Topic: Living by Faith

Text: Luke 12:22-34

Key verse: So don\’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.

Living by Faith is our default lifestyle, we are born with it, but as we learn the ways of man we begin to believe that there are things too difficult for  God to do and our faith begins to diminish till we even have no faith at all. Before birth we are born with a full assurance that whatever we need is already provided because the placenta was in place in the womb before man came into existence, there was no need to ask or work before food was made available. Even at birth when the baby is yet to open its eyes, it feels for food, and its mouth receives nourishment too. That\’s God providence, it never fails!

Back in the Garden of Eden, before man was made God had created a garden with all kinds of food laid up for him. The man originally did not have to work the earth before food was guaranteed. Man\’s disobedience to God gave rise to the curse which heralded the beginning of lack.

Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. 9 The Lord God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground—trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit.

And to the man he said,

\”Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it. 18 It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains

19 By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust, you will return.\”

This then is the origin of lack and labor before a man can eat. Understand that God did not curse man; rather the ground was cursed, making it difficult for it to yield its increase to the man with ease. The man now had to put in extra effort to get results.

What was man\’s offense here? It was disobedience, but if you look closely you will notice the motive for disobedience, he listened to his wife. The woman was convinced, saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.

The woman lost her faith in God\’s ability to give them all they needed, and she became convinced that it is their responsibility to provide for themselves the wisdom that they lacked. The man bought that lie and doubted the providence of God, that\’s when his problem started. Many men are still slaves to that lie

Living by Faith is trusting in the providence of our heavenly Father. You don\’t have to know how or when he will provide, but you just trust. Trust is rooted in the knowledge that God has already given us the more valuable things we cannot manufacture for ourselves no matter how wise or strong we become.

\”Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life are more than food and the body more than clothing.

We hear of billionaires who take their own lives despite all they have, and we also hear of other billionaires who lose their life to death because they are not able to get the treatment they need for their ailments. If money is everything then the rich ought to live forever; That you know is not the case. If you have life today, be very thankful to God and fear no more! The second reason to trust God for all you need is that you are very valuable to God. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much value are you than the birds! Birds that are not made in the image of God are adequately provided for how much more you!

This is what he says about you.

 For I know the plans I have for you,\” says the Lord. \”They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jer. 29:11

What future can you have without provision? What plans will not include provisions? What hope can there be if there is no providence?

Faith is to take God by his word! He gives to the beasts their food, and to the young ravens that cry. Psalm 147:9 Ravens are not necessarily birds have economic or ecstatic value to man yet God goes out of his way to respond to their cry for food. You are so much more valuable, so much that he had to go the extra mile to pay for the curse with the life of his son.

But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, \”Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.\”

Now, your case is different, you don\’t have to labor under that curse before you have provision. Do you believe it? Your provision now is rooted in what Jesus Christ has made available to you. Look at this.

And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

You need to learn how to access the glorious riches laid up for you. For Isaac who did not know Jesus, his riches were tied to the covenant blessings of his father Abraham, when famine arose, he listened to God\’s instruction and he accessed the provision. When Isaac planted his crops that year, he harvested a hundred times more grain than he planted, for the Lord blessed him Gen.26:12

It is the blessing that makes any effort fruitful. If you miss the blessing, then your provision is not guaranteed. God wants you to enjoy the dividend of being his child. The kingdom has all you need, but you must know the ropes! So don\’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. Return to your factory default setting, learn to live by faith in God\’s providence, not your wisdom or effort, and everything will be alright.

Prayer:

1. Lord l trust in your goodness as my Father, l repent of my anxiety and worry about what l will live on. Today l ask you to restore my heart to trust you, l know you are able and willing, you are a good God.

2. Father open my eyes to see the kingdom principles of provision and help me practice them in Jesus\’ name. Amen

Live by Faith alone!

Roses&Thorns