UNLIKELY - Your Place to Give with Open Hands
John 3:7-8 MsgB
“So don’t be so surprised when I tell you that you have to be ‘born from above’—out of this world, so to speak. You know well enough how the wind blows this way and that. You hear it rustling through the trees, but you have no idea where it comes from or where it’s headed next. That’s the way it is with everyone ‘born from above’ by the wind of God, the Spirit of God.”
God has a place for the unlikely; the wind of the Spirit will blow us into surprising places to accomplish His purpose in our lives.
The Holy Spirit continues to surprise us; one breath of God is not enough.
Nicodemus found himself surprised by the place God brought him. Nicodemus thought he was good with God. He struggled to understand the God wanted him to be born again. Jesus explained this spiritual rebirth as being of the Spirit - the wind or breath of God.
The “PNEUMA” quickens us to be “born again” or “born from above.”
The Greek word PNEUMA is translated as both WIND and SPIRIT
Nicodemus understood this word play because it works the same way with the Hebrew word RAUCH. Rauch likewise is translated as both wind and spirit - it can also be translated breath. Here is what Nicodemus understood:
The root of rauch is simply rah, which is translated as a verb TRAVEL or as a noun PATH. Nicodemus understood this carried the idea of a PRESCRIBED PATH or what we might think of as a routine.
The wind follows a prescribed path - we don’t know the path the wind follows, but the wind does not deviate from the path determined for it to follow. The wind blows bringing the changing seasons; it accomplishes its purpose along it’s prescribed path.
The prescribed path of the wind likewise illustrates the idea behind rauch also meaning BREATH. Every breath we take follows the path of being inhaled and exhaled. Our breath follows this path without deviation and without our conscious thought; breath moves in and out according to the prescribed path giving us life.
Similarly, the spirit is the breath of a person following the prescribed path or purpose to breathe out the life and creativity within the individual. In the same way the wind is invisible but brings the changing of the seasons, so too the invisible spirit within an individual accomplishes the desires or purposes within the person. Therefore, the Holy Spirit breaths into our lives to fulfill God’s creative purpose in our lives.
Jesus wanted Nicodemus to remember the creative power of God’s Spirit.
Genesis 1:1-2 NIV
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
Job 33:4 NIV
The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
Nicodemus recognized the “pneuma” (wind/spirit) as the Spirit of God because God and the Spirit, are an unbreakable unity. They are ONE.
Therefore, when Jesus tells Nicodemus no one enters the kingdom of God unless they have been born of the Spirit - the rauch or pneuma - Nicodemus rightly understands the Spirit to be the Spirit of God.
Nicodemus understood something else: The Spirit of God is the Messiah - this too is the unbreakable unity of who God is.
This is the teaching of Jewish Rabbis passed down to Nicodemus and the Jews living in the days of Jesus: “From the time of creation constant reference is made in the Holy [Scriptures] to Messiah and the Messianic hope of Israel. ‘The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters’; ‘The Spirit of God means Messiah.’” This is what Nicodemus studied in the writings of the Madras of Genesis 2 and Leviticus in the Rabbah 2 and 14.
The New Testament demonstrates the unbreakable unity of God as the Spirit of God and Messiah are one. ⇛ Luke 4:14, 18 NIV
14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit. . . .18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me. . .”
The Spirit and Jesus the Messiah are ONE. Therefore Jesus is not a mystery or unknowable, but makes Himself known to us by the Spirit - His breath, His Wind - in us.
Like Nicodemus we too are surprised; the wind of the Spirit brings us to unlikely places. God desires to transform our lives by the wind or Spirit of God. The Spirit that blows into our lives is the breath of Messiah, God’s anointed one. Jesus, the Messiah, the Spirit of God, the breath of God, the wind of God are all ONE.
Will we yield to the Holy Spirit, or will we push back against the wind to resist the Lord? We can choose to either push against the wind, or we can open the sail of our hearts to be carried along by the Spirit of God being transformed to be more like Jesus.
God has a place for the unlikely -
- a place in an uncertain future
- a place in the battle
-a place at the King’s table
- a place to give with open hands.
Take a moment and put the story of Zacchaeus into it’s context.
Luke 18:9-14 Jesus tells disciples the parable of a Pharisee and tax collector who go to the temple to pray. The Pharisee was boastful in his prayer of his righteousness and not like other sinners. The tax collector would not even look up toward heaven but asked God to be merciful to him, a sinner. This parable illustrates the transformation the Spirit brings into Zacchaeus’ life.
