THE LIFE OF FAITH AND THE GLORIOUS CHURCH - 2009
FEBRUARY 15th
ATTEMPTING TO MEET OUR NEEDS IN OUR OWN STRENGTH IS FUTILE AND
SERVES ONLY TO ROB US OF THE TRUE SPIRITUAL LIFE WE HAVE IN CHRIST
...."And
my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ
Jesus"....
Philippians 4:19 NASB
....""For
this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you
will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on.
Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds
of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your
heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of
you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried
about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor
do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed
himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which
is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more
clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?'
or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?' For the Gentiles
eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all
these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these
things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will
care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own"....
Matthew 6:25-34 NASB
I remember clearly the
Lord saying to me one day many years ago, "I will meet all of your needs
if you will allow Me to". At that time it really struck my thinking
because He said, "if you ALLOW Me to" - which of course pointed out
something in me which was not allowing Him to have His way in my life. As the
Father dealt with me in those areas I learned to step aside in EVERY circumstance
and, thus, allow HIM to meet my needs. He was faithful to continually show me
where to apply my faith - thus allowing Him to supply "all".
Attempting to meet our needs in our own strength is futile and serves only to
rob us of the true "spiritual life" we have, in Christ. After one's
mind is renewed to God's way of thinking in this area it becomes very hard for
them to continue on in their own strength - knowing that they will have chosen
to walk in less than the Father's best for them [and, indeed, for all those who
cross their path]. If the child of God does not learn to choose the Father's
best in ALL things then, ultimately, they shall surely experience "Satan's
worst".
THE FATHER IS ALWAYS FAITHFUL TO SHOW THE FRUIT OF OUR SPIRITUAL
GROWTH TO US AS WE TRAVEL ON FROM FAITH TO FAITH AND GLORY TO GLORY
We must come to the place wherein we refuse to take a thought from our
"own" understanding - and be found seeking the Father and His Wisdom
at ALL times. As we are faithful to develop this attitude - an attitude that is
only developed through a continued diligence in bringing every thought captive
to the revealed Word of God - we shall be found to have built our entire life
and ministry upon the solid foundation: which is Christ. We can liken our spiritual
growth in the Christian life to watching a tree grow. If we attempt to
"see" the growth in the tree day by day then it will "seem"
to us that it is not growing at all, but if we depart from that place and
return at a certain time in the future we shall surely see the growth in the
tree. In knowing that we are to keep our eyes fixed on the things that are not
seen, rather than on the things which are seen [2 Corinthians 4:18] we must proceed
on, moment by moment in faith, knowing that the Father shall surely provide the
"increase" in our life and ministry - spirit, soul, body and
financially. Regardless of what it may "seem" like at times the
Father is ALWAYS faithful to show the fruit of our spiritual growth to us as we
travel on - from faith to faith, obedience to obedience and glory to glory.
OUR GOD IS AN ABSOLUTE GOD AND HE REQUIRES AN ABSOLUTE SURRENDER AND AN
ABSOLUTE OBEDIENCE
Again, the Father
desires to take the "full responsibility" for our sustenance in this
earth and, thus, we rob Him of the pleasure that He derives from blessing us if
we refuse to depend upon Him for ALL things. One can imagine what it would be
like if an earthly parent were attempting to bless their children and
they kept refusing the blessing because of an "assurance" in their
own thinking of their ability to meet their own needs. One can see clearly that
such actions have their root in pride. Pride will ALWAYS prevent us from
receiving the blessings of God, and it is certain that to the degree that one
depends upon themselves it is to that degree that they will not be able to
receive from God. So if we are in a position where we are finding it difficult
to receive things from God it may just point out some "ground" within
us that needs to be fully exposed, and removed by the power of the Holy Spirit.
We need to cast ALL of our burdens and care and worry - and every desire we
have to lean on our own understanding - upon the Father. The Word of God
states, "Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart" and, it is also
written, "Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart, and do not lean on your
own understanding" [Luke 10:27; Proverbs 3:5-6]. Our God is an absolute
God, and He requires an absolute surrender and an absolute obedience. If we
settle for anything less than a perfect obedience to this Divine Requirement
then we will SURELY find ourselves settling for less than what the Father has
provided for us, in Christ. As we faithfully seek to abide in that place of an
absolute surrender we must ALWAYS remember that what God commands us to do is
for our greatest good [greatest eternal benefit] - always!
Related
Scriptures: Romans 12:1-2; 1 Peter 5:5b-7; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Hebrews
12:10;
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