The God Of The Full House
Our God is a God of fruitfulness. He loves increase. He is a God who wants His house filled. Let’s look at what He says in His eternal word. We’ll look at the Old and New Testament Scriptures.
Old Testament Scriptures:
God longs for increase in the natural, and in the spiritual. He longs for fruitfulness from our marriage union. When the question is asked in Malachi 2:15, "What does God want from your union?" His answer comes ringing back, "I want a godly seed." This is the desire of God's heart.
When God speaks of blessing, He promises increase of the fruit of the womb, but also of land and the fruit of the ground, of cattle, sheep, and fruitful vineyards. He talks about the increase of wealth, knowledge and even the increase of the years of our life. God's blessings are enlargement, fruitfulness and increase.
Look up these Scriptures for further study, just a few of the many on this subject in the Old Testament. God is certainly not silent on this subject:
Genesis 1:28; 9:1,7; 16:10; 17:1-6; 18-20; 22:16,17; 24:60; 26:3,4; 28:3; 30:43; 35:11; 47:27; 49:22-26
Exodus 23:26; Leviticus 26:3,9
Deuteronomy 1:10,11; 6:3; 7:13,14; 8:1; 10:22; 13:17; 26:5; 28: 4-11; 30:16
Job 5:25; Psalm 92:12-14; 128:3; 112:1,2; 115:14
Isaiah 51:2b; 54:1,2; Jeremiah 17:7,8b; 23:3; 33:22; 29:6; 30:19; Ezekiel 36:10,11.
God wanted the children of Israel not only to increase, but also to increase ABUNDANTLY, EXCEEDINGLY, MIGHTILY, PLENTEOUSLYand MULTITUDINOUSLY!
1. ABUNDANTLY
Genesis 9:7 says, "And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein." The Hebrew word for 'abundantly' is 'sharats' which means 'to swarm or abound.' The MLB translation gives a correct rendering when it says, "As for you, be fruitful and multiply, swarm over the earth and multiply it." (Exodus 1:7)
2. EXCEEDINGLY
Genesis 16:10 says, "I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude." The Hebrew word for 'exceedingly' is 'rabah' which we found in Chapter 1 means 'to be many, to be abundant.'
The following are other Scriptures where the word 'rabah' is used:
Genesis 1:28; 9:1,7; 10:10; 17:2,20; 22:17; 26:4,24; 28:3; 35:11; 47:27
Exodus 1:7,12,20; 32:13; Leviticus 26:9
Deuteronomy 1:10; 7:13; 8:1; 13:17; 28:63; 30:5,16
Joshua 24:3; Jeremiah 30:19; 33:22; Ezekiel 16:7; 36:10; 37:26; Hebrews 5:16.
3. MIGHTILY
Deuteronomy 6:3 says, "...that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee..." The Hebrew word for 'mightily' is 'meod' which means, 'vehemently, whole-heartedly, speedily, diligently." These are very strong words, aren't they? We are to fulfil this commandment with a passion, not reluctantly.
4. PLENTEOUSLY
Deuteronomy 30:9, “And the Lord thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of Thine hand, in the fruit of thy body…” Also Deuteronomy 28:11.
The word ‘plenteous’ in the Hebrew is ‘yathar’ which means ‘to jut over or exceed, cause to abound.’
5. MULTITUDINOUSLY
Genesis 32:12 says, "I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude." The Hebrew word for 'multitude' is 'rob' which is from a root word 'rabab' meaning 'multiply by the myriad, ten thousands, be increased, more in number.'
Leviticus 26:9, “For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you…” This Scripture tells us that God shows respect to us by multiplying us.
Deuteronomy 1:10-11, “The Lord your God hath multiplied you, and behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude. (The Lord God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as He hath promised you!)"
Proverbs 14:28, “In the multitude of people is the king’s honor, but in the want of people is the destruction of the prince.”
Other Scriptures where the word 'rob' is used:
Genesis 16:10; 48:16; Deuteronomy 1:10; 10:22, 28:62; 1 Kings 3:8; 2 Chronicles 1:9.
