The "Health, Wealth and Prosperity preachers tell you that you should expect and decide to be prosperous, that it is a blessing from God to be so. They bring ungodly techniques based on pagan practices used to appease their gods, in order to gain an advantage. They instruct their people to go after health and wealth and once achieved according to their own desires, they can count themselves as special and above those who have not gained worldly wealth.
The wealth that is the most treasured by true believers is not that of material or physical wealth, but rather wisdom that can only come from the Holy Spirit.
Christ teaches not only are we not to seek health and wealth, we can expect many trials in these areas of our lives. Those who belong to Christ are continually subject to redirection, pain to refocus and difficulties to teach and train us.
Those who act as though someone must have sinned because they have many trials are judging based on their faulty belief system that God blesses in a worldly way when we are walking with Him, when in fact the closer we walk with Him the more training and trials He will allow for our spiritual growth and understanding. He tests our faith to show us areas that need work in our lives, as well as strengthening us against evil and for good.
God says that if we are not disciplined by Him, then we are not born again, we are "illegitimate children." Children who think they are saved but have never been given the Holy Spirit.
Hebrews 12:7-9 "…7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you do not experience discipline like everyone else, then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9 Furthermore, we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Should we not much more submit to the Father of our spirits and live?…"
1 Peter 4:11-13 "11 If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God supplies, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen. 12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial that has come upon you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed at the revelation of His glory.…"
In these end times, in this 2 Timothy 3 world we can expect to encounter many who not only are refusing Christ, but claiming to love Him who are in opposition to Him. We can see that many still want to feel safe in Him, have His perks while ignoring most of His principles. Of course hanging on to the principles they like and that seem to elevate themselves in some way, while demeaning and mocking the principles that convict them of sin.
It might be good to warn those who think they are blessed with material wealth and seem to never have trials, that perhaps they are not born again. If they were born again, then they would have trials, they would be rejected by the world and they would be growing in holiness.
2 Timothy 4:3
"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,"
Stubbornness is a sure sign of one who has not been changed into a new creation by Christ. If a born again believer demonstrates stubbornness they will be disciplined and soon learn to reject it in themselves asking Christ for cleansing from it.
