“Do I Have To?”
Recovering An Essential Truth – part two
Today is our second week in a 3 week series called, “Recovering An Essential Truth” – a series about stewardship and giving…
Now, last week I shared with you 5 reasons why NOW – was the time for me to talk about giving & stewardship…. First time I have ever done this in 9+ years of ministry.
1) God through people has told me to. And because I love God I want to obey Him. And God has made it abundantly clear that I was going down the wrong road… And when God tell me to turn around, I never want to be too proud to hang a U-turn.
2) I want to preach all of God’s truth – and there is a lot of talk in the bible about stewardship.
I do not want to – “withdraw, to shrink back’ to avoid, to hold back any of God’s word - especially when it is helpful to you….
3) I want you to grow spiritually – and giving & growing spiritually are inseparable.
4) Central is an alive church – (a dead Church doesn’t cost much but would you rather have?)
5) God is concerned about your heart… And Jesus said where your treasure is – there is your heart also…
[if you were not here last week I encourage you to pick up a tape of the message see Mike Gavin or Debbie Hansen]
As you can see from your outline – this morning in regards to giving I want to answer the question – “Do I Have To?” The two major points in your outline ARE –
1) Why should I give?
2) How should I give?
Okay let’s get to it:
Why Should I Give?
Giving, Makes You More Like God
God is a giver. Understand – everything we have is a gift from God. When you give you are like God. The most well known verse in the bible – says, “God so loved the world that He gave…”
And throughout scripture we see God giving again & again
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Rm. 6:23
“Every good & perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights..” James 1:17
A minister wrote to a wealthy businessman, and requested a donation for the church. He promptly received a blunt refusal, which ended with these words: "As far as I can see, this Christian business is just one continuous GIVE, GIVE, GIVE!" Not long after, the minister wrote the following reply: "I wish to thank you for the best definition of the Christian life that I have yet heard!"
Reason #1 for giving is it makes us more like God – and let me ask you a question - can you think of anyone better to imitate?
A 2nd reason is that -
Giving, Draws You Closer To God
As we saw last week – Scripture teaches that, “Where your treasure is, there your heart is also…” If I put my money into entertainment, that’s where my heart is. If I put my money into my house, that’s where my heart is. If I money into my car, that’s where my heart is.
Understand that where you put your money is where your heart is. AND if you put your money with the Lord, it will always draws you closer to Him.
Now the first 2 reasons for giving are pretty good ones… to be more like God and to draw closer to Him.
A 3rd reason why we should give is that –
Giving, Is The CURE To Materialism
We live in a very materialistic culture. Advertisers are not even subtle any more. They just pretty much come right out and say, "You can buy happiness." Hey, that’s America! Life, liberty, and the purchase of happiness.
Question - How can you live in a materialistic world and not be a material girl?
In 1 Timothy 6:17-18 we read;
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. [Circle "enjoyment". God wants you to enjoy what you have.] Command them to be generous and willing to share In this way they may take hold of the life that is truly Life!"
First it says, "Command those who are rich..."
Question – who is rich? all of us.
Imagine the following and you will see how Dailey life si for as many as a billion people in the world.
1. Take out all the furniture in your home except for one table and a couple of chairs. Use blanket an pads for bed
2. Take away all of your clothing except for your oldest dress or suit, shirt or blouse. Leave only one pair of shoes.
3. Empty the pantry and the refig except for a small bag of flour, some sugar and salt a few potatoes, some onions and a dish of dried beans.
4. Dis mantle the bathroom, shut off the running water, and remove all the electrical wiring in your house.
5. Take away the house itself and move into the garage.
6. Place your `house’ in shanty town.
7. Cancel all subsribtions to newspapers, magazines and book clubs (there is no great loss because now none of us can read anyway).
8. Leave only one radio for the whole shanty town.
9. Move the nearest hospital or clinic 10 miles away and put a mid wife in charge instead of a doctor.
10. Throw away your bankbooks, stock certificates, pension plans, insurance policies. Leave the family a cash hoard of $10.
11. Give the head of the family a few acres to cultivate on which he can raise a few hundred dollars of cash crops, of which 1/3 will go to the landlord and 1/10 to money lenders.
