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Prosperity doctrine: Changing views on money

The emphasis on 'prosperity' that began in the Pentecostal movement after its origin was not something new. Doctrine promising riches in the form of wealth from God were being formalised in the 1800s and earlier.

Alain de Botton, commenting in Status Anxiety on the shift from aristocracy to meritocracy that occurred towards the end of the eighteenth century and throughout the nineteenth century, observed that public perception on the relative virtues of the poor and the wealthy underwent somewhat of a reversal:

"An increasing faith in a reliable connection between merit and worldly position in turn endowed money with a new moral quality. When wealth had been handed down the generations according to bloodlines and connections, it was natural to dismiss the idea that money was an indicator of virtue besides that of having been born to the right parents. But in a meritocratic world, where prestigious and well-paid jobs could be secured only on the basis of one's own intelligence and ability, it now seemed that wealth might be a sound sign of character. The rich were not only wealthier; they might also be plain better." [1]
It's at this point that the relationship between Christianity - specifically, Protestantism - and the rise of meritocracy in America and the consequent explosion in prosperity become relevant. De Botton continues:

"Over the nineteenth century, many Christian thinkers, especially in the United States, changed their views of money accordingly. American Protestant denominations suggested that God required his followers to lead a life that was successful both temporally and spiritually; fortunes in this world were evidence that one deserved a good place in the next - an attitude reflected in the Reverend Thomas P. Hunt's bestseller of 1836, The Book of Wealth: In Which it is Proved from the Bible that it is the Duty of Every Man to Become Rich. Wealth came to be described as a reward from God for holiness. John D. Rockefeller was unabashed to state that it was the Lord who made made him rich, while William Lawrence, the Episcopal Bishop of Massachusetts, writing in 1892, argued: 'In the long run, it is only to the man of morality that wealth comes. We, like the Psalmist, occasionally see the wicked prosper, but only occasionally. Godliness is in league with riches.'" [1]
These were the signs of the newly emerging prosperity gospel in the middle of the nineteenth century. But the origin of modern-day prosperity doctrine heard in Pentecostal churches now all over the world are traced back further to the end of the eighteenth century and earlier. What is the origin of the prosperity movement, and how can we understand it? This will be the subject of discussion in articles coming up.

More on this topic

The origin of the prosperity doctrine - Part II

The origin of the prosperity doctrine - Part I

What Pentecostals believe about prosperity

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[1] De Botton, Alain. Status Anxiety, Camberwell, Vic. : Hamish Hamilton, 2004, p. 85.

talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on pentecost, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit Baptism: What it is & what it does

What is 'baptism in the Holy Spirit?' What does it do? Why is it given? Arguably the simplest teaching in the New Testament on the purpose of this experience is Titus 3:5-6. [1]

"...He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior..." (Titus 3:5-6, NIV).
In context Titus 3:3-8 is all about conversion. Firstly, Titus 3:3 describes Christians prior to their conversion as foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures, living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. Titus 3:4 then describes salvation by the mercy of God: he saved us because of his kindness and love, not because of things we did.

Then in Titus 3:5-6 Paul describes God's method of saving people. Titus 3:5 is particularly helpful because it describes what God's outpouring of his Spirit achieves; it teaches what baptism in the Spirit does. And what this verse states is that salvation occurs by God pouring out his Spirit on us, giving us the washing of rebirth and renewal.

This language describing God's activity of 'pouring out' the Spirit is unambigous; it is without doubt a description of 'baptism with the Spirit.' Firstly, the language echos the events of Pentecost themselves and their repeat amongst the first Gentile Christians. In fact, the references in Acts 2 and Acts 10 to the Spirit being 'poured out' on the day of Pentecost and on Cornelius' household are the only other examples in the New Testament of this phrase being used in connection with the Spirit:
Acts 2:17-18, "'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy."
Acts 2:33, "Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear."
Acts 10:45, "The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles."
Acts 2:17-18, Acts 2:33 and Acts 10:45 are all cases where Pentecostals obviously maintain that baptism in the Spirit is what is in view. Titus 3:6 is no different. It likewise describes 'baptism in the Spirit.'

Secondly, the result of the outpouring of the Spirit in Titus 3:5 matches the language of baptism, for it says that God 'washes' us by this Spirit. 'Washing' by the Spirit is similar to washing with water in everyday baptism. Water-baptism, however, merely signifies the removal of uncleanliness to God. Spirit-baptism actually make people clean before God. And the rest of the sentence explains how.

By saying that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit gives the 'washing of rebirth and renewal', this verse teaches that baptism in the Spirit makes people clean from sin by the Spirit's activity of regeneration, whereby he brings to life a new spirit in a person previously dead in sin.

Titus 3:6 goes on to describe God's purpose in this work of salvation: it is "so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life." Here the Apostle Paul links justification by grace and baptism in the Holy Spirit, similarly to the Apostle Peter who linked forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit. For Peter said on the day of Pentecost to his audience of unconverted Jews, "Repent and be baptized... for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38, NIV) In other words, baptism with the Spirit is how Christ washes away sins.

Titus 3:5-6 unavoidably shows that Spirit-baptism is about salvation. This passage is not difficult to read and apply correctly, as can be passages in the gospels and Acts narratives. This is direct teaching in the form of clear instruction by the Apostle to Christians, and as such should be the place to start when building a doctrine of 'baptism in the Spirit.'

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[1] 1 Corinthians 12:13 also contains clear teaching on 'baptism in the Spirit' and describes its purpose.

[2] Romans 5:5 also describes God's outpouring of his love into our heats by his gift of the Holy Spirit: "God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on pentecost, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.