BENEFITS OF A GIVING ATTITUDE!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY MAY 27, 2021.

SUBJECT : BENEFITS OF A GIVING ATTITUDE!

Memory verse: "For If there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.” (Second Corinthians 8 vs 12.) 

READ: First Kings 17 vs 10 - 16:

17:10: So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may drink.”

17:11: And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”

17:12: So she said, “As the Lord Your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”

17:13: And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. 

17:14: For thus says the Lord God of Israel; ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.

17:15: So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days.

17:16: The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.

INTIMATION:

A giving attitude is more important than the amount given. God looks at the willingness of the heart to give out of your resources, and not at the amount given. He knows our individual capacities because our blessings come from Him. Holding back much of your abundance reflects unrighteousness to God, and unbelief. However, the person who can give only a small out of his or her meager resources shouldn’t be embarrassed. God is concerned about the willingness to give from your resources.

In the passage we read today, it was obvious that when the widow of Zarephath met Elijah, she thought she was preparing her last meal. But a simple act of faith from a willing heart, flowing from a giving attitude, produced a miracle— an overflow. She trusted Elijah and gave all she had to eat with her household to him. 

Consider the story of the giving of a poor widow In Mark 12 vs 41 - 44. Jesus’ remarks on the offering of a poor widow is quite revealing of God’s kingdom standard; “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had, her whole livelihood.” (Mark 12 vs 43 - 44,)

These widows, in faith, gave all they had to live on, from a willing heart, flowing from their giving attitude. They knew they were giving to the God that owns everything, and ‘is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that they ask or think.’ The widow of Zarephath, by her giving, provoked divine provisioning, such that she, the prophet and her household were fed all through the period of drought or famine. Even the widow’s son was raised from death, after he fell seriously ill and died. The widow that gave the two mites got God’s approval because she gave extravagantly all that she had, while the rich amongst them were given big sums from their abundance. God saw her offering as the biggest. 

When we consider giving a certain percentage of our income a great accomplishment, we resemble those who gave “out of their abundance.” Here Jesus was admiring generous and sacrificial giving. As believers, we should consider increasing our giving—whether of money, time, or talents—to a point beyond convenience or calculation.

Therefore, the benefits of giving are as follows: 

(1) It Provokes divine provision. 

(2) It provokes divine protection. 

(3) It provokes God’s approval, especially when you give sacrificially. 

(4) It ensures freedom from enslavement to our possessions. 

(5) It provides the joy of helping others. 

(6) It opens doors of more blessing by God, more than you can ask or think.

God Himself is a cheerful Giver. He sees beyond man, and never overlooks what man couldn’t see. Consider all He has given us. He is pleased when we, who are created in His image and after a His likeness, gives generously and joyfully. 

Prayer: Abba Father, endue me with the spirit of giving, that I may obtain Your approval in my sacrifices and offerings, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

GOD’S PROVISION IS AS LARGE AS YOUR FAITH!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY MAY 26, 2021.

SUBJECT : GOD’S PROVISION IS AS LARGE AS YOUR FAITH!

Memory verse: "Now it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And He said to her, “There is not another vessel.” So the oil ceased.” (Second Kings 4 vs 6.)

READ: Second Kings 4 vs 1 - 6: 

4:1: A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves.

4:2: So Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” Ans she said, “Your maidservant ha nothing in the house but a jar of oil.”

4:3: Then he said, “ Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors—empty vessels; do not gather just a few.

4:4: And when you have come in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all those vessels and set aside the full ones.”

4:5: So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who brought the vessels to her, and she poured it out.

4:6: Now it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And He said to her, “There is not another vessel.” So the oil ceased.

INTIMATION:

God is a faith God, and we understand that, by faith, He framed the world by His word, such that the things we see are made by things which are invisible. God’s nature of creative faith existed with His servants, and imparted on the believer as part of his inheritance in Christ. The believer or carrier of this awesome nature of God, limits himself or herself to the extent he or she exercises that faith.

The passage we read today clearly demonstrates a case of limited faith. The woman and her sons collected jars from their neighbors, pouring olive oil into them from their one flask. The olive oil stopped flowing only when they ran out of containers. The number of jars they gathered was an indication of their faith. 

God’s provision was as large as their faith and willingness to obey. If the sons had gone out to collect more vessels while she waits, the flowing of the oil wouldn’t have ceased. But they limited themselves by the number of jars they were able to gather in faith. Beware of limiting God’s blessings by a lack of faith and obedience. God can and will do even more than we ask or think (Ephesians 3 vs 20).

