It's All HIs Stuff (6/11/12)

Shalom,

Please begin by reading Deut 8:10-18.

The word satisfied in verse 10 goes much deeper in the Hebrew language than we English-speakers take it. It means to fill to satisfaction, to have plenty of, to have in excess. The Israelites were a very deeply blessed people. Yahweh was extremely kind and generous with them. They felt a privilege in their abundance, much like Americans do. But we must never forget where all this good stuff comes from.

Humans have a tendency to get complacent and forget where their blessings come from. Somehow we work hard to build something or we get blessed by Yahweh and are able to accomplish something great. The generation involved in the hard work and toil are normally much more appreciative of the good they've received. But then later generations forget the blessings, and many don't think they need God anymore. It happens all around the world. When people are abundantly blessed, they have a tendency to forget the blesser.

Look at your own situation. Are your needs being met? Do you have plenty to eat, a home to live in, and peace to enjoy it all? Don't let your comfort make you think that you don't have to work hard at spiritual warfare and Kingdom building. Don't let your abundance cause you to forget that the Lord has blessed you. We know many people who take their good condition for granted. They don't offer thanks for what they have because they expect that they should have it. It seems too many people only acknowledge Yahweh when things are going wrong.

We often lose our hunger for the presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit when we're comfortable. Our desire to pray and seek them for a deeper relationship somehow fades when things are going good. When we don't have a pressing need driving us to our knees, our fervency tends to die out. This is what Yahweh was trying to warn the Israelites about. Don't forget the source of your good stuff.

Prov 30:8-9 is a prayer we should all take a good look at. "Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is Yahweh?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God." Money and stuff are pretty popular all over our world. Many people are striving to get more of each. It's seldom that a human is not caught up in money and stuff in some way.

Captain Jack Sparrow said, "Take what you can get, and don't give anything back." This pirate code was a way of life for some people. Unfortunately, it sounds a lot like our current society. I can cheat, but no one better try to cheat me. I can scam the system, but I'm upset that so many others do, too. We also have the problem of too many Americans sitting with their hands out looking for someone else to sustain them. All that's doing is stagnating their souls and causing them to lose the ability to care for themselves. The more they live with this entitlement attitude, the more they come up with expectations of what others should be doing for them.

A body of water which has no outflow will eventually become nasty. The water becomes no good for drinking or much else. It's only use is to become a haven for scum, bacteria, and weird creatures. But a lake or pond with fresh water flowing in and out is home to many good things. Christians are supposed to have "streams of living water" flowing out of them.

The law of nature is that whatever receives and gives back will be beautiful and useful. The Law of Yahweh agrees. The biblical truth is that receiving and giving keeps us fresh and the promise is we'll stay well-supplied. Hoarding and selfishly guarding our possessions leads to a stagnant spirit. We'll end up with nothing good to give anyone because it's all poisoned by our greed. According to Jesus, all Christians are branches on his tree. We need to receive his nourishment and pass it along to remain spiritually healthy. Don't become a "devil branch." This is a branch that doesn't bear fruit, it only takes nourishment away from the rest of the tree.

Prosperity was the first danger Yahweh spoke of in this passage. Our Creator knows that prosperity is a major threat to a grateful heart. As we get richer in worldly goods we all too often begin to believe it's because of something good about ourselves. Our intelligence, our abilities, our good fortune, our whatever. The Father said, "Your heart will become proud and you will forget Yahweh your God." He knew how easily we can take our eyes off the source of all our goods. He tried to warn us so we wouldn't fall into this trap.

As we possess more and more stuff, and please remember it's all just stuff, we somehow become immune to gratitude. Instead of being thankful, we often have an expectation that only good things will come our way, that somehow we deserve all this good stuff. The more stuff we have the busier we seem to get. Affluenza, being overly affluent, makes us lose sight of the provider of all good things. We begin to think in terms of privilege instead of responsibility, claiming our rights very loudly and denying any duties.

You would think our generation would have more leisure time than any in the past, yet we can't seem to find the time to spend with friends and family. Prosperity can cloud out our gratitude and steal our time. Yahweh was warning his people not to fall into that pit of self-satisfaction and contented delusion. Our Father has always spoken to us of being grateful for all he provides. When we let the stuff become more important than the giver of the stuff, we're heading for trouble.

Pride is the second issue Yahweh warns them, and us, about. Pride emerging out of prosperity will cause us to forget what our great Provider has done for us. He even points out in verse 16 that he gave them "manna to eat in the desert... to humble and test" them. They didn't starve because of their Lord God Almighty. They didn't have to plant and cultivate fields. They didn't have to work the harvest. They only had to take a basket or bowl out and collect enough manna to feed their families. They received millions and billions of quarts of this food while they were in the wilderness. And they weren't very grateful.

When we begin to have an abundance of goods and stuff, it often brings out a feeling of self-reliance. We begin to have a sense of spiritual satisfaction and think like so many other humans. I must be good because I'm so blessed. Because of this we gradually become numb to our constant need of walking with Jesus every day. None of us has anything because of our own doing. All that we have comes from Yahweh no matter if we're Christian or pagan. Pride says "By my hands." Gratitude thanks Yahweh for giving to us from his hands.

Personal accomplishment is the third thing Yahweh warns them about. This overlaps with the pride and prosperity areas. Verse 17 says, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced wealth for me." The words for power and strength are also used for Yahweh's power and strength. The word for produced is the same one used for "Yahweh made" throughout Genesis Chapter 1. We all too easily claim an almost supernatural power and strength when things go our way. It seems that instead of becoming more grateful, too many become more greedy. And their greed will also take credit for the good rather than thanking our Father.

How are we often defined in our society, by our jobs and possessions. The stuff we accumulate becomes the defining factor of our worth. We get ranked by our income or our neighborhood or by the size of our home. Because of this, things become overvalued and Yahweh is set aside. What we have or own isn't going to be the deciding factor of where we spend eternity. Who we belong to is what really matters. Being overly attached to or dependent on worldly goods will cause us a lot of pain and anguish. Trusting in and being thankful for all that Yahweh provides is the way of peace and joy.

We too easily forget that our hard work is directly connected to Yahweh's abundant provision. Scripture clearly points out that the farmer works the ground and plants the seed, but Yahweh sends the rain and sunshine causing the seed to grow. The farmer harvests the crop, but there would be no crop without Yahweh. Our skills and efforts are nothing without the one who provides the market to use them, without the one who makes us able to get a return for our efforts.

Hopefully, the work we do is worth recognition. Hopefully, we're doing our best to lift up our Lord's name and working to glorify it through our efforts. But when we take the credit for the good things that come our way, we're blind to our Father's sovereign hand. He's the one who "gives you the ability to produce wealth" (verse18). We must never ever forget that.

It says Yahweh does this to "confirm his covenant." He's not afraid of being forgotten. He wants his people to prosper and know abundant joy. He also knows that if they lose their sense of gratitude, they'd become miserable and unsatisfied. Yahweh wants us to experience joy and fulfilment. To attain to that we must be obedient and follow his ways and commands. Yahweh knows how easily our hearts wander. Don't let that happen to you.

Blessings & Peace, Mike