God Wants His People Prosperous

But remember that the LORD your God gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant He swore to your fathers, as it is today.
-Deuteronomy 8:18


These are my notes from a talk by Peter Wagner:

Prosperity

1.  God wants his people to prosper.

  • This is good news.
    • Deut. 7, backdrop
      • v. 13 abundant crops
      • v. 13 large herds of cattle
      •  v. 14 full wombs
      •  v. 15 good health
      •  v. 16 victory over enemies
    • 2 Cor. 9:8
      • God desires to give us more than we need, so that we can share it for good.
2. The Devil is the author of poverty.
  • Satan is "god of this age", who usurped Adam's dominion
    • He came to kill, steal, and destroy
  • But God sent Jesus as the second Adam to take back what Satan stole
    • Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil
  • Three things influence society: violence, knowledge, wealth
    • The greatest of these is wealth
3. What is the wealth for, that God gives his people?
  • Kingdom influence
    • In religion, we judge influence by our spirituality
    • But in the rest of the mountains of influence, influence is measured by success
      • The most influential people are the most successful people
        • Success equals wealth
4. Kingdom Philanthropy
  • Kingdom wealth requires Kingdom Philanthropy
    • "Philanthropy" = Loving + People, in Greek
  • Kingdom people love people by distributing wealth
    • Not only giving gifts to poor people
    • But transforming society
    • From systemic poverty to systemic prosperity
    • We begin measuring the results of our giving
    • We begin to combine sociology with spirituality
5.  What is the mechanism for handling kingdom wealth?
  • The Four Links
  1. Providers -generate the wealth

  2. Managers -multiply the wealth
    -The amount given increases before it is distributed

  3. Distributors -allocate the wealth 
   -They see the big picture and are able to set priorities

  4. Field Marshals - spend the wealth
  -They know how to use kingdom wealth for advancing the kingdom of God


6.  Our Individual Roles
  • We each have a role
  • Discover what your role is
  • Whatever your role, believe that God wants you to prosper, for the building of the kingdom.


But remember that the LORD your God gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant He swore to your fathers, as it is today.
-Deuteronomy 8:18

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For more on this topic, here is a link to Peter's book, The Great Transfer of Wealth

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