Across the sands of time, God's people have walked His ancient paths. Join us as we explore divine identity and purpose; unearth God's word on wealth; discover the blessing passed between family generations; and find life filled with empowering relationships. You will soar like never before.
Welcome to Ancient Paths with Craig Hill. Welcome to the third broadcast in a series we're doing on personal financial management, talking about the ancient past. I hope you were able to watch our second broadcast online at craighill.
org. It's really important to catch up because we were talking about what defines the wicked and the righteous, and I won't have time to review that whole teaching in this broadcast, but you can find it again on www. craighill.
org. Touching that teaching in Proverbs 13:22, we find a scripture that says, "The wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous. " I wanted to know who were the wicked and the righteous, and I found the answer in Psalm 37:21, and that scripture simply says, "The wicked borrows and does not pay back; the righteous shows mercy and gives.
" So, if we plug those in, the wealth transfers from those who have borrowed and cannot pay back to those who show mercy and give. It's critical to make sure that you're on the receiving side of the wealth transfer equation, not on the losing side of those who have borrowed and cannot pay back. So again, you can find that entire teaching on our website, craighill.
org, and I really encourage you to go and listen to that right after you finish listening to this broadcast. Well, we're going to go on today, and we're going to continue talking about what has changed in the last hundred years. You know, it's an amazing thing; we live in an entire society of debt.
I want to start today with a scripture in Haggai chapter 1, verses 5 and 6. Haggai is probably your favorite book; you were probably just there in your time with the Lord this morning. No, Haggai is probably not a common book that people go to, but this is a critical scripture for people to really understand, and I think that this scripture describes many, many people's lives.
"Now therefore," verse 5, "thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. You have sown much, but harvest little. You eat, but there it is—there is not enough to be satisfied; you drink, but there's not enough to become drunk; you put on clothing, but no one is warm enough; and he who earns wages to put into a bag or a purse with holes.
" Does that describe your situation? Many, many people I talk to feel like, you know, it doesn't matter how much money I earn; it all disappears somewhere. I put it into a bag with holes.
Seemingly, there's always more expense than there ever is income. I don't know why that is, and that's just a symptom of the society that we live in. Do you know we live in a debt culture, a culture that’s indebted?
It's amazing how much debt there is. I was just looking at some statistics here, and this is an amazing thing. I wrote them down.
Do you know that the United States was not a debt culture for the first 200 years? It took us 200 years to accumulate the first one trillion dollars of government debt, from 1776 to 1980. In 1980, we hit the first trillion dollars worth of debt—200 years.
How long do you think it took us as a government here in the United States to accumulate a second trillion? Now remember, it was 200 years to accumulate the first trillion. Do you know we accumulated the second trillion dollars worth of government debt in only six years?
By 1986, we had two trillion dollars worth of debt. Do you know that we reached three trillion only four years later? By 1990, we're now approaching something on the order of 17 trillion dollars of government debt.
Now, that doesn't even touch what's in the private sector; that doesn't touch the debt that's been created by financial institutions, by corporations, by families, by individuals. That's just the government debt. I wanted to show you a chart from the private sector.
I mean, this is just amazing, and you don't need to pay attention really to the absolute numbers unless you're a student of this sort of thing, but just look at the chart. We see it almost flat in 1950 and 1960, and then a slow upturn, and by the time we get into the 1990s and 2000s, we've got a very steep upturn in the amount of debt. Let me show you another chart; this is that same chart of debt compared to the growth of our gross domestic product, or our GDP—that's the measure of how fast the economy is growing.
So you can see again, the line that steeply goes up is the measure of our debt, while the line that's just nominally going almost flat is the line of our growth economically. What would happen if you subtract the debt from the growth? You get a curve that looks like this third chart.
This is just amazing; look at how this is going down and the angle with which it's going down here in the late 2000s, after the year 2000 and on into 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and ongoing—just incredible. I want to show you one more chart here that shows us about food stamps. This is the most amazing thing: do you know that in our nation, we have doubled the number of people receiving food stamps?
