Matthew 7:7-11
"Ask and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened.
Or what man is there among you, when his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone?
Or if he shall ask for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!"
I guess the hardest part for most people walking in this new life with Christ is the idea of looking to Him as the provider for all our needs.
Realizing that in Christ we find everything we need.
He is our all sufficiency. His heart is to pour out on those whose hearts are committed to Him. Pour out what? Everything from His glorious riches and bounty of heaven.
Now before you get all giddy with excitement and have visions of new cars, big houses and mega-bling, just realize that those thoughts come from your flesh and not your spirit.
Could God make me rich?
I guess so.
Could God give me wealth beyond my imagination?
He probably could.
But, as the Hebrew Children said in Daniel shortly before being thrown into a furnace, "Even if He doesn't....He is still God."
God's desire is for us to remove our love and attention from the economy of this world, and look to Him for our provision.
Think back to the book of Exodus and how God delivered the Hebrew children from the tyranny and slavery of the powers of Egypt. What did God do? Well as the TV show theme song says..."They loaded up their truck and they moved to Beverly...Hills that is." In this case, there weren't any trucks and they headed out into the wilderness. Wilderness? A place that you normally would not mark down as vacation spots to visit. Never the less God's plan included an extended stay in the nether regions of the Sinai.
God is taking city dwellers away from the bright lights of Egypt, out into the dark, dangerous regions of the wilderness.
Now here is where it gets crazy.
Here is where we see God unlike any other place in Scripture.
Ask yourself, "What would it be like to live with no money?
Lets take that thought a little farther....
What would it be like to live with no economy...
No foreign trade pacts....
No stores or restaurants....
No banks.
Israel found out.
This new, unnamed nation of people was taken into the wilderness to learn how to build a community God's way.
It was not capitalistic or socialistic or communist. It was not a monarchy. This was a Heavenly economy, with bread falling from heaven and water coming from rocks!
God can, and always has been able to, sustain His people any time, any place, any way He desires.
He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Sin/addiction wants you to believe that God has abandoned you.
Sin/addiction wants you to turn to its power for help. Even though the help it offers is to kill you.
Look to the one, true provider of life.....
Jesus The Christ.
God on you...
mb
Think about this.
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