“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 13:19-21
“DUMP YOUR JUNK,” the man told his companions at the table where he sat in a crowded cafeteria as I walked by his table to return to my own. “All you have to do to prosper is to DUMP YOUR JUNK and trade it in for whatever you want,” he undoubtedly would tell his listeners. I groaned inside, then interrupted him and began to tell his listeners the truth of the true Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ as I had been telling my friends at my own table. The DUMP-YOUR-JUNK man was NOT pleased! Though I got as far as only a sentence or so, it was enough to capture his audience’s attention. This man was not the first person I had heard at this jam-packed gathering focused on the so-called false “prosperity gospel” that all we need to do is DUMP THE JUNK of anything in our lives we don’t want and exchange it for our hearts’ desires. I wanted to SCREAM, but instead started to return to my own table when something totally wild happened! I WOKE UP! To my total shock, I had been having a NIGHTMARE!
Nothing in this life scares, grieves, and burdens me more than watching this world live in rebellion with its back turned to God, headed straight for hell and the lake of fire, with countless false teachers INSIDE and OUTSIDE innumerable churches proclaiming the deadly teaching I was once under – that we can wave our magic wands at God and get all the money, luxury, pleasure, happily-ever-after relationships, etc. we want by turning in the “junk”, i.e. anything that makes us uncomfortable, hurts, is hard, makes us suffer, is challenging, doesn’t fulfill our expectations, lusts, selfish dreams, etc. And that we can live for ourselves to fulfill our wishes, ways, and wants, being lukewarm about God at best or neglecting Him altogether at worst, living by the world’s wicked ways, then trollop off to heaven licking our chops over our earthly treasures and pleasures, tell Jesus, “Sure, I believe in you,” and move into our heavenly mansions. The ONLY way to a forever relationship with God and heaven is to REPENT, BELIEVE IN GOD, and LIVE FOR CHRIST. DUMP YOUR JUNK? The junk we need to dump is our sinful ways so we can live to love, worship, and serve God forever! The PROSPERITY promised Christ’s followers is forgiveness, love, hope, joy, peace, freedom, mercy, grace, rest, etc. in Christ and inexpressibly amazing forever fellowship with God. There’s only one true Gospel of Christ. If you’re not living by it, you’re hell-bound. Earthly prosperity is fleeting; prosperity in Christ is everlasting!