God and Man Working Together

The principle of the Sabbath day rest speaks of the fact that men are to do their part and labor for six days a week. Then after they have done their part they are to stop and rest in God (by faith) and trust God to be the one to prosper them.

Exodus 20:9–10 (NASB95)
9 “Six days you shall labor and do all your work,
10 but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you.

Jewish law dictated that men were to work on six days a week and then on the seventh day they were not to do any work whatsoever. If the Gentiles (non-Jewish people were to compete with the Jewish people then it would seem that they would have an advantage because Gentiles can work seven-days a week to get ahead of the Jews who must rest one day. However, the Gentiles do not get ahead of the Jews by working seven days a week. This is because the human man body needs a rest and when people are rested and refreshed then they can accomplish more work in six-days than the Gentiles can do in by laboring incessantly for seven-days a week (without rest). As it turns out the Jews are very productive during the six-days they work because they do not want to waste any time, knowing they must get all of their work done before the Sabbath. This causes Jews to work hard and be efficient and not waste time. This is the reason that the majority of the Fortune 500 companies in the USA are Jewish owned businesses. They prosper by following God’s principles of success and they take off one day per week for rest and to trust in God for their prosperity rather than relying solely on human self-effort.

The main principle to be seen in the Sabbath-day rest is that men cease from their own labors and trust God by faith to do everything else. So men worked to plow and plant but God provides the rain to make the crops grow. It is a case where men are working together in conjunction with God to bring about a harvest of abundance.

Isaac Worked with God

Genesis 26:12–14 (NASB95)
12 Now Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him,
13 and the man became rich, and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy;
14 for he had possessions of flocks and herds and a great household, so that the Philistines envied him.

Isaac did his part as a Jewish man to plow and plant seed but it was God who gave the increase. God caused Isaac to reap a hundred times more grain than he had sown by giving him an abundant harvest. Isaac followed the godly principles that his father Abraham taught him so he always saved seed for the future and he did not eat the female livestock so that he would always increase.

See the link “Parable of the Goat and Mother’s Milk” for more details.

See the link “Seed for the Future” for more details.

It was because Isaac followed these Jewish principles (as seen above) that he became rich and then continued to grow richer each year until he became very wealthy. Isaac owned large possessions of flocks and herds and had a great household of servants until the Philistines envied him. It is interesting that Isaac was then living in the land of the Philistines and he was prospering there while the pagan Philistines did not prosper themselves (even in their own land). The difference was that Isaac was following biblical principles of prosperity while the Philistines broke every law of God and disregarded all of the principles God had revealed to Abraham.

Jacob Honored God with His Increase

Genesis 28:20–22 (NASB95)
20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take, and will give me food to eat and garments to wear,
21 and I return to my father’s house in safety, then the LORD will be my God.
22 “This stone, which I have set up as a pillar, will be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”

Jacob left home with nothing but the staff in his hand. On the journey God appeared to Jacob in a dream and promised to give him and his descendants all of this land (which is now found in present-day Israel). Jacob then made a vow that if God would do his part to bless him and provide for him and protect him from harm, then God would be his God. Jacob also uttered a pledge to God that all that he would receive as increase, he would give a tenth part of that back to God. This was a tithe of all of Jacob’s increased and it was given with the intent to honor and and worship God by declaring all that he had had come from God (as his source of prosperity). Jacob learned this principle from his father Isaac and Isaac learned this principle from his father Abraham who learned it from God.

See the link “Giving and Kingdom Finances” for more details.

Honoring God with their increase is a major factor in the prosperity of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and their descendants (the present-day Jewish people).

Genesis 13:2 (NASB95)
2 Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver and in gold.

Abram become very rich in livestock and in silver and in gold. This blessing came from God as Abram obeyed God’s commands and incurred the blessing of God upon his life. Paying a tithe to the Lord of a tenth-part of his increase was an act of worship to acknowledge that all Abraham possessed had been realized because of God’s blessing upon his life.

Genesis 14:23 (NASB95)
23 that I will not take a thread or a sandal thong or anything that is yours, for fear you would say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’

Abraham told the King of Sodom, that he would not accept any of the plunder of battle because he did not want any human to say that they had made Abraham rich. Only God made Abraham rich and so he did not want anyone to say differently.

God Working Together with Mankind

Again, this speaks of a situation where God is working together with man to bring about blessing. The men did their part for plowing and sowing and saving seed and preserving female livestock for reproduction. But most of all they paid their tithes to honor God for their increase. It was when they did their part that God was able to do his part to bless and prosper them.

