Sunday Series - How To Never Lack For Provisions

The other day this verse came across one of the feeds that I do read every day. On that same day, I had conversations with a few different people in different places, at different times, but the central thread to those conversations, was about need and about want. And, as so many times before, a verse from the Bible pops up right in the middle of a current scenario. That is fantastic!

The apostle Paul wrote the book of Philippians. So here is the verse, and a few thoughts about it.

May 20, 2022

Verse of the Day

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19 KJV

Definition of want: To desire greatly; wish for.

Definition of need: a lack of something requisite, desirable, or useful.

Keep in mind that God doesn’t just supply our needs; he provides everything for us according to his riches in glory. This next point, I love. It’s humanly impossible to fathom the depth and range of God’s glorious treasury. His resources are without limits. He is the Creator and owner of all things. That is awesome! It is usually a good thing for us to be reminded of how insignificant we are in relation to God and the kingdom of heaven. We might be smart, or “civilized”, or comfortable, but we are still mortal sinners. So, we shouldn’t pump ourselves up too much. Likewise, we should remember, literally, from where we came. Created in His own image. Should we need, we have access to the greatest provider of all time.
God’s glorious riches in Christ Jesus are centered in what comes into our lives when we allow Him, His love and His truth, to be the controlling center of our lives. Remember, He is the way, the truth, and the life.
In his summary of thanks to his readers, Paul encourages them. Paul was confident that God would meet their needs because they were generous in their giving. This is not a promise of wealth, or even an easy life. Rather, the concept of “need” has to be considered according to God’s will. This is so important. What we want or need in our terms is often times not an actual need, but a superfluous desire. What we “need” and what we “want” are often times not the same thing. God tends to bless those who will use the resources they have according to His purposes. This is something Paul observed specifically happening with the Philippians. Again, the more we take our eyes off of God and think that we are in control, the harder we have to flail to stay above water. God is the great provider, not us.
This is so elementary, but we miss it often because we starve for control…Their needs would be met through Christ, the one who made and controlled all things. They would never lack with Christ as their provider. From the earliest pages of Scripture, God has been known as the Lord who will provide (Genesis 22:14), affirmed by Peter as well (2 Peter 1:11). Like so much history that we could learn from, we often times make things so much harder in our ignorant pursuit of controlling outcomes. This is so short-sighted and small-minded. We literally have access to the one who made and controlled all things. Perhaps we should better align ourselves with Christ Jesus.