“The Sufficiency Of God”

II Corinthians 9:5-10

5) Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.

6) But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

7) Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

8) And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

9) (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever.

10) Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)

Preface

A

s long as we are attempting to understand things naturally, we are guaranteed never to understand anything. After all, our five senses were never meant to tell us anything that is spiritual. It is a blessing to us that the key to His blessings lies not in understanding, but rather, in one’s acceptance.

Main Thought

Scripture exists that we might come to the understanding that all we need is to be found in God. It is He Who is our sufficiency in that He supplies all and takes care of all of our needs.

As humans, all too often, we look at what is “tangible” and attempt to make it spiritual. The truth, is that what is “spiritual” is “not perceived through human understanding.” We must also acknowledge the truth that if we would receive “help” for anything, that help will have to come from God and hence, through the Spirit.

To get help from God, we must exercise faith in God. When we will simply look to Him, He will bless us. The reason that He can bless us is because He is the source of all blessings. As part of the Creation, the Eternal God invested each of His creations with the means to reproduce itself. How much more then, is He able to provide the “incidentals” of life?

Absent from the means to reproduce is the ability to reproduce other than what is contained within the seed. This means that the reproducer will only be able to reproduce what he is, be that “good” or “bad.” He does not possess the means to change what comes forth from himself. This then, means that if we will reproduce the “…(saved) after (our) kind,” then we must be saved, or all who come after will be just as we are.

“The sufficiency of God” is to be compared with nothing and no one. All too often, those who profess to belong to Him attempt to operate under a strange “mix” of “religion” and “humanism.” In the loosest sense, the “humanism” that we indulge in deceives us into believing that like as with God, we can trust Man and expect him to “come through” for us. Then, when he doesn’t, we want to ascribe his failure to the Lord. But, you see, all that comes from or is “of the world” is “transitory,” meaning that no sooner has it been said, promised, envisioned or “prophesied” then it becomes “null and void.”

Along with all else that is transitory, those “personal” things with which we concern ourselves are, as well. One of our greatest “distractions” is our “pursuit of happiness.” We waste much time and energy attempting to “make” happiness for ourselves because of not understanding that he Source of happiness (actually, joy) is Jesus and He was “fulfilled” through serving others. Therefore, if one really desires lasting happiness, he will find it through spending his time and money on what is spiritual.

Since God is “all sufficient,” if we belong to Him, then we have no excuse for lacking—in anything. Therefore, all that we do, if done through Him, should bring success. If this is not the case, then we should stop what we are doing and learn that we must do all through God. If not, we will be able to accomplish nothing.

Without a doubt, our biggest problem is our flesh. Therefore, the biggest “solution” to our problem will be to learn how to be free of it. How to do this? Well, it will not be done simply because “His blood was shed for me.” We become free by counting ourselves “dead” with Him and therefore, being dead to sin and to the things of the flesh.

Though we are privy to “the sufficiency of God,” if we would enjoy that sufficiency, we must plant a see. This is not just monetary, for money is not all there is to life. One must “plant” whatever it is that he wants, so if one desires time, he must plant time; if joy, he must plant joy.

Amongst other things, the Lord is sure of this: He knows Who and What He is! He also knows everything about us and so, we would never leave frail, arbitrary human beings in charge of their own destiny and blessings—for He leaves nothing to chance. Guess you can do that when you are your own “sufficiency,” huh?