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Many books have been written on the subject of positive thinking and success, but most of them deal only with the mental realm and lack a spiritual tie-in. A little power exists in the mental realm and it can change you to some extent; but it takes more than mental assent or a mechanical action for you to prosper abundantly in all areas of your life.
God’s Word is spiritual motivation to the human spirit. It will build an image within you and bring you success in every area of your life—financially, spiritually, physically, and socially. These spiritual truths from the Word of God can change your life.
God said through His prophet Hosea, My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6). In Luke 16:8, Jesus said, The children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. This is true, but it ought not be. The children of the world should not be wiser than the children of light!
The children of the world have been diligent to find out how the world’s system operates. Then they operate the system. The world’s system is plain: “Grab and hold! Whatever you get, keep! Work day and night. Seek for riches. Give yourself totally to your work”.
God’s system is exactly the opposite. Give, and it shall be given (Luke 6:38) …He which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully (II Corinthians 9:6). My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19). …Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come (I Timothy 4:8).
Godly men and women can and will prosper as they become diligent in God’s system. If you have been obedient to give, then you should be expecting to receive a better job, a raise, or new direction in business.
Down through the years, many Christians have somehow decided that it is not God’s will for them to prosper on earth. They all believe it will be wonderful when they get to heaven. But we must deal with the “here and now”. God’s Word gives us the wisdom for prosperity.
To be truly motivated to success, we first must know that it is God’s will for us to prosper!
Your Soul Must Prosper
God told Adam to have dominion over the earth. From the beginning it was God’s intention for man to prosper. Third John 2 says, Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
The word wish in this verse in the literal Greek can be translated “pray”, so we could read it this way: Beloved, I (pray) above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
One of the problems in the Body of Christ is that their souls are not prospering. The soul of man is the inner link that connects the spirit with the body. The soul and the spirit of man are not the same, though for years many thought they were. The Bible divides the two.
So often we hear this statement: “He has lost his soul”. We think of the soul as being the spirit, but the Scriptures tell us differently.
Man is a spirit; he has a soul; and he lives in a body. The soul of man is composed of the mind, the will, and the emotions. It is the guidance system for the natural man.
Man is a spirit being, having been breathed out of God. In the beginning, God breathed His spirit life into Adam. That spirit life became the human spirit which operates beyond the intellect in the higher realm—the spiritual realm. The gifts of the Spirit come out of the spiritual realm.
The spirit of a man can receive revelation before his intellect becomes involved. Quite often, I have known something in my spirit, but was unable to put it into words. It was real and strong in my spirit before my intellect could grasp it. Some of the things I am sharing in this teaching became a reality in my spirit several years ago; but it took time for that to be transferred from my spirit to my intellect in order for me to be able to share it with others.
The Apostle John received many things by revelation into his spirit. He wrote, 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 (I John 4:4).
He didn’t say, “Maybe you’ll overcome one of these days”. He said, “You have already overcome because the Greater One is inside you”! This revelation was transferred from God’s Spirit to John’s human spirit.
John said you should prosper, even as your soul prospers. Your soul must embrace prosperity. A prosperous soul will produce a prosperous image inside you.
In the fifth chapter of John’s Gospel, Jesus approached a crippled man at the pool of Bethesda and said to him, Wilt thou be made whole? (v.6)
That seems a strange thing to say to a man who is crippled. The man had been lying there for years waiting for the “troubling of the water” so he could go down into the water and be healed. He wanted to be healed, but Jesus asked him, “Will you be made whole”?
The first thing the man did was to begin talking about his problem: Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me (v.7).
Jesus was trying to get him to speak his faith, but the man zeroed in on the problem instead.
A Desire To Prosper
Do you have a will to prosper? Before you can obtain true prosperity, there must be a desire within you.
Proverbs 13:12 says, When desire cometh, it is a tree of life. This verse can be interpreted two ways:
1. When the thing you desire comes, it is the tree of life.
2. When desire is in you, it is a tree of life.
I believe the second is the correct interpretation. In other words, the thing you
desire is the thing you will pray and the thing you will say. You will speak in line with your desire and faith comes by hearing. (Romans 10:17)
Jesus said, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them (Mark 11:24) He said believe you receive the things you desire, not the things you already have.
If your soul is not prospering, you will have a bad image—an image of failure and defeat or sickness.
Several years ago, I was having problems both financially and physically. Because I had an image of failure inside me, I saw everything I did as a failure. I often said, “It doesn’t make any difference what I do. Nothing will work out anyway”. I was disgusted with life because of a bad business deal.
I had “put out a fleece” before God as Gideon had done. It worked for Gideon; but when I did it, I already got fleeced.
Jesus said when He went away, He would send another Comforter to teach you all things (John 14:26), guide you into all truth…and…show you things to come (John 16:13).
We don’t have to use fleeces today. The Spirit of Truth abiding in us will teach us. When the desire to prosper comes from God’s Word, it is truly a tree of life. Then God’s Spirit reveals direction. The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord (Proverbs 16:1).
Prosperity in All Areas
It is possible for prosperity to be limited to only one area of your life. People who are diligent in certain areas will prosper in those areas. Some denominations are diligent in presenting salvation; they are successful in that area. Others, who are successful in the area of healing and walking in divine health, fail when it comes to finances.
