Title: Wealth, Health, and Wellbeing
Scripture Reading: 3 John 1-2
The elder unto the wellbeloved Gaius, whom I love in the truth.
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
From the earliest times, Christians have understood that this was the Apostle John’s writing.
3 John form a message to local country churches, probably located somewhere in the Roman Province of Asia Minor, towards the end of the first century. Asia Minor is present day Turkey.
The letter is addressed to a leader of that church named Gaius.
John the Apostle, was the elder mentioned in verse 1. ‘The elder’ is a term synonymous with the term ‘pastor’ and ‘bishop.’
The NASB translated verse 2 as ‘Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.’
Three things stand out in this verse: Prosper, Good health and wellbeing of the soul.
We cannot deny the core heart of our Heavenly Father. The words above reveal God’s heart for you: prosper, good health and wellbeing of the soul.
John used the word ‘Beloved.’ The KJV translated it as, ‘wellbeloved.’ The whole atmosphere of John’s writing is that of love.
I ‘wish’ in the KJV is replaced with I ‘pray.’ ‘I ‘pray’ in the typical Greek Letter is a prayer for the recipients’ prosperity and health. The term for ‘soul’ is ‘psuche.’ almost synonymous with ‘pneuma’ and parallel to the Hebrew word ‘Nephesh.’ They are used to refer to the essence of personhood or self. Humans are a unity (body, soul, spirit). We are a tripartite being. So, it is wishing for and praying for the wellbeing of the soul.
Some have wrongly taken this as a guarantee of perpetual wealth and perfect health for the Christian.
Concerning wealth and health, we must take note of a few things:
One, we should always remember that God wants our best and plans only good for us.
Often present material prosperity and physical health are part of that good God has for us – and this prosperity and health are absolutely promised as the ultimate destiny of all believers.
Two, yet, for the present time, God may – according to His all-wise plan – use a lack of material prosperity and physical health to promote greater prosperity and health in the scale of eternity.
Three, nevertheless, some live in poverty and disease simply because they do not seek God’s best, follow God’s principles, and walk in faith.
Let us learn some truths from this simple verse on 3 John 2.
- I wish above all things that you mayest prosper
What is God’s heart for you revealed in 3 John 2?It begins with “I wish above all things.
In the ESV or Amplified, this verse was not just a wish. It was more of a command.
It was the Spirit’s desire. This is what God wants for you.
The KJV uses “above all things.” Other versions render this verse as not “above all things” but “in all things.” It is prosperity in every single thing that concerns you.
The ESV translates it, the word “prosper” as “that it may go well with you.”
Prosperity is not just financial. It means it is well with whatever you are doing. But then you should not discard the primary purpose of this verse: financial prosperity.
He explains to us the spheres of prosperity in three ways:
First, he gives us the general. He says that you may prosper in everything or all things.
Some Christians have struggled with this passage. They find it almost offensive to say God wants that everything should be well about you. For them, something must be broken in your life to cause you pain and suffering which is what Christianity should be.
Secondly, this verse does not teach us that we will never face challenges in life as Christians
Thirdly, for financial prosperity, it is God’s will for us to prosper. Yet God owns our wealth and we have to be good stewards of our wealth.
- Be in Health
Health matters.
Be in health is good Health. God hates to see us sick because falling sick was not part of His plan for humanity.
There are 4 reasons why God wants us to be health.
- It glorifies God
- You are taking care of your body – His temple
- It is being a good witness
- You will have more energy – be better equipped for what God has planned for you.
The root of sickness is the Devil’s scheme.
In the Bible, we find several passages that reveal the devil’s role in inflicting sickness and disease.
Job 2:7 says, “So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with painful boils from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
Luke 13:16 says, “And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound with sickness for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?”
Acts 10:38 says, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”
As believers, we must recognize the spiritual dimension of sickness and confront it with the power of Christ. We must pray for healing, cast out demons, and claim God’s promises for our bodies. Sickness is not just a natural part of life; it is a spiritual attack from the devil aimed at diminishing our quality of life, our faith, and our witness.
Christ was on an all-out war against sicknesses and diseases because healing was essential to His redemptive assignment
Christ had a legal basis for healing Jews through Abraham’s covenant with God. You see an instance in Luke 13:16, which says, ‘This dear woman, a daughter of Abraham, has been held in bondage by Satan for eighteen years. Isn’t it right that she be released, even on the Sabbath?”
John Osteen, a powerful instrument used of God in the area of healing, always quote this, ‘My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.’ Lack of knowledge that you are covered by the covenant.
Jeremiah 30:17 says, ‘But I will bring healing for you, and I will heal your wounds, says the Lord.’
- Wellbeing of the soul
We are a tripartite being.
All human beings have a tri-part existence: Body, Soul, and Spirit.
But then Christian gets something extra: The Holy Spirit
This is our true identity as Christian. Our identity is the foundation of a prospering soul.
In conclusion, we are exactly the opposite of what 3 John 2 says. Why are we not in health and wealth? Because of the wrong conception of God. We never really believe that God loves us. We also never really believe that God wants wealth, health and welling being for us. Because of the lack of knowledge of the Word of God and because of faithlessness and of course sin. But Jesus came 2000 years ago. And he penetrated this world by attacking sicknesses, bringing people back to fellowship with God. One thing stood up in all of Jesus’ ministry: health. Yet he was crucified on the cross. Jesus gave himself to death so that we could be well. He is resurrected, and He is always making intercession for us so that we can be well. He wants us to be healthy and strong so that we can be witnesses of his love, his grace and his power in these last days to a world full of terror. Today you can receive the power of Jesus in all aspects of our life. Begin to apply it by faith in this moment, commit yourself to be well and to strengthen yourself in every aspect of your life. He promised in Jeremiah 33:6, ‘Behold, I will bring healing and medicine; and I will cure you, and I will reveal to you an abundance of peace and truth.
