1167-God Wants You to Prosper in All Things 4#
1167-God Wants You to Prosper in All Things 4
(JP Text Group - beloved compilation)
Philippians 4:17-20:
Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. Indeed, I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen!
Let’s pray together:
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You! You want us to prosper in all things! You bless us not according to our deeds, but according to Your glorious riches! You desire that in Christ Jesus, all our needs are met! During this time, we come before You once again to receive Your grace; to receive Your blessings; and to receive Your strength. Help me to know Your truth more. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!
The topic we share today: The Purpose of Prosperity
In previous sessions, we discussed the content of prosperity in detail. God desires His children to prosper in all things. God's prosperity is not measured by how much wealth you accumulate or how many properties you own. God wants you to be abundant and sufficient in every aspect of your life. This includes your health, emotions, relationships, and all other areas.
When Jesus was on earth, He did not live in a lavish house, nor did He lead a life of extravagance, and He was not driven by possessiveness or greed. Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness and became hungry. At that time, the devil said, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread.” Jesus quickly discerned the devil's trick. He did not fall for the devil's temptation because He had no selfish desires; He clearly understood that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
We live in the same way; we not only rely on the food we eat daily but also need God to supply His words to us every day. Jesus lived in a small village under Roman rule and oppression, yet He was able to bear the ministry of preaching the gospel of the kingdom. This was the mission given to Him by the Father. He even supported twelve disciples with all their daily needs for three years. His life was prosperous.
Did Jesus ever get sick? No. How were His relationships with people? Everyone who sought Jesus had a very good relationship with Him. When Jesus lived on earth, every aspect of His life was prosperous.
Why did Jesus have such abundant resources? Why was His supply continuous? Because wherever God leads, there will always be provision. What is the reason Christians can prosper? It is because they are doing God's work and fulfilling His will. When you serve and work with this purpose, God will surely grant you His prosperity.
What is God's will?
Many people know that God has a will for each of us when reading the Bible. However, they do not understand what God's will truly is.
From John 3:16-17, we can see clearly:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
Do you see God's will? God's will is that He does not want anyone to perish; He desires that we all receive His abundant life. John 10:10 also tells us, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Therefore, Jesus Christ is most concerned with the work of salvation.
God is most concerned about our lives. That is why He sent His only beloved Son into the world; His purpose is to save our lives. For our lives that are not abundant and prosperous, to enter into Him and receive His abundance, God desires that you prosper in all things, and the purpose of Jesus coming into the world has been clearly stated in the Bible.
Matthew 9 also tells us, “Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.” I call this the three major ministries of Jesus: The first is teaching people in the synagogues. The second is proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. The third is healing every sickness and disease. In fact, these three major ministries can be divided into two aspects: First, God wants you to receive all heavenly blessings. Second, God wants you to receive all earthly blessings. Therefore, we must remember one thing: God desires not only for us to be prosperous in the kingdom of heaven but also for us to be healthy and prosperous on earth.
Sharing the first point: Clarify Your Motive
Jesus is our example; we should follow what He did. Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” Can we hope for prosperity in all things? If you are in sickness, can you hope for God to heal you? If you understand that sickness does not come from God and that God's intention is for you to prosper in all things, then you can hope for healing.
Many people say that a Christian's life should be filled with suffering, with thorns everywhere. If someone believes that sickness comes from God, how can they have faith to pray to God for healing? If sickness is from God, then why would you want to change God's mind?
What has Jesus Christ given us? Jesus has given us His life, righteousness, and love.
Romans 8 talks about what can separate us from the love of Christ? Nothing. What God gives us cannot be separated by anyone. Jesus Christ came to set the captives free, to heal the lame and the blind, and He released many who were oppressed by the devil.
What does it mean to be oppressed by the devil? Those who are sick, those with epilepsy, and all kinds of diseases are oppressed by the devil. The coming of Jesus Christ is to release these people. For three years, Jesus did not always calm the storms or raise the dead, but He was constantly healing people.
