Why sinners prosper

The Bible says that God makes the sun shine on the evil and on the good, and He sends rain on the just and on the unjust Matthew The importance of rainfall and sunshine cannot be overemphasized. In times past, agriculture depended much on rainfall; it was the rain that brought prosperity over the land. But would any life survive if it were raining all the time without a break of sunshine? Certainly not. More so, if the land experiences sunshine all the time without the regular occurrence of rainfall over a long period, harvest will fail, livestock will die, and famine and poverty will become prevalent.

Therefore, the regular occurrence of rainfall and sunshine was very important to life and economic prosperity. Rainfall and sunshine in the context of Matthew refer to resources and opportunities that man depends on to prosper in life.

Since God allows sunshine and rainfall to come into the life of every man irrespective of his morality, whether righteous or wicked, then it stands to reason that God has made available to both the righteous and the sinner the resources and opportunities which bring prosperity and development. Therefore, the wicked and sinner has equal opportunity to prosper as the righteous, for God does not deny the wicked what he needs to proper.

We can even see that God generously distributes intelligence, wisdom, talents, strength, land, opportunities, and natural resource to people and individuals with no consideration to their morality, whether they are righteous or sinners. The wicked and sinners have no good prospects beyond this life. Their only prospect is their life on this earth and the best thing the wicked could hope for is prosperity.

Consciously or unconsciously, they make the most of this life by striving harder towards attaining prosperity, for it is prosperity that enables them to buy and enjoy the better things of this life such as flashy cars, edifices, nice vacations, fame, etc.

Christians share their time between serving God and engaging in other relevant things in life such as their occupation; and they manage their time properly to fulfill their spiritual resposiblity and to engage in other activities of life. However, it is not so with the wicked and sinner.

Since the wicked do not acknowledge God, nor allot his time to Him, they can choose to allot all their time to work in a bid to make more money. So whiles the Christian ceases to make money by taking a break off the job to serve his God, the wicked, unbelievers and sinners are doing more overtime to expand their business and make more money.

Frunkly, quite a lot of rich folks out there see serving God as a waste of time; they would rather spend their time on the job which pays off in prosperity. Since the happiness, comfort, and success of the wicked and unbelievers depends on financial prosperity, they are very dedicated to the things that bring them such prosperity. In fact, we can say that their occupation is their god; and normally, they reap the benefit of their dedication to their occupation in monetary terms.

Certain good values such as hard work are not unique to Christians; the wicked and unbelievers can choose to be hardworking too and they will reap the profit thereof. Therefore, when a person who does not fear God chooses to be hardworking and persevering in his business, normally, it translates to his success and his prosperity. The righteous man, whether he is an employer or an employee, he would have to deal fairly and honestly with others in doing business.

More so, the righteous should not engage in illegitimate businesses, nor practice ungodliness in the name of making money; by so doing, God would bless him to prosper. It is not so with the wicked; the wicked have many doors or paths or means to prosperity.

We must take care not to judge the future by the appearance of the present. Sometimes the efforts of the righteous that appear to have no effect now will bear fruit years or decades hence. Sometimes the fruit will not be what the righteous had hoped to harvest, but they will find it sweet to the taste nevertheless.

The Lord told them to keep a record, not to make immediate judgment, and to wait until the Lord gathered his jewels. Many things which seem unjust and unfair to us now, with our limited vision and understanding, will become clear if we will be patient, suspend judgment for a while, and have faith in our Heavenly Father. We need to realize that when our vision is blurred, patience and time are essential elements in restoring our perceptions. Alma gave us another keen insight about why the righteous sometimes suffer, as he responded to the words of Amulek, his missionary companion.

Thus we can see that the Lord permits everyone, even those who are wicked, to exercise their agency—even if they make choices that cause the righteous to suffer greatly.

We need to understand, however, that even in these situations, in the eternal perspective, justice will be served. A righteous judgment will come upon both the wicked and the righteous; the good people whom the wicked have hurt will be blessed for their righteousness, and the wicked people will be condemned. Many of our greatest blessings come only after we have proved ourselves faithful by suffering through experiences that try and test our faith. This is apparent in the classic example of Abraham being sent to Mount Moriah to offer Isaac, his only son of Sarah, as a sacrifice to God.

Only after Abraham had experienced the pain and anguish of preparing to sacrifice his son, only after his heart was proved, did the Lord inform him that there was a ram in the bush. Undoubtedly, all of these painful experiences prepared Joseph to become the governor or ruler of Egypt later, save his adopted country from starvation, and preserve the House of Israel.

See Gen. Paul told the Hebrews that even the Savior learned obedience by the things he suffered. A beautiful young paraplegic, her spinal cord having been severed in a terrible automobile accident, has spent most of eight years in hospitals undergoing numerous operations and now suffers daily from spasms and excruciating pain.

She is an A student but is regularly left out when her peers join in physical and social activities. Marriage and normal family life appear to be passing her by. Although she does not completely understand, she has accepted it and has successfully adjusted to the many limitations and difficulties that have been forced upon her. One day in a class discussion at BYU—Hawaii, a professor asked how she would change things if she could. However, if, in order to be healed, I would have to give up all the things I have learned and experienced as a person with a handicap, I do not think I would ask to be healed.

After becoming a paraplegic, she had to leave the comforts of a strong LDS home and undergo rehabilitation in an environment where standards, values, and morals were very different from her own. She had to rely on the relationship she had developed with Heavenly Father during her short lifetime. She had to learn to be both self-reliant and dependent. Although there were some things she had to do on her own, there were also times when she needed to depend on others; wheelchairs do not roll up stairs, and shoveling snow is extremely difficult to do in a wheelchair.

She learned that there is good in everyone and that judging from outer appearances is cruel and unfair. She came to appreciate her body, not taking it for granted. She soon realized how blessed she was as she lived and associated with those who were much more severely handicapped. She experienced love from children, teenagers, adults, and the aged; from doctors, nurses, therapists, priesthood leaders, and friends. Everywhere, she has met people who are willing to sacrifice for her.

She has faced reality and knows that in this life everything does not have a fairy-tale, happy-ever-after ending. In reality, there would be no trials—and hence little growth—if justice were always administered immediately.

She looks forward to the resurrection with high expectations. To her, it is not just a nice theological concept or wonderful story; it is her future!

For many others as well, their hopes will be realized only in the distant future—sometimes a full lifetime distant. But that future depends on choices they are making now.

It was revealed to Abraham that one of the main purposes of this life is to see if we will do everything the Lord has commanded. In the end their prosperity will be left behind. It will be only like a barely remembered dream. They deserve your pity rather than your envy. Put your hope in God. He will always be with you. Now and through eternity. While your strength may fail you, His will not. Your road may not be smooth, but it will end in His rest. And that should be sufficient.

When tempted to envy what others have, consider their fate. Then consider the all-sufficient goodness of knowing God. Let your desire be for him alone. Before you go, let us offer you a free copy of our 30 day devotional just for being a subscriber. Psalm This is a psalm that can speak to many believers. But Consider Their Destiny When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. It troubled Asaph. Why did the wicked prosper so?

Psalm NIV Asaph realized that while good things might happen to bad people now, it will not continue. For the Believer Today As it was in the days of Asaph, so it is today. Devotion Written By. Ed Jarrett I am a follower of Jesus, retired, married for 35 years, with 2 children and 2 grandchildren. I enjoy gathering with the church, theology, reading, gardening and backpacking. Search for:. Our latest book is finally here! Click below for details. Close this module. Can we offer you a free e-book?

Name Name.