To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue. Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. -Proverbs‬ ‭16:1, 3‬ ‭(NIV)‬‬

An excited, well-meaning friend of mine sent me videos of Bob Proctor, a motivational speaker he was watching in a film called “The Secret.” My friend told me about vibrations and a law of attraction, and how we can get what we want (relationships, wealth, etc.) by thinking positively about it…and that we attract the things we want by thinking about them.

Red flags were going off all over the place in my head, but I didn’t want to write anything off before actually seeing or hearing it, so I did. And what I saw and heard only raised a sea of red flags.

Mr. Proctor’s assertions were that we could manipulate the universe and our destinies purely with our minds. If we want to be healthy, then we believe ourselves to be healthy, and it will happen. If we’re sick, then weren’t thinking the right way. Likewise, with wealth and relationships, we need only to think positively on those things, and wealth and dream relationships will gravitate to us.

While positive thinking is fine for self-motivation, what the motivational speaker is talking about is neatly taking God out of the equation. The power he’s talking about–manipulating the universe and all things and people in it to our will–is the realm of God alone. God controls all. He is sovereign, we are not. The snake in the Garden of Eden made a similar promise to Eve–that she could be like God–if she just disobeyed Him. And the outcome was far different than the shiny promise.

Before I was a believer, I would’ve been willing to give this motivational speaker a shot. Without a grounded world view, why not? Without God anchoring me, why not? Thanks to Jesus, I can see now where prosperity peddlers like Mr. Proctor, and prosperity preachers who tell you to simply “name it and claim it,” prey upon the natural flesh urge to want to get away from worldly discomforts. So, they promise you happiness and comfort and even wealth. The prosperity preachers even commit a serious sin in fooling their followers to believe that God is your cosmic servant whom you can will to make you rich simply through faith and prayer! (Be sure to leave a generous donation, though!)

Mr. Proctor also has several seminars on getting wealthy–not surprising. Be sure to buy his videos to learn more about how to get wealthy. And if you’re not wealthy yet? Buy more videos, and think more positively about wealth!

As believers, we do not chase wealth or have a need to store up material things. Our contentment, strength, and joy come from the Lord, and every breath we breathe is to praise Him, not things or ourselves, or we’re committing idolatry. We seek Him, acknowledge Him in all things, and He alone sets our paths. Paul tells us the real secret:

I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. -Philippians 4:11-13 (NIV)

Yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the Lord. -‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29:8-9‬ ‭(NIV)

Since the days of old, there have been false teachers and prophets who purport to work to God’s glory, but are here for very different reasons.

In the book of Jeremiah, the false prophet Hananiah told a weary Israel that their suffering in exile would end in just two years. But Jeremiah, who truly spoke for the Lord, called out Hananiah, and told Israel the truth: that it would be seventy years of exile in Babylon, but His people were to prosper where they were, because God had great plans for them.

When you think about modern churches and bible teachers, listen very closely and always use God’s Word as the ultimate litmus test. Some may turn out to be teachers of prosperity theology, who assert that financial blessings are God’s will for you, if you’re positive and donate to their organizations.

Some red flags they may raise:

• You can have anything you want (name it and claim it), just declare it in Jesus’ name
• God only wants you to be happy; He doesn’t want or allow you to suffer
• Material prosperity and smooth sailing are God’s blessings…buy this video or donate to them and you’ll see how
• They talk about self-improvement to make you the best you that you can be, but leave out that God makes that possible, and it is to His glory

In God’s Word, we are instructed to believe in what we pray for (Mark 11:24), but in the context of the body of His Word, prayer and walking with God will change our wills so that for which we pray will align with what God wants for us.

We bend and surrender to God’s will, not vice-versa. That’s where you can see the you-centered talk of those false teachers, like God is a cosmic Santa Claus or vending machine.

God’s blessings are in our prosperous times and even in our hard times…not just when we’re “doing okay” or “doing well” in our estimation. God does allow for His children to persevere through trials to His glory, which we can see over and over with the Israelites…with Joseph and his ups and downs (Genesis 37 onward). The fact is, God is with His children through all of our circumstances and seasons, and He refines and strengthens us through such trials.

