December 22, 2014
Luke 6:38 (NIV)
(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)
In this blog let’s begin to dig into Luke 6:38 (NIV) to see some of it’s inner workings:
Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken to-
gether and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure
you use, it will be measured to you.
Is says, “Give, and it will be given to you.” But who will be giving to you? Obviously, it is God. But does God give back directly? I mean, does what is given back come floating down from heaven?
In the 1950 movie, “The Great Rupert,” also known as “The Christmas Wish” starring Jimmy Durante, the theme revolves around money apparently given directly from heaven! A poor Vaudeville family down on their luck moves into a shabby apartment adjoining the landlord’s living space. With Christmas approaching, they have nothing, not even a pair of shoes the daughter, Rosalinda, desperately needs. So mom gets on her knees and prays for God’s provision, saying, “Rosalinda needs shoes!” Money floats down from above! What the family does not know is that in the rafters of the building lives a squirrel named Rupert. Each time mom prays for money, Rupert takes from the landlord’s stash of money hidden behind the wall molding, and drops it down to the needy family. And the family prospers and has a great Christmas!
But most people don’t receive what is given to them by a ‘Rupert the squirrel’! Or by God’s hand directly! Although the original Greek of Luke 6:38 does not openly state it but implies where such giving comes from, the King James Version spells out that implication: “…it shall be given unto you…men …shall…give into your bosom.” Put another way, God gives back to us through other people!
Now this also implies something important. Others must then be sensitive to God’s leading to give to whom and where directed. And that is not always easy! It seems this old world has many distractions that take our intention away from God’s leading. In I Kings 19, Elijah flees from the wicked Queen Jezebel who threatens his life. Hiding upon a mountain in a cave, Elijah is confronted by God by means of “…a great and strong wind…an earthquake, and…a fire, but the LORD was not in…”any of these three powerful displays of nature (I Kings 20:11 and 12). Then God spoke to the prophet in “…a still small voice…” (I Kings 19:12) and gave directions to Elijah what he was to do (I Kings 19:15-18).
God seems to often speak to us in “…a still small voice…” that is hard to hear, especially with all the loud noises of life going on around us! We must be in tune with God and stay in tune with Him if we are to discern what He is saying! And that necessitates being in His Word, in prayer, in fellowship with others, and obedient to His leading!
Twenty-seven years ago last summer, Hope and I were going through a very hard time. I had resigned my present church because of burnout, and I had no income, no job, no place to live and minister, and no school for my daughter to attend come September. One day Judy came up to me and said, “God wants me to give this to you,” and she handed me a fifty dollar bill! It was like a thousand dollars to me! It was a great encouragement, and Judy has been dear to my heart ever since! Yes, things worked out for our family. By God’s leading, I became the pastor of a church in Western Pennsylvania – and we had a home, a job, an income and a school for my daughter. But Judy’s gift was a real turning point! By the way, she doesn’t even remember giving us that money. But I do, and I will always love her for it.
Are you so in tune with the Lord that you are a blessing to others because you hear and follow His “…still small voice…”?
I leave you with this verse from Isaiah 30:21. It is right along the same lines as what Elijah experienced, and what God wants for all of us. It is a Kingdom verse, in that the ultimate fulfillment of it will be when Jesus reigns upon this earth as “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS ” (Revelation 19:16). But now, as He said in Luke 17:21, “…the kingdom of God is within you.” So Isaiah 30:21 should be a reality now to those close followers of Jesus Christ: “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.”
If this is how it is with you, dear Christian, then you will be a blessing to others as God uses you to give back to them! And, by the way, you will then be richly blessed yourself for giving!
We will continue to delve into Luke 6:38 in our next blog.