Laws Of The Kingdom

INTRO: During the Great Depression, poverty swept across America like a whirling tornado, ripping up dreams and scattering hopes to the wind. One such poverty twister hit a small part of Texas where a man named Yates ran a sheep ranch. Struggling even to keep food on the table, Yates and his wife did all they could to survive. Finally, they had to accept a government subsidy or lose their home and land to the creditors.

One day, in the midst of this bleakness, a geologic crew from a large oil company came knocking. With Yates’s permission, they wanted to drill a wildcat well on his property, promising him a large portion of the profits if they struck oil. “What could I lose?” thought Yates, and he signed all the papers.

The oil crew immediately set up the machinery and began drilling. Five hundred feet down, they came up dry. Eight hundred feet, still dry. One thousand feet they sunk the shaft, and no oil. Finally, at a little over eleven hundred feet, they tapped into one of the richest oil reserves in Texas. The hole sprayed its black wealth high into the air, and soon the well was pumping eighty thousand barrels of oil a day.

Overnight, Yates and his family became millionaires. His property, once called Yates’s Field, became known as Yates’s Pool. And soon hundreds of oil wells dotted the land where once only sheep grazed.

-There are a whole lot of Christians like this, they have no idea what is of value in their heart.

-My prayer for Christians is that they can tap into the resources that God has for their lives.

TITLE: Laws of the Kingdom

TEXT: 2 Corinthians 9:6-11

I. This morning I’m not talking about money, I’m talking about much more. I’m talking about a lifestyle that God desires for our lives.

A. Our Lord said (Luke 6:38), “Give and it shall be given unto you.” You cannot grow into the person God wants you to be without actively giving.

1. We need to understand we live in a society that teaches us to take or to strive for something, to earn it. When it comes to giving it falls short when compared to the ways of God.

Question: This last week compare what you took to something you gave.

-Look in your marriages, did you give or take?

-Look in your friendships, did you give or take?

-Look in your workplaces, are you known as a giver or a taker?

2. I personally believe the reason there are so many unhappy Christians is simply they do not know what it means to give.

-Our heavenly Father wants us to be generous in all things because he is generous (he gave his one and only Son).

TS: With this in mind let’s look at some laws of the kingdom.

II. Laws of the kingdom. Just as there are physical laws in the world there are also spiritual laws.

A. The principle of increase. V. 6, “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”

1. When you think about this principle the thing that stands out to me is you’re either blessed or cursed and it’s based on your own actions and attitude.

2. This principle is easy to understand because we see it in everyday life. The farmer who sows much seed will have a better chance for a bigger harvest.

-The investor who puts a large sum of money in the bank will certainly collect more dividends.

3. Let’s take this example and apply it to our everyday life because we can all benefit from this.

-In regard to relationship (friendship), many people struggle with friendship. Why – because they are not doing what the Bible says.

Example. Many people want friends but they want them on their own terms, their own conditions. It goes like this - I want friends to meet my needs, to do what I like.

Point: This is backwards. To have friends you have to be a friend - that is to put their needs above yours, their desires above yours. People who do this consistently have many friends and those who do not struggle with having friends.

4. The same is true about marriages. If I put my spouse’s needs above mine and vice versa I will have a marriage made in heaven.

-But too often you find a lot of fights and it’s because my needs are not getting met.

Image. If I sow love in this marriage I will reap love. If I sow gentleness and kindness I will reap them. Remember when God’s involved you’ll get more than you’ll give.

Summary: If I want love I will sow love, if I want friends I’ll be a friend.