A God Who Always Gives And Expects Us To Be Givers Like Him

TEXT: Psalm 89:6

TITLE: A GOD WHO ALWAYS GIVES AND WANTS US TO BE GIVERS LIKE HIM.

There are many people in the world who view God more as a taker rather than a giver. Many believe they would end up loosing more than gaining if they gave their hearts to Christ. Many think of God as being a demanding Being. They think of God as having a lot of rules to go by and that He forbids a lot of fun.

Trying to prove that God is a giver is sort of like trying to prove that Billy Graham is an evangelist, or that Michael Jordan can play basketball. It should be so obvious that no discussion is needed.

Jeremiah 24:7 – “…I will give them a heart to know Me…”

Ezekiel 11:19 – “Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh.”

Matthew 11:28 – “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy and I will give you rest.”

Luke 11:13 – “ If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”

John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

John 10:28 – “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”

John 14:27 – “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Revelation 2:10 – “…Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

Throughout Scripture, we’re taught that, among other things, God’s generosity is wonderful and that it continues on into eternity.

Ephesians 1:6 says, “Now all praise to God for his wonderful kindness” (TLB). Notice, Paul doesn’t say, “minimal kindness.” He isn’t suggesting that God’s kindness will do in a pinch if no other kindness is available. On the contrary, God delights in lavish giving.

God doesn’t run out of generosity. Lamentations 3:23 says God’s mercies are “new every morning.” God’s kindness is not like the sunset – brilliant in its intensity, but dying every second. God’s generosity keeps coming and coming and coming. When you wake up tomorrow morning, there will be no less generosity to greet you than there was the morning before. Ten years from now, God’s generosity will still be knocking people over with its lavishness.

The last verse of the hymn “Amazing Grace” says:

When we’ve been there ten thousand years,

Bright shining as the sun,

We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise

Than when we’d first begun.

One of the most difficult things about life on earth is that almost as soon as something good starts to happen, it’s over. You look forward all week long to a visit from some old friends: the next thing you know, they’re headed out the door, saying “good-bye.” A bride-to-be dreams for months about her wedding – but the ceremony is over in less than an hour. Parents get excited about giving the kids their Christmas presents – but the sounds of paper tearing and children squealing are silenced before breakfast.

That’s not the nature of God’s generosity. Ten thousand years after the celebration starts, we won’t have used up any time at all! God’s generosity will extend all throughout eternity.

From the moment you meet the true God, you will discover that He is a giver. The more you learn about him and the longer you live in relationship with Him, the more frequently you will find yourself on your knees worshiping Him for His incredible generosity.

But somewhere along the path of your spiritual journey, you will awaken to another realization about God: He wants to turn you and me into generous people. He wants us to become givers. And that’s a tall order for some of us.

Ill. Think for a moment of a child who has a splinter in their hand. The splinter hurts, but when the child sees the needle and tweezers that will be used to take it out, the child gets the impression that the cure would be worse than the injury, so the child keeps their fingers clamped shut.

To get the splinter out you have to pry back each of the child’s fingers, then hold them open while you move as quickly as possible to remove it. If you allow the child to keep their hand closed, the cut might become infected. To heal the child you have to get the hand open.