Building a Life of Sacrifice
2 Corinthians 8:1-9
"Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also." 2 Cor. 8:7 (KJV)
A church member of Rick Warren's tell the following story. Bob McKuen took his young son to McDonald's recently, ordered him an order of large french fries. You know how good McDonald's french fries smell. He says as he sat down and was watching his son eat them, he instinctively reached over and grabbed one to eat. His son slapped his hand and said, "Dad, you can't have one. Those aren't your fries."
Bob said three thoughts immediately went through his mind. One, "I realized my child has forgotten that I'm the source of his fries. I'm the one who brought him to McDonalds. I'm the one who walked up to the counter. I paid for the fries with my own money. He doesn't realize that without me he would have no fries. I am the source of fries." He said the second thing he thought was, "My son has forgotten that I control the fries. I could take them away from him instantly and say, `All right, that's it! No more fries for you.' On the other hand, if I wanted to, I could buy him a truck load of fries. I could bury him in fries if I wanted to because I have the means to do that.' He said, number three, "I realized I don't really need his fries. I could buy my own. I could just as easily walk back up to the counter and buy myself some more fries. What I really want is for my son to learn to be unselfish."
Those are the three reasons God wants us to learn to be generous. Did you know generosity is the most talked about value in the entire Bible. Statistics:
The word "faith" or its variations is used 246 times in the Bible.
The word "hope" which is another important word in our Christian life, is used 185 times.
The word "love" which is obviously an important word to those of us who are believers is used 733 times.
The word "give" or "giving" is used 2,285 times in the Bible.
The Bible talks more about give and giving than all of those other issues combined. Why? Because giving is the expression of faith, hope, and love.
Karl Menninger the distinguished psychiatrist who founded the world renown Menninger clinic says, "Giving is an important criteria of mental health. Generous people are rarely mentally ill."
First Free Will Baptist Church is the most generous church that I know of. You don't need a message on generosity but we all need to be reminded over and over of how generous God has been to us. Let's examine our text to see what the Bible has to say about this subject. First, write this down;
1. The ____gift____ from the Sovereign.
A. The presentation of this grace
"Moreover, brethren we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed...." v 1
B. The paradox of this grace
"How in great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy...." v 2a
C. The practice of this grace
"....and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality." v 2b
Charles Spurgeon and Joseph Parker both had churches in London in the 19th century. On one occasion, Parker commented on the poor condition of children admitted to Spurgeon's orphanage. It was reported to Spurgeon however, that Parker had criticized the orphanage itself. Spurgeon blasted Parker the next week from the pulpit. The attack was printed in the newspapers and became the talk of the town. People flocked to Parker's church the next Sunday to hear his rebuttal. "I understand Dr. Spurgeon is not in his pulpit today, and this is the Sunday they use to take an offering for the orphanage. I suggest we take a love offering here instead." The crowd was delighted. The ushers had to empty the collection plates 3 times. Later that week there was a knock at Parker's study. It was Spurgeon. "You know Parker, you have practiced grace on me. You have given me not what I deserved, you have given me what I needed.
During the building of the Golden Gate Bridge over San Francisco Bay, construction fell badly behind schedule because several workers had accidentally fallen from the scaffolding to their deaths. Engineers and administrators could find no solution to the costly delays. Finally, someone suggested a gigantic net be hung under the bridge to catch any who fell. Finally in spite of the enormous cost, the engineers opted for the net. After it was installed, progress was hardly interrupted. A worker or two fell into the net but were saved. Ultimately, all the time lost to fear was regained by replacing fear with faith in the net. As we paid nothing for God's eternal love and nothing for the Son of His love, and nothing for His Spirit and our grace and faith, and nothing for our eternal rest...What an astonishing thought it will be to think of the unmeasurable difference between our deservings and our receivings. O, how free was all this love, and how free is this enjoyed glory...So then let "Deserved" be written on the floor of hell but grace on the door of heaven and life.
2. The ___growth__ as servants.
Sooner or later you've got to decide, "Can God be trusted with my finances? Can He be counted on to keep His promises?" I've told you many times that there are more promises in the Bible about giving than about any other subject. God says "If you do this then I will do that."
One translation of 2 Corinthians 9:13 says "Your giving proves the reality of your faith." Giving, the Bible says, proves how much faith you really have. In the Bible, it says there is only one way you can prove God. In Malachi 3:9-10, God says, here's how you can prove Me: Tithe. It's the only way in the Bible where God puts out that kind of challenge. It's like the Pepsi challenge verse. He says, "I dare you! Tithe. Take the first ten percent of everything you make. Give it to Me and see if I won't care for your needs and bless your life. I dare you." He kind of throws down the gauntlet and says, Test Me in this. The Bible says, "Prove Me sayeth the Lord." It's the only way you can prove that God exists. Take the challenge. Take the tithing challenge.
Giving strengthens my faith. 6 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. (gladly, excitedly)
8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:" 2 Corinthians 9:7-9
He's saying that when you give, get excited about it. I'm excited about next week. I'm eager to give because I want to see what God's going to do in my life. When I give it's not an obligation it's an opportunity. It's an opportunity to stretch my faith.
You need to understand this if you're going to be a Christian. Many times in your life for the rest of your life, there's going to be special significant times when God calls you, challenges you, to give sacrificially over and above your normal tithe in a specific instance. It will happen many, many times if you're a dedicated Christian. When those times come up, when you're challenged to give more than your normal regular giving, get ready for a miracle. Get ready for an adventure.
