There is a difference between those who receive higher levels of revelations from the Lord and those who remain in the dark about things, especially spiritual things. That difference lies in our level of generosity—our giving. Those who constantly give according to God’s will and direction know by revelation when and how God is moving and partake of these moves. But, those who do not understand the importance of giving or “investing” according to God’s will, tend to remain in the dark, stagnant, and operating according to the last moves because of lack of revelation of God and what He’s doing.
We can see an example of this in Matthew 25:14-30 with the parable of the two faithful servants who doubled their talents or investments and the one who hid his talent in the sand instead of investing it. Verses 21 and 23 reveal to us what the “true” Master of those faithful servants said to them, “His master said to him, ‘Excellent! you are a good and trustworthy servant. You have been faithful with a small amount, so I will put you in charge of a large amount. Come and join in your master’s happiness!’” CJB
But the servant who dug a hole in the sand which means that he chose to hoard the talent or money he received because of fear of losing it had another master—the spirit of mammon. Matthew 6:24 gives us a very important discovery about who we may be serving. “No one can serve two masters. If you try, you will wind up loving the first master and hating the second, or vice versa. People try to serve both God and money—but you can’t. You must choose one or the other.” VOICE
It is important for us to understand how we truly view money and the resources God makes available to us for life and for His service. When we recognize our true master, we can then learn to advance the Kingdom in the way God prescribes to us without fear. Our giving without. understanding important principles of His Kingdom can many times produce unfruitfulness or not receiving to the level God wanted to give us access to.
Obviously, we can see that the servant called wicked and lazy lacked knowledge and understanding of these principles and acted accordingly. So instead of a commendation, he received a scalding for wasting the resources of the Kingdom in his fearful state which led him to become self-centered instead of God-centered even though he thought he was doing the right thing. Matthew 25:25-27 shows this,
“I was afraid, so I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here! Take what belongs to you!’ ‘You wicked, lazy servant!’ said his master, ‘So you knew, did you, that I harvest where I haven’t planted? and that I gather where I didn’t sow seed? Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, so that when I returned, I would at least have gotten back interest with my capital!” CJB
Why was this the case for this servant? Because the Scripture describes to us how the Kingdom moves—First, the Scripture tells us that this servant acknowledged that those resources belonged to his master. Then, it presents to us the method by which the Kingdom moves—it moves when some have planted and others harvest what was planted, and when some sow seed and others harvest it. This may look simple enough, but where many people miss it is when they give for the sake of giving and don’t seek to know the specific way God prescribes for their giving. In other words, our giving has a method and a purpose we must learn and understand how to apply.
In the Kingdom of God, those who get this principle and move with it, know that this by no means entails that we will lose out on what we sowed or planted if others get to harvest or gather it. But it means that we serve the God who multiplies our resources and by His supernatural ability, leverages our natural efforts to create greater impact that will bless not only us, but those we’re asked to hand over the resources we once stewarded, and now they’re assigned stewardship over them.
As we give to God what is in our hand with this understanding, we will begin to access greater levels of revelations that will bring us to higher dimensions which will produce more of those resources in order for us to do greater things to advance His Kingdom into more territory. Isaiah 55:8-9 reveals to us that God’s thoughts and ways of operating are above ours. Therefore, we must search out these higher ways and thoughts of God that we can access when we prayerfully hear and follow His prescription for our giving.
Giving according to God’s prescription also help us do greater exploits with less effort. The efforts of the world involve toiling to add but they mostly subtract. But the things we do following the instructions of the Lord with wisdom and understanding will guarantee that we will receive a multiplication of our talents and resources because, as I reiterate, we have learned to leverage our efforts with the revelations of the Kingdom that cause us to see great multiplication. Isaiah 60:1-5 also explains,
“Arise, shine, for your light has broken through! The Eternal One’s brilliance has dawned upon you. See truly; look carefully —darkness blankets the earth; people all over are cloaked in darkness. But God will rise and shine on you; the Eternal’s bright glory will shine on you, a light for all to see. Nations north and south, peoples east and west, will be drawn to your light, will find purpose and direction by your light. In the radiance of your rising, you will enlighten the leaders of nations. Don’t be shy; don’t be doubtful; lift up your eyes and look around. They have gathered all around you, eager to come and be close to you. And your children will come back to this land: your sons from the farthest places of wandering, and your daughters gently carried home. And when you see it, your face will glow; your heart will race and be filled with joy; For great ships will arrive with gifts from across the sea, and the wealth of nations will make their way to you.” VOICE
According to this Scripture, some people walk in great light and illumination that comes from the revelations they receive about God and His Kingdom. This causes them to attract the riches and influence that come from the glory of God as they steward those revelations and learn to apply them in their life. But others walk in deep darkness because the world has taught them to only use what they have for their own consumption now or in the future. Their poverty mindset tells them that there may not be enough of what they have to share with others. The thought of handing over a resource to others petrifies them.
They don’t understand who the true owner is and when He directs to give the whole of a resource, He has greater things He wants to reveal and allow them access to. They don’t know that according to Proverbs 25:2, “God’s glory is shown when He conceals things; a king’s glory is shown in his ability to explore the facts of the matter.” VOICE
Why is this? Because it takes intimacy with our Creator and Lord, and an inquiring heart to seek out what is in His heart and move in partnership with Him to manifest in the earth exactly what we discovered is in His heart for us and those we are called to touch and influence on behalf of the Kingdom. Having great talents and gifts that help us maneuver ourselves with ease in our industry, is not the same as having the necessary spiritual understanding to see God move supernaturally in and through our lives.
There are many well-meaning Christians that love the Lord but are still walking in great darkness because they lack the revelations that will help them come out of oppression and despair. Unfortunately, these people have accepted the status quo and for lack of understanding, they live as if trading the judgments of the Lord their God for the fear-based ways of the world. Hosea 4:6 says, “You’ve forgotten the law of your God: you’ve rejected My judgments. I’ll reject you because of your lack of knowledge—reject you as My priests; I’ll even forget your children!” VOICE
This does not mean that God does not love His people. But it means that ignorance of the principles of His Kingdom produces a lack of awareness of when we may be violating them which gives way to shakings in our life. So, here is one of the most important principles people violate and it’s found in Luke 6:38 which tells us, “Don’t hold back—give freely, and you’ll have plenty poured back into your lap—a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, brimming over. You’ll receive in the same measure you give.” VOICE
This signifies that when we give to God He pours out on us too. This is called the law of exchange. Our God is a good and very generous God and always wants us to partner with Him. And when we let go of what is in our hand, we receive what is in His hand. This includes the levels of revelation that will help us advance His Kingdom with wisdom and understanding. This law says that first, we give according to God’s instructions, and then we will receive the revelations that will help us see the riches of His glory manifested in our life in their many facets and for whatever area of our life we need them.
More in the next posts.
To God alone be all the glory.**
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