As a Christian, it is important to note the power of substitution in our lives. Christ became a substitute for us on the cross of calvary so that we no longer have to face the consequences of sin, which is death, but can now live eternally. When God looks upon us, he sees our substitute, Christ.
Likewise it is important that all we have is substituted to the ownership of Christ in order that our wealth is beyond the jurisdiction of any curse or force of spiritual retribution.
When we gave our lives to Christ, it meant our lives were removed from the jurisdiction of the enemy and therefore our lives are no longer at the mercy of any evil force. It is therefore very unwise to leave our material abundance at the mercy of the same enemy our lives have been removed from.
It is foolhardy to embrace Christ without taking laid down steps to hand over our possessions to Him, and then sit back and complain that we are not reaping from the abundance purchased for us through Him.
Jesus said, the enemy has come for no other reason but to steal, kill and destroy John 10:10. Christ also said his own work was to bestow on us a life of abundance! (" The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly").
In clear language, the first part of the verse means the enemy wants to steal from us. Steal what? Our abundance; from stealing, he then tries to kill us, but he can't since our lives are hidden in Christ. And then he tries to destroy our future, our relationships, and everything we hold dear. This too has to be substituted in Christ.
In other words, a child of God living in poverty is not manifesting the purpose of Christ!
I would normally shy away from being tagged a "prosperity preacher", were it not so important to the destiny of the body of Christ for this message to sink into each and every one of us!
It is part of Christ's purpose on calvary's cross that all God's children experience a life of abundance.
Sadly, the Bible also predicts that there will always be poor people in the land (God's Kingdom) Deut 15:11 NIV " , There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open handed toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land", Matt 26:11 NIV " The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me".
The question is this, does the fact that a prediction of poverty exists in God's word (for those too ignorant to overcome it) make it compulsory that YOU have to be the one that ends up poor?
Not all humans will inherit the gift of eternal life. Must you be one of those that won't?
To be continued
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