From this, we can know that He desires for our bodies to be strong. God hopes that His people have sufficient resources so that they can go to every city and village in the world to do what Jesus did. How did Jesus do it? He went about all the cities and villages, teaching people, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and disease. Therefore, we should do the same as Jesus.
How do we do such things? First, God wants to bless you and give you the ability to do so. God's ultimate purpose for prosperity is that He hopes we can spread the gospel to the ends of the earth. When we take this as the purpose of our lives, what you do will surely prosper. The purpose of prosperity is to serve others, not for oneself; this must be clear.
We can pursue prosperity, such as financial abundance, in these areas, but we must clarify one thing: what is the purpose of such pursuits? Is it for God's work, or is it for our own indulgence?
In the book of James, many people misunderstand a passage: “You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask with wrong motives.” There is another important conclusion: “You waste it on your pleasures.”
God always desires His children to prosper, but He does not want His children to fall into selfish desires in their prosperity.
Brothers and sisters, where does sin come from? “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” Sin comes from selfish desires. This means that if a person has no greed, they will not fall into the devil's snare.
Be clear about one thing: God can fully grant you financial abundance and prosperity in every aspect, but the question is, what will you use it for? For example, when God gives us a special gift, if a person uses this gift to strike down brothers and sisters, saying, “Look, I can speak in tongues, interpret tongues, prophesy, and heal all kinds of sick people; why can't you? It’s because you are ignorant and do not pray.” This becomes pride and self-righteousness; they forget that everything they have is received from God.
If one misuses the prosperity God gives, it ultimately brings harm to others. Therefore, the Bible specifically mentions that even if you can speak in the tongues of men and angels, if you do not have love, what good is it? The important thing is to correctly express God's will in our lives. God wants us to prosper in all things because He loves us; He desires us to receive His life, an abundant life. That is why Jesus Christ came; everything He has is for us. If you understand that God gives you various gifts to better serve others, that person is humble.
God also does not want us to lack clothing, to have no house to live in, or to barely make ends meet. The Bible contains many verses that promise that those who walk in God's will are prosperous. For example, Abraham was prosperous, Isaac was prosperous, and Jacob was too. David was even more so; many spiritual giants were prosperous.
Psalm 35:27 says: “Let the Lord be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.”
Last time we talked about what peace is. When Israelites meet, they greet each other with “shalom,” which means peace. Peace represents health, wholeness, prosperity, tranquility, satisfaction, and more. This is all encompassed in the meaning of shalom.
The Psalms tell us that the Lord delights in His servants being healthy, prosperous, peaceful, and satisfied. As children of God, He also desires you to be at peace. 3 John 1:2 tells us, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” God's intention is that you prosper in all things.
Being stingy and impoverished does not glorify God! For example, if someone is dressed in rags and tells others, “Believe in Jesus.” How many people can see the glory of Christ in them? Many would think their God is the same way.
If we ourselves are impoverished, how can we help others? If we are often in sickness, how can we tell others that God is a healing God? God wants us to prosper in all things so that we can be a help to more people. Use Christ's love to help the weak and pray for those in need.
We must also be wary of another extreme, which is that God gives a person a lot of wealth, but they enjoy it for themselves and completely disregard others; this also does not glorify God!
Luke 16:19-21 tells of a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and feasted sumptuously every day. But there was a beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at the rich man's gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores.
This passage shows us two extremes: one is extravagant feasting, and the other is being full of disease and having nothing. Neither of these glorifies our Lord. Being too poor is not acceptable. Being too wealthy for oneself is also not acceptable. Therefore, in material life, we need to find a balance.
Here, I would like to read two verses from Proverbs; take time each day to read Proverbs. Proverbs 30:7-9 contains a very classic saying: “Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die): Remove falsehood and lies far from me; Give me neither poverty nor riches—Feed me with the food allotted to me; Lest I be full and deny You, and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God.” Amen!
You can really think about this passage. These two verses are very interesting; this is the wisdom summarized by Solomon. He is asking for two things that he must have before he dies. What are those two things? To keep falsehood and lies far from him. Whether it is falsehood or lies, such people should be kept away.