Jesus made it clear that believers would have trouble in this world (John 16:33), but to take heart that He has overcome it. We are specifically instructed to not worry and chase after material things, because God knows and will supply all we need (Matthew 6:25-34).

We are here, first and foremost, to glorify our Lord (Isaiah 26:8), and to make Him known to the world (Matthew 28:16-20). We glorify Him in the good and the bad times. It’s all about Jesus.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. -2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)

You can always use the lens of truth in God’s Word to expose the charlatans. Beware those who cannot stand this test!

The god of this age [Satan] has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. -2 Corinthians 4:4 (NIV)

I can testify that until I was saved, the world and all its lies were undoubtably real and true. My senses did not lie to me, nor did my sense of morality. I would’ve considered myself quite perceptive and aware of how the world worked.

Oh, how God turned that all upside down when he pulled the wool off my eyes and showed me what it really meant to see beyond my eyes and mind!

Back in high school, I was fortunate enough to take a class in philosophy. (And when you’re not saved, what a head trip that is!) And in that class, I read about the famous Allegory of the Cave in Plato’s The Republic.

Seeing is believing…

In this allegory, imagine adults who have been imprisoned in a cave since childhood. They are chained in such a way that they are all facing the cave wall in front of them, and their bodies and heads are fixed so they cannot look around, or at each other.

At some distance behind these prisoners is a fire, or light source. In between the fire and the prisoners is a short wall with a walkway next to it, and free men—who stay out of sight under the wall—carry objects along the top of the wall. These objects cast shadows onto the cave wall in front of the prisoners. The free men also talk, and their voices echo off the same cave wall into the ears of the prisoners.

These prisoners, who have known nothing else but what is before them, are living in what they believe is reality. It completely real to them. Their eyes see shapes and their ears hear sounds.

…until a taste of truth is had…

But suppose one prisoner is unshackled and is made to turn and look at the fire. His eyes would hurt from such intense light, and he could not clearly see the objects that were casting the shadows. If he were told that what he was looking at his whole life was not real, but these painful things he’s squinting at now are, he would run back in disbelief to the comfortable view he’s known.

…and especially when the ultimate truth is shown.

Now, suppose that same prisoner is forcibly dragged out of the cave. The searing sunlight would cause him to feel anger and pain, only getting worse as it blinds him.

But, eventually, his eyes start to adjust. He first sees shadows, then reflections of people and things in the water, and then the actual people and things they were reflections of. Eventually, he can see the moon and the stars and night, and the sun. Once he is able to look straight into the sun, he can start to understand what it is and reason about it.

This former prisoner would correctly conclude that what he saw was true and real, not what he’d been experiencing previously in the cave. So he wants to free the others in the cave!

But as he reenters the dark cave, he is blind again, but because his eyes are now conditioned from living in the light. The prisoners in the cave conclude that the newly free man’s exit from their world of the cave is what caused his blindness…and if they were able, they would kill anyone attempting to drag them out of the cave.

As it is with our world.

As believers, we have returned to the cave along with billions of people whose minds and hearts are fooled by the enemy into believing, beyond the shadow of a doubt (pun intended), that what they perceive is irrefutable. The enemy makes unwitting pawns of them to perpetuate these lies through marketing, cultural trends, and so on.

The few of us who have been freed of the shackles, sackcloths taken off our heads, see beyond the echoes and shadows. We see the world as it is. And sometimes it seems like, try as we may, we are only met with hostility and resentment from a world convinced that we are the ones who need to snap back to reality.

But Jesus was clear in proclaiming the Great Commission:

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” -Matthew 28:16-20 (ESV)

We continue to fight the good fight. I personally believe we act as embedded operatives and prudently await windows of opportunity when God says, “Now!” to speak His truth to hearing ears and seeing eyes. This is why it’s crucial that in thought, word, and deed, that we do our best to His glory as His ambassadors.

His light we carry is like the light in the cave. It is just a taste of His ultimate light, which, once experienced, no one would ever want to leave…and would want the blind and deceived to see.