Though an ancient text, Deuteronomy 15 offers the modern Christian great insight into life, especially into how we should view the blessing of God in our life. So why does God bless us - particularly materially? Allow me to draw two answers from the text.
The first answer is that God blesses us so that we might offer worship to Him. From verses 19 and following (and many other passages) we see that God wants us to offer to Him our first and best. When the Lord blesses us materially, we ought to view that blessing as an opportunity to worship God - to show Him that we value Him above the gift or blessing. And how do we do this? We offer to Him our firstfruits. Before we take and use any of His blessings, we give to Him the first part. But it must be said that we don't give him any part, we give Him the first and the best. To offer God the damaged or maimed wouldn't be worship at all. But to offer Him what might have been most useful to us shows that we value Him above all.
The second answer is that God blesses us so that we might provide for others. In verse 10 Moses records this: " You shall give to him (the poor) freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake.' Have you ever thought about the blessing of God in your life this way - that it is His means of providing for others in your world. It is His means of displaying the glory of His self-giving love as you freely give to meet the needs of others.
James S. Stewart wrote, "One main function of the face of suffering that we encounter all around us is to be a perpetual challenge to us to be cooperating with a burden-bearing God and to be giving ourselves in consecrated service for the healing of this broken earth." Even Moses records the Lord's words that "...there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy, to the poor, in your land."
And what might be the motivation for our responding positively to this instruction? Moses offers his readers this: "You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today" (vs. 15). Our motivation to aid the poor and give freely of the blessing God has given is that we were once poor ourselves. WE were the poor upon whom God looked with favor. He saw us in our need and bondage and was moved with compassion to give not only of His excess, but to give sacrificially to meet our need.
Now He calls us to continue that work in our world. God wants to continue to show Himself a God of self-giving love, and He wants to do this through you. Have you considered this ? Have you thought about God's blessings in your life as a means of worship to God and service to His creatures? When you do, and begin to live it out, you will find those blessings all the more sweeter. May God's grace flow more freely through all of us.
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