Last Sunday night as I met with our elders and home group leaders¡K great time of discussion, and as they began to impress upon me how positive these past couple of weeks of focusing on stewardship with God and giving have been, and at the same time, how many practical questions still seemed to remain for them and others¡K practical questions about finances and giving.
I want to address those more this morning, but not without sharing my honest concern in addressing these things, concerns for what some of you may carry from the past; that THE CHURCH IS MORE CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR MONEY THAN YOU.
For many of us, perhaps we experience the opportunity to give as one of obligation¡K or some type of religious deal
Heard one story - The family sat down at the dinner table following church one Sunday. ¡§The sermon was boring today,¡¨ said the 16-year-old son. ¡§Yeah, could you believe how the pastor stumbled over the reading of the scripture?¡¨ his sister chimed in. ¡§I¡¦ve got to admit it was an uninspiring day,¡¨ said Mother. ¡§The choir was terrible.¡¨
Father, showing his leadership, said, ¡§Hush, you guys. Quit complaining. What did you expect for a quarter?¡¨
¡K hope that doesn¡¦t hit to close to home for you, but if it does, let me be clear, this isn¡¦t about a business deal between you and I, it¡¦s about a trust relationship between you and our Creator Father¡K who¡¦s owner and we whom he¡¦s entrusted and wants to work intimately with.
GOD WANTS YOU
¡§Stewardship isn¡¦t about raising money, but raising kids.¡¨
- I have tithed for years¡K but as I¡¦ve studied these areas in the recent months, it has liberated my relationship with God like nothing in years; it¡¦s taken me back to the core of my trust of god and unleashed a sense of faith like when I was a child.
- This morning I want to share some of the principles of how stewardship and giving can offer us an experience of growing in faith.
- Rather than looking at one text, I want to draw upon this study of recent months to offer 6 principles drawn from several texts; 6 principles that I believe will help address some of the practical questions you might have
1. GIVE TO EXPERIENCE GOD¡¦S FAITHFULNESS
Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. (Malachi 3:10)
- Here God speaks prophetically to His people, who were to tithe or give the first tenth of all their harvest to God, because in withholding their tithe, they were withholding their trust.
- And to this God says ¡§Test Me¡¨
- Only place in all of scripture where God says ¡§Test Me¡¨
- God knows that here in basic material needs lies the foundation of trust
- Many of us want to meet certain higher felt needs, but haven¡¦t developed a basic trust for our basic needs.
- If we were to see this as Abraham Maslow did with his hierarchy of human needs; God is essentially saying ¡§FAITH BEGINS AT THE FOUNDATION¡¨; where¡¦s your base of trust to which I can be your Provider and Sustainer?
The man of pseudo faith will fight for his verbal creed but refuses flatly to allow himself to get into a predicament where his future must depend upon that creed being true. He always provides himself with secondary ways of escape so He will have a way out if the roof caves in. What we need very badly these days is a company of Christians who are prepared to trust God as completely now as they must do at the last day. (A.W. Tozer)
Proverbs 3:1-10¡K listen to the reciprocation of promise and command
- Each promise is preceded with a command
- That¡¦s the nature of developing trust
- Much like any relationship, we can build walls of self-sufficiency; where no on e can hurt us, but no one can help us.
- IT DOESN¡¦T MATTER WHAT GOD COULD DO FOR US, IF WE DON¡¦T CHOOSE TO TRUST HIM.
- He doesn¡¦t want to play God or Father; He wants to be your God and Father; and that demands our giving him opportunity¡K opportunity to bless us.
Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. (II Corinthians 9:6,8,10)
Give and it will be given 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. (Luke 6:38)
Loren Cunningham (p. 85) -
¡¥Corrie ten Boom often taught at our Youth With A Mission schools before she died in 1983. I¡¦ll never forget her homely illustration of how God would repay the generous. She stood in front of the class of young missionaries-in-training and placed two bottles before them, each filled with sand. One had a narrow mouth and the other had a wide mouth. She picked up and poured from the wide-mouthed jar¡K the sand quickly poured out onto the table, leaving the jar empty. She then started pouring sand from the narrow-mouthed bottle. The sand trickled out, taking a long time to empty. ¡§You see students,¡¨ she said, waiting for the thin line of sand, ¡§this bottle is like some Christians. They give to God, but not so quickly and freely. But look what happens.¡¨ She finished and began to reverse the process, pouring sand back into each bottle. The wide-mouthed jar was quickly filled, spilling excess over the top. However, it took her a long time to painstakingly refill the narrow-mouthed jar with sand. It had given slowly and now it received just as slowly.¡¦
A great philanthropist described it similarly; when asked ¡§How is it that you give away so much and yet have so much left?¡¨ He replied, ¡§I suppose its like this, I shovel out, and God shovels in, and He has a bigger shovel than I do.¡¨
- We are to give to experience God¡¦s faithfulness¡K for God is bigger than any of our experiences, but to us he will never be bigger than we let him.
2. GIVE FREELY
Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God love¡¦s a cheerful giver. (II Corinthians 9:7)
Here¡¦s where I want to explain the role of the tithe in Scripture; that is the commitment to give the first 10% of our earnings.
- One has to follow the developing history of Israel to understand the role of the tithe
- We find there, Israel emerges as a theocracy¡Xa people governed in every way by God.
- We also find far more is called upon to be shared.
- Actually 3 tithes
o First, Leviticus 27:30¡X¡¥Lord¡¦s Tithe¡¦
„X Given to the Levites, one of the 12 tribes of Israel who were the priests and temple assistants, ran the affairs of the people.
o Second, Deuteronomy 12¡X¡¥Festival tithe¡¦
„X To be used for community celebration
o Third, Deuteronomy 14¡X¡¥Poor Tithe¡¦
„X Every 3rd year for the stranger, fatherless, and widow.
- 23%, all of which was required
- Then came the free will offering, in which one gave as they chose, the first and best of their harvest and earnings.
As the call of God is extended thru Christ, we must recognize two changes:
1) The Church as the living Body of Christ doesn¡¦t run all the affairs of the community; many of the community needs are now met thru taxes/government.
2) Jesus clearly restored and set forth the Spirit of God¡¦s law
a. God¡¦s laws for the people weren¡¦t to become rules which one could manipulate and control, but to serve underlying principles and purpose.
i. I.e. divorce (Can we divorce if¡K) and Sabbath (Is it right to heal¡K)
b. Jesus restores the spirit of Giving
i. God owns everything (Give to Caesar¡K but to God¡K)
ii. Justice and Equality and Responsibility
iii. God is generous and sacrificial
iv. Give up control, be just, give freely
Jesus affirms the Soundness of Tithing, but not the Safety
- He takes the cap off
- Everything he taught and put before us was both more Free and more Radical
- To the rich young ruler ¡V ¡¥ Go and sell everything.¡¦
- Luke 19:1-10 Zaccheus¡Xan encounter with Christ led to giving half away and restoring any injustice; and no requirement was set (Jesus never stopped and said ¡§Wait, only 10%).
- Love asks how much, Legalism asks how little
- Give freely
3. GIVE FROM FIRST
Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine. (Proverbs 3:9)
Number of reasons for giving to God from the first of our earnings¡K
1) Shows priority of God in our lives¡K that he doesn¡¦t simply fall between Electric Bill and Haircut
2) If we give God from what¡¦s ¡§extra¡¨, we find ¡§extra¡¨ can be elusive; there are always more demands for our resources
3) It REQUIRES faith
a. They gave to God from the 1st portion of their harvest, not knowing how much the entire harvest would yield.
