Wishing You Prosperity

The apostle John wrote a letter to a friend, to the well-beloved Gaius. At the beginning of this letter John expressed a wish. He wished Gaius all good, prosperity and health. At the beginning of a new year, we also wish each other all good things. They are the best of wishes, many blessings, a blessed new year. We also wish each other prosperity and health - prosperity in your work, at school, among your friends, in your family circle, and health - a matter of such great importance.

Who must give this prosperity and health? We ourselves cannot do so, no matter how we do our best, which is our duty. Indeed, everything is dependent upon the blessing of the Lord. With health, no matter how careful we are, how quickly it can change if the Lord does not prevent it.

How shall our wishes be fulfilled? We can wish each other much, but we can give each other nothing. Then how must we receive prosperity and health? Indeed, it is only the Lord who can give us these things. Let our prayer then be unto Him, also for the things of natural life. He alone can give them, and without Him we can do nothing.

There are two things which I wish to mention. Our catechism says that we must pray to Him for all things necessary for soul and body. But we must not do this as if we have more or less right to these things. We have lost our rights when we fell away from God in Paradise, and our sins of the past year indicate this. Do you believe this - that we have lost all rights? Then our prayers are different, for we then beg as an unworthy one. Therefore our prayers for prosperity and health must actually always include, “Thy will be done,” for the Lord is free to give or not to give. This is easily written, but to accept it is a real lesson, a lesson from God's Spirit. It is for this reason that we must never be boastful with what we receive. Indeed, we should ask in addition, “Teach me to use my life and the gifts which Thou dost give in Thy service.

The second thing I would mention is that there is written, “Work and pray.” This means if you pray for God's blessing upon your work and do not do your best, there is something wrong. If you ask the Lord for His protection and behave recklessly in traffic, then your prayer is a curse.

After his wish, John wrote, “even as thy soul prospereth.” Can that also be said of us? By nature it cannot, for without God and His converting grace there is no true spiritual prosperity. Then we live for ourselves, either in a worldly way or decently in a religious way. Then we have no prosperity, but expect eternal destruction. Therefore the wonder of regeneration is first of all necessary. Let our first wish, our first petition be, “Lord, convert me.” Then we will forsake sin and be filled with a sorrow after God. For one who receives something of the love of God in his heart will find that he is living without God. And he will not be able to bear being without God. He begins to see the Lord and to say farewell to the world. He will begin to distrust himself, also in his pious life, for the hearts is so deceitful and actually always centers on self. For that reason the prayer will so often be, “Search me, O God, and know my heart.”

Prosperity of the soul is that you may learn to know the Lord in His Son Jesus Christ, and that you may by faith flee unto Him with all your sins and all your cares. It is that you, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, may trust your all to Him, resting upon His mercy in Christ. This is only possible because the Child of Bethlehem has come to seek lost ones. God continues to show His good pleasure by His dealings in this new year. It is this prosperity of soul that we wish in the first place for each other in this year, and, in addition, also prosperity and health. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” May the Lord grant this in grace to all of us.

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