The Cause of This Discrepancy Between God's Gifts
The cause of discrepancy between God's gifts is our unbelief in His love, power, and promises.
Andrew Murray addresses the believer's complaint about not receiving the fullness of God's blessings, emphasizing that the root cause lies in unbelief and a misunderstanding of God's love. He illustrates this through the elder son in the parable, who, despite being in his father's house, failed to grasp the abundance of blessings available to him due to his spirit of bondage. Murray asserts that many believers live in ignorance and blindness, missing out on the privileges God has for them because they do not fully trust in His promises. The sermon encourages believers to recognize that any discrepancy in their spiritual experience is a result of their own lack of faith in God's love and power.
Text
The believer is complaining that God has never given him a kid. Or, God has given him some blessing, but has never given the full blessing. He has never filled him with His Spirit. "I never," he says, "had my heart, as a fountain, giving forth the rivers of living water promised in John vii. 38." What is the cause?
The elder son thought he was serving his father faithfully "these many years" in his father's house, but it was in the spirit of bondage and not in the spirit of a child, so that his unbelief blinded him to the conception of a father's love and kindness, and he was unable all the time to see that his father was ready, not only to give him a kid, but a hundred, or a thousand kids, if he would have them.
He was simply living in unbelief, in ignorance, in blindness, robbing himself of the privileges that the father had for him. So, if there be a discrepancy between our life and the fulfillment and enjoyment of all God's promises, the fault is ours.
It our experience be not what God wants it to be, it is because of our unbelief in the love of God, in the power of God, and in the reality of God's promises.
Sermon Outline
- The Cause of Discrepancy Between God's Gifts
- Unbelief in God's Love
- Unbelief in God's Power
- Unbelief in God's Promises
Key Quotes
“He was simply living in unbelief, in ignorance, in blindness, robbing himself of the privileges that the father had for him.” — Andrew Murray
“It our experience be not what God wants it to be, it is because of our unbelief in the love of God, in the power of God, and in the reality of God's promises.” — Andrew Murray
Application Points
- Recognize and confess your unbelief, and ask God to help you trust in His love and power.
- Learn to live in the spirit of a child, trusting in God's goodness and provision.
- Seek to understand and apply God's promises in your life, and trust in His ability to fulfill them.