Proverbs 3:9–10 (NASB95)
9 Honor the LORD from your wealth And from the first of all your produce;
10 So your barns will be filled with plenty And your vats will overflow with new wine.

The Jewish people were to honor God with the first part of all of their increase. If they received ten-bushels of grain they were to give one bushel to God. If they had ten-goats or ten-sheep or ten-chickens, they were to give one to God. If they had ten-silver coins they were to give one to God. Giving a tenth part of their wealth was an act of worship to acknowledge that it was God who made them prosper. Yes, they had to do their part to labor for six days but resting on the seventh day speaks of doing their part and then resting in God and trusting God by faith for their increase that comes from God.

Malachi 3:10–12 (NASB95)
10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.
11 “Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the LORD of hosts.
12 “All the nations will call you blessed, for you shall be a delightful land,” says the LORD of hosts.

The Jewish people were to bring the first part (the first tenth-part) of their increase to God as tithes. God promised them that if they would honor him with their tithes then God would bless them. God promised to open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing for them until it overflows! God would rebuke the devourer so that they would not lose their crops to insect plagues or plant disease or drought or bandits. All nations would call Israel blessed because the citizens of that nation were all obeying God and paying their tithes and this brings prosperity to the entire country. This was the same thing Abraham did and the same thing his son Isaac did and the same thing his grandson Jacob did. This has continued to all generations until present times with God blessing his people the Jews.

Romans 2:11 (NASB95)
11 For there is no partiality with God.

This however works for Gentiles as well because God is no respecter of persons and God shows no partiality to anyone. This means that anyone who will follow God’s principles and honor him with tithes will be blessed (just as all of the generations of the Jews were blessed for doing the same things). It is a law of nature which will work for both Jews and Gentiles and for anyone who will exercise faith in God to honor God with the first tenth-part of their increase.

2 Corinthians 9:6 (NASB95)
6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

God cannot be “out-given” so if a man gives more than just the required tenth-part and proceeds to give more as “offerings” to God then he will be prospered for his giving. This is a natural law that works like the law of gravity and was setup by God to bless those who have the faith to give to the Lord.

See the link “Giving and Kingdom Finances” for more details.

Stolen Money is Cursed

Proverbs 13:11 (NASB95)
11 Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles, But the one who gathers by labor increases it.

It is a fact of life that those who live by theft and fraud and scams have cursed money which will go through their hands like dry sand going through a hole in their pockets. This is because stolen wealth is cursed and the devourer will be released to destroy this stolen wealth. This however is not the case for those who make a living by honest labor of working to produce wealth. Honest wealth can be blessed and multiplied by God (who will rebuke the devourer) so that their wealth is blessed and will continue to increase over the long-term.

Blessings of Obedience

Leviticus 26:2–10 (NASB95)
2 ‘You shall keep My sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary; I am the LORD.
3 ‘If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments so as to carry them out,
4 then I shall give you rains in their season, so that the land will yield its produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit.
5 ‘Indeed, your threshing will last for you until grape gathering, and grape gathering will last until sowing time. You will thus eat your food to the full and live securely in your land.
6 ‘I shall also grant peace in the land, so that you may lie down with no one making you tremble. I shall also eliminate harmful beasts from the land, and no sword will pass through your land.
7 ‘But you will chase your enemies and they will fall before you by the sword;
8 five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall before you by the sword.
9 ‘So I will turn toward you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will confirm My covenant with you.
10 ‘You will eat the old supply and clear out the old because of the new.

If the Jewish people would take their day of rest (honoring God by faith to worship God on that day of rest) and if they would keep God’s commands (as their forefathers Abraham and Isaac and Jacob also did) then God would bless them. God would do his part and give them rain in season (needed for abundant crops). The land would yield its produce and their fruit trees would bear fruit. They would have peace and be free from the destruction and pillage of war. Even the evil beasts that are dangerous to livestock and children would be removed from the land. Their enemies would be chased away by God. They would be made fruitful and multiply with many children because children are a blessing from God. The increase would be so abundant that they would have to clear out the old stock (of grain) in order to make room for the new harvest. This means that they would have more than enough and great surplus of blessing. All of this blessing came from resting in God by faith for one day, and honoring God with tithes and offerings and obeying God’s laws. These blessings can be realized by all people (both Jews and Gentiles) for whoever will release their faith to obey God and trust God for their increase and blessing.

