The “One-A-Week Challenge” Week 9“
“And My God shall supply all your need
according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19 NKJV
Most of us struggle with control. One of the fundamental truths of life is this:
God is in control — I am not. While He may assign certain aspects of life,
over which I have “charge” I am never in control. I do not want to be in control, because I am not able to handle the pressure of holding it all together.
In last week’s verse Paul boldly proclaimed that He could do all things through Christ and this week he explains further his faith in Christ. Paul has come to understand the mystery of the faith. Remember Paul is writing the Christians at Philippi a note of gratitude for the generous financial gift he has received from them. His gratitude was based in the great truth that he had learned from the Father. Pastor John MacArthur writes,
“Paul knew that the Philippians would not only receive spiritual blessings in heaven for their generosity, but also that God would supply all their physical needs in this life. The Philippians had sacrificially (cf. 2 Cor. 8:1-3) given of their earthly possessions to support God’s servant, Paul. In return, God would amply supply their needs; He would not be in their debt. Having sown bountifully, they would reap bountifully (2 Cor. 9:6); having “honor[ed] the Lord from [their] wealth and from the first of all [their] produce… [their] barns will be filled with plenty and [their] vats will overflow with new wine” (Prov. 3:9-10). They would discover that it is impossible to out give God.”[1]
Our attitude towards money is really an indicator about our attitude towards God. Many people have failed to acknowledge that God owns it all. As I have written previously,
I am a steward, not an owner of anything. Every aspect of life is owned by God. He entrusts certain things into my care but I must always understand that it all belongs to God. I must faithfully discharge all that He has put in my care.
A faithful grasp of this truth causes me to trust Him fully. As the owner of everything God has His name on the line. As our verses thus far this year have been teaching us God has everything in His control. The Word has encouraged, commanded, instructed, and continues to teach us that He [God] can be fully trusted.
Why is it that we have such difficulty in trusting Him with money? Could it be that even though we say the words “it’s all God’s” we still believe that is is ours to share with Him? For what does God need money? What will God lack without your support? The bottom line truth is that God gives us this simply way of exhibiting our trust in Him. Why would we trust God with our soul and not trust Him with “our” money? Since we know that He is sufficient for eternity shouldn’t we realize that He is sufficient for everyday?
The very nature of Holy God is to be fully independent of anyone or anything else. All “His riches in glory” are in available to all believers! He is the supply of everything you need, but we must also remember that He is the supplier of everything you have.