Does God care if I am Rich or Poor?

October 2nd, 2007 • Related • Filed Under

I go to church pretty often, not as much as I should but more than some. I also try to read my bible everyday—sometimes I am successful, other times not so much. So I know a little bit, but what I am having a hard time with is this – If the good book says that it’s harder for a rich man to get to heaven than for a camel to pass thru the eye of a needle why do I see sooooo many prosperity pastors(Creflo, Osteen, etc, etc) out there. And on that note, who defines prosperity, me or God? I know God wants us to live an abundant life but what does that mean? Abundant by American standards where even poor folk have cable t.v. or by third world standards where people just want to eat? If we are trying to live like Jesus then we would all be broke, right? If you think about who he rolled with and the crowds he hung around then we could assume that Jesus wasn’t a “baller” at least in the earthly sense of the word.

 

Many days I feel like Little Brother wrote “Speed” just for me. I work my full time gig all day, work my hustle at night and for what? I have my own place, a nice car and a couple of dollars in my account but I want MORE. How come I can’t have two Bentley’s like Creflo– I want to be a multi-millionaire like Rick Warren– TD Jakes was on the cover of Time—These churches are big business. Are these pastors giving us the truth or are they just getting paid? Honestly I don’t know. My uncle who regular attends Stay at Home Baptist says that Pimpin, Preachin and Politickin is the same thing—I don’t know if I agree, but if the shoe fits…..

Viewing 12 Comments

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    If you have, or want to have children, how do you/would you treat them? If they do their best to pursue peace, learn, be tolerant, loving and giving, that gives you, as a parent, glory. And, if you have anything, let alone a Kingdom, wouldn't you want to give it all to that child who honors your word and gives to those less fortunate than he? Wouldn't you want to give your child more so they could give more? When your child rested, wouldn't you want him to have the finest sheets? When she drives, a comfortable car? When she eats a savory meal? When he goes out, dressed in a manner that brings respect and honor to your parentage? We are children of God. He has set a place for us at His table should we accept it. Enjoy! Dine! Scripture says, "seek ye first His kingdom and righteousness and all these things will be added unto you." All these things refer to the creature comforts. If we handle the righteousness, we can rest assured He'll handle the things, and do so abundantly.
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    Ah hold on there my brother. The fallacy with the prosperity movement is it is all Old Testament theology. OT basically says "he who has the most material possessions has God's favor." When Jesus came into the world, He reversed all that. This is why Christ reminded us that the son of man had no place to lay his head (not a mansion with a 2 year mortgage.) Prosperity preaching is basic business 101 - find a niche and fill it. For the African-American ministers you mention, it is no secret the 2 biggest hot buttons in the black community are poverty and single-parent households. So, you build your church around promises to rub the lamp and make 3 wishes and the genie will pop out and give you a husband and a Benz. "All you gotta do is 'sew a seed of faith' of $25 right now and you'll get a husband."

    Guess these guys forgot Jesus ran the money-changers out of the temple for turning it into a den of thieves.
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    Well first, the wonderful thing about faith is that it is personal and free to interpretation.

    I perosnally believe that Christ considers being simutaneously wealthy and righteous in this world challenging - not to be confused with wrong - because of how money and the desire for it switches our focus, priorities, etc. Not calling you out personally, but how many folks are consumed with money who don't really have it yet?! God knows what they'd be like if they actually had money.

    And besides why do you want what you want? Cause Creflo and them got it? Are your intentions Godly?

    I don't believe Jesus is a fan of poverty. We can talk about specific verses/passages but that would make this post longer than it needs to be. Is he a fan of humility (which is what the whole "no place to lay his head" bit was about - partially)? Yes. And I don't believe that humility and prosperity have to be antonyms.

    Be careful with coveting. We can't imagine what comes with the riches we seem to drool over. Can we really handle the trials and challenges that come with having Dollar's dollars? I'll answer for you by saying no, simply because you don't even know what those challenges are.

    Seek what God's will is for YOUR life. Find peace in that and pursue it.
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    Pimps...Preachers... Not the same. But the same taste in clothes. Both have the same wardrobe, sport jewels, talk boastful, ride nice cards, and have a flock of women tending to them. Some politicians behave similarly (but tend not to wear bejeweled clothes).
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    After reading this, it reminded me of a devotional I read that talked about a woman desiring a plasma tv or something. She wanted it just to impress people who came to her house or something like that. The ending thought was, "What would it be like to want appropriately?"

    I feel like so often our desires for more stuff is what fuels our desire to be rich. I believe that what God cares most about is that we are good stewards over the things that we are given; and that we still give Him the glory when we have been blessed with increase.

    I think that we see many prosperity preachers because it's popular. I mean, who doesn't want to hear that God is going to bless you with all these things. But if we're honest, we should be able to admit that sometimes the best blessings from God don't come in the material form.

    Ultimately, it's difficult to not question the motives of prosperity preachers. However, they are held accountable to God (as we all are) for how they manage what they've been given; and how well they shepherd their flocks.
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    I'm really digging the dialogue. I still have questions but I think Phillipians 4:11-12 satisfies me...for now anyway.
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    My wife and I had this exact conversation on Sunday.

    I have often heard that we, as a country, are separated from God because of our prosperity. I think being poor makes people humble. And, I believe struggle pulls people closer to God. Do rich people struggle? Yes. But something about not having food to eat makes you really wanna stay connected to God.

    I have alot to say on this subject... I may continue later.
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    Wow, I'm really feeling this artical. I've asked the very same question. I it continues to perplex me to my core.
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    I think that those who are able to give peace of mind to thousands, if not millions of people deserve wealth just as much, if not moreso, than a person like Allen Iverson or T.I. Yeah, what they do is nice, but if I can start my day with hope, peace and love in my heart because of the teachings of people like Creflo or T.D., then I think that is money well spent. The value of what they provide to their congregants is reflected in the worldly things that they have. That is it. People have chosen to reward them because they have been touched in some way.

    So does God care if you are rich or poor? Probably not. Does God want to see people prosper? I'm sure. Leave it at that. The focus should be on your own individual prosperity rather than others'. Trying to decipher other people's motivations is likely an exercise in futility.
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    Just to be clear, I am not knocking TD, Osteen, Warren or even Creflo. I definitely respect what they do and if any body should be getting paid, it's a man of God. This was just an exercise of my own fluctuating feelings regarding prosperity and spirituality. For all of us we get bombarded with commercial images(3000 per day) so its tough sometimes to see what really matters in life. If you're bored, there's a piece on my site that speaks directly to America's overconsumption. http://www.urbanmoneyonline.com/folam.html
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    It's also worth mention that the Creflos and Warrens are such A SMALL percentage of Christian clergy. The vast majority aren't rich. You'd be surprised at how many are barely middle class.
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    I kinda of touched on this topic a few years ago in my blog. Check it out if you'd like. Would love to hear your responses
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