“Stop Giving – You’re giving too much” - Exodus 35:4-36:6
Gladstone Baptist Church – 28/5/06 am
S1 - Christian organisations always seem to be asking for money and people to do God’s work. It is always “Please give more.” It is never “Stop giving – You’re giving too much!”
There is one thing that all charity organizations, volunteer organizations and Christian churches have in common – they always seem to be asking for more money and people to volunteer to do work. There is never enough to go around.
Christian organizations have a bad reputation for it. Always asking for more money. Some will offer to give you a book if you send a donation to them. Some just send out thinly veiled prayer letters in attempt to prick your conscience to give to them. No matter what the tactic is – it is always the same plea “Please give more.” It is never “Please stop giving – you’ve given too much.”
Wouldn’t it be incredible if we heard that “Please stop giving – you’ve given too much. We don’t know what to do with all the money and we can’t with a clear conscience keep taking your money because we can’t use it effectively for God’s kingdom. We’ve got all that we need.”
But I don’t think I’ve ever heard this said. Instead it is “Please would you please consider supporting God’s work here.”
There was once a young minister, fresh out of bible college, who thought it would help him better understand the fears and temptations of his future congregations if he first took a job as a policeman for several months.
He passed the physical examination easily; then came the oral exam to test his ability to act quickly and wisely in an emergency.
Among other questions he was asked, “What would you do to disperse a frenzied crowd?” He thought for a moment and then said, “I would pass an offering plate.”
He got the job.
People just don’t like giving to any cause it seems and giving to God’s work is no different. Well over the last few weeks we’ve looked at a few different aspects of giving and I hope that these have challenged you or at least made you begin to think about whether you are honouring God through your giving.
Today, I want to wrap up this series by telling you a story. It is a true story of a group of people who were asked to give to God’s work. I think that we can learn a lot from their attitude and their response.
S2 - Moses once made a request for money and volunteer labour. (35:4-19).
Moses, most of you will know was a man God chose for a special task. He was selected and trained to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. They had been there for over 400 years enslaved and God through a heap of miracles rescued them and set out to lead them to a land he had promised them. More than 2 Million of them.
The first stop though was at a place called Mt Sinai where God invited Moses up on the mountain to meet him and receive instructions for how this huge community was to live. They were to live in a way which honored God and represented him accurately before other nations. Moses received the law and the God established a covenant with the people. After all this had been done, God invited Moses back on the mountain and there Moses spent 40 days and 40 nights with God as God instructed him about how to worship him and how to build the tabernacle – a place where he could live and be worshiped.
Now 40 Days and nights were a long time, and the people began to wonder where old Moses was – had he died up there? They asked Aaron to help them make some Gods who would lead them and so they made up a golden calf. God saw what they were doing and told Moses that he was going to destroy them because of their idolatry. Moses pleads on their behalf and convinces God to spare their lives and not abandon them. Moses goes down and sorts out the people. He is so furious that he smashes the stone tablets that God had written the law on. 3000 people are killed that day by the sword and many others die from a plague God sent, but because of Moses’ faithfulness, God gives the people another chance and invites Moses to return to the mountain for a new set of tablets.
Moses returns this time to a people who had learned their lesson and knew they had escaped destruction by the skin of their teeth. And here is where we come to the request for money. You can follow it along with me in Exodus 35:4 – 36:6.
Moses came to the people and said –
“This is what the LORD has commanded: 5 From what you have, take an offering for the LORD. Everyone who is willing is to bring to the LORD an offering of gold, silver and bronze; 6 blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair; 7 ram skins dyed red and hides of sea cows ; acacia wood; 8 olive oil for the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense; 9 and onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece.”
This was to be an offering of materials to make a tabernacle – a place where God could be worshipped in their camp. But that wasn’t all of the command … Moses continued …
10 “All who are skilled among you are to come and make everything the LORD has commanded: 11 the tabernacle with its tent and its covering, clasps, frames, crossbars, posts and bases; 12 the ark with its poles and the atonement cover and the curtain that shields it; …
And Moses begins to list out all the parts of the tabernacle that needed to be made. God had given him precise plans and now he lists out the things that needed to be made. Moses brings God’s request for people to bring the raw materials for the building project and also to offer themselves as labour to do the work. He sounds like a pastor doesn’t he … We need some money for a building project - Oh yeh, and we need some people to do the work also.
