From the very beginning God has wanted His people to increase. In the Garden the very first words the man heard were: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it" (Genesis 1:28). Tradition has taught us that the word "multiply" in this verse is talking about childbirth and increasing the population. But the real meaning of the Hebrew word in this scripture is "to increase (in order) to bring in abundance." In other words, God was telling the man to go forth and increase: increase the Garden, increase the Kingdom, increase his dominion, increase his possessions and increase his authority. Multiplying the population was just one of many facets of the increase God had in mind because He was actually speaking in this verse about creating abundance in every area of existence.

Abundance means to have more than enough, an overflowing provision. Abundance has always been God's way. Genesis 2:11-12 describes the Garden of Eden as having an abundance of precious metals and stones. Malachi 3:10 challenges Believers to test God by tithing to see if He will not open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing until it overflows. Jesus reconfirmed God's intention to continue providing abundant life in John 10:10 and He told us in Luke 6:38 that when we give we can expect it to be given back, a good measure-pressed down, shaken together, and running over (overflowing). The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 9:7- 8 that in response to your cheerful giving, God will provide an abundance from which you will be able to do every good work and bless others.

In sum, God has always had abundance on His mind for His children including abundant finances and possessions. Abundance is always achieved through a process of continuous increase. By the blessing or favor of God we are empowered to increase. In the Old Testament God's people such as Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, David, Solomon and others were all empowered to increase and prosper. Psalm 5:12 says God's people were surrounded with favor. Psalm 115:12-15 says that God always blesses His children and gives them the increase.

The truth is God is so interested in seeing you increase He's trying to help you do it. The Hebrew word "tsalach" is often translated "prosperity" or "success" in the Old Testament and is defined as an increase that comes from being pushed forward. In other words, true Biblical increase comes as a result of assistance from a stronger power. It's a greater increase than you are able to obtain on your own so you need help to get it. Therefore "tsalach" prosperity manifests when God is pushing you into His increase and can only come when He's ordering your steps.

But there is more to this word "tsalach" because the full definition of it says that God wants to keep on pushing you until you actually experience a "breakthrough" or "breakout" into the fullness of abundance in every area of your life. This is the real increase our loving God has for us. His type of prosperity is greater than anything you can possibly imagine and He is the ONLY One who can deliver it. Open your concordance, study the Scripture for yourself and stop letting people and your enemy the devil rob you of the breakout that Jesus died for you to have!

Most of us have been hearing and believing traditional teaching so long, we have a tendency to try to fit what we read in the Word into the tradition. But friend what we desperately need to do is study the Word of God for ourselves so we can put a stop to the theft of our abundance via that tradition. The truth is God has purpose for your increase; there are reasons why He's pushing you into prosperity and abundance. Space is a limitation here in this Newsletter but we've listed below the major reasons from Scripture that demonstrate why God wants you to increase.

• So we can be a blessing to others (2 Corinthians 9:8) It's God's plan for His people that we come to live with an abundance out of which we can bless others, out of which there will be sufficiency for every good deed. We are to bless others individually and we are to bless His Church with our financial offerings. Indeed, we are much more able to bless others out of abundance than out of lack or poverty.
• So He will be magnified (Psalm 35:27) When God's people are prosperous, God is magnified. He is honored. God is made larger in the eyes of those who see His increase. His reputation is increased and people want to be a part of what He is doing. They can't help but see that He's a good God and be drawn to Him.
• So we can be a testimony to His goodness There are many scriptures that tell us of the goodness of God. In fact, in Galatians 5:22 we find that goodness is one of His principal attributes. And it's God's desire that we tell others of His goodness so that they will want to be a part of His family. Who would want to be a part of a family that confers poverty and lack on its family members? Accordingly, God wants to use your increase as a testimony of the benefits of His Kingdom.
• In order to establish His covenant (Deuteronomy 8:18) God wants us to increase so His Kingdom can increase. How could the Kingdom of God ever increase based on a foundation of poverty and lack which came from the curse? In other words, He wants us to increase so the covenant with His Church can be validated and so we can be about the work of the Kingdom.
• So we can care for the poor (2 Corinthians 9:9) Jesus said we will always have the poor among us (Matthew 26:11) and the reason is because there are many who have not yet been able to escape the effects of the curse. In the meantime we are to care for the poor out of the abundant increase Christ RESTORED us to (Galatians 3:13-14) and then show them how to come out of the curse and into His blessing and increase.
• So we will not turn to other gods (Deuteronomy 8:18) In other words, a condition of increase will remind us that our source is God so we will be grateful and not move our allegiance to other gods, so we will not lift up idols in our lives that are more important to us than God.
• So we will pray and call upon Him (Jeremiah 29:11-12) The Lord has always had plans to prosper us because it's the best way to establish the relationship with us that He desires and because of His profound love for His Church. Certainly He knows that if we were consigned to poverty and lack, we would be less likely to pursue a relationship with Him.

