Sermon # 5 - Know God And Invest Right Series

We continue this series based on 2 Corinthians 9:8, “Besides, God is able to make every blessing of yours overflow for you, so that in every situation you will always have all you need for any good work.” (ISV)

In order for us to reach this state of overflowing blessings in our lives, each of us must have a proper understanding of who God is. Many people today do not really know the God whom they worship. It is important that we know who this God is, what his character is, the things that He loves and the things that He hates.

This is David’s understanding of God as found in 2 Samuel 22:27, “In the company of the pure you demonstrate your purity. In the company of the perverted you will appear to be perverse.”(ISV)

There are people who say that in spite of them asking God, He has done nothing for them. The reason is they have an improper understanding of God. If we read the above mentioned verse we realize that God is pure to the ones who are pure, but shows Himself perverse to those who are crooked or perverted in their ways.

Peter and Judas Iscariot

Peter and Judas Iscariot the two disciples of Jesus are good examples of the above mentioned verse. Both of them were with Jesus, they walked with Jesus, saw all the miracles that Jesus did but while Peter denied Jesus three times, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

The reason Judas betrayed Jesus was that Jesus did not understand who Jesus really was. He failed to perceive that Jesus could forgive him and be gracious to him. Judas did not realize that Jesus could accept the sinner, take the broken ones, and make them whole. No wonder Judas went far away from the Lord Jesus. Some may argue on behalf of Judas that the Lord Jesus should not have let go of Judas because he was with Jesus for three and half years, and also was in charge of the money bag. The Lord did not forsake Jesus, but Judas decided to walk away from Jesus. However, Peter also committed a terrible sin by denying Jesus, but he knew that the loving Lord Jesus would take him back.

The problem we see is not with Jesus, but with us. Only when we recognize and perceive who this God is will our lives be blessed with an overflowing abundance.

Let me give you a few examples and that will help us understand this better.

Many people perceive that God is an angry God, and in order to appease Him they will try to do various things. Often fasting or giving is done so that God is gratified, and thereby they can escape His anger. Observe the way some people pray. They cry and plead in prayer hoping that God would soften His stance toward them. Let me remind you that God is loving and mindful of us. If we are walking in obedience to the Lord there is no need to fear.

When Jesus was baptized, and came out of the water, the voice of the Father from heaven declared that, ‘Jesus was His beloved Son in whom He was well pleased.’ That’s the same pleasure and delight Jesus shows towards us, and there is therefore no need to walk in fear.

There are some people who teach that God is angry with them, and thereby create a sense of fear in the hearts of people. If the Lord out of His abounding love gave His life for us, why would He be angry with us? If we read the bible carefully we will understand that we are God’s beloved.

Some others think that God is a hard God. In order to have themselves heard they feel they have to weep much to be heard. Think about our children, when they are hungry, they never come to us crying and pleading for food. If they did, I am sure all of us as parents would be annoyed that our children have not understood that we love them, and would do all it takes to take care of their needs. Instead of crying and begging God, if only we can realize who our God is, we will come to Him with confidence knowing that He will answer our prayers.

As the Israelites journeyed through the wilderness, they were at a point where they did not have water to drink. We all know that water is a basic necessity for our survival. God told Moses to smite the rock, and when Moses smote the rock, water gushed out of the rock. The next time they had such a need for water, God told Moses to speak to the rock. Right there in the Old Testament God could send water when Moses simply spoke, and as New Testament believers we can be certain that when we ask God He will surely answer us. Let us declare that our God is a good God, and His grace is sufficient for us always. Observe the way the Lord revealed Himself to Moses as we read in Exodus 34:6, That is, the LORD passed in front of Moses and said, "YAHWEH, the LORD, is a kind and merciful God. He is slow to become angry. He is full of great love. He can be trusted. (ERV)