Just. . .
Since 2007, close to double the number of people are receiving food stamps—uh, now, uh, double the number than there were in 2007. So, we're becoming a society of debt, a society that is borrowing, borrowing, borrowing, borrowing. Do you know that most people would think, “If I need to get a house, if I want to buy a house, I would have to go to a bank and borrow money”?
What's amazing to me is that, do you know that a hundred years ago and earlier than that, nobody would have even had that thought? It’s interesting to—you might ask your grandparents, if they’re still alive, if their parents, your great-grandparents, had debt. Do you know what you’ll find out?
Most people in this country in the 1800s and early 1900s didn’t have any debt, and yet they had a house. How on earth did they have a house with no debt? I discovered that what happened was people really actually understood the first part of Proverbs 13:22, and that scripture says, “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children.
” Do you know that there was a culture of family blessing in past generations? What does that mean? That means that families would actually believe Proverbs 13:22, and they would make provision for their children's children.
So, every man and woman had an understanding: it’s my responsibility to help my grandchildren, to leave an inheritance to my grandchildren. So how did your great-grandparents have a house? Do you know, most probably, they purchased the materials, or maybe their family members—grandparents and parents—helped them purchase the materials?
Do you know that they then came together as a community, and they built a house together as a family? Why? Because families helped each other.
Somehow we have abandoned this concept of generational blessing, where people are not thinking, “How would I leave an inheritance for my children's children? ” We’ll talk about details of how you might consider doing that in a future broadcast. But because we learned to do that in our family, how we could set up a perpetual system where nobody in our family would ever have to go to a bank to borrow money again for a house; and God gave us a strategy of exactly how to do that.
But a hundred years ago, there was generational blessing. People had a house. It wouldn’t have even entered into their mind how they would go to a bank and borrow money for 30 years to have a house.
Today, that enters into everybody’s minds. What changed? Do you know what I think changed?
I think literally 100, maybe 120 years ago, there was a global demonic strategy conference in the second heaven. I think that Satan gathered all the demons together and said, “We need to have a conference because I want to figure out a strategy to enslave nations and generations of people. Does anybody have an idea?
” I think that the demonic spirit called Mammon raised his hand and said, “I have an idea. You know, I’ve been reading in the Bible. ” Do you think demons read the Bible?
I believe they do, because these are principles anybody can follow. And, uh, the spirit of Mammon probably raised his hand and said, “I’ve been reading Proverbs 22:7. ” And that scripture says, “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender.
” I believe that spirit of Mammon may have said something like this: “Do you know we could use that principle, because there are individuals and institutions that we already control? Here’s my idea: what if we use those institutions to make credit available and invite people to borrow money from institutions we already control, people that are already consumed with greed, that are lovers of money, and they will make money available to borrow? People will come and borrow from them and become slaves of the institutions that we already control.
” Satan said, “Well, I don’t know if that’ll work too well. I mean, who would you think that people will voluntarily just become slaves of institutions we control? ” And Mammon said, “Yeah, that’s my idea.
” And Satan said, “Well, who would do that? How would we force them to do it? ” Mammon says, “Oh, we won’t need to force anybody.
We’ll deceive them. We’ll make this popular in the beginning; maybe not many people will do it, but then a few more, a few more, and a few more, and over a couple of generations we’ll make it absolutely normal that everybody thinks borrowing money for a house, for a car, for purchases is normal. ” And Satan said, “That might work, but you know, I don’t think that’ll impact God’s people.
That won’t impact the church. I was looking for a strategy that would really enslave God’s people. ” And Mammon said, “Oh, I think this one will work.
” And Satan probably said, “Well, how would that work? You mean to tell me you think people that are filled with the Holy Spirit of God, that read the Bible—I mean, they can read Proverbs 22:7. You think people that can read the Bible, that are filled with the Holy Spirit, are going to voluntarily just come and become slaves of institutions we already control by borrowing money and signing credit agreements with those institutions?
