Enjoying Christ as the Rich Provision of Life: He is the Secret of our Sufficiency

Jacob’s prophesying with blessing concerning each of his sons applies both to the history and experience of the twelve tribes of Israel and to our Christian experience in the church today.

We all start in a low and sinful way, as dead in sins and offenses, living in the lusts of our flesh (Reuben) and having a terrible disposition and natural man (Simeon and Levi).

However, Christ (Judah) came as the Victorious One; as a young lion, He took us all as His prey and made peace, becoming our rest and satisfaction in the gospel.

At one point in our life we have received the preaching of the gospel (Zebulun) and we started to enjoy the Lord in the church life (Issachar), and the enjoyment of Christ strengthened us to lower our shoulder and serve in the church as needed.

But after we had a victory in gaining more Christ, there was the danger of apostasy, that is, not being in fellowship with the Body but being divisive, local-church-focused and not Body-focused; so we had to repent, return to God, fellowship with Him and with the saints, and be blended in the Body of Christ (Dan).

In this recovery and restoration we enjoy and experience Christ for the Body, and we pay the price not only to enjoy Christ ourselves but also to help others enjoy Him in their daily life (Gad).

Today we want to see how this experience of fighting for the brothers to enjoy Christ and enjoying the Lord as our portion together with the other saints (being conscious of the Body of Christ) leads to having a rich provision of life and being sufficient in Christ for fighting and building (Asher).

Asher was blessed by Jacob (and later by Moses) with much grace and a rich provision, “dipping his foot in oil” and “as your days are, so shall your strength be” (see Deut. 33:24-25).

As we enjoy Christ in the church life and pay the price to help others enter into their allotted portion of enjoyment, as we enjoy Christ for the Body and in the Body, and as we take care of the Body and are filled with a corporate sense for the members of the Body, we are filled with the enjoyment of Christ, we have the rich provision of life, we learn the secret of sufficiency, and we are equipped for fighting and qualified for the building.

Enjoying the Rich Provision of Life for Fighting and Building

Concerning Asher, Jacob said, Asher’s food will be rich, and he will yield royal dainties (Gen. 49:20). Later, Moses also spoke concerning Asher and said,

Blessed be Asher above the sons. May he be the one favored of his brothers, and the one dipping his foot in oil. Your door-bolts shall be iron and copper; and as your days are, so shall your strength be (Deut. 33:24-25).

Jacob’s prophecy and Moses’ blessing show the sufficiency of Asher coming after the recovery with Gad. Dainties are delicious things, delicacies, choice food. Asher was blessed with rich food, with the rich provision of life.

In the church life today we are blessed with many delicious aspects of Christ as our rich supply of life. Christ is our real desert, our real delicious food, and our most choice food.

We are not only a family of lions (from the tribe of Judah) but we are also a kingly family; our dining is royal and our food are royal delicacies. As we enjoy Christ in and for the Body and fight for the other saints to also enjoy Christ, we enjoy the exceeding blessing of life and the surpassing grace.

Many times in our experience in the church life we spontaneously declare,

Lord Jesus, You are so rich! You are so delicious! Wow, we can really enjoy Your extensive and choice riches together with the saints. Lord Jesus, You are the choicest food, the most wonderful and tasty one, the sweetest One. We love to enjoy You, eat You, and drink You with the saints!

This rich provision of life is our enjoyment in the church life and in our personal Christian life, and we are equipped and prepared for fighting and for God’s building (Deut. 33:25). The rich food and royal dainties are for our living and growing, and the iron and copper are minerals for fighting and building.

When we enjoy Christ personally and corporately, when we taste Him and enjoy the rich provision of life in the church life, we are inwardly supplied to grow in life and outwardly equipped to fight for God’s interest and build up the church.

Dipping our Foot in Oil and Learning the Secret of Sufficiency

Asher was “dipping his foot in oil” (Gen. 49:24); the spiritual significance of this is that we are full of the Spirit and enjoying the bountiful supply of the Spirit for our daily walk (Gal. 5:25; Phil. 1:19).

When we enjoy Christ daily, we are filled with the Spirit and we “walk in oil”, that is, walk by the spirit in our daily living to magnify and express Christ.

“As your days are, so shall your strength be” (Deut. 33:25) implies that, as we enjoy the Lord daily as our rich provision of life, He becomes our secret of sufficiency for us to be content in every situation (see Phil. 4:11-13).

