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- Apr 25, 2006
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POOR SO WE COULD BE RICH (2)
''He who gives to the poor will lack nothing...'' Proverbs 28:27
Jesus said, 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor...' (Luke 4:18 NLT) He also said that '... anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done...' (John 14:12 NLT)
Let's have a look see at how the New Testament church lived that out: 'All the believers ... shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need...' As a result, they experienced 'great joy' (Acts 2:44-46 NLT).
Not sure you believe all that joy wiff-waff? I'm sure some of them would rather have been in Toys R'Us than this upside-down, sharey-carey Jesus R'Us! Some people would not have been best pleased with this arrangement. All that sharing meant they lost out in the long term, right? Wrong. That's not how God's kingdom works at all.
Here's a look into the workings of God's kingdom: 'The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped' (Proverbs 11:24-25 TM)
Freely give to others and the Lord will give back to you. Don't let any selfishness or fear tighten your purse or harden your heart, because '...those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing' (Psalm 34:10 NLT). What now? Live in this way and you'll have Psalm 34 bursting from your lips like David. Have a Psalms session and check it out.
written by Bob Gass
''He who gives to the poor will lack nothing...'' Proverbs 28:27
Jesus said, 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor...' (Luke 4:18 NLT) He also said that '... anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done...' (John 14:12 NLT)
Let's have a look see at how the New Testament church lived that out: 'All the believers ... shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need...' As a result, they experienced 'great joy' (Acts 2:44-46 NLT).
Not sure you believe all that joy wiff-waff? I'm sure some of them would rather have been in Toys R'Us than this upside-down, sharey-carey Jesus R'Us! Some people would not have been best pleased with this arrangement. All that sharing meant they lost out in the long term, right? Wrong. That's not how God's kingdom works at all.
Here's a look into the workings of God's kingdom: 'The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped' (Proverbs 11:24-25 TM)
Freely give to others and the Lord will give back to you. Don't let any selfishness or fear tighten your purse or harden your heart, because '...those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing' (Psalm 34:10 NLT). What now? Live in this way and you'll have Psalm 34 bursting from your lips like David. Have a Psalms session and check it out.
written by Bob Gass
