God’s Math Doesn’t Add Up – It’s Much Better
Math is not my strongest subject! Don’t get me wrong; I always made A’s in school, but that was because I was smart enough not to take Geometry and Trigonometry. I stopped with Algebra, which was enough to fry my little brain. But I do know some hard math rules, such as 1 + 1 = 2. That rule only applies to humans; God’s math doesn’t add up – it’s much better!!!
It isn’t that God failed math, it is that His math is only something He can do. Anyone can add numbers together and come to a logical conclusion, but only God can take the numbers and make them illogical in the best possible way!
Matthew 14:15-21 NIV
15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
If you’ve ever fixed a meal for a large crowd, you know how much food you must cook. Especially if there are a lot of hungry men in the crowd, they can really put away the chow. So, the disciples were correct in their assumption that five loaves of bread and two fish wouldn’t normally feed a family, much less five thousand men and children. But, with the Lord’s way of doing math, everyone was fed, and there was plenty of food left over!
In Judges 7, we read again how God’s math confuses men. The Lord picked Gideon to the Israelites against the Midian army. Gideon was not the natural choice for this position, and he argued with the Lord because his tribe was the weakest in Manasseh, and he was the least in his family. We all know that the Lord chooses those who aren’t the wisest, strongest, or most capable to do His work. That is so that the Lord alone gets the glory.
However, picking Gideon as the leader wasn’t enough for the Lord. He had Gideon reduce the number of men in his army. By the time the Lord was finished, the numbers went from twenty thousand men to three hundred.
Judges 7:4-7 NIV
4 But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
5 So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues as a dog laps from those who kneel down to drink.” 6 Three hundred of them drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.
7 The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the others go home.”
After the battle, which was nasty and bloody, the Israelites wanted Gideon to continue to lead them. But Gideon knew that the battle was won by the Lord, not him.
Judges 7:22-23 NIV
22 The Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us from the hand of Midian.”
23 But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you.”
So often, “we” want to take the glory and let others think we are smarter, braver, and more talented than we are. Gideon knew that the glory was all God’s, and he made sure the Israelites knew it too.
One of my favorite examples of God’s math not making any sense is the story of the widow and a jar of oil.
2 Kings 4:1-7 NIV
1 The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.”
2 Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?”
“Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.”
3 Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. 4 Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”
5 She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. 6 When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”
But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.
7 She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.”
Go look in your pantry and get a jar of olive oil out. Can you imagine taking your small jar and filling up so many jars that it would be enough to pay off all your debts? THAT is the Lord’s math! He can provide for you by taking what you already have and multiplying it in ways you could never imagine.
So, don’t worry if math is not your strong point. Use a calculator for everyday mathematical problems, and let the Lord handle the other math. When you start feeling overwhelmed, under-equipped, and outmanned, that’s when the Lords say, “Watch this!”
To GOD Goes The Glory!
Have A Blessed Day!
Amen! Loved those examples of God’s math.
that was inspiring. thank you for posting it. blessed be
Our sermon touched on the feeding of the five thousand today. I love it when God connects information for us like that. I received a double lesson on that subject today. Thankful for His teaching and His teachers.
I find that happens a lot! I’ve had several followers tell me things like that before.
Love this so much! Thanks for sharing ❤️
Love God’s math. Your comment about not taking geometry made me laugh. You’re lucky. I was forced to take geometry. Only thing I learned is geometric shapes. Lol. I’m good with every day math like how much of a discount I’m going to get. I can do percentages in my head. Very good post as your Sunday posts always are.
Thank you, Tanya, for putting time into this message and all your weekly messages. A great reminder to trust God for provision as well as the reminder to give God the glory for the things only He can do. Blessings!
Barbara
Thank you for sharing…loved this. ❤️
Amen Tania. Great reminder to trust in the Lord.
Love your unmath lesson about our omnipotent God!
Great reminder of God’s promises. His math is always correct.