The other thing is to not be too poor or too rich. When you read this verse, what do you think? What does it mean to be neither poor nor rich? I specifically checked the original text; the original Hebrew expresses it as not being too poor or too rich. This means that if we are extremely poor, like Lazarus, having nothing and being full of disease, in such a situation, how can we help others?
There is also a saying about being too rich. Everything goes smoothly, everything is good. With a lot of wealth, people often think this is due to their own intelligence and hard work. They might say, “Who is God? Why should I rely on Him? Look, everything I do is successful; why should I rely on God?” Such people are particularly prone to drift away from God. Actually, this is not talking about others; it refers to Solomon himself.
Solomon had everything go smoothly. He had too much wealth and abundant wisdom. However, his only regret in life was that he drifted away from God. Therefore, we should not learn from Solomon. His wisdom tells us not to let ourselves be too rich, which makes us easily forget God. We must always remember that God wants us to prosper in all things, but He does not want us to focus on finances; instead, we should always focus on the Lord who gives us all abundance and prosperity.
When we read the four Gospels, we learn about the life of Jesus Christ. He walked through the streets and alleys, mingling with ordinary people and helping the poor. At the same time, He also met with those in power and did not feel awkward. He visited the tax collector's house and also went to the homes of Pharisees and religious leaders. Everything He did was abundant. The first miracle Jesus performed was turning six jars of water into wine. The purpose of this was for that family to enjoy His prosperity.
Jesus did these things, and very few people knew about them. However, the disciples saw what Jesus did, and it revealed God's glory. After witnessing this, the disciples all believed in Jesus Christ. We see that Jesus correctly used God's prosperity.
God can fully grant you prosperity in all things, but He is more willing for us to use the abundance He gives us correctly. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us, “Do not worry about what you will eat or what you will drink or what you will wear.” Jesus said, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” He also said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
Jesus continues, “Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”
You should seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; all that you need will be added to you.
What is the kingdom of God?
The kingdom of God can be simply understood as whether you are willing to give the sovereignty of your heart to Jesus, acknowledging Him as your Lord and recognizing Him as your all-sufficient supply. This means you let God's kingdom be in your heart.
What is God's righteousness? The righteousness of Christ. When Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again, His righteousness was given to us.
Romans 3:21-24 tells us the accurate answer: “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed.”
Where is this righteousness apart from the law? It is in the grace of Jesus Christ. Before Jesus came, people were under the law.
Now, in our time, the righteousness of God has been revealed apart from the law. The Old Testament law required you to perform well, to obey the law, to keep the Ten Commandments, and to submit in order to be justified. But under the law, no one can do it. For 1500 years, no one could keep it. That is why Jesus Christ came; God sent His beloved Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins. Jesus gave us the righteousness apart from the law, the righteousness of God as a gift.
If you receive and believe in Jesus Christ, the righteousness of God is upon you. The kingdom of God and the righteousness of God are not something you strive to obtain; they are given to you as a gift when you accept Jesus Christ. Therefore, when you understand that the kingdom of God and the righteousness of God are already upon you, you can understand the following words: all that you need will be added to you by your heavenly Father. So, under the Old Testament, you had to strive and perform well to be blessed by God.
But today, under grace, God desires to bless you, and you live with the power of Christ. Therefore, righteousness outside the law is the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
Verse 23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” But now, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, the kingdom of God and the righteousness of God have been accomplished. Therefore, all that you need, God will surely give you.
From this, it is clear that God does not want us to be poor or to lack. God only hopes that we put what should be prioritized in its rightful place.
Philippians 4:19: “And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
God does not bless us according to our good deeds or our good works. When you go to work, your boss pays you based on your performance. But when you come before our God, He does not bless you based on your good behavior or good performance. God blesses you according to His glory and His riches, so this is completely different, and it makes all your needs sufficient. God's riches are infinite; all things are created by Him and belong to Him.