12. Take off 25 or more years in life expectancy.
By comparison how rich we are!
If you live in America, you’re rich. You could be the poorest American, but you’re richer than the rest of the world. He says it’s ok to enjoy life but true living comes from giving. We make a living by what we get but we make a life by what we give.
I think as parents we need to model a balance of giving and getting. If people are always getting and getting what are our kids learning? Only to get. We need to model giving to our children. It’s the antidote I know to materialism. It’s the only antidote to getting, getting, getting is to give, give, give. It makes me more like God. It draws me closer to God. It’s the antidote to materialism.
FOR - the next 2 reasons for giving we are going to look at a couple of passages from the great Italian prophet ‘Malachi.’
BUT before I do let me give you a real quick summary of the background and setting of this letter.
The name Malachi means “my messenger.” And that is what Malachi was God’s messenger to the nation Israel. Now, Israel had been back home for about 100 years after their exile following their defeat by the Babylonians.
Doc Smith (my OT professor) in his commentary on the minor prophets says the following about the times of Malachi.
Spiritually the Jews of the 5th century had lost the joy of their salvation and their zeal for the Lord. The priesthood was degenerate. The people would bring faulty sacrifices, and the priests would approve them for presentation before God. Religious apathy and skepticism were widespread. Tithes were neglected. Divorce was common. YET the people & priests refused to admit that anything was wrong. Into this environment Malachi marched. With these hypocrites and apostates he engaged in public debate. When he was finished he had laid bare the rotten foundation upon which their relationship with God rested…
Giving, Is One Way We Honor God
Question – what is honor? What does it mean to honor someone?
It means that through our words and action that we communicate to someone, that they are important to us and matter to us…
Notice what Malachi says;
“…A child HONORS his father, and a servant HONORS his master. I am a father, so why don’t you respect me? I am a master, so why don’t you respect me? You priests do not respect me?
But you ask, ‘How have we shown you disrespect?’ You have shown it by bringing unclean food to my altar.
But you ask, ‘What makes it unclean?’ It is unclean because you don’t respect the altar of the Lord. When you bring blind animals as sacrifices, that is wrong. When you bring crippled and sick animals, that is wrong. Try giving them to your governor. Would he be pleased with you? He wouldn’t accept you,” says the Lord ALL Powerful…”
Malachi 1:6-8 (NCV)
Pretty powerful words, Listen to how Max Lucado describes this attitude towards giving in the introduction to the book of Malachi in the Inspirational Bible.
The image is vivid. A family on their way to the temple realizes they have forgotten the sheep. He turns to her and says, “Did you bring a sacrifice?” “No, I thought you did,” she replies. He stops the wagon sans says, “You go ahead and take the kids, I’ll go back.”
He goes back to the pen and begins to sort through the sheep looking for the one to be sacrificed. He picks up a big fat one with thick wool. “Too valuable,” he decides and puts it down. He picks up another fat one, “No, I want to enter this one in a contest.” He finds another healthy one, “No, I need to save this one for breeding…”
Finally he comes upon a frail lamb with a broken leg and spotted wool. “Ahh,” he says, “This will be a good one to get rid of…”
What the fellow doesn’t know is that God has been watching the process. God has been observing the choosing. What God has heard the man say is, I will give a token, but I want give my heart…”
Such an attitude angers God. And such anger is found in this last book of the Old Testament.
Now, we don’t offer sheep, but every Sunday we have an opportunity to give. Some people arrive at the altar with no thought given at all to their financial responsibility before God. As the plate comes, she elbows him and says; “What do you want to give?”
He says, “Let’s see what I got.”
Wallets come out and the process of proclamation begins. We begin to sort through the sheep pen. We consider the big sheep with the picture of Ben Franklin, no, that’s too much. We think about writing a check with a couple of zeros. ‘Better not,” we decide.
We forget the process itself is a statement…
We forget that God is watching…
Listen – how and what we give; is one ‘real’ way that we show God, both our Father & Master that we respect him, that he is important to us, that he matters to us….
Why should you give?
