God My Provider

by Keith Gardner

Genesis 22:14 So Abraham called that place (Jehovah-jireh) The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of (Jehovah) the Lord it will be provided.”

I’m sure you have heard the saying as I have; “God helps those who help themselves.” I am also sure you are aware that this saying not only is not in the Bible; its very concept is not scriptural. There is a false conception tied to the saying and it permeates our Christian thinking; “God needs my help.” I spend a great deal of energy working to provide for my family. There have been times I have worked hard to solve some problem. At times I have worried, contrived, and manipulated others to fix relationships in my family or between friends. All because I think God needs my help.

God provides all I need. He does not need my help providing anything. I work not because God needs me to provide for myself, but so I can honor God with the strength, energy, ingenuity, and abilities that He has already provided; my work is in effect a tithe of the provision of ability.

God’s provision verses my efforts is like works verses faith. Faith not exercised is pointless (James 2:17-20); but works without faith is self-effort and void of God (Rom. 4, Eph. 2, Galatians). However, when I put my faith into action the results are fruitful labor (James 2:20-26).

But God’s supply goes far beyond the temporal provisions that so quickly come to our minds. The story of God our Provider found in Genesis 22 is not only about God providing Abraham a ram to sacrifice instead of his son. It is also an illustration into the character and intentions of God. Just as God sent Abraham to sacrifice his only son; God Himself sent his only Son to be a sacrifice. With Abraham, God provided him a substitute sacrifice – the goat caught in the thicket. But in the sacrifice of God’s son there was no ram in the thicket. Jesus became the sacrificed Lamb that takes away the sins of the world. Jesus became my sacrifice and the sacrifice for my sons. Now I do not have to worry about being asked to offer up my boys on the alter of God’s request. Jesus became the last sacrifice required – once for all.

Jehovah-jireh – The Lord Will Provide encompasses all the ideas of a provider. There is the answered prayer for our daily bread, but more importantly there is the provision of hope for a sinner who needs redemption.