Two things I ask of You...

Proverbs 30:7-9 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Two things I asked of You,
Do not refuse me before I die:
⁸ Keep deception and lies far from me,
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with the food that is my portion,
⁹ That I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?”
Or that I not be in want and steal,
And profane the name of my God.

In Matthew 6, Jesus speaks of the ways that the kingdom of God and heaven differs from the world systems in which we live. In verses 25-34, He says this concerning our material needs:  “I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”     Paul also speaks of contentment with material needs, in his letter to the Philippians. Chapter 4:11-13;19 says:   I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Indeed God will supply all of our needs. He will not though supply all of our greed. I suppose that it is easier for me, sitting in my warm home, with drawers and closets full of clothes and enough food to feed my family for weeks, in my cabinets, refrigerator and freezer, to say that with confidence, than it is for someone who lives in poverty. Yet, while I have never been to a third world country, I have frequently been told that the people who live in those countries, with very little of what we know as normal conveniences and provision, are more content and with their material circumstances and situation than are most who live in America. So then, it must really be more of a heart issue than a need issue. Again are we content with what we need or do we seek to satisfy our greed. Our culture encourages us to never be satisfied with what we have. We are encouraged to always want more. Both the philosophies of our culture and the marketing of our suppliers encourage us to want more, to keep up with or stay ahead of others. Our culture measures success in terms of accumulated dollars and possessions.

The simple request or prayer of the writer of Proverbs, in today’s text is something many in the world would sneer at. He says:  Two things I asked of You, Do not refuse me before I die: Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, That I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?” Or that I not be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.      It can be difficult in our society and culture to keep a proper perspective and balance of what we need versus what we want or desire. 1 John 2:15-17 says:    Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.    We cannot, or at least should not trust the world, our culture and its philosophies to guide us and our desires. We also cannot trust our own hearts. Jeremiah 17:9 (NLT) says: The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?

What then are we to do? Who or what can we trust? The psalmist provides an answer. He says: Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. (Psalm 37:3-5) As we delight in the Lord, as we seek Him, His kingdom and His righteousness, He will give us the desires of our heart. As we delight in Him, our desires will become aligned with His desires. It will no longer be our own deceitful heart which guides us, but rather a heart aligned with the heart of God. It will no longer be the world system, our culture or its philosophies which direct our paths, but rather God Himself. Then we too can have the contentment of Paul, the psalmist and the writer of Proverbs.

Like them we can say:      I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound… my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.      Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.     Two things I asked of You, Do not refuse me before I die: Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, That I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?” Or that I not be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.      Amen