Exodus 1:7-22 tells us what happened when Israel obeyed God's command to "be fruitful and multiply."
Exodus 1:7 says, "the land was filled with them."
Knox translation says, "the race of Israel grew into a teeming multitude."
The Living Bible says, "there was a veritable population explosion."
Deuteronomy 26:5 says, "A Syrian ready to perish was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous."
What was the outcome of this population explosion?
MORE AND MIGHTIER!
Pharaoh said to his people, "the people of the children of Israel are MORE AND MIGHTIER than we." They were a threat to Egypt. This was God's intention for His covenant people of Israel. And it is still His plan for His people today. He wants His people to become MORE AND MIGHTIER in the land. He wants the godly seed to be a threat to the devil. Is the Christian church a threat to the devil today? No! Instead we have given in to the enemy's tactics to deplete the godly seed.
There are some Christian couples who voice that they do not want children at all. This is opposite to God's heartbeat and God's Word. If all couples took this attitude, Christianity would be wiped from our earth. It is our children who carry on God's word from generation to generation.
Read Deuteronomy 4:9,10; 6:1-9; Psalm 48:12-14; 78:1-8; 145:5; Isaiah 38:19; 59:21; Jeremiah 32:39; Joel 1:3.
There are many today who have changed the word of the Lord in Psalm 127:3,4 to their own version, more suited to their lifestyle: "Lo, children are a burden from the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is a curse. Depressed is the man who has children, and happy is the man who avoids them or has as few as possible." (Humanistic Version). How true is the statement of the late Francis Schaeffer, "Tell me what the world is saying today, and I'll tell you what the church will be saying seven years from now."
One of the biggest threats to the devil is husbands and wives who understand God's revelation for marriage and who will bring forth a godly seed for His glory. The devil is scared of the godly seed, for it is they who will destroy his works in this world.
The enemy knew that God would need an army in this end time hour to fulfill His great purposes. He knew that if he could diminish God's army, He could thwart God's plans. It is the strategy of Satan to minimize the holy seed. The sad thing is that the Christian church has unconsciously fallen into this trap. As Christians in the last few decades have decided to have fewer children, they have limited the power of God on earth. God's plan is to fill the earth with His glory. God calls the increase of children our "glory." (Hosea 9:11).
Instead of becoming MORE AND MIGHTIER, we are becoming less and less. Christians are having as few children as the world. Instead of obeying the Word of God, we have followed the trends of the world. There was a time when Christians believed God and equated children with blessings. But the world, that did not know God, found children a nuisance and hindrance to their lifestyle, so they began to limit their family to two children, or perhaps no children at all. Was this God's heartbeat? No! But the church, which is "the pillar and ground of truth", looked on and thought, "What a great idea. I think we'll follow the world. We'll be able to accomplish a lot more in life without the encumbrance of children." And so the church forgot God's plan for mankind and gradually succumbed to this humanistic trend.
With the availability of better and safer methods of contraception, worldly couples were able to delay childbearing until they purchased their home, accumulated their material possessions, and felt they were ready to start a family. Is this trend grounded in the Scriptures? No! But once again Christian couples looked at the world and thought, "What a great idea. The world sure knows best. The Bible is archaic. We'll go the world's way." And so now it is considered normal in the Christian church for couples to wait a few years before they have a family.
PREPARE FOR FRUITFULNESS
It is important that a husband-to-be work hard and prepare himself before marriage so that he is in a position to be able to provide for his wife and family. It is the task of parents to teach their sons that they cannot fritter away their means but that they have a responsibility to work hard, save, and prepare themselves to support a wife and family.
We should teach our sons as they grow up, that God has placed the responsibility upon them to one day provide for a family. They should know the scripture in 1 Timothy 5:8 that says, "But if any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." If a young man cannot support a wife and family, he is not yet ready for marriage. It is an indictment against the training of our children if our sons grow up unprepared for this task. It is sad to hear so many young Christian wives share that their husbands do not want them to have any more children because they want them to go out to work to help support the home. This is not biblical and maligns the Word of God.
