Gospel Teaching Article

God Is The Giver Of All Things

Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.
-Romans 11:35-36

Sometimes it seems like there is so much emphasis placed upon man’s supposed duty to give to God that we have forgotten what He has given to us. Organized religion spends more time pontificating about what we should give, how we should give, when we should give, how much we should give, and to whom we should give than it does in sharing the good news of what we have been given.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not trying to discourage you from giving to anyone or anything. Give from a cheerful heart. Give gladly. Give to help others from what you have to give. But do you need to be told that again and again and again? You’ve probably heard it enough by now that you are tired of hearing it. What you will never grow tired of hearing, however, is the endless array of all that has been granted to you in Christ.

You have been created by Him to need continual reminders of His faithfulness and His generosity toward you, not yours toward Him. The truth is that He is not “served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things” (NAB Acts 17:25). On the other hand, it does your heart good to know all that you have been freely given by Him. It soothes and calms your mind. It brings you joy and contentment in the midst of the difficulties and hardships of life. It comforts you when you fail in your treatment of others and when you choose poorly for yourself.

Friend, God is the giver of all things and by His grace you have been given all in Christ. The mother lode of spiritual blessings has been poured out upon you and in you in Christ. God, who is over all and through all and in all has given grace to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift (Ephesians 4:6-7). You and I once dead were made alive with Christ. You and I once unrighteous have been given the righteousness of God in Christ. You and I once guilty and condemned in Adam have been justified and accepted in Christ. We were once helpless with nothing. He made us conquerors and gave us everything!    

The Scriptures burst at the seams with the testimonies of men who knew that all things that men had received were first given to them by God. The prophet Jeremiah knew all things came from God and that his hope of anything was in Him:

Are there any among the idols of the nations who give rain? Or can the heavens grant showers? Is it not Thou, O LORD our God? Therefore we hope in Thee, For Thou art the one who hast done all these things (Jeremiah 14:22, NAS).

Job knew that his very life was given to him and sustained by God:

Thou hast granted me life and lovingkindness; And Thy care has preserved my spirit (NAS, Job 10:12).

Isaiah had no doubt in his mind from whom came all the blessings of Israel:

I shall make mention of the lovingkindnesses of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, According to all that the LORD has granted us, And the great goodness toward the house of Israel, Which He has granted them according to His compassion, And according to the multitude of His lovingkindnesses (NAS, Isaiah 63:7).

Jesus Himself knew that if any man were to be saved it must be granted to Him by the Father:

And He was saying, "For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” (NAB, John 6:65).

Perhaps no one was more aware or more grateful for the kindness, grace, and benevolence of God than the apostle Paul. His letters are rich with praises for all that he and others now had in Christ because he knew that God alone was the giver, the grantor, of all things:

For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise (NAS Galatians 3:18).

As it is written, "A FATHER OF MANY NATIONS HAVE I MADE YOU" in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist (NAB Romans 4:17).

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (NAB 1 Corinthians 15:57).

So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you (NAB 1 Thessalonians 4:8).

God has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity (NAS 2 Timothy 1:9).

But you say, “Now that I too see all that God has granted me I want to give something to Him!” My friend that is what grace produces in the heart of a grateful man, doesn’t it? A desire to express appreciation for all that one has received knowing that none of it was deserved. If you want to give something back to Him, then simply give Him your thanks. That’s right. Let what He has worked in you overflow back to Him, “always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father” (Ephesians 5:20).

Thank Him for the joy that is now yours because of what He has done. Thank Him for the peace of mind that is finally yours in Christ. Thank Him for granting you some level of understanding of this amazing gospel in which we now stand. Thank Him for saving you apart from anything you could do. Thank Him for the righteousness that is now yours as a gift, never to be taken away, yours forever to be enjoyed. Nothing brings God greater joy nor higher honor than his children believing what He has said He has done is truly done.

As you move on into this new year, I pray that God will grant you the revelation that “all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God” (2 Corinthians 4:15).

Grace and peace to you always!

John