A man had a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. He could receive little company and was not to be excited. While in the hospital a rich uncle died and left him a million dollars. His family wondered how to break the news to him with the least amount of excitement. It was decided to ask the preacher if he would go and break the news quietly to the man. The preacher went, and gradually led up to the question. The preacher asked the patient what he would do if he inherited a million dollars. He said, "I think I would give half of it to the church." The preacher dropped dead.
This morning, no doubt, this message may seem a little odd to some of you. Someone here may even be upset by what I have to say. Especially because this is the day that we’ve asked you to dig deep into your pockets to help us be able to update our parsonage next door.
Probably one of the biggest things that has turned numbers of people off to the church is the feeling that preachers are out to get your money. We’ve seen so many preachers, whether they’re on TV or not, who have taken advantage of sincere people and used their money not for the purpose of building God’s kingdom, but for the purpose of building their checking account and building their new houses and their shiny custom yachts. And so it’s made all preachers and the church look like we’re out to get you’re money.
People feel like Henry Ford did when he was asked to donate money for the construction of a new medical facility. The billionaire pledged to donate $5,000. The next day in the newspaper, the headline read, "Henry Ford contributes $50,000 to the local hospital." The irate Ford was on the phone immediately to complain to the fund-raiser that he had been misunderstood. The fund-raiser replied that they would print a retraction in the paper the following day to read, "Henry Ford reduces his donation by $45,000." Realizing the poor publicity that would result, the industrialist agreed to the $50,000 contribution in return for the following: That above the entrance to the hospital was to be carved the biblical inscription: "I came among you and you took me in." A lot of people feel as though the church has taken them. Those who have been guilty of deceiving people out of their money have given the rest of us preachers and the church as a whole a bad name.
Well, this morning, I’m not out to get your money, I’m not after your pocket books. But I do want to talk to you about the subject of giving. Money seems to be something that was an important topic to Jesus. In Matthew, Mark, and Luke 1 out of every 6 verses deals with money. Of the 29 parables Christ told, 16 deal with a person and his money. Why it is seems to be so important to Jesus, I don’t know. Perhaps it was because He how important money was to a persons survival and level of livelihood. Perhaps it was because He knew that one of the last things a man is ready to surrender is his wallet. Perhaps it’s because, as Paul tells Timothy, the love of money is the root of all evil. For some reason the topic of money and giving was important to Christ. Therefore, I think it’s a worthy topic for our discussion this morning.
Let me preface what I’m going to say by commending each of you for being so giving. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again, I believe the area of giving is one of our strengths. Our church gives and gives and gives. Can we do better? Absolutely. Are we doing bad? Absolutely not. This is one of the best giving churches I’ve come across. I love to see how much our church gives to needs that are presented, like the parsonage, or the recent renovations done to this building and the fellowship hall, or to seeds of compassion collections. This is a very giving church. And I appreciate being part of a giving church. I believe God honors a giving church and He has honored us. So this morning, I’m not trying to scold us for not giving at all. But I do want to challenge us to allow God to use us even more in the area of giving.
I believe there are three stages in giving. Well, four, if you count the “not giving anything” stage. But I want to talk to you about the three stages that come after that one for a little while this morning. And I’m praying that God would show us which category we fall into, and if it falls short of what He wants for us we’ll be willing to follow His leadership in our giving. Three stages of giving.
I. God Demands Obedient Giving
First of all, God demands obedient giving. Martin Luther said that “a Christian must be converted three times. The first time for his mind. The second time for his heart. And the third time for his wallet.” Scripture has laid out for us a principle called tithing, or the giving of ten percent of our abundance back to the Lord. The first time we see this is in Gen. 14 when Abram gave a tenth of the spoils of battle to Melchizedek, who the Bible tells us was the priest of the Most High God. From then on we find the principle of tithing scattered throughout the Old Testament. Jacob promised to give God back a tenth of all He would give to him in Gen. 28. In Lev. 27:30 God tells the Israelites that all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord. In 2 Chron. 31 we see the children of Israel bringing a tithe of all their things to the Lord. In Neh. 10 we see the tithes being brought in order to support the Levites, the tribe of Israel designated to minister in the temple. The principle was being set. God has commanded that His people tithe, that we bring ten percent of our income and give it back to Him. That’s what He expects of His people.
