Inspired Giving Series

Theme: Inspired Giving

Text: Exodus 35: 4-29

Greetings:

Dearly beloved in Christ, I greet you all in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. The Lord is good, and his love endures forever.

This passage gives the mandate to give. The Lord inspires the donors, the skilful labours and experts in various fields. Giving is inspired. The Lord inspired the contributors and labourers for his ministry. He prompts and performs through people. Let me leave with you three actions related to inspired giving.

Give what you have (Exodus 35:4-9)

Give your talents (Exodus 35:10-19)

Give what you can (Exodus 35:20-29)

Give what you have (Exodus 35:4-9)

The address is to the whole community of Israelites. The Lord reached the Israelites with this sentence “from what you have taken an offering for the Lord” (Exodus 35:4). Moses has planned to erect a tabernacle as per the direction and revelation of Yahweh. He had the vision of God to build a beautiful hall. The Lord told Moses that he would inspire the people to give what they have. But this message of the need for tabernacles must reach people. An appeal was made to the people to contribute to the Tabernacle. They have decided to contribute liberally and joyfully to the Lord.

Giving is a privilege and responsibility of those who have received from God. God has given the ability to earn wisdom and intelligence to prove and protect the wealth. He had given the spirit of stewardship. So, Church and mission agencies can’t appeal to unbelievers for funds. If anyone thinks that pastors and mission leaders are after the money for mission work is a wrong conception. The born again believers always understand the need for preaching and reaching the unreached with Gospel. The mission will never be self-sufficient and superfluous. God always made the Church be depended upon him and have faith in Him.

You can donate anything to the Lord. All precious stones and linen. The list has wooden items and many other beautiful things to God. He listed the items such as Gold, Silver, Bronze, Linens with blue, purple, and scarlet, goat hair, ram skins, acacia wood, Olive Oil, fragrant incense, Onyx stones and gems for ephod and breastplate of the priests. When we notice the order Moses listed is just as that he received from the Lord in Mount Sinai (Exodus 25:3-7). There was no marginal deference to have some facility for him. Moses was such a servant of God, so God blessed him and blessed his congregation. No exploiting of the congregation and the donors in the name of the Church and projects. God weighs everything, and he blesses accordingly.

The whole nation to present freewill-offerings for the holy things to be prepared at Tabernacle (Exodus 35:4). Moses mentioning one by one all the materials that would be required for it (Exodus 35:5-9). This offering came from God’s command, not from Moses’ clever fund-raising techniques. This shows God’s normal way of channelling resources to His work – by the gifts given from His people with a willing heart (Enduring Word).

What we can notice and understand is that as long as the materials are with the people they are simple wealth. But when they bring them to the tabernacle, to the temple, to the church, it becomes the offering and sacred. This sacred pleases God and blesses the donor. When a person holds with his hand it’s a mere gold, silver, bronze. But when it is presented to God, it becomes sacred and a source of multiplication of blessing to the giver to the Church, and missions.

Give what you are (Exodus 35:10-19)

Contribution of voluntary work. God has entrusted the talents and skills with all. Some can perform many acts but most of us can do only one act at a time. But none of us can say that I can’t do any act. You are good at some work. Then do it with enthusiasm and grace. Though all could give offerings, only those with the God-given ability and the right motivation were to do the work. It is the leaders' responsibility to identify the gifted persons to carry the work of the Lord according to their skill and ability. Many missions and churches dwindled because of the wrong choices of leaders who succeeded as good leaders.

God inspired the skilful labours to make the tabernacle, its tent and its covering, its clasps, its boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets. The ark, the staves thereof, the mercy seat, and the veil of the screen. The table, its staves, all its vessels, and the showbread. The candlestick for the light, its vessels, its lamps, and the oil for the light. The altar of incense, its staves, the anointing oil, the sweet incense, the screen for the door. The door of the tabernacle, the altar of burnt-offering, with its grating of brass, its staves, and all its vessels, the laver and its base; the hangings of the court, the pillars thereof, and their sockets, and the screen for the gate of the court; the pins of the tabernacle, and the pins of the court, and their cords; the finely wrought garments, for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest's office”(Coffman Commentaries).