Introduction – One Offering
Picture this scene.
It’s Sabbath morning. The church board has just finished breakfast and gathers for a quick finance meeting. The pastor walks in with a smile and says:
“Friends, I have the new church-building plan God gave me. And here’s the budget strategy: we’ll finish it with one offering. Not a capital campaign, not a three-year pledge drive—just one, Spirit-filled offering.”
You can imagine the look on the treasurer’s face. One eyebrow up, calculator frozen mid-air.
One offering? Impossible.
But that’s the scene Moses lived.
Exodus 24:18 tells us he spent forty days and forty nights in the cloud on Sinai. Think about that: over a month alone with God. No e-mail, no phone, no committee deadlines. Just God.
And when he came down, God had given him detailed blueprints for a house of worship—a sanctuary for His presence.
Then came the command:
> “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering.” (Ex. 25:2)
Notice the word offering—singular.
God did not say “offerings,” plural.
One offering from willing hearts.
Now let’s pause.
How would your finance committee handle that?
Imagine your pastor standing up Sabbath morning and saying, “We’re going to build a church with one offering. Bring gold, silver, and bronze. We’ll build a house for God and then stop asking.”
Most of us would need smelling salts.
But that’s exactly how God set it up. And it worked—abundantly.
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Part 1 – God’s Dwelling: The Invitation of Presence
Why such a plan?
Because this story isn’t about fundraising. It’s about God’s desire to dwell with His people.
> “Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.” (Ex. 25:8)
From Eden’s garden to the final New Jerusalem, God’s heart has always been to be with His people. The tabernacle is not first a project; it is a promise.
And He invites people to give so they can share in the joy of His presence.
When God calls, He calls for the best.
He listed gold, silver, bronze, blue, purple, scarlet yarn, fine linen, onyx stones, fragrant spices. Extravagant materials for a modest structure—just 15 by 45 feet.
Modern scholars estimate its value at more than thirteen million dollars. That’s for something smaller than many living rooms!
Why?
Because the worth of a house is determined by Who lives there.
Application: When our giving is centered on God’s presence, not on square footage or human recognition, generosity flows freely. Value is set by worship, not by market price.
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Part 2 – The Miracle of Willing Hearts
Turn to Exodus 36. Two Spirit-filled artisans, Bezalel and Oholiab, receive the offerings and begin the work.
Then a miracle of participation unfolds:
> “They brought freewill offerings every morning.” (Ex. 36:3)
Picture it. The sun is barely up. The camp is still stretching awake.
There’s a knock at Moses’ door. People line up, arms full of gold bracelets, linen, acacia wood. “Pastor, we’ve got more. Please take it.”
And it didn’t happen once. It happened morning after morning.
Soon Bezalel and Oholiab can’t keep up. They call an emergency board meeting.
> “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work.” (v.5)
So Moses issues one of the rarest commands in church history:
> “Let neither man nor woman do anything more for the offering… So the people were restrained from bringing.” (v.6)
Imagine that: ushers with gentle smiles and maybe mock shields at the door—“Friends, please stop giving!”
The Bible adds the punch line:
> “For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.” (v.7 KJV)
I love that word stuff.
God doesn’t only talk about treasure and talents. He calls the ordinary things we possess—our stuff—and says it is enough.
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Part 3 – The God Who Gives More Than Enough
This is the nature of our God.
He never stops at barely enough.
Manna fell daily until there was more than they could eat.
Oil flowed for the widow until every jar overflowed (2 Kings 4).
Five loaves and two fish fed five thousand with baskets left over (Mark 6).
Grace is given “pressed down, shaken together, and running over” (Luke 6:38).
And at the cross, Jesus did not give a portion; He gave all.
The tabernacle story points to Christ Himself.
> “The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us.” (John 1:14)
Jesus is the true meeting place between God and humanity.
Everything in Exodus—the gold-covered ark, the bread of the Presence, the ever-burning lampstand—whispers His name.
So when we give, we aren’t funding bricks and mortar. We are responding to a God who has already given Himself.
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Part 4 – Our Modern “Stuff”
You may think, “I don’t have gold or silver either.”
But like the Israelites, we are loaded with stuff—resources God intends to transform.
1. Time
Time is one of today’s rarest commodities. An hour spent mentoring a youth, visiting a shut-in, or helping a neighbor might be worth more than a check.
2. Abilities
Carpenters, coders, cooks, organizers—every skill can become a tabernacle gift. Remember, Bezalel was filled with the Spirit of God in craftsmanship.
3. Possessions
Maybe it’s an unused car that could transport people to church or a spare room that could shelter a missionary or foster child.
The question is never “Do I have enough?”
It is, “Am I willing to release what I have?”
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Part 5 – What Hinders the Flow
Why don’t we see more of this overflowing generosity?
Distance from God’s presence. If we have no Sinai time—no lingering with Him—our hearts stay cold.
Fear of scarcity. We cling because we forget Who provided the seed and the soil.
Disordered loves. We care more for our reputation or comfort than for God’s dwelling.
Weariness and cynicism. “We tried before; nothing changed.”
The enemy loves to whisper: You don’t have enough; your gift won’t matter; you’ll be left short.
But the cross answers every lie:
> “Though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.” (2 Cor. 8:9)
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Part 6 – God’s Way of Multiplying
Notice how abundance came:
Spirit empowerment. Bezalel and Oholiab were “filled with the Spirit of God, with wisdom and understanding” (Ex. 31:3). God equips before He asks.
Obedient excellence. They made everything “just as the Lord commanded” (Ex. 39:42). Worship is expressed in craftsmanship and accuracy.
Grace-driven hearts. Paul later celebrates Macedonian believers who gave “beyond their ability” (2 Cor. 8:3) because God’s grace overflowed in them.
The principle still stands:
> God’s work, done God’s way, never lacks God’s supply.
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Part 7 – Living the “Every Morning” Rhythm
Exodus 36 says they brought gifts every morning.
Not once a year, not just when inspired, but as a daily habit of open-handed living.
What might an “every morning” rhythm look like for us?
Daily prayer of release: “Lord, what in my hands belongs in Your house today?”
Weekly tabernacle hour: a set time to serve, visit, repair, teach, intercede.
Monthly review: ask, “What am I hoarding that could be holy if given?”
Leaders can encourage this by creating simple on-ramps: volunteer boards, project lists, testimonies of God using small gifts in big ways.
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Part 8 – A Vision for Our Church
Imagine our congregation living this out:
The community fund never runs dry.
Repair needs are met before requests are made.
Music, teaching, children’s ministries thrive because people bring their best gifts.
And occasionally we even experience the delightful problem of having to say “Stop bringing!”
That is not fantasy.
It’s the natural outcome of hearts warmed by God’s presence and moved by His Spirit.
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Call to Response – Open Hands
Let’s finish where Exodus finishes: with open hands.
Right now, place your hands open on your lap.
Picture the “stuff” God has entrusted to you—your time, skills, resources, contacts, energy.
Whisper a simple prayer:
> “Lord, make my heart willing. Show me today what to release for Your dwelling.”
Maybe God has already placed a specific gift or action on your mind.
Write it down. Before you leave, hand it to a ministry leader or simply begin doing it.
This is more than fundraising; it’s forming a dwelling place for God.
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Closing Prayer
Lord,
You delight to dwell among a willing people.
Melt fear and scarcity from our hearts.
Fill us with the Spirit who filled Bezalel and Oholiab.
Teach us the rhythm of “every morning.”
Take our ordinary stuff and make it holy.
Let it again be said: “The stuff was sufficient for all the work… and too much.”
Through Jesus Christ, our true Tabernacle, amen.
