Divine Provision
- Michael E.B. Maher
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Matthew 6:31-33 “Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' (32) For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. (33) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
The second blessing that we want to discuss in this section is the fact that God has committed to supplying all our physical needs in this life. It is God’s perfect will for His children that our bodies should not suffer any form of lack, and He made provision for that when He sent His Son to the cross. The same principle applies in this section as in the previous one, i.e. out of the mouth of two or three witnesses we are to let every word be established. And so the first witness which we will quote in this section is the Lord Jesus Himself, for in the above quoted passage of scripture the Lord has taught us that our heavenly Father will supply all of our physical needs in this life. The Lord has taught us in this passage that everyone that finds the kingdom of God and His righteousness, qualifies to have their physical needs taken care of by God. All believers meet that requirement because of what Jesus has done for us on the cross, and so consequently all believers qualify to having their physical needs met by their heavenly Father. In this passage Jesus teaches us not to worry about our needs being met, for God our Father has committed to His saints to add to us everything we need to live in this life.
2 Corinthians 8:9 “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
The second witness we will quote in this section is the apostle Paul. In the above quoted passage of scripture Paul reveals to us that our Lord Jesus provided for our physical needs when He came to the earth, for the scripture declares that we have been made rich through His poverty. Many interpret this passage to say that the Lord has provided for our riches in heaven and also our spiritual riches here on earth, and the there is an element of truth to both those interpretations. The context of this passage however, is that the apostle Paul is teaching the saints about finances in this life, and so the interpretation that is the most pertinent is the one that deals with physical riches in this life. When Jesus came to the earth He gave up immense wealth in heaven to live as a humble carpenter, and the reason He did that was so that we could experience God’s full supply in this life. In other words God used the same principle that applied to our salvation, for just as Jesus was made to be sin that we could be made His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21), so Jesus was made to be poor that we could be made rich in Him. And so as far as heaven is concerned this is an accomplished work, because of which no believer should ever suffer any lack in this life. The word translated “rich” in this passage refers to a full supply. In other words God is not saying that He has committed to making His saints become multi millionaires, but rather that He has committed to ensuring that they always have all their needs met. And so we see that it is God’s perfect will for His saints that they should walk in a full provision all their lives.
Galatians 3:13-14 “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"), (14) that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”
The third witness that we will quote in this section is the Holy Spirit. Scripture teaches us that our Lord Jesus Christ did everything for us when He went to the cross, which means that there is nothing that we can do to inherit the promises of God, for Jesus has done it all. One of the things that our Lord did for us is that He became a curse for us, thus redeeming us from the curse of the law. This truth is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul in the above quoted passage of scripture. So what is the curse of the law that our Lord Jesus has redeemed us from? The curse of the law is recorded in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter twenty-eight, and part of that curse is financial lack. And so there can be no doubt that poverty is a curse and not a blessing, for if it were a blessing then God would not have listed it under the curse. So in the light of that truth the above passage of scripture could just as easily have been written that, “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of poverty, having become poor for us”. That ties in with the scripture that we read earlier where it was stated that for our sakes Christ became poor, that we through His poverty might become rich. Again, if it were not the express will of God our Father that we as His children should walk free from poverty and walk in financial blessing, then He would not have allowed His Son to become a curse for us thus redeeming us from the curse of poverty. And so in this section we have seen conclusive proof that it is our Father’s express will that as His children, we should walk in financial prosperity and not experience any lack, and He has made provision for that by sending His Son to the cross for us.
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 “that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, (12) that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing.”
The same word of caution however needs to be stated in this section as was stated in the previous one, i.e. if we do not meet our obligations as tenants, then we cannot expect God to fulfil the obligations that He has committed to as Landlord. The primary way that God meets our physical needs is by blessing the fruit of our labour. The Holy Spirit confirms this truth to us in the above quoted passage of scripture; for He tells us that if we want to lack nothing in this life then we must meet the condition of working with our hands. In other words in whatever work the Lord gives us to do we must do that work as unto Him, and in turn He will bless us through our labours so that we will lack nothing and always have a full supply.
Michael E.B. Maher
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