So brothers and sisters, if we pursue prosperity with the purpose of helping to fulfill God's will, you can expect to be blessed and prosperous. We do not pursue selfishness, living like that ignorant rich man for ourselves; we pursue prosperity to glorify God and to help more people so that the gospel ministry can expand further, because Jesus lived this way on earth.
Luke 19:10 says, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Jesus entrusted us with the same mission.
Mark 16:15 tells us, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”
In this city, there are still many souls that have not been saved; this is our ministry, to seek these souls back. Clearly, we need to be in God's prosperity to have the ability to fulfill this mission.
If you are lying in bed, sick and unable to get up, how can you preach the gospel to others? Can you walk through every city and village? No. Therefore, God first wants you to prosper, to carry His power, to fulfill this mission. If you are always worried about your daily meals, how can you complete God's mission?
Sharing the second point: The Purpose of Prosperity is to Help Fulfill God's Great Commission and Be Blessed in It.
We know we have a helper, the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 says, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
It is not by your own ability to do, to preach the gospel, or to heal others; it is by the power of the Holy Spirit. How should we preach and fulfill this great commission? The scripture mentioned that you should first be in Jerusalem, then to all Judea.
Where is your ‘Jerusalem’? It can be understood as your family, your community, or your village. This is your ‘Jerusalem’; the surrounding areas are our Samaria. If we all act this way, the gospel will surely reach the ends of the earth.
One thing is very clear: people who are under great pressure every day for survival cannot fulfill the great commission. Without funds, it is difficult for them to go out. Therefore, God hopes that each of His children can help fulfill this great commission. Then God will surely make them prosperous; this is God's will.
Every believer should do their part to promote the development of the gospel ministry. Thus, in God's prosperity, every aspect will be blessed by God. How do we do this?
For example, if you work, rely on God's ability and grace to do your best at work. Do not be the laziest person; the purpose of doing this is to glorify God.
As a student, rely on God's wisdom to study hard in class. Likewise, put God first, asking Him every day for wisdom and ability to do these things. When you come in first place, give glory to our God; by doing so, you are already in prosperity.
For example, if you are in sales, pray for God to provide sufficient supply so that your performance is the best. If you are in business, let your business be the best among your peers. What is the purpose of doing this? It is not to show how great your ability is, but to promote the development of God's gospel ministry. Therefore, if you act this way, God will surely make you prosper in all things.
As mentioned earlier, there are those who work and those who run their own businesses. How can we promote the development of God's gospel ministry? An important point is to give a tithe, as this will help many poor and needy people. So when you earn a lot of money, you can support the gospel ministry and help those in need around you. By doing this, you are promoting the development of God's gospel ministry.
God will double bless the work of your hands, making you even more prosperous; this is God's way. Therefore, when you act this way, you are fulfilling God's mission. If you do so, God will greatly bless you.
If you are at home taking care of children, how can you do this in accordance with God's will? Teach the children using God's words. Pray for your children every day, asking God to take care of them through your hands and prayers. By using the wisdom God gives you to care for the children the best you can, you are fulfilling God's mission. You want your children and your relatives to see God's wonderful blessings; this is your prosperity.
If you are a full-time housewife, how can you prosper? Every time you tidy up the house or cook, pray to God. Say, “Lord, let the food I prepare be enjoyed by them. Through my hands, grant health to my family.” This is your prosperity. God wants you to enjoy His prosperity in every aspect of your life. Believe that God will use your hands to bring health to those who eat your food; by doing this, you are witnessing for the Lord. You can spread the gospel of Christ.
Therefore, we need this kind of prosperity. Every Christian, every child of God, needs this kind of prosperity. Our prosperity is not only financial but also in interpersonal relationships and every aspect of life. God wants us to prosper. The purpose of prosperity is not for ourselves but to better glorify God and promote the development of God's gospel ministry. We offer our finances to God and serve in the church to fulfill God's mission.
Coming to gatherings is not a law or a rule, but because God loves us so much that He died for us on the cross. We are willing to love God in return and to love one another. We do this out of obedience to God's word. Therefore, when we obey, God's word will manifest power and works in our lives.
