Thank You Lord - by Rocky Fleming
“Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?
“And don’t be concerned about what to eat and what to drink. Don’t worry about such things. These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers all over the world, but your Father already knows your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need.
“So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. Luke 12: 27-31 (NLT)
“Don’t be afraid little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.” Wow! The thought of bringing great happiness to our Father simply by trusting Him and allowing Him to provide for us … to give us His kingdom … astounds me. It brings such joy to me to know this. How does it strike you to read these words of Jesus that are quoted from one of His sermons? If it doesn’t affect you, I’d suggest that you consider the depth and breadth of the statement. I’d consider that He who is able to do all things has delivered you a promise that will address every concern that will show up in your life. He speaks of giving you His kingdom. What does His kingdom include? You name it. Our physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Our need for safety and security. Our need for purpose and significance. Our need to be loved in a way that only our Father in Heaven can give us. Our need to be adopted and embraced into His family, whereby the orphan spirit falls away from us. Our need to have a well-planned out life, better than we can do for ourselves. Our need to know that life doesn’t end when we take our last breath of air in our mortal bodies. That’s a big one. We need blessed assurance.
I’ve felt for a long time the most important question we will ever ask in our life is “What happens to me after I die?” We put this question off, thinking of it little and thinking the expiration date on our life is way out there. But if we live, we will have to face the ultimate end of our mortal bodies which is death at some time, and the question then becomes very relevant to us. Do we know when we need to have that question answered? It could be sooner than later? I think we should have it answered now for multiple reasons, which I will share.
I’ve often asked people who do not know Christ and the salvation He would give to them if indeed this question will be very important to them at some point in life. Most of the time they agree that it would be. Then I ask if they have it answered? After all, it is the most important question they will ever ask, and doesn’t it deserve being answered? I ask if they would like to be assured that they will have a future and hope on that inevitable day, whether it is when they are old or young when he or she dies.
Why do I share this? I believe that this delights the Father to share this good news, for it gives Him great happiness to give them His kingdom. When we give Jesus to others, we give them God’s kingdom. I’m assured that this is right and good to reinvest the kingdom that God has given to me to others. I feel His delight. I also feel that having that question answered allows us to live without a nagging fear of death. This, in turn, gives us an assurance that creates courage in our life, and courage conquers many imaginary enemies. In the encouragement we receive from Jesus in the scripture I’ve given, we see Him telling us to not be anxious about our personal needs. He assures us that our Father knows those needs and promises to provide them. This is now a living benefit from following Jesus. So, not only does God give us assurance of His kingdom when we die, we are also given His assurance of His kingdom’s resources for our current earthly needs, and what’s more, it gives God great happiness to provide it to us. So, I ask you again. How does it affect you to realize that this is the heart of God we are seeing? How does it feel to realize that He delights in doing good things for us, for His love is incomparable?
In this season of Lent, I feel that it is appropriate to give our thanksgiving and praise for the gift of Jesus’ life to make God’s kingdom available to us. Will you join me in a prayer, as we listen to this beautiful version of Worthy is the Lamb. God bless you.
LISTEN HERE: Worthy is the Lamb