3 John 2 – “Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.”  NASB

I have no problem with the KJV translating it ‘wish’ but I would remind everyone that the apostles were not ‘wish-ers’ they were ‘pray-ers’.  They earnestly contended for the faith and practiced the ‘effectual fervent prayer’ of the righteous.  They were taught by the Greatest Prayer Warrior of all time, Jesus.  They Prayed and Prayed with Faith and confidence in the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Promises of God.  I call this the Top Prayer of John and it dealt with three specific areas – Soul, Health, and Prosperity. 

It would probably be beneficial for us to consider a bit of history as we pursue this truth.  In the Dark Ages, just about everything important to the Gospel was wiped out by the religious hierarchy.  No longer did salvation come by grace through faith, the organized church dispensed it. That is worse than horrendous it is heretical. 

I am convinced that most who read what I am writing believe and understand that the core of the Gospel is the Atonement.  However, in Martin Luther’s day, if you were to ask a congregation how many knew they were saved or that they had been made the righteousness of God, not one hand would go up.  The Atonement had been erased from their consciousness.  Restoration of that truth began with Martin Luther, but it was hundreds of years before it became commonly believed. What you and I take for granted took a very long time to be Restored.  

Until the turn of the last century, the Atonement was viewed as one-dimensional.  But revivals in Galena, Kansas, and in the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles God began to Restore more and more to the Church.  Spiritual Gifts began to come back into many churches and lives and the understanding or belief that the Atonement not only included our Salvation but also our Healing through the Stripes of Jesus. 

I believe that is why and how John could pray as he did, for he was praying a basic premise of the Atonement and his prayer was for the powerful dual promise of the Gospel – Salvation, and Healing.  Healing both physically and spiritually.  Someone said, “Salvation” gets you in the family, and “Healing” makes you fit for the fight. But, what about the “Prosperity” part? 

Imagine the difficulty that Martin Luther had in attempting to get people to realize that the Church had no power to save them.  The move at the turn of the last century has endured the scorn and attack of the organized church, that embraced the message of Salvation by Grace through Faith but could not receive the second aspect of the work of Christ in the Atonement. 

Virtually all the church believes in the Atonement for Salvation, but a much smaller percentage believes that the Gifts of the Spirit are for today.  We have been on this restoration process for over 100 years, similar to Martin Luther’s plight in Grace.  We are told that we have Salvation for Jesus, who knew no sin became sin for us.  We are also told that we have Healing because He bore, in his body, the stripes for our healing as per both Isaiah and Peter’s writings.  But, what about that third leg?

2 Corinthians 8 is important in our consideration of this third leg.  Jesus was righteous and He became sin that we could be made the righteousness of God in Him.  Jesus was well, and He endured the stripes taking on our infirmities so that we could be well (whole).  He was rich and He became poor so that we could be made rich.  This is not a secondary part of the Gospel it is part of what God is restoring to the Church.  I truly believe that the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the righteous so that we can fund the Harvest of these last days!  Jesus bore our sins for us, bore our sickness for us, and bore our poverty so that we could be set free and have His abundant life. 

Anytime God Restores something to the Church there is opposition from without and within and there are abuses to that truth.  Our objective should be to ‘Seek His Face’ and allow the Holy Spirit to help us ‘rightly divide the Word of God’ and receive all He has.  Let’s have the whole loaf, not a few slices.  When revival comes, there is always trouble with the Old Crowd who resist change and fear moving into uncharted waters.  Flesh and Tradition die-hard and slow deaths. 

I encourage everyone to become diligent students of God’s word and just because you never saw it before does not mean that it is not real.  Allow the Holy Spirit to ‘guide you into all truth’ and never become complacent or settled in the idea that you have All Truth.  None of us have all the truth or understanding of the truth, we know in part! As we grow and mature in Him our understanding broadens and we can move from glory to glory and grace to grace. 

If the Word of God does not verify and confirm it, do not incorporate it into your life.  However, do not assume that because you have been taught that something is not for today and fail to carefully examine the entire Bible.  Learn to Listen to the Spirit of God and search the scriptures daily to find the truth.  God Promised that He would lead us into all truth.

What God is doing in these last days will cost BILLIONS if not TRILLIONS and He wants His Body to know Him in salvation, walk in health, and healing, and reap the harvest and receive the wealth of the wicked so that we can have the funds for the harvest.  Yes, God can supernaturally drop it in our hands and He can enable us to have a new idea, new opportunity, or new contact that will bring wealth to us.  That wealth is not for us to lavish on ourselves but to finance the Harvest. 

I pray that the Lord help each of us embrace the Full Atonement and not only experience the New Birth, but to become open to His Healing Touch, and His desire to put in our hands the Wealth of the Wicked for His Kingdom and Purposes.  I pray with John that you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. 

God, bless you richly as you enjoy this day in Him!