Equip4good: THE POWER AND PROVISION PRINCIPLE (PART 3): GOD PROVIDES

PROVIDENCE AND ULTIMATE PURPOSE

As we said in Part 1, Jonah is a great window on our hearts. One of the key themes in the book of Jonah is God's provision. It peppers the story of the man who is wrestling with the purposes of God in his life. The foundation of Jonah's life is God's providence. that he lives in a circumstance whereby he has been blessed by God to come to know him and his goodness in love and grace. God's purposes include physical and emotional provision, but physical and emotional provision are servants not masters of the ultimate (missional) purposes of God.

in 1:1, God provides Jonah with a personal visit, his word, his commissioning message,
God then provides a ship, a storm and a spew with a second chance.
The providences of God in Jonah's life are so "outside the box" that they demonstrate to us that no eventuality (however unexpected) is beyond limits in the purposes and providence and grace of God. It is often the great surprises of life which bring us so much closer into God's purposes when responded to in faith. Maybe the greatest surprise to all of us is his patience and endurance with us which brings us the further opportunity after repeated failure. (Jonah 3:1)

All of this comes to a head in the last chapter with the provision of a leafy plant for shade (4:6-7) . Jonah is so content with the comfort of God's provision, but so ambivalent to the bigger (missional) macro purpose of God's heart from which this generosity and micro care comes. When his comfort is taken, it reveals a depth of feeling which has been masked by his settled state.

In our comfortable lives, the true state of our hearts and obedience towards God's purposes is often masked. We are not immune to this as God's people, but by definition of those who live under his unfathomable goodness, more prone to it.

As the Lord gives comfort - he also takes it away.

Jonah's response is not wonder at the love and provision of God in his goodness ("...blessed be the name of the Lord" Job 1:21) on both micro and macro level but excessive individualistic anger of an unchallenged grump that his small personal comfort (on which he is revealed to be totally focussed/ obsessed) should be taken away. Missional commitment always challenges our personal comfort on a very basic daily basis.

THE TRUE PICTURE REVEALED:

WHAT IS OUR RESPONSE WHEN GOD TAKES AWAY?

God's provision of love and grace never changes, and is always guaranteed unlimited resource to those who live by faith and walking according with his missional objectives. Love and grace are so utterly core to all God's purposes. (1 John 4:7-21)

Basic bible principles we know to be true when we read with an open heart...

We should not expect GOD's provision when we are not going GOD's way, his goodness and provision is always by grace ... not our right. (Gen 3:21, Jonah 3:1. Matthew 5:45-47).
Likewise we should not expect physical comfort or prosperity to remain content in any self obsession when the purpose of God is so much deeper and wider. His mission is to direct us in his ultimate purposes for all peoples for his glory and our good. In fact our Father in his providence may heavy heartedly take away good things from us which would challenge our deep affections. Loving or idolising God's good gifts is never appropriate when we don't love him and his purposes. (Luke 15:1, Luke 15:11-13 Luke 15:29-32). Ingratitude is never a foundation for fruitfulness whether through pharisaical / legalistic, excessive self serving sin, or duty religious living.
Don't idolise your family, marriage, home, food, health, technology, friends, work, nationality, or routine, all of which are servants for the missional purpose of God's grace. None of the above should be masters of our hearts, or be the object of our affections that they decide our ultimate daily priorities and decisions.
We do not believe in a prosperity Gospel, but we do utterly rely on the goodness of God whose love and grace will provide everything we need for life and godliness.
In God's purposes, when his providence has accomplished good things, we may find that we lack absolutely nothing at all. We seek first his kingdom and are often surprised by how many things are added to us. (Job 42:12, Matt 6:33 )

He gives us more grace - when we've reached the end of our hoarded resources.

There may be many reasons why good things disappear from our lives. This can include many unforeseen eventualities well beyond our understanding. Everything we know may change in one day, as a marriage is broken by death, as a family is ripped apart by murder or evil, as an unknown illness brings instant fatality in a loved one. If being a pastor has sought me anything it is that all of these things have happen on a far more regular basis than any of us would want to expect. A peaceful static existence and environment is not guaranteed in a fallen world. I remember the beauty of birdsong in Ukrainian fields lined with mines, as guns shoot just two fields away. Ukraine is a beautiful rurally fruitful country, yet since the day further invasion came, now desolation is so incomprehensible in some of those best loved place. Everything in some cities we've loved seems to have ended in disaster. Can this still be good providence? Ultimately this will hinges totally on our reactions of anger or faith, on trust or blame, on our priorities to build his kingdom or our own. Our response to God's providence decides whether we travel the road to faith and fruitfulness, or fear and sinfulness.