In fact, when we don’t tithe God considers us to be thieves. Don’t believe me? Listen to this verse found in Mal. 3:8… Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. God asks, no, more than that, He demands that we give back to Him a tenth of what He has blessed us with. But many people don’t really think it’s all that important. Many people fall into that category of not giving anything. Did you know that in 2004 only 9% of born again Christians tithed ten percent to a place of worship? Actually the average annual giving per attender in evangelical churches is only 3.5% of their income. Almost ¼ of Christians don’t tithe anything at all. One year American churchgoers gave $21.5 billion. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? But that same year, if every Christian had tithed ten percent that total would have been right at $134 billion. That 21.5 doesn’t sound so great anymore, does it?
Many people don’t really think it’s all that important to tithe. But I believe that Scripture teaches otherwise. Why is tithing so important? What difference does it make to God if I don’t give my ten percent? Well, I think there are two reasons, biblical reasons why tithing is so important.
First of all, it’s important because it recognizes God as the ultimate source and owner of all things. Deut. 26:10 says, And now, behold, I have brought the first fruits of the land, which thou, O Lord, hast given me. Do you believe that everything that’s in your possession belongs to you? Or do those possessions belong to God? You know, the Bible, in several places refers to us as stewards. Do you know what a steward is? A steward is someone who takes care of the possessions or finances of someone else. We are God’s stewards. This applies to lots of things… time, talents, opportunities to share the Gospel, the earth we live on; but it also applies to our finances. The money that we have is not our own. The possessions we enjoy are not our own. They belong to God. He’s just put those things in our care for the time. And when we don’t tithe it is basically claiming ownership of everything for ourselves. But when we tithe we are acknowledging God as the One who gave us all we have in the first place. It’s acknowledging that it all belongs to Him anyway. Everything that we have is something that God has blessed us with and therefore actually belongs to Him.
The second reason tithing is important is because it is God’s method for supporting the local church. Is the church after your money? No. Does the church need your support to exist? Absolutely. How else can we keep the lights on? How else can we afford to run the van? How else can we endeavor to do some of the ministries we try to do? It’s God’s way of providing for the financial needs of the church. Is it important to tithe? You bet it is. And it’s God’s requirement of His people.
There’s a story about a church who’s treasurer resigned one day. The church asked the local grain elevator manager to take the position. He agreed under two conditions. That no treasurer’s report would be given for the first year. That no questions be asked about finances during that year. Sounds scary, doesn’t it? Jerry, don’t get any ideas. The people were surprised but finally agreed since most of them did business with him and he was a trusted man. At the end of the year he gave his report: The church indebtedness of $228,000 has been paid. The church secretary’s salary had been increased by 8%. The budget has been paid 200%. There were no outstanding bills. And there was a cash balance of $11,252! Immediately the shocked congregation asked, "How did you do it? Where did the money come from?" He quietly answered: "Most of you bring your grain to my elevator. Throughout the year I simply withheld ten percent on your behalf and gave it to the church in your name. You didn’t even miss it!" "Don’t you see what we could do for the Lord if we were all willing to give at least the tithe to God, who really owns it?"
Tithing is important because it recognizes God as the source and owner of all things and it is His way of providing for His church. I don’t want to be guilty of robbing Him, do you? Let’s be people who are obedient in our giving.
II. God Desires Cheerful Giving
But let’s not just be obedient, let’s be cheerful givers. You see, not only does God demand obedient giving, but He desires cheerful giving. A mother wanted to teach her daughter a moral lesson. She gave the little girl a quarter and a dollar for church. "Put whichever one you want in the collection plate and keep the other for yourself," she told the girl. When they were coming out of church, the mother asked her daughter which amount she had given. "Well," said the little girl, "I was going to give the dollar, but just before the offering the man behind the pulpit said that we should all be cheerful givers. I knew I’d be a lot more cheerful if I gave the quarter, so I did."
I believe there are probably a lot of people who are tithing there income, but they aren’t enjoying it a lick. It’s become a legalistic ritual. They do it because they have to. They do it because it is demanded by God. They do it because they don’t want to be considered a thief. But God doesn’t just want us to be givers, He wants us to be cheerful givers. Paul says in 2 Cor. 9:6-7… He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
How many times have you given in the offering plate or thought about giving a certain amount, and your mind starts playing tricks on you–“That could be a car payment.” “That could be this week’s grocery bill.” “That could have been what I needed to pay for these tires that blew or these engine problems that I’m having.” “That could have been my insurance payment.” “So much for that new dvd player I was wanting to buy.” You feel that because you gave the money in the offering, you’ve lost it. “But the Bible tells us we have to tithe, so I guess I better put it in there. If I didn’t have to, you can bet I wouldn’t do it.” But God doesn’t just want us to give because we have to. He wants us to give because we want to honor Him.
