“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us...with all wisdom and understanding.” —Ephesians 1:7-8
God giving “out of His riches” and God giving “according to His riches” are two different things. If a millionaire gave a homeless man out of his riches, he might give him one dollar. If he gave according to his riches, it would be a great deal more. Paul speaks of God blessing us “in accordance with the riches of God’s grace” where all the unlimited resources of Christ come into play.
International evangelist and author Alan Redpath told a story of a businessman in South Africa who owned a brand new Rolls Royce and he wanted to know how powerful the engine was. Rolls Royce apparently do not disclose that information, so this man sent a telegram, giving the model of his car, its specifications, year, etc., and asked if they would tell him the horsepower of the engine. After two or three days, he received a simple one word reply that said, “Adequate”.
We do not need to ask how strong Jesus will be in us or how much He will provide for us. All we need to know is that Jesus Christ is “adequate.” That does not mean He will meet our every expectation, as God’s ways are beyond our understanding. Isaiah 55:9 says, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
God does not promise us a life of comfort and ease, or a quick, easy fix out of hardship and suffering. No one is exempt from life’s traumas. Most of us face mountains we think we can never climb, but all it takes is fixing our eyes on Jesus and taking that first step toward it. There is a hymn in old English that says
He giveth more grace, as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labours increase,
To added afflictions, He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials, He multiplies peace.
God does not give out of His riches, but according to the riches of His infinite grace. Though He does not promise to level every mountain, He has promised to be to us all that we need when climbing that mountain. With dependence on Christ, we can look back and see how it was His hand that brought us to the peak.
PRAYER: Thank You, Lord, for being all that I need when I need it. You are my strength and comfort that enables me to climb any mountain. Thank You, Lord.
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