Luke 18:18-29 a rich man comes to Jesus asking how he can be saved; Jesus tells him to go sell everything he has and give to the poor, then come and follow Him. The rich man leaves sad. The disciple comment how hard it is to be saved. Jesus tells them what is impossible with man is possible with God. At Zacchaeus’ home the disciples would see how God can transform the heart of not only a rich man, but a tax collector (aka: sinner!).
Luke 18-35-43 Jesus enters Jericho and heals a blind man along the road who called out to him for mercy. Jesus was passing through Jericho, but Zacchaeus was looking on from a sycamore tree. When Jesus saw Zacchaeus He changed his plans to stay at Zacchaeus’ home.
Luke 19:1-10 NIV
1 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.
5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” 8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
God has a place for the unlikely, places where the Lord will direct us to GIVE. Let’s look quickly at seven unlikely and perhaps unexpected ways we can give:
Unlikely places to give because your sins are forgiven.
We cannot buy forgiveness. You and I are forgiven through the perfect sacrifice or offering Christ made on our behalf as He bore our sin and died in our place on the cross. However, we can give in response to God’s greatest gift. We can do this in two ways:
Zacchaeus illustrates the first way we give in response to knowing our sin has been forgiven - HE MADE RESTITUTION FOR HIS SIN. Zacchaeus heart was transformed doing even more than the Law required. The law stated that when restitution was made for one’s sin you were to add one fifth the value or 20% over and above the sacrifice offered for their sin (Lev. 6). So if I stole $100 from Bill, then the law required I restore to him what I took plus the 20% or $120 total. Zacchaeus goes far beyond this saying he will restore four times the amount what was taken. So if I’m going to be like Zacchaeus instead of doing what was required by the law, I’m choose instead to pay Bill $400 for the$100 I took from him.
Leviticus 6:1-7 NIV
1 The LORD said to Moses: 2 “If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the LORD by deceiving a neighbor about something entrusted to them or left in their care or about something stolen, or if they cheat their neighbor, 3 or if they find lost property and lie about it, or if they swear falsely about any such sin that people may commit— 4 when they sin in any of these ways and realize their guilt, they must return what they have stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to them, or the lost property they found, 5 or whatever it was they swore falsely about. They must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day they present their guilt offering. 6 And as a penalty they must bring to the priest, that is, to the LORD, their guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. 7 In this way the priest will make atonement for them before the LORD, and they will be forgiven for any of the things they did that made them guilty.”
The second reason we give because our sins are forgiven is simply to GIVE WITH THANKSGIVING FOR WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE. This offering is perhaps best illustrated by the burnt offering which pictures the complete dedication of the worshiper to the Lord. Again, giving in this way does not forgive our sins; you can’t buy your forgiveness with anything you do or give. The burnt offering is the idea behind making ourselves “living sacrifices” (Romans 12:1); it is to put ourselves on the altar giving ourselves completely to the Lord with thanksgiving (Lev. 1 and 4).
Leviticus 1:1-4 NIV
1 The LORD called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting. He said, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When anyone among you brings an offering to the LORD, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock.
3 “ ‘If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, you are to offer a male without defect. You must present it at the entrance to the tent of meeting so that it will be acceptable to the LORD. 4 You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you.
Leviticus 4:27-29 NIV
27 “ ‘If any member of the community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD’s commands, when they realize their guilt 28 and the sin they have committed becomes known, they must bring as their offering for the sin they committed a female goat without defect. 29 They are to lay their hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering.
Giving in response to God’s outpouring of love into our lives should really be the motive behind all of our giving.
2 Corinthians 9:10-11 (NIV)
10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
The UNLIKELY places to give Paul here describes as an opportunity to be “generous on every occasion.” Such giving is the overflow of God’s supply of seed, seed the Lord provides to bring a harvest of righteousness in our lives resulting in thanksgiving.
Unlikely places to give sharing with the poor.
This is the first thing Zacchaeus did giving half his wealth to provide for the poor. Notice this was the response Zacchaeus made to being accepted by Jesus and not because Jesus required it of him. Zacchaeus was transformed by Jesus. Instead of holding tightly to his wealth, Zacchaeus opened his hand and began to give freely. God wants us to give to meet the needs of the poor.
