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Many Charismatic and Pentecostal believers follow all too closely the noxious "prosperity gospel" as advanced by the Word of Faith movement that is among them. These "Faith" people are convinced that this ideology is based on the Bible. My postings will highlight my concerns that is it not and is rather the product of some very bad and imbalanced teaching.
One of the Bibles verses youll find most circled, highlit and claimed as a Bible promise by not only these Faith Christians but many other Charismatics and Pentecostals is one that details the pious wish of the apostle John that he wrote in his epistle 3 John to a Christian brother to express his desire for her to receive great blessing from God. This is, of course, 3 John 2.
As weve seen, Faith believers all over the world endlessly quote the verse as a prooftext that supposedly proves that Gods will is that all men be always prosperous. They then build upon this stated belief to an astonishing degree, creating endlessly restated versions of the same Faith conception about the will of God being always to prosper Christians. Listen to Faith pastor Gregory Dickows take on the verse that is pretty representative of popular Faith thinking on the verse.
Here, Dickow is explaining to Faith believers how to commend the claims of the prosperity gospel to those who question its basis:
The blood of Jesus is very powerful. It paid the price for our sins, for our sickness, for our disease, for our defeat so that we can have not only salvation but so we can have victory in every area of our life .. He desires for us to succeed because His blood paid for us to be saved and to succeed. Here are some Scriptures that you can share with these people. One of the things that you can say to them is, Look, here are some Scriptures. You may want to look at them; you may not. Its totally up to you, but this is what I base my belief on regarding money and prosperity. And really, its not just about money; its about success and prosperity in every area of your life. 3 John 2 says, Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. God wants your soul to prosper, and when it does when your soul, emotions, mind, and intellect are flourishing in the Word of God its going to affect every area of your life. (I can't post the link but it's on his website under "Ask The Pastor")
Dickow, as all Faith teachers, freely associates the atonement of Christ with their belief that the mission of Christ at Calvary was to die not only for the sin of man but for our success in life. As we see, the Faith movements interpretation of 3 John 2 is a crucial foundation it uses to establish its brash claim that Gods will is to always, without exception, bring prosperity, success and overflowing blessing as the kind of abundant living He has destined for them.
The Response Of The Word: When considered in proper context, it is easily recognizable that 3 John 2 contains the personal expression of the apostle John's good will towards the well-beloved Gaius, one of his ministry companions: "Beloved, I wish .." This verse contains John's greeting to Gaius at the opening of a letter he had sent to him, and gives us a glimpse into the close relationship both men had.
And that is essentially all that can gleaned from this passage of Scripture. It cannot be interpreted as a promise from God that assures divine health and wealth; it is simply a wish for the bestowal of God's blessings upon a friend.
What John wishes for Gaius is interesting in that the material and physical well-being of Gaius is hoped to be "prospering." This actually suggests that he may actually be confronted by physical need! That doesn't sound like Gaius seemed to have a lot of faith if the apostle mentioned it. But whether it is or not, what is clear is that 3 John 2 does not contain any promise of blessing from God whatsoever.
Unlike the pet doctrinal presumption of Faith teachers, Christians have no basis for reading any more into this text than was intended by the author. The technical term for this is eisegesis, the exact opposite of what sound Biblical interpretation called exegesis. It is important to note that when we read of John's heartfelt desire that Gaius's physical prosperity be as abundant as his spiritual prosperity that the passage in its original Greek language provides a crucial insight lost upon Faith teachers who point to it as a carte blanch guarantee of divine wealth.
So when former Faith movement luminary Jim Bakker did so, while in prison in the late 1980's through the early 1990's, his personal research provided a penetrating illumination of 3 John 2 that cannot be dismissed. Found in his book I Was Wrong, Bakker's commentary showed how he learned this at a terrible personal and ministerial cost: that Faith eisegesis of Scripture is never the same as Christian exegesis of it:
I had preached on this verse for most of my ministry. It said exactly what I believed - that God wanted His people to prosper, and by that, I interpreted it to mean prosper financially and materially, in other words, to get rich. Again, I never really examined the true meaning of the text, nor did I ever seriously consider why this verse, on the surface anyhow, seemed to contradict so much of what the New Testament said in other places. I simply pulled this verse out of context and took it to the bank - literally!
... We looked up the meaning of the word prosper. We found the word translated "prosper" in the King James Version of the Bible came from a Greek word, eudoo, which is made up of two Greek root words, eu, which means "good," and hodos, which means "road, or route, a progress, or journey." We did not find a single reference in the Greek to money, riches or material gain from the word translated prosper in the King James Version.
