“It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man” (Psalm 118:8 KJV). The absolute standard for trust is “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22). Unwavering trust in God keeps us from being unsettled by humanity’s fickleness. If God can be unreservedly trusted, then humanity’s often untrustworthiness would not be surprising. In fact, when humanity does the admirable in not seeking its own at the expense of others, it can only be because God made it so. Of course, praise should also be given to man, when it is praiseworthy. The opposite of paranoia is when we can see God successfully working in a human heart to do the acceptable and right thing. If this is never possible, “we are of all men most miserable” (1Corinthians 15:19). Faith in God breeds hope, which “maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” (Romans 5:5). The cynical, “In God We Trust, All Others Cash,” sign at the store checkout needs to be balanced in our hearts “With God All Things Are Possible” (Matthew 19:26). Give God the chance to change even the cynical human heart. Father, make it so. In Jesus name, amen.
Prosperity for Confidence in God
Thou Maintainest My Lot
“The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: Thou maintainest my lot” (Psalm 16:5 KJV). To the OT Jew, each of the twelve tribes had been apportioned a “lot,” an area of Israel for their inheritance, except the Tribe of Levi, which was scattered throughout the cities of Israel. They were to maintain worship for Jehovah. To Levi, the LORD proclaimed, “I am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel” (Numbers 18:20). Instead of land, Levi was to be supported with the tithes brought into the Tabernacle. “And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation” (18:21). The certainty of the LORD’s sustenance, a guaranteed income — “Thou maintainest my lot” — when compared to Levi, is what any child of God can expect from the Good Shepherd (Psalm 23). But, that income is by faith and only from God.
A Prayer of David:
“LORD, You give me stability and prosperity; You make my future secure” (Psalm 16:5 NET).
“It is as if I have been given fertile fields or received a beautiful tract of land” (Psalm 16:6 NET).
“I will praise the LORD who guides me; yes, during the night I reflect and learn” (Psalm 16:7 NET).
“I constantly trust in the LORD; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 16:8 NET).
“So my heart rejoices and I am happy; My life is safe” (Psalm 16:9 NET).
“You will not abandon me to Sheol; You will not allow your faithful follower to see the Pit” (Psalm 16:10 NET).
“You lead me in the path of life; I experience absolute joy in Your presence; You always give me sheer delight” (Psalm 16:11 NET).
What to Do When No One Knows What to Do
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV). We need to be trusting God now, whether or not it ever becomes popular later! The difference between trusting God now and when everything is an emergency is the reason we are to always be ready for the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ and our being caught up to Him. You cannot counterfeit confidence to God. He knows when you are trusting Him. Either you trust Him or you don’t. Pretend you are going into battle, and you want to be right with God for whatever happens in the conflict. Trust is an instantaneous thing. Only the Spirit of God can give you that. “The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). Trusting God means we do not hold back on confessing known sin to God. Even the thief on the cross acknowledged his worthiness of condemnation. “Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss” (Luke 23:40-41).
Readiness to meet God in eternity took place for that thief, when “he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:42-43 ). Let us “commit the keeping of [our] souls to Him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator” (1Peter 4:19). When this is done, all is well done! Father, alert Your Professed Church to the need of fully trusting in You now, like eternity depended on it. Lord Jesus, return quickly, and may our departure have the desired effect to fulfill all righteousness. Cause our lives to be a testimony to those who will be immediately wrestling with the one who will be the Antichrist. “9 Even him [Antichrist], whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2Thessalonians 2:9-10). LORD, prepare us, as we lift up our heads for our redemptions draws near. Amen and amen.
Christian Giving: What You May Not Have Been Told
God does not need your money. The Church may be able to use your money. You may barely be able to pay your bills. Why should you feel compelled to give? God admits it. He owns everything. “For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10 KJV). The Church is made up of people like you and me, who are trying to do God’s work in spreading the Gospel. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation” (2Corinthians 5:19). We come to the Father with whatever income we have and acknowledge everything we have belongs to Him, because we belong to Him. “Ye are bought with a price” (1Corinthians 6:20; 7:23). Now, how much does He want us to give? Evidently, the answer to that question is strictly a matter of trust between you and Him, for He is looking to develop a living, working relationship with you. “Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him [raptured him home to Heaven without dying]” (Genesis 5:24).
God is seeking to grow our confidence in Him.
First, tithes or giving a tenth of one’s income, as a sign of you taking care of God’s business, so He takes care of your business (Genesis 28:20, 22), were given by Abram to Melchizedec (14:20) long before their was an OT Mosaic Law requiring it (Leviticus 27:30), since God uses tithing to develop our relationship of trust with Him.
Second, we should especially support the local church, which ministers to us, even though tithes belong to the LORD, not the Church, Christian ministry, or missionary enterprise. “All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD’s” (Leviticus 27:30). God directs you to place it wherever He sees fit. But, shouldn’t we support those who labor for us? “And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house” (Luke 10:7).
Third, those who minister to us are trusting the LORD to minister to their needs, even as we are trusting the LORD to provide for our needs. “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again” (Luke 6:38).
Fourth, the LORD seeks to bless His people through their giving, “not because I [Paul] desire a gift; but I desire fruit that may abound to your account… but my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:17, 19).
Fifth, the LORD challenges His people to test and prove Him, if He will not bless you more than you can bless Him. “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (Malachi 3:10).
Sixth, regarding our tithes and offerings, Is there not a God in the Church today, as there was with David, as he fought the Nephilim Goliath? Okay, here’s our chance to see God deliver us and our respective local churches, Christian ministries, and missionary enterprises. “This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel” (1Samuel 17:46).
