Welcome back to Testify to Grace! Last week we heard from Marilyn in GA about how the Lord delivered her from danger. This week I want to talk about the how the Lord provides and the testimony that comes from sharing His goodness. The Lord is so good to us! He loves His own and provides for us generously out of His abundant riches. Many Christians have the erroneous belief that God only helps those who help themselves. Guess what? That idea came from Benjamin Franklin—not the bible, not God. Benjamin Franklin used the phrase in his “Poor Richard’s Almanac,” published in 1736. So many have bought into the idea that they have to work to earn God’s love, approval, and provision. But that’s just not true. The bible in Ephesians clearly tells us, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” That’s from the NAS version. I like the NLT version also, “God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” In other words, there is nothing we can do to earn our salvation. And not only that, there is nothing we can do to earn God’s favor. He already loves us. Think about a really good parent… not just a good parent, but a great one. Children don’t have to do anything to have their parents love them. Their parents just do. It’s the same with God. When we become His children through faith in Jesus, He is ready and waiting to bless us with good things. God has abundant resources at the ready. Let’s look at Psalm 103. Starting in vs 1, it says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits; who pardons all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases; who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion; who satisfies your years with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle.” We know that the Lord pardons our iniquities. That’s another word for sin. But some people live as if they have not been forgiven. Did you know that the Lord has forgiven all of our sins: past, present, and future? That’s right! Let’s see what the Bible says about it. Hebrews 10: 11-12 and 14 says, “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest (they’re talking about Jesus here) had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God… For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” Jesus became the perfect flawless sacrifice whose effect has no end, even though those of us who have been forgiven may mess up again. Our mess ups don’t change the fact that we are forgiven forever. And as for our sin, verse 12 of Psalm 103 says, “As far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us.” Isn’t that great news? A lot of people would say that knowing that gives people freedom to go right out and sin some more, because after all, if everything we do wrong is already forgiven, why worry about what we do. But I say in return, that a genuine Christian will not want to deliberately sin, and for those of us understand the freedom of forgiveness, it’s the best, most comforting feeling to be able to run back to God and know He doesn’t condemn us. Paul reassures us in Romans chapter 8 where he says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” And in verse 31 he says, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?” I’m pretty sure all things means: All Things. He is that good and He’s ready to bless us. I’d like to share with you a story from my own experience where the Lord provided for my husband Jeremy and me. We were seminary students and living at the poverty line. I graduated from seminary before Jeremy and got a job at a law firm. Jeremy had a part time job at a wonderful, but tiny church in Decatur, Tx. When the recession of 2009 hit, I lost my job and then couldn’t get another. That put us living on one income—his part time church job. We could barely afford the gas to get to and from the church on Sundays and Wednesdays. And it was a 45 min drive! We were looking at having to eat canned beans or maybe ramen and Jeremy still had a couple of semesters of seminary to get through. We couldn’t afford the tuition or the books either. I poured my heart out to God and told Him how worried I was about surviving. The Lord impressed on me the need to mention our finances as a prayer request at church. The very next time we were at church, I brought it up as soon as the pastor asked about our prayer needs. A dear couple approached me privately and let me know that the Lord had spoken to them and they wanted to help. They financed the rest of Jeremy's education and bought us groceries and gas until we were able to get back on our feet. We were overwhelmed with how good the Lord is! It was one thing for the couple to help us with groceries and gas and a whole other level of goodness for them to finance the education. That is the Lord’s abundant provision! Philippians 4:19 says, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” I’ve told you about how He provided for our financial need. Let’s look at an example of His abundant provision in the bible. In the book of 1 Kings, Elijah, a prophet of God took a stand against the evil king Ahab and his even more evil wife Jezebel. He prophesied that there would be no dew or rain for several years until he gave word. This was a time that was meant to remind Israel about who provided for them, while showing God’s great power. During the famine, Elijah visited a widow in Zarephath. Let’s read together starting in verse 8: “Then the Lord said to Elijah, ‘Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you.’ So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, ‘Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?’ As she was going to get it, he called to her, ‘Bring me a bite of bread, too.’ But she said, ‘I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die.’ But Elijah said to her, ‘Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!’ So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.” Talk about a miracle! Can you imagine being that widow and seeing how the Lord provided day after day? I will never forget how the Lord provided for me in my extreme need. I also won’t forget all the other ways He has come through for me. There have been times when the money was tight, but it was always just enough—just like the widow with her flour and oil. There were times when I needed wisdom and He gave it. There were times when I needed a friend and the Lord gave me several. He is Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides. He is my Shepherd and He will provide all of my needs. Photo on link by Daria Mikhailova on Unsplash
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