Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
December 7, 2014 - W1449

Today, I want to share the glorious plan God has for every one of us; that is, He has set Himself to bless us.  Whenever you look at scriptures through the eyes of fear, fear will be reinforced everywhere you look.  On the other hand, if you look for the goodness of God in scriptures, you will see the goodness of God everywhere. 

 I want you to know upfront that God is for us.  How do I know?  Romans 8:31 says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”  God is for us in every way.   If you don’t understand and it seems negative, is God for you?  Yes, He is.  The scripture says in Proverbs 4:7, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom.   And in all your getting, get understanding.”  If you lack understanding, everything you do becomes a duty or an obligation and something you have to do it.

 Malachi talks to the people about the goodness of God but the people become nervous because he has come to check their record because their investment in God was diminishing.

 Malachi 3:6 says, “For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.”  What if when you had a bad attitude, God had a bad attitude?  What if whenever you got mad, God got mad at you?  You see, He says if that happened, you would be consumed—you wouldn’t be around.  Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”  Aren’t you glad that our God does not change? 

 Verse 7 says, “‘Yet from the days of your fathers, you have turned aside from My ordinances and have not kept them. Return to Me (there’s an invitation), and I will return to you’ (there’s a promise), says the Lord of hosts.  But you said, ‘In what way shall we return?’”  Did you catch that?  There’s an invitation and a promise.  Whenever God gives an invitation, take it, because God is for you. 

 Verse 8 says, “Will a man rob God?  Yet you have robbed Me!  But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed you?’  In tithes and offerings.”  God sounds heartbroken—not by how He has been affected by their unfaithfulness but how they were being affected by their own unfaithfulness. 

 Remember, God is not against us He is for us.  Why does God use the word “robbed”?  Let me explain what it means in Hebrew:  Let’s say one of my granddaughters became ill and needed medical attention and my son, Aaron, for some reason doesn’t tell me and she gets worse because he doesn’t take her to the hospital because he doesn’t have insurance.  She continues to get worse until one day she dies.  I go to Aaron and I say, “Why didn’t you tell me?”  He says, “I was afraid that you might not think I’m a good dad and that I can’t stand on my own.”  I say to him, “You robbed me.”  “What?”  “You robbed me.”  “I didn’t rob you.”  “Yes, you robbed me of the joy of helping my granddaughter.  You robbed me of the opportunity to give her health and wholeness.  I would have expended all my resources to help her.  But you robbed me of that joy.”  Do you understand that God is saying, “You robbed me of the joy of helping you because you have no faith to trust anything to me?” 

 Verse 9 says, “You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation.”  Remember, God is for you.  He is not cursing you.  He said, “You’re already under a curse.  I didn’t design you to live under a curse.  It’s not me that’s suffering, you are.  I love you and because I am for you, let’s see what we can do to alleviate this?”  Can you see the heart of God?  Understand that God is love.  He is light and there is no darkness in Him.  So what’s the answer?

 Verse 10 says, “‘Bring all the tithes into the storehouse that there may be food in My house and try (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 such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it (till it overflows).’”  

 When God says that there may be food in my house so my people will not suffer barrenness, He wasn’t talking about His house.  He lives in the expanse, not in an earthly house—we are His house.  There is a law called the Law of the Harvest that activates the divine provision of God if by faith they bring all the tithe.  Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”  God is saying, “I will partner with you on this.  If you will activate your faith, I will activate heaven’s provision on your behalf.  I am so confident about this I wish you would test me.  Try me out.  There is so much I have for you but without faith it will not be activated.”  That’s why we are people of faith. 

 Verse 11 says, “‘And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground; neither shall the vine fail to bear fruit (cast her fruit before the time) in the field,’ says the Lord of hosts.”  When you are attacked and your things are gone, the devil came to steal, kill, and destroy.  God is saying, “If you will move in faith I will activate the protection and provision of heaven.”

 The harvest doesn’t always look like the seed.  When God says, “Trust me, I will manifest in manifold ways,” He means, He will protect you from the evil one, H will rebuke the devourer for your sake.”  Then a sense of confidence arises and I will not cower before the devil because “I know in whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed to him against that day” (2 Timothy 1:12).  God will protect you, your family, regenerate your marriage, replenish your joy, your faith, and your love for God and for one another in ways you have never known before.  He will provide more than what the enemy had stolen.

 Verse 12 says, “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty.”

 God Doesn’t Need Our Money; We Need Him And His Provisions.

 Five Rewards of a Generous Life:

 Each time I give, I get… 

1. …to grow in gratefulness because whenever I give and live a life of generosity, something happens on the inside. 2 Cor. 9:6-7 says, “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity (under compulsion), for God loves a cheerful giver.” God’s not interested in the quantity of our giving; but he is very concerned about the quality in which we give. That’s faith. If it were quantity, we would be able to buy our way into heaven.

    As Christians we have a “have to” mentality. If you don’t understand the Law of the Harvest, it becomes a duty but once you understand, it becomes a privilege. Faith turns our duty into desire. I don’t have to give; I get to give. It’s not a sacrifice; it’s an investment. It’s not an obstacle; it’s an opportunity. I don’t have to go to church, I get to and God changes me and I start to grow. I don’t have to tithe; it’s not a sacrifice; I get to tithe and He takes that tithe and turns it into provision. It’s the faith with which we give.

    If you give out of compulsion it’s a sacrifice and it’s gone because a sacrifice is something you lose. But when you sow something and invest it, you get so much more. Always remember, the harvest doesn’t always look like the seed. I don’t have to do devotions, I get to and I get to know God. It’s not a duty to pray, no, it’s a privilege and now miracles begin to take place. I don’t have to love my wife, but when I do, I get a happy wife—a happy wife is a happy life!

 I don’t want you to come to New Hope and feel that you have to give.  I want you to say I get to give, I get to go to church, and I get to fellowship with other Christians.  Faith is required to ignite everything.  Faith converts duty and sacrifice into desire and investment into opportunity for God to bless me.  Isn’t that good? 

2. …to break the back of greed and selfishness. We need a healing of the disease of our heart called greed. It sends a message to the devil, “I will not be a person in which the world revolves around me. It’s not about me.” Every time I give, it rebalances my life and reprioritizes what’s most important to me. Giving wages war on greed.

3. …to become a partner in an eternal enterprise. This partnership is something that will outlast me and invest in the mission of the gospel that goes around the world. (Matt 6:21) “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” So if you don’t have contribution in the church, you really won’t have a heart for the church. God is saying I want you to be a part of the Kingdom because something happens when you contribute.

4. …to wage war on worry and bring my life under His protection. God can turn the tables and change what the devil is doing and I don’t have to worry because I come under His protection and He will rebuke the devourer for my sake.

5. …to let me enjoy what I have. God will give me seed to sow and bread to enjoy. That’s a blessing from God because He is on my side. You might not have much but if you live righteously, it’s as if God is saying whatever you have, you will enjoy it so much more. Isaiah 3:10, “Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.”

When it’s all done, I want New Hope to be a people that love God and understand what He means when He says, “Trust me, test me on this, see if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out on you a blessing that overflows.  It’s not what I can get from you; it’s what can I get for you.”  God is for you.   He has set Himself to be a blessing to you. 

Your Faith Activates Divine Provision and Protection

STUDY QUESTIONS:

1. What does Proverbs say we should get “with all our getting”?

2. How do we rob God when we don’t have faith and trust Him?

3. Discuss the Five Rewards of A Generous Life.

4. What is the Law of the Harvest?

5. What kind of people does Pastor Wayne want New Hope to be?