” And Mammon said, “Well, maybe not all of them at first; maybe just a trickle, a few of them, then a few more, then a few more. And I think that we can so deceive even God’s people that within two generations it will be completely normal for everybody to have debt. ” And Satan said, “I don’t know if that’s possible, but maybe it is.
Let’s try it. ” And, of course, the rest is history. Exactly that has happened.
Where everybody Christians are not people filled with the Holy Spirit, or not people who read the Word of God, or not choose voluntarily to become slaves; very interesting concept. What I want to tell you is we can reverse that. We can begin to change that, and we can change that in such a way that we don't have to continue to subject our family to that system.
Now, I want you to listen to the announcer who's going to share with you how you can get the package of tools that we have available. We have a book and a CD series: "Five Wealth Secrets 96 Percent of Us Don't Know" and "God's Power to Get Wealth. " I want you to know how you can get that package for yourself because these contain not only the principles that I'm teaching here on television, but many other principles that I don't have time to cover.
So, I want to invite the announcer to come now and share with you how you can get this package for yourself. Have you seen decline or even devastation instead of abundance in your finances? Do you want to walk down the path where your financial life works like never before?
Then you need the new package "God's Ancient Path to Wealth" from Craig Hill. This offer includes Craig's book "Five Wealth Secrets 96 Percent of Us Don't Know" and his 8-part CD series titled "God's Power to Get Wealth. " Craig Hill's practical experience and biblical insight will guide you through God's master plan for handling finances: the power behind money, five biblical uses of money, the truth behind sowing and reaping, and much more.
Order these indispensable financial roadmaps, "God's Ancient Path to Wealth," today for a gift of just $45 or more! Call our product line now at 303-797-1139 or simply order online at craighill. org and get your financial future placed on God's ancient path to wealth.
Again, the number to call is 303-797-1139. And now, back to Craig. We're going to continue talking about how did we get in this incredible mess.
You know, I just want to mention on previous broadcasts, we've talked about the wealth transfer coming. Proverbs 13:22 tells us, "The wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous," and we saw in Psalm 37:21 that the wicked are defined as those who have borrowed and do not pay back; the righteous are those who show mercy and give. You know, if many, many, many Christians are the ones that are indebted, we find ourselves on the wrong side of that wealth transfer equation.
Again, in the second broadcast, which is on the internet at craighill. org—if you missed it, you can still go there and see it—we talked about the meek. Matthew 5:5 says, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the land.
" This again is talking about the wealth transfer. Perhaps you've never heard a definition of the meek. Pardon me, not the weak; the meek are definitely not weak, and meekness does not mean humble.
If you don't know what meekness means, please go to that broadcast because it's critical for you to be able to understand that. You want to be on the meek side of the wealth equation, not on the side from whom the wealth is being transferred. You want to be on the meek side who inherit the land, not the ones who lose the land.
So, we're talking about a whole culture of debt where lots and lots of people have been set up to be on the wrong side of the wealth transfer equation, and now that's a very, very sad thing. You know, years ago, a young man came into a meeting where I was teaching on finances, and he was wearing a t-shirt. It's very interesting; the t-shirt said "One Master" across his t-shirt.
Because he was a Christian, I assumed the master he was talking about was probably the Lord Jesus Christ, and it turned out that that was true—that's exactly who he meant: Jesus is my only master. Then I was thinking about Proverbs 22:7 that says, "The borrower is a slave or a servant to the lender," and I realized, you know, probably not very many people who are at my meeting today could actually wear that t-shirt with integrity because the fact of the matter is they don't have just one master; they have many, many, many masters. Every entity, every person, every company that you've borrowed money from and carry a balance with is a master to you because the borrower is a slave or a servant to the master.
As a matter of fact, one of the credit card companies is so bold that they even put their name right on the card and tell you exactly who they are: MasterCard. If you sign up for that one, they will be your master, and you will be their servant. So, most people couldn't actually even wear the t-shirt with integrity because they have multiple, multiple masters.