The apostle John, the writer, was saying simply, "I wish you a good, safe, and healthy journey throughout your life, even as your soul has a good and safe journey to heaven." John was not saying "Above everything else, I want you to get rich. Above everything, you should prosper and make money." That is not even implied in the true meaning of the verse. Yet I had based much of my philosophy at PTL and even before that on this one verse that I had totally misunderstood! (Bakker, Jim, I Was Wrong, Nelson, 1996, p 546-547 )
After all the shouting and interviews, after all of the noise of the dissolution of his marriage and ministry had died down, Jim Bakker finally was immobilized long enough by a prison cell in Rochester, New York in 1989 and took the time to sit down and study what the Bible actually says in context and from the original languages.
He was shocked to the core when he found that 3 John 2's meaning was, in essence, what we've just shared - it contained the apostle's wish for a prosperous and fulfilling spiritual journey that would also compliment his natural lifestyle. That's all it has ever meant and the Faith movement's twisting of the verse to make it appear that God's will is complete prosperity for all Christians is plainly shown to be a bold corruption of the verse.
Does this mean we can't ask for and hope to receive financial blessing? Of course not! I am NOT asserting Christians should NOT pray for material blessings. I don't know how I can say it any better other than to say that I'm NOT stating that at all. I pray for finances to fund our ministry all the time. I pray that God bless us accordingly as I tithe and be faithful.
My point is and ONLY is that God is sovereign and can bless us in ways that have nothing to do with MONEY and everything to do with HIS purposes and good pleasure to do good unto us. That is the only response of a believer to His Lord in acknowledging His Lordship provision over our lives (praying for daily bread as Christ taught us is pointless then). God will make a way for us financially as we submit to his principles in giving - which I believe involves tithing - and I'm content in that.
Now just what that way that HE makes is, I'm not sure. And guess what, I'm FINE WITH THAT.
So that's how I see God's hand in the answers to the prayers we may make as we ask blessing. The Faith movement tries too hard to force God into a jack in the box to make him accessible to our confessions and seed offerings. But it's our privilege to ask anything in His name and He will do it and He will do so in His own good time. It's a refreshing place of refuge to know that all good gifts come from above, that the promises of God are yea and amen in Christ Jesus.
I've come to see that Jesus always answers prayers that same way: "Yes, I will," and sometimes, and very often, just as many times He'll answer "Yes, I won't." (1 Corinthians 1:20).
One of the Bibles verses youll find most circled, highlit and claimed as a Bible promise by not only these Faith Christians but many other Charismatics and Pentecostals is one that details the pious wish of the apostle John that he wrote in his epistle 3 John to a Christian brother to express his desire for her to receive great blessing from God. This is, of course, 3 John 2.
As weve seen, Faith believers all over the world endlessly quote the verse as a prooftext that supposedly proves that Gods will is that all men be always prosperous. They then build upon this stated belief to an astonishing degree, creating endlessly restated versions of the same Faith conception about the will of God being always to prosper Christians. Listen to Faith pastor Gregory Dickows take on the verse that is pretty representative of popular Faith thinking on the verse.
Here, Dickow is explaining to Faith believers how to commend the claims of the prosperity gospel to those who question its basis:
The blood of Jesus is very powerful. It paid the price for our sins, for our sickness, for our disease, for our defeat so that we can have not only salvation but so we can have victory in every area of our life .. He desires for us to succeed because His blood paid for us to be saved and to succeed. Here are some Scriptures that you can share with these people. One of the things that you can say to them is, Look, here are some Scriptures. You may want to look at them; you may not. Its totally up to you, but this is what I base my belief on regarding money and prosperity. And really, its not just about money; its about success and prosperity in every area of your life. 3 John 2 says, Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. God wants your soul to prosper, and when it does when your soul, emotions, mind, and intellect are flourishing in the Word of God its going to affect every area of your life. (I can't post the link but it's on his website under "Ask The Pastor")
Dickow, as all Faith teachers, freely associates the atonement of Christ with their belief that the mission of Christ at Calvary was to die not only for the sin of man but for our success in life. As we see, the Faith movements interpretation of 3 John 2 is a crucial foundation it uses to establish its brash claim that Gods will is to always, without exception, bring prosperity, success and overflowing blessing as the kind of abundant living He has destined for them.
The Response Of The Word: When considered in proper context, it is easily recognizable that 3 John 2 contains the personal expression of the apostle John's good will towards the well-beloved Gaius, one of his ministry companions: "Beloved, I wish .." This verse contains John's greeting to Gaius at the opening of a letter he had sent to him, and gives us a glimpse into the close relationship both men had.
