From: “HOW DID ISAAC PROSPER DURING FAMINE?”
"I had been praying in the Spirit for fifteen hours when I heard the Spirit say to me very plainly:"
"Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him."
"You have been taught that this passage means, 'give bigger offerings to God when things are tough'. That is not what Isaac did! He sowed into the earth during drought. The modern day equivalent would be those people who bought Oklahoma land during the Dust Bowl days and those who bought stocks during the Great Depression. They all became rich later."
There was no temple, so this was the only avenue available to them in that time to make offerings to God. Or, Isaac could have tried to track down Melchizedek to offer gifts. But bigger offerings to God was not the lesson to be learned here. God had a reason for wanting to bless Isaac materially and he caused Isaac to sow material seed into the material earth to do it."
"Another example of this principle; when God wanted to exalt Pharaoh to be the most powerful ruler on earth, he did not instruct Joseph to tell him, "What you need to do, Pharaoh, is to offer bigger and bigger offerings to God." No, God wanted to exalt him materially and He used material means and supernatural information to accomplish it."
"God gave Pharaoh a dream containing, basically, the "inside information" regarding the future of their commodities market. Joseph gave the interpretation which contained within it the plan of God, "Gather the surplus grain during the seven fat years". [Note: because of the glut of surplus grain available in the marketplace, this seven year period of gathering would have generated no profit at all in a typical commodities market. No doubt the "economic experts" of the day lampooned him as being foolish.]
The rest of God's plan was, "Sell during the seven lean years." [Note: because Pharaoh now had the market cornered, the profits were enormous. This is the exact opposite, but the same principle as buying Oklahoma Dust Bowl land then selling it later. The principle is: Buy (invest, sow) when others won't, then sell to them when they have no choice but to buy from you. You can name your own price then.]"
"Remember, it is not by formula that we prosper, but rather by finding out the plan of God for each generation and flowing with that plan. God wanted Abraham to go to Egypt because He wanted Abraham to see something there."
"Notice that during all of these famines, Egypt nearly always had excess crops. Why? Egypt is a very arid land and seldom receives sufficient rainfall to produce good harvests. The Egyptians had long since mastered the art of irrigation. The land of Egypt was blessed with the Nile River, which has it's headwaters deep in the mountains of Africa. Drought in Egypt did not affect the Nile because the source of its flow was in Africa."
"God wanted Abraham to observe how the Egyptians irrigated their crops. You could put it this way: While Abraham was in Egypt he had the opportunity to observe the "cutting edge" of technology regarding crop irrigation in an arid land. I am sure, to Abraham, this technology was interesting but he could see no application for it in the land of Canaan. After all, Canaan had no Nile River from which to irrigate, and you certainly cannot use saltwater from the Dead Sea nor the Ocean."
"HOW DID ISAAC PROSPER DURING FAMINE?
Isaac had to find out God's plan.
Isaac had to hear from God.
Isaac had to obey God's voice.
Isaac had to break with the tradition of his father.
Isaac adapted the wisdom of previous generations to the circumstances he was living in [Famine in Canaan].
Isaac had to be bold enough to do something that had never been done before [irrigation from well water].
Isaac had to overcome resistance [they contended for his wells].
Isaac had to persevere and not become discouraged by the resistance.
Isaac refused to get in strife with those who were opposing him."
"Once you receive a "Word of Knowledge" and/or instructions from the Lord, then it is up to you TO ACT ON IT! God did not dig the wells for Isaac. That was Isaac's responsibility."
"Notice the two way communication going on here. Communication requires RELATIONSHIP, not FORMULA! God spoke to Isaac. Isaac obeyed and turned back to God in worship and trust in God's Word until God dropped the Word of Knowledge into him. Then Isaac acted on that Word of Knowledge."
Isaac Sowed in Famine
ISAAC SOWED IN FAMINE
"I had been praying in the Spirit for fifteen hours when I heard the Spirit say to me very plainly:"
"Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him."
"You have been taught that this passage means, 'give bigger offerings to God when things are tough'. That is not what Isaac did! He sowed into the earth during drought. The modern day equivalent would be those people who bought Oklahoma land during the Dust Bowl days and those who bought stocks during the Great Depression. They all became rich later."
There was no temple, so this was the only avenue available to them in that time to make offerings to God. Or, Isaac could have tried to track down Melchizedek to offer gifts. But bigger offerings to God was not the lesson to be learned here. God had a reason for wanting to bless Isaac materially and he caused Isaac to sow material seed into the material earth to do it."
"Another example of this principle; when God wanted to exalt Pharaoh to be the most powerful ruler on earth, he did not instruct Joseph to tell him, "What you need to do, Pharaoh, is to offer bigger and bigger offerings to God." No, God wanted to exalt him materially and He used material means and supernatural information to accomplish it."
"God gave Pharaoh a dream containing, basically, the "inside information" regarding the future of their commodities market. Joseph gave the interpretation which contained within it the plan of God, "Gather the surplus grain during the seven fat years". [Note: because of the glut of surplus grain available in the marketplace, this seven year period of gathering would have generated no profit at all in a typical commodities market. No doubt the "economic experts" of the day lampooned him as being foolish.]
The rest of God's plan was, "Sell during the seven lean years." [Note: because Pharaoh now had the market cornered, the profits were enormous. This is the exact opposite, but the same principle as buying Oklahoma Dust Bowl land then selling it later. The principle is: Buy (invest, sow) when others won't, then sell to them when they have no choice but to buy from you. You can name your own price then.]"
"Remember, it is not by formula that we prosper, but rather by finding out the plan of God for each generation and flowing with that plan. God wanted Abraham to go to Egypt because He wanted Abraham to see something there."
"Notice that during all of these famines, Egypt nearly always had excess crops. Why? Egypt is a very arid land and seldom receives sufficient rainfall to produce good harvests. The Egyptians had long since mastered the art of irrigation. The land of Egypt was blessed with the Nile River, which has it's headwaters deep in the mountains of Africa. Drought in Egypt did not affect the Nile because the source of its flow was in Africa."
"God wanted Abraham to observe how the Egyptians irrigated their crops. You could put it this way: While Abraham was in Egypt he had the opportunity to observe the "cutting edge" of technology regarding crop irrigation in an arid land. I am sure, to Abraham, this technology was interesting but he could see no application for it in the land of Canaan. After all, Canaan had no Nile River from which to irrigate, and you certainly cannot use saltwater from the Dead Sea nor the Ocean."
"HOW DID ISAAC PROSPER DURING FAMINE?
Isaac had to find out God's plan.
Isaac had to hear from God.
Isaac had to obey God's voice.
Isaac had to break with the tradition of his father.
Isaac adapted the wisdom of previous generations to the circumstances he was living in [Famine in Canaan].
Isaac had to be bold enough to do something that had never been done before [irrigation from well water].
Isaac had to overcome resistance [they contended for his wells].
Isaac had to persevere and not become discouraged by the resistance.
Isaac refused to get in strife with those who were opposing him."
"Once you receive a "Word of Knowledge" and/or instructions from the Lord, then it is up to you TO ACT ON IT! God did not dig the wells for Isaac. That was Isaac's responsibility."
"Notice the two way communication going on here. Communication requires RELATIONSHIP, not FORMULA! God spoke to Isaac. Isaac obeyed and turned back to God in worship and trust in God's Word until God dropped the Word of Knowledge into him. Then Isaac acted on that Word of Knowledge."
Isaac Sowed in Famine
ISAAC SOWED IN FAMINE
