DEEP - Week 5
Day 3
“But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.” - Deuteronomy 8:18
We worked for it. We sacrificed for it. We studied, showed up early, stayed late, took risks, and made difficult decisions. So isn't it fair for us to say, “We earned this”?
That's exactly where the tension begins.
Deuteronomy 8 was spoken to people who were about to experience increase. Israel was moving toward a land where they would build houses, grow crops, multiply possessions, and experience prosperity.
God knew something about human nature.
Struggle can make us cry out to God. Success can make us forget Him.
So Moses tells the people that when their resources multiply, they must be careful not to begin believing that their own power produced everything they have.
Instead: remember the Lord.
Why?
Because even the ability to produce wealth is a gift.
Think about everything that has to exist before we can say, “We earned this.”
We needed breath this morning.
We needed functioning minds.
We needed physical strength.
Someone taught us something.
Someone gave us an opportunity.
Someone opened a door.
Someone hired us, bought from us, recommended us, invested in us, encouraged us, or trusted us.
Even our natural abilities were abilities we didn't create.
We developed them, certainly.
But we didn't manufacture ourselves.
That's why humility and stewardship belong together.
The more convinced we become that we created everything, the more convinced we become that everything belongs to us.
But when we recognize God as the Source, the question changes.
Instead of, “What do we want to do with our money?”
We begin asking, “God, what do You want us to do with what You've entrusted to us?”
That's a much harder way to live.
Because ownership wants control.
Stewardship requires surrender.
This is one reason obedience with money exposes our hearts so quickly. We can sing about trusting God while still demanding complete control over our finances.
We can say God owns everything while living as though He has no authority over our spending, giving, saving, lifestyles, or priorities.
And the tension becomes especially strong when resources increase.
More money brings more possibilities, but possibilities require wisdom.
Greater resources require greater humility.
Without humility, money magnifies us.
Our appetites become bigger.
Our options become broader.
Our pride becomes harder to recognize.
Gradually, we can move from gratitude to entitlement.
“We deserve this.”
“We earned this.”
“This is ours.”
But the gospel gives us a different posture.
Everything begins with grace.
The God who gave His Son for us has already given us what money could never purchase. Our deepest treasure isn't something sitting in an account.
Our deepest treasure is Christ Himself.
Why, then, is financial obedience sometimes so difficult?
Because money gives us the illusion of control.
If we have enough, maybe we won't have to depend on God.
If we save enough, maybe nothing can hurt us.
If we earn enough, maybe we can control our future.
Wisdom tells us to plan and prepare. Scripture commends wise stewardship. But no amount of preparation eliminates our dependence upon God.
We can prepare without pretending we're sovereign.
Today, let's deliberately practice remembering.
Let's look around our homes.
Think about our jobs.
Think about our abilities.
Think about our opportunities.
Think about every resource entrusted to us.
And remember:
“God gave us the ability to steward this.”
That doesn't erase our hard work.
It puts our hard work in the right story.
We worked.
God provided.
We planned.
God opened doors.
We earned.
God gave ability.
When we remember that, gratitude replaces entitlement and stewardship begins replacing ownership.
The question is no longer, “How much belongs to God?”
The better question is:
“How could anything we have exist apart from Him?”
WATCH THIS WEEK’S MESSAGE HERE: https://www.youtube.com/live/6h_fWFvtWnw?si=rtwyqC3I2ZSSDcu3
