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And with all his abundant wealth through Christ Jesus, my God will supply all your needs. Philippians 4:19
When I was growing up in the church I was always amazed at the stories of great missionaries that gave up all they had to go to foreign lands to preach Jesus to the unsaved. I would watch Billy Graham speak to thousands and then watch (sometimes with tears in my eyes) as hundreds would come forward to ‘accept Jesus’.
To this day I read books by some of my favorite authors, watch my well-known pastors and teachers on TV and video sharing the gospel story and am, to be honest, just a little jealous. I’d love to be able to speak to 1,000’s about what Jesus has done in my life. What a rush it would be to have hundreds come forward and kneel at the altar because God has used my words to touch their hearts and bring them to him.
Before you think me too full of pride, does not Jesus himself tell us to ‘Go to all the world and preach the gospel?’ Doesn’t Luke tell us in his letter referred to as the ‘Acts of the Apostles’ that we would receive power from the Holy Spirit to preach the good news to the ‘uttermost parts of the earth’?
Many of us who have grown up in the church may have felt like I have. We were emotionally charged to win the earth to Christ as the result of some missionary speaker or a bible story or testimony that motivated us to consider full-time service for the Master.
So, what is the missing ingredient in fulfilling the Great Commission in your world, or is its fulfillment reserved for those called into full-time Christian service (i.e., missionary, pastor,BibleCollegepresident, evangelist, etc.)
When Jesus was on earth he spent his time with the common folk. His challenge (which we call the Great Commission) was given to a group of uneducated, blue collar workers with no formal education at all, much less training in cross-cultural ministry. Most of them were fishermen!
Want to be an effective Christ-follower? First of all, consider this. Jesus does not tell us to go win converts to the good news. In fact, in the 3 years we read of Jesus ministry his main focus was on physical, emotional and spiritual healing, not on winning friends. The relationships Jesus built were the result of his meeting the needs of people, not demanding their allegiance.
So what does he ask of us? To make disciples. Disciples are made over time through open, honest relationship, not through seminary training or programs. Jesus didn’t give lessons ON life; he showed the lessons IN life.
Each of us is called to make disciples as we go on our way. That’s what being fruitful as a Christ-follower means. The key to this is growing closer to Christ, not adding activity to our days. Our ability to be fruitful Christians comes from the depth of our relationship with Jesus not the level of our Spiritual activity.
Want to be a great missionary? Follow this simple rule. Grow closer to Jesus. He’ll do the rest. Our power as Christ-followers comes from his riches, not ours.
PRAYER: Lord keep me from thinking that the only way I can be used effectively by you is by having titles and numbers in my bag of tricks. Help me draw close to you so I can reach others. Amen.
And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19
The Bible tells us in many different places that if we come to God with our requests that He will hear us and answer our prayers. Jesus says that ‘if you have the faith of a mustard seed you can move mountains.’ We are taught that prayer is the most effective weapon we have in combating the issues of life that surround us.
The reality is that even for those of us that believe in Jesus Christ and strive to follow him throughout our entire lives, sometimes it seems like our prayers go unanswered. We pray for health issues and people die. We pray for safety and injuries happen. We pray for financial success and debt results.
Sometimes God withholds what we think we need because He has something better in store for us. We ask for things, even good things but don’t know the future. Our Heavenly Father loves us dearly and wants only the best for us. But He knows better than any father what is best for us. When we look back on our past we’ll be able to see that His way is truly best.
We may ask for physical things. Good things that will help us be comfortable and healthy; things that will help others or even bring others to Christ. But those things may keep us from relying on God for His provision.
God knows what things will make us stronger and wiser. He knows what lays ahead of us tomorrow. He has promised never ever to leave us. It’s a matter of faith. If God is who we say He is then we need to learn to rely on Him with the same faith and confidence whether the answer is yes or no to our prayers.
We are also promised that we will receive our needs dependent on His strength and His riches. Not on our own ability to provide. It’s easy when we are in distressing situations to think that our deliverance will somehow depend on our own strength or our own worthiness. But God’s word tells us that His promises to meet our needs are based on Jesus, not us.
As we grow closer to Him through reading the Bible and daily prayer He will meet our every need physically, spiritually and emotionally. We serve a God of grace, not one of vengeance and hate.
PRAYER; Father God, I confess to you that I am sometimes filled with doubt when I pray. I pray expecting that the answer will be ‘no’ or that you won’t answer at all. I get discouraged and start to doubt you when things I ask for don’t happen. Please forgive me for my lack of faith. Help me to grow closer to you each day and to believe will all my heart that you will meet my needs, not always my wants, because of who Jesus is. Thank you for your promise to help me through the most difficult times of life. Amen
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 