15. Ask, and you shall receive

If we don’t ‘activate’ God’s financial and material blessings to us through tithing or giving, then how do we appropriate the inheritance that’s rightfully ours as children of God? Well, how do children get anything? Simply ask! – that’s the Biblical way.

As children of God, we have inherited the name of Jesus, the ultimate authority in the universe. In his name we can ask for anything and we will receive it (John 14:13-14, 15:16, 16:23-26) – there are no external qualifications added¹. James declares, “You have not because you ask not” (Jas 4:2) – note that this was spoken in the context of material possessions, and there is no hint here that we might not receive because we haven’t first given. Hebrews 4:16 tells us to “approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” – again, there is no differentiation made here between types of need.

In a few references, the Bible does make it clear that there are heart issues that act like a block to our faith, and therefore to receiving from God, e.g. unbelief or doublemindedness (Jas 1:6-8), unforgiveness (e.g. Mark 11:23-26), or asking with wrong motives (Jas 4:3). But the absence of specific practical actions such as giving or tithing is never mentioned. Instead, we are told that we appropriate God’s promises simply by asking in faith.

Additionally, there are no scriptures that advise us when we have a need we ought to tithe or ‘sow’ first towards that need being met, much less claim a return on our giving – but there are many passages that tell us when we have a need or a desire for something, to simply ask our Father to supply it. None of these are conditional on us having given first, much less having given a certain minimum amount - nor do they differentiate between asking for something that’s financial/material, and asking for other types of things – we appropriate both on the same basis of faith alone.

In fact, in an important passage where Jesus commands us not to worry about our practical, daily needs (Matt 6:25-33, also Luke 12:22-31), he strongly implies that we don’t have to sow and reap for our daily needs (Matt 6:26, Luke 12:24). Instead, he talks about our heart attitude – the promise is that if we focus on seeking His Kingdom and His righteousness, He will undertake to cover all our physical needs (Matt 6:33).

We’ve already been given the whole world – it belongs to us legally. In order to receive anything, we only need to ask in faith, on the basis of what Jesus did for us. Don’t add conditions to your asking and receiving that are not there in the Scripture.

To simply receive our needs met by asking in faith seems so contrary to natural reason; we are so trained in our material world system that we cannot ‘get something for nothing’, that it can be easy to be deceived into believing that it works the same way in our spiritual life. But we need to remember that, like our salvation, our prosperity is not free – it cost Jesus his life. He is the one who sowed his own life (John 12:24) in order that we could freely receive all things from God. If we give away with the attitude of deliberately sowing seed – adding this work to our faith – we are saying that the sacrifice of Jesus’ life was not sufficient to cause us to inherit all things.

Because tithing is based on a truth – sowing and reaping - yet it avoids the truth of the cross, that makes it all the more subtly deceptive a teaching. But anybody could completely deny Christ and the cross, yet still live by the financial principle of sowing and reaping! However it takes a true, dedicated Christian to live by and prove the covenant truth that we are already heirs who own everything in this universe, and who can access what we need any time by asking our Father in faith.

In fact, people today are asking very similar questions to what the Jews were asking in John’s time. (John 6:28-29). People are asking what works we must do, i.e. what actions to take - in order to prosper, be blessed, please God, etc. He is still answering the same way, simply believe!

This is what the Lord told Gary Carpenter: Sowing and Reaping is Sharecropper Faith. It is a valid level of faith to operate in and most people will never graduate from it. It has sustained My Church to this hour, but will never cause the massive transfer of wealth that shall be required to fuel the combines of revival that will occur in these last days. What I desire is Sonship Faith, where you know that you actually own the very fields you are working in. You are not a sharecropper in the kingdom of God. You are a son. All that is mine is thine.

(Gary Carpenter - The Change of Covenant http://www.garycarpenter.org/KST11.html )