Abraham, adjudged as the father of faith, epitomized the creative faith nature of God. The Book of Romans 4 vs 19 - 21 gives a picture of Abraham's creative faith. Read the story over carefully until your spirit catches fire: "And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform."

Abraham never doubted that God would fulfill His promise. His life was marked by mistakes, sins, and failures as well as by wisdom and goodness, but he consistently trusted God. His faith was strengthened by the obstacles he faced, and his life was an example of faith in action. If he had looked only at his own resources for subduing Canaan and founding a nation, he would have given up in despair. But Abraham looked at God, obeyed Him, and waited for God to fulfill His word.

The believer is a faith child of God, God has imparted His very nature in us as sons and daughters. Ours is to faithfully exercise that faith in our daily lives. Jesus noted this fact when He said, in Mark 11 vs 22 - 23, “...”Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.” Exercise your faith to the fullest, and receive the promise.to the fullest.

Prayer: Abba Father, my believe is completely in You. Engrace me with the divine strength in exercising my faith exceedingly that I may receive abundantly more than I ask or think, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Strength to Wait with Patience

 May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy. (Colossians 1:11)

“Strengthened” is the right word. The apostle Paul prayed for the church at Colossae, that they would be “strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience” (Colossians 1:11). Patience is the evidence of an inner strength.

Impatient people are weak, and therefore dependent on external supports — like schedules that go just right and circumstances that support their fragile hearts. Their outbursts of oaths and threats and harsh criticisms of the culprits who crossed their plans do not sound weak. But that noise is all a camouflage of weakness. Patience demands tremendous inner strength.

For the Christian, this strength comes from God. That is why Paul is praying for the Colossians. He is asking God to empower them for the patient endurance that the Christian life requires. But when he says that the strength of patience is “according to [God’s] glorious might” he doesn’t just mean that it takes divine power to make a person patient. He means that faith in this “glorious might” is the channel through which the power for patience comes.

Patience is indeed a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22), but the Holy Spirit empowers (with all his fruit) through “hearing with faith” (Galatians 3:5). Therefore Paul is praying that God would connect us with the “glorious might” that empowers patience. And that connection is faith.

May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy. (Colossians 1:11)

“Strengthened” is the right word. The apostle Paul prayed for the church at Colossae, that they would be “strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience” (Colossians 1:11). Patience is the evidence of an inner strength.

Impatient people are weak, and therefore dependent on external supports — like schedules that go just right and circumstances that support their fragile hearts. Their outbursts of oaths and threats and harsh criticisms of the culprits who crossed their plans do not sound weak. But that noise is all a camouflage of weakness. Patience demands tremendous inner strength.

For the Christian, this strength comes from God. That is why Paul is praying for the Colossians. He is asking God to empower them for the patient endurance that the Christian life requires. But when he says that the strength of patience is “according to [God’s] glorious might” he doesn’t just mean that it takes divine power to make a person patient. He means that faith in this “glorious might” is the channel through which the power for patience comes.

Patience is indeed a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22), but the Holy Spirit empowers (with all his fruit) through “hearing with faith” (Galatians 3:5). Therefore Paul is praying that God would connect us with the “glorious might” that empowers patience. And that connection is faith.

God’s Design in Detours

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:17)

Have you ever wondered what God is doing while you are looking in the wrong place for something you lost and needed very badly? He knows exactly where it is, and yet he is letting you look in the wrong place.

I once needed a quote for a new edition of my book Desiring God. I knew I had read it in Richard Wurmbrand. I thought it was in his devotional book, Reaching Toward the Heights. I could almost see it on the right hand side of the facing pages. But I couldn’t find it. 

But while I was looking, I was riveted on his devotional for November 30. As I read it, I said, “This is why the Lord let me keep looking for my quote in the ‘wrong’ place.” Here was a story that illustrated perfectly that nothing is wasted that we do in the name of Jesus — nothing, not even looking for a quote in the wrong place. Here’s what I read:

In a home for retarded children, Catherine was nurtured twenty years. The child had been [mentally handicapped] from the beginning, and had never spoken a word, but only vegetated. She either gazed quietly at the walls or made distorted movements. To eat, to drink, to sleep, were her whole life. She seemed not to participate at all in what happened around her. A leg had to be amputated. The staff wished Cathy well and hoped that the Lord would soon take her to Himself.

One day the doctor called the director to come quickly. Catherine was dying. When both entered the room, they could not believe their senses. Catherine was singing Christian hymns she had heard and had picked up, just those suitable for death beds. She repeated over and over again the German song, “Where does the soul find its fatherland, its rest?” She sang for half an hour with transfigured face, then she passed away quietly. (Taken from The Best Is Still to Come, Wuppertal: Sonne und Shild)

Is anything that is done in the name of Christ really wasted? 