Do you know the problem with that in the body of Messiah? It is that most people are not even in control of their own finances. Do you know that if Jesus Christ Himself walked into almost any congregation and revealed Himself and said, "You know, there's a project I want this congregation to be involved in—maybe a missions project in India—and I want you guys to be involved in helping to accomplish this purpose; it's going to take resources; it's going to take money to do it," do you know what you would find?
Many, many people's hearts would be touched, but the fact of the matter is they can't participate; they can't give. Put money into that. Why?
Because 100% of their monthly cash flow is already parted out to various masters: to American Express, to Mastercard, to Diners Club, to Visa, to the car finance company, to the house mortgage company. And if you don't believe that those are masters, try this one: why don't you write to your home mortgage company, or maybe your car finance company, or credit card company, and tell them this: "Dear Credit Card Company or Finance Company, The Lord Jesus Christ has really touched my heart regarding a project that our church is going to be doing in India, and I feel led to redirect the monthly money that I've been sending you as my payment on my house, my car, or my credit card—whatever it is—every single month. I’m not going to be sending you that for the next year.
I have felt led by the Lord to redirect that to this missions project. I hope you understand. So for the next year, you won't be receiving any payments from me.
God bless you. " If you don't know, or if you don’t believe they’re a master, try that one out and see what happens. You'll discover, no, they'll probably take your car away from you, take your house away from you, repossess that thing, because you have made yourself a servant or a slave.
Here’s an interesting thing: do you know when it came time to build a temple back in Israel in Old Testament times, how did they build it? They didn’t even touch the tithe. They left the tithe, which went to widows, strangers, Levites, priests, and orphans, and they used offerings.
They told people to bring offerings, and you know what happened? They received so much that they had to tell the congregation, "Take some back; it’s too much, we can’t use it all. " When was the last time that happened in your church when somebody said, "Take some of the money back; you’ve given too much?
" It’s very uncommon; it doesn’t happen. Why was it that they were able to fund the entire building project with offerings from the congregation and pay for it with cash right there? Very simple.
What’s different between times then and times now? The difference is this: those people in the days of Israel were 100% in control of their own finances. They didn’t have many masters, multiple masters; they were able to wear the T-shirt: one master, Jehovah God.
So when God said, "This is what I want you to do," they were able to allocate money for that because they were in control of their own money, in control of their own cash flow; they were able to give it. Most people today have many, many, many other masters; they’re not able to give; they’re not able to designate money as God would direct them. Do you know the consequence of that?
Most churches, many churches then, have to engage in the same debt system that the people have engaged in because the people are not able to fund the things that the congregation needs to do. Do you know that many congregations then do the same as people? They go to the bank and borrow money, thus subjecting themselves to slavery to that institution, most of whom are controlled, I really believe, by the spirit of mammon from the enemy.
We’ll talk about the spirit of mammon in an upcoming broadcast because it’s very critical to understand that. Now the Holy Spirit's speaking to me right now. There are several people that are listening, and what’s in your heart is this: you’re in a terrible situation financially, and the thing that keeps ringing and going around and around in your heart is, “It wasn’t my fault; it wasn’t my fault!
Somebody else put me in this situation. Somebody cheated me. Somebody stole money from me.
Somebody lied to me. Somebody deceived me. Somebody didn’t keep their word.
Somebody betrayed me. ” Maybe a spouse betrayed you, and you end up in a horrible financial situation. Or maybe a business partner stole money from you or told you they would do a certain thing and they didn’t do it, and deep inside there’s a resentment, there’s a bitterness, there’s a pain that says, “If only that person would have done that, I wouldn’t be in this horrible situation of debt.
If only that person hadn’t betrayed me, lied to me, stolen from me, cheated me, I wouldn’t be in this situation. ” There are many, many listening right now; that’s exactly your situation. The Holy Spirit is speaking to you.
I want to pray for you because here’s the truth: the bitterness in your heart, the anger, the resentment is keeping you from receiving your miracle. God has a miracle for you, and it’s going to be released as you’re able to forgive. Now that forgiveness is something that is a choice that you make, but God will give you supernatural power to do it.
