What Does the Prosperity of the Proudful Sinners Mean?

Good morning, Happy Souls!

Bill Keller wrote a devotional today that I
recommend to you.  He has given me permission to
copy his e-mails, and I'm sure he would be happy if
you would share this with people you know as well.

Do you ever wonder why those who sin openly and
proudly live in luxury?  Perhaps you also know a
devoted Christian who finds meeting her or his
bills to be difficult.  What does all that mean?

If you are curious about that irony, please read on.

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL   SATURDAY MARCH 4, 2006
Jeremiah 12:1, Psalm 37 (entire), Psalm 73 (entire)

"Why does the way of the wicked prosper?  Why do all
of the faithless live at ease?"  If Jeremiah had a
computer back in his day, he may have sent Liveprayer
an email with these questions that we read him asking
in Jeremiah 12:1.  Not a day goes by that we don't
get hundreds of emails from people asking these very
questions.  A woman who loves the Lord and honors
Him with her life has a husband who cheats on her,
leaves her and their children for another woman, and
is now living a comfortable life while she and her
children struggle just to live day to day.

A man who faithfully serves the Lord gives decades
of his life working for a company that takes
advantage of him, operates with little ethics or
morals, and lets him go just before he is scheduled
to retire to save money while those who run the
company live extravagant lifestyles.  A young man
trying to follow the Lord and God's Word struggles
to buy a new pair of shoes while teenage thug
rappers glorifying and living lifestyles of sin
wear hundreds of thousands of dollars of jewelry
and drive new exotic cars.

There is an endless list of examples of those who
love the Lord, live for Him, yet are currently
struggling in their daily lives while those who
deny Christ and live in complete rebellion to Him
seem to prosper and live in great comfort and ease. 
So it becomes a legitimate question that the
prophet Jeremiah asks.  It is a legitimate question
that men who love the Lord throughout the ages have
asked.  It is a proper question for those who serve
and follow the Lord today to ask.  WHY DO THE WICKED
SEEM TO PROSPER?

The answer to this question, like the answers to
ALL questions, is found in God's Word.  You need to
take time to read the 37th Psalm, all 40 verses.
The answer to this age-old question of why do the
wicked seem to prosper is found in never losing
sight of the big picture of what this life is all
about.  First, it is God who gives us life and we
all have the same general purpose of serving and
glorifying Him with our lives.  Second, we are
all going to die one day.  As the Bible clearly
tells us, tomorrow is promised to none of us, so
that day is not as far away as many think it is. 
Third, when we die, our soul lives on for eternity. 
The only issue to be determined is do we spend that
eternity WITH God who created us or APART from God
who created us.  Each person makes that choice in
either accepting or rejecting God's ONLY plan of
salvation through faith in His Son Jesus Christ.

So what is important to understand is that we
actually have a very limited number of days in this
life here on earth.  The most critical choice we
have to make during our life is what we do with
Jesus, since that choice will determine our eternal
home.  For those who have chosen to follow Christ,
their days on this earth are to be focused on
fulfilling our God-given purpose of serving and
glorifying the Lord with our lives in whatever
way God calls each of us to do that.

If you haven't noticed, I have not mentioned having
money, possessions, or any of the things of this
world.  You see, those are simply the temporary
things of THIS LIFE and are meaningless in light of
eternity.  What happens is the righteous, the followers
of Christ get caught up in measuring prosperity and
success the way the world does by the temporal things
of this world.  Real prosperity and success aren't
found in the temporary things of this world but in the
eternal things of God.  Things like peace and joy and
living an abundant life that don't come from this
world, but from a personal relationship with Jesus
Christ!

Let me ask you a very serious question.  This is
actually a question Jesus once asked.  He said," What
does it profit a man to gain the whole world, yet
lose his soul?"  When Jesus was in the desert being
tempted by the devil for 40 days and 40 nights, at
one point satan showed Him all of the kingdoms of
the world and told him to worship him and they would
all be His.  Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship
the Lord your God and serve Him only.' " You see,
Christ understood that the things of this world are
but temporary.  The REAL Kingdom is not in this world,
but in Heaven.  The REAL riches are not in this world,
but in Heaven.

I love you and care about you so much.  It is natural
in our flesh to look at those who have chosen to
reject Christ and live their lives in complete
rebellion to God and His Word and wonder why they
seem to prosper while we may be currently struggling. 
While they may be enjoying the prosperity this
world offers, without Jesus they are SPIRITUALLY
BANKRUPT.  Actually, rather than envy these people,
they are to be pitied since when their brief
journey through life is over they will be spending
eternity in a place created for satan and his fallen
angels unless they come to know Jesus.  Bill Gates
may be the richest man on the planet, but the moment
he dies, all of his wealth is MEANINGLESS.  The ONLY
THING that will matter when he stands before God
is does he know Jesus as his personal Savior.

This is also the problem with the "prosperity gospel"
so many today preach in error.  There is NOTHING in
the Bible that says just because you know Jesus you
are guaranteed to have great wealth in this life. 
What the Bible DOES PROMISE is that if you know
Christ as your Savior, you are assured of everlasting
life and that during this life you will enjoy the
blessings and provision of God.  You see, God has
promised to meet your needs during this life, needs
like food, shelter, and clothing.  That is God's
promise to His children.  The true prosperity gospel
is not about dollars, it is about BLESSINGS!

God NEVER promised you would have a million dollar
home, a new Rolls Royce in the driveway, $5,000
suits, a Rolex watch, or any of the many treasures
this life can offer.  God may allow some to be
blessed to have those things during their life, but
the wealth of a follower of Jesus is not measured
in the temporary things of this world, but in the
eternal things of God!  God measures the heart of
His children not by their bank account, but by
their obedience, their faithfulness, and their
willingness to completely surrender all they have
to follow Him.

I will be praying for you today.  Praying that God
will speak to you through these words about how you
look on those who have chosen to live their lives
in rebellion to God, yet seem to be prospering. 
The fact is, they may indeed be prosperous according
to the standards of the world for a brief season. 
But whatever we have in this life will one day be
gone, and at that point, the only thing that will
matter is do we know Jesus.  Pray for those who you
may have been envious of for what they possess. 
Pray that they will come to know Christ as their
Savior since salvation cannot be bought, it is
only available through faith in Jesus.

I have dealt over the years with thousands of people
who had great wealth but when the real trials of
life came, they realized that all of their wealth
and possessions meant nothing.  When your spouse or
child or loved one has a serious illness and is
laying in a hospital bed, when you find out your
spouse wants a divorce, when you learn your child
is on drugs, when the doctor tells you that you have
a serious disease, when you face many of the major
battles in life we all face, at that moment your
money and possessions mean nothing.  Only a deep
abiding faith in Christ can sustain you through
those dark moments in life.

There is no amount of money that can buy God's peace. 
There is no amount of money that can buy God's
strength.  There is no amount of money that can buy
God's joy.  All of those things come from your
relationship with Christ and your faith in Him. 
The wicked my prosper for a season, but it is the
righteous who have true prosperity for all eternity.

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

***If I can help you in any way you can contact me
through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com

***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND
ETERNITY?  The fact is you will die one day.  At
that moment, you will either spend eternity with
the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness
forever separated from God your creator.  To know
for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to:
http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.html

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(C) Copyright 2006, Bill Keller Ministries.
All rights reserved


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May God bless you as you learn from this message!

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2006 Donald W. Mitchell