No matter how thoroughly the person on the stage speaks God's word, if you go home and never practice these words, then God's power cannot be manifested in you. Even if you pray a slightly doubtful prayer and act on it, God can use such a word to let you experience His grace and His great power.
I hope that after you listen to the message, each of you can personally experience God when you go home. For example, if you pray for something and God accomplishes it, you will be more willing to obey God's word, and you will have more faith. If you do not act, you will not see it, and over time, you will say, “Oh, I go to church because it’s Sunday, so I must go.” This becomes a law. You do not come for that reason. You come here to say, “Lord, I come again to receive Your strength; I want to receive Your wisdom.”
During this week, apply these words in your life. Because you know, God wants you to prosper in all things.” When you are cooking, pray for God to grant prosperity upon you so that the dish you prepare will provide health to your family. Because this is what God is doing. God works through your hands to accomplish these things. When you think this way and act this way, God will accomplish such wonderful things in your home through your mouth.
When we serve, we do so willingly. Including our tithes, we are helping fulfill the great commission of Christ. We hope more people can understand the gospel, learn about the gospel, and accept the gospel. The offering box in our church has the latest gospel tracts; keep gospel tracts in your bag. When you talk to others, give them a gospel tract. This simple action is spreading the gospel of Christ; when you do this, God will bless you again. It is not about exchanging this for God's blessing; it is because you obeyed God's word, so God will add this power and prosperity to you.
Lastly, let’s talk about tithing.
We serve because we believe that God's word is true and faithful. He will leave great blessings on earth and in heaven, making me increasingly prosperous. Throughout the Bible, we can see that God's work is usually accomplished by His people. In the Old Testament, did God send more people or did He directly become angels to do the work? God always sends people to do the work, and the person sent must be willing. This person, during the process of being sent, receives great blessings from God.
Abraham was sent by God; God said, “Leave this place and go to the place I will show you.” He believed. As he moved, God had already made him prosperous. You must believe that God's work is accomplished by His people. Do not think that just praying for China every day will one day lead to its evangelization. Someone needs to step out and say, “Believe in Jesus Christ.” Only then can the gospel reach the ends of the earth.
Whether the gospel can reach the ends of the earth is directly related to each of you present. I encourage brothers and sisters to use gospel tracts as your personal business cards to share with others because by doing so, you are doing the work of God's kingdom. And whatever work you do, do not worry; God will surely bless you and make you increasingly prosperous.
Among the Israelites, there was a very special tribe called the Levites. The Levites had no land of their own and no profession. They were entirely devoted to serving God. Every day they served God in the temple; where did their supply come from? It came from the tithes offered by the Israelites, including their thank offerings. This is what the Bible refers to as tithing. This is what we refer to today as the tithe. What are these offerings used for? First, to pay for church expenses, the living of full-time workers, and missions, as well as to help the poor.
Finally, let’s look at a passage of scripture that many people may have read before, but today we want to see God's great blessings within it. Let’s read together Malachi 3:10-12:
“Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruits of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” says the Lord of hosts. “And all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of hosts.”
In these three verses, the same phrase is repeated: “says the Lord of hosts.” We should meditate on this passage; it is not spoken by some spiritual predecessor but by the Lord of hosts, which represents God's complete supply. He, with His faithfulness, tells us that He will take responsibility.
You should bring all the tithes into the storehouse, which is the church. Then He says, “that there may be food in My house.” This means that when others need food, we can supply it; first, our house needs to have food, and this food comes from the tithes offered by brothers and sisters. Then He says, “Try Me now in this.” This is the only promise in the entire Bible where God invites us to test Him. Why? Because God knows our worries, and He knows your concerns. So God says, “Do not think that way; try Me in this.”
Do you believe God's word?
God says, “It’s okay if you don’t believe; you can test Me.” The only promise in the entire Bible that allows us to test God is this one. What does God say? “See if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing.” This means that the blessings on earth come from heaven; how do we understand this? It means that when you plant wheat, whether it can yield a harvest is determined by what is above!
