Our great High Priest is in glory, exalted above all created angels. But he is the same Jesus we knew in the days of his flesh. He is the same Jesus in heaven as he was on earth, as he was before the world began. The face shining above the brightness of the sun is the face that drew sinners to his feet. The hand that holds the seven stars is the hand that was laid in blessing upon little children. The breast girt about with a golden girdle is the breast upon which the beloved disciple laid his head at the last supper.
~A. D. Foreman, Jr.
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor; He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified… Their offspring shall be known among the nations, and their descendants in the midst of the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are an offspring the Lord has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation; He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels… You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate, but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her, and your land Married; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married. For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.
~ This Scripture from Isaiah 61 and 62 was written in 711 BC and fulfilled in the hearing of many witnesses by Jesus Christ of Nazareth
Oh beloved, the Gospel is true. Even the elements we want to shy away from are true. There is a part of the Gospel many refer to as the ‘gospel of prosperity’, and many shun it as something that is untrue. They see people screaming out the promises of G_d about riches, and ranting about houses and cars and bank accounts. And in the obvious futility of rants like these, most will respond by saying that this ‘part’ of the Gospel cannot be true.
And in doing so, they (we) miss the point altogether.
The Word of G_d is true; simply, profoundly, and completely true. And so, when we see something that is supposedly wrong with the gospel, we can be simply, profoundly, and completely convinced that it is us who need to change, and not the Word.
So, let’s take another look at this.
The Gospel of prosperity is completely true. The problem is that we define riches completely wrong. We, in our fleshly and physical world, would want to define riches as things that protect us against risk and danger and discomfort – and this is true. Stay with me… However, the problem is that we think things like food and clothes and cars and cash and houses and power and prestige are going to protect us against the elements. And while they may do it for a minute (or an hour, or a day, or a decade or so), they will not ever (read ever) protect us the way we really need and desire to be protected.
In fact, most of the things we get – that we define as riches – actually complicate our lives and make us more susceptible to the iatrogenic risks of getting what we want. Said simply: Getting what we think we want, often makes our lives worse, and not better.
Enter the Gospel. What if we could actually obtain this Protection of riches?
We already have.
Beloved, the very One who defines value and riches and goodness and Love has made us His own. And in making us His own, He has poured His very infinite Self out onto, and into us. And, the experience we are looking for (say, in buying a new car or getting a new job) is actually found in the filling He effects within our soul. We find, as Blaise Pascal said, there really is a God-shaped vacuum within us, which only He can fill.
May this fool of a writer preach for a moment? i have, in years past, made very large amounts of money. i have had turbocharged cars. i have been almost everywhere. i have had worldly power. i have had the stocks, and the options. i have had the big house and the swimming pool. And none of it (not one iota of it) has compared to the comprehension of true wealth and prosperity and joy and strength which comes from but one minute in the Presence of the G_d who has so mightily saved me.
Can we see it? Riches are not bits of metal, wood, hay or stubble. Riches are Him. The protection from everything, through the things we sought in this world, are really nothing more than glorified plastic tarps that the supposedly poor of this world use to keep the rain off them at night. However, when our understanding of riches comes into proper focus, we begin to understand that we already own everything and that the protection of everything that matters is already done.
So, will G_d give us house and cars and stuff like that? Yeah, He has plenty of pocket change. But, they are not even the point. Fools like me, want more of the stuff that is gonna last forever.
