This morning I read 2 Corinthians 9 and 10. It is important to read a little bit wider than the scriptures that we hold on to everyday. Why? Because God always gives you the conditions to fulfill his promises alongside the promise. A promise always requires obedience to what He asks you to do. A lot of people are sitting in church, hearing the promises of God preached, but missing what is required from them to receive the promise. Then we blame God, and say His Word is not true, because why am I not getting my healing, why am I struggling financially, why am I not seeing my breakthrough. The scriptures in 2 Corinthians that I read this morning speaks directly to provision, how I should be giving to unlock the provision, and warfare around my thoughts and mind.
The second bit of scripture below is something that I hold on to myself daily, read out loud, speak over me and my business. I consider it to be my scripture, as I have been called in business, working towards becoming a Kingdom Business where provision will flow to where God wants it to go. But for too long I was standing on this scripture, but missing the conditions earlier in the same chapter of how I should treat my finances. I am sorry to say, that too many churches are preaching tithing every week from the old testament, but they are missing some conditions that God has put in the New Testament in regards to our giving.
See notes below.
He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and
he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
So let each one give as he purposes in his heart,
not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you,
always having all sufficiency in all things,
may have an abundance for every good work.
2 Corinthians 9:6-8 (NKJV)
What I read in the scripture above (what can you add? Do you agree?):
• What you sow is what you reap
• Give what you have decided in your heart, NOT out of compulsion. This means if you are giving a tithe of 10% because you feel forced to, that money will not bring a return.
• Speak to God and ask Him to give you the number in your heart that you should give (don’t lean on your own flawed understanding)
• Be happy when you give, giving to God is a form of worship
• Do not be attached to your money to the point that it hurts your heart to let go of it
• When you do the above, God will provide sufficiently to you in ALL things (this is monetary + spiritually + healing + everything)
• The abundance He provides to me is not only so I am looked after, but is is to provide to me enough to do the good work on this earth that He called us to. With other words, the provision is not only for you, but to supply resources to help those He shows you.
• This comes back to where you ask God where you should sow, it is a continual loop of giving and receiving, and letting it flow to where God shows you next.
Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food,
supply and multiply the seed you have sown and
increase the fruits of your righteousness,
while you are enriched in everything for all liberality,
which causes thanksgiving through us to God.
2 Corinthians 9:10-11 (NKJV)
What I read in the scripture above (what can you add? Do you agree?):
• God is the one who supplies my seed to sow (not me)
• He supplies me with money to live (bread) and money to use for His Kingdom purposes as He directs (seed)
• He supplies my seed and multiplies my seed according to the obedience and freedom of my sowing
• The fruits of the spirit is what God is looking to see in our lives. We are made righteous before God only through the blood of Jesus. As we abide in Him and walk with Him everyday our lives are transformed to reflect the fruit of who Jesus are.
• Our giving will increase thanksgiving by those that receive (thanksgiving is a form of worship to God). So not only is my giving worshiping God, but my worship is increased as others worship Him when they receive through me.
The below piece of scripture follows right after the piece above, even though it is set as the next chapter. However when it was written there were no chapters, so we can view it to be following on concerning the discussion above.
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.
For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for
pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every
high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God,
bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 (NKJV)
What I read in the scripture above (what can you add? Do you agree?):
• We cannot use our own strength to fight the war against the forces of darkness
• The war is fought in our minds. As we believe things that do not line up with God’s Word, negative things spoken over us, cultural and religious ideas that is contrary to the Bible, strongholds (wrong mindsets and ideas) form in our minds, keeping us from walking in the fullness of what God intended for us on earth.
• We are not slaves to our thoughts. We can decide to speak the truth in the Word of God (scriptures) out loud, in this way retraining our minds to believe God and not the lies coming from the world.
• These wrong ideas could include things that we were taught by the church, that is based on the truth, but slightly twisted to serve the individuals, and is not what God intended.
• This scripture speaks directly against depression and anxiety. If this is something you struggle with, read the scripture aloud over and over until the revelation of what God means here really drops into your spirit and you are set free.
Please download a sheet with these scriptures and notes to print here, so that you can speak this over yourself daily.
Note: Go and read 2 Corinthians 9 and 10. Do not blindly believe everything I say here, as this is once again pieces of the scripture that I have highlighted. What if I got it wrong? What if I left out a crucial part of the scriptures before or after that will change (even slightly) the meaning of what is said here? Due to the deception and twisting of God’s Word that happens so easily, it is our responsibility to test everything that we are taught against the Word of God. Check what translation they and you are using. Is it a translation that came straight from the source documents, or is it a version that paraphrased the bible according to man’s understanding? You should know that certain translations have been copyrighted, as it is sold by big corporations, so that means no one else are allowed to use the same words as them when translating the bible. Little bit suspect, don’t you think? Sometimes when even just one word is changed, or moved forward or backward in a sentence, the entire meaning is altered. We must be very alert. Let’s take captive every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.
CHALLENGE FOR YOU:
Now take that scripture that you consider to be YOUR scripture, that you read and believe for yourself. (Those are the ones you have underlined, or are using as a screensaver etc, you will know which scriptures you consider to be YOUR scriptures). Now read a bit wider than the scripture, starting at the beginning of the chapter, and also after it. Make sure you get and understand what the conditions are for receiving what you are believing God for. Now go and apply those and see the breakthrough you are waiting for!
Hallelujah! All praise and Glory to the King of Kings!
Written by: Mariana Engelbrecht
Please share the link and printable, it is free to use. I would love to hear your thoughts on this below. Maybe I got it all wrong?