To the natural man God’s values do not make sense. Jesus chose twelve men to be His disciples, (Judas was replaced after his betrayal). Acts 17:6 says, regarding these men, that “they turned the world upside down”. Worldly values are very often opposite to God’s.
Consider this: God does much with little, most with least and everything with nothing!…..all for His glory. Jesus took five loaves and two fishes and miraculously fed five thousand people from a little boy’s lunch. He turned water into wine. God called a reluctant, fearful Moses and made him into a great leader of a nation. God called a frightened, trembling Gideon and transformed him into a mighty man of valour. Whom God calls, He equips for His purposes.
The book of Proverbs declares God’s values. Proverbs 11: 24 NKJ “There is one who scatters, yet increases more, and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty”.
When we withhold and keep things to ourselves, it leads to a poverty. This does not just apply to finance, but reaches into every area of life such as stewarding our time, relationships, belongings, forgiving and forebearing, sharing helpful information etc.
God’s word instructs from Jesus’ sermon on the mount: “Give and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over……for with the same measure you give out, it shall be measured to you again”, Luke 6:38.
Matthew 10:8 Jesus instructed His disciples to share the gospel of the kingdom of heaven: “………freely you have received, freely give”.
Only when my heart is in order and bowing to God, will I see the true value of everything in life through God’s eyes. God searches our hearts by His Holy Spirit and knows our every thought, examines all our motives for every action. Psalm 139 displays the overwhelming loving care and omniscience of God, our Father, in a personal way to each of us. God loves us individually. God loves me, He does not “put up” with me. He is a personal God and desires close fellowship with me. He imparted desires for Himself when I entered into salvation, and only He can fulfil them.
“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart”, Psalm 37:4. God cannot be imitated, but He can be partaken of through the Life of His Son, Jesus Christ. “Christ in you, the hope of glory”.
Let us press on to fulfil God’s call upon our lives, different expressions for each of us, and yet, all called to be conformed to the fullness of Christ Jesus to display the Life of God. Our lives do not belong to ourselves. 1 Corinthians 6: 19-20 “…..Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have of God, and you are not your own. You are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are God’s”. We can give many excuses for our lack, but every member of the Body of Christ has opportunity to exercise faith. In order to please God it must be exercised as God’s word declares: “Without faith it is IMPOSSIBLE to please God”, Hebrews 11:6.
Do not allow our present circumstances to hold us back from the full purposes of God. As we focus our gaze on God, refusing to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, He will strengthen and enable us to keep stepping forward on our journey with Him. He is our joy for the journey, our ever present help……and our everything.
Freely you have received, freely give……
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