Welcome to the Further Gospel podcast. My name is Costi Hinn and I have the pleasure of being your host. For the Gospel is all about providing sound doctrine for everyday people. And before we dig in on this episode, I have a huge announcement. For the Gospel is hosting its first ever conference. That's right. We're hosting our first ever conference. We're covering dating and courtship. It's geared towards college-aged and young adult-aged individuals. And all of the information is on for thegospel.org, our website. Just click conferences and the registration info information and location information is all there. We're going to have at least four sessions of preaching, a live QA panel with special guests, food trucks, a band leading us in worship all conference long, including an extended worship night to open the conference, and a very special surprise, music related, I'll give that away, that will debut on opening night. I'm fired up about it. Our team is excited as well. It's September 24th and 25th in beautiful Southern California, hosted by our dear friends at Mission Bible Church in Costa Mesa. So our speakers, myself, our entire team, can't wait to meet you there. And the conference is college pricing. It's 30 bucks, and you'll get way more than your money's worth. So go to forthegospel.org, click conferences, and register. We'll see you there. On this episode, I want to deal with a particular passage that we get asked about a ton. Sometimes people send us messages and tell us we're wrong or tell us that the prosperity gospel is biblical. Other times people send us messages asking, what do I say or how do I deal with this passage that seems to back up the prosperity gospel? The passage in question is 2 Corinthians chapter 8, verse 9, in which Paul basically says something that if you don't take a good look at, you may end up thinking he's teaching the prosperity gospel. He says, For you know the grace of God through our Lord Jesus Christ, that through that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich. So basically, the idea that they would say Jesus became poor, so you could become rich. Look at that. In 2 Corinthians chapter 8, verse 9, Paul is teaching the prosperity gospel. Now we've gone on record on our show here in this ministry and across the board that prosperity gospel preachers are notorious for taking scripture out of context and misapplying it. The passages that they twist are usually, most always used as proof texts to back up their claim that it's God's will that every Christian be rich and healthy, wealthy, happy, and that God's going to give you all the things you ever wanted. A lot of them will promise that with enough faith and a big enough offering, you can land yourself a divine jackpot. And all of it seems too good to be true. And on this side of heaven, many would argue it is. In fact, a lot of people will get disillusioned with the prosperity gospel because after believing and believing and giving and giving, the promises don't come true. Because here's the hard truth. The prosperity gospel overpromises and underdelivers. But a passage like this makes you ask: are they completely wrong? Could it be that there's just one slam dunk passage that gives credence to their health and wealth scheme? Surely they're not all crazy. They're not just money-hungry greedmongers who are lying to everyone. There's got to be some biblical evidence. Or else, why in the world would they come up with this stuff? If there is one passage that you and I should understand when we're thinking through whether or not the prosperity gospel is biblical, it is 2 Corinthians 8 9. Again, Paul says, For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. That's the ESV translation. And so I want to take you through a clear understanding of this passage to equip you for conversations with people that would use this particular passage to back up the prosperity gospel. The first thing I want you to understand is that there is a beautiful picture of generosity and God's grace in this passage. To overlook the beautiful picture that Paul is painting in the whole chapter is to miss the entire point he's making. So context matters. That's what I'm referring to. The context of the chapter is a beautiful picture of generosity and God's grace. He's basically writing to the church about generosity. And Paul emphasizes the grace of God as a model for our giving, not as a lottery ticket for riches. Nothing about the passage we're talking about focuses on what we can get, but rather what we can give. And that is what should motivate us to be generous and care for others, that we can give something, that we can help, that we can serve, but even more than that, the grace of God has been so lavishly poured out upon us, so generously given to us that we are motivated to give. We look at the way God has given to us and we say, Wow, He's been so generous, so gracious with me, I want to be generous towards others. Let's look at some key phrases in the verses that lead up to our passage in question. First, in chapter 8, verse 1, he says, We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God. There's our first biggest clue in full context that he's talking about the grace of God through giving. In verse 2, he references a wealth of generosity on the part of these Christians. That means that there were people giving very large amounts or very gracious amounts. In verse 4, he talks about their giving being something that takes part in the relief of the saints. And so there's an important element there because again, this is outward-focused giving, not on me and what I can get and what I want and how God's going to make me rich, but no, I want to I want to give relief to the saints. In verse six, he calls it an act of grace. In verse seven, he says, But as you excel in everything, see that you excel in this act of grace also. So again, grace is tied to giving. Verse eight, your love is also genuine, not just grace, but love. Grace is shown when we give to others, and so is our love. And then in verse nine, he mentions again, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. So what's Paul getting at here? He's getting at, again, the idea that God has been generous with grace as a model for us to be generous with our money. Not so we can get rich, but so that we can give generously towards others. When we let the text do the talking, we see this is not a get rich strategy. It is a call for sacrificial, unconditional, grace-driven generosity. Like in verse eight one, the churches of Macedonia. These are people who gave generously even when they were living in poverty. Verse 2 of chapter 8 says they gave out of their poverty. It demonstrates the grace of God to give that way. Did Paul declare them healthy and wealthy because they filled the offering buckets? No way. Instead, he praised them for modeling the true heart of Christian giving, non-transactional love for others, and a desire to see the church cared for. Then using Jesus as the original model for sacrifice, the call in this passage is to remember how generous God has been with us and then do likewise. Christ came to earth. He humbled himself by taking on flesh, he gave himself as a ransom for broken sinners. That's John 1 1. That's Philippians 2, 7 and 8, that's 1 Timothy 2, 5 and 6. He possessed all the riches of heaven, all the celestial glories this world has never seen, and yet he comes to