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David Olugbenga - My Blog
David Olugbenga - My Blog
Why you may be in Poverty?
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Poverty is Terrible: Should a True Christian be Poor?

Let us ask ourselves, as matter of fact “Why do we keep having the poor among us in the presence of God?” Why will a Christian who claim to serve God be poor and be in debt? Is it the plan of God for a good Christian top be rich? Are God’s people misunderstanding Him?
Before we can clarify the above issues through the Bible, we must first get the understanding of few points that are directly related to why people may be poor. These three words are interealated; Poverty, Financial Bondage and Devourer. Now let us start form the first and most common used among people, including the believers.

Definitions of poverty are culturally specific, and thus relative to the social norms and expectations endemic to a given nation-state. However, the condition of absolute poverty (i.e. lacking the income to maintain a minimum diet) is acknowledged worldwide.

Poverty could be seen as the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions Poverty is the state of being without, often associated with need, hardship and lack of resources across a wide range of circumstances.

If you are poor you may be impoverished "To be impoverished is to lack or be denied adequate resources to participate meaningfully in society.
It is a state in which a family’s income is too low to be able to buy the quantities of food, shelter and clothing that are deemed necessary. A person is “poor” or “in poverty” if they reside in a household with income below the poverty threshold, as defined by the world economic analyst.
Poverty is also usually defined by Economists with reference to a poverty line, i.e. if a household earns an income lower than a set amount, that household and its members should be living.
The state of being poor is lack of income for providing material needs.

Anywhere people are poor; they always; have no savings, own very little and often have low living standards.
It is my prayer you shall refuse to be poor in the name of Jesus. Amen

Bible did not specifically define poverty but he mentioned some attribute and signs of poverty. Proverbs 19: 7 says: “A poor man is shunned by all his relatives— how much more do his friends avoid him! Though he pursues them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found.”

The bible talked about poor person as someone who has nothing 2 Samuel 12:3 says: “but the poor man had nothing…”
Poverty is a very ugly phenomenon; it is not good to be poor. Poverty is attributed to a curse. We must pray and work to reject it in our life.

Let us look at the other issue closely related to the concept of poverty, “Financial Bondage”.

Financial bondage is a close associate to poverty. Anyone in debt understands that the borrower is servant to the lender. Proverbs. 22:7 say:” The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” People who are poor are more vulnerable to financial bondage. Poor will borrow and unable to pay back. Why go borrow: Because they live below poverty line. Poor people struggle to feed themselves. I pray at the end of your reading this truth, you will no more struggles to feed yourself again in Jesus name. Amen.
Financial bondage may involve poverty or debt. Financial bondage is also a situation where you constantly worry about material things, and work to obtain them. It is critical as Poverty itself.
Many marriages and lives are destroyed by financial bondage every day. And poverty is connected to this form of bondage, such as addictions, violence, sickness, and broken families. There's another aspect to financial bondage that I will like to underscore here. It is a situation where you put your trust in Money or material wealth rather than spiritual riches. In this area, the perceived rich people can be as much in bondage as poor people. That has to do with attitude. Jesus said, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matt. 6:21).
In the bible God uses a word as regard poverty “Devourer”. Devourer is more of a noun it suggests in all statement that God is referring to a creature that is dangerous to human living.
In the true sense of it this devourer could be seen as the devil. He roams about seeking who he may devour.
Devourer as a matter of fact will be seen as the mother of all the aforementioned. Come to look at it again, devourer could be described from the product of its action. Sickness could be seen as devourer, for example; if someone is infected with diseases that look incurable you keep spending your wealth to regain good health. What about when one presents a proposal for business and you took loan from Bank to execute the project waiting for your money to be paid and instead of getting paid for a job well done you file a suit in court for you to claim you payment. Yes you eventually claim your payment but already the money had been expended on the case pursuit and also the interest of the bank has also eating into it. We could think of so many areas where a devourer could operate in people’s life. May God check devourer in every areas of our life in Jesus name.
Devourer being the root causes of most poverty should be the point at which cure for poverty must be sought. It is in my own opinion that we play smart, prevention is better than cure. In a not shell, we are saying, poverty is preventable. That is why you have been provided this book.
Having talked briefly on these issues, let us now examine some causes of Poverty in people’s life. In addition to knowing these causes, we should be able to understand the links between Poverty, Bondage and Devourer.
Some Causes and links to poor living.
Idleness/Laziness: - Since man fall from Gods glory in the Garden of Eden, God decried that: “Out of man sweat he shall eat”. Because God is so merciful to us he also promised that he will bless his own through the work of their hand. This is the reason the bible make it clear that anyone who does not work deserve not to eat. For someone who has got nothing done, poverty is in evitable.
Idleness is not a channel through which man can be blessed. So for anyone aspiring to be rich or blessed don’t be lazy.
It must also be noted that Laziness and idleness can come in various forms for example, a when your feeling is telling you that if you do not get a job worth some amount you will not do. It could also come in form of lack of dignity for labour i.e. when you think a job is too low for your standard. And many more.
To get yourself engaged you must look beyond every obstacle and you will have to see every obstacle as a stepping stone to your next level.
Devourer:- this is another causes of poverty. This is more dangerous among the causes because it is no respecter of anybody. Devourer only respects God. Devourer can cause poverty for anyone even to the rich. Even if you have good job devourer may still cause poverty and if you have no job, devourer may cause more chronic poverty to such a person.
Sighting a brief example of effect of a devourer, if someone collects good salary or earn better income, but every time you collect the money you have to spend it on sickness. That sickness becomes your devourer. Sin in most cases brings about devourer. A young man was employed in one of the leading banks as a head of operation, with his good salary he is not married he has no parents. He only needs to cater for himself. The young man is paid up to N250, 000 in a month. One thing I discovered in the life of this man is that he never has savings instead of savings he manage debt. So I tried to give his situation a critical look after which I found that the young man has about 6 girl friends of high society class. Each of the girls on their outing will cost this guy nothing less than N20, 000 to maintain. You can see how the sin of fornication brought devourer on the young man. Though he works in good place placed on good salary but with devourer on his side, he is in financial bondage.
Many are like this young man, all you need do is to examine yourself and turn to God who could get devourer off you life.
Bondage: - another cause of poverty in man’s life is bondage of all types. One could be held in the bondage of dark people and they will attach your financial ability. Witches and wizards could cast spell on you source of finance. That is why you may see some today they work like an elephant but eat like a mouse. Some are in bondage that with their better qualification for a particular job, but if they applied the employers may be scared of hiring them for they look too qualified. Some are in bondage of pride. When they are at verge of their success the pride will then chase away their helper. Some are also in the bondage of over ambition. They will be asked to submit proposals for work, instead of keeping within reasonable price, they may put outrageous price and by so doing the job goes to other people.
In the other way, the bondage situation may also be seen as devourer if it is not quickly broken.
An important thing to note on this issue of bondage and devourer is that those involved rarely notice the effect. It looked like a normal situation. It takes the grace of God to be aware of these unbroken curses.
People are poor because many are living in various form of bondage, many are living with devourer and some are lazy they have no outlet through which poverty could get out of their life.
Create a channel today for poverty to flow out of your life. Get knowledge get understanding.
We may now look into the position of God as regard Christian and wealthy living. Examine this bible quotes and you will see clearly what God planned for his people.