Makes U more like God
Draws U closer to God
Is the cure for materialism
Is one way to honor God
A 5th reason is that -
Giving, Strengthens Your Faith
Understand – that God uses your finances to test your faith. Some of you are living proof of that. Have you ever had to decide between paying a bill and tithing? You only have so much money so where is it going to go? This is a test. God’s saying, "Do you really believe that I can take care of your bills? Or do you think you have to take care of them on your own?"
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, test me [circle that] in this, says the Lord. See if I won’t throw open the floodgates of heaven and poor out so much blessing you won’t have room enough for it."
God says, I dare you. I dare you to see if you can become a giving, generous person. God challenges us to tithe all the time, and see what happens to our life.
There are more promises in the Bible regarding giving than any other thing.
Remember, Jesus talked more about giving than He did about heaven or hell. It’s the essence of the Christian life -- "God so loved the world that he gave..." Giving gives God the chance to do a miracle.
DINA TESTIMONY…..
So giving strengthens and stretches and tests our faith.
Another reason to give; is that
Giving, Puts Your Possessions In The Proper Perspective
In the verses I just read from Malachi, we see where God’s people were told to bring a tithe – that’s 10%… Part of the reason for this, was to help them realize that the first fruits of their harvest belonged to God…. (Duet also talks about a 2nd tithe to be made yearly – for feasts and another tithe every 3rd year for widows, Levites, aliens, fatherless)
Now, you may say, “Yes, that is all very well and good, but that is the Old Testament. What about the New Testament? Tithing is not even mentioned in the New Testament.” You are correct. The New Testament standard for giving is ‘really’ not the tithe.
You see, the New Testament has a totally different pattern for stewardship than the Old Testament. AND - to understand the New Testament concept of giving we have to look at the story of the Rich Young Ruler. This young man came to Jesus in search of heaven, and asked Jesus what he had to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus’ response was to explain that he must first follow the basic laws of God — the ten commandments. The young man replied that he had kept all of the commandments from his youth. And then Jesus completely astounded him by saying, “Go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Matthew 19:21).
The Bible sadly reports, “When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. What was Jesus saying to this young man? He was giving the New Testament principle of stewardship, and that principle is this: Whereas the Old Testament taught us that 10% of everything we own belongs to God, the New Testament, and in particular Jesus, is teaching us that all we have belongs to God.
We need to understand that - The Old Testament was a partial picture of a greater truth. The Old Testament showed us that God had certain claims on our lives, but the New Testament shows us the full extent of those claims. God does not just own a part of me; he owns all of me. To acknowledge this and live this way is an act of worship.
Let’s look at another New Testament example of this principle. The Bible tells the story of the widow’s mite in this way, “Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, ‘I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything — all she had to live on’” (Mark 12:41-44). When we read this story we usually emphasize the smallness of her gift — that it was only a fraction of a penny. But the point is not how small her gift was, but how BIG it was. The gift of the wealthy was small by comparison, because they did not give all they had, as she did. That is the New Testament principle of giving.
We see this in the book of Acts as we watch the church be born…In Acts 4 we read;
“All the believers were one in heart and mind – No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had..” 4:32
In his book 13 Lessons in Christian Doctrine – Denver Sizemore writes the following in regards to the age old question how much should a Christian Give…
Certainly God does not require less of the Christian than He did of the Jews. Surely the Christian should BEGIN with the tithe and exceed that just as much as His love for God dictates, and the necessities of life permit.
John G. Alber wrote:
To say that the principle of the tithe has been abolished is to say that while everything else Christ has enlarged upon Moses, in this respect the Gospels sounds a retreat; that Christianity has lowered the standard of the virtue of liberality; that with greater blessing then the Jews, the Christian may, if he feels like it, give less for the sake of the world than the Jew gave for the sake of Palestine; that the Jew did more a loveless law than the Christina under the law of love.
That cold duty calls forth greater sacrifice under the law than gratitude under the gospel; that Sinai is stronger than Calvary; that the outcome is better when Moses sternly drives than when Christ lovingly draws…
The Christian has a greater; covenant, promises and commission… Jesus said that our righteousness MUST EXCEED that of the scribes and Pharisees… Therefore the ‘tithe’ is a good starting point for Christian giving…
[George Barna found the following in his research… One out of six ‘born again’ Christians gave no money to their church in 1999. And only 8% of church gave 10% or more to their church. Interestingly for those church goers making $75,000-99,000 only 1% tithed.]
