I have had people ask me why they do not see prosperity even though they give in the church (which some call tithing). They give to the church but do not see the prosperity they expect.  I, as well as they, have been very frustrated many times. I have also heard people say, “You are self-employed, but I have a job and make the same each week. I can see how God could prosper you: He just gives you more jobs, but me, I make the same each week whether I give or not. How am I going to see the windows of heaven open?”

I never knew what the problem was until I read a book called The Storehouse Principle. Today, I think you will see the answers to both questions.

God did not put man on the earth to be poverty stricken. He gave Adam dominion over all the earth. That is not poor. If Adam needed anything, all he had to do was ask, and like any good father, God would have provided. God’s only begotten son, Jesus Christ, never mentioned poverty as a virtue either. Contrary to what people say and teach about Jesus Christ being poor, he was not a poor man. Think about it. When Jesus was about two, the Kings of the east brought him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. We always see that picture as three men, probably because of the three gifts, and those in small boxes. But if you read about those times, when people of substance brought gifts to a king, they were not small gifts. Think about it. The night the kings left, God told Joseph in a dream to take the child and his mother to Egypt because the government was going to seek his life. What would that cost, even today, to uproot yourself in an evening and move to Europe or some other country, set up a home, and go back into business? Then a few years later God told Joseph to move back, and he had all those expenses again. God had provided Joseph with all the funds he needed the night of the first dream. In today’s terms, that would have been a lot of money. This was definitely not the home of a poor man.

When you read the parables of Jesus Christ, many of them speak about a householder and his servants.  He was very familiar with how those things worked.  Most likely, they had servants in his home.

Poverty is not a virtue, God took care of his only begotten son. We are God’s children also.  Why would the Creator of the universe have His children live in poverty, or from one paycheck to the next? He would not. That is just not His way. He is a God of abundance. Those who say and teach that we are to give all our money and goods to the poor to be true followers of Jesus, wrongly understand the scriptures.

In a minute we will look at the words for “storehouse,” but first think about this:

In our economy, we don’t have such an immediate need to save because of charities and government programs. As a country, we discourage savings by means of taxation. As people save money, we tax the interest!  We tax the money when it is earned; then if any is saved, we tax the interest. We are encouraged to spend all we earn, and then to spend even more by credit. This endless cycle keeps us in debt. It reminds me of the song “Sixteen Tons” sung by Tennessee Ernie Ford.

Here are two verses from it:

Some people say a man is made outta’ mud
A poor man’s made outta’ muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that’s a-weak and a back that’s strong

You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don’t you call me ’cause I can’t go
I owe my soul to the company store

This lack of funds and debt keeps us showing up on the job to get the money to pay the debt. We have been trained to be good workers for industry and good consumers for the global economy.  Someone sold us on the wrong plan.

God wants us to be God-sufficient and to have sufficiency regardless of our job. He has laid out the principles in His Word on how to do so. This is what we are looking at.

The first Hebrew word that I would like to look at is the word “asam.”  It is translated “storehouses” or “barns.”  It is used only in the plural!!!

Deuteronomy 28:8  The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses (asam), and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

Notice, storehouses is plural!!!!

Proverbs 3:9-10 Honor the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:  So shall thy barns (asam) be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

Notice barns is plural!!!!

We live in the post-industrial age, and most of us have no use for a barn or storehouse. So when we read God will fill your barns, we don’t relate to it.

My grandfather on my dad’s side was a dairy farmer in Wisconsin, so when this verse came up I thought about what his farm was like. He had a hayloft in the top of the barn that held hay (a great place to play), a granary to hold the oats, a corn crib that held the corn, and a silo. Silos are the tall round structures that usually stand beside a barn. Some of the modern ones are blue. Silos hold silage, which is generally green chopped alfalfa. He also had a very large root cellar for potatoes, and a basement that held a ton of canned goods, mainly canned chicken. These are all storehouses. Different storehouses, or sometimes barns, for different types of things.

It is apparent in thinking about these storehouses that the farmer brought in more in the summer and fall than he could eat or use up in a week. He stored up his surplus against the long winter ahead. He used this surplus to feed his livestock so the cows could produce milk (the source of his income) all winter long until the grass turned green in the spring.

Once people moved to the city, at first they would work as they always had. They worked until they had enough to get ready for winter, and then they went home. Eventually, because of debt, they stayed in the cities year-round. In 1926 Henry Ford promised them eight-hour workdays and getting paid on a regular basis. That would be quite nice if you had been used to working from before dawn to after dark as a farmer, and getting paid just at harvest time. Now there was no need to store up anything. You were paid often and the city had grocery stores. You could just spend it all, and then the bankers would loan you even more to buy a house. Today, if you run out of money or food, there are food stamps!