“For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
-Jeremiah 29:11

“And you will be called priests of the LORD; you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast.”
- Isaiah 61:6
“Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to...”
- Deuteronomy 15:10
“You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." 18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.” - Deuteronomy 8:17-18
“Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God.”
- Ecclesiastes 5:19
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”
-Malachi 3:10
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
-Luke 6:38
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” -John 10:10

Having understood the above, let us consider what a Christian wealthy living entails. Christian is not to live life as unbelievers; the watchword for a Christian wealthy living is simplicity. Christian life is centered on charitable giving. The different between a rich man and a rich Christian is that; a Rich Man value his wealth more than his soul but a Christian value his soul more than his wealth. That is why for a rich Man to give charitably it is difficult but for a Christian, it is not a big deal. No wonder Jesus said it is more difficult for a rich man to make heaven that for a camel to pass through the eye of a niddle. How you would know a rich man and a rich Christian in your church is when it comes to giving to the work of God. They look more realistic than Spiritual. When ever the church needs to carryout a project, they will be the one to ask if how the church will get the money. They will even go to the level of making the Pastor feel he is over ambitious. In the book of Acts 4:32, 34-35 (NIV) All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had... There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need. God is calling all of us to let go of our possessions.
A Christian wealthy living is centered on promoting Kingdom of God; they work for money not because they want a better life for themselves but as a person who want to make impact in the work of God. A rich Christian will invest his money with a primary purpose of serving God.
Jesus Christ said “He is poor that we may be rich” this does not mean Jesus is really poor, but because he denied himself the comfort he should be enjoying, so as to save you and I, he is seen as been poor. What are Christians for? What will be your joy in heaven when you ride in exotic cars and your fellow brethren are swiming in poverty? Jesus told the Rich man; “sell off your possession and give to the poor”. Yes, I Know it is very difficult, but it is realistic, it is our Christian mandate. Without it we may not make heaven. “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world at the expense of his soul?” We must know the mind of God for his people. For the heaven seekers, in the book of Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”. Say amen to this if only you are obedient servant of God.
Simplicity is the watch word for a wealthy Christian living. Display your wealth only to the glory of God. God that sees in secrete will reward you in the open.
Before we begin to share the top secrete of making wealth in the way of God, let us underscore some benefit of obedience and keeping to God’s instructions. The primary purpose for God’s gift of the bible is in learning basic step in using our bible to get instant answer to our prayers. Understanding the fact that: Bible is Instructional Manual from God” is a giant step into getting the secrete we are about sharing in this book.
Bible is Instructional Manual from God.
First and foremost we must appreciate the bible as the instruction and manual to God’s kingdom.
When a manufacturer makes a machine it also provides an instruction manual on how to operate the machine. When God created the world, he also gave an instruction manual telling how it was designed to be operated. The Bible. It is the book of instructions written by the designer and manufacturer telling man how the world was designed to be operated. It is the instruction manual for the heart, soul and mind of man. What happens when you disregard the instructions in an instruction manual? You have trouble --- things go awry. When you follow God's instruction manual, everything works right and you have spiritual health, wealth, happiness and mental stability; when you disregard the instructions you have confusion, frustration, unhappiness, emotional imbalance and mental disarray.
Here are some tips that will help you on how biblical instruction may be followed. First ask yourself these three questions on every biblical text: 1. what does this text tell me about my need for grace? 2. What does this text tell me about the God of grace? 3. How does this text tell me to respond in faith to God's grace?
Then follow these hints:
Don't pretend to be "neutral: “We all have firmly held beliefs which we bring to the Scripture. Be open about what you believe, and be prepared to change what you believe if Scripture requires.


