Part of my faith journey includes some unsound doctrine, a wrong way of believing, that damaged me. I fell for the manipulation of the “name it and claim it” theology, otherwise known as the “prosperity gospel.” Part of this theology is the belief that we can make God move according to our will instead of moving into God’s will for our lives according to the authority of Scripture and His sovereignty.
According to gotquestions.org, “...Name it and claim it teachers tell us that we can use the ‘power of faith’ to create our own reality or get what we want. In essence, faith is redefined from ‘a trust in a holy and sovereign God despite our circumstances’ to ‘a way of controlling God to give us what we want.’ Faith becomes a force whereby we can get what we want rather than an abiding trust in God even during times of trials and suffering.”
A popular prosperity gospel preacher I used to listen to and swear by shared a way for me to get what I wanted, though I did not know it at the time, with the improper definition of faith.
One of the ways I did this was early on in my and my wife’s marriage. Like most husbands, I wanted to provide a house for my wife, and like many young married couples, I was 22, and my wife was 20, and our bank account laughed at that.
With nothing close to a down payment, I listened to the advice of that prosperity gospel preacher, and we took a picture in front of the house I wanted. I said a prayer “in faith” and walked away hoping that prayer was going to grant us the house. Not too long after that, the house sold, and my wife and I were still living in our apartment. So, why didn’t my prayer do what I wanted it to? Did I simply not have enough of this “faith?”
According to gotquestions.org, “...Name it and claim it teachers tell us that we can use the ‘power of faith’ to create our own reality or get what we want. In essence, faith is redefined from ‘a trust in a holy and sovereign God despite our circumstances’ to ‘a way of controlling God to give us what we want.’ Faith becomes a force whereby we can get what we want rather than an abiding trust in God even during times of trials and suffering.”
A popular prosperity gospel preacher I used to listen to and swear by shared a way for me to get what I wanted, though I did not know it at the time, with the improper definition of faith.
One of the ways I did this was early on in my and my wife’s marriage. Like most husbands, I wanted to provide a house for my wife, and like many young married couples, I was 22, and my wife was 20, and our bank account laughed at that.
With nothing close to a down payment, I listened to the advice of that prosperity gospel preacher, and we took a picture in front of the house I wanted. I said a prayer “in faith” and walked away hoping that prayer was going to grant us the house. Not too long after that, the house sold, and my wife and I were still living in our apartment. So, why didn’t my prayer do what I wanted it to? Did I simply not have enough of this “faith?”
We cannot manifest anything in our lives. The only One who has the power to create something out of nothing is God.
No, my issue wasn’t that I did not have enough faith; rather, I put my faith in the wrong thing. I had faith in my words rather than having faith in The Word—Jesus. I treated Jesus like Santa Claus. Rather than praying to get to know God, I was praying to God in the same way a child writes gifts on a list.
While we can and should come before God with all of our needs and requests, we must know that we are not able to speak things into existence. We cannot manifest anything in our lives. The only One who has the power to create something out of nothing is God.
As the Apostle John wrote in John 1:3, All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created.
The primary purpose of a relationship with God is to have a relationship with God. Pursue God with the intent of deeply and truly knowing Him simply for the aim of knowing Him.
While we can and should come before God with all of our needs and requests, we must know that we are not able to speak things into existence. We cannot manifest anything in our lives. The only One who has the power to create something out of nothing is God.
As the Apostle John wrote in John 1:3, All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created.
The primary purpose of a relationship with God is to have a relationship with God. Pursue God with the intent of deeply and truly knowing Him simply for the aim of knowing Him.
This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent—Jesus Christ.
— John 17:3
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