Give and it shall be given unto you....
This morning I was singing
to the LORD a song by Misty Edwards called “I Give It All.” I was repeating the
verse, “You have my love, You have my heart. I give it all to You, I give it
all to You,” when the LORD replied:
“Give
and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together,
and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure you use,
it will be measured back to you.”
I was awestruck, and still
am to be honest.
For so long I considered this
scripture (Luke 6:38) only in regards to finances, but it’s so much deeper than
that.
If you look at the scriptures
prior to and after this verse, Jesus was teaching on how to treat one another. He
talks about not judging others, not condemning others, forgiving others, not
putting yourself above others (as in superior or better than them), and so much
more (Luke 6:37-42)
There’s something
interesting about the greek words used here for “judge” and “condemn” that I
want to highlight for a moment.
The greek word used here
for judge is “krino” and has several meanings. In regards to judging, it means
to judge by announcing an opinion concerning right or wrong, to pass
judgement on the deeds and words of others. It also means to separate,
put asunder, to pick out. And this is what happens when we judge someone.
We separate them from ourselves, and often cause a division within themselves,
as we pass onto them our critical opinions. Think about when you have been
unfairly judged based on someone else’s opinion? What did it do to you on the
inside? I can honestly say there have been times it felt like I was being torn
to pieces inside when faced with someone’s self-righteous judgement.
The greek word used here
for condemn is “katadikazo” and is not that different from “krino” in that it
means to give judgment against (one), to pronounce guilty; to condemn.
In other words, to judge
and condemn is to accuse someone of something. Hmmm….so you become like an
accuser of brethren…..which happens to be a title given to the fallen angel
Lucifer, whom we call Satan. Who by the way is an enemy to all of mankind. But
that’s another story for another day.
Therefore Jesus warns us
not to fall into these subtle traps.
In the book of Matthew,
this same teaching is written as such:
“For
with what judgement you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you
use, it will be measured back to you.” (Matthew 7:2)
Here it is again! Not referring
to finances, but referring to the condition of one’s heart.
As I meditated on this, I
realized there was a root to this teaching that is not straight out spoken, but
the fingerprints are all over it. The root to treating others the way you would
want to be treated is by loving them with “agape” love, the love of God. The
love of God is in direct opposition of the actions mentioned above. In 1
Corinthians 13 we are given a nice and neat list of what the love of God is and
does. Verses 4-8 are as follows:
“Love
suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is
not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked,
thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears
all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love
never fails.”
So as I have poured my love
on God, His love is pouring out of me onto others, and in return I have had
others pour that love out on me.
Now, not everyone will
receive the love of God being poured over them, and not everyone will reciprocate
by pouring that love back to you.
We can look at this
financially, if that is difficult to understand.
Not everyone I have
financially blessed, has or will financially bless me in return. BUT God can
bring a financial blessing through someone else obedient to His leading.
So when we love the so-called
“unlovable” (I do not like this term, but I’m using it as an example because
many people have labeled others as “unlovable”) they may not return that love
to you, BUT if you walk in the love of God, He will lead someone into your life
to reciprocate His love to you.
Just as we are warned to
not judge, lest we receive that same judgement or worse, we can love and receive
that love or even greater in return.
Because our God is all
about giving, and part of giving is receiving! Otherwise, what would be the
point of giving if there was no one to receive?
“For
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not
send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through
Him might be saved.” (John 3:16)
Therefore let us receive Jesus,
Whom God the Father gave to us! And as we have received Him, let us therefore give
unto others as the Father has given to us by witnessing to this world the good
news of Jesus Christ and His love. And this witnessing is not only in word, but
also in deed (1 John 3:18). For Jesus came not only with words of salvation,
but He saved us in deed as He went to the cross to suffer and die for our sins.
Paying not only the price for our sins, but completely overcoming them, conquering
the grave as He rose from the dead. Whoop Whoop!!! Praise God, the Most High
God!!!
Let me end here before I
get lost in praise, lol.
I pray this has blessed you
and helped you. I have given it to you as the LORD has shown me. The Lord is so
good to us and desires us to know Him more. I encourage you to spend time with
Him, intimate time with Him, void of distractions and the business of this
world. In that secret place with Him, He reveals Himself more and more,
something new every time. There you really learn about giving and receiving!
God bless you and keep you💗 Until next time….
Comments
Post a Comment