There are many warnings in the Bible. They are there for our own good. One that is often neglected is found in Deuteronomy 31 and Luke 12. It is a warning about the dangers of prosperity. 

In Deuteronomy 31, the nation of Israel is on the verge of going into the Promised Land. Moses will soon die. He warns the people that after they go into the land, they will forget what the Lord had taught them in the Law. In v 20, the Lord says to Moses: 

When I have brought them to the land flowing with milk and honey, of which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and filled themselves and grown fat, then they will turn to other gods and serve them…

God was going to bless them in the Promised Land. They would become rich and “fat.” They would think they were self-sufficient. They would forget that God had provided them with everything they enjoyed. As a result, they would not be devoted to Him. They would think they did not need Him. Prosperity can produce that in God’s people. In the case of Israel, they would even begin to worship other gods. 

In Luke 12:16-21, the Lord gives a parable. The main character experiences great prosperity. He shows an attitude of self-sufficiency. Looking at all his wealth, he declares:  

“What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?…I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.’” 

Here is an NT illustration of what Moses said would happen to the Jews after they entered the Promised Land. The man in the Lord’s parable was prosperous. He, too, became “fat” and happy. He attributed his blessings to his own actions. Notice all the times he says, “I will” do such and such. He forgot the Lord. 

Many would assume that the man in the parable is an unbeliever. No “true” Christian could act that way. But Luke 12 is addressed to believers. The Lord is talking to a crowd that includes His disciples (vv 1, 22) and other believers as well. The Lord’s teaching here is directed to believers. To claim that a believer cannot fall victim to the dangers of wealth and become greedy is living with your head in the sand.  

If you have believed in Jesus for eternal life, the Lord is warning you. Moses warned the people of God in his day of the same problem. There is danger out there. The Lord might bless us with material wealth. If He does, that blessing could lead us down a dark path. We can think we are self-sufficient. We do not need Him. We can forget Him.  

I sometimes hear golfers talk about sand traps. They will warn their golf partners about them. Sand traps will wreck your score. As believers, we often hear about spiritual sand traps. We are told to watch out for sexual sins. We are told to be on the lookout for heretical doctrine. We are warned about friendship with the world. But there is another spiritual sand trap that we might not take as seriously. We need to be wary of the dangers prosperity can bring. It can really mess up our spiritual score if we’re not careful.