This morning we continue our series, “Grace that is Simply Amazing” by continuing with our mini-series entitled, “Grace Based Success (Prosperity)”. I like to say that if something is God’s will, then it’s also God’s bill. My point in saying this that God knows how to fund His projects. If God wants something done in the earth, He knows how to ensure his people receive all the resources they need to make it happen. There are lots of examples I could use in the Bible, but for this morning I will use just two – one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament.
So what does this mean to you today? Let’s get to it.
1. God financed Solomon’s assignment.
— The Lord had already shown David that he was not going to build the temple. The temple project was not part of David’s assignment, because it was part of his son Solomon’s assignment. But David stored up provisions for the project to ensure Solomon had what he needed.
— God used David to prepare Solomon for success. If you read 1 Chronicles 29 you will see that David gathered gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, onyx stones, stones of different colors, gems, and marble for the temple project. David contributed 225,000 pounds of gold and 525,000 pounds of refined silver.
— King David asked for an offering from the people and the Bible says, “They contributed 375,186 pounds of gold, 750,000 pounds of silver, 135,000 pounds of bronze, and 7,500,000 pounds of iron for the work on God’s temple.” This was worth billions of dollars.
— When Solomon took over as king the provision did not stop. Solomon’s kingdom brought in just under 50,000 pounds of gold every year (1 Kings 10:14).
— When it was time to build the temple Solomon had the natural resources he needed and he also had the money to hire skilled workers from outside his kingdom. Solomon brought in skilled carpenters from Lebanon, he hired 30,000 men from Israel, just to help the men from Lebanon; he hired 75,000 general carriers, 80,000 stone cutters and 33,000 foremen just to supervise the project (1 Kings 5).
— The temple project took billions of dollars and about 7.5 years to build. God saw to it that Solomon had what he needed to do what God had called him to do.
2. God financed Jesus’ assignment.
— The Old Testament is full of people whom God blessed with mighty riches. This was not Jesus’ assignment. But just because it was not Jesus’ assignment, don’t assume Jesus lacked anything.
— Jesus had 12 full-time ministry staff members who traveled with Him for 3.5 years.
— At one point Jesus grew the staff to 70.
— Several times the Father blessed Jesus to supernaturally meet the needs of thousands (with fish and loves).
— The Bible says, “Jesus traveled from one city and village to another. He spread the Good News about God’s kingdom. The twelve apostles were with him. Also, some women were with him. They had been cured from evil spirits and various illnesses. These women were Mary, also called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out; Joanna, whose husband Chusa, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many other women. They provided financial support for Jesus and his disciples” (Luke 8:1-3). Another translation says that these women “used their considerable means to provide for the company.” God used people who were financially well-off to finance Jesus’ ministry. Guess what? God does the same today.
— Jesus never wanted for anything. While it was not part of Jesus’ assignment to walk in earthly wealth, don’t think that He struggled for anything. Jesus never begged, He never asked for a handout, and He never lacked anything. Jesus was doing what the Father told Him to do, therefore the Father saw to it that He had what He needed every step of the way.
3. Your assignment.
— If God made plans for you before the foundations of the world and He then birthed You in earth to bring forth those plans, then don’t you think that God also made a way for you to receive everything You need to accomplish His plans?
— God will never expect you to do what He has not equipped you to do.
— God knows how to resource His projects, but God is not obligated to resource yours! You don’t get to come up with whatever you want — a business, a ministry, a book, etc. — and then demand that God bless it with what you think is FAITH. That’s not faith at all.
— Faith is about surrender. Faith is about submission. Faith is about dying to self. When you find your divine assignment, you accept it by grace, and your pursue it by faith, God will see to it that you have everything you need to be successful!
— The Hebrew Word for bless is “barak”. The Hebrew word for create or manifest is “barah”. I have learned that God only baraks what He barahs. Meaning that God only blesses what He creates. So if you have been struggling and you are tired of failing over and over again, you might be doing something God did not tell you to do. This series is about achieving success God’s way, by His grace, for His glory!
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for teaching me about Your grace and my requirement to live by faith. I am learning, day by day, what it means to embrace Your grace and to develop my faith. I now realize that I am not a mistake. I was born for a reason and that reason is Your divine purpose for my life. I am here to make Kingdom impact and I declare that I will. You have a plan for me and You have already made the provisions for the plan. As I pursue Your assignment by faith I embrace Your plan and the provisions. You raise up people who use their power, their influence, their ability and their resources to help me accomplish what You have called me to do. You also bless the work of my hands to the point where I can generate some of the resources to do what You have called me to do. So whether You bless me to generate the support myself, or You bless others to finance my assignment, I am confident that I will succeed in life. You give me all I need to be successful by Your grace and I walk out my divine assignment by faith. I WILL accomplish what You birthed me to do! It’s Your WILL, so it’s Your BILL! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
