be prosperous, give! If you want to be prosperous, give!"
Ministers who do this are not teaching the whole counsel of God. In my personal opinion, they do an injustice to the Word of God by emphasizing just one side of the issue. They give understandable grounds to those who charge that their motive is to get people to give to them. Is it possible that their full confidence is not in the promises of the Word and they feel they have to "help" God, constantly trying to raise money by asking for it from others?

Another crucially important issue is that ministers should never suggest or lead people to believe that prosperity means conspicuous, lavish wealth. It simply is not true that everyone who has faith for prosperity will live in a palace, drive a luxurious car, and dress in expensive, designer-label clothes.
Prosperity is relative. For some people, being able to pay their bills and provide the basic comforts of life for their families would be a great blessing—a definite step up.

In some countries, being prosperous might mean having a bicycle or motorcycle to ride, or an ox to plow the fields to plant a crop.

[size=20pt] Why Does God Prosper Us? [/size]

God sends prosperity to bless us and meet our needs. But even more important, He prospers us to make it possible for us to help carry out His work in our communities, our nation, and throughout the earth. If we fail to understand this, or forget it, I believe we run the risk of losing the blessing.

Over the years, RHEMA Bible Training Center has sent out thousands of workers into the harvest. Many graduates are pastoring or working in helps ministries in local churches. Many others are on the mission field carrying out the call of God on their lives. One of the great joys of my life is getting reports from our former students about what they are doing in the work of the Lord.

In this way, we have heard many testimonies from people in various developing nations who have heard the Gospel and have given their hearts to God. As they began to believe and practice God's Word, they also began to experience prosperity, or increase, in their lives. The things they were thankful for might not seem like very much to people in developed nations, but just having clean water for their children or a roof that didn't leak represented a dramatic improvement for them.

I remember one national missions leader testifying that when he began working in one area, none of the national pastors or evangelists under his supervision had any transportation except walking. As he began teaching them about the principles of prosperity and believing God to supply their needs, in just a year or so, every national minister in his district had either a bicycle or motorcycle, or some other motorized vehicle. This made it so much easier and more convenient for them to get to different villages to preach Jesus and share the Good News of the Gospel. Now these people still were not wealthy by the standards of some, but they considered themselves blessed and prosperous!

Prosperity is not an "American gospel." It will work in Africa, India, China, or anywhere else God's people practice the truth of His Word. If it's not true in the poorest place on earth, it's not true at all!
Why have people in America and other developed nations been blessed with more material resources than other countries?
I don't know the complete answer. I do know that we have so much to be thankful for. Anyone who has traveled to the underdeveloped nations can confirm that even our poorest citizens have more than most of the world's people.
Perhaps one reason we have been entrusted with so many resources is so we can finance the worldwide fulfillment of Christ's Great Commission and do other good works. Surely we do have a responsibility to share our blessings. Jesus said, " . . . For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more
(Luke 12:48).

The Apostle James declared, "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin" (James 4:17). May God help us not to fail to do the good that is in our power to do.

[size=20pt]Be Good Stewards By Being Informed[/size]

Not only do we have an obligation to bless others and help finance taking the Gospel into all the world, but we are also responsible to invest our funds into ministries that are trustworthy and productive. Like a farmer, we should do our best to determine that we are sowing our seeds into good ground.

As I have said, I believe a Christian's first consideration and priority in giving should be to his local church. The tithe should go to the church to support the ministers and the outreaches of that assembly of believers.
Second, believers can and should also support other ministries from which they receive spiritual food and that they have committed to "partner with." This support should come from offerings over and above the tithe.

I believe our basic giving should be planned and systematic. Paul urged believers to give as they "purposed in their hearts." Th[b]at means they should be giving on purpose, rather than from an emotional appeal, from guilt, or on some impulse. [/b] Giving "as the Spirit leads" is fine, but that should be done in addition to one's planned and systematic giving, not in place of it. A church needs consistent and regular support it can count on in order to keep its work and programs running smoothly. Erratic and inconsistent giving by members makes it difficult for the church to plan and maintain a budget.

Ministries that function outside, but in support of, the local church also depend on consistent and systematic gifts. One-time or occasional gifts are welcome and appreciated, but an organization like Kenneth Hagin Ministries also needs a regular revenue flow it can count on. This is the purpose of our Word Partner Club, where friends commit to send regular gifts on a monthly basis.
Believers should look for organizations to support that are productive for the Kingdom of God, ministries that are actively contributing to the preaching of the Gospel and the expansion of the Church. A prospective giver might ask questions such as the following:

How many people are being born again and filled with the Spirit through this ministry?