Many don’t understand why this happens. In trying to answer these questions, some have said, “Well, it must not be God’s will for me to be prosperous or healed”.
We could spend all our time dealing with divine healing and get people healed; but if we did, not many would prosper financially. We must find a balance.
Romans 4:3 says, Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness. The word righteousness is an Old English word that means “right standing with God”. Abraham was in right standing with God.
It is possible for an individual to be in right standing with God in the area of salvation, but not in right standing on healing or finances. He may be thinking and believing wrong. His preconceived ideas may be contrary to Scripture.
A person who is in right standing with the Scriptures on healing will usually get healed, but that same person may be out of right standing concerning finances. He might believe that it’s a sin to have money or drive a new car. He could be right in his heart, but wrong in his head.
In the soulish area he can be wrong. If his soul is not prosperous in that particular area, then usually he will not prosper in that area. A person in this condition will not give much into the ministry because he doesn’t believe God wants him to have anything. Therefore, he never believes for a return, and if it comes, he misses it. It takes a prosperous attitude to reap a financial harvest.
God’s Word says, Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper (Ps.1:3). You can apply this verse to supply even small needs. For instance, I have used it even on fishing trips. A few years ago I was fishing with two fellows. One kept saying, “There aren’t any fish left here. We caught them all out of here two years ago”.
Having had enough of that negative talk, I grabbed my rod and reel, jumped out of the boat, and waded away from the unbelief. I started saying, “Whatever I do will prosper, in the name of Jesus! No weapon formed against me will prosper”! (I knew that supper would be slim if we didn’t catch some fish!)
Before long, I caught a five pound bass. One of the fellows asked, “What did you catch him on”? I yelled back, “Psalm 1:3”! I have filled a stringer many times with that verse. It’s time for Christians to get a healthy attitude toward prosperity in every area! God even wants you to prosper in the little things.
Sell and Give
Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Luke 12:33-34)
Jesus tells you in verse 33 how to operate in His Kingdom. If you are going to operate in the Kingdom of God, you must operate in Kingdom principles. Most Christians are failing because they are trying to operate the world system in the Kingdom of God. You have to operate Kingdom principles in the Kingdom. World system ways will not work in your spirit. You must use Kingdom principles, which are foreign to the world’s way of thinking.
Sell that ye have. Jesus is ministering to all kinds of people. There are some poverty-stricken people in that crowd, and He says, Sell that ye have. In other words, “If you don’t have anything to give, sell something and give”.
Provide yourselves bags. Jesus didn’t say to “provide for yourselves with bags”. He said to “provide yourselves bags”. When the Bible speaks of “yourself” and the Apostle Paul speaks of “himself”, they are referring to the inner man. The real you is the man on the inside—the spirit man, the human spirit.
Deposit God’s Word in your spirit. Then speak forth God’s Word from your heart. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart will bring forth good things.
As an example, let’s take the scripture verse in Luke 6:38. Begin to say, “Thank God, because I have given, it is given unto me good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over”. Speak it. Make it a daily confession. Bring it forth with the words of your mouth.
God is honest; He will perform His Word. He said, “My Word will not return unto Me void”. (Isaiah 55:11) But God wants you to return His Word to Him. So take God’s Word—His promise concerning a specific thing. If your need is in the area of finances, put that Word in your heart by speaking it there. Get the good treasure of God’s Word in your mouth, then speak it. That will bring it out and cause a manifestation.
Giving is one of the fundamental principles of the law of prosperity. It’s not the amount given that is the greatest importance to God, but the percentage.
If you have five pennies and give one of them, you have given twenty percent of all that you own. To God that is just as important as a man who has five million dollars and gives a million. As far as God is concerned, that man hasn’t given more than you have.
Rewards are based on percentages given. The return is based on the amount you give. This principle works for you the same as it does for the millionaire. The only difference is that he is operating with larger numbers. If you will continue using the principle, your nickel can turn into a million dollars!
Seeds Are For Planting
Luke 6:38 says, Give, and it shall be given unto you…. But some people eat their seed: They use all that they receive on themselves until they have nothing to give.
Any farmer knows if he eats his seed, he will be in trouble! All God has to work with is what is sown or given. He can’t produce a crop if we haven’t given Him the seed to multiply. Make a habit of giving, whether your income is large or small.
Unless you give when your income is small, you will never give big. If you haven’t developed the habit of giving tithes and offerings when you are making $90 a week, you will never do it when you are making $1000 a week. We must be obedient to the basic principle which remains the same regardless of our income. Jesus said if you don’t have anything to give, sell what you have to get some seed.
Sell that you have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not (Luke 12:33). Traditionally, we have misinterpreted this verse to mean that we are laying up treasures in heaven which are unavailable to us on earth. We won’t need money in heaven; we need it here on the earth. That is why it is so important that we understand God’s system of success and operate in spiritual law.
Quotes:
The world’s system is plain: “Grab and hold!
A prosperous soul will produce a prosperous image inside you.
Unless you give when your income is small, you will never give big.
Giving is one of the fundamental principles of the law of prosperity.
