The offerings that speak.
Written by Senior Pastor Ndayiragije Misigaro Joel, January 18, 2023
Deuteronomy 8:17-18
"Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the power to get wealth, that he may confirm the covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day."
INTRODUCTION.
The "offering" in the believer's life is a very delicate matter to speak of. And learning how to give is Paramount to all believers, as we are reminded that the giver of life. God gave us the best of all when His own Son Jesus sacrificed for our sins on the cross at Calvary.
Though many beliefs concur that offering to your local church is to enrich your pastor, that is a lie. Moreover, one needs to look at the benefits of giving in the first place. Why do I give my offerings? What are the benefits? What motivates you to give?
Many have failed to realize the benefits attached to the proper principles of giving your offerings at your local church. 1 Corinthians 9:13-14 “Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should make their living with the gospel”
If the reason why you give your offerings, is to a particular person or; then, the start is wrong, if what drives your giving of the offerings is to those who please you, the start is misguided, if for you before you can give the offerings is that you need to be recognized by pastors or anyone else, then you are mistaken.
Offering to God is essential. The first God's instruction was to the children of Israel, in Deuteronomy 12:5–6 “But you shall seek the place that the Lord your God will choose out of all your tribes to put his name and make his habitation there.
There you will go, and there you shall bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices! your tithes and the contributions that you present, your vow offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of your flock. Here, God is telling them to choose a place where to give offerings, tithe, and all other contributions. It is a place where God is, and has designated for you, and the local church is the place where God has chosen for you in the New Testament.
1. THE OFFERINGS SPEAK WHEN YOU HELP THE POOR.
Psalm 41:1–3 Blessed is the one who considers the poor! On the day of trouble, the Lord delivers him; the Lord protects him and keeps him alive; He is a blessed one in the land; You do not give him up to the will of his enemies. The Lord sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness, first, you restore him to full health.
The first is that they tend to the poor, and the blessings attached to this kind of offer are that. It brings healing and deliverance to the giver when he/she is in trouble. So, giving your offerings and helping others who are in need and deserve it, produces more blessings! There is a possibility that you might give the offerings to those who are not in need, but this is not the case, but only for the poor. Don’t forget that you need to hear from God as to where; you need to take your offerings, as in (Deuteronomy 12:5-6) the Spirit of the Lord will show you which poor need those kinds of offerings.
Acts 11:27-29 Now these days’ prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold to the Spirit that there would be a terrible famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius). So, the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.
2. WHEN YOU HONOR GOD WITH YOUR WEALTH.
Many fail to give the first fruits of their work. Why? Greed and lust are the answer, and not only that, the love of God is lacking from them, but when we learn to give our wealth to God in every first fruit of our produce, work; etc. This kind of offering speaks louder than you can imagine.
Proverbs 3:9–10 Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.
The first fruits need to be looked at not only in monetary means but also in material things as well.
3. WHEN YOU GIVE WHAT YOU HAVE AND NOT IN LARGE SUMS?
Mark 12:41-44 “And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how 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.”
What is Jesus’ teaching here? It is only that you give all you have, not in sums. Because giving all that you can live with is necessary, as it puts trust in God’s hands to take care of the rest of you.
This kind of offer will always bring more blessings to your life.
4. WHEN HAVING ANY STUBBORN PROBLEM THAT PERSISTS.
God taught a lesson to Abraham when asked to give his only son as a sacrifice to God. As soon as he obeyed in return, God rewarded his offering gesture and gave the promise of blessings that even his descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
When facing a persisting situation, go and give an offering. For that matter, it can open the blessings from above. (Genesis 22:1-19). And this kind of offering is called the burnt offering, and see what (Genesis 22:2) this is for those who are also called the devoted givers, look at the life of Cornelius.
The devoted giver illustration is in Cornelius. (Acts 10:2) The Bible says that he was devout, prayerful, and generous. He lived this way both privately and publicly. It was how he inclined his family and how he led his career. See Acts 10:7
Mark 14:3 (NIV) While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
This lady was lambasted for wasting all that expensive perfume. But Jesus applauded her, saying that she was a good example to follow; and she rewarded that whenever the preaching of the gospel happens, her name would also be mentioned! (V.9)
CONCLUSION
Anyone can choose to be this generous giver, that is willing to make a burnt offering for his or her continual situation.
1 Samuel 7:9 “Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord, and Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel and the Lord answered him.”
People limiting to the idea that these types of offerings were practices of offerings of the Old Testament, and they say to you that Jesus is our burnt offering; therefore, you do not need to do this practice, yes, but peer at it; Look at what the small boy did with the fish and loaves of bread that he possessed, and by the boy relinquishing that, Jesus accepted that and performed a miracle! Jesus needed something that had to be offered and the rest was for Him to multiply. (John 6:9-13)
Job 1:5 “When the days of feasting had completed their cycle, Job would send and consecrate them, coming up early in the morning and offering burnt offerings according to the number of them all; for Job said, “Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.”
Job had the habit of doing this kind of offering as well.
Malachi 1:8 “But when you present the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and sick, why is it not evil? Why not offer it to your governor? Would he be pleased with you? Or would he receive you kindly?” says the Lord of hosts.”
Malachi conveys that this offering needs to be pleasing, not an offering that has a blemish or defect.
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 can make all grace abound. And, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.”
God bless you. And what matters most; is surrendering your life to Jesus.