THE FIRST BLESSING
Deuteronomy 28 is a special portion of the Word of God. It tells us all the blessings that will come upon us if we walk according to God's commandments. Once again, God puts first things first. Before He promises the blessings of the fruit of the ground and the increase of cattle and business, He says in verse 11 that He will first bless the fruit of the womb. This is the highest blessing that God gives.
God is a God of increase. He wants His kingdom to increase on earth. He wants to fill His eternal kingdom. Isaiah 9:7 says, "Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end." The Living Bible calls it "His EVER-EXPANDING government."
Remember how God likens His kingdom to a little mustard seed, which is one of the smallest of seeds, but which grows to be one of the largest of trees? Mark 4:30-32 says, "Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it grows up, and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it."
God has put this same desire for enlargement and increase within us. A businessman naturally wants to expand his business. A farmer wants more land, more cattle, or more sheep. A pastor wants his church to grow. We desire more knowledge. We desire to increase our wealth. We'd like to live in a bigger home. We naturally desire enlargement, increase, and fruitfulness.
Hosea 10:1 is an interesting scripture: "Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself." If we bring forth fruit unto ourselves and reject fruitfulness for the sake of fulfilling our own desires and pursuits, it will only produce emptiness. A vine that is empty and bears no fruit is useless. A fruitful vine gives blessing to many. What does God call the wife? A "fruitful vine". The Hebrew translation is literally a "prolific vine". (Psalm 128:3)
LIKE A FLOCK
Psalm 107: 38,41 NEB says, "He blesses them and their numbers increase...and makes families increase like flocks of sheep." One or two sheep is not a flock. God wants our families to be like a flock. The family is where God loves people to be nurtured. His desire is for children to be in an environment with brothers and sisters, like a flock.
When the Word says, "God sets the solitary in families." in Psalm 68:6, it means that He puts the 'forsaken' and 'lonely' in a family, but it also means that He will bless an 'only child' by giving them family. The Hebrew word for 'solitary' is 'yachid' which means 'an only child'.
We receive the same understanding from Psalm 128:3 where God is revealing to us a picture of a family that is blessed of the Lord. As we peek through the window to get a glimpse of what this family is like, we see all the children sitting around the family table. The Living Bible says, "Look at all those children! There they sit around the dinner table as vigorous and healthy as young olive trees." It is difficult for one or two children to encompass the whole dinner table. God wants every chair around the table to be filled.
WITHOUT NUMBER
When God talks about blessing families with fruitfulness, He likens it to things that cannot be numbered. Look up these amazing Scriptures:
1. The stars of the heavens.
Look up: Genesis 15:5; 13:6; 22:17; 26:4; Exodus 32:13; Deuteronomy 1:10; 10:22; 28:62; 1 Chronicles 27:23b; Jeremiah 33:22; Nehemiah 9:23; Hebrews 11:12.
2. The dust of the earth.
Look up: Genesis 13:16; 16:28; Numbers 23:10; 2 Chronicles 1:9.
3 The sands of the seashore.
Look up: Genesis 22:17; 32:12; Isaiah 48:18,19; Jeremiah 33:22; Hosea 1:10; Hebrews 11:12.
4. The grass of the fields.
Look up: Job 5:25; Ezekiel 16:7.
5. Thousands of millions that speak of that which cannot be numbered. The blessing over
Rebekah in preparation for her marriage to Isaac was, "Be thou the mother of thousands of
millions..." Look up: Genesis 24:60.
IN DIFFICULT TIMES, TOO
The children of Israel did not obey God's commandment "to be fruitful and multiply" just when it suited them, or only in good economic times. No, they obeyed, no matter what the circumstances.
