God is the Source.
Really. He is.
He is the source of our every breath. He is the way-maker in our lives. He is the loving Father. He is the precious provider of food, water, clothing and shelter. He is our hope-bringer and joy-giver.
Whether we believe it or not, it does not negate the truth: He is the Source.
This is simply saying what I have already written before – It is all His. Everything on the earth is the Lord’s: all the people, all the fullness, all the glory, all the wind, all the water. Everything.
He is the Source of all of it.
This is not always front of mind in my thinking however, and I often run the risk of something the Israelites were warned about by the prophet Jeremiah.
“Has a nation changed its gods,
Which are not gods?
But My people have changed their Glory
For what does not profit.
Be astonished, O heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid;
Be very desolate,” says the Lord.
For My people have committed two evils;
They have forsaken Me,
The fountain of living waters,
And hewn themselves
Cisterns – broken cisterns that can hold no water. (Jeremiah 2:10 – 13)
These two things:
- The people have forsaken the Source of life itself – the fountain of living waters.
- They have also built cisterns that are broken and can’t hold the water they do find.
Some of us would agree that governments, cities, families and individuals have forsaken God as the Source of life-giving water. But the more telling questions I ponder in these days are directed inwardly. As a follower of Christ, do I forsake Him? Does the Body of Christ – the Church?
What does it look like when I forsake God as Source?
In my 10-year journey of financial discipleship – learning to follow God in my finances – I will readily admit I have been, and am, guilty of forsaking God as life-giving Source. I abandon, turn away, and don’t even seek Him as Source because I have thought that what I can see with my own eyes trumps who God is, and what God can do.
I don’t turn to Him as Source because:
- I already have what I need in my bank account,
- I have a good job with security and a pension,
- I value what I see in position, education, prosperity and wealth,
- I have been born into privilege in a wealthy nation,
- I haven’t always seen God come through for people like I think He should.
I could go on with other reasons, and you could probably come up with your own list.
What is key for me to recognize is that sometimes I value my flesh, and what I can see with my eyes, above God’s truth. That is where I put my trust, my beliefs, and my hope. I know that I believe all kinds of good things about God, or at least I say I do, but if I take an honest look at my choices, my priorities and my bank account, they might tell me a different story.
At this point I want to add something that is vital. Jesus told us we couldn’t serve God and mammon. We have to choose whom we will serve, and whom we will receive as the Source of life.
God is not only the Source of all I have, but He is the Source of life itself. He is the Source of all eternal matters, and this is confirmed in the teachings and life of Jesus.
Jesus said, “I am the Living Water.”
Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that the water He would give her would satisfy her thirst forever. “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” That story is found in John 4.
Jesus also said, “I am the Bread of Life.”
In John 6, Jesus tells His followers that He is Manna itself – the true bread of life. “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”
God the Source sent His only Son Jesus Christ to be the touchable, manifest Presence of God. Jesus became flesh so he could die in the flesh to redeem the world and to bring people back into the Kingdom of God as sons and daughters. In giving His life, Jesus also turned us away from eternal death to eternal life. We will live forever with Him.
He is the Source of life itself. Forever.
The Source has given us the Source of Life – water and bread – Jesus Christ.
So how does following or forsaking God as Source affect my role as steward?
Since this teaching is part of my thoughts on stewardship, I want to end with this simple thought: If I don’t believe He is Source of all – eternal life most definitely included – I will not see myself as a manager of all He has given me. I may not feel a need to give at sacrificial levels to help others. I may make more and more choices that put my own interests above the interests of others. If I don’t understand, grab hold of, and pursue the truth that God is Source, I won’t understand the importance of staying away from debt, and pouring my time and resources into furthering His Kingdom. I will be furthering my own instead.