Have you ever stood behind someone in line at a cash register in a food mart or a gas station and watched that person pull out their ones, tens, twenties, or more to play the lottery? Each person who buys a ticket gives up a portion of their paycheck for the possibility of receiving a huge monetary prize, and the probability of winning is usually one in millions. They are willing to lose something just in case they might win.
Some people throw away their hard-earned money on games of chance because they do not know or understand this simple truth—God supplies our need! Yes, God is the One Who supplies our need according to His Word as we take believing action. When we trust in God to meet our need and take the godly believing action, no one has to lose in order for others to win. Doing the Word is a winning situation for all.
Philippians 4:19:
But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
God, as the Source of our supply, desires for every Christian man and woman to prosper.
III John 2:
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
Now that we see from His Word that God is the Supplier of our need and that He wants us to prosper, we also must recognize that He tells us a specific step to take to receive His prosperity in our lives. We don’t have to leave our prosperity to chance.
Malachi 3:10:
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
The word “tithe” means a tenth part. It is the tenth part, or 10 percent, of our net income. We give the tithe for the Lord’s work.
Proverbs 3:9,10:
Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
We’re giving the “firstfruits” of our increase by giving 10 percent off the top of our net income. As we study God’s Word, we learn that godly prosperity begins with the tithe. Throughout the Bible, material prosperity always hinges upon tithing. Established centuries ago as God’s basic law of prosperity, tithing is a practical way whereby we show our willingness to seek God first, to work with Him as our partner, to receive the prosperity due us according to His love and riches in glory. Let’s look at another benefit of tithing.
Malachi 3:10,11:
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.
When we tithe, God not only prospers us, but He also does not allow “the devourer” (the adversary, the Devil) to destroy what we’ve worked for. By our own freewill choice to tithe, we can open the door to God’s abundance and prosperity and also to His safety and protection.
He designed the principles of giving and receiving for man’s benefit.
Luke 6:38:
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
II Corinthians 9:6,7:
But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
God makes the tithe available as a way for thankful people to honor Him for all He’s done. When we recognize God with our “firstfruits” and have love in our heart and the proper devotion in our soul, we open the way for God’s financial and material prosperity to flow to us. Tithing is God’s absolute minimum law of financial liberty, prosperity, and abundance. Going beyond the tithe is when abundant sharing begins. Abundant sharing opens the door for spiritual riches to abound in the believer’s life (II Corinthians 8 and 9).
As we take the believing action to tithe willingly and with a cheerful heart, we have God’s assurance of His blessings. God does not want us to stand in line waiting to give our hard-earned cash to the adversary’s systems of chance in hopes of winning the lottery prize. Instead, He wants us to know, believe, and act on His Word, for it is true! With God, we cannot lose, only win. God supplies our need!