Listen - when we come into contact with God we dare not be stingy for we serve a great and awesome God. Jesus said, “Freely you have received, freely give” (Matthew 10:8). The point is not whether you will literally give away all you have, but whether or not you recognize God’s complete and unconditional ownership of all you possess.
Another reason you should give is because -
Giving, In An Investment For Eternity
Listen - you can’t take it with you but you can send it on ahead. And the way you send it on ahead is by investing it in people who are going there. Jesus said, "Store up treasure in heaven" – Question - How do you do that? 1 Timothy 6:18-19 "Give happily to those in need and always be ready to share whatever God has given you. By doing this, you will be storing up real treasures for yourself in heaven. It is the only safe investment for eternity." And has better rates too!
No "You can’t take it with you." but you can send it on ahead.
I Heard about the guy that died and got to heaven. He saw all the big mansions and then one little shack. He said, "Is that where I’m supposed to live? Why?" Answer: "That’s all the building material you sent ahead."
There are only two things that are going to last forever: the word of God and people. Everything else is going to burn up at the judgment. Invest your time and money in the word of God and people.
AND - when you invest in those two things, then you will store up treasures in heaven.
The final reason you should give is because
Giving, Brings Blessing To Your Life
“Some people give much but get back even more. Others don’t give what they should and end up poor. Whoever gives to others will get richer; those who help others will themselves be helped.” Pr 11:24,25 (NCV)
“Give & it will be giving to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. FOR with the measure you use, it will be measured to you..” Lk 6:38
“Jesus himself said, “It is more blessed to GIVE then receive…” Acts 20:35
The Greek word for blessed – ‘contentment’’
Jesus says that giving will make us content.
Question – do people believe that verse? If they did, we’d give more. Listen – Jesus says that it really feels good to give. Have you ever heard anybody say, "You ought to give ’til it hurts!" Jesus says - You ought to give until it feels good.
Understand - there are only two kinds of people in life. There are givers and there are takers. You’re one or the other. You’re either giving and generous with your time, your money, your efforts, your energy, your life. Or you’re a taker.
And which type of person do you think is happier? There is a reason that the root word of "miserable" is "miser". The more I hold in, the more stingy I am with my time, with my money, with my tithe, with my effort, the more unhappy I’ll be.
Karl Menninger, the dean of American psychiatry, founder of the world famous Menninger Clinic, says "Giving is a criterion of mental health. Generous people are rarely mentally ill."
So there are 8 reasons why you should give….
How Should You Give
You Should Give Willingly
"For if the willingness is there, your gift is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you don’t have." 2 Cor. 9:12
Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under pressure..." 1 Cor. 9:7a
Circle….
We Should Give Thankfully
Paul in talking about giving in 2 Cor 9 writes in the following in verse 12;
“This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people BUT is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God…”
The Psalmist writes in Ps 116:12; “How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me?”
Answer - You can’t. You’ll never be able to repay God for all that He’s done for you.
Every time you give an offering, you’re saying, "Thanks, Lord."
We Need To Give Joyfully
The word "cheerful", in Greek, is the word hilaros, from which we get the word hilarious. In the New Testament, when they gave an offering, they had fun! "We get to give an offering! Awesome! This is great!"
We Need To Give Weekly
"On the first day of every week [Sunday] set aside some of what you have earned and give it as an offering. The amount depends on how much the Lord has helped you earn."
Question – give weekly – because God wants our giving to be a weekly reminder of who’s first place in your life. When you give the first part of your money on the first day of every new week, it is a reminder that says, "God, You’re really number one." I may say God’s number one in my life, I may say I’m seeking first His kingdom, but if I’m not giving Him the first part of my money, how can I say He’s first? It’s a reminder.
Notice it uses the phrase "set aside". Circle that phrase. That involves planning. It’s not impulsive.