Scripture clearly demonstrates that God wants you to increase financially; it does NOT say He frequently or even occasionally withholds it. Indeed, God is love and how could a God who is love want anything for His children other than the increase and prosperity He Himself enjoys? Also, withholding your increase would be in conflict with His stated purposes for you to have it. In reality financial lack comes from sin and from the curse which God would never use against His own children. The devil uses the curse, not God. Therefore, if any are lacking increase today, you need to find out why because it's not coming from God.

Most Christians are often frustrated about their finances. Many are discontent and some are even mad at God because He's not answering their pleas for mercy and financial relief. The reality is most of us DO face money trials from time to time and eventually we have come to the realization that it's NOT God who's withholding our increase. The real reasons can be found in some other place probably within this partial list of shortcomings in our personal conduct that we ourselves can control:

• Insufficient faith: To increase in God we must believe that abundance is really what He wants for us. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Instead of believing the traditions of men, we must come to believe the Word of God without doubting and without questioning. Believe that God wants you to prosper because the Word says so and you will prosper. Strengthen your faith by studying the Word of God (Romans 10:17).
• Defective love walk: To increase in God we must walk in love doing our best to fulfill the love commandments of Christ (Matthew 22:37-40). The Scripture clearly says that the laws of biblical prosperity, or the principles of life that produce increase, are dependent upon these two love commandments: love the Lord with all your heart, soul and mind and love your neighbor as yourself.
• Poor stewardship: God requires us to be diligent and faithful with the little that is initially given to us so we can qualify for future increase (Matthew 25:23, Luke 19:17). We become stewards over what God gives, meaning we have the responsibility to manage it and cause it to increase. Good stewardship is when we increase what God has given us in agreement with the Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit. Then He can give us more to manage.
• Reluctant or inadequate giving: The Bible says that he who is a cheerful giver and sows bountifully will reap bountifully (increase) to the point of all sufficiency and abundance (2 Corinthians 9:6-8). This is a key principle to see increase manifested in your life. A key part of your giving must be your acceptance of tithing as a means for God to open the windows of Heaven and pour out overflowing increase (Malachi 3:10).
• Unrighteous motivations: If your motivation is to get rich and pile up resources (treasure) here on earth, you're not going to see much increase. The Bible says that the man who stores up treasure for himself is not rich towards God (Luke 12:21). And the one who is not rich towards God is unable to qualify for increase. If you seek first the Kingdom of God you won't need to pile up treasure because your personal needs will be taken care of (Matthew 6:33). Instead of stockpiling your increase, you are to use it for the purposes listed in the previous section.
• Disobedience: Although Jesus went to the Cross of Calvary to redeem us from the Curse, we can put ourselves back under it by the sin of disobedience. The result of the curse is decrease instead of increase. Willful sins of any type produce the same result because they are all forms of disobedience. It's not God who causes the decrease. No, it's the devil working through the Curse that you opened the door to when you decided to sin.
• Failure to forgive: Jesus said in Matthew 18:34-35 that if we refuse to forgive others we will be turned over to the "tormentors" or "torturers" until we have changed our attitude. Lack of forgiveness is one of the worst things we can involve ourselves in if we are expecting to see increase manifested in our lives. The tormentors operate out of the Curse so we will always reap decrease when we refuse to forgive others.
• Loving the World: The Bible says we are not to love the World or the things of the World (1John 2:15). But because we live in it and beside it, we are constantly tempted to lust after the things the World offers. Scripture goes on to say that when we love the World, the love of the Father is not in us and if that is missing then we are subject to the Curse and to the decrease, disruption, corruption and fear it will bring to our lives.
• Failure to take authority over the devil: The Bible says in Ephesians 2:6 that we have been raised up with Christ to be seated with Him in the heavenly places. This means we have total authority over Satan by the name of Jesus (Ephesians 1:20-23). If we don't take authority over the devil and kick him out of our lives, he will enter in and disrupt everything. And he must be continually resisted which most Christians forget to do with the result that the devil steals our property (see John 10:10) and we decrease instead of increase.

Since the beginning in the Garden, God has been the Lord of the INCREASE and He wants YOU to prosper so you can accomplish His purposes. INCREASE speaks to the very nature of God including His love, His propensity for giving and His desire to produce abundance in whatever He does.

Satan's plan on the other hand has always been to block that INCREASE because He knows that if he can cut off the flow of funds to the Church, he can impede the expansion of God's Kingdom on earth. Therefore, INCREASE is not something we should avoid or even be neutral about; it's something to pursue so that we can be used to establish the Kingdom and to advance God's agenda.

Thanks for reading Prosperous Life Newsletter today. God bless you and we'll see you again in three weeks on February 20.

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Jesus I believe in you and I receive You as my Lord and Savior. I believe You are the Son of God and that He raised You from the dead. Thank you that my sins are forgiven and that I am reborn, a new creature in You.

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