The Lord Himself is our Shepherd, and we do not lack anything when we enjoy His shepherding care (Psa. 23:1). Paul learned the secret of sufficiency: he learned how to be content no matter what the outward circumstances are. A. B. Simpson once said,

“I found it was Himself coming in instead and giving me what I needed at the moment. I wanted to have a great stock, so that I could feel rich; a great store laid up for many years, so that I would not be dependent upon Him the next day; but He never gave me such a store. I never had more holiness or healing at one time than I needed for that hour. He said: “My child, you must come to Me for the next breath because I love you so dearly I want you to come all the time. If I gave you a great supply, you would do without Me and would not come to Me so often; now you have to come to Me every second, and lie on My breast every moment.” He gave me a great fortune, placed thousands and millions at credit, but He gave a cheque-book with this one condition, “You never can draw more than you need at the time.” Every time a cheque was wanted, however, there was the name of Jesus upon it, and so it brought more glory to Him, kept His name before the heavenly world and God was glorified in His Son.

I had to learn to take from Him my spiritual life every second, to breathe Himself in as I breathed, and breathe myself out. So, moment by moment for the spirit, and moment by moment for the body, we must receive. You say, “Is not that a terrible bondage, to be always on the strain?” What, on the strain with one you love, your dearest Friend? Oh, no! It comes so naturally, so spontaneously, so like a fountain, without consciousness, without effort, for true life is always easy, and overflowing.

And now, thank God, I have Him, not only what I have room for, but that which I have not room for, but for which I shall have room, moment by moment, as I go on into the eternity before me. I am like the little bottle in the sea, as full as it will hold. The bottle is in the sea, and the sea is in the bottle; so I am in Christ, and Christ is in me. But, besides that bottleful in the sea, there is a whole ocean beyond; the difference is, that the bottle has to be filled over again, every day, evermore.” (Quotes from, A. B. Simpson)

We need to come to the Lord for His rich supply for RIGHT NOW and not worry about tomorrow. We come to Him for the very next breath, and we come to Him all the time, seeking to lean on His breast and receive His rich supply.

The secret of sufficiency in our Christian life is coming to the Lord again and again with all our problems, situations, decisions, desires, plans, and everything. We breathe ourselves out and breathe Him in. He is the secret of our sufficiency.

As we talk to the Lord about everything, we learn the secret of enjoying Christ in every circumstance so that we may be content in all situations.

In nothing be anxious but in all things with petition and thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God, and His peace – which surpasses every man’s understanding – will guard our heart in Christ Jesus (see Phil. 4:6-7).

The wonderful issue of enjoying such a rich provision of Christ, dipping our foot in oil, and learning the secret of sufficiency, is that we enjoy absolute rest with peace, strength, security, and sufficiency in Christ.

Lord Jesus, we want to come to You every moment to enjoy You and open to You concerning everything in our life. Lord, we want to let our requests be made known to You with petitions and thanksgiving. We refuse to be anxious and choose to come to You in everything to fellowship with You and breathe You in. Thank You Lord for Your rich provision in Your word, in Your Spirit, and in the Body. Keep us enjoying You as our rest, our peace, our strength, our security, and our sufficiency. Lord, in You we are content and satisfied!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. Ed Marks’ sharing in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Genesis (msg. 104), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Genesis (3), week 11 / msg 11, Jacob’s Prophesying with Blessing (2).
• Picture credit for Deuteronomy 33:24-25 and more spiritual quotes on this topic via, Christian Pictures Blog.
• Hymns on this topic:
  # I have learned the wondrous secret / Of abiding in the Lord; / I have tasted life’s pure fountain, / I am drinking of His word; / I have found the strength and sweetness / Of abiding ’neath the blood; / I have lost myself in Jesus, / I am sinking into God. (Hymns #564 by A. B. Simpson)
  # I call His name, “Lord Jesus, / Help me in my weakness.” / So faithfully each day in me / He proves His life is so sufficient. (Song on Enjoying Christ)
  # I take Thee, Lord, to be my all. / Since all Thou art is mine; / I nothing have, and nothing am; / That nothing, Lord, is Thine. / Thou shalt be everything to me / In all things my sufficiency. (Hymns #521)