During Slavery:
They obeyed when they were in slavery in Egypt. They multiplied in the face of persecution. Exodus 1:11,12 TJB tells the story, "they put slave drivers over the Israelites to wear them down under heavy loads...But the more they were crushed, the more they increased and spread..." Our mentality is that if we are going through persecution, difficult times, or money is tight, that we can't have children. The Israelites proved that God was able to keep them and provide for them, even in the most difficult times - times of "affliction" and "bitter with hard bondage." None of us have had to face the persecution and trials that they faced at that time, but they still kept multiplying.
During Captivity:
Even when God pronounced judgment on Judah and sent them into captivity as slaves of Babylon, He still didn't release them from His command to multiply. He told them through Jeremiah the prophet in Jeremiah 29:5,6, "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives....Take ye wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished."
Yes, Even in the City:
Deuteronomy 28:2-4. "Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body..." Sometimes we hear folks saying that it is too hard to have children when living in the city. It's okay for those who live in the country, but what about us who are squashed up in the city? God promises that He will bless us in the city as well as the country, immediately before He says that He will bless the fruit of our womb. Isn't that wonderful?
GOD IS GLORIFIED BY INCREASE
Isaiah 26:15, “Thou hast increased the nation, O Lord, Thou hast increased the nation… Thou art glorified.”
Jeremiah 30:19 says, "I will multiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small." The way that God honored Israel was by multiplying them!
BARRENNESS IS A CURSE
In the Word of God, fruitfulness of the womb is always considered a blessing. Barrenness is considered a curse. Look up these verses: Leviticus 26:22; Deuteronomy 28:18; 28:62; Hosea 4:10; 9:11-17.
Ezekiel 19:10-14 is an allegory about Israel where she is likened to a mother. As we read this portion of scripture, we get a picture of motherhood as God sees it, and then as it has degenerated today. God says that motherhood is exalted above everything else, but the enemy has sought to destroy this God given career. God personifies mothers with fruitfulness. She is meant to be "fruitful and full of branches." But when the glory of motherhood is cast down, the fruitfulness disappears. This scripture says her fruit (the children from her womb) is "dried up" (v.12) and it is "devoured" (v.14). We are seeing this happen today. Many mothers are voluntarily causing their wombs to be "dried up." Others leave it too late for childbearing. When they eventually decide to have a child, they are no longer fertile. The fruit of the womb is "devoured" from others by drugs, abortions and early hysterectomies. Is this a matter for rejoicing? No! This passage ends with these sad words, "This is a lamentation and shall be for a lamentation!"
Hosea 9:11-16 is also a sad passage. The "glory" of Ephraim was their "fruitfulness" which was the prophetic word given over them. Read Genesis 49:22-26 and Deuteronomy 33:13-17. Even the name of Ephraim means 'double fruitfulness'. It is a dual form of 'Ephrath' which means 'fruitfulness.' But in this passage God judges Ephraim for their sin and turning away from His ways. God's judgment was to take away their "glory" which were their children by "miscarrying womb and dry breasts."
Hosea 9:11, "Ephraim's glory shall fly away like a bird - no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!" This was God’s judgment on Ephraim.
Leviticus 26:21-22, “If ye walk contrary unto Me, and will not hearken unto Me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sings. I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number…” This was God’s judgment on Israel.
Psalm 106:14-15 AMP, God “sent leanness into their soul and thinned their numbers by disease and death.” This was also God’s judgment on Israel.
Luke 1:24-25, Elizabeth said, “He looked with favor upon me to take away my disgrace among women.” Barrenness was considered a disgrace. Isn’t it incredible that today man women choose disgrace?
DON'T LEAVE IT TOO LATE
We cannot take our fertility for granted. It is a very precious gift that we cannot trifle with. We cannot decide ourselves when we want a child. Fertility is ultimately in the hands of God and He tells us in His word the best time for bringing forth children - when we are young. I was talking to a woman in her thirties the other evening who shared with me how she had been deceived. She said, "I was encouraged to pursue my career at the expense of children. Now I am desperate to have children and have been trying for over a year but still have not conceived." Has she waited too long? This testimony can be repeated over and over again. Psalm 127:5 says, "As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the YOUTH."