How many people are being established and strengthened in the faith through its outreaches?

Is multiplication taking place? Are ministers being produced and churches being established?

Is good being accomplished in the world and in the Body of Christ through this ministry?

Is its message one of truth?

Is the ministry a good steward of its finances? Are the methods used in ministry and in fundraising ethical and wholesome?

Is the ministry (and its ministers) financially accountable?


There are also some "red flags" or warning signs to watch for in determining whether a ministry is sound and worthy of support. I would suggest the utmost caution in supporting or being involved with any organization that has the following marks:

Exerts pressure to give or encourages impulse giving by saying, "You must give now!"

Makes suggestions of condemnation and guilt if you don't give.

Uses hype, emotionalism, and spiritual manipulation, such as "prophesying" dollars out of your pocket.

Makes outlandish promises such as "Everyone who gives now will receive a hundredfold return." Or, "Those who give to this offering will have your debts cancelled."

Does not promote the local church, or projects the idea that theirs is the only ministry worth supporting.

Spends more time and energy raising funds than in doing the work of the ministry.

Builds money appeals around gimmicks and sensationalism.


Let's strive to maintain balance in every area, including the area of finances and prosperity. Remember to look to the whole counsel of God's Word while not neglecting practical wisdom and common sense. This will help you stay in the middle of the road at all times.

Gombs:
In the next couple of days, I'd be sharing the above book, and it's a book on balanced approach to biblical prosperity. What's God's mind about prosperity, and why we should be careful prosperity principles in the Bible should not be abused and how to avoid false practices, as it were, the possibility of abuse is very possible.

It is a 196 paged book, and has 9 chapters. Get the book here and we can roll smoother.

These topics includes

1. Was Jesus poor? (read to see that my Jesus was not a broke man)

2. The purpose of prosperity (another classic)

3. Should preachers prosper? (Mouth watering I tell ya!)

4. 24 principles from the Epistles regarding money, givin and receiving (A must read) .

5. Our authority in the area of finances.

And most importantly,

6. Avoiding abuses and false practices

Here are the few points he made;

1. Financial prosperity is not the only measure of God’s blessing. Hagin wrote: “If wealth alone were a sign of spirituality, then drug traffickers and crime bosses would be spiritual giants. Material wealth can be connected to the blessings of God or it can be totally disconnected from the blessings of God.”

2. . The “hundredfold return” is not a biblical concept. Hagin did the math and figured out that if this bizarre notion were true, “we would have Christians walking around with not billions or trillions of dollars, but quadrillions of dollars!” He rejected the teaching that a believer should claim a specific monetary payback rate.

3. Preachers who claim to have a “debt-breaking” anointing should not be trusted. Hagin was perplexed by ministers who promise “supernatural debt cancellation” to those who give in certain offerings. He wrote in The Midas Touch: “There is not one bit of Scripture I know about that validates such a practice. I’m afraid it is simply a scheme to raise money for the preacher, and ultimately it can turn out to be dangerous and destructive for all involved.”

4. Jesus was not a poor man

5. We cannot move this gospel with out money and God sure wants His kids prosperous.

6. Poverty does NOT produce piety (reverence and devotion to God)

7. Jesus defeated the works of the devil, including povery and lack

Hagin wrote: “Overemphasizing or adding to what the Bible actually teaches invariably does more harm than good.” 

This thread is of necessity to draw a fine line between abusing a biblical principle, and saying these principles are not biblical at all! Join me and Papa Hagin, as we try to let folks know, prosperity is of God, but abusing these principles by Preachers or anybody as the case maybe,are all together a different ball game.

Cheers

Cc:LambanoPeace
Bidam
Mbaemeka
Alwaystrue
Image123
Kenny4lyf
Nannymcphee

You for try invite me too na

reserved

Gombs:


Hello, Ukutgp.

Download the book, and wait for me. Few more hours. It's almost work time.i gat prepare na! The book is just about 4mb, and you can finish it in less than an hour.

Cheers! The suspense is not part of the thread, but I think it's good!

I bet you, you'd love every bit of it

no wahala. I'm here.

You should also know why Kenneth Hagn write this book 2000.

