Overflow and Abundance (2)
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I want to continue down the same vein as last week because I believe this church is going to grow through evangelism. Believe it or not, as we will find out tonight sharing your faith is part of receiving the overflow and the abundance God desires you to have. In response to last week Chan, who usually is my gofer and runs to the gas station or family dollar, has been using his trips to start telling everyone in the store that Jesus loves them. Wednesday night we discussed the difficulty of evangelism and the idea was brought up, that if you find it uncomfortable to talk about Jesus start praising people. Telling someone their awesome or that you appreciate them is a good way to start telling people about Jesus.
As Chan was telling me the story about sharing that Jesus loves them he told me first about his courage to state it and then went into his fear. HE apparently told the cashier that Jesus Loves them as he ran out the door, not giving the cashier a chance to respond. I admire his courage to step out though. The next day I sent him back out to grab something and this time he stayed long enough to hear the cashier reply: Jesus loves you too.
Chan had a choice to make: Abundance and overflow in with either decision would be the result.
Choice one: submit to fear thus feeding the idea of fear and eventually his voice and his testimony would be silenced.
Choice two: submit to obedience and reap the harvest that obedience brings in. Eventually overcoming and doing away with fear and anxiety to embrace confidence.
What God is showing me is that we will live an abundant life no matter what we do it’s just which abundance do we want?
17 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go.
18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
Isaiah 48 is the chapter where Israel is told they will be going into judgement. They hadn’t followed the ways of God, in fact they appeared to have a form of godliness like Paul was talking about in 2 Tim 3:5, but were found to be putting on a show. There are dangers to those who put on a show or have a form of godliness, but in our verses above God is showing them what could have been had they obeyed God’s commands.
The first thing God does is speak to his character again. He Is Lord who teaches you how to profit.
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
reality is this book is profitable for our lives. Many of us if we had a multibillion dollar comapany that we could share with someone and not take away at all from our profits we would share that company, but we have the most profitable life alter book available. Are we sharing it?
Now if we have the billion dollar company there are a few responses 2we might get.
It’s a scam
Not everyone will get the same results
There are some people who just don’t want to work no matter how profitable it is.
There are those who will jump on the opportunity— then we get into the sower parable right
Some may here spring up quickly and wither
Some may hear, but the birds (demons) destroy it
Some may hear, but everything in life kills their desires.
Some will hear and grow
How is it profitable—it directs your life.
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Th term saints means- love by God, sacred, Holy, Pure,
Every term that defines saints shows that we are seperated from sin. That we are no longer connected to sin. What would be more profitable, but we would be different for all of us. But for many of us would it be more profitable to get a $10,000 lump some or for someone to pay off the debt you can’t afford to pay?
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
set apart, many people believe that this meant that tPaul was set a part from others in form of rank, but the very power Paul worked in we can obtain through the Holy Spirit. If you go through the context of speech it would indicate that he is set apart from sin.
I believe to the extent that we are separated from sin is the degree of power we receive. The idea being the more separate we are from sin the closer we can get to God. When we are trying to ride the line between barely saved and entertainment in the world we are usually left powerless. Then we wonder why we can’t minister to our friends and family.
However when we are operating at full power. Could you imagine the ministry potential. It’s where we get the promise
18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
God uses these peaceful waters and calm rivers to paint a picture of rest. Often times people see these rules and regualtions as horrible boundaries, but when followed they leave you in lush fields to rest in.
We see rivers of delights Psalms 46:4
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
Where does this river come from Christ
1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
The river of peace we receive comes right form the throne of God and Jesus.
We see this one the cross
34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water.
Purity and peace
An interesting cross reference of water is found in Exodus 17:1-7 which shows Israel dying of thirst and the water coming from the rock.
4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.
Jesus is the water found at the well that will never leave you thirsty. WE have abundance of spiritual water when we are obedient in Christ.
18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
The term righteous in the bible when used figuratively according to Strongs is known to demonstrate prosperity. His righteousness overtakes you. Turns you areound. I don’t know how many of you ever been in an ocean anf felt a wave smack you. The force that pushes into you. Propels you into rightness. It no longer becomes a drag, but rather a almost unstopable force.
7 As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other.
8 And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh.
9 And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.
10 Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea.
11 But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt.
12 And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”
I am in love with the imagery here.
God’s water, because this water is literally folowing out of the temple, flows into dirty water and makes it clean and currently flows into the dead sea area. It speaks of the abundance and thriving of God’s refreshing life. The abundnace of fish in V10 likely talks about evangelism and prophesies to his idea of fishers of men, who we are and the success of bringing in those fish to those who are obedient and take the time to evangelize.
V12 the river brings forth it’s fruitfulness and blessing wherever it goes. If we are faithful and doing everything God is asking us we should have the preverbal touch of gold.
Ultimately though there is the individual promise of
38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ”
As the living water is the Holy Spirit and the blessings of life he brings.