Further Scriptures: Proverbs 2:17; 5:18; Isaiah 54:6; Joel 1:8; Malachi 2:15.
An Above Rubies reader wrote to me recently and shared, "I am a Registered Nurse, and many older people whom I've cared for are now in their eighties and nineties and were having their families during The Depression. They were a generation who tried hard to limit their family size. I've held so many old, frail hands and listened to so many sweet souls tell me how they regretted not having more children. It is such a common thread and it's so typical of our enemy. First he tricks people into not letting God bless them with a big family, then when they are old, he torments them with their error."
New Testament Scriptures:
FRUIT, MORE FRUIT, MUCH FRUIT
What about the New Testament? Just as God desires fruitfulness in the natural, He also desires fruitfulness in our spiritual lives. He has chosen us to be spiritually fruitful too. He looks for fruit. John 15:16 says, "I have chosen you and ordained you that you should go and bring forth FRUIT..." As we continue to read John 15, we see that God is not satisfied with average fruitfulness. He says He wants us to bring forth "MORE FRUIT." v.2. Still that is not enough, and in verse 8, He says, "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear MUCH FRUIT; so shall ye be my disciples."
The more fruit that we bring forth, the more we glorify the Father. Fruitfulness is what satisfies His heart. In fact, in verse 2, He says strong words, "Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit, He taketh away." This is God's desire for the natural and the spiritual. 1 Corinthians 15:46 tells us that the natural comes first and then the spiritual.
BORN TO BE FRUIT BEARERS
This is God's desire for us, naturally and spiritually. The Message Bible translation of John 15:16 says, "You didn't choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won't spoil. As FRUIT BEARERS, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you."
We know that one of the greatest reasons for marriage is to show forth the picture of Christ and His church. It is also the desire of Christ that His body is fruitful. When we are fruitful in our marriage, we are revealing a true picture of Christ and the church to the world.
WE WERE BORN TO REPRODUCE!
All nature and all mankind were created for this purpose.
This is God's plan for us in the natural and in the spiritual.
JESUS LIVED IN A BIG FAMILY
Mark 6:3 tells us, "Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" There would have been a minimum of seven children in Joseph and Mary's family. The names of five sons are mentioned and the sisters are stated in plural, which would be a minimum of two, but there could have been five daughters as well, or even more. Maybe there were ten children in the family! God wanted His son to enjoy the blessing of being part of large family.
JESUS LOVES THE CHILDREN
Jesus always welcomed the children. When the disciples tried to send them away, He rebuked them and drew the children to Him.
Matthew 19:14 9 MLB, "But Jesus said, "Allow the little ones and do not stop them from coming to Me, for of this kind the kingdom of heaven is composed."
Matthew 19:14 Williams, “Let the little children alone, and stop preventing them from coming to Me.” It took a long time for the disciples to receive Jesus’ message about children. Jesus had just spoken to them about embracing children in the previous chapter and yet they are still pushing the children away! How said it is that those who confess Jesus is their Lord, do not have the same heart that He has about children. Instead, they do everything in their power to stop the children coming.
THE GOD OF THE FULL HOUSE
Luke 14:23, "Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled." God is the God of the full house. He wants to fill eternity. He will embrace all who will come to Him in His family. Do we have the same heart that God has? Do we want to fill our homes with furniture, TV's, and material possessions - or children? Are our homes filled with lasting treasures? The current statistics in USA reveal that there are more TV's per households than there are children! What an indictment against a nation?
Theodore Laetsch states, "The two-children system will rapidly lead to extermination of a people, for ten per cent of all marriages are naturally childless, and unmarried people do not contribute to the growth of a nation, while the two-children system replaces only the parents, no replacements for unmarried people and childless couples, hence a decrease in population, and the nation will die out. At least four children to a family to prevent this dying out, five children to bring about an increase in population."
God has a big heart. He wants a big family. If God is truly dwelling in our hearts, we will think like He thinks. This will also be our vision.
Nancy Campbell
Above Rubies