WAS JESUS POOR?
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Prosperity's role in Jesus' life - and in ours Believers are too often frustrated from achieving success and prosperity because of a subconscious belief that Jesus lived in poverty. If we're going to move forward, we're going to have to dispel misinformed notions of "religious-ized" false-images of Jesus that contradict the victory he has enabled us to achieve. Lets examine His walk on the earth to get a better picture of how he lived.
You have a rich inheritance. God's children always have, particularly going back to the inheritance rights of the Seed of Abraham, to which we are ingrafted by virtue of the Covenant of Jesus.
Some people think of Jesus as a barefoot preacher who didn't have anything of His own. They don't even think he had a house to live in. They'll quote Luke 9:58, "Foxes have holes, and birds or the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." What is this verse refering to?
Jesus at that time had been scheduled to preach at Samaria. He'd sent disciples there to get things ready, but when he arrived, the Samarians did not receive him. (Luke 9:53). So, when this eager young man came to Jesus and promised to go with him, Jesus let him know of the conditions of his way of life as a "traveling preacher", where inconvenience and hostility sometimes precluded some of the ordinary necessities of life. This condition was not a result of poverty, but from Jesus' taking a stand on what he believed and preached.
Jesus did in fact have a house. In John 1:38-39, two disciples of John asked Jesus, "Where do you live?", whereupon Jesus replied, "Come and see." The verse continues, "They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour." Jesus' house-ownership is a matter of biblical record.
"Born in a stable." We already know that Jesus was born in a stable NOT because they could not afford a place in the inn, but that there was no room. I don't think we need to beat this dead horse any further.
At the time of the Wise Men's visit to Jesus, it was some time after his birth. Here we see reference to the fact that Jesus and his family lived in suitable quarters. Matthew 2:11: "And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him." Note that it did NOT say "they came into the stable..."
Then these Wise Men "opened their treasures". These men were kings, and when a king opens his treasure to you, you're not poor! It was customary for a king's gift to establish two things:
A king's giving establishes the nature of his kingship and his domain. These wouldn't be mere tokens, but substantial gifts.
- What the king thought of the one he was providing the gift to;
- what the recipient of the gift would think of the king
During his ministry, Jesus found it necessary to have a treasurer manage the funds of his operation. Consider that this treasurer was a thief - and still there was enough money to keep things running.
Clothes: John 19:22-23 says the soldiers who killed him cast lots for the "seamless garment" that Jesus wore. It was a high quality article of clothing, indicative of the prosperity of its wearer. Jesus didn't come into town as a rabble-rouser dressed in camouflage. He was a king and he dressed as a king.
Why do we need to know that? Because until we realize that Jesus was prosperous, we'll feel a tinge of guilt as we pursue our own prosperity. God's blessings are thematic throughout the bible, and are the identifying mark of God's provision to those who obey him and follow his decrees. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob - we well know that they were prosperous because they were blessed by God. We need to realize Jesus likewise had been provided for during his time on earth.
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