earth. He becomes poor both spiritually and physically in comparison to his eternal dwelling place, in order to die for us, undeserved sinners. Because of him, we who are in Christ have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, Ephesians 1 3 says, and we now possess an eternally abundant life, John 10.10. Regardless of what you have in the bank right now, your net worth on earth is temporary, but your true riches in heaven are eternal because of Jesus. What in the world could be more generous than that? That is basically what Paul wants us remembering. So how do we put a passage like this into practice? Understanding it is one thing, then living it is another. Let me give you a few principles you can apply, and so you can put into practice 2 Corinthians chapter 8, verse 9, type of giving. Because if there's one thing the prosperity gospel preachers have right when they talk about this passage, is that, oh, it's about giving, but everything else they have wrong. From the motive, the drive, the heart behind it, all of it. They've only got one thing right. It's about giving. And so let's talk about the true heart of giving here. Number one, we want to commit to giving generously, regardless of our financial situation. You may say, whoa, whoa, whoa, are you telling me to go broke right now? Are you doing the prosperity gospel thing? Give till it hurts, give till you're broke, God will bless you. No, I'm pointing to the example of the Macedonians in this chapter from the Bible. In chapter 8, verse 4, Paul says that these Macedonians were begging to help in the relief of the saints. The Macedonians themselves were poor. These are poor people helping other people. And so what's the point there? Well, basically, you can give generously, regardless of your financial situation. I can too. It might be a dollar, it might be ten dollars, it might be a million dollars. We're not talking about amounts here. We're talking about giving in whatever situation we find ourselves in in order to be generous and show love and care for others. God is not interested in amounts, he's interested in your heart. And so are you holding on tightly to what he's given you? Do you sometimes forget that he's blessed you to be a blessing to others? Well, look to the example of the Macedonians in this chapter and ultimately to Christ. That is what the Bible is teaching, not all that other additional stuff that prosperity preachers add to people as a burden. Number two, we need to consider our giving as a means of grace. It can be loathsome for some people to give, but Christians are called to see it as a privilege. When you give to others, God is literally pouring out his grace on their life through you. It's a means of grace, it's showcasing the grace of God in action. Is there any other purpose for which we live than to be God glorifying conduits of his grace? No. Paul wants the church to reflect the grace of God in the way they give to others. And so we don't loathe giving. We need to learn to love giving. The Bible says that it's better to give than to receive. That's good advice. And it silences the motive and the heart behind giving that prosperity preachers drive home and it elevates the grace of God. Number three, we need to carefully examine where we are giving what God has given us. Jesus said, Where your treasure is, your heart will be also in Matthew 6, 21. Simply put, it matters where your money goes. That includes what ministries you give to, the way you give, all of it. God owns everything. We're managers of what He's given us. And so we uh we can say it this way: show me what you spend your paycheck on, and I'll show you your priorities. So we have to ask ourselves, does my giving reflect God's will? What I do with my money, what you do with your money matters. Do you partner with trusted and proven ministries? Are the priorities of family care, needy souls, the orphan, the widow, the poor, missionary efforts? Is all of that reflected in the way you give? It may not be all at once. Not everybody can give to five or six different ministries at once. Some people can, but overall, does what the Bible teach about giving and the way the Macedonians were focused in their giving serve as an example to you? Is materialism grabbing hold of your heart? The best way to wrestle it back down is to be generous with God's work and God's money. Remember this wealth is not a sin, it's a responsibility. And so we want to use it well and handle with care. That's a message that prosperity preachers won't usually tell you. They'll tell you just to give to them and do this and so this, and they're always giving you the sales pitch and then telling you God's just gonna make you rich. It's like those salespeople that want to talk so fast and throw so many things at you that are so amazing about the benefits of what you're gonna do and what you're gonna get that you never have a moment to just stop and think. Well, the Bible comes at us from a completely different angle. Paul is logical in the way he writes, the Holy Spirit is perfect in the way that he authors the scriptures. He wants you to read and understand the plain meaning of the text. Second Corinthians chapter 8, verse 9 is not a slam dunk verse for the prosperity gospel. In fact, it's simply a picture that paints this idea right here. God has been so generous with his grace, sending his son to become poor so that we might become rich spiritually. And so, just like he has been lavish with grace and generous with grace, holding back nothing, so too we should be generous with our giving, holding back nothing, serving others, seeking to, like the Macedonians, give relief to the saints and propel the work of God forward. Absolutely nothing in the context of this passage as well would affirm the prosperity gospel. If anything, one could argue that this passage demands prosperity preachers empty their coffers and follow Christ's example, generously becoming poor so that others could become rich. The simple reality is if even the impoverished Macedonians could eagerly care for others as a means of God's grace, we can as well, no matter what our situation. Thank you for listening to this episode of For the Gospel. I hope this has helped you better understand 2 Corinthians chapter 8, verse 9. And hopefully I've offered you some talking points with friends or family members who adhere to the prosperity gospel. Don't forget, there is conference information on for thegospel.org. You can register for our courtship and dating conference in Southern California this September. And if you're looking for a deeper dive into the prosperity gospel, I've written a book called God Greed and the Prosperity Gospel. It's available on Amazon. I share a bit of my backstory when I was in that world and then talk about the biblical truth as it relates to salvation, the sovereignty of God, and things like money and the abuses of the prosperity gospel. I hope that book serves you well if you haven't read it yet. Thank you for your support. Thank you for your prayers of this ministry. And don't forget, if you are one who supports our ministry, all of this is outside of the support you should be offering to your local church. Always make sure to be supporting your local church work and missionaries abroad. And of course, we're always thankful as you partner with us for the gospel. We'll be back next Monday with another episode. Keep on living for the gospel.