There is ultimately only one correct interpretation: Two contradictory interpretations cannot both be right. When two people in a small group have contradicting interpretations of a passage, at least one of them must be wrong, even if that sounds intolerant. We have to be concerned with truth. The only proper meaning of a passage is the meaning given to it by God, communicated to us through intelligible human language.

Remember to read the Bible as a needy sinner, not as a self-righteous legalist: We’re not to ask the text, “What do I have to do to make God like me today.” Jesus rejected the Pharisees because they searched the Scriptures, thinking that by them they could gain eternal life. Eternal life is free from Jesus for those who know they’re failures and want peace with God. When we open the Bible, we need to ask “How can God’s grace change me?” “How can I live in Christ’s life?”

We must seek God’s help in applying the biblical text to our lives: This is often difficult. The biblical books were written to different people thousands of years ago-- how can we apply them directly to ourselves? “Reading the Bible is like reading the mail of people who died 2,000 years ago.” But it is reading the account of what happened to some people in the past that is still relevant to people today and forever.
Fundamentally, the question is this: What do Christians at the twilight of the twentieth century have in common with ancient Israelites. SIN is the answer. Sin has infected every corner of our lives, leaving us hopeless and impudent, desperately needing a gracious God to restore us. This is our Fallen Condition, the state we find ourselves in, whereby we need Christ's redemptive work (his help) -- not just His forgiveness, but the ability to obey as well.

To bridge the gap and apply the Scriptures correctly to our lives, the following must be adhere strictly to:

FIRST: look for the Fallen Condition Focus in the biblical text. What problem was the Scripture originally addressing in its own historical context? Fear? Immorality? Lack of knowledge? Lack of hope? Lack of faith?

NEXT: look for how you and other Christians share in that same Fallen Condition. What do you have in common with those in the text?

THEN: ask the text, "How does God provide the grace and love (whether encouraging or disciplinary love) necessary for His people then and now?

Value and benefit of Obedience to God:
The key verse I will use to introduce the benefit of obedient to God is 1Samuel 15 verse 22 which says, "Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken that the fat of rams." Have you ever considered the context in which those words were spoken?
Saul had become king. Jehovah sent a message to him through Samuel, that he was to smite Amalek again and to utterly destroy all they had. Amalek is a type of the flesh and its lusts. King Saul was to war with them and destroy them all. The army of Saul was gathered together to do what Jehovah demanded of them; however, Saul and his people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings and the lambs. They would not destroy what they felt was good.
Saul said he had performed the commandment of the Lord when Saul knew that it was a lie. He sinned against the Lord because he feared the people and would not stand for what was right before God. Saul would not stand for what was right because he was afraid of the people. Finally Saul confessed his sin (v.24-31) and was willing to be obedient, rather than be disobedient to the Word of God.
In that context the writer of I Samuel says, "To obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken that the fat of rams." The most important thing you will ever do in life is to obey God.
The Bible has instances of both them who obeyed and those who disobeyed. It is the obedient that receives God’s richest blessings. Disobedience brings trouble while obedience brings blessing. A song says, "Trust and obey for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey."
Some of the benefits of obedience are that: you will have Satisfaction in God, Sweet testimony will be order of the day in your life, and Showers of blessings will be pure upon you, Smile of God will be to you and Safety in God is very sure.
It is not only good to be obedient to God; it is more beneficial to do so. It is indeed a way of life that ends in all round Joy here and the hereafter.
Having gotten this basic fact, then you can move to next level to understand other issues relating to connecting the plan of God for his people as regard making wealth and riches.

December 21, 2007 | 8:42 AM Comments  0 comments

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