Money Matters Part Three

Title: “Money Matters Part 4” Scripture: Various

Type: Series Where: GNBC 11-21-24

Intro: Henry Parsons Crowell contracted tuberculosis when a boy and could not go to school. His Father and brother died of tuberculosis, and he should have died of it too. He made a contract with God. If he were spared he would use his abilities to amass large sums of money for evangelism. For the next 50 years he dedicated 70% of his income to kingdom causes. He bought a bankrupt mill in Ravenna, Ohio in 1881. He believed that God endowed him with bold ideas and the success of the company he founded, Quaker Oats. He was one of the wealthiest men of Chicago when he died in 1943. Crowell viewed all things as a stewardship from God, including influence. Over the years, one businessman after another would comment on how he came to know Christ personally because of the life of integrity lived by Henry Parsons Crowell. Henry Parsons Crowell was a man who gave with a purpose. Today the Quaker Oats company that Henry Parsons Crowell started has been sold to Pepsi. The brand exists but the company is gone. But nearly a century after his death in 1943 his giving continues through the trust he established. The trust purpose statement reads: Founded in 1927, The Crowell Trust is dedicated the teaching and active extension of the doctrines of Evangelical Christianity through approved grants to qualified organizations. Henry Crowell has been dead for nearly 80 yrs and yet his money is still being used today for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That is an amazing stewardship story.

Prop: Final message in series on Stewardship we will examine 4 A’s of Giving.

BG: 1. Hope has been a helpful series. REW had wonderful message last week.

2. What is “stewardship”? Recognize God’s ownership of all my resources and His desire for me to manage them well on His behalf.

Prop: Let’s examine 4 A’s of Giving as we wrap up our series on stewardship.

I. Attitudes in Giving

A. God Evaluates our Actions on the Basis of Our Attitudes.

1. Did God demonstrate a specific Attitude in His acts of Giving?

a. Jn. 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…” The sequence here is intentional. Because God loved, He gave. Because God is love, He is a Giver. In sending the most precious gift of all, Jesus Christ, God set the example of giving being motivated by love.

b. I Cor. 13:3 says: “If I give all my possessions to feed the poor…but do not have love, it profits me nothing.” Now think about that statement. What could be more noble than to give to the poor? Yet, Paul states that even if we give to the most needy and do not have love, it counts for nothing

2. God is more concerned about our attitude in giving than the amount we are giving.

a. Jesus addressed this attitude in giving in one of His confrontations with the Pharisees. Mt. 23:23. The Pharisees were careful to tithe…right down to their spices mint, dill, cummin. However, Jesus said that in spite of their doing this they neglected more weighty matters of the law including, justice, mercy and faithfulness. Their attitudes were negating their actions in the whole realm of giving.

b. Illust – I have told before the true story of Billy and Ruth Graham visiting a church in the early 1970’s. Collection of offering. Billy reached in pocket, pulled out a $20. Stuffed back into pocket. Fished around. Again! Ushers getting closer. Fished around 3rd time. $20! Offering plates passing. With a frown tossed the $20 into the plate. Ruth leaned over: “Don’t worry dear, God gave you credit for the $5!”

B. Our Attitudes are Improved when we Realize to Whom we are Giving.

1. We can give in love when we realize our gifts are ultimately given to the Lord Himself.

a. Num. 18:24 – “The tithe of the sons of Israel…they offer as an offering to the Lord.” If we are simply giving to a church, or mission, or needy individual, we are simply giving charity. If, however, we are giving as unto the Lord, to that same church, mission, or needy individual, it becomes an act of worship! It’s normal that Christians give to the Lord in acts of worship because He is our Creator, Savior, Sustainer, Provider…

b. Our love of giving can take place in spite of our circumstances. II Cor. 8:1-2 the Macedonian churches gave cheerfully, even though they existed in extreme poverty. However, because of their attitude in realizing to Whom they were giving, God supernaturally blessed that extreme poverty and caused it to well up into rich generosity!

2. In addition to giving with a loving heart, we are to give with a JOYFUL heart.