Finding “Jehovah Jireh”
(An original sermon by Ed Skidmore)
Genesis 22:1-14 03-16-03
(During Offering Time:)
SKIT: Angel Education:
Many of us have heard the phrase: Jehovah Jireh. The origin of that phrase is found in Genesis chapter 22. God tested Abraham’s obedience and faith by instructing him to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac as an act of worship. Isaac … sharp boy that he was … noticed that they had failed to bring along a lamb for the sacrifice. Listen to Abraham’s response as we read our scripture text:
SCRIPTURE READING: Genesis 22: 7-14
INTRODUCTION:
We are told in vs. 14 that Abraham called that place, “Jehovah Jireh,” which means “The Lord will provide.”
Jehovah Jireh is more than words to a catchy song. It is a principle of daily life. This is the primary way we show that we actually have faith in God, and it works out in our lives in a number of ways. In the same way that Abraham discovered Jehovah Jireh, we too are called upon to discover that God is the source of all our Provision.
1. THE SOURCE OF PROVISION: PROVERBS 3:5-10
That is a hard lesson for Americans to learn. We are taught early on that, above all, we are supposed to be self-sufficient.
Remember the story of The Little Red Hen from the Children’s Golden Book Series? The Little Red Hen kept asking other barnyard animals to help her gather and prepare food, but they kept giving excuses. Over and over the Little Red Hen replied Then I’ll do it all by myself! The Little Red Hen did all the work all by herself, then rewarded herself in the end by eating the whole feast: “all by myself”.
We grow up hearing phrases like:
· there’s no free lunch,
· I’m the cause of my own effect,
· I am the captain of my ship, the master of my fate,
· God helps them that helps themselves.
Well, let me tell you, none of that is in the Bible. Look in Proverbs 3:5-10 to see what IS in the Bible:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your path straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” Proverbs 3:5-10
The first principle of Jehovah Jireh is to understand that God himself is our provider. This isn’t just a mind game we play, it’s the simple TRUTH. Until we really believe Jehovah Jireh, we will not be able to move forward in faith and obedience. But once you actually trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, then you’re ready to learn about the SIGN of OBEDIENCE.
2. THE SIGN OF OBEDIENCE: HAGGAI 1:5-11
In scripture, stewardship is the sign that we truly believe Jehovah Jireh. Specifically the scriptural sign of obedience is “tithing.” The principle of the tithe is found first in Genesis 14:19 when Abraham gives 10% to the mysterious High Priest Melchizadek. The principle of the tithe continues throughout the scriptures as a way of acknowledging Jehovah Jireh.
What’s really sad is that the majority of church people have not discovered Jehovah Jireh in their lives. All we have to do is look at some recent statistics to see this is true. In America today, across denominational lines, 60% of church members contribute nothing at all. Another 20% contribute something, but at a level well below a tithe. Only 20% of church members actually tithe from their incomes.
That shows that, like the Little Red Hen, many church people actually believe they are doing it all by myself! I think this is one reason why so many in our nation are in deep financial debt. We tend to think of indebtedness as a purely financial problem, but it actually has spiritual roots. People who haven’t discovered Jehovah Jireh have cut themselves off from a marvelous promise of God and instead are living under a self-imposed curse.
God told the Israelites how this works in the book of Haggai. After the Israelites returned from Babylonian captivity, they tried to reestablish themselves in their homeland. Unfortunately, they were trying to do it, all by themselves. They did not return to keeping the laws of God. Haggai the prophet explained to them the real source of their dilemma in Chapter 1, verses 5-11:
Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat but never have enough. You drink but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it…
You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home I blew away. Why? Declares the Lord Almighty. Because of my house which remains a ruin while each of you is busy with his own house…” Haggai 1:5-11
These people actually impoverished themselves by failing to honor God. No matter how hard they tried to get ahead, they always wound up behind.
I’ve seen it so often. It is hard to imagine how a person can earn what seems like a decent salary, but in the end it seems like their purse has a hole in it. There always ends up being too much month left at the end of their paycheck. I wish everyone could understand that what seems like a financial problem is actually a spiritual problem with a spiritual solution. The fact is that God himself can plug the leak in their purse, IF they will begin to trust in Him and acknowledge Him as their provider.
