Tag: Prosperity

Keep the Law

Seems like a little thing and easy to understand, yes. But as I read this morning, there is a bit more to it than just keeping the law.

“7The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding,

but a companion of gluttons shames his father.”

“4Those who forsake the law praise the wicked,

but those who keep the law strive against them.”

— Proverbs 28:7 & 4 (ESV)

I know, the above verses are in reverse order, first verse seven then verse four. I was led to this passage through verse seven, but I see verse four as an extension in my study and learning. You see, we are to keep the law to be thought of well by our father and family, and in doing so, we are showing the wicked that there is this better way.

I know that in the short there seems to be very slow movement forward and there is a tendency to seek a more speedy gain. I struggle with seeing all of the, what appears to be, prosperity of those around me. It seems as though it comes easily and in great amount for others when I am seemingly struggling to make ends meet. There is a real drive to go outside the law to get to what others have and experience that seeming prosperity for myself. But, I am not seeing all that there is. I may not see that those who “fell into prosperity” may actually have been struggling and working hard for the past 20 years and this is the reward for their faithfulness. I have to remember that.

It is in the law that we find understanding and fight against evil. We are in with the LORD and He will provide when the time is right. Ours is to simply obey and follow His guidance through this world. We are to keep the law and that is where we will find the prosperity that keeps us free. Yes, we may feel the struggle that comes with being without, but were we meant to have that now or even at all if it keeps us from the Father. You see, it is in the LORD that we find peace and it is manifest through our keeping of the law.

What is your viewpoint on the law? Do you believe that we have to break it to get the prosperity we want and that it is okay to do so? What if we found our prosperity in the LORD and that is manifest from our keeping of the law?

Abundance and Prosperity From the Heart

“10when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.” and “9The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers,” — Deuteronomy 30:10 & 9 (ESV)

I know that I have captured the two verses above in reverse order. I do that as it is now in the cause and effect order. The LORD will make us prosperous and will provide abundance when we are obeying Him fully, not just in action, but with our hearts.

I wrote recently of the over abundance that God will provide when everything comes from the heart. The people gave for the building of the temple from their hearts and there was so much given that Moses had to tell them to stop giving. When we are going about our lives with Christ from our heart He will not only make sure there is more than enough for His work, but He will also provide abundance for you and me.

You see, it is not just about loving the LORD with all your heart. It is also about obeying His every command. Our pastor, Jared Patrick just did a message on bad days and what to do about it. One of the points in the sermon was that we may be obeying perfectly to God’s plans and commandments, yet the outcome was not what we expected to come. God does not always reveal to us the outcome, He may only reveal the work and our role is to obey. Our obedience is from the heart and not just on the surface of things. We have to fully believe and trust that God will use us as He needs and that we will be rewarded for the work, in the way that He sees fitting. So, as Jared pointed out in his sermon, what do we do on a bad day:

1. Remember who God is

2. Recall What God Has Promised

3. Trust What God Will Do

4. Stay Faithful Even When You Feel Empty

5. (this one is from me) Obey God From The Heart

I want to be clear, we do not do the work for some sort of reward. We do the work for the LORD and to spread His message to all around. But, we will be rewarded and that reward will be abundance and prosperity that we can only imagine today.

Where does your obeying come from? Are you doing things specifically to receive some sort of reward a, quid quo pro kind of thing? What if you were to just obey the LORD with all your heart and know that you will be rewarded in some way at some time in abundance and prosperity?