Is Prosperity a Good Thing?

I don't know about you, but I've noticed that in America, it's all about what you have and don't have. You're deemed a successful person when you have a good career that you've worked your way up in. You're considered a success when you buy a house, get married, have kids, and are living the "American dream". You're viewed as better or superior if you have the right shoes, the right body type, the right skin color, the right *insert trivial scale of what is "right" here*. It's kind of ridiculous if you ask me.

For one, we are all fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139), so nobody is considered "better" in God's eyes because of the clothes they wear, the tattoos or piercings they have, or the color of their skin. It's absurd and ungodly for us to think otherwise or treat people differently because of such things. For two, our definitions of success are all wrong. You're not successful just because you make $100K every year, or just because you're a homeowner with a picket fence, or for any other measure that Americans seem to use to be "successful". Living a "good" life and prospering does not mean you're successful. In fact, depending on how you use it, you could still be a failure by God's standards. What are those standards, you may ask? 

In Genesis 13, Lot is given a choice. Him and Abram have been greatly blessed and decide to go their separate ways to avoid conflict between their shepherds and servants. Lot looks around, trying to figure out where to go. He looked and saw a prosperous, pleasing-to-the-eye land and decided to go there, but he didn't consider what came with the prosperity. You see, when he was with Abram and was blessed, he was (at least likely) closer to God and living more like the person God wanted him to be. When he traveled to the land where the grass looked greener, he found it was full of sin, evil, and a darkness that he didn't take into consideration before choosing to move there. The land and cities were full of prosperity, full of what appeared to be good things worth chasing after, but in reality, it was full of wickedness that God would condemn very soon. Lot may have looked around and thought that it was a great place to become successful, but in the end, it wasn't success he found there, but evil and eventually death.

Just because something appears to be a step towards "success" doesn't mean that it actually is. Jesus taught about this too. In Luke 18, he was asked by a ruler what a person has to do to be granted eternal life. By how the story goes, this ruler was looking for a checklist of things to do so he could be "successful" in this life and earn eternal life at the same time. Jesus replied with some of the 10 Commandments, to which the man said he had kept throughout his life. Then Jesus told him to sell everything he had, all that he'd worked for, and give it to those who needed it more, the less fortunate, the poor. This ruler could've chosen to give up his prosperity for the greater, heavenly, never-ending prosperity he wanted, but instead he went away in sadness at the thought of giving up his stuff, the prosperity he'd earned for himself by being "successful" in the world's standards. It's not impossible for someone who's wealthy to be granted treasures in heaven, but it's not easy.

When we focus on the things of this world, we're missing out on heavenly blessings. When we focus on seeking heavenly treasure, God promises to take care of us in this life too. It may seem a little backwards to some, especially since this is NOT how the world tends to think, but it's true. It's so, so worth it to give up the pleasures of earth to receive the treasures of heaven! If it wasn't, I don't think Jesus would have taught people to deny themselves and follow Him, giving up everything they've ever had. God wants what's best for us, and He knows what that is and how we can receive it, so He tells us exactly what to do. Don't pursue the prosperity this world tells you to. Choose to prioritize Jesus, as both your Savior and your Master (also known as your Lord), and do what He tells you to.  Don't make your life about what you earn or which job you have or the stuff you own. Pursue Jesus, and you'll find a greater prosperity than you ever imagined.

Believe it or not, this will also shape the kind of person you become. Those who pursue things of this world often have to get into trouble to get what they want. If having stuff and status are your primary concerns, what's to stop you from using any means necessary to get that, even if others get hurt along the way? But if you're goal is to serve and follow Jesus, denying what the world has to offer for something greater, you'll find yourself living out the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5) and leading a far more fulfilling life than someone who's not. I know how tempting it can be to chase the things of this world. I've talked at times about how I've let them take hold of me before. But, when you strive to follow Jesus with everything you are and all that you do, you become who He calls you to be.

If you need help resisting temptation (and I know how tempting the things of this world can be), tell somebody about it and ask them to help you and hold you accountable. Make clear goals for yourself so that you don't fall into the traps of this world and end up hurting people for the sake of your success. Think about and establish your own moral boundaries and the lines that you're not willing to cross for the sake of worldly pleasures, and stick to those. You don't have to try doing all this yourself either. I don't think you should. Make it known to somebody (or everybody!) what you're trying to accomplish for Jesus, and ask them to hold you to it. Fighting against the world isn't easy, but Paul writes in Ephesians 6 that our battle isn't against other people. When we live for Jesus, we have to fight against the powers at work in this world that are trying to trip us up, those in authority who are telling us to do what's wrong instead of what's right, and anything that seeks to turn us away from God. That includes the society that we live in: the one that says you need X, Y, and Z to be happy, to have things the way you like them, and to consume whatever gives you pleasure instead of whatever helps you seek God. Please, don't fall into the traps of this world, but stand up against them in the name of Jesus and don't be afraid to tell others why you're doing it. Then, God will reward you with treasures in heaven that far surpass any stuff or success that you could possibly pursue in this life.

Also, I'm not saying it's bad to have prosperity at all. If you are considered wealthy, successful, et cetera, you can still enjoy the blessings God's given you, just don't keep it all to yourself. Bless others with what God has blessed you with. Don't be stingy or hoard it, give it away. Be generous. Offer up the resources you have to those who need it more, the less fortunate, the poor. Then see how God will use that for His glory. I think you'll be amazed at what all God can and will do with you if you're willing to honor Him with what you have.

So, what do you think? Is prosperity a good thing? What are you really pursuing? How are you going to use what God has blessed you with?