In 1996 a book come out from a prosperity praecher Jim Bakker after he could left the jail.

Following a 16-month Federal grand jury probe, Bakker was indicted in 1988 on eight counts of mail fraud, 15 counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy.[6][12] In 1989, after a five-week trial which began on August 28 in Charlotte, the jury found him guilty on all 24 counts, and Judge Robert Daniel Potter sentenced him to 45 years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine.

Jim and Tammy Bakker were divorced on March 13, 1992. On November 16, 1992, a sentence reduction hearing was held and Bakker's sentence was reduced to eight years.[4]:104

In August 1993, Bakker was transferred to a minimum security federal prison in Jesup, Georgia, and was subsequently granted parole in July 1994, after serving almost five years of his sentence.[4]:116, 130 Bakker's son, Jay, spearheaded a letter-writing campaign to the parole board on his father's behalf, urging leniency.[4]:106–115

His Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) number was 07407-058, and he was released from BOP custody on December 1, 1994.[16]

On July 23, 1996, a North Carolina jury threw out a class action suit brought on behalf of more than 160,000 onetime supporters who contributed as much as $7,000 each to Bakker's coffers in the 1980s.

The Charlotte Observer reported that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) still holds Bakker and Roe Messner, Tammy Faye's husband from 1993 until her death in 2007, liable for personal income taxes owed from the 1980s when they were building the PTL empire, taxes assessed after the IRS revoked the PTL ministry's nonprofit status. Tammy Faye Messner's new husband said that the original tax amount was about $500,000, with penalties and interest accounting for the rest. Notices stating the IRS liens list still identify "James O. and Tamara F. Bakker" as owing $6,000,000, liens on which Jim Bakker still pays.
Bakker has renounced his past teachings on prosperity theology, saying they were wrong. In his 1996 book, I Was Wrong, he admitted that the first time he actually read the Bible all the way through was while he was in prison, and that it made him realize he had taken certain passages out of context — passages which he had used as "proof texts" to back up his prosperity teachings. He wrote:

The more I studied the Bible, however, I had to admit that the prosperity message did not line up with the tenor of Scripture. My heart was crushed to think that I led so many people astray. I was appalled that I could have been so wrong, and I was deeply grateful that God had not struck me dead as a false prophet![17]

In 1998, he and Lori Graham were married. Bakker released another book that same year, Prosperity and the Coming Apocalypse ISBN 978-0-7852-6987-8, and, in 2000, he published The Refuge: The Joy of Christian Community in a Torn-Apart World ISBN 978-0-7852-7459-9.

who was in jail because he lose all what he had because the American govermet found out that he was a fraudster and he has a debit of 6 Million USD what he had to pay back. The name of this Pastors is Bakker, he had an imperium Like Oyedeop and Adeboye, so Kenneth Hagin had the fear that the american followers of the prosperity gospel could leave the church and follow this new doctrin.

Goshen360:
Some people are not teaching scriptures no more but doctrine of men, that's what another man taught. ...doctrines of men and they want to use scriptures to justify what another man teaching because they believe in that man. Smh!!!

Stories certainly for the gods. Tell Gnoni, drumb and their pals this rubbish already. #Hypocrisy.

following... read the 3 chapters already

waiting for d next batch

nora544:
You should also know why Kenneth Hagn write this book 2000.

In 1996 a book come out from a prosperity praecher Jim Bakker after he could left the jail.



who was in jail because he lose all what he had because the American govermet found out that he was a fraudster abd he has a debit of 6 Million USD what he had to pay back. The name of this Pastors is Baker, he had an imperium Like Oyedeop and Adeboye, so Kenneth Hagin had the fear that the american followers of the prosperity gospel could leave the church and follower this new doctrin.

Sharaaap already! Quit trolling and start making sense.

your writing is as terrible as any could be, then the senseless write ups makes it the more nauseous. If Hagin was afraid the American followers...Dammit! i can't even make sense from the above underlined.

Bakker left jail 1996, Hagin released a book around 2000, the American Government agency against fraud must have been blind all those years to Hagin's 68years as a minister and never found him wanting. Yet a bitter Austrian lady in her thirties, who has access to only wikipedia and nairaland thinks Hagin was afraid, hence he wrote a book to do what exactly?

Nora , bitte nutzen Sie die Sprache können Sie schreiben in , müssen Sie nicht das Lesen schwierig für mich. dank