Why And How God Prospers by Pastor Philip Olubakin: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Why Does God Prosper Us?

When the purpose of something is not known, abuse becomes inevitable. The same is true of prosperity. If you do not understand why God prospers you, you will misuse the prosperity when it comes.

The foundational answer is this: God prospers you so that you can be a blessing.

Genesis 12:2

God said to Abraham: I will bless you and make your name great — and you shall be a blessing. The blessing is not the destination. Being a blessing is the destination. The wealth is the vehicle.

You cannot be a blessing without being blessed. The Good Samaritan had good intentions and good money. Without the money, good intentions accomplish nothing.

God wants you wealthy enough to fund what he has assigned you to do. He wants you to be a conduit, not just a container.

How Does God Prosper? — The Work of Your Hands

Proverbs 10:4

Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth. God prospers you through your work. He does not bless nothing. He blesses something in your hands.

Every time God wanted to bless someone in scripture, he started with what they already had:

• Moses had a rod. God used it to divide the Red Sea.
• Peter had a boat. God used it, then filled it with more fish than it could hold.
• The widow had a little oil. God multiplied it to clear her debts.

God is not sending anything new from heaven. He is asking: what do you have? Start with it. He will bless the work of your hands.

Proverbs 13:11

Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears, but wealth from hard work grows over time. There are no shortcuts in kingdom prosperity. You gather by labor. Gathering by labor looks slow at the start — but it is the only kind of wealth that compounds.

How Does God Prosper? — Your Giving

Luke 6:38, Philippians 4:17-19

The second channel through which God prospers you is giving. Paul told the Philippian church: it is not that I seek a gift — but I seek the fruit that may abound to your account. Every time you give into kingdom work, you open a supernatural channel of return.

Philippians 4:19 — my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches — was spoken specifically to those who had given. It was not a general promise disconnected from the act of giving. It was God's response to the giving church.