Seventh, offerings as well as tithes, God may be directing you to give, for offerings may be unrighteously withheld from God, also (Malachi 3:8). We are not taking the initiative in our giving, if we neglect to cultivate the giving of the firstfruits offering — celebrating the surplus above the normal — understanding it to be only a further opportunity for God to bless us (and Himself) further. “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9-10).
Conclusion
Especially, when giving is a subject of difficulty or testing for ourselves, then it is so valuable in developing us. God has a right to challenge us concerning our giving, because it is a test of our trust in Him. Wise Christian ministers are careful to beg for money. But, Church members, who listen, should take their que, when they catch hints of need, in conversation with leadership. Treat giving to the LORD’s Church and ministry, as if it was being done to the LORD. “And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me” (Matthew 25:40).
Father, bless Your people with a new or renewed sense of understanding about the opportunity of giving to grow Your kingdom, provide for the Church, and draw us closer in understanding and dependence upon You. In Jesus’ name, come quickly, we pray. Amen and amen.
Firstfruits of All Thine Increase
The Law of Firstfruits is directed from the Unseen Realm of God upon all who honor the LORD with their substance and the beginning of their increase. “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9-10 KJV). Our “substance” (3:9) is whatever we already possess. The “firstfruits of all thine increase” (3:9) is the beginning of our income flow or material enlargement, but not all our future profit or increase. God seeks to promote our prosperity, not consume it. He seeks to take away the sickness of heart that is afraid to trust Him because of repeated past disappointments. “Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life” (Proverbs 13:12). The LORD desires a mindset and heart attitude excited and expectant of blessing to rest upon our home and offspring, because we understand and trust Him, when we give the firstfruits offering. “And the first of all the firstfruits of all things, and every oblation of all, of every sort of your oblations, shall be the priest’s: ye shall also give unto the priest the first of your dough [for bread baking], that He may cause the blessing to rest in thine house” (Ezekiel 44:30). We do not give to the Kingdom of God from OT legalism or to manipulate God, but He desires us to have a holy expectation of material blessing with His signature approval. Father, teach us the joy of giving the firstfruits of our increase that Your blessing may rest upon our house. May we walk as Your blessed ones prospering in whatever we do. May our preservation and blessing testify of Your goodness to the Church, the world, and all the Unseen Realm. In Jesus’ name, we ask it. Amen and amen.
Blessed Are The Poor
Rich people are not necessarily blessed, and poor people are blessed with more of a need to depend upon God. “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God” (Luke 6:20 NIV). I like to think of myself as “poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3 KJV), but ‘rich’ and ‘poor’ are only terms of comparison, for the “poor always ye have with you” (John 12:8). Show me where prosperity is a tool or weapon in our Spiritual Warfare for the Kingdom of God, then I can become excited about prospering, for “no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper” (Isaiah 54:17). Prosperity for (1) believing His prophets: “Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe His prophets, so shall ye prosper” (2Chronicles 20:20), (2) walking with God: “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Psalm 1:3 KJV), (3) praying for and loving Jerusalem: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6), and (4) confidence in God’s words: “So shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). LORD, prosper Your servants that Your Kingdom would be increased and all would know our prosperity comes only from You to be used only for You. Return quickly, in Jesus’ name. Amen and amen.
Hastening or Hindering, Restraining or Unleashing
Hastening or hindering, the Almighty allows us much more than we imagine. Children can help parents accomplish their goals or get in the way. When we pray for the fulfillment of prophecy, we are hastening Christ’s Second Coming. “Looking for and hasting [literally, hastening] unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat” (2Peter 3:12 KJV). We may pray, “Thy kingdom come” (6:10) and promote His return. But, if we should discourage the faithful from seeking our Lord’s imminent appearing, then we are hindering the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. When Jesus promised, “Surely I come quickly” (Revelation 22:20), shouldn’t we hasten His return by praying, “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (22:20)?
Restraining or unleashing, the LORD God seeks our comradeship in warfare. Allies can assist or delay final victory. Working with the Spirit of God, the godly, as the “salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13), represent the greatest restraining influence in the world against the adversary, his Antichrist, lawlessness, anarchy, malevolence, utter disregard for life, property, and the morals of others. Not simply the influence noticed by the world, e.g., anti-abortion, anti-pornography, pro-family, but the freedom, prosperity, and peace enjoyed by all, results from the peace the LORD grants to the righteous. “And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace” (Jeremiah 29:7). Though Abraham’s concern was for the welfare of “just Lot” (2Peter 2:7), his intercession provided the Judge of All the Earth (Genesis 18:25) the sanction or approval to unleash His judgment upon Sodom and Gomorrah, after Lot was removed.
By contrast, the Great Removal of the Church at the Pre-Tribulational Rapture represents the LORD determining He had sufficient sanction to remove the Restraining Influence — the Spirit Indwelt Saints — from the world. “7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he [Holy Spirit] who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming” (2Thessalonians 2:7-8 NASB). As an omnipresent influence, the Holy Spirit continues His function in the world, but the noticeable absence of the restraining influence of the raptured believers will be profound. The Almighty will be proceeding with His masterful end game in dealing with the earth.
LORD, You are sovereign in determining when You will return. We are humbled that You would seek our companionship, labor, and approval in what You choose to do. Grant to us an understanding heart that You may be even more greatly magnified, when You choose to rapture Your Church. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Amen.
We Need A Miracle 