When the dew settled on the camp at night, the manna also came down. Numbers 11:9
There’s a lot of chaos in the world these days creating havoc in so many lives. But if we were to breakdown the situation into two basic schools of thought we’d probably arrive at the concepts of scarcity and abundance. On one side you have people who believe everything in the world is limited. Limited natural resources, limited finances, limited opportunities, limited food, limited education, and on and on. On the other you have the concept of abundance. That we are limited only by our will to seek, create, build, gather, harvest, and more.
God created a world teeming with abundance. He has always provided and will always provide. That’s not to say we don’t need to share in that abundance but rather we should live in the mindset of what we are given is 1) from God and 2) enough.
“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” Luke 1:14
When we think of the gift of abundance from God, we can be swayed by the world into attributing it to “stuff.” How much stuff, money, food, etc we have. We will see that unfold today with Black Friday stories of fighting and grasping for more of that “stuff.” But in God’s world abundance is to be shared. Whether we are blessed by money, talents, love, possessions, and more God is always asking us to give freely and abundantly just like Him.
The concept of scarcity entered the biblical story when Pharaoh was worried about the drought and famine. He greedily began gathering up all the grains and animals for himself. He worried he wouldn’t have enough. And throughout the Bible we read stories of people, like the prince who approached Jesus to become one of his disciples, who cannot open their treasure stores because of their fears of scarcity.
These conflicting world views are sometimes used to say Jesus is a socialist. But that twists the message of the Bible. A government which forcibly takes from one people (who they deem having too much abundance) and gives it to others (who they deem are not able to live abundantly) is acting out of that scarcity mindset. Jesus always wants our heart. He is powerful enough to demand it but wants it freely.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?” Matthew 6:25
When I see young people on the streets screaming for the rich to “pay their fair share” it really saddens me. What is a “fair share?” Who has determined what someone is “owed?” Who has determined what is “enough?” All that comes from a belief there isn’t enough. But God has created a world of amazing abundance. There will always be those that have more and those who have less. The only person we owe anything to is Jesus. And when we thank Him for His abundant love for us we should be spurred to share in all that He has given us.
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