If you gave all your money
away, what would be left to help others in the future?.Matthew
6:21 "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
Yet, there may be a time
to be like this. Perhaps when one is old. Some have given all they have.Mark
12:41-44 "And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the
people cast money into the treasury. And many that were rich cast in much.
And there came a certain poor widow and she threw in two mites which make
a farthing.(a
coin formerly used in Great Britain worth one fourth of a penny; something
of very little value). And he called
unto him his disciples and saith unto them, Verily
I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in than all they which
have cast into the treasury. For all they did cast in of their abundance,
but she of her want.(out
of her poverty, her state of lack).did
cast in all that she had even all her living."
God promises that those
who trust Him will be looked after:.Proverbs
29:25; 28:25; 3:5;
Psalms
125:1; 118:8;
Matthew
6:19-21,30-34 "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where
moth and rust doth corrupt and where thieves break through and steal. But
lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust doth
corrupt and where thieves do not break through nor steal; for where your
treasure is there will your heart be also...Wherefore, if God so clothe
the grass of the field which to day is and to morrow is cast into the oven,
shall he not much more clothe you O you of little faith? Therefore take
no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal
shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the Gentiles.(physically
{selfishly} minded people in Old Testament times; applies today to those
of the mass mind).seek.
For your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things.
But seek you first the kingdom of God,
and his righteousness,
and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought
for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.
Sufficient
unto the day is the evil thereof." Luke
12:27-31 "Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin
not, and yet I say unto you that Solomon
in all his glory was not arrayed
like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in
the field and tomorrow is cast into the oven, how much more will he clothe
you O you of little faith? And seek not you what
ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful.(original
means 'thinking that the Infinite One would provide is not true').mind.
For all these things do the nations of the world seek after; and your Father
knoweth that you have need of these things. But rather seek you the kingdom
of God and all these things shall be added unto you."
So, it is a thing of the
heart, personal for each of us according to our individuality, so why
worry?
God has many ways
to take good care of us.
Prize first, entrance into
the Kingdom, for it is this that is eternal for us.–.a
much longer time there than here.
Our identity is in and revolves
around
His light, not in the things of the world,
like money:.Colossians
3:3 "For you are dead,
and your life is hid with Christ in God."
Your identity.(and
what
is that?).involves
your behavior and relationships with someone or something else. What is
it that you are identified with?.Colossians
3:1,2; Philippians 4:8.
Identifying with Jesus Christ
distinguishes us as being dead to ourselves (Colossians
3:3) and alive with Him in His resurrection (Romans
6:11; 1Corinthians 15:18-22;
Revelation
1:18) with all that means; acceptance
by the Father, righteousness, forgiveness,
and future hope. If you believe God has,
and will continually accept you, you are living by grace.
If you feel that you have to do things to keep yourself in God's favor,
you are living a lie, effectively kicking Jesus Christ out of your heart.
Trying to keep the law leaves
one asking "What do I still need to do":.Matthew
19:16-21 "And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what
good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him,
Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is God. But
if thou wilt enter into life keep
the commandments. He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt
do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou
shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother and, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. The young man saith unto him, All
these things have I kept from my youth up..What
lack I yet?.Jesus
said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast and
give to the poor and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come and follow
me."
All the law did was cause
guilt,
and that was what it was supposed to do:.Romans
3:19 "Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to
them who are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped and all the
world may become guilty before God."
See more under 'Mosaic
Law' and unhappy.
Jesus was showing the futility
of trying to be right with God by keeping the Old
Testament law. The only thing that now counts with God is your
belief in Christ. That's the righteousness now.
And that's the righteousness
God appreciated even back then. But few looked at God then as wanting
a relationship
with Him. David did. Read
through the Psalms and see his love with God, especially Psalms
31 and 32.
David even understood the
righteousness
of forgiveness and that rules, regulations, penalties and various sacrifices
weren't
really necessary to keep
oneself right with God. David
sought the higher spiritual relationship.
Paul
said to grow up (Ephesians
4:15 "But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things,
which is the head, even Christ.") and gives
an example regarding eating that which may have been first sacrificed to
a pagan idol, showing that mature Christians need be careful with their
liberty so as not to offend babes (new Christians still on the road to
a mature understanding):.1Corinthians
8:4-13.
Let's desire
the
sincere word of God and grow up in achieving the high calling of Christ:.Philippians
3:14 "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of
God in Christ Jesus." 1Peter
2:2 "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye
may grow thereby."
