There’s typically two ways that Christians generally associate their spiritual beliefs with material prosperity. One way Christians do so follows the stream of the prosperity gospel, which says that the seeds of one’s personal godliness will yield a harvest of material prosperity. The other way, however, is often opposite (and perhaps reactionary), which is that the degree of our godliness is indicated by the degree of our un-materialism. (This view, too, is also unbiblical and actually, just as dangerous as the prosperity gospel.
Unfortunately, it seems like many Christians find themselves on either side of the spectrum, or hopelessly oscillating in between the two extremes. But is there another option? Stewardship, yes. But should we ever feel guilty for having material prosperity? How does the gospel speak that situation?
The gospel enables us to truly enjoy earthly blessings.
At first glance, many people might object and express that, “well…the gospel frees us from feeling like we have to live for those things in order to be happy, but I don’t know if there is a connection between the gospel of Jesus then allowing me to enjoy material things…that seems a little far-fetched, or unrelated”. Well first off, it is completely accurate to say that the gospel frees us from feeling like we have to live for material things. However, let’s go one step further:
If the gospel frees us from feeling like we must have material blessings in order to be existentially satisfied or full, then it also means that since our joy is not dependent on those things anymore, we can now truly enjoy them.
Think about it this way: If I am on an island where resources and food are scarce, and I haven’t eaten in two days, what do you think will happen when I spot a juicy red delicious apple hanging from a nearby tree? Will I nonchalantly walk towards the tree and yawn as I take my time picking it off and cleaning it before a slow consumption? Absolutely not. I am going to disregard all obstacles and everything else in my path, sprint to that tree, yank the apple off the limb, and devour it as fast as I can.
Now, let’s go to the far opposite side of the spectrum and hypothesize that it is Thanksgiving day and my grandma cooked (which means by her grace we will have leftovers until Christmas morning). Because of the endless abundance of incredible food offered to me here, how would my approach be different from the island episode?
Well, for starters, that juicy red delicious apple would be multiplied and transfigured into an amazing batch of cinnamon baked apples. But the point is that I can truly enjoy the Thanksgiving meal because I am not depending on it to survive. In addition, there is abundance that cannot possibly be depleted, so I don’t need to worry about its fleetingness once each bite passes. My stomach will exhaust the food, yes, but there is an inexhaustible supply, so I am free from having to worry about running out, which gives me the peace in my feast to truly enjoy it.
But let’s go one step farther: Even after a hearty dinner for satisfaction’s sake, let’s say ice cream is served simply as a bonus. Well, because I am already full, I am able to truly enjoy that sweet bonus; indeed, I am not depending on it to fill me anymore, because I am already about to bust at the seams in fullness. In the case of the island, the apple was not enjoyed because it was seen through consumer-needy spectacles as an essential for satisfying my hunger.
And I use the food analogies of Thanksgiving meal and island starvation to make an extravagant point. But how much more so does the fullness of joy in Christ fill us to truly enjoy any other blessings?
Similarly, apart from Christ, we depend on luxury, earthly comfort, wealth, status, opportunity, and any other blessing to bring us ultimate joy. And when we desperately depend on those things to quench our soul’s thirst that only God can satisfy in the gospel, we don’t really get to truly enjoy them as blessings. Rather, we approach earthly goods as a means of extraction and consumption, only to move on to the next. All the while wondering why those things—in whatever amount—still aren’t enough. Thus, we approach earthly blessings as a means to fulfill our satisfaction, the ends. However, if we fully value and partake in the fullness of the gospel, we are freed to not approach earthly things as means to fulfilling those ends. Instead, because we are already full, we can enjoy the earthly blessing simply for what it is. No transaction necessary of blessing for satisfaction. The gospel says you are full. Now enjoy everything else.
In addition, when we depend on luxury, earthly comfort, wealth, status, opportunity, and any other blessing to bring us ultimate fulfillment, it makes our joy and its capacity very shallow. Indeed, it is only as deep as the temporary objects it is being rooted in to nourish our soul.
To be sure, your joy is only as deep, full, wide, and strong as what you are rooting it in.
But if the gospel becomes your ultimate and deepest joy, then you are freed to truly enjoy all material blessings because you are not depending on it for your joy. It then becomes a blessing of grace, instead of a quick fix for a longing.
The gospel frees you from depending on earthly things to be happy, but it frees you to truly enjoy earthly things. It frees you from despair when those things are depleted or simply unavailable altogether. But it also frees you to enjoy everything else that is afforded to you—thus creating a person who is “truly content and rejoicing in all circumstances” because their treasure is above in the heavenly places where moth and rust cannot destroy and is not susceptible to earthly circumstances (Phil 4). When earthly blessing is afforded to you, you can rejoice. But when it is not, you not only don’t have to despair, but you can also rejoice. The gospel creates an impeccable person in the midst of all circumstances, because it grounds them in the things of heaven which do not change.
Earthly blessing are an added ounce of another form of grace in your life that you don’t deserve. Earthly blessings therefore become an additive blessing to your joy, not an essential for your joy. It’s a world of difference.
“Because we love something else more than this world, we love even this world better than those who know no other” -C.S. Lewis