My frustrated, futile search for what I thought I needed was not wasted. Singing to this disabled child was not wasted. And your agonizing, unplanned detour is not a waste — not if you look to the Lord for his unexpected work, and do everything in his name (Colossians 3:17).

GIVE OUT OF GRATITUDE TO GOD!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY MAY 25, 2021.

SUBJECT : GIVE OUT OF GRATITUDE TO GOD!

Memory verse: "So let each one give as He purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver." (Second Corinthians 9 vs 7.)

READ: Second Corinthians 9 vs 6 - 11:

9:6: But this I say, He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

9:7: So let each one give as He purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

9:8: And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have abundance for every good work:

9:9: As it is written, “He has dispersed abroad, he has given to the poor: his righteousness endures  forever.

9:10: Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown  and increase the fruits of your righteousness,

9:11: while you be enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.

INTIMATION:

Christians should give of their own free will without reluctance and without feeling compelled to give. They should be moved to give out of gratitude and the grace of God in their hearts. Therefore, they should seek to see how much they can give, not how little they can give. Since Christians are grace-motivated, they should give out of thanksgiving to God for saving them by His grace. Grace-motivated Christians are thus cheerful givers, and spiritually grow every time they have the opportunity to give.

A giving attitude is more important than the amount given. The person who can give only a small gift shouldn’t be embarrassed. God is concerned about how a person gives from his or her resources. God Himself is a cheerful giver. Consider all He has done for us. He is pleased when we who are created in His image give generously and joyfully. Do you have a difficult time letting go of your money? It may reflect ungratefulness to God.

Believers are called to be generous because of the example of the Lord of life. A stingy Christian should be an extinct specie. Generosity proves that a person’s heart has been cleansed of self-interest and filled with the servant spirit of Jesus Himself. That is why acts of generosity result in God being praised. Do neighbors see generosity in your actions?

Christians shouldn't fall for any kind of coercion to give. That is tantamount to given of necessity. The only giving that is acceptable to God is that which you purpose in your own heart and give cheerfully—not grudgingly or of necessity. You aren't going to buy prosperity from God, or force Him into blessing you, just like you don't need to pay Him protection money to keep the curse of the law out of your life. All of that is manipulation and condemnation, and giving with those motivations profits you nothing. Give as a response of joy and love for God. And let your giving be a matter of rejoicing rather than duty.

Unfortunately, you sometimes hear ministers at meetings, church or on television manipulating people into giving "of necessity." For instance, when  a preacher says things like "if anyone gives a specific amount within the next ten minutes then God is going to open the heavens and pour out all kinds of blessings." That's not fundraising, it's bribery! Some preachers will call for the first 100 people or any number they choose, and ask them to give a specific amount, and God will do a specific thing for them. Again that is not in any way, an exercise of faith. It is giving of necessity, giving to receive a specific thing. That is "barter."

People may hesitate to give generously to God because they worry about having enough money left over to meet their own needs. But God is able to meet our needs. The person who gives only a little will receive only a little in return. Don’t let a lack of faith  keep you from giving cheerfully and generously.

We should pray for the grace of giving. Too often, stewardship of money is given a different status than other aspects of discipleship. Most believers would not want growth in faith, knowledge, or love to stop at a certain level. Yet many decide a fixed percentage of their money to give and stay there for life. True discipleship includes growing in the mature use of all resources, so giving should expand as well. God can give you the desire and enable you to increase your capacity to give. Don’t miss this opportunity for growth. 

Prayer: Abba Father, thank You for the gift of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to the world out of Your love for it, and the gifts You have always bestowed on us Your children cheerfully. Endure with the grace to give out of gratitude for all You have done, is doing, and yet to do for me, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD! 

ARE WE CURSED FOR NOT TITHING?

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

MONDAY MAY 24, 2021.

SUBJECT : ARE WE CURSED FOR NOT TITHING?

Memory verse: "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree." (Galatians 3 vs 13.)

READ: Malachi 3 vs 8 - 11:

3:8: ""Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings. 

3:9: You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me. Even this whole nation. 

3:10: Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this," Says the Lord of Hosts, "If I will not open the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. 

3:11: And I will rebuke the devourer for your sake, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field." Says the Lord of hosts.

INTIMATION:

Let's us review the Scripture we read today which is the classic passage used to teach on tithing. The prophet Malachi is among the postexilic prophets to Judah (the southern kingdom), and wrote the Book after the return of the children of Israel from exile, and abandoned those godly principles and practices they were used to before they were exiled. 

