It’s amazing that Jesus told us EXACTLY how to attain spiritual prosperity; but yet, we still seem to focus our greatest life efforts on attaining physical prosperity. To get on track, we must RESET the great LOVE of our heart! Jesus said,
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.“
Matthew 6:19-21 NKJV
What or whom we love the most will—directly affect our spiritual prosperity!
The EVIDENCE of what or who we LOVE most is revealed in…what we THINK about most; what we WORRY about most; what we WORK at the most. Is it our money; our job; our friends or family? What does YOUR “treasure” look like? What is the one thing that would devastate you if you lost it? My friend, if we want to live in spiritual prosperity, then the most important goal of our life must be having…a strong sense of the presence of God.
We need to DESIRE God—as much as He DESIRES us.
Throughout the scripture, God reveals His great longing to BLESS us with His presence. Even His thoughts are to abundantly bless us:
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.“
Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV
But to capture the full height, depth, length, and breadth of God’s eternal blessings for us, we must enter into His presence and be DETERMINED to live there—daily. We must search for Him with all of our heart! In this passage, God goes on to say that when we recognize how much goodness He has in store for us, we RESPOND with a great passion to KNOW Him and LIVE in His presence!!!
“THEN you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I WILL be FOUND by you…”
Jeremiah 29:12-14 NKJV
So if we want spiritual prosperity, we must seek to live in God’s holy presence. This means we must come to God based upon who He is and not who we think He is. God makes the rules for the relationship—we do not. We often try to do the relationship our own way. Most commonly, we think that good works alone draw us closer to Him. But this contradicts scripture. Jesus said:
“Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’: And then I will declare to them, ‘I NEVER knew you…’.”
Matthew 7:22-23 NKJV
There must first be an inward transformation, which happens when we are born again! Then, we must learn to passionately desire Jesus, who has given us eternal life. To outwardly conform our life without the influence of His Spirit within us—is to live in misery. It is to live by the rules—without the relationship. Desiring God more than we desire sin, clears the gunk out of our pipes and allows the fruits of His Spirit freely flow through us. We enter into the experience of God’s glorious love! The more we experience God’s presence, the more we discover how remarkably wonderful He has made us and in turn—we want even more of Him!
My friend, God’s recipe for spiritual prosperity is not hidden from us. Why would He, who gave His life for us, ever want to give us anything less than the best? Take some time to read the following verses from Psalms 37 and highlight the words that give you the best clues about how to live in His presence:
“Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret—it only causes harm. For evildoers shall be cut off; but those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
A little that a righteous man has is better than the riches of many wicked. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the Lord upholds the righteous. The Lord knows the days of the upright, and their inheritance shall be FOREVER. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
The wicked borrows and does not repay, but the righteous shows mercy and gives. For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth, but those cursed by Him shall be cut off.
The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the LORD upholds him with His hand.
I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread. The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, and his tongue talks of justice. The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.
Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; for the future of that man is peace. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the future of the wicked shall be cut off.”
Psalms 37 NKJV
What strikes me is the great contrast between—the promising future of the righteous and—the horrible life of the wicked. But what does it mean to BE righteous? Does it mean doing the best you can in life and—just hoping for the best? My friend, that’s not what the Bible teaches. Tomorrow we are going to discuss what living righteously is…according to God’s Word.
If the Bible says our best works, that is our “righteousness” is—like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6), then….how can God EVER expect us to live righteously? God’s Word reveals how we can live in His righteousness EACH day, and thus, make HUGE investments into our eternal treasures!
I want to gather eternal treasures—don’t you?
We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.
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3 Responses
Powerful teaching!
God is Good!
Only what we do for Christ will last .