Here’s the thing that’s really critical to recognize: as you think of that person who stole from you, cheated you, betrayed you, lied to you, do you know that that person cannot pay for the way they sinned against you? That person cannot pay. Do you know even if they were flogged to death before your eyes, it would not be enough to pay for the sin that they committed against you, for the betrayal, for what they did to you?
But here’s good news: Jesus Christ died; He shed His blood to pay for what that person did to you. My question is this: will you allow today the blood of Jesus? To be enough to pay for what your husband did, what your business partner did, what your friend did, what that person did to you, will you allow the blood of Jesus to be enough?
That's what I want to pray for you—that will release your miracle if you're willing to pray that, to let Jesus' blood be enough to pay for what that person did. I want to ask you to just repeat these words with me. Just close your eyes and speak these words: "Lord Jesus, someone sinned against me, betrayed me, stole from me, put me in a horrible situation of debt.
" Just speak these words with me. And, Lord, I recognize today that person cannot pay for their sin against me. Jesus, You did it, and I declare today Your blood is enough.
Your blood is enough, and because of Your blood, I forgive. Now, would you say the name of that person? There might be more than one that has come to your mind: "I forgive my wife, my husband," whatever the name of that person is.
I forgive; I release them now. Would you speak this: "Father God, I need a miracle, but You're a God of miracles. I'm trusting You to do what no man can do for me.
And as I take natural steps, You will take supernatural steps. I trust You, God, to change my financial situation. In Jesus' name, amen.
" Now, if you prayed that prayer with me, would you send us an email? The email address is on your screen. Let us know that you prayed that prayer, and I just want to be able to continue to pray for you, and you know God will do incredible miracles in your life.
One last thing I want to touch: Genesis chapter 3, verse 13. Do you know that there's an incredible deception in debt that most people really don't understand? There's something very interesting in Genesis chapter 3, verse 13, and it says this: "The Lord said to the woman, 'What is this that you have done?
' And the woman said, 'The serpent deceived me, and I ate. '" The serpent deceived me, and I ate. Do you know that that word "deceived" is a Hebrew homonym that has two different meanings?
A homonym is one word that sounds the same and has two meanings. We're out of time today; I'm not going to be able to tell you what those two meanings are, but I'm going to share that in our next broadcast, which you can find on the web at www. craighill.
org. In the next broadcast, I want to share with you the two meanings of that Hebrew word "deceived," and I also want to share with you a way that God showed Jan and me over a decade ago to eliminate all of our debt, including our house mortgage, in less than three years. You know, when we calculated how long it would take, it was going to be about eight or nine years.
We did something natural—five steps God showed us—and I want to share with you those five steps in our next broadcast on the internet at craighill. org. We'll see you there.
Again, be sure to get the Ancient Path to Wealth package, including Craig's book "Five Wealth Secrets 96% of Us Don't Know" and his eight-part CD series "God's Power to Get Wealth. " Both resources are yours for a gift of just $45 or more. Call our product line now at 303-797-1139 or simply order online at craighill.
org. I want to let you know about an opportunity available to you to participate in an Ancient Paths experience. You know, these are going on in 48 nations around the world and all over the United States and Canada.
We have trained ministry teams to touch the depths of people's hearts, to not only bring knowledge and information to them but to bring real life change to areas such as anger, fear, and the inability to produce results in finances. We have an Ancient Paths experience called Financial Foundations, and I just want to let you know these are available. You can find out where the closest one to you is right now on our website, craighill.
org. I really want to encourage you to go to that site, check out where's the nearest Ancient Paths, and to go to that seminar. See you there!
Once again, go to craighill. org or call to receive the Ancient Path to Wealth package for your gift of just $45 or more. For those of you following Craig along this Ancient Path to Wealth series, the next broadcast is available for viewing online at craighill.
org, so be sure to join us there. Thank you for watching today's episode of Ancient Paths with Craig Hill.
