Early one morning the Lord gave me a special word that I hope will be as living to you as it was to me. At the moment of my awakening, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart, "What you give over, I will take over."
The Marriage of Faith and Humility
We cannot advance spiritually without both faith and humility. Indeed, faith without humility inevitably becomes presumption, while humility without faith never ascends above oppression. Consider: faith's nature, in part, is to possess the promises of God. Israel was commanded by the Almighty to possess the Promised Land.
Scriptures tell us that without faith it is impossible to please God and that whatever is done without faith is sin (Heb. 11:6; Rom. 14:23). Thus, faith unites the human heart to God. As a result, the sinful appropriate God's righteousness, and those who were dead gain access to God's life. Christianity without faith is like a computer without electricity: the circuits of "proper knowledge" may be in place, but there is no light, no power, no functionality.
Yet where faith possesses, humility surrenders. Consider Christ as our example. There will be a time when every knee will bow and tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Phil. 2:10-11); the kingdom of the world will finally become the Kingdom of our Lord (Rev. 11:15). However, Christ's reaction to subduing the world is that He then "hands over the Kingdom to...the Father" (1 Cor. 15:24). This is the humility of Christ: what He conquers, He then surrenders. In America we want the first part – having faith to conquer, but we're not sure we want the second part – giving it back to God. Yet this is the pattern of those who have followed God: Abraham believed God and a son was born; humility took Isaac, and offered him back to God. David conquered Jerusalem, then dedicated it to the Lord, calling it the "city of God."
You see, the motive behind the exercise of our faith must mature until what we've appropriated through faith becomes an offering we now surrender back to God. Our goal is not only to create a better life here, but, through surrender, to extend the Kingdom of God to Earth. Faith brings to Earth Heaven's provisions; surrender brings God's presence into those provisions.
Our Tithe and God's Heart
So, what we give over to God He promises to take over. Here is where true faith expands into the higher levels of Christlikeness. Yet, conversely, we should also realize what we withhold from God, we also isolate from His ability to inhabit and multiply. (Photo via Peakpx)
This is why the Bible says our tithe is holy unto the Lord. If we give a minimum of one tenth of our income back to God and His purposes, we are releasing into His hands the opportunity for supernatural supply.
I'm not merely talking about money, but faith and surrender. However, tithing is a big part of our becoming complete in God. Why? We demonstrate that our trust is in God. You say, "Pastor Francis, are you trying to put your hand in my pocket?" No, I'm trying to put your hand in God's pocket, where you are able to prosper not in the accumulation of things but in the expansion of God in all the things of your life.
I have nothing to gain from you in teaching this. When I was pastoring, I didn't take a salary from our church; the housing allowance I received, I then surrendered to the work of the Lord. What my faith possessed, my humility surrendered. Likewise, I desire that you also enjoy the best that God has for you.
You say, "But I'm not making enough to tithe. I'm going to run out of money." Well, if you think you're going to run out anyway, run out into God's arms, run out trusting Him. In fact, He promises,
"'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of Heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,' says the Lord of hosts. 'All the nations will call you blessed...'" (Malachi 3:10-12).
Again, I'm not talking about money alone, but the issues that speak of the very quality of our lives. Many are suffering from a spiritual "devourer," an enemy that drains away energy, time and resources so that you never seem to have enough. The Lord is saying, "Turn over your finances to Me and I will turn over My resources to you. I will destroy that which is destroying you."
Widow of Zarephath
There's a wonderful story that exemplifies this principle of faith and surrender. During a terrible famine, the Lord told Elijah, "Arise, go to Zarephath...behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you" (1 Kings 17:9). Please note, the Lord did not command a wealthy businessman to provide for Elijah, but a destitute widow. We enter the story with the woman, facing starvation, about to prepare a meager last meal for herself and her son. Yet though she is not an Israelite, she greets Elijah with faith, saying, "As the Lord your God lives..." (v. 12).
God's way to activate her faith and to bring her into a supernatural provision was to require her to give over the little she had to fulfill the purpose of God. What seemed like an insensitive, even cruel command, Elijah ordered her to feed him first, and then take food for herself. Although she knew not the plan and provision of God, Elijah knew, and he urged her into both faith and surrender. As a result, God provided for her miraculously: "The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty" (v. 16) until the famine broke.
Give When You Are Poor
Denise and I had a time in our lives when we were nearly destitute. Yet even when we had little, we always tithed. We honored the Lord from the first of our increase. Our giving in faith and surrender gave us many testimonies of the Lord. Remember, when Jesus fed the 5,000, the original five loaves and two fish came from a little boy. He could have hoarded his little stock of food, but he didn't. Instead, he turned them over to the Lord and God took over in power.
When I hear people say, "I can't afford to give," I immediately say, "Listen, you can't afford not to give." When faith is activated and surrender perfected, God steps into our lives. I want you to have a testimony of God's supply, where each of us can say, "God came through for me." I'm not saying that we must abandon common sense, but remember, Jesus multiplied the little in a time of need. God multiplied the widow's provisions during a drought. Maybe it's in the times of need that we should surrender the most. (Photo via Unsplash)
The faith God develops as we give is the same faith that comes through us when we lay hands on the sick. Our faithfulness with money shows Jesus that we can be trusted with greater things such as miracles. Why live in the pitiful little realm of unbelief when we can have the provisions of the Most High?
One time I had been invited to speak at a conference in Mississippi. Our host, a pastor from Jackson, was only going to be able to attend one meeting due to a business commitment that was going to take him to South America for a week. The trip would have probably secured a financial increase, yet the Lord spoke to this young man to stay at the conference. Struggling at first, he decided to obey the Lord and put his income into God's hands. One hour after he decided to stay, he received a phone call from Russia for an order that was the largest his company ever had, which would keep them busy for the following year!
Christ Our Pattern
The key to how Jesus always had what He needed is revealed in John 17:10. Praying to the Father, Jesus said, "All things that are Mine are Yours..." Jesus surrendered all. Thus, He could continue with confidence in His prayer, "...and [what things are] Yours are Mine..." (emphasis mine). So, also with us: Make this a sincere act of surrender.
Beloved, whatever we have was God's in the first place anyway. To those who give all to Him, He says, "What's Mine is yours." We exchange our little for God's much. Whether it is with our finances, our families, our future or our past, the key to unlocking the destiny of God is faith and surrender. What we give over, He will take over.
Let's pray: Lord Jesus, continue to teach me to surrender. I want to be a giver, like You. What an awesome, divine exchange, as my life becomes Yours.
(Article reposted from October 21, 2000. Adapted from a lesson in Francis Frangipane's online course, In Christ's Image Training.)
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Francis FrangipaneÂ
Ministries of Francis Frangipane
Email:Â info@frangipane.org
Website:Â www.frangipane.org
Francis Frangipane has traveled throughout the world ministering to thousands of pastors and intercessors from many backgrounds. Francis' heartfelt prayer is to see established in every city, Christlike pastors and intercessors, united before God, revealing the love of Christ to their communities. He is the author of several books, including The Three Battlegrounds and Holiness, Truth and the Presence of God, as well as several others. He founded an online training course called In Christ's Image Training, which has trained thousands of Believers around the world in Christlikeness, humility, prayer and unity.
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This is a really good question to ponder.