That reminds me of a story about a pastor who was going to speak that Sunday on stewardship. He decided he was going to take the drastic action of calling in an electrician and wiring the pews. That Sunday, when the offering time came, the pastor announced, "From now on all pledges will be made publicly in the worship service." Then he added, "All those who will pledge $10 per week, stand." At that moment, the switch was thrown that sent the juice through the wires in the pews. The response was immediate—one half of the congregation jumped to their feet. Then the pastor said, "All those who will pledge $20 please stand." The electrician raised the voltage and a second, stronger shock wave caused more people to rise. The whole process was repeated several more times. Each time the amount was raised and so was the voltage. The ushers had to work frantically to get all the names and the pledges written down.
Later, in the counting room, the pastor and his staff were busy adding up the totals and congratulating themselves on the great success of the campaign, that is, until an usher came in and announced that four parishioners had stubbornly remained glued to their seats and were electrocuted.
God doesn’t want us to give grudgingly or out of necessity or because we’re expected to or because we’re manipulated into doing it. He doesn’t want us to do it out of obligation. He doesn’t want us to give, all the while considering it just a huge annoyance that God makes us give Him a whole tenth of what we earn. He doesn’t want us to give that way. He wants us to give out of a heart of love for Him. He wants us to give because we want to see His work go forward. He wants His people to be cheerful givers.
So how do we become cheerful givers? I think the first thing we do is take a step back and realize all that God has blessed us with. One day this week during my prayer time I purposed to take what time was necessary to thank God for everything that He’s blessed me with. So I started down through the list: “Thank You for my wife and my family and the privilege I’m given to be a dad very shortly. Thank You for a great church family and for allowing me to serve in this capacity. Thank You for a nice apartment. Thank You for helping to provide so many things that we’re needing for our baby soon. Thank You for a nice vehicle. Thank You for the fact that I’ve never had to go without a meal because I didn’t have any food or money to get it.” On and on the list went. I was amazed at how many things I had to be thankful for; how many things the Lord has blessed me with: spiritual gifts, friends and family, and financial blessings. God has been so good to me. And you know, when I step back and realize what all God has given me it becomes so easy for me to be willing to cheerfully give back to Him. When I take a look at all the blessings I have received from the Lord I can’t help but be cheerful in my giving. It’s no longer a mandate. It’s something that I want to do in order to show my gratitude.
I think another way we can become cheerful in our giving is by having a correct viewpoint of giving. When we look at giving as losing money we could have used for something else that we want it does become an annoyance. It’s hard to be cheerful when you think you’re throwing money down the toilet. But when we look at giving the way that Paul did it becomes a little easier to give cheerfully. How did Paul view it? He said, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Paul looked at giving as if he were planting a seed. When you give you are planting a seed, you are making an investment. For this past Christmas my dad bought each his three kids an investment starter with about $200 to start off with. Just recently I actually put that to work. I’m trying to make sure that each month I’m putting a set amount of money into that, and at this point in my life I’m trying to be a risky investor. Why? Because I would like to see some good return. That’s what investing is all about, isn’t it? Getting more out than you put in, hopefully a lot more out than you put in. But can I tell you, that the greatest investment you will ever make with your money is in God’s kingdom. J.L. Kraft, the head of the Kraft Cheese Corporation, who had given approximately 25% of his enormous income to Christian causes for many years, said, "The only investment I ever made which has paid consistently increasing dividends is the money I have given to the Lord." The greatest investment you could ever make is by putting your money in God’s work. No, you may not put in $100 this week and get back $1000 in 10 years. But it will be an investment that reaps great, eternal returns. And when you look at your giving that way, it’s a little easier to be cheerful in your giving; because you are seeing it, not as throwing money down the drain, but as making an eternal investment that is going to reap great, eternal dividends. Let’s not just be obedient in our giving, but let’s be cheerful in our giving as well.
III. God Delights in Sacrificial Giving
Lastly, this morning, not only does God demand obedient giving, and not only does He desire cheerful giving, but He also delights in sacrificial giving. Once upon a time, a pig and a chicken were walking down a village street. They came upon a church sign which was advertising a community breakfast which was going to be held in a few days. At the bottom of the sign the menu was given, it read ’Ham and eggs will be served from 6:30 to 8:00 am.’ The chicken turned to the pig and said, "See!!’ Even we can help the work of the church!!!" "Yes," said the pig, "but your help will only be a contribution, mine will be a sacrifice."
Mark tells us a story in his Gospel that goes something like this. 12:41-44… And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites (equivalent to about 1/5 cent each), which make a farthing. And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.