This was Job's experience and decision. Incomprehensible loss may be because of Sin in our lives. God takes away temporary comfort to wake us up to ultimate realities. The message of Job however is this is categorically not the case in his instance. The individual and world perspectives are part of the mystery of God's providence. I believe also that Ukraine since the fall of communism has grown to be a wonderfully fruitful place for the church of Christ, a God honouring country where the gospel has been thriving in recent years. and those who love Christ have been raised to live salty lives in national leadership and influence. In simplistic terms, and with the humility that I see such a very small perspective I do not believe God has brought judgement on the land of Ukraine. Something other is at play. For Job the challenge was to trust the constancy of God when everything was taken away. that behind the dark, dark, clouds of suffering lay the one who being the same yesterday, today and forever overflows with grace and provision, which is ultimately seen in Christ, I think this is very much in play in Ukraine. That as it turns from a receiving country to a sending country in the mission of God, it is being scattered with authentic vitality and priorities which will impact many more than would have been impacted by a settled more isolated existence. In many ways like Job, Ukrainian believers are on show to demonstrate the keeping purposes of God and his grace.

TIME TO CRY ?

Maybe you're reading this because life is unbearably tough for you in the UK, US, Balkans, or Asia today. I know friends in occupied territories and frontier missions will be reading this. Please know that we pray for you with hurting and grieving hearts because so full, and with appreciation to God for you. We are able to thank God, and especially for the way he is sustaining you. We pray most for your obedience, not just your comfort. We believe God is using you in an extraordinary way at an extraordinary time to bring him eternal glory, as you trust in his provision for today knowing that the best in him is yet to be.

Give us today our daily bread.

Part of God's good providence is to remind us that we are totally dependant on him for all things, every day. I know that for some reading this in desperate need, it would seem crass for me to say that I believe you are in a good place when I live today in the comfort of a peaceful situation, but ...when you know you are utterly reliant on GOD - You really are in a good place. This is the place where God's greater provisions will overflow to you and through you to others. With this mindset of basic provision he can answer that prayer for his kingdom to flourish in your life. This cry of utter dependence has been uttered constantly in recent months, sometimes in Ukrainian, sometimes in Russian, Cuban Spanish, or Dzongkha. God does not distinguish such a cry by language but by authenticity. He has graciously responded a myriad of times by miraculous provision and in many ways we would and could never have expected.

Give us today our daily potatoes.

We praise God for all his miraculous provisions in recent days, and hopefully we have liberty in a future blog to share one of the most surprising of our involvements in potato ministry. Those crying in greatest need have received generosity from those who have turned their land to support believers across the nation in faith. It is no exaggeration to say that those who have been digging the ground for graves have been kept alive by those who have been digging the ground to plant in faith. By God's goodness and project management these things have been connected up. We are so privileged to partner in a small way in this provision of God, which sees so many encouraged, and has encouraged faithful disciples to persevere in so many of his good purposes.

The greater provision however is not potatoes appearing in Donbas, Kharkiv, or Kherson, but eternal fruitfulness and spiritual liberty appearing in the lives of oppressed people, those who are coming out of the kingdom of darkness into his glorious light. The greater beauty is the church mobilised by his power to advance when everything has been thrown against them and humanly speaking they could've been crushed long ago. Sometimes potatoes have been sent to a struggling pastor and family near the frontline. In their absolute need they have been incomprehensibly generous and given their supply to others who did not know Christ. Such friends came to Christ and their hearts were opened when the generosity of God's grace was visibly seen, illustrated and understood this way. Was a sack of potatoes lost ? ...or was a soul won with the greatest celebration in heaven anticipating the greatest of feasts to come ?

What is he calling you to give up ... for his kingdom to advance ?

Whatever he is calling you to... he will equip you for.

Let's simplify this with one sentence...

DO not doubt the power of our God to keep you and me as we respond to him in obedience, whatever he is asking of us.

How utterly unmeasurable the glory and power of our God is, in works of creation, redemption, sanctification and sustenance of all things. Even more unfathomable, is the question of why he should love us this way. Who are we in comparison to him? How astounding that he should love us, and use his power in loving ways to resource our lives to redeem them for good and glorious purposes?

HE GIVES US MORE GRACE as our burdens grow greater,

HE SENDS US MORE STRENGTH as our labours increase:

To added afflictions He adds to his mercy,

To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,

When our strength has failed though the day is half done,

When we reach the end of our hoarded resources

Our Father's full giving has only begun.

Fear not that your need shall exceed his provision

Our God ever years His resources to share;

Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing,

The Father both you and your load will upbear.