Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”
Our Bible verse for today: “Give, and it will be given to you; a good measure – pressed down, shaken together and running over – will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” Luke 6:38 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Give generously to others and God will give generously to you.”
Jesus was a master at explaining profound spiritual truths in contemporary language and by using examples from everyday life that the people could easily relate to. Such was the case in Luke 6:37-38.
In this passage Jesus was teaching about the virtue of having a big, kind, heart and a generous spirit. He taught that God will treat us as we treat others. He told us that we are not to have a judgmental spirit towards others, otherwise God will judge us. He said we are not to condemn others for their mistakes and short-comings, and we ourselves will not be condemned. He tells us to forgive if we want to be forgiven. And then He says we are to give if we want to be given to. It’s the law of sowing and reaping. You reap what you sow.
To illustrate His point he used an example from the marketplace that the people would quickly have recognized and understood. It was an example of a generous and kind-hearted merchant selling flour or grain. For the sake of our illustration let’s say it is flour.
First, the merchant uses a “good” measure. A “good” measure is a fair measure, it’s an accurate measure – as opposed to a “bad” measure which would be inaccurate and would cheat the customer. So the good measure of flour is poured into the sack. But then the kind merchant presses it down, compresses it so he can pour in more, then he grabs the sack by its sides, shakes it up and down, pounds it on the table to compress it even more, and then with a smile and a chuckle, he continues to pour in even more until the flour is overflowing and pouring over the sides of the bag. It was as much as the sack could possibly hold, and then some.
That’s how God blesses His faithful and generous people. Jesus says that not only will you receive a “good” measure of blessing in return but beyond that, it will be pressed down, shaken, compressed, and more blessing will be poured in, and more, until there is so much blessing you can’t take it all in and it’s spilling over.
Sound good? Would you like to be blessed like that? Well, “With the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” – said Jesus. If you want to be blessed generously you must bless others generously.
Is this all about money? Not necessarily. Money and provisions are certainly part of it. You can’t out-give God in that respect. But even more than money and provisions this is about spiritual blessings. This is about the fruit of the Spirit experienced in your life. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23.
Give generously to others and God will give generously to you. That includes giving money but even more than that, it involves giving blessings. Be a blessing to others and in return God will bless your socks off. Pressed down, shaken together, and overflowing. It’s a rule of the Kingdom. It’s the law of sowing and reaping.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 