Proverbs 19:17 NIV
Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done.
Proverbs 22:9
He who is generous will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor.
Proverbs 28:27
He who gives to the poor will never want, but he who shuts his eyes will have many curses.
Giving to provide for the poor is a way of showing the compassion of Christ to those who do not believe thus opening the door to share the gospel with them. This is one way Paul took the message of Christ to Gentile non-believers. He tells the Galatians how the apostles in Jerusalem gave them the right hand of fellowship and agreed he and Barnabas should preach to the Gentiles with one condition:
Galatians 2:10 NIV
All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
Let God direct you in giving to the poor or the homeless along side the road. Give as unto the Lord, but do so with the desire to make Jesus known in their lives - something that’s hard to do by just handing money to the guy on the corner with a cardboard sign. Such giving might make you feel better, but it does little to share the gospel.
I believe God wants our giving to be a personal investment into the lives of the poor, so they might come to know Jesus, the one who has compelled you to share with them.
Unlikely places to give providing for family.
God expects us to provide for those closest to us.
1 Timothy 5:8 NIV
If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Unlikely places to give helping fellow believers.
James 2:15-17 NIV
15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
2 Corinthians 8:14-15 NIV
14 At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, 15 as it is written: “The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.”
God wants us to help each other as brothers and sisters in Christ. We are members of ONE BODY. If one member suffers we all suffer and should join together to provide for each other so all our needs are met.
Jesus said, when we share with one another as believers we are actually ministering unto Him!
Matthew 25:35-45 NIV
35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
Unlikely places to give establishing the work of pastors and elders - supply for the ministry of church at home.
1 Timothy 5:17-18 NIV
17 The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.”
Galatians 6:6 NIV
The one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.
YOUR GIVING MAKE THE MINISTRY OF LIFE CHURCH POSSIBLE. Your giving makes it possible for me to serve as your pastor.
Unlikely places to give contributing to the work of missionaries - supply for the ministry of church in the world.
YOUR GIVING TO LIFE CHURCH EXTENDS BEYOND THE FOUR WALLS OF THE BUILDING AND THE VILLAGE LIMITS. We give to help support missionaries around the world. Each month we send nearly $1,000 to help make it possible for the gospel to be preached around the world.
Philippians 4:15-17 NIV
15 Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; 16 for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. 17 Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account.
We give to help plant churches in Ohio, to support Chi Alpha pastors on college campuses, to help churches across the country, to compassion ministries, to missionaries around the world.
Unlikely places to give receiving God’s blessing in our lives.
We don’t give to get, and unfortunately some so called Christian ministries will wrongly encourage people to give with a motive of greed - greed on the part of the ministry and greed on the part of the giver who just wants to manipulate God to give them even more. Always check your motives when you give to be sure you give for the right reasons.
Nevertheless YOU CANNOT OUT GIVE GOD.
Deuteronomy 15:10 NIV
Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.
Acts 20:35 NIV
35In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’
1 Timothy 6:18-19(NIV)
18Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.
Proverbs 11:24-25 (NIV)
24 One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. 25 A generous man will prosper; 24 he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
2 Corinthians 9:6 (NIV)
6Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
Matthew 6:3-4
But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:19-21
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
What is the Holy Spirit Saying to YOU today? As God gives you ears to hear and eyes to see will we now allow Him to transform our heart and empower us to respond in obedience to Him?
What does it mean for you to know the Spirit and Jesus the Messiah are one? In what way is the Spirit of God wanting to blow into your life today transforming you to be more like Jesus?
How is the Holy Spirit blowing to open your hands to freely give instead of tightly holding onto money and things?
How has the Holy Spirit breathed into your life to expand your understanding of the ways you can glorify God in your giving?
Deuteronomy 16:17
Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you.
1 Chronicles 29:9
Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the Lord with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly.
Proverbs 3:27
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.
Proverbs 11:24-25
There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, and there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want. The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered.
Proverbs 21:26
…the righteous gives and does not hold back.
Malachi 3:10
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.
Mark 12:41-44
And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent. Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury; for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”
Luke 3:11
And he would answer and say to them, “The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.”
Luke 6:30
Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.
Luke 6:38
Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him wouldn’t perish, but would have eternal life.
Acts 20:35
In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Romans 12:8
…Or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
2 Corinthians 9:6-8
Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.
Luke 10:25-37 (NIV)
25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” 27He answered: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” 28“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” 29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ 36“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
