Text 2 Corinthians 8: 1-5
And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their
extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not
do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.
Since I first starting attending Mt. Olive Church, I have struggled with the concept of Sacrificial Giving. Sure I can define it -- we deny ourselves something and give the monetary cost of what we denied ourselves to the work of the Lord. My struggle is more
in the area of, if there is extreme poverty in parts of the world, how can we say that we are sacrificing anything? Yes I can drive a Ford instead of a Lincoln and give the difference in price to the work of the Lord. But driving a Ford is hardly a sacrifice when
compared to a person that not only doesn’t have a Ford but has no shoes.
Reading St. Paul’s words in Ephesians 6: about fighting the forces of evil in the heavenly
realms, I am reminded of listening to stories of my parents and grandparents and others about life during World War II.
After Pearl Harbor, it was very clear that Americans had very specific things to do. Men and Women volunteered in large numbers for the military. Men who were not eligible for the military and many women took jobs in war industries, People submitted to the
rationing, of many commodities such as gasoline, foods, tires and other items needed in the war effort. People bought war bonds to finance the struggle. Children even brought in their rubber dolls and toys. Citizens worked overtime at their jobs and volunteered in many ways in the spirit of team work and sacrifice to do their part in winning the struggle against the forces intent on destroying our nation. The mission was clear, individuals sacrificed so the nation could survive. The mission was clear, the choices were clear.
Paul says that we are at war. This war, like WW II has had its deciding battle. We can look back at history and say the war in the Pacific was won at the battle of Midway. There was plenty of fighting and casualties after this, but Midway was the turning point,
the deciding battle that made victory inevitable. For the Russians the decisive battle was, in the opinion of many, Stalingrad. There was much suffering and death after Stalingrad but the ultimate victory was determined.
The final victory over Satan and death was at Calvary. Jesus on the cross defeated the forces of evil in His decisive battle freeing those who trust in Him as Savior from the power of the world ,the devil and the flesh. All was completed when he offered for all time one sacrifice for sins. There will still be casualties -- Satan will fight hard, but his
defeat is already accomplished.
Citizens were called upon to sacrifice in World War II. We are called by God to sacrifice also. We are fighting the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell. The choices are clear. We can use the resources God allows us to manage to selfishly indulge our every desire or we can deny ourselves luxuries and lavish life styles in order to enhance the kingdom of God. Those before us fought the forces of evil so that their
children could live. Aren’t we called to do the same for our children.? Daily our culture bombards us with lies from Satan. Live the good life, you deserve it. What happens in Las Vegas stays in Las Vegas. Go ahead have that affair -- it might be your last chance.
If it feels good, do it. Jesus was a good man but then so was Buddha and Others. There are many paths to God -- Jesus doesn’t matter. These and many more are all lies by Satan designed to turn us from Jesus and effect our damnation and the damnation of our
children.
The Macedonians in our text gave themselves first to the Lord They were not wealthy yet their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. They gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. They pleaded for the
privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. They gave sacrificially. They managed their lives so that they were able to enhance the kingdom of God.
What is our level of sacrifice? Research by George Barna shows that among adults who attend church regularly, thirty seven percent did not give any money to a church in the last year. Barna goes further and segments the donor base into categories.
Misers -- Rarely give away money.
Penny Pinchers -- Give but remain oblivious to the notion that the amount they contribute makes a difference in the breadth and depth of ministry.
Altruists -- Give to improve quality of life and condition of society to non profit organizations but not churches.
Zealots -- Give to a church that will do good works in the name of God.
Investors -- Believe in the work of the church and want to broaden aspects of need the church does not address.-- That is new ministries.
We need to raise money in order to transform lives. This isn’t some country club trying to survive so that the luxury can continue to the next generation. We need to reach a hurting world with the love of God. We need to tell a hurting world that Jesus Christ lived a life free from any sin, died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead so that we will live with Him. We need to tell a hurting world that they are loved by God, that Jesus died for them. We need to tell a hurting world that we are all clothed in the righteousness of Jesus. It is a free gift to all who trust in Jesus and not themselves. We need to tell a hurting world that our sins and lawless acts will not even be remembered by God.
We can not view this building as the mission, we can not be content to survive for our own comfort individually or collectively. These facilities are part of the tools that we need to reach the world with the Good News of Salvation only through Jesus.
We need to realize that God owns everything that we have, all of the money, all of our things, our intellectual ability, our talents, our time. The challenge for us is to define our needs and control our wants and desires.
The poverty level in this country for a family of four is in the neighborhood of $20,000 per year. Earning $50,000, living on $20,000 and giving the $30,000 difference to the work of the Lord would be sacrificial. Median family income in this country is around $40,000 per year. Earning $70,000, living on $40,000 and giving $30,000 a year to the work of the Lord would be sacrificial. Earning $100,000 and giving $50.00 per week to the work of the Lord is not sacrificial. In the words of Barna this qualifies the giver as a Penny Pincher.
We are doing the work of the Lord here. We are preaching and teaching the Gospel. We are discipling each other, we are teaching the children about Jesus. There is more to do for the kingdom in this congregation and in this community and in the world. All that ultimately matters to any of us is who we say Jesus is and how we serve Him and his bride the Church. We need to be investors in the work of the lord -- not misers and penny pinchers. We need to become sacrificial givers that care about doing the work of the Lord with time,talents and treasures solely for the glory of God. We need to realize that we are not citizens of this world -- this is only our temporary home. We need to realize that our life styles are robbing God. The first fruits, the best of what we have to give will enhance His kingdom. Giving Him our leftovers will hinder His work and that will be a curse for us and those who follow us --- not a blessing.
In The Name of Jesus
