My God Shall Supply
Philippians 4:10-19
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/GodShallSupply.html
Can God Provide?
Ps. 78:19 Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? 20 Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people? 21 Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth…
[now today’s text…begin w/ v. 19]
Can God provide? Sure He can! He’s rich, acc’d to v. 19.
This is a thank you note/Paul received a financial gift from this church…now he thanks them.
Then he compares their gift to a blossoming flower:
v. 10 “flourished”=picture of a flower coming back to life after a cold, hard winter
we all go thru low times/gray days, but spring is coming!
Then he compares their gift to an investment:
v. 17 Paul looked upon their gift as an investment that would earn them spiritual dividends/you cannot outgive God!
Finally, he compares their gift to a great sacrifice:
v. 18 language of the OT temple/sweet smelling savour.
So, it’s a beautiful, blossoming, sweet smelling investment that’s paying off for everyone!
v. 19 verse starts w/ a conjunction-- [most would quote this beginning w/ “my” rather than “but”…which connects it to all that he’s said leading up to it.
In it’s proper context, this verse is not written to the world/everyone…not written to the selfish, but to the sacrificial…those involved in meeting the needs of others/those that get behind a cause and back it all the way/those that have a purpose bigger than themselves!
Don’t claim this promise if you are not obeying God’s commands in giving…
[yes, tithes/or maybe his promptings to be a blessing to someone…yes, missions, as He leads you/but maybe secretly w/ no commitment card at all!/maybe clothing to someone in need]
Luke 12:32 … it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
I find no place in scripture where God promises to meet the needs of a believer who is not following God’s commands in giving! I also find nowhere that indicates if you are financially doing well, though not tithing, that God’s judgment is not upon you. Some preachers make it completely a financial matter saying that God may take away your house or your boat to get His money…but more accurate would be to say that God will judge in some way, even if not financial at all!
Several times over the last 15 years I’ve had people ask for prayer for their finances…my 1st question is, do you tithe? When several have said no, I prayed for their obedience, not their finances! And it needs to be complete obedience. A tithe, not a tip…we’re not ‘the home of the 5% tithe’! We never turn away any contributions, but if we really care about you, then we want you to receive the reward of obedience, not just for the church to receive an offering.
God doesn’t need your money. GBC doesn’t need your money. What we need is God…Who has promised to provide for us if we walk in obedience. So, membership can go down, but offerings can go up, as has been recently proven! We don’t necessarily need more tithing families…we need God, Who will provide! But I believe God wants better things for His church than just our ‘needs’ met. There’s tons of wonderful things we’d like to do that are on the backburner until God provides us with more. Could you be used of God to help provide? Surely! But the main reason to do so is for obedience and to have God’s blessing upon you!
Abraham said: God will provide…
Ge 22:8 -
And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
14 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh…
Jehovah Jireh-God our Provider! He has always provided, and always will. His provision was in place before we obeyed to earn it or prayed and asked for it! “The check is in the mail!”
3 things from v. 19:
1. The Source of the supply
“My God”
We’re talking about a fountain that will never run dry/bank that will never fail!
Rom. 2:4 “…the riches of His goodness…”
[draw on His goodness account!]
Eph. 1:7 “…the riches of His grace…” [draw on His grace account!]
Our text says His riches in glory… [draw on His glory account!]
…and the source of all these riches is “My God”.
v. 20 My God is my Father…committed to take care of His child!
2. The Scope of the supply
“all your needs”-not “all your greeds”
Paul Crouch, president of TBN, said once that when he started the network he had one home he was about to lose, and he was willing to just give it to God, but now he has 12 beautiful homes around the world, filled w/ gold and fine furnishings [giving impression to those who can afford it the least that God will do the same for them if they just give to Paul Crouch!]
God hasn’t promised to meet our greeds…but our needs!
God is not a genie in a lamp which we rub whenever we want something…but He loves to meet our needs…and He doesn’t limit it to 3…but “all” our needs!
Let’s be honest: we all live up to here [gesture]…get a raise and spend it/pay something off and take something else on! Let’s invest in eternal things, not temporary things!
Matthew 6:19-20
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: [20] But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Most of us would have to admit we have too much month left at the end of the money!
I had a rude awakening when I left home and realized they charge for all that stuff I’d been enjoying for 18 years! [water bill? Really? Electricity? Then kids, whoa! Clothes, shoes, medical bills! And I don’t want to think about college!…anyone here suffering from maltuition?!]
Here’s good news, if you have financial needs and “if you remain faithful to God, God will be faithful to you!”
Not just financial needs…how about emotional needs?
Need peace? Jesus said to the winds and the waves, peace be still! Look to the peace speaker! The One who walks on that water [over your head-under His feet!]
Overcome w/ anxiety over something coming up?/depressed?/despairing?
Also includes our spiritual needs—
Lam. 3: 22 It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. 24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
1 John 1
1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
We serve a great God…and He’s “My God”…that’s the source of the supply/the scope is “all my need”…finally:
3. The standard of the supply
“acc’d to His riches in glory”…not “out of”, but “acc’d to”…
…imagine you see a man about to be hit by a car/you grab him and save his life, only to then realize it’s billionaire Bill Gates!/he’s so thankful, reaches into his wallet, and pulls out a $20 bill! What???
That’s not giving acc’d to his riches, but simply out of!
But imagine instead he pulls out a blank check and signs it, telling you to go home and add up all your needs: past debts, current needs, and future plans—just fill in the amount!
Now that’s giving acc’d to his riches!
God is not a miser, and He doesn’t give out of His riches…it’s an endless, abundant supply!
Testimonies/invitation:
Claim the promise / or repent so you can! / get saved so you can!!
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http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/GodShallSupply.html
