God Provides

Read Genesis 22:14

“On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided”, this is a most profound statement. For every god in Abraham’s time needed to bring things, needed to do things in order to move their god into action, they needed to persuade him. But here it is said “if one should come to God, all he needs shall be provided.”

I believe there to be only 1 God, there is not a myriad of gods up there in the sky competing with one another. But have often thought even if there were, my God far exceeds them all, his ways and his thoughts are so much higher than these other humanly-conceived gods. Every religion requires you to come to God, you must do the work in order to earn his good favour.

Only in Christianity has God come to us, he is the only God who says we have nothing and that there is nothing we have or can do to sway his favour our way, but yet he comes down to us, provides for us and cares for us.

No other God takes initiative, his followers must come to him, our God comes to us, he is the epitome of love and grace. He is a God which no human mind could conceive of. Saint Augustine, a bishop from the early church, whose influence on Christianity is second only to Jesus and the Apostles, said this, “Lord, command what you will, and grant what you command.”

This became a massive point of controversy in the church, not because he said God can command us to do whatever he wishes, but because he said God must also give us all things in order to fulfill his commands. His belief being we are not sufficient in and of ourselves to obey God. We need God to provide, not just command.
That is what Abraham’s hope was in, as he walked up Mt. Moriah with Isaac. Not that God would simply command him, but would also supply what he needed to carry out the command.

Christianity is not a rules-based religion, it is not a religion of works. Do we do good works? most definitely. But in other religions you must do them yourself, you must do them to please God. But we know in Jesus, God is already pleased with us, we have peace with God through Jesus’ death on the cross.

Does God give you commands you don’t think you can fulfill? Do not fear because our God is a God who provides everything we need, especially what we need to carry out his will.

Prayer:

“Father, thank you, for your endless supplies of provision which you give us everyday, there has never been a day where we have not received absolutely everything we needed. Father, it is in your strength not our own that we operate everyday, it is you who grants us our every breath. So would you give us strength again today, fill us with thanksgiving for your generosity and grant us a desire to use every breath for your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”