For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.
1 Timothy 6:10For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.
1 Timothy 6:7If yesterday was hard, today is harder
Because I want to talk about the prosperity gospel. And I need to be very clear: this is one of the most damaging things that has ever been done to the church in my lifetime.
I have talked to people who were destroyed by this teaching. People who gave money they did not have to teachers who did not need it. People who were told their poverty was a sign of weak faith. People who blamed themselves when their prayers were not answered. People who lost their faith because they were told faith was a formula and the formula did not work.
Let me tell you what it did and why it needs to end.
What it promised
The prosperity gospel, at its core, promised that God wants you to be rich. That faith is a spiritual law that produces material results. That if you give enough, pray enough, believe enough, you will be blessed with health and wealth and success.
And I need to be fair. It started from something real. God does bless us. He does provide. He does want good things for us. Those are biblical truths. But the prosperity gospel took those truths and stretched them past what they could carry.
It took provision and made it prosperity. It took blessing and made it wealth. It took faith and made it a formula. And that is where everything went wrong.
What it did to people
Here is what the prosperity gospel does. It takes people who are already vulnerable, who are already struggling, who are already looking for hope, and it tells them they can have everything if they just give more. It preys on the poor. It exploits the desperate. It makes money the measure of faith.
There are stories everywhere of people who gave money they did not have, because they were told that giving would unlock God's blessing. People living paycheck to paycheck, sacrificing for their families, being told it was because their faith was not strong enough. When the blessing did not come, they were told they must have held something back. They were told to give more. And some did. Until they had nothing left.
There are stories of people who were promised that if they started a business with faith, God would bless it. They quit their jobs. They invested everything. They believed. And when the business failed, they were told it was because they did not have enough faith. They were not told that maybe the idea was not good or the timing was wrong. They were told that God had let them down because they were not faithful enough. That nearly destroyed them.
And these stories are not unique. They are everywhere. In every church that taught this. In every community that celebrated wealth as a sign of God's favor. The damage is incalculable.
What it did to the gospel
But the prosperity gospel did not just hurt people. It also corrupted the gospel. It turned grace into a transaction. It turned God into a vending machine. It turned faith into a formula. And it made the cross meaningless.
If faith produces wealth, then what do we need the cross for? If God blesses the faithful with money, then what is grace for? If salvation comes through believing enough, then what did Jesus die for?
The prosperity gospel empties the cross of its meaning. It makes salvation about what we do rather than what Jesus did. It makes God a rewarder of the faithful rather than a Father who loves us unconditionally. And that is the opposite of the gospel.
What the Bible actually says
Let me tell you what the Bible actually says about money and blessing. Because it is not what the prosperity gospel says.
Jesus was not a prosperity preacher. He was an itinerant rabbi with no place to lay His head. He told His followers to sell their possessions and give to the poor. He said it is harder for a rich person to enter the Kingdom than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.
The Apostle Paul wrote that he learned to be content in plenty and in want. He wrote that godliness with contentment is great gain. He wrote that those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap.
The Bible does not promise us wealth. It promises us God. It promises us presence in the hard times. It promises us eternity. It promises us that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Those are the promises. Not a new car. Not a bigger house. Not a six-figure income.
What remains
So what remains? After we strip away the prosperity gospel, what is left?
What remains is a God who loves us. Not because of what we do, but because of who He is. What remains is grace that is free. What remains is faith that is not a formula but a relationship. What remains is a cross that means something because it was not a prosperity scheme but a sacrifice.
And that is enough. More than enough.
Examine Your Own Beliefs
Examine your own beliefs about money and faith. Where have you believed a prosperity lie? Repent and receive the true gospel.
- How has the prosperity gospel affected my view of God?
- What lies have I believed about money and blessing?
- How do I find contentment when the world says I need more?
- What does true gospel freedom look like?
- Why is the prosperity gospel so appealing?
- What is the difference between blessing and prosperity?
- How do I share the gospel without the prosperity trap?
What remains is a God who loves us. Not because of what we do, but because of who He is. That is enough. More than enough.
Father, forgive me for believing lies about prosperity and faith. Help me to rest in Your unconditional love, not in what I can earn or receive.
Teach me contentment and true generosity. May I never make the cross about money. Help me to find my worth in Your love, not in my bank account.
In Jesus Name, Amen.
Tomorrow, we are going to talk about something that is closely related to all of this. The culture of honor. How it started as something beautiful and how it became something that protected the wrong people.
With honesty and hope,
Claire