And that is essentially all that can gleaned from this passage of Scripture. It cannot be interpreted as a promise from God that assures divine health and wealth; it is simply a wish for the bestowal of God's blessings upon a friend.
What John wishes for Gaius is interesting in that the material and physical well-being of Gaius is hoped to be "prospering." This actually suggests that he may actually be confronted by physical need! That doesn't sound like Gaius seemed to have a lot of faith if the apostle mentioned it. But whether it is or not, what is clear is that 3 John 2 does not contain any promise of blessing from God whatsoever.
Unlike the pet doctrinal presumption of Faith teachers, Christians have no basis for reading any more into this text than was intended by the author. The technical term for this is eisegesis, the exact opposite of what sound Biblical interpretation called exegesis. It is important to note that when we read of John's heartfelt desire that Gaius's physical prosperity be as abundant as his spiritual prosperity that the passage in its original Greek language provides a crucial insight lost upon Faith teachers who point to it as a carte blanch guarantee of divine wealth.
So when former Faith movement luminary Jim Bakker did so, while in prison in the late 1980's through the early 1990's, his personal research provided a penetrating illumination of 3 John 2 that cannot be dismissed. Found in his book I Was Wrong, Bakker's commentary showed how he learned this at a terrible personal and ministerial cost: that Faith eisegesis of Scripture is never the same as Christian exegesis of it:
I had preached on this verse for most of my ministry. It said exactly what I believed - that God wanted His people to prosper, and by that, I interpreted it to mean prosper financially and materially, in other words, to get rich. Again, I never really examined the true meaning of the text, nor did I ever seriously consider why this verse, on the surface anyhow, seemed to contradict so much of what the New Testament said in other places. I simply pulled this verse out of context and took it to the bank - literally!
... We looked up the meaning of the word prosper. We found the word translated "prosper" in the King James Version of the Bible came from a Greek word, eudoo, which is made up of two Greek root words, eu, which means "good," and hodos, which means "road, or route, a progress, or journey." We did not find a single reference in the Greek to money, riches or material gain from the word translated prosper in the King James Version.
The apostle John, the writer, was saying simply, "I wish you a good, safe, and healthy journey throughout your life, even as your soul has a good and safe journey to heaven." John was not saying "Above everything else, I want you to get rich. Above everything, you should prosper and make money." That is not even implied in the true meaning of the verse. Yet I had based much of my philosophy at PTL and even before that on this one verse that I had totally misunderstood! (Bakker, Jim, I Was Wrong, Nelson, 1996, p 546-547 )
After all the shouting and interviews, after all of the noise of the dissolution of his marriage and ministry had died down, Jim Bakker finally was immobilized long enough by a prison cell in Rochester, New York in 1989 and took the time to sit down and study what the Bible actually says in context and from the original languages.
He was shocked to the core when he found that 3 John 2's meaning was, in essence, what we've just shared - it contained the apostle's wish for a prosperous and fulfilling spiritual journey that would also compliment his natural lifestyle. That's all it has ever meant and the Faith movement's twisting of the verse to make it appear that God's will is complete prosperity for all Christians is plainly shown to be a bold corruption of the verse.
Does this mean we can't ask for and hope to receive financial blessing? Of course not! I am NOT asserting Christians should NOT pray for material blessings. I don't know how I can say it any better other than to say that I'm NOT stating that at all. I pray for finances to fund our ministry all the time. I pray that God bless us accordingly as I tithe and be faithful.
My point is and ONLY is that God is sovereign and can bless us in ways that have nothing to do with MONEY and everything to do with HIS purposes and good pleasure to do good unto us. That is the only response of a believer to His Lord in acknowledging His Lordship provision over our lives (praying for daily bread as Christ taught us is pointless then). God will make a way for us financially as we submit to his principles in giving - which I believe involves tithing - and I'm content in that.
Now just what that way that HE makes is, I'm not sure. And guess what, I'm FINE WITH THAT.
So that's how I see God's hand in the answers to the prayers we may make as we ask blessing. The Faith movement tries too hard to force God into a jack in the box to make him accessible to our confessions and seed offerings. But it's our privilege to ask anything in His name and He will do it and He will do so in His own good time. It's a refreshing place of refuge to know that all good gifts come from above, that the promises of God are yea and amen in Christ Jesus.
I've come to see that Jesus always answers prayers that same way: "Yes, I will," and sometimes, and very often, just as many times He'll answer "Yes, I won't." (1 Corinthians 1:20).
