OMBS7 / What Riches Were Meant to God

PRAYER - "Lead Us Not Into Temptation"

"Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man," James 1:13. However, Jesus was led BY THE SPIRIT into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. God certainly allows men to be tempted by Satan to test their mettle. Remember Job. But you can pray that God will spare you from such exposures. Sometimes He will. Sometimes He will not. Remember Gethsemane. If God is willing to let you forego the cup, He will.

Matthew 6:13 - "Lead us not into temptation."

PRINCIPALS - "Palestine"

Joel portrayed Palestine as an enemy of God. Who could have imagined how true that would be in these days? Since Israel was reborn in 1948, "Palestinians" (people who never in the history of the world had their own state) have agitated most of the Arab-Muslim world to destroy Israel and declare a Palestinian state.

Joel 3:4 - "Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head."

PRINCIPLES - "God Will Restore His People After They Are Tried"

Too often, people excuse themselves from making a commitment to God or the Bible because they have a dark opinion of how God really is. Many people perceive God as harsh, judgmental, condemning, demanding and cruel. Nothing could be further from the truth. God has unimaginably wonderful plans for everyone who believes in Him, obeys His word, and faithfully follows wherever He leads. 

Joel 2:24,26 - "The floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil. ... And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God."

PROPHECIES - "A National Spiritual Revival For Israel"

Joel's prophecies about Armageddon were only part of his overall message. Joel also had much to say about a great national spiritual revival that would come to Israel before the end of the age. The Apostles remembered Joel when God's Spirit fell on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2.

Joel 2:23 - "Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.

What Riches Were Meant to Do

Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. - Ephesians 4:28

It always amazes me when I preach about prosperity and someone comes up to me and says, "I don't need much prosperity. I'm a simple person with a simple life. So I just ask God for enough to meet my needs." They think that's humility, but it's not. It's selfishness! They don't realize it, but they're actually saying, "All I care about is meeting my own needs. I have no ambition to help meet anyone else's." They could ask God for a million dollars, take out just enough to meet their needs, and give the rest away. But that doesn't even occur to them because when it comes to money, they've been brainwashed by a world that says if you have it, you've got to keep it. That philosophy has hindered the ministry of Jesus Christ on the earth today. It has caused preachers to set aside their calling and get secular jobs just to survive. It's handicapped churches and stunted the growth of ministries that could have reached thousands more for the Lord. It takes money to preach the gospel. Jesus Himself knew that, and contrary to what some people think, His ministry was not a poor one. He had so much money coming in and going out through His ministry that He had to appoint a treasurer. His name was Judas. But Jesus didn't store up that money for Himself. He gave it to meet the needs of those around Him. He had such a reputation for giving that on the night of that last Passover when Judas left so abruptly, the disciples assumed that Jesus had sent him out to give to the poor. Can you imagine how much and how often Jesus must have given to the poor for the disciples to make that assumption? Jesus never built a worldly empire for Himself. But that doesn't mean He was poor. It means He was the greatest giver who ever walked the face of this earth, and it's time we started following in His footsteps. Don't turn down the wealth God wants to give you just because you don't "need" it. Dare to accept it, then pass it along to those who do. Stop working for a living and start working for a "giving." Discover for yourself what riches were really meant to do.

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Plan of Salvation read acts 2:38