Heirs

 "And the Lord said to Aaron, 'You priests will receive no inheritance of land or share of property among the people of Israel. I am your inheritance and your share.' " Numbers 18:20....."The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ." Romans 8:16-17

I have sought, by His grace, to live out the truth of these verses in my life. It has not been easy, and indeed, believing their truth and promise has been most difficult among those who are professing followers of Christ. It has cost me to do so, nowhere more than in my marriage. Believing that an invisible God is your portion, share, and inheritance in the midst of a world, and church much affected by that world, will never be an easy way. Yet it is what He calls us to believe and to trust in.

In an age when investments, annuities, salary increases, and what they can bring us receive a great deal of our waking attention, living a life that at root believes that He is a far deeper treasure and far more bountiful source than any of them doesn't seem rational. This is not to say that having investments, making wise financial decisions, and living as good stewards isn't important. It is to say that in the midst of that, we have to live knowing that any and all of them can disappear in a moment. They are not our source or our portion. They certainly can never be our inheritance. Jesus sent His disciples out to minister with nothing but their staffs. The were to depend upon His supply. Such instructions would not be well received in the modern church. We need to have an idea of how we'll be taken care of before we go. As Oswald Chambers puts it, we want to know how we shall live, what will our provision be, and how much will it be? We lose sight of the truth and promise that we are heirs of the Kingdom of God, and co-heirs with Christ. An infinite Source will be our infinite supply. Jesus told His followers to take no thought for how they will be provided for, yet for most of us, almost every thought revolves around this point.

In Israel, every tribe was given a share of the land that God had promised them. Every tribe but Levi. They had been set apart by Him as His priesthood. They were to depend completely upon Him for their portion. It was His intention that they would realize that their share in Him was, and would be greater than the total shares of all the other tribes combined. The New Testament tells us that all believers are counted as part of His "royal priesthood." We are all priests of the Lord, not just those who serve in what we term as full time ministers. We are all full time ministers, but few of us see ourselves in that way. We are all to live with Him as our share and portion. He blesses with "things" but none of them are our inheritance, yet we live as if they are. We give our hearts to trinkets, not realizing that our share in Him infinitely surpasses all the "treasures" this world has ever, and can ever offer.

I have never put my former mate in a light that would seem unkind. I don't try to do so now, but to illustrate the truth of what I write today, I do share this; she was unhappy with the material and financial state of our lives. She wanted much more than I was able to give, or the that the Lord was giving at that time. I would try to explain the truth of these Scriptures to her, but it went unheard. She could not "see" the promises within them. I could not let go of them, and as He leads me along in His way, He proves their truth hundreds of times over in my life. I don't write any of this with a smug superiority, just as one who has been so blessed to have experienced His sufficiency. He continues to. I have discovered, as did Moses, that my inheritance in Him outweighs all "the treasures of Egypt." Have you discovered it as well, or do you continue to hoard the world's trinkets?

Blessings,

Pastor O