There are three reasons for giving sacrificially:
1. Judy and I want to keep growing. We want to develop spiritual muscle. We want to be more like Christ. We're not going to live off some commitment we made years ago. "Back last year, we trusted God for the "Build The Wall" campaign and we were able to keep our commitment and all our needs were met. We don't want to coast." No! We want God to challenge us more. We want to see bigger miracles and we want to see Him do more in our lives. We want to grow. We don't want to coast and be stuck in the past with some commitment we made years ago.
2. We're making it because I want you to know, as your pastor, I will never ask you to sacrifice more than I do. I feel, as a leader, we're should be leading the way.
3. Because Judy and I have learned, you can't out give God. You just can't do it. And every time we make that commitment and we follow through on it, God always blesses us in return. It's exciting to see what He does. I've learned over the years that every time I try to out give God, He proves that it can't be done.
A. The example of their sacrifice
"For to their power, I bear record...." v 3a
B. The enhancement of other graces
"Therefore, as ye abound in everything...." v 7a
C. The exhortation to increase
"....see that ye abound in this grace also." v 7b
Life is a test. One of the things that God tests here on earth is your maturity. One of the ways He tests your maturity is through finances. Why through finances? Because we spend so much of our time making money, saving money, spending money, thinking about money, using money, investing money. We build our lives around it. It's at the core of our being so God says "We'll use it as an acid test of your responsibility."
The Bible says this in Luke 16 Jesus said, "If you are untrustworthy with worldly wealth [that means you don't manage it good] who's going to trust you with the true riches of heaven?" Do you see the implication of that verse? Jesus said if I'm not faithful with my money on earth, God's not going to trust me with greater spiritual responsibility in Heaven. This is serious. Jesus spoke more about money than He did about Heaven. He spoke more about money than He did about Hell. Over one half of all the parables are about money management. Why? Because God has chosen to use it as an acid test of our maturity. How mature are you?
3. The ___grip____ of selfishness.
A. The attitude of materialism
Would you agree that we live in a culture that's pretty materialistic? That's an understatement, particularly here in Orange County where the goal is get more and more. And the one with the most toys, still dies. The idea is, "I've got to have it all, I've got to want it all, spend it all, get it all." Especially at Christmas time when you start being deluged with all the catalogues. You think, "How did I ever live without this?" We live in a very materialistic culture.
John G. Wendel and his sisters were some of the most miserly people of all time. Although they had received a huge inheritance from their parents, they spent very little of it and did all they could to keep their wealth for themselves.
John was able to influence five of his six sisters never to marry, and they lived in the same house in New York City for 50 years. When the last sister died in 1931, her estate was valued at more than $100 million. Her only dress was one that she had made herself, and she had worn it for 25 years.
The Wendels had such a compulsion to hold on to their possessions that they lived like paupers. Even worse, they were like the kind of person Jesus referred to "who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God" (Luke 12:21).
B. The antidote to materialism
There's only one antidote to materialism. Give. It's the only antidote to materialism. The essence of materialism is get -- get, get more. So every time I give, I am breaking the grip of materialism on my life. It is a spiritual victory. It is a counter cultural move. It says, "No, I do not buy into the myth that life consists in what you accumulate. I don't buy into that, that your net worth and self worth are the same thing." You break through to that victory every time you give.
You say, "But can I just not spend and then I won't be materialistic?" Even savers can be materialistic. You've heard about people who would never spend anything. They live in a little tiny shack but they have two million piled up in some bank account that they were hording away. That's materialism too. It's the same thing.
The only antidote to materialism is to give. And every time I give, I break the grip of materialism. I get paid once a month and Sis. Judy gets paid bi-monthly but we give weekly. Do you know why? We give weekly for two reasons. First, to remind us that all that we have comes from God and second to break the grip of materialism each and every week. Paul tells Timothy to remind those who have the resources to be generous.
"17 Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; (generous and willing to share)." 1 Timothy 6:17-18
4. The ___grace___ of the Savior.
A. His great prosperity
"....though he was rich...." v 9a
B. His grinding poverty
"....for your sakes he became poor..." v 9b
Meaning no disrespect to the religious convictions of others, I still can't help wondering how we can explain away what to me is the greatest miracle of all and which is recorded in history. No one denies there was such a man, that he lived and that he was put to death by crucifixion. Where...is the miracle I spoke of? Well consider this and let your imagination translate the story into our own time -- possibly to your own home town. A young man whose father is a carpenter grows up working in his father's shop. One day he puts down his tools and walks out of his father's shop. He starts preaching on street corners and in the nearby countryside, walking from place to place, preaching all the while, even though he is not an ordained minister. He does this for three years. Then he is arrested, tried and convicted. There is no court of appeal, so he is executed at age 33 along with two common thieves. Those in charge of his execution roll dice to see who gets his clothing -- the only possessions he has. His family cannot afford a burial place for him so he is interred in a borrowed tomb. End of story? No, this uneducated, propertyless young man who...left no written word has, for 2000 years, had a greater effect on the world than all the rulers, kings, emperors; all the conquerors, generals and admirals, all the scholars, scientists and philosophers who have ever lived -- all of them put together. How do we explain that?...unless he really was who he said he was."
Ronald Reagan
C. His gracious provision
"....that ye through his poverty ye might be rich." v 9c
In Christ We Have:
A love that can never be fathomed
A life that can never die
A righteousness that can never be tarnished
A peace that can never be understood
A rest that can never be disturbed
A joy that can never be diminished
A hope that can never be disappointed
A glory that can never be clouded
A light that can never be darkened
A purity that can never be defiled
A beauty that can never be marred
A wisdom that can never be baffled
Resources that can never be exhausted.