During Malachi's days the people ignored God's command to give a tithe of their income to the Temple. The Levites (who were the priests) lived off these gifts, and when the people stopped giving, they were forced to work to earn a living, thereby abandoning their God-given responsibilities to care for the Temple and the service of worship under the laws God gave them through Moses.

Nearly everyone who teaches on the tithes cites this passage. Usually it is used like a club to beat people into submission. But there is a huge difference between the punishment that came for disobeying the law under the Old Testament, and the grace that we live under the New Testament. The motivation for tithing is out of appreciation for what God has done in our lives. It should come as a response of love from the heart, out of a desire to bring God into your finances, and bless people. We don't tithe in an attempt to keep the law. In fact, it would be a bad idea to even try.

Now, look at Galatians 3 vs 10, "For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them." The apostle Paul quoted Deuteronomy 27 vs 26 to prove that, contrary to what the Judaizers claimed, the law cannot justify and save; it can only condemn. 

You are cursed if you don't keep all of the law. You can't just keep some of it, or do the best you can and God will make up the difference. No, if you don't keep every letter of the law, then you are cursed! And because everyone has broken the commandments, everyone stands condemned. The law can do nothing to reverse the condemnation. This is why Jesus came, because we are absolutely incapable of keeping the law. It's impossible.

The Scripture, in Romans 3 vs 20 - 24, says, "Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

The people who are trying to say to you that you are cursed if you don't tithe are missing this point. You either trust the grace of God, or you reject Jesus' sacrifice and put your trust in your own performance and forfeit God's grace. You have to be 100 percent perfect—never making a single mistake in thought, word, or deed for your entire life, or you have to humble yourself and receive the gift of God's grace. Trying to satisfy the law by paying tithe isn't going to help.

The apostle Paul continued his teaching in Galatians 3 vs 11 - 14, saying, "But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith." Yet the law is not of faith, but "the man who does them shall live by them." Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."

Yes, we are redeemed from the curse of the law! This passage couldn't be any clearer. It's true that the verse in Malachi 3 says "you are cursed with a curse" if you don't tithe. But this is exactly what we have been redeemed from. The whole attitude that God is going to punish you for not paying a tithe is completely unscriptural. 

Some preachers will say, "If you didn't pay tithe, God would take it from you in doctor's bills, or He will make your car break down, or something else like that. In my considered opinion, God doesn't relate with us that way under the New Covenant. Christ freed us from the curse of the law. God is not coming against you. He is not going to take money from you if you don't tithe, but you have denied yourself of the opportunity of godly prosperity. Trying to payoff God like He's some kind of mobster is the wrong motivation. You're not going to benefit from that kind of giving.

It's also worth mentioning that the passage in Malachi 3 vs 8 - 11 says the curse comes from robbing God in tithes and offerings. The ministers who use this verse to teach about tithing from a law perspective conveniently overlook that you also have to give offerings to keep the law. There are so many offerings, that all together outnumber tithe. So if you are trying to live by the law, you are cursed unless you are giving all the offerings.

Prayer: Abba Father, nothing I do can be enough to thank You for all You have done for me. All that is within me bless Your Holy name. Endue me with the spirit of perfect obedience to You, and give me the grace to worship You with my substance at all times and in the best of my ability, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Bedrock of Your Assurance

God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit. (2 Thessalonians 2:13)

The Bible speaks of our election — God’s choosing us — in Christ before the foundation of the earth (Ephesians 1:4) before we had done anything good or evil (Romans 9:11). Therefore, our election is unconditional in the strictest sense. Neither our faith nor our obedience is the basis of it. It is free and utterly undeserved. 

On the other hand, dozens of passages in the Bible speak of our final salvation (as opposed to our election in eternity past) as conditional upon a changed heart and life. So, the question arises, How can I have the assurance that I will persevere in the faith and holiness necessary for inheriting eternal life?

The answer is that assurance is rooted in our election. Second Peter 1:10 says, “Be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.” Divine election is the foundation of God’s commitment to save me, and therefore that he will undertake to work in me by sanctifying grace what his electing grace has begun.

This is the meaning of the new covenant. Everyone who believes in Jesus is a secure beneficiary of the new covenant, because Jesus said in Luke 22:20, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” That is, by my blood I secure the new covenant for all who are mine.

In the new covenant God does not merely command obedience; he gives it. “The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). “I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes” (Ezekiel 36:27; cf. 11:20). Those are new covenant promises.

Election is God’s eternal commitment to do this for his people. So, election guarantees that those whom God justifies by faith he will most assuredly glorify (Romans 8:30). This means that he will unfailingly work in us all the conditions laid down for glorification.

Election is the final ground of assurance because, since it is God’s commitment to save, it is also God’s commitment to enable all that is necessary for salvation.