Did farmers throughout history have food stamps for cows?  If the farmer sold all his hay so he could take the kids to Disneyland in the summer, what was he to feed his cows in the winter?  (Hmmm?? Pondering!!!)  So, if the farmer is storing up his summer surplus against the winter ahead, is he afraid God will not supply his need when winter comes? Or, is he being wise, understanding that the seasons come in cycles—spring, summer, fall and winter?

The cycles the agricultural people had to deal with were the seasons and the weather. We are no longer so affected by either of these. Our food can be shipped in from around the world, summer or winter, but the cycles we have to deal with are of a more economic nature. Sometimes the economy is booming and sometimes it is in the cellar. Would it be wise for us to store up against the winter times of life, as the farmer did? Perhaps God gives us such an abundance so that the cycles of life need not be so dramatic for us.

To be of the greatest service to Christians everywhere, this idea of giving and receiving should be taught on par with saving the surplus as it comes back to us. The reason so many believers struggle with prosperity even though they give is that the principle of saving is not taught.

Jeremiah 17:7-8  Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

God used agricultural illustrations in His Word because that is what the people understood. We are not so much farmers, but the promises are still true for us today. Since we deal in money and not crops, we have bank accounts and not barns.

God has His own storehouses stockpiled with all kinds of treasures. He does not have to create more because we might run out. He has huge supplies to draw from to keep man supplied.

God promises to fill our storehouses. We honor Him by keeping Him first in our lives and trusting in Him. Giving in and to the church and to those in need is one way we keep Him first, because we trust that His promises are true and that we will not be poorer for giving. We will prosper as we give.

Proverbs 6:6-8  Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

Ants gather in much more than they need for the week, and they save it up. If you study ants, they have many different tunnels for many purposes, and at least one is for storing food. They even have tunnels to be used in case others are destroyed by little boys stomping their homes!! If part of their home is destroyed, they are immediately back outbuilding and repairing and going about their business of storing up.

The first Hebrew word we looked at was only used twice, and both uses were plural. The next word is the word “otsar”.  It may be defined as “treasure, storehouse.  A treasure for gold, silver, etc., a storehouse for food or drink, a treasure house, a magazine of weapons.” It is used figuratively of God’s armory, and it is used of the storehouses of God where He stores, among other things, rain, snow, hail, wind, sea.  It is used some 70 times.

Here are some places where “otsar” is used.

Deuteronomy 28:12  The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure (otsar), the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

Notice that we are to have such an abundance that we have no need to borrow, but that we can lend to others.  We should have a surplus, more than the immediate need, and when stored for a period of time it amounts to such that we can lend.

2 Chronicles 32:27-29  And Hezekiah had exceeding much riches and honour: and he made himself treasuries (otsar) for silver, and for gold, and for precious stones, and for spices, and for shields, and for all manner of pleasant jewels; Storehouses also for the increase of corn, and wine, and oil; and stalls for all manner of beasts, and cotes for flocks. Moreover he provided him cities, and possessions of flocks and herds in abundance: for God had given him substance very much.

 Proverbs 8:21  That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures (otsar).

God says He will fill the treasuries of those who love Him.  That really is not much different from the gospels which say “seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you.”  Matthew 6:33

 Proverbs 21:20  There is treasure (otsar) to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up.

If the fool spends it all, what type of a storehouse does he have?  Probably none!  Don’t feel bad if you do not have a storehouse; I did not have one for years either.  I just did not know, and I had been taught that it was wrong to save!

Even the temple had storehouses:

Malachi 3:10  Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse (otsar), that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

As we have seen, God expects that we will have storehouses or savings accounts. He promises that if we will bring the tithes into His storehouse, He will make sure our storehouses overflow.

Part of the problem in our understanding of prosperity is our culture’s perception of what wealth is. One website I read (The Art of Manliness) talked about the difference between a paycheck mentality and a wealth mentality. We relate wealth or prosperity to those who make high salaries, such as doctors, lawyers or professional athletes. If you make a million dollars a year and spend it all, are you really wealthy?  No, you just live lavishly. Long term prosperity is determined by how much you save or put in your storehouse, barn, or bank. Most people do not have enough to live on for a month if they lost their job. Although prosperity covers more than just finances, if all you have saved is enough for a month, this small amount is not very prosperous.

