In our economic cultures today, many people are challenged to make ends meet. The cost of basic necessities continues to increase, and their finances may become stretched tight. Often they become fearful and then begin entangling themselves in things of the world to maintain their standard of living. How can the disciple avoid this downward spiral and maintain an abundant life-style?
First and foremost, we need to recognize Who the Source of our supply is and how abundantly He supplies our need. Recognizing God as the Source of our abundance, we hold that truth in mind to resist temptation to fear and become entangled.
II Corinthians 9:7 and 8 contains a wonderful key to living abundantly with our need supplied in every category of life according to God’s sufficiency.
II Corinthians 9:7 and 8:
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.
God supplies abundantly for us in all things. He is able to make His grace abound toward us, and we are promised to have all sufficiency in all things so we can abound to every good work. That sounds like a description of a productive, abundant life. The limitlessness of God’s ability to provide is evident. We have our need met not only so that we are satisfied but so that we can abound to every good work.
A foundation for our understanding of God’s giving nature is set in John 3:16:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
In the Greek, the word “for” is also translated “because.” Because God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son. Love and giving are inseparable qualities.
I Corinthians 2:9:
But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
We can’t even begin to conceive of the full extent to which God has planned to bless us! No man has seen or heard the fullness of God’s ability to take care of them that love Him—not only in the future, but right now. We can develop confidence that our need will never exceed God’s resources. We recognize God as the Source of our supply, and He supplies our need abundantly. Holding this truth in mind helps us to avoid the traps of financial enslavement set by the world.
God’s willingness to provide for our need is a result of His great love for us. God so loves that He gives freely and unforced.
Romans 8:32:
…how shall he [God] not with him [Jesus Christ] also freely give us all things?
It’s God’s good pleasure to love and to give. He is willing to lovingly provide all sufficiency for us in all things. He loves us and evidences that love by freely giving what is required for our lives to be rewarding and abundant. We can have our need met in any situation because His resources are limitless.
Psalms 24:1:
The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
When I need to remind myself of God’s goodness and how abundantly He supplies, I think about a corn plant. When a farmer plants one grain, or seed, of corn and it begins to grow, a stalk forms. When fully grown, that stalk of corn will probably be taller than the farmer. It can have one or more ears that contain hundreds of grains of corn. From one seed, the farmer may see an increase of over a thousandfold! This is my renewed-mind picture of God’s abundance and His willingness to supply.
Knowing how gracious our heavenly Father is to supply our every need with His limitless resources, we need not become fearful about making ends meet. Rather, we can confidently believe God’s promises regarding financial abundance and take giving action.
When believers realize the full extent of the abundance available, they can believe to receive the blessings God has in store for them. The action God expects us to take in order to enjoy His abundance is to give financially.
Malachi 3:10-12:
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.
And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.
These believers were instructed to practice the law of tithing, which was giving ten percent of their increase. As a result of their obedience, God promised to pour out blessings that exceeded the space they had available! In addition to meeting their physical need, God promised to protect their investment so it would yield fruit; in other words, the results of their efforts were completely fulfilled. In addition to seeing these promises come to pass, the abundance of the believers would also be a witness to all nations because they would be “a delightsome land.” As we tithe and abundantly share beyond the tithe, God does the same for us….
This is an excerpt from the November/December 2008 issue of The Way Magazine.
Copyright© 2008 by The Way International. All rights reserved.
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