“My God will meet all your needs in
Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Php 4:19).
What an incredible promise! So why does it often seem like this isn’t the
case?
The Old
Testament prophet, Haggai describes what so many Christians experience today.
“ Now this
is what the Lord Almighty
says: “Give careful thought to your
ways. You have
planted much, but harvested little. You eat,
but never have enough. You drink,
but never have your fill. You put on
clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to
put them in a purse with holes in it.” (Hag 1:5-6)
“You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with
holes in it.” Ouch! That strikes too
close to home for many. So where is God’s promise of provision? Many Christians experiencing this feel that
God is failing to live up to His promises.
They can doubt God’s faithfulness and goodness. They become miserable in
their faith, or even abandon it altogether. They blame God, instead of
exploring the reason for their struggle.
Haggai describes the sin of the people that God
hated in Old Testament times.
Then the word of the Lord came through the prophet Haggai: “Is
it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house [God’s temple] remains
a ruin?”
Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested
little. You eat, but never
have enough. You
drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm.
You earn wages, only
to put them in a purse with holes in it.”
This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down
timber and build my house,
so that I may take pleasure in
it and be honored,” says the Lord. “You
expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which
remains a ruin, while
each of you is busy with your own house. Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. I
called for a drought on
the fields and the mountains, on
the grain, the new wine, the
olive oil and
everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the
labor of your hands.” (Hag 1:2-11)
God was so angry with His people, that He caused
their work to produce little fruit. What was the sin? Being busy with their own
houses – making them as nice as possible – while neglecting God’s house. That
describes our culture! I have heard that if every professing Christian tithed,
there would be more than enough to feed all the starving people in the world
and missionaries would have all they need to bring the gospel to the whole
world! Why don’t we tithe? Because we
are so busy upgrading our houses, our belongings, our stuff. Subscribing to TV
service is more important that tithing. Making sure our kids have stylish
clothes is more important than God’s command. We spend more on our pets than we
give to help the poor. We spend more on having our kids involved in soccer,
dance, martial arts, piano lessons, etc. than we give to missions. (We need to
make sure that the money we give for missions goes where we expect, but don’t
use the mismanagement of some organizations’ funds aas an excuse to not give at
all). We spend huge sums of money to go on vacation, to have a nice car, to
live in a home that is really more than we need. We are so busy building our
little kingdom that there is no money left for God’s kingdom.
GOD
HATES THIS and will oppose it!
If this is how you are living, then God will treat
you as He treated His people in Haggai’s day. He will allow you to work hard
for your money only to see it disappear on all sorts of unexpected expenses.
Let’s go to the promise of God’s provision. It occurs in Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi.
We love the promises, but fail to learn the conditions that go with them. We don’t live up to the conditions, but then
blame God for being unfaithful!
So let’s take a closer look at this promise.
Yet it was
good of you to share in my
troubles. Moreover,
as you Philippians know, in the early days of your
acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one
church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; for even
when I was in Thessalonica, you sent
me aid more than once when I was in need. 17 Not that I
desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. I have
received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that
I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts
you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of
his glory in Christ Jesus. (Php
4:14-19)
Paul
is thanking the Philippian Christians for the many times they have provided for
his needs. He indicates they provided gifts more than once while he was in
Thessalonica, and then again while he was in prison in Rome (where Paul writes
this letter). He then lets them know
that their sacrifice is pleasing to
God. These gifts were not out of their abundance, but were a sacrifice of love
– love for God and love for Paul.
After
this praise for their sacrificial giving, Paul informs these generous Christians, “And my God will
meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”
So
what do we need to learn from this? The promise really has a condition. God
will meet all our needs when we give joyfully and sacrificially to the causes
on God’s heart. One of the greatest causes on God’s heart is the spread of the
gospel message through people filled with His Spirit, His compassion, and His love.
This work is so often hindered by finances!
I have lived on a disability income for many years,
and God has provided for me far beyond all I could ask or imagine. Why have I
been so blessed? Because I joyfully put God first in my finances. He is faithful and provides my needs. I
drive a 13-year-old rusty car – it gets me where I need to go. I live in a
fixer-upper home – it keeps me warm and dry. More than half of the furniture in
my home has come from the garbage or second-hand from people. I have had several
compliments on my “garbage” couch! I don’t have TV service – lessening the pull
that worldly culture has on me. I am
certainly not immune to that culture! I have moments where I wish I had some
nicer things, but I really have more than I need, AND I am still wealthier than
75% of the people on the planet! God’s involvement in my life is evident every day, and my relationship with Him
is truly more satisfying than all the things
I don’t have.
However, I still need to grow in this area. I read
the passage yesterday in Philippians and it struck home. My youngest son recently
moved in with his dad. This has decreased my income, while barely impacting my
expenses. I was considering cancelling my support of a foster child in India.
After looking at these Scriptures, I know that I need to continue that support.
I will see what other expenses I can cut back. My God is FAITHFUL, and will
continue to provide for me abundantly, when I put His cause first in my life!
God Almighty! Your Word
is powerful and convicting. Help us to learn your Word in its context, so that
we don’t blame you for our sin. You are always faithful! Help us to examine our
ways to see where we are unfaithful to you! Thank you that you are so forgiving
and so patient with us! Thank you that times of refreshing come with
repentance! (Acts 3:19) To You be all praise and honour and power and glory.
Amen!