Let me give you another example; especially those of you who have land will understand. If you plant wheat and it does not rain, and the temperature is always at forty degrees, will your wheat yield a harvest? You might say, “Now technology is advanced; I can keep pumping water.” But if you water at noon and it dries up two hours later, unless you keep watering and pumping every day, I estimate that the money you invest could have bought a lot of wheat, and you would end up losing money. Therefore, the harvest on the ground is a blessing given from above. Similarly, whatever you do, remember that everything you have on earth is given from above.
If you persist in tithing, see if He will not open the windows of heaven and pour out blessings upon you, which means to pour down vigorously until there is no room to receive it. The scripture we just read says it will be pressed down and overflowing; is that not so? God wants to fill your vessel and make you abundant.
Verse 11 contains an even greater promise; the blessings become even greater. The Lord of hosts says, “I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes.” What does the original text mean? The devourer.
What is the devourer?
It is when a person does business, and the money they invest gets devoured. When a person plants wheat, and it gets devoured, whatever they invest gets devoured; these are all devourers.
No matter what a person does, if there is no protection from God, no matter how much they invest, it is like throwing it into a bottomless pit. But here is a promise: if you keep the tithe, God says, “I will rebuke the devourer for you.” God will bless you, and no one can stop it! So God will rebuke the devourer for you, and you will surely have a harvest.
Remember I often tell you that during the years of famine, Isaac sowed in the land of drought, and that year, he reaped a hundredfold. This is the blessing God gives us, increasingly greater.
“I will rebuke the devourer, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground.” This means that the money you earn from your work will be protected by God, ensuring that it does not leak away from other places; this is called rebuking the devourer.
Think about this: based on your current harvest, if your health remains good, how much money will you save? This means that God can rebuke the devourer because that is a bottomless pit. When you put yourself on the operating table, can you control it? No. But God can protect your assets from being devoured, ensuring that they do not get destroyed, that your current business does not fail, and that your current performance does not get ruined.
“Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field.” When what you do has not yet achieved its purpose, God will surely protect it to the end; this is God's blessing.
The blessing in verse 12 is even greater. “And all nations will call you blessed.” God has already called us blessed. But the question is, how can those who do not believe call you blessed? How can you let those who do not believe see that you are blessed?
For example, our Aunt Li is very healthy, and many people envy her. This is a wonderful testimony to the world. Unbelievers cannot see spiritual blessings; the only thing they can see is the blessings you have received from above. Another example is that your children, under your daily prayers, all believe in the Lord, and your family is harmonious and loving. Others will say, “This family is truly blessed.”
When it says, “All nations will call you blessed,” it means that even those who do not believe can see that you are a special person because wherever you go, blessings follow you; this is what it means to be blessed. The latter part says, “For you will be a delightful land.”
No matter where you go, there are indeed such people. You might be happy today, but suddenly someone says a few words that make you feel very uncomfortable.
However, what God gives you is that no matter where you go, even those who do not believe will feel that it is good to be with you. They will be very willing to be with you because being with you makes them feel comfortable and full of joy. Amen!
God makes you prosper in all things, filling you with joy. You will also become a blessing to others.
Tithing is not a law; under grace, it is like planting seeds. When you plant seeds today, God will give you a harvest; those who sow generously will reap generously, and those who sow sparingly will reap sparingly. Each one should give as he has decided in his heart!
If you say, “I cannot do it right now.” That’s okay; you can pray, “Lord, can I try You?” The answer in the Bible is yes. Try it for a year and see if you have less than before or more than before.
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You! You desire for us to prosper in all things and to be a blessing to those around us, so that they may also be blessed through us. You are willing to bless us, allowing us to participate in Your service and receive eternal rewards from heaven.
Grant us the faith to persist in tithing; we are willing to plant seeds in You, expecting a good harvest. I know that all my blessings come from You. For this, I give thanks and offer!
I believe that when we act this way, You will bless me, and I will also become a blessing to others. I believe I am a channel of blessing. Those around me will see the glory of Christ in me; all glory be to You! In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!