Here was an occasion that Moses made a request to carry out a project for God. Sure it was building the tabernacle which was pretty special. It was where the people met with God and worshipped him. In many respects it was like a church, but in other respects it was pretty special because there was only one.
What I think is pretty incredible here is who God asked to be involved. He commanded people to give, but there was a qualification to this demand - it was only those who were willing. God didn’t want offerings from anyone who didn’t want to give. He wanted gifts from God honouring givers who were willing.
I don’t think that God has changed at all. He still appeals to willing people for money and labour to get his work done in this world. It may not be building the tabernacle, but does it matter what it is for. If it extends God’s kingdom it is still God’s work. The appeal might not come through Moses, but hey, there was nothing special about Moses. He was just one of God’s servants who followed God’s instructions. God still makes appeals to us through his servants today. It may be a youth ministries coordinator appealing for more female leaders. It may be through a visiting missionary who is seeking to raise support. It may be through a church treasurer who doesn’t know where the money is coming from to pay the bills. These all sound familiar for some reason, don’t they! God is still make requests for people to give money and time to his work.
S3 - All those who heard and were moved by God’s request obeyed and brought their offerings. (35:20-30).
How did the people respond to God? The people of Israel heard God’s request. Then they withdrew to consider how they would respond (vs 20). And then “everyone who was willing and whose heart moved him came and brought an offering to the LORD for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments.” (vs21).
The people had heard God, they had considered in their heart their response. It was here that they opened themselves up to experience the spirit’s movement. They were moved in their hearts by God’s Spirit and so they acted in obedience and brought their offering to God. The men and the women, the leaders and the followers, the rich people with lots of gold and the poor people with bronze – they all listened, considered, were open and obeyed. They all brought their offering. When God makes appeals to us, we need to do exactly the same thing – to hear, consider, be open and obey. We need to listen carefully to the appeal and then go before God on our knees and seek what He wants our response to be. Remember a couple of weeks I said that we were God’s investment managers. God wants us to invest His money wisely, so lets ask for his wisdom to do it. He will show us what he wants done. His spirit will move in us if we let him. Then when we have the answer, let’s obey him and bring in the offering.
Moses lists all the things people gave and do you know what – it is exactly what God had requested. God asked for gold, silver and bronze; blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair; ram skins dyed red and hides of sea cows [I’m sure they were a dime a dozen]; acacia wood; olive oil for the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense; and onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece.” And it was all given!!! The people had listened to God’s request and had met it all. But more than that they gave willingly. We are told
• In 35:21 everyone who was willing and whose heart moved him came and brought an offering to the LORD
• In vs 22 All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments.
• In vs 26 all the women who were willing and had the skill spun the goat hair
• In vs 29 All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the LORD freewill offerings for all the work the LORD through Moses had commanded them to do
Again and again we are told that the people gave willingly. They weren’t coerced. They weren’t under a threat. They weren’t being blackmailed. They gave of their own volition and gave willingly.
I know that many people in the church in Australia don’t give willingly. They resent the fact that God might ask them for something. They resent the fact that God might request them to volunteer to serve him in his church or in some other organization. They might hear the appeal that God gives, but they harden their heart and prevent the Spirit from moving them. They don’t give and serve willingly – if they do give or serve, they do it grudgingly. Sometimes I must admit that I am one of those grudging people.
Why were the Israelites so willing to give? I think it is because they knew how majestic and holy God was. Remember, they were still at Mt Sinai. They had seen his cloud on the mountain when Moses went up to meet him – it looked like a consuming fire on the mountain. When Moses had come down off the mountain, they’d seen his shining face. There was something special happening here. They had seen a majestic God and they were in awe.
But not just that – they had also experienced his judgment. When they had tried to fashion an image of God in the form of a cow, they had been punished. Over 3000 of their number had been killed and they had been struck down with a plague. They had found out first hand that God was to be respected. He was holy and demanded his people be holy. And when you crossed him he was to be feared. God deserved their worship – not an idol made of human hands. God deserved all honour. God deserved obedience and God deserved their allegiance.
That is why I think the Israelites were willing to give to God. They identified here a God who was majestic and holy, who was to be honoured and who was to be obeyed. If I were to go around here this morning with a microphone and ask people to describe God, I don’t think that I would get a whole lot of people describing him in this way. I think more often I’d get answers like a loving father. A gracious God. A forgiving Dad.