Occasionally people tell me, “I can’t afford to tithe. It would ruin my finances. I couldn’t pay my bills.” I learned a long time ago that I can’t afford NOT to tithe.
I was fortunate to grow up in a Christian home where I learned to tithe at a young age. My parents explained that my tithe was the sign that I really trusted God and depended on Him for everything. I had a little box to put my tithe money in, and regularly took 20 cents of my $2.00 allowance to put in the basket at church. Because I got an early start, it came natural to continue tithing larger amounts when I became an adult.
I have found I can make it on 90% with God’s blessings. Understand, I’m not saying things haven’t ever been tight. I’m not saying I haven’t occasionally had financial worries and pressures. And I’m not saying I’ve never made financial mistakes.
But I AM saying I would NEVER want to try to make it on 100% without God’s blessings. I am 100% convinced that everything works out better when I depend on Jehovah Jireh. I believe He actually does plug the leaks in my purse. Therefore, I am not the captain of my ship, the master of my fate. And I sure don’t try to do it all by myself.
The sign of God’s covenant is our tithe mingled with His grace, and, believe me, His Grace always outweighs that tithe! You see, God ALWAYS keeps his promise to pour out a blessing so great we can’t hold it all.
3. THE SUPPLY OF ABUNDANCE: MALACHI 3:8-12
We find an astounding warning and a corresponding promise in Malachi 3:8-12. God Himself speaks directly to His disobedient children. Look at what He says:
“Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse, the whole nation of you – because you are robbing me.
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour you out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,” says the Lord Almighty.
Normally, it’s not a good idea to “put God to the test.” But in his one area, the Lord invites you to put Him to the test. Most people see tithing as a test for the Believer --- and a HARD test at that! But God calls tithing a test of Him and his ability to provide, and he invites it.
“Test me in this and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour you out so much blessing you will not have room enough for it.”
It’s a simple test. Giving a tenth of a paycheck is not complicated math. Just move a decimal point one place to the left and you will know what your tithe is. And God invites every one of you to take up the challenge. Personally, I hope you’ll do it, because I KNOW without doubt that God will come through on his part of the bargain. And I KNOW without a doubt that your own faith and confidence in God will grow by leaps and bounds.
CONCLUSION:
Friends, it’s usually difficult for a minister to preach a stewardship sermon, knowing that some will be offended by it. But I’m asking you, please don’t take offense. It’s God who asks you to give, not me. And when God asks you to give, it is not to impoverish you. It is to bless you. The offense comes only if you don’t believe that.
To be quite honest, I wouldn’t bring up the subject just because of the church’s needs. Things are tight in our budget right now because we have the added expense on this new worship center. Many of you gave sacrificially to get us into this building. And many of you continue to give sacrificially. But the needs of our monthly budget aren’t enough to motivate me to preach on tithing.
What motivates me is that I know our budget problem is a sign of a spiritual problem. When more of our people truly discover Jehovah Jireh, our church will have all the provision we need. In fact, I know that if everyone here today really believed Jehovah Jireh, our church would have MORE than we need to pay the bills. More important than that, each person who puts God first in their finances will enjoy the amazing provision of God in their own budgets.
A few years back, a Galveston church had a Tithing Demonstration Sunday for its members. On a designated Sunday everyone was asked to give a tithe of one week’s salary. They urged everyone … whether or not they usually tithed … to give a tithe that one time.
As you could imagine, the offering that Sunday was the largest ever given. In fact, it was 6 times the usual offering. The aftermath was even more exciting. Many who had never tithed before changed their attitude and decided if they could do it once, they could do again.
By the end of that year giving was up almost 3 times what it had been before the demonstration. The enthusiasm was up more than that. Over and over, people gave testimonies of the many changes in their lives as God fulfilled his promise in Malachi 3:10. All of this came from a simple obedience to Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides.
It’s my prayer that every one of you will discover what I’ve seen demonstrated over and over again. God is your provider; His grace is sufficient for you in every way.
