During the most recent sermon, "The God Who Tests," we talked about the Manna Principle which states, "God will give you what you need for today & today alone; you have to trust Him for tomorrow." But what about when God gives us more than we need for today? Are we violating the Manna Principle when we have excess food in our refrigerator or when we have money in the bank or in our retirement account?
I have the benefit of getting to chat with Brian about his sermons at work, and I asked him this question, and he pointed out that there are passages of scripture that commend storing up. Proverbs tells sluggards to "Consider the ant..." (Prov. 6:6-11; see also Prov. 30:24-28). So we basically have passages of scripture that seem to contradict one another. But we know that ALL scripture is equally God-breathed. We have to be very careful to take all Scripture equally seriously as God's word. It is easy to have our favorite passages and kind of ignore the other ones that don't fit our opinions or preferences so well.
So how do we take all these Scriptures seriously without feeling crazy?! First, we need to embrace that there is tension in many areas in Scripture. Life is not simple; life is incredibly complex! Therefore, it only makes sense that there will be tension in how God describes life in the Bible and also in how He commands us to live. Tension does not mean contradiction. Tension means embracing and taking seriously the reality of the complexity of life.
Second, I think we need to realize that having more than we need for today can also be a test. Will we continue to trust God or start relying on our abundance? I think of the rich man Jesus told a parable about in Luke 12:16-21 (actually, Luke 12 is the chapter where Luke discusses much of what is in Matt. 6 (the passage we read for our first fear sermon), and the Luke 12:13-48 is all very informative about the treasuring idea.). What the rich man teaches us is that we always have to keep our eye on the ball - being rich toward God. So whether God chooses to give us an abundance or to give us just what we need for today (or we could ask the question that many other believers in other parts of the world could ask: What if God doesn't give us enough for today? What about Christians who go hungry or without shelter or adequate health care, etc.?) or not enough for today - whatever God gives us (or doesn't give us) - the question is, how can I be rich toward God in my current circumstance? And the answer is always the same - by grace through faith. We have to rely on Him and trust Him - not anything or anyone else. And as we seek Him, as we treasure Him, as we believe in Him, He will lead us. He will give us life and guide us in the living!
Were any of you thinking similar questions about the Manna Principle? What are your thoughts about what we should do when God gives us abundance rather than just what we need for today?
Luke Hatfield
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