Give with Good Measure

Today’s scripture:

“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Luke 6:38)

If you are a little familiar with the “Sermon on the Mount”, you may know one of the most common quotes from scripture… “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” At first glance, you may look at this topic and think this is about receiving blessings from God if you ask for them.

Today we are looking into the seventeenth topic on the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus is teaching, which is “Keep asking, Seeking, Knocking”. Matthew 7:7-12… Jesus says to seek and you will find. Ask and it will be opened to you. What man whom if his son asks for food would give him a stone instead? If you who have wicked hearts, which we all do (Psalm 14:3b), and know how to give good things to your children, how much more will God give to you if you seek Him for it.

How many times have you heard people say, “Anytime you see a “Therefore” in the bible, you need to find out what its therefore”? Well, the following verse, v.12 says “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” See, the context of this passage is saying to mercy others first. Treat them and fill a need in their lives and as you do your heavenly Father will take care of you.

I'm going to ask you to look again at the mercy prayer found at the top of this blog in the tab labeled "Mercy". In that prayer it says... "Bless _____. Lord, bless him/her in everything he/she touches. Bless him/her spiritually, physically and financially. Bless his/her loved ones. Do for him/her, Lord, instead of me."

Now when praying this prayer, put the person's name in the blank. Notice it says... "Do for him/her, Lord, instead of me." That is not to say that you don't want God to bless you. It's saying you're not concerned about your own needs or desires as you pray for people because you know, according to Matthew 7:12, God has your back! Evrything you pray with a heartfelt attitude for another in need, will be returned to you.

Now, let me carefully clarify something. This does not mean if you pray for another person to have financial riches or a really nice car or even no troubles this week, that it will be done to you. However, God will meet your NEEDS! The heart of Christ is always for those in need. Because we are made in His image, He also wants you to have a heart for those in need. His word does say He will overflow your cup. However, if it will keep you from being needy for Him, He will give you just enough to keep you humble so that you will stay needy for Him.

Psalm 37:4-5 says..."Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your dheart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass."

Brother Bill Lucas gave this verse to me from Purelife Ministries right after I got saved. He is a very dear friend who has taught me a lot about mercy. Notice the two commands before God says He will give you the desires of your heart and bring it to pass. Delighting and commiting yourself to the Lord is is doing His will, and His will is mercy! As you mercy others, you share the same heart as Christ. As you share the same heart, you will share the same desires! Those desires will come to pass because they are in His will!

Reflection:

This is, without a doubt, an attitude of mercy. Matthew 5:7 - "Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy." If you are in need of mercy or any blessing, then be a blessing to someone first and you have God's promise that you will receive mercy!

Challenge:

Is there someone you can think of that is in need of something? Matbe someone you know is having a hard time making it to their next paycheck. Or maybe you know someone is is in jail and needs to hear truth. Maybe you work with a person who has a bitter attitude and needs you to show them kindness. I garantee you have someone in some area of your life that needs that extra care of mercy. Think of how you can be a blessing to them and just do it! I've heard it said before... Knowledge is one thing but Wisdom is something else. Wisdom is what you do with that knowledge when it's understood.

-Doug McGowan