Again, this kind of stepping out allows us to experience God¡¦s faithfulness
Loren Cunningham (p. 75) -
¡¥A visiting minister had just completed a stirring sermon on the obligation of every Christian to tithe. He stressed how God would show his faithful provision to those who honor Him by tithing. Afterward, the pastor of the small, struggling congregation confided to the visiting preacher, ¡§Actually, my wife and I haven¡¦t been able to tithe for several years now. We are barely scraping up enough for rent and food as it is!¡¨ The evangelist listened sympathetically. Then he faced his new friend with a challenge. He told him to try tithing for one year, putting ten percent aside first, before any bills were paid or money was spent. ¡§If you ever find yourself short of the money you need, for any reason¡K¡¨ he paused and scrawled his home phone number on a business card. ¡§¡K Just call me. I¡¦ll make up the difference, no questions asked.¡¨ A year passed and the younger man called the older one with his exciting report. ¡§I haven¡¦t had to call you one time this year. Every week, just like you said, we put the ten percent aside first. And we always had enough money. It just came in. I don¡¦t know how, exactly, but we always had money for our needs.¡¨ ¡§Praise God, brother,¡¨ the evangelist said over the phone. And then came the clincher. ¡§But why were you able to trust me as a backup and not trust God?¡¨¡¦
- Our ¡¥first¡¦ step is necessary
- This is precisely what those who made the movie ¡¥Field of Dreams¡¦ used to capture us.
o Build it and they will come
o It captured us precisely by capturing this element of faith/trust
- This is why Leah and I, having received $$ from my family¡¦s company, are determining a goal for giving next year before we get all the tax and financial information.
- There¡¦s faith in things given first.
4. GIVE WHAT IS FELT
- 2 Samuel 24:24¡XDavid is buying goods from a foreign king, who¡¦s respect for David leads him to offer them for free, to which David replies ¡§I don¡¦t want to offer to the Lord my burnt offerings that have cost me nothing.¡¨
- The simple truth is ¡§When it¡¦s felt, it includes self¡¨
- Ex: I remember the first Christmas after Lead and I had begun dating¡K ROCKING CHAIR¡K she had a good part of her life¡K stripped and restored it by hand¡K added special artwork¡K
o That spoke more of her love than anything she could have bought.
¡Kthis is why Jesus honored and points us to the giving of the widow.
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 disciple 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¡Xall she had to live on.¡¨ (Mark 12:41-44)
- 2 Corinthians 8:1-9 Macedonian Church
5. GIVE TO FAITHFUL HANDLING
We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this liberal gift. For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men. (2 Corinthians 8:20-21)
- GIVING IN FAITH MEANS WE GIVE UP OUR CONTROL, NOT OUR CONSCIENCE.
- This is why we have:
o Elders¡K who follow all our resources into ministry, in the most strategic and efficient way; including the setting of salaries for staff
o Ministry and Missions Team¡K that¡¦s been meeting nearly weekly to assess how we invest our resources to best further the kingdom of God¡K study, pray, get ongoing statements from each group.
- You need to know it¡¦s God¡¦s purposes being served.
- This raises the whole question of giving to the church, which several leaders felt was neglected by many.
- What do the scriptures teach? Is our giving to go to the church? Scriptures do not give a direct answer because there was no question
o No believers trying to live independent of the Body or Church
o No parachurch groups, that is, groups serving Christ¡¦s purposes apart from the church.
- All regular giving was through the recognized leadership of the local fellowship. They were, and have always been, the ¡§storehouse¡¨ referred to in Malachi
- But the church must recognize the role of para-church groups as helping to fulfill the mandate of God¡¦s people¡Xwhether Harvest Home or a missionary in need of further support¡K and the Gospels also affirm special giving to meet personal needs that are around us.
- My own personal resolve is to give our regular giving, of 10%, through the local Body I¡¦m a part of, and to give to others what I give beyond that.
- Many pastors and leaders will teach this to be a Biblical pattern. I simply share it as a healthy principle¡Xone that honors my commitment and interdependence to the Body of Christ, and allows freedom to give to personal needs and causes as well.
6. GIVE REGULARLY TO EXERCISE ¡§FITNESS¡¨ IN FAITH
(¡K as you may have noticed, for the help of recollection I¡¦ve used an ¡§F¡¨ word for each principle¡K this one I had to work hard¡K)
- The point here is that faith, like anything else, had to be developed by regularly exercising it so that as greater challenges arise, we are prepared.
The mighty Niagara River plummets some 180 feet at the American and Horseshoe Falls. Before the falls, there are violent, turbulent rapids. Farther upstream, however, where the river¡¦s current flows more gently, boats are able to navigate. Just before the Welland River empties into the Niagara, a pedestrian walkway spans the river. Posted on this bridge¡¦s pylons is a warning sign to all boaters: DO YOU HAVE AN ANCHