Joy to the world
A study of Philippians
Part 4
“ Joy in Giving “
If you have been watching the news or TV lately
It seems that a countdown to Christmas calendar is very common
Shortly after or even before Thanksgiving
We begin seeing – Blank ---days until Christmas notices
Don’t miss out on our special deals they say
One day only these deals won’t last
Hurry – Hurry – hurry
Buy, Buy, Buy
Get – Get – Get
Unfortunately in this messed up world
Christmas has become all about what we get
Instead of what we give
Today we are going to continue our study of Joy as taught by the Apostle Paul
In his letter to the church at Philippi
The book of Philippians was written for several reasons.
First of all it was written as a letter of Paul’s expression of joy.
You see Paul knows that
The Christian life is supposed to be filled with joy.
And he wants us to know it as well
In this letter Paul showed his joy in many situations.
Joy in others or relationships
Joy in serving God and others
Joy in believing
And today
“Joy in Giving”
Second
The book of Philippians was written to be proactive in identifying and defending against problems that would arise in the church
Arguments
Division
False teaching
To name just a few
Third
It is a thank you letter for the gift – the offering that the Philippians gave – as they supported Paul’s ministry.
Let me lighten the mood just a bit before we dig in
Men in particular
I need you to pay attention
First I am going to tell you how not to find joy in giving
Don’t buy your wife sexy under wear as a Christmas gift
First off she knows it is really for you ---not her
And secondly it will really embarrass her if opened in anything other than a one on one gift exchange
Next- men please listen closely
Don’t buy anything short of gloves that require you knowing her size
Nothing good can come of buying something too big or too small
This one is important
Don’t buy anything useful
A spice rack will not be appreciated
Nor will any type of exercise machine
And a new mop or vacuum cleaner no matter how bad she needs will not be seen as a warm, loving or thoughtful gift
Don’t buy Jewelry
What she wants – you can’t afford
And what you can afford – she don’t want
Lastly
Be careful what you spend
Spend too much and she will be mad for having to eat beans for the next month to pay off Christmas
Spend too little and she will ask – is that all I’m worth to you?
And none of these will bring you joy
Women- I am sure you can come up with your own lists as well
I can tell you
He does not want a pocket fisherman
A pocket hose or anything that has an infomercial that says but wait there’s more
All joking aside
Today it is my prayer that we can find joy in giving
Please open your bibles to Philippians 4
Let me start out with verse 1
“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters,[a] stay true to the Lord. I love you and long to see you, dear friends, for you are my joy and the crown I receive for my work.”
Paul once again is expressing his love for the church
The people not the building
He is once again giving them a word of encouragement for them to keep on with the good work
But he is also expressing his joy in giving
How you may ask?
He says
You are my joy
And the crown I receive
For
“My work”
Now we know that works are not a condition of salvation
But a sign of salvation- evidence of salvation
So we also know Paul is not talking about a crown of salvation here
But instead
A crown of blessings
One of which is joy
Giving his works- evidence of his salvation
His gift of knowledge
His gift of teaching
His gift of sacrifice
His gift of love
Brings him much joy
And also gives much joy
Here in this second half of a little verse in a little letter
Paul shows his joy in giving
He continues as he thanks the church for giving to him as well
This also shows that he finds joy in the receiving of gifts
Gladly and lovingly given
You see there is absolutely nothing wrong with receiving gifts
They can and do bring joy
But
When we focus on receiving instead of giving
We shift the focus from others
To ourselves
I
Comes back into our vocabulary
And we have discussed many times
How
That can steal joy
But
Here in this passage
Paul
In love
Thanks his friends from his heart for their gift
And
Desires for them to receive a reward for their love
Once again
Joy is one of those sweet rewards
Skip down to verses 15-19
Philippians 4:15-19
As you know, you Philippians were the only ones who gave me financial help when I first brought you the Good News and then traveled on from Macedonia. No other church did this. 16 Even when I was in Thessalonica you sent help more than once. 17 I don’t say this because I want a gift from you. Rather, I want you to receive a reward for your kindness.
18 At the moment I have all I need—and more! I am generously supplied with the gifts you sent me with Epaphroditus. They are a sweet-smelling sacrifice that is acceptable and pleasing to God. 19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.
So how do we find Joy in giving?
True joy?
First we are going to look at some ways though the writing of Paul to the Philippines
Then his writings to the church at Corinth where he uses the church at Philippi as an example of joyful giving
And then thought the eyes and gift of our Lord
So please open your bibles back up to Philippians 4
Let’s read verses 11-14
“11 Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ,[d] who gives me strength. 14 Even so, you have done well to share with me in my present difficulty.”
In these verses Paul shows us the first step in finding joy in giving
Contentment
Listen
It is hard to give with a generous heart when
All you want is more -more –more
When you are striving desperately as Willie and Waylon sing in their great Song Lukenbauch Texas
Trying to keep up with the Jones will steal joy
You can’t give graciously when you are focused on getting
Contentment is a key to joy
A big key
Assurance is another key
What do you mean by this preacher?
It can be hard to give generously when you are worried about the light bill
Or how you are going to feed the kids next week
But
Paul shows us that we must have faith
And when we do we will find joy
Verse 18
18 At the moment I have all I need—and more! I am generously supplied with the gifts you sent me with Ep-aphro-ditus. They are a sweet-smelling sacrifice that is acceptable and pleasing to God.(Ep-apro-ditus)
He says I have all I need
Once again confirming his contentment
But
Verse 19 says more
This is a often misused and misunderstood verse
Verse 19
“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.”
Notice the words needs
Needs
Not wants
Gods will provide your needs
Believing this
Embracing this
Will cause you to trust more
Show more faith
Guys
It is easy to give generously and from the heart
When you know that your needs will be met
Remember the woman in 1 Kings 17
Who fed Elijah with the last of her oil and flour?
Her faith
Her trust
Her assurance
Caused her to be blessed in the giving of the gift
Contentment with what we have
Assurance that our needs will be met
Are huge keys to finding joy in giving
Nets we move on to 2 Corinthians chapter 8
Where Paul uses the church at Philippi as an example of Joyful giving
2 Corinthians 8:1-3
Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters,[a] what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia. 2 They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity.
3 For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will.
Remember
Philippi is a city in Macedonia
This is modern day northern Greece
Here Paul shows another way that we find joy in giving
Sacrificial giving
A true gift should cost the giver something
More than just money
I remember a story I read recently while researching for this sermon
A young boy living in a coastal town presented his school teacher with a beautiful sea shell for a Christmas Gift
The teacher was overwhelmed by the boy’s gift
But also knew that this type of shell was very unusual in their area
So she asked
“Where did you get it?”
He said he had found it down at a stretch of beach several miles from where he lived and that it was the only place in the whole area where these shells could be found
How did you get there she asked?
“ I walked “he replied
Knowing that it was miles away and must have taken him hours to walk there and back
She said
“Why would you do that?”
“The walk is part of the gift” he said
This young boy understood
He found joy in giving
By giving sacrificially
You see
It cost him something
And the cost was not only part of the gift it was part of the joy
Next Paul shows us yet another way to find joy in our giving
2 Corinthians 8:11-12
Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. 12 Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have.
Paul says that giving is a show of love
That love is a sign of salvation
And that we should give out of what we have
Not what we don’t have
I could have very easily turned this message into a sermon about tithing
And I do feel very strongly about the subject
But that is not the topic of today’ message
I will say this
Ask anyone who tithes and they will tell you about the blessing and the joy
Most who say they don’t tithe
Say that can’t afford it
I say they can’t afford it cause the don’t tithe
90% with God’s blessing beats 100% without it every time
You see those who do---give out of their haves
Those who don’t try and give out of their don’t-s
Paul is saying to find joy in giving
Give proportional to what you have
You may be surprised that when you do that
You end up having more than you thought you had
And finally
Paul shows us through the example of the Church at Philippi
Another way to find joy in giving
2 Corinthians 9:6-8
Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. 7 You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.”[a] 8 And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.
Here Paul shows us that in order to find joy in giving
We must give cheerfully
For God loves a cheerful giver
Listen
If this offends you
Take it up with God
I am simply the messenger
You have all heard the saying
If you can’t say something nice
Don’t say anything at all
Here is a real similar saying
If you can’t give cheerfully
Don’t give
Keep your gift
God does not want it if you don’t give it willingly and gladly out of love
Giving out of a sense of obligation never brings joy
It only brings resentment
And Joy is a gift of the Spirit
Resentment is not listed in Galatians 5 as being one!
So here in Philippians
And
Corinthians
Paul shows us how to find joy in giving
Be content with what you have
Have assurance that your NEEDS will be provided for
Give sacrificially
Give according to your haves not your don’ts
And give willingly
Lovingly
And cheerfully
The common theme in this series on Joy has been
Knowing and focusing on Jesus
Knowing the right Jesus
The real Jesus
The Jesus of the bible
The savior
The life giver
The promise keeper one of the best ways we know him is to obey him
And one way we obey him is striving to become more like him
Paul sets a good example of joyful giving
But I believe that Our Father God sets a far better one
With the gift of his Son
John 3:16
A verse we all know and love
Shows us the perfect example of giving
“For this is how God loved the world: He gave[a] his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
This is True joy filled giving
For God so loved
Me and you
His custom made creations
That he gave
In spite of how messed up we can be
In Spite of our mistakes
In spite of our weaknesses
In Spite of our disobedience
In spite of our pasts
He gave
He gave
What did he give?
His left over’s
Second best?
No
He gave his best
His one and only Son
Not a Son
The Son
Sacrificially
For us
A bunch of knot heads
Sinners
He gave
So that all who believe can have eternal life
Salvation we call that
Through his love
Though his grace
All who believe?
Regardless of pasts
Regardless of race
Color
Nationality
Denomination
Language
All means all
He gave
So all who believe
Will
Will
Will be saved
He gave his best
He gave what he loved
He gave so we could have contentment
He gave so we could have assurance
He gave from the abundance of his heart
From his love
And he did all this willingly
For you and for me
That is giving
And that is how we need to learn to give
And when we do
We will find joy
Close form the heart
Pray