How much should you give? He says the amount depends. Circle the word "depends". "On the first day of every week set aside some of what you have earned and give it as an offering. The amount depends [circle that] on how much the Lord has helped you to earn."
What you give should be based on what you make.
We Should Give Sacrificially
There is a passage in 2 Samuel chapter 24 that really illustrates well the concept of giving sacrificially.
King David was wanting to build an altar to present a burnt offering to the Lord. He went to a man named Araunah to buy some land and oxen for the sacrifice. AND Araunah, probably wanting to get in good with the king said – “O King, you don’t need to buy it – I’ll give it to you…”
And David replied with these powerful words…
“No, I insist on paying for it, I will not sacrifice to the Lord my god burnt offering that cost me nothing…” 2 Samuel 24:24
We Should Give Expectantly
2 Corinthians 9:6 "Remember this, Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. And whoever sows generously will reap generously."
This is a law that every farmer lives by. He lives and dies by it. When a farmer wants to plant a crop or harvest a crop, all he knows he has to do is sow. He doesn’t sow one acre and expect to reap five acres. He doesn’t sow ten acres and expect to reap a hundred acres. Because wherever he sows, that’s where he’s going to reap.
God is saying, You plant the seed and He will provide for your need. It’s like God is saying we get to decide how much God blesses our life.
You, right now, are deciding how much God blesses your life. You sow generously, you reap generously. What do you need more of? Whatever you need more of you start sowing. You need more time? You give some time to the Lord and watch your time multiply. You need some more energy? Give some energy to the Lord and watch your energy multiply. You need more income? Give some of your income to the Lord and watch it multiply. You sow sparingly, you reap sparingly. You sow generously, you reap generously.
Now, I’ve had people say, "That sounds real good. As soon as God gives me some money, then I’ll start giving." God say, "Wrong! That doesn’t require any faith. You give first. You prime the pump – and I’ll set it flowing ." That’s how giving stretches your faith.
That is the law of the harvest. What you sow, you reap. If you sow bountifully, you reap bountifully. You cannot out give God. You just can’t do it. The more you give, the more God gives back to you.
Listen - the Bible says that the essence of the Christian life, not a minor activity in the corner, but the essence of the Christian life is giving.
Key words in the Bible:
The word "believe" is used 272 times.
The word "pray" is used 371 times.
The word "love" is used 714 times.
The word "give" is used 2,162 times.
You tell me where the emphasis is in the Bible! If you’re going to study the Bible you eventually have to study giving. God so loved the world that He gave and He wants us to become like Him.
It’s not "How little can I give and get away with it and still call myself a Christian?" I should be constantly looking for ways to give more and more because you cannot out give God. You plant a seed and you’ll reap a harvest.
Review: Would you like to be more like God? Would you like to be closer to God? You say, "I feel far away from Him. I’d like to be closer." Would you like to have the antidote to materialism? Would you like to have your faith strengthened? Would you like to start investing for eternity and laying up treasures in heaven? Would you like to be blessed in return?
A generous man will prosper and there’s more happiness giving than receiving. Do you want those things? They will happen when you start obeying God in this area.
There is a legend about an ancient village in Spain that learned the King was going to pay them a visit. In a thousand years, a king had never come to that village. Excitement grew. "We must throw a big celebration." Everyone agreed but it was a poor village, without many resources until someone came up with a classic idea. Let everyone in the village bring a large cup of your choicest wine to the town square, we’ll pour it into a large vat and offer it to the king for his pleasure.
When the King draws wine to drink, it will be the very best he’s ever tasted. So the day before the King’s arrival, hundreds of people lined up to make their "offering" to the honored guest. They poured their gift in through a small opening in the top.
The next day the king was escorted to the square, and given a silver cup. He was told to draw some wine which represented the best the villagers had. When he drank the wine, he found that it was nothing more than water.
You see, every villager reasoned, "I’ll withhold my best wine and substitute water, with so many cups of wine in the vat, the king will never know the difference!"
The result was the king was greatly dishonored.
Consider: It’s easy to think there are a lot of people at this church, I don’t have to give as much, they’ll make up the difference. But when we shirk our responsibility the result is the same, the King is dishonored.