God was all of that to the Israelites too, He had just spared their lives and had agreed to not abandon them to their enemies. But I don’t think that was the picture that the Israelites had in the forefront of their minds. I believe they saw God as a magnificent God who deserved their servitude and so they came willingly to give their money to him. If we can only get a picture of God like the one the Israelites had, we would also be more than willing to give to our majestic awesome God.
But it was not just their money, they also volunteered their time.
S4 - God even gifted and set aside some leaders to supervise the volunteer tradesmen. (35:31-36:2).
We read that God had thought this through and had set aside two men Bazalel and Ohiliab. These two men were gifted. They had fine trade and craft skills which God had given them. But besides this they had the ability to lead others and teach them the skills they had acquired. God had prepared these two men in order to manage the project of building the tabernacle.
You see, people didn’t just bring material offerings willingly. They also offered their skills and time willingly for God’s work. God had gifted these volunteers too. Chp 36:1 says So Bezalel, Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just as the LORD has commanded
God prepared men and women to carry out his work. All he needed was for them to willingly give themselves to the task. And this happened. Vs 2 says that Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD had given ability and who was willing to come and do the work.
God prepares us for his work also. He doesn’t just give us money to use for his purposes, he gives us skills that he wants us to use in his service. Some of you might have administrative skills or have managerial skills – God wants to use them. Some of you might have trade skills – electrical, welding, mechanical, fitting – God wants to use them. Some of you might have skills with working with children – God wants to use them. Some of you are good at talking over a cup of coffee – God wants to use those skills also.
The people of Israel were gifted and were willing to use their gifts and they came and began work, but then a problem arose – a most unlikely problem and one that I don’t think has occurred very often since …
S5 - The work went along well except for one problem – the people gave too much. (36:3-5). Moses had to ask people to stop people giving to God. (36:6).
The problem was that the people gave too much.
And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning. 4 So all the skilled craftsmen who were doing all the work on the sanctuary left their work 5 and said to Moses, “The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the LORD commanded to be done.”
6 Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” And so the people were restrained from bringing more, 7 because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work.
Can you imagine that situation – an appeal goes out and the people respond to it so well that Moses is forced to stand up and say – “STOP GIVING – YOU’RE GIVING TOO MUCH.”
How many Christian organizations and churches would love to have a problem like that!!!!
You see here we have an example of God honouring giving. The people heard the need, went and considered it. They allowed God to work in their heart and then they acted in obedience to that prompting and brought their offering of materials and skills.
Everyone didn’t bring the same amount – no doubt, some brought a lot, some brought a little. Some brought things that cost a lot, some brought things that they had made and cost only a little. Some brought objects, some gave time. But everyone who was willing, allowed God to speak to them and they brought what God told them to bring. Everyone who was willing did their part and the end result was that there was enough.
Imagine if that situation occurred here today. I mean in Gladstone Baptist Church? Imagine if we were getting in so much money, that we couldn’t figure out what to do with it. Imagine if we paid all our missionaries – in fact we had so much money coming in we doubled how much we were giving to each of them and instead of just giving to our current 5, we had to go and find another 10 to support because we had so much money and we still couldn’t use all the money ourselves, so we were giving sizable donations to Gideons and Rhema and other organizations. Wouldn’t that be incredible.
It would be a miracle – but not because God had somehow provided the funds. God has already provided more than enough money and resources to support every church and every Christian ministry in the world. “He has?” you ask. Yes - the money is sitting in our bank accounts. And the resources are sitting in our pews.
The miracle wouldn’t be in God’s provision of these things, but in the fact that we were all willing to release them to be used for God’s kingdom.
When God called for a tabernacle to be built – all the resources were sitting there and waiting. The miracle wasn’t in the provision of the resources, but the willingness of people to release them. The Israelites listened to God’s request, they allowed God to work in their heart and then they acted in obedience to that prompting. If we do the same, there is no reason for the same result not to be seen in this church and in fact in all Christian organizations in Australia and the world.
Wouldn’t it be incredible if no Christian ministry was in need? God is looking for people willing to honour Him through their response to His call. It may be giving money or possessions, it may be giving your time. I pray that today when God looks at us, we would be found by God willing and ready to give generously and serve humbly.
