THE COURAGE TO LET GO
Luke 6:38
S: Stewardship
Th: Brave Hearts
Pr: WE MUST HAVE COURAGE TO LET GO OF OUR MONEY.
?: Why?
KW: Reasons
TS: We will find in our study three reasons why we must have courage to let go of our money.
The _____ reason is we walk in…
I. FAITH
II. JOY
III. ABUNDANCE
Version: ESV
RMBC 05 Jan 03 AM
INTRODUCTION:
ILL Notebook: Money (I have plenty…)
While attending West Virginia University, Rick Clayton’s answering machine went like this:
"Hi, this is Rick. If you are some-one from the phone company, I’ve already sent the money. If this is one of my parents, please send money. If it’s my financial institution, you didn’t lend me enough money. If you’re a friend, you owe me money. If you are a female...I have plenty of money."
Well, there are many ways to look at money, isn’t there?
But, let me ask you this…
1. Does money cause you to lose your perspective?
As we look to our theme for 2003, how we look at money has to be taken into consideration.
Our…
2. 2003 Theme: “Brave Hearts”
Our corresponding verse comes from Deuteronomy 31:8…
“The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
We will be talking about our annual theme more specifically next week, both in the morning and evening service.
Today, we give consideration to the relationship between courage and money.
You see, when it comes to money, some of us are not very brave.
We hold on to it like our life depended on it.
But that is not a Biblical concept.
Our life depends on the fact that the Lord goes before us and that He is with us.
In April 2000, George Barna’s research demonstrated that only 8% of born again Christians give 10% or more of their income.
Now, I must admit that I do not spend a lot of time talking about the tithe, though I believe it to be in force and that the tithe (10%) is our starting place for giving.
I don’t spend a lot of time talking about the tithe because I think the New Testament opens up an even broader perspective about giving.
That is, we don’t give because we have to…we give because we want to.
We are called on to give freely and cheerfully, according to how God has prospered us.
And for the most part, we are very prosperous.
And to check it, all we have to do is go out in the parking lot and check what we are driving and/or go see the house that we are living in.
So for most of us, there really isn’t any excuse.
It just means that…
3. WE MUST HAVE COURAGE TO LET GO OF OUR MONEY.
I like what C. S. Lewis says about giving…
I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.
Well, as we look at our text today…
4. We will find in our study three reasons why we must have courage to let go of our money.
Our text is Luke 6:38, and it is Jesus speaking when He says…
“…give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
OUR STUDY:
I. The first reason we must have courage to let go is we walk in FAITH.
The text tells us to “give.”
It is an imperative, a command.
And the Greek tense tells us that our act of giving is to be continuous, that generosity is the way of the believer.
This understanding of this one word tells us simply that…
We should always be looking to raise our standard of faith.
Frankly, typically, we look to raise our standard of living.
But we are looking to raise the wrong thing.
Instead of raising the standard of living, how about raising the standard of our giving, and thus, our faith?
We spend a lot of time accumulating wealth, but the biblical concept is of continuous giving.
We are to continuously give so that we will not get wrapped up in and trapped up in earthly treasure.
We are to continuously give so that there will never be anything that will become untouchable that is in our possession.
We are to continuously give so that the burden of proof is on what to keep rather than on what we give.
II. The second reason we must have the courage to let go of our money is that we are to walk in JOY.
Think for a moment…
When you get a gift, is it an enjoyable experience?
Sure it is.
It is why Christmas is so much fun.
In fact, the part I have really learned to enjoy over the years is the giving part.
I especially love going shopping with the kids because they desire to buy gifts of love for people that are important to them.
Our text tells us to…give, and it will be given you…
We rob ourselves of present joy and future reward by holding onto assets.
Simply, giving brings more joy than hoarding.
When we are worried about how much we have or how to get more, it occupies our mind.
And the more we have, the more it occupies us.
The more we have, the less joy we have.
I think God’s principle can be simply stated like this…
What you keep, you lose…
What you give, you keep.
If you want more bang for your buck, invest it for eternity’s sake.
III. The third reason we must let go is is we walk in ABUNDANCE.
God gives back more that we are able to give out.
Our bulletin cover appropriately demonstrates the language of this verse.
The language is borrowed from the marketplace, where the salesman endeavors to put more grain into the measure than it will contain, by pressing it down, shaking it up, and piling it on.
Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap.
So, the principle goes like this…
If you want to change what you are getting, change what you are giving (Wade Hughes, Sr.).
Now, let me admit very freely, that what God gives back is not necessarily money.
But I do think that God desires to bless us, and that He wants us to desire that blessing!
Some of you expressed to me during this past year that you felt uncomfortable about our emphasis on the prayer of Jabez.
To you, it seemed to be a prayer of selfishness.
Others, told me that they preferred another prayer over Jabez’.
Frankly, I never thought it was supposed to be a contest over which prayer was better.
But I want to be clear here.
It is not wrong desire God’s blessings.
For when we desire God’s blessing, it is a matter of desiring God’s involvement in our lives.
When we desire God’s blessings, it is a matter of submitting to His headship over our own.
When we desire God’s blessings, it is a matter of wanting His ways over my own.
When we desire God’s blessings, it is a matter of yearning for His favor.
There is nothing wrong with any of this.
When we invest eternally, God blesses us in many ways.
It can be financially.
Sometimes, though, I think He does it financially only to match our small faith, because there is so much more to be received that is of even greater value.
For He blesses us with a functioning church family, to grow and minister in.
He blesses us with a place to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.
When we invest in where He has placed us, it is an eternal investment that beats Wall Street every time!
APPLICATION:
So, let’s get this right…
What we do with our money demonstrates the status of our relationship with God.
In Deuteronomy 8:17-18, God says…
“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 power to get wealth…
Let’s get this straight and receive the Biblical perspective.
All we have is due to God’s generosity.
So if we are giving 10%, God is graciously letting us use 90%.
If we are giving 5%, God is graciously letting us use 95%.
If we are giving 1%, God is graciously letting us use 99%.
It all belongs to God.
We are His stewards.
So why do we hold on with such ferocity?
Well, I think we hold on to our wealth for many reasons.
For some, it is pride…
Power and prestige are other factors.
The desire to control…
Others feel insecurity and fear.
There is no doubt that we hang onto more than we need because we are worried God will fail us.
And I am not saying that having retirement plans are wrong or that we should not have them.
What we must remember, though, is that our security is not our money.
It is being a child of God.
It is being a blessed child of God.
This past Sunday, I spoke at Mt. Ararat.
One of my favorite parts of the service is the offering.
They do a march offering (describe) and they do it with smiles on their faces.
Why?
Because they know they are blessed.
It is a privilege to invest in the eternal.
So, the next time the plate comes by, remember that it is not about the church budget.
It is about investing eternally.
It is about worship.
So have the courage to let go.
And give because you want to.
Give freely, because God has freely given to us through His Son.
Give freely, because you love God with all your heart.
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
Walk in faith…and remember that our dependence is not in what we earn, but in who we have become according to the grace of the Lord Jesus; we are now children of the King.
Walk in joy…and practice the delight of investing in eternity; don’t let your thinking be skewed by our culture’s priorities, rather than our Father’s; waiting for us is present joy and future reward.
Walk in abundance…realize that God does not want to favor us a little, He wants to favor us a lot; so desire the blessing, be right with God and give freely as He already has done for us.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
