Sermon # 8 - The Blessing Of Selfless Giving Series

We read in Acts 4:32, “Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.” (ESV)

One of the key reasons for the tremendous growth of the early church was that the people had a change of heart from being a self-centered to being selfless. All of them willingly gave up what was theirs, and no one claimed anything to be their own.

The main purpose and function of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer is that our hearts be changed to become like that of our Lord Jesus. It is therefore essential, that those of us who claim to be filled and anointed with the Holy Spirit should become selfless as Jesus was, and be willing to let go of all those things that make us self-seeking.

God the Father gave His only begotten Son

We read in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son”(NKJV).

God’s immense love for humanity is what prompted Him to give ‘His only begotten Son’. The Spirit of God is a Spirit of Love. God the Father did not just stop with simply saying He loves us so much, but displayed it by willingly sacrificing His Son for us. When Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, the voice of the Father in heaven attested it with these word “this is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17 (NKJV). However, when Jesus was in agony on the cross and cried out to His Father “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me” Matthew 27:46 (NKJV) there was no answer from heaven; the reason was that God the Father had willingly made the ultimate sacrifice in giving of His only Son for the sins of the world. There was no greater act of love that could be performed to demonstrate the exceedingly great love of God for all of us.

The Good Samaritan gave

If we study the parable of the Good Samaritan that Jesus shared in Luke 10:25-37, we will realize all that the Samaritan gave up in order to bless the wounded Jew. Samaritans and Jews never mingled with each other and also had no dealings whatsoever with one another. The Samaritan was probably going on his donkey to carry out his own work, but when he saw a Jewish man wounded and in trouble, he didn’t for a moment think about withholding, but was willing to give all he had – the oil, the wine, his own donkey, his time, energy and even change the direction of his travel to get the bruised man safely to the inn. Notice how he also gave the inn keeper money to take care of him. The love and compassion he had was so genuine, that he willingly gave up all that was his, to help a man whom his community disliked and considered as worthless.

More blessed to give than to receive

Let’s see what Jesus Himself said about this in Acts 20:35, “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” (ESV)

“‘It is more blessed [and brings greater joy] to give than to receive.’” (AMP)

It might be a great feeling to receive, but if we were to compare between receiving and giving to see which is better, the word of God is clear-cut; it is indeed far more blessed to give than to receive, because it is only in giving that we receive greater joy. So, instead of constantly requesting for prayers for ourselves, expecting everyone to love us and always waiting for others to give to us, we should start looking to see how we can pray, love and bless others around us who are in far greater need. We must make a conscious decision to become loving and generous givers.

It’s only when we have God’s Spirit of love in our hearts, that we too will be transformed into a selfless and generous people. When our hearts become willing to give to others, the Lord will change us from being a self-centered people to those who genuinely care about others around us. Often we have gotten so used to receiving all the time, that it has become quite difficult to tune our minds to think how we can bless someone else. However, it is important that we consider all the ways we can to go out and bless others in need.

Joseph of Arimathea gave inconspicuously

Matthew 27:59-60, “Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had carved out of the rock. After he rolled a large stone at the door of the tomb, he went away.”(CEB)