Provision Through Blood

Acts 2:44-45 (NLT) -

And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need.

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I think it's about time we get back to our "Life in the Ecclesia" series. Today, we'll be discussing the role of blood in the body as the carrier of nutrients, providing for the needs of every part no matter how small.

Our blood is quite incredible. It takes nutrients from our digested food, from our breath, and from several other places, then carries those nutrients through the body before trading off the healthy nutrients (such as oxygen) with toxins that shouldn't stay there (such as carbon dioxide). This process is caused by the heart, which pumps blood around the body at maximum speeds of just under 1m/sec!

One of the most significant marks of the early church was the believers' generosity towards one another and to their wider community. The ecclesia in Jerusalem and the surrounding areas were truly living out Jesus' words in John 13:35 - "Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." The heart of God was beating in them powerfully, and the result is that the believers were sharing nutrients with each other, sharing everything they had to make sure that there wasn't a single person in the church who didn't have food to eat, a clean, safe place to sleep, and a community to support them. They even went to such an extreme extent that they sold what they had in order to provide for the less fortunate among them.

However, the blood doesn't carry nutrients of its own - everything it carries comes from an outside source, whether that be food or air. Our money, the things God has provided for us; were never ours to begin with, we've just been given the responsibility of carrying them for a time so that we can use them for the building of the Body. This is why we tithe, but if we stop there then we're missing out on some incredible opportunities to witness to people through demonstrations of God's heart and his grace!

God started shaping some things in me around this several years ago when, on my way home from uni late one night, a homeless man in the city asked me for money. I told him I didn't have any cash and got ready to move on, but he insisted that I could take him to Target and buy him a new pair of shoes. I hadn't thought of that before but liked the idea, so took him in and bought a new sleeping bag. Unfortunately, with my financial situation at the time, I had to dip into my budget significantly to get it for him, but I considered it to be worth doing. From that point on, I decided I would set aside part of my wage so I could do things like that in future without worrying about how I'd pay for groceries that week. I now set 5% of each payslip I get towards what I call my "Blessings Money," which I can use in any way that is going to bless someone, whether in small or big ways. It could look like paying for their drink, or giving them money for groceries and petrol that week - the what isn't as important as the purpose it serves.

Doing this also reflects God's instruction to the Israelites in Leviticus: “‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.’” Pay attention to that last sentence: God is reminding the Israelites that he is their Lord, and has given them all their harvest anyway - this is just one way in which they can honour him.

So, here's my question to you: if you are someone who is in a position to give to others, how are you helping to carry God's love and provision to the people around you, especially people who are in the Body of Christ?

As for those of you who aren't in a position to do that, it's okay! Believe me when I say that I've been in that same situation, wondering if I was going to have what I needed to pay my rent this week or next, let alone buy groceries. You don't need to be ashamed - if it's for a reason outside of your control, then ask for help and ask for prayer from people within the Body whom you trust. As I mentioned in my most recent "Life in the Ecclesia" post, communication is absolutely fundamental to the proper function of the Body, and that includes sharing the things that we're struggling with or feeling a lack in. If we don't share, we open ourselves to wounding and infection; if we do share in humble vulnerability, then we will often be amazed at how God's people respond and help to strengthen us in a time when we otherwise wouldn't have been sure of how we were going to get through.

If you're struggling with resources for a reason you can control, like financial management, then ask for help in learning to manage your resources - God has put people like that in the church for a reason!

Regardless of whether you are well-off, stable, or living hand-to-mouth, I would encourage you to still try and find some way, even if only small, to contribute in generosity towards the church or someone else's provision. After all, the majority of believers in the New Testament were slaves, earning next to nothing, and yet when they pooled their money, they were able to help provide for the believers fleeing Jerusalem when the church came under heavy persecution. As Jesus remarks of the widow in Mark 12:43-44, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” Never underestimate what God can and will do with your generosity, however small that might seem to you.

There is another function that the blood has in the body, but I think I will leave that for another time. I just felt very strongly to share this today. I pray that you have a blessed day, that you grow in deeper relationship with God and with others, and that you may experience the fullness of God's grace and his ecclesia as a personal revelation in your lives.