Your paycheck is not your storehouse!!!!

Perhaps it would be best to go back to the old ways, the old paths, and build our storehouses. Today that might be translated as saving accounts. Save some money!!!

Another book along this line that would be valuable to read is called The Richest Man in Babylon. One of the chapters covers the idea that part of all you earn is yours to keep. Think: if you worked all your life and paid everyone else for the house, the car, the utilities, etc., and never paid yourself, is that right?  The one that does all the work gets nothing? At the end of your working life, everyone else has been paid and you have nothing? That is just wrong!

Save some money!!! That is the idea behind the phrases, “thy barns shall be filled with plenty… ” and “I will command the blessing upon your storehouses.”

So, if the self-employed person saves part of his income, and the person drawing a paycheck saves part of his income, now we can answer the idea that “I can see how God can prosper you; He gives you more jobs.”  Prosperity does not come from a job, or more jobs, or a raise, or more work, or a bigger salary, or winning the lottery. (But getting a better paying job never hurts.) Prosperity is built slowly over time by saving part of the surplus that God supplies back to us for our giving. This may take a while to wrap your mind around. He promises to fill your storehouses. He does not promise to give you a bonus in your paycheck next week!

Many times we look at prosperity as being able to pay this week’s bills. Part of our problem is that we spend all we bring in.  This is what happens to so many people that suddenly come into large amounts of money — inheritance, lottery winners, professional sports contracts. Their habit has been to spend all they make so now they just have more to spend! The lack of knowledge of the fundamentals of prosperity causes them to lose all that they have gained. They look very wealthy and prosperous, but in the end, they are worse off than in the beginning. How? The more money you have, the more you can borrow. Instead of saving money, you spend. Instead of paying cash for things, you borrow. Then, when the cash runs out, you have huge amounts of debt.

Part of understanding prosperity is understanding that we are to save part of the surplus we bring in each week. As we save, it will help to smooth out the cycles of life, and life has cycles.  In the old days, they saved for the winter or to help get them through droughts. Remember what we read in Jeremiah, that those who trust God will prosper even in a drought.  WOW! Those storehouses helped to smooth out the cycles. Remember God said He would command His blessing upon their fields in the sixth year so they could put that surplus in storage and it would last till the ninth year?

So we should also:

Save for those slow times of the year.
Save for those large expenses.
Save for emergencies.
Save for our retirements!

So that we have plenty to draw on in slow times, winter times.
So that we have plenty to give to others.
So that we may be able to help in times of distress, as Joseph did.
So that we would be able to give an inheritance to our children’s children and support our wives if they outlive us.

Basically God is saying today, “SAVE SOME MONEY,” and He will command the blessing upon it.  This saving of money is really quite different from a paycheck mentality. Our prosperity is not in our paychecks, but in what we SAVE from our paychecks. Prosperity is not so much short term as it is long term.

Remember, John Wesley said to “earn all you can, give all you can and save all you can.”  Some wise people, when it comes to handling money, say to:  tithe 10%, save 10%, and invest 10%.  If you do this, you are living within your means. That answers the question about how to live within your means.

In order to accomplish this, you may have to start slowly, with smaller percentages, and increase the percentages over time.  You may have to restructure your expenses to accomplish that because you may have been used to consuming everything you take in each week.

Ecclesiastes 5:11  When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes?

In other words, as income rises, so do our bills. As our pay goes up, we simply spend more. I remember working at a union job in Tulsa years ago. The union was negotiating for a raise of about $2.00/hour. One man I listened to already had it spent. He said as soon as the raise kicked in, he was buying a boat and making payments. He said that the payment would be just about the amount of the raise. The man thought prosperity was $2.00 per hour and a new boat!  He was spending it all!

Our goal should be that our expenses rise much more slowly than our income.

An Oklahoma football player, Ryan Broyles, recently signed a four year $3.6 million contract with the Lions with a $1.2 million signing bonus. He stated that he and his family will live on $60,000/year. The rest will go into the bank. He did not come up with this way of dealing with money on the spur of the moment.  Somewhere along the line he learned and instilled within himself the fundamentals of prosperity. Then, when a large amount of money did come his way, those disciplines of finances protected him.

We should expect to see the promises of God come to pass in our lives by believing and by being obedient to His Word. If the material things become more important than God, then the cautions and warnings kick in. Keep God first and trust only in Him.

Proverbs 24:3-4  Through wisdom is an house builded; and by understanding it is established:

And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.