All You Can Carry
Ecclesiastes 5:13
There is a severe evil which I have seen under the sun: riches kept for their owner to his hurt
We serve a God of abundance who delights in pouring out blessing. He provides food and shelter to each and every creature so that they lack nothing. The sky bursts forth with wonderful colors and forms, creating an awe-inspiring image for all to enjoy, each sunrise and sunset showcasing a unique and never-before-seen expression of His power and creativity. He produced a multitude of foods which encompass every color, texture, and taste imaginable, providing fully for our desire of sustenance and enjoyment. Even the wicked and unjust, the very ones who blaspheme His name and shake their fist in rebellion, enjoy the goodness that He freely pours out day after day.
No matter who you are or what you have done, God wants to bless you! Why, then, would His blessing catch us off guard? When there is no money coming in, and yet the bills remain paid, and the pantry full, we should never look around, wondering how the miracle came about or from where it originated, for we know that the origin of every good thing is The Lord. It is only a complete fool who would attribute these things to happenstance. We should expect the Lord's blessings, the same as we always expect 2+2 to equal 4...
Unfortunately, while the origin of every good thing is a Holy God, in whom there is no darkness whatsoever, the landing places of those gifts are the hearts of a people that contain no goodness whatsoever!
If it were not for the perversion of the gifts of God by those who receive them, this world would be a paradise, where the inexhaustible generosity of God increased more and more, compounding upon itself into an infinite and perfect expression of His very essence. Epheisans tells us that God "raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."
All of creation groans for this day, and it is coming very soon...
There can be no doubt that God wishes to bless us and has the authority and capability to do so...If a blessing from the Lord is to cause harm to its recipient, it can never be said that the problem is a defect in the blessing itself. God has never provided anyone with anything meant to hurt them. The problem lies only in our hearts, which are marred by a sinful nature, and our minds, which, due to ignorance, are incapable of stewarding properly. God, being omniscient, often has to withhold blessings that He would like to give because we, as the recipients, are not at a place in our sanctification in which we can hold the blessing without it crushing us!
If God gave you a million dollars right now, could you honestly say that it would be a good thing for you? Sure, it would make you more comfortable... but would it be good for you? Would it cause you to draw nearer to God, or would it drive you away from Him? Would it cause you to rely on Him more the next morning or less?
God certainly could deposit this amount of money in every single bank account tonight if He so wished. The reason He doesn't, has nothing to do with His ability; it has to do with His goodness and mercy. Just as your earthly father could have given you a brand new Mercedes-Benz when you were 8 years old, thrown you the keys, and said, "Have a great time." It was his forbearance and mercy that dictated that he withhold that gift until it could be stewarded properly.
There are three major hindrances to being blessed:
Forgetfulness-
(Deuteronomy 6:10-12) “The LORD your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the LORD, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt.
In our sinful nature, we carry with us the same hearts as the Israelites in the wilderness. They saw, with their own eyes, the source of the blessing they had been handed. They saw the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. They watched as the Red Sea was parted, the rock split to provide water and mana as it fell from Heaven. Yet, it was their incessant forgetfulness of the goodness of God that forced Him to make an oath that they would not enter the fullness of the blessing that He originally intended.
If all of your earthly needs were suddenly met, would you still travel to your prayer closet and seek God's provision?
Pride-
(Deuteronomy 32:15) “But Israel soon became fat and unruly; the people grew heavy, plump, and stuffed! Then they abandoned the God who had made them; they made light of the Rock of their salvation.
We must always remember that God makes rain to fall on the just as well as the unjust.
The world in which we live measures worth by possession. The more money, authority, status, influence, and prestige someone has, the more they are valued and envied. People spend their entire lives chasing these things to the detriment of their eternal souls.
If tomorrow, the entire world knew your name and you were suddenly thrust into the spotlight, could you handle it? Would you say like John the Baptist, "I must become less and less, and He must become more and more," or would the empty praises of men who know nothing of true value inflate your ego?
Idolatry-
(Romans 1:25) "They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise!"
I've never seen a hearse towing a U-haul...
Naked we enter the world and naked we leave it. When everything is said and done, we will stand in front of the only true substance. He was here before it began, and He sustains it all by His hand. The beautiful beaches and extravagant houses, adorned with all of the trappings of wealth, offer a temporary satisfaction that foolish people spend their entire lives seeking, but there will come a day when it will all be burned with fire.
Anyone who has truly experienced the majesty of Jesus knows that nothing of value will be lost on this day, for we were created to sit at His feet, and this is the only thing that truly satisfies.
God will never do anything to harm you. If a good gift becomes a weapon that you will end up using against yourself, God will withhold that good gift, for He cares far more about your soul, which was bought with a price greater than the entire world's supply of silver and gold, even the very blood of His only Son, poured out on a cross for you, than your comfort or pleasure.
This truth has a two-fold effect on those with ears to hear: It should comfort us, and it should motivate us.
Comfort in the sense that it reveals God's heart when things seemingly don't go our way... We know that God is not withholding blessings out of anger or stinginess, but out of the purest love that provides the best possible solution to every situation we face, giving us exactly what we need, when we need it.
Motivate in the sense that it reveals the areas of our heart and character that need to grow so that they can contain the blessings of God... For He constantly searches the entire earth, looking for those whose hearts are fully committed to Him, so that He might strengthen them.
The fast car and the beautiful beach vacation are nice... They pale in comparison, however, to the satisfaction that comes from being used by God to accomplish His kingdom agenda and the fellowship that comes from working with the Creator.