Doing Our Part and Trusting in God

It should be noted that a self-sufficient man is not going to walk with God unless he first surrenders himself out of his own freewill. God has given humans a freewill and they must choose to follow and obey God and submit to the plan that he has for their lives. The problem with a self-sufficient man is that he lives (as if he has no need of God whatsoever). Such a man is blind to his own need for the Lord and this places him on dangerous ground.

Revelation 3:17 (NASB95)
17 ‘Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,

The problem with the rich man is that they are unaware of their need for God for anything. They assume that they are wealthy and have need of nothing but in fact they are spiritually wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. This is a description of someone who it totally helpless in every way.

Isaiah 53:6 (ESV)
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

When humans go their own way and do their own thing and falsely imagine that they have no need of God whatsoever, then this independence is sin in the sight of God. Going their own way is like a sheep going astray from the shepherd as they wander alone in a forest full of wolves (just waiting to be devoured).

The purpose of this lesson is to emphasize the fact that man and God are to work together. Yes, man does his part and works for six-days. He is to plow and plant and sow seed but then he is to rest in God by faith and trust God for the increase. God cannot bless him if he is too lazy to plow or plant. There has to be some action on the part of humans so God can bless their work.

Proverbs 20:4 (NASB95)
4 The sluggard does not plow after the autumn, So he begs during the harvest and has nothing.

A sluggard is a lazy man who does not do anything. He is to plow in the autumn so that the ground will have good soil structure from freezing and thawing of the plowed soil. This plowed ground will be soft and absorbent for rain so that it will be ready for planting in the springtime. A man has to think ahead and do his work at the right time and season so that he will be ready to plant in the spring. Those who do not do this will miss the planting season and so they will not have any crops if they do not plant on time and so their crops will not come to maturity before the growing season is ended.

This is an example from agriculture but this same principle applies to any type of work a man can do. They have to do their part first before God can bless the work of their hands.

However, there is a unique balance here because of a man drifts into becoming self-sufficient (indicated by not observing one day as week rest) and also (indicated by not giving one out of every tenth part to God) then he has become like a stray sheep. A sheep is to follow the good shepherd and submit himself to the Lord (who knows the best plan for his life). People are not to rely solely on self-effort to prosper themselves while totally forgetting about God. Oftentimes such self-sufficient people will have to be humbled by failure and adverse circumstances in order to humble them and show them their need for God. If they do not come to realize their need for God they can end up living their entire lives as stray sheep. Such people are living in the sin of human self-sufficiency and independence and it will not go well for them on judgment day.

Therefore a balance exists where the men are to do their part but at the same time they are not to forget God and live like a stray sheep who is deceived to falsely imagine that they have no need of God whatsoever. If they do not correct this bad attitude they will come to their end of their lives and find themselves within the eternal torment of hell.

Case of the Self-Sufficient Rich Man

Luke 12:16–21 (NASB95)
16 And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive.
17 “And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19 ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.” ’
20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’
21 “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

This parable illustrates that human self-sufficiency is pride and is a sin which will have negative eternal consequences. In this example, there was a worldly rich man whose land was very productive. He had great abundance and did not have have enough room to store all of his grain and goods. So he planned to tear down his barns and build bigger ones so that he would have room to store his possessions and wealth. But God called this man a fool and told him that his life would be required of him this very night. So he would die and leave behind all of the wealth which he had hoarded up for himself. Those who hoard natural treasure on earth are not rich toward God because they are in fact engaged in the sin of self-sufficiency. They falsely imagine that they have no need of God and have not consideration for eternal things which will effect them after they perish and leave this earth.

Actual Case of a Self-Sufficient Rich Man in Hell

Luke 16:19–31 (NASB95)
19 “Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day.
20 “And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores,
21 and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.
22 “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried.
23 “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 “And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’
25 “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.
26 ‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’
27 “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house—
28 for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’
30 “But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’
31 “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”

This account above is not a parable (illustration of truth) but instead this is an actual rich man who lived in luxury during his time on earth. This rich man was not named because he was not worth remembering since he only served himself all of his life. However, in this true account there was a poor man named Lazarus (who was mentioned by name and was remembered by God). Apparently, before this poor man perished he had come to believe in God and released his faith for salvation (to become a righteous man) because he found himself in heaven after his death. This is like the righteous men such as Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob and King Hezekiah and King David and many others who had lived in a manner that was dependent upon God by faith. There is a big difference between as worldly rich man (like the ones found in hell) and the righteous rich men who were blessed by God due to their faith.

Under the topic category [Bible Translation Mistakes] there is a lesson which defines the difference between worldly rich men and righteous rich men.

See the link “Distinguish Worldly Rich Men” for more details.