Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours immeasurably from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you into the second week of the month of March 2020. And my prayer is that my God shall supply every need of yours from the fullness of His glorious and indescribable riches in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Now, if you have been paying attention to Scriptures for a while, the line of prayer above should not be strange to you at all. I picked it from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, chapter 4, verse 19. In other words, this prayer was originally offered by Paul for the Philippian brethren. And why would he pray specifically like that for them? It was because of the material support he had been receiving from them.
Just take a look at what he says about this church:
“I am very happy in the Lord that you have shown your care for me again. You continued to care about me, but there was no way for you to show it. I am not telling you this because I need anything. I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have and with everything that happens. I know how to live when I am poor, and I know how to live when I have plenty. I have learned the secret of being happy at any time in everything that happens, when I have enough to eat and when I go hungry, when I have more than I need and when I do not have enough. I can do all things through Christ, because he gives me strength. I can do all things through Christ, because he gives me strength. But it was good that you helped me when I needed it. You Philippians remember when I first preached the Good News there. When I left Macedonia, you were the only church that gave me help. Several times you sent me things I needed when I was in Thessalonica. Really, it is not that I want to receive gifts from you, but I want you to have the good that comes from giving. And now I have everything, and more. I have all I need, because Epaphroditus brought your gift to me. It is like a sweet-smelling sacrifice offered to God, who accepts that sacrifice and is pleased with it. My God will use his wonderful riches in Christ Jesus to give you everything you need.” (Phil 4:13-19NCV)
First, observe that Paul, through this letter, made it very clear that he could do with or without the gifts of these brethren in Philippi. That was because he had learnt the secret of contentment. He had learnt from God how to handle himself whether he had plenty or little. Nevertheless, he was glad in Christ Jesus because the Philippian brethren cared about him and his ministry. These brethren had been supporting him right from the time he first came to minister among them. And even after he had left their city, they still continued to send him aid. Then, at the time he was writing the letter, he had just received another set of gifts from them. How wonderful these brethren must have been!
In any case, even though Paul could do without the gifts of these Philippians, he accepted them with thanksgiving. And why? It was because he wanted them to receive the reward that comes from giving to God. “God? What has God got to do with this?” someone may ask. Well, He has got everything to do with it. Again, observe from the text that Paul says that the gifts of these brethren are like a sweet-smelling sacrifice offered to God. So, even though it was he that received and used the gifts, they were actually an offering made out to God. And why was that so? It was so because those brethren were giving in response to God’s command. God has commanded that those who teach and preach His word should be generously and adequately supported by those who benefit from their ministries (1Cor 9:14; Gal 6:6; 1Tim 5:17-18). So, when we give to those who feed us with the word of God, in obedience to this command, we are indirectly giving Him. And we can be sure that He will repay us, whether they, as Paul prays for the Philippian brethren, pray for us or not. (Cf. 2Cor 9:6-11; Gal 6:6-10)
Unfortunately, many of us who are being edified week after week by leaders from our various assemblies often act irresponsibly along this line. We don’t take usually take the initiative to support them with our resources. And many of them know this. They know that unless they pressure us, manipulate us or threaten us, most of us will totally ignore their needs. So, they cast off all restraints and begin to use all kinds of horrible means to raise money and other material things for themselves, instead of relying on God to take care of their needs. And are they going to have any excuse before God for doing this? No! But we too, who are continually failing God in this area, will not be held guiltless, as far as this matter is concerned. All of this is why I want you to repent, as you go this week, and begin to deal with your failures in this area. And may God’s good Spirit help you to retrace your steps, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Have a great week.
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