Learning how to be Rich

Romans 11:33

Andy Stanley has written a book each of us should read and it is titled “How to be Rich” and on the cover is stated; “It’s not what you have.  It’s what you do with what you have.”  Shall we look at the one we call our Father, Abba or in English the word means Papa, our Creator and our God, and see how God has used His resources with you in mind.

Beginning in verse 33,“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!”  I believe I’m on solid ground when stating that the One who spoke all things into being has need of nothing, and yet His hearts desire is for you and I to acknowledge and love Him with all our heart, with our mind, our will, and our emotions.

Maybe it is our lack of understanding the ways of God; the Psalmist gives this insight in Psalms 18:30, “This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.”  Not only is God perfect, Jesus tells us in Luke 18:19, “And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”  The prophet Isaiah wanted to make sure you and I understand that God is not like us, in Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”  The prophet Hosea had this to say on the subject of God’s ways; “Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the Lord are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them.”

When exploring the ways of God it would not be wise not to look at Habakkuk 3:6, “He stood and measured the earth; he looked and shook the nations;
then the eternal mountains were scattered; the everlasting hills sank low. His were the everlasting ways.”  Yes, God is everlasting or eternal, it is stated in Scripture that He is the first and last, or better stated in Revelation 22:13, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”  And He is coming back, soon very soon!

Maybe it is our ignorance of God that has removed our awe of Him, for so many in the pews of churches go away each Sunday without a sense of admiration, of reverence, of worship that carries through out the week, but a viewpoint of I’ve done my duty, and yet the I AM is standing with open arms, what more can He do, for He has given His Son, His only Son.

Could it be you need to open the Bible and ask the Father to guide you into all truth, the Holy Spirit is waiting to do just that.  I’m learning how to be rich, and the more I understand about my Papa, my Father, my God, the more I grasp what treasures I have in Christ Jesus.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice