April 19, 2020: SOAP #3790:  1Samuel 22; Psalm 17,35; Matthew 6

Scripture:  Matthew (NIV) 6:1 “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.
3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Observation:  This chapter contain the words of Jesus on many subjects, but one main subject is money.  Verses 1-4 tell us how to give in order to please the Father and get a reward.  Verses 19-21 tell us to use our money to gain heavenly rewards in eternity.  Verses 24 warns us that money can become a master that demands our service.  Verses 31-34 assures us that our Heavenly Father provides the things that money can buy for those who set His kingdom as their priority.  Money is a major part of living.  It is no wonder that Jesus spoke about it so often.

Application:  My faith in God’s provision is often tied to my faithfulness in giving.  It is not that I am bartering with God or trying to buy His favor, but it is giving Him an opportunity to keep His promises.  It is giving God an opportunity to demonstrate His faithfulness in following through with His word.  He loves to show Himself faithful.  He loves to fill in the need for those who trust Him enough to give.

A special note to SOAP readers in USA.  Many of us have been given a special opportunity to honor God.  Many of us have received $1200 from our government to help us through this economic crisis.  A month ago we were not expecting this money.  We have two options:  we can use it all for our present needs and wants; in other words we can eat our seed OR we can use some of it as seed to plant a future harvest.  In this way what we have received will continue to bless us into the future.  And it will be a blessing to others for which they will give thanks to the Lord for our generosity.  Note:  The offerings in our churches this coming Sunday should be the biggest of the year!!!

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, you are the One who provides both bread for food AND seed to plant for a harvest. (2Corinthians 9:10)  Thank you for increasing my bread AND seed. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!