You know, I’ve sat in camp meetings over and over again and watched as the camp president stood up there and took pledges to help cover the cost of the camp, or to help build a new building or something. To be honest, it was the part of camp that I despised the most, as much as I know it’s necessary to help raise the needed funds. But one thing I’ve noticed is the way people are impressed by large givers. As the leader is having the ushers call out the amount of money that people have written down on their pledge cards it goes something like this… “$200… 150… 400… 25… 5… 75…50…5000- well, hallelujah, praise the Lord for His blessings.” You know what I’m saying? People are impressed by those who are wealthy enough to give large gifts and give those gifts. It’s easy to lift up those who are giving large chunks of cash. And believe me, I hope we have some people who’ve given large chunks of cash here this morning.
But Jesus was not impressed at all by those who had lots of money and therefore gave large gifts. He wasn’t impressed by those whose offerings made so much noise as the coins hit the metal containers they fell into. No, He was impressed by a little widow lady who came walking through and made very little noise putting less than half a penny in the offering plate. Why? Because she was giving sacrificially. No, she wasn’t putting large amounts of money in that offering plate. But she was giving all she had. And that impressed Jesus. He was delighted in her giving. I would think that at those camp meetings where the pledges are read out loud, perhaps God is more pleased with those who gave the $5, 10, and 25 gifts than He is with the $5000 gifts because He knows that they are coming from people who are truly having to sacrifice in order to make those pledges. And I’m not saying that God isn’t pleased with $5000 gifts or that they aren’t ever given sacrificially. All I’m saying is that it doesn’t matter to God how large or small your gift is. He just delights in those who are willing to trust and depend completely upon Him by giving Him more than they can spare.
You see, this lady had given all she had. Those two coins, the smallest in the Roman monetary system, were the last two coins she had. What many of those rich folks walking through that line wouldn’t even bend over to pick up was more than this lady could really spare. That offering represented this woman’s last meal. It represented the very last of her possessions. She gave everything to God. And in doing so she placed herself totally in His care; she put herself in a place of complete dependence upon Him to supply her needs. She was trusting entirely in Him.
Mother Teresa said, “If you give what you do not need, it isn’t giving.” To be honest with you, I feel like I have never quite made it to this stage of giving. I don’t remember a time when I wasn’t tithing, and while there have been some times I bemoaned the fact that I had to put that money in the offering, I believe I am a cheerful giver. I’ve never really done much more than I had to. I’ve not really stepped beyond the minimum biblical standard of tithing. But recently I’ve purposed in my heart to be someone who is a sacrificial giver. No, I don’t want to be stupid and wasteful with my money. But I want to be someone who is always stepping beyond the expected and giving more than I have to. I want to be someone who is willing to give more than I can spare and put myself in complete dependence to Jesus Christ. I want to be sacrificial in my giving. Yeah, I want to be comfortable. I don’t want to have to worry about how my bills are going to be paid. But I want to be someone who God can delight in because I am willing to sacrifice for His kingdom.
In the book of 1 Kings the story is told of how, during a great famine, Elijah the prophet traveled to a small town called Zarephath. There he met up with widow who had enough oil and meal left to prepare one last meal for her and her dying son. But Elijah asked her to make him some bread and bring him some water. She said to him, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a cruse; and now, I am gathering a couple of sticks, that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” But Elijah said, “Don’t worry, just make me that food and God will take care of you.” So the widow did as he asked. And the Bible tells us she and her household, along with Elijah, ate for many more days. And that meal never ran out. And there was always oil left in the bottom of that flask.
Ps. 37:25 says, I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. You know something, those who are willing to honor God in their obedient, cheerful, and sacrificial giving are people who God truly has the opportunity to bless. He will always honor those who honor Him. He will always provide for those who put all their trust in Him by giving back to Him. God will always give more to those give back to Him, and as someone once said, “His shovel is much bigger than mine.”
Let me ask you, what kind of giver are you? Are you obedient in your giving? Do you give back to God what He has asked of us? If you don’t, I would admonish you to begin honoring Him with your obedient giving. Are you cheerful in your giving? Do you give because you have to? Or do you give because you love the Lord and want to see His work continue? Are you sacrificial in your giving? Are you willing to depend upon God by giving more than you can spare? Or are you just giving the bare minimum that God has laid out for us. Let’s determine to be obedient in our giving. But not just obedient, let’s be cheerful as well. And then, may we always be people that God delights in because of our sacrificial giving. Amen?
Am I a preacher who’s after your money? No. But I know that those who honor God with their giving, churches and individuals alike, are those who will never lack the provision of God. They’re those who God is able to bless with more.
