Prosperity by the Word of God
Prosperity by the Word of God
Psalm 1:3
For all who take their delight in living by God’s Word, there is prosperity. Under the image of a fruitful tree, the psalmist declared that whatever the righteous do will prosper (cf. Psalm 92:12–14). Two qualifications need to be noted. First, the fruit, that is, the prosperity, is produced in its season and not necessarily immediately after planting. Second, what the godly person does will be controlled by the Law of God (Psalm 1:2). So if a person meditates on God’s Word, his actions will be godly, and his God-controlled activities will prosper, that is, come to their divinely directed fulfillment.
--Ross, A. P. (1985). Psalms. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Sometimes we fall into a place of wondering if God is listening to our prayers or even aware of our situation. Our world is full of frustrations and disappointments but our God is still the same Holy God that was, is and always will be. He is still the same God who loved us so much that he was willing to sacrifice his only son for the sake of our salvation. From all that he has done for us, we often still look to know where are the blessings that were meant for us. Where is our release from the worldly prison that we live within. When will our deliverance come from the financial or material crisis that we're in. When will the healing come to relieve us from this pain or stress on our bodies. When will the circumstances of oppression and mistreatment be justified.
There is an answer. There is hope. Psalm 1:3 tells us, in no uncertain terms, that there is prosperity in delighting in the LORD. We are to follow the path that was provided for us through Jesus Christ, the only human to live a perfect and sinless life. His relationship with God, his and our Heavenly Father, was so tight that Jesus knew God's will at every moment. Jesus put the Word of God to flesh on this earth so that we could have an example to follow.
Now let's be very clear, living our lives in pursuit of perfection is pointless without the free gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus gave us the example on how to live in Matthew 4 when Satan was tempting him. With every temptation, Jesus' rebuttal referenced Satan back to the scripture that applied to His circumstances. We can do the same. We can put the Word of God so deep in our hearts that we know when and where it is applicable. But let's not forget the one part that Jesus gave us of himself. He loved us so much that he was willing to do whatever the Father wanted, including being humiliated, wrongly convicted, beaten and hung on a cross to death. So not only did Jesus have the word of God deeply rooted within him, he expressed that word by loving others (aka US) to the point of selfless sacrifice.
So how do we see prosperity in all of this? It is because to take delight in God we have to first know His word. Then we have to live out His word here on earth to those around us. We do that by showing them all the love that we would ask from God on our own behalf (Matthew 22:39). And when we fail, and yes... we will fail many times, we have to follow that same Word of God into confession & repentance and be willing to accept God's forgiveness so we can live freely without the burden of sin holding us from our blessings. We have to give our lives over in full SUBMISSION to everything God asks of us.
If you don't know what he wants of you? Ask Him, trust that He will answer and know that faithful prayer will be answered (James 1:5). Look for the answers in His Word. Believe it. Act on it. If it does not conflict with His scripture, it is going to be your answer so go ahead and get busy.
I know that I have one task to do this very day so now that I've written this, I'm going to get to it because I don't know what fruit accomplishing this task will produce but my faith will hold me to the idea that whatever the result is, it is for my good as in Romans 8:28.
Seek God out today. Get alone and listen to Him through the quiet time of prayer and supplication. Listen patiently and expectantly look for his answer to come.
~~twh
