Читать книгу There is More: When the World Says You Can’t, God Says You Can - Brian Houston, Brian Houston - Страница 23

No doubt Jesus came to earth to be an answer to human depravity—to redeem us and wear the stripes of our sin and sickness through the affliction and wounds He suffered. He also came to bring you and me resurrection life. So it’s powerfully comforting that He summarizes it all with a simple contrasting statement in John 10:10: “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

Wow!

Let me explain.

Some quickly assign any thought of abundance to the afterlife and the eternal promise of fellowship with God in heaven. But take a moment to ponder the words of Jesus to His disciples after a rich young ruler had walked away in despair, unwilling to give up everything he had to take up his cross and follow Christ. This encounter left the disciples filled with questions about what hope for salvation there is for any of us, and it was in that moment that Peter took it upon himself to remind the Son of God that they had left everything to follow Him. Jesus’s response to their questions was to speak specifically about the blessing that comes with putting Him first:

Jesus answered and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time—houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” (Mark 10:29–31)

Notice He refers to both “now in this time” and “in the age to come” and makes a clear distinction between the two. But along with promised blessing (“now in this time”), His words are a sober reminder that persecutions are also a part of this life. Not everyone understands the blessings of God and His promises for those who live in faithful obedience.

So, what is abundance? Is it financial blessing? It could be. It’s true that God can bless your business and bring abundant resources your way. His Word is clear that He blesses those who are committed to blessing others. But that’s not the only thing or even the first thing that comes to mind when I think about God’s overflow. To me, abundance encapsulates so much more.

The dictionary defines abundance as “plentifulness of the good things of life.”¹ Think about that. Plenty of love, plenty of kindness, plenty of joy, plenty of peace, plenty of success, plenty of relationships, plenty of laughter, plenty of dessert … Okay, maybe that last one is just me. But “the good things of life” leaves room for a lot of interpretation!

It brings me back to the promise that motivated me to put pen to paper and write There Is More in the first place: “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us …” (Ephesians 3:20).

 Exceeding: surpassing and going beyond

 Abundant: full and overflowing

 Above: lifting you higher than you could ever ask or think

All made possible by His power working in you.

Did you know that abundance and success were among the first covenant commandments that God spoke to humans? He said to “be fruitful, multiply, replenish, and have dominion” (see Genesis 1:28). God was speaking not only about offspring but of an entire life and environment of perpetual and generational blessing and increase. This blessing and increase had a purpose then that still continues today. As I’ve mentioned already in this chapter, we are blessed in order to be a blessing to others and to display God’s goodness in our lives. If we are to be a blessing to others, our thinking must come into agreement with what the Bible teaches about living blessed.

The key to aligning your attitude with blessing is what you put first in your life: seek first His kingdom, and all these things will be added to you (see Matthew 6:33). I love that promise! But what exactly does it mean to seek first the kingdom?