Apostle Don Meares
“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
It is God’s will for you to be rich. It is God’s purpose that you would become rich through His poverty.
In his second letter to the Corinthian church, Paul challenged the early Christians so that they would be blessed. The believers in Corinth had been taught the grace of faith, speech, knowledge, diligence, and love, but when it came to giving, they put it in another dimension. It seemed that giving was not part of their lifestyle. In the passage, the apostle was challenging them to give so that the work of God can move forward as they experience increase.
In Paul’s letter, he asked the church if they understood that their salvation was based on God’s generosity. Just like them, we are recipients of His generosity. This is why we should not be intimidated to ask Him for what we need. When we come before God, we should know that whatever we may need, the Father already has it. He can meet our needs. Therefore, when we request anything from Him, we praise and compliment Him. We also show our understanding of His generosity.
El Shaddai: The God of More Than Enough
When it comes to God, you must know that the God you serve is always able. There is no shortage, economic failure, depression, or lack. Whatever you need, God is sufficient. He is El Shaddai, the God of more than enough. This is what Paul meant in His letter to the Corinthians. He asked them to give with excess because God has put somebody else’s blessing into their hands.
In 1 Kings 17:8-16, the widow did not know that the cake she made wasn’t for her. She didn;t know it would be for Elijah. Sometimes, God will give you something that is not even for you. However, if God can get it to you and through you, He will give it to you. On the other hand, if your generosity is tainted with selfishness or even fear, it will stop you in the realm of faith that will take you into a supernatural realm that God wants you to reach.
God’s riches go far beyond tangible and physical things. In His 33 years on Earth, the Scriptures say that Jesus, the Word that became flesh, was financially rich. Though, on the cross, He became poor. In His perfect divinity and nature resided all of God’s glorious, infinite, and eternal attributes. He laid aside His Heavenly status because of His grace towards us. He stripped Himself of everything to become poor.
Many believers today do not understand the riches of our God. Christ had to step down from the surroundings of angels at His beck and call. He had to step down from all the attributes that were in Him. He was equally as the Word to God Himself. He was more than just rich in substance. He was rich in power. He was rich in authority. He was rich in might and ability. There was nothing God could not do. There has never been a question that God has ever been asked that He couldn’t answer. There’s never been a place that God couldn’t go. He’s omnipresent in all places at the same time. He’s omniscient, knowing all the mysteries. There’s nothing God doesn’t know. He’s called the Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:13). He is full of absolute wisdom.
God has never been hungry. He owns everything. He has never had a sick day in His life. He’s never needed a day off. He never gets tired. He never slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121:4). He’s the beginning and the end (Revelation 22:13). The Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not nothing was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men (John 1:1-4).
God can fix anything and move anything. We need to understand the depth of who He is. Many people don’t pray because they don’t grasp who God is and what He’s capable of. Some think they need to find people who can give them promotions, but they don’t understand that when it comes to our future, it is in the hands of God.
You have to believe that God is stronger than your past. You must know that He’s bigger than the mountain in your life. Our God is the Everlasting God. You don’t need to sit and worry about anything because God controls everything. He can fix what is wrong in your life. The God you serve can do everything. If you just knew who He was, you would kick the devil out of your house and let God’s presence abide continually.
Think about this for a moment: What did Jesus give up just to come to Earth? What did He do to make Himself available to you, to be your kinsman redeemer? The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 2:7-9:
“but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,”
Jesus Christ humbled Himself so that we could have everything we need in Him. He lost almost everything because it was the Father’s will. He was poor and silent for a purpose. Like Jesus, there are times we have the gift, but it’s not our time yet. You might have the anointing, but it’s not your time and not your season. Sometimes, you have to let other folks teach even when you know more than they do. There are times when you need to hold your peace because you’re poor for a purpose. Jesus’ purpose was to become poor during His time here on Earth, so we could be redeemed. He had to become a sacrificial lamb who took away all our sins so that we could reach Him.
Don’t Let Anyone Doubt Your God-given Gifts
“Now when he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. 2 Saul took him that day, and would not let him go home to his father’s house anymore. 3 Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. 4 And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.
5 So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and behaved wisely. And Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants.” –1 Samuel 18:1-5
Don’t let anyone ever make you doubt your gifts. God has given everyone certain talents and gifts. This doesn’t mean that these can be used only within our church, Evangel Cathedral. You can use your gifts wherever God wants them used. Many people in the church might not understand that some gifts are meant to be used beyond the four walls of the church. You can work with what God gave you as long as you understand your gifts. Your gifts will bring you to places you still need to gain training, background, or even preparation for.
Such was the case for David when he went to the palace (1 Samuel 18). He was a young shepherd boy who was being treated like royalty. He was escorted into the presence of the king. He didn’t know what to do, yet he found favor with Saul. The king treated him like his adopted son. The king loved him for a while, and here’s why we have to be careful about temporary love: God will allow people to love you for a while to move you into a place you’ve got to be in. In the story, David grew in power with Saul’s son, Jonathan, who guided him. Jonathan was Saul’s heir. He was next in line to be the king, yet he heard about David, who killed Goliath. Yet, Jonathan loved him more than his own soul. The two men get into a blood covenant involving an agreement and a contract. A covenant requires transparency. In this covenant, Jonathan was covered by his past, and David was covered by his future. The king’s son was covered with history, while the shepherd boy was covered with his destiny. Jonathan gives his belongings to David to fulfill the covenant.
What does this mean for us? When Christ went to the cross for us, He stripped Himself of all His glory, all of His honor, and all of His divinity. Whether we like it or not, He had to die on the cross naked so that Adam could become clothed. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we have been dressed up from the crown of our heads to the soles of our feet. We’ve been dressed up in somebody else’s clothes. The righteousness that we wear today is not ours. We have never been righteous. But Jesus saw our wretchedness and gave us His righteousness so that we could stand before the throne. It is God’s will that we are rich for a purpose. He will make us rich to establish and extend the Kingdom. He will give us the power to get wealth to carry out the covenant.
Many miss God’s will because they don’t understand the purpose of the riches that they long to have. If your purpose doesn’t align with God’s, He will not give you the power to get wealth. Because Jesus has dressed and equipped us in His righteousness, we now look like Him. When we come before the Father, He sees His Son. He has given us the power to use His Name.
God brings us from rags to riches, from the back to the front, from being a tail to being the head, and from sinner to saint. He deserves our worship because of the great things He has done for us.
A Prophetic Word
When someone brings up your raggedy past and tries to drag you down, say to them: “I have gone from rags to riches because I know who I am. I know what I have. I know who my Father is. I know where I’m going. I know what He’s called me to do. I know my history has not determined my purpose. My history can be dysfunctional, but my purpose remains functional, for God will not judge me by who I was. He will judge me for who I am — a child of the King, the Most High God. I am the head and not the tail. I am above and not beneath.”
Declare today that because of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, for our sakes, He became poor so that through His poverty, we might become rich in all aspects of our lives.
If you are a child of God, He has given you the ability to become rich! Learn more about what Jesus has done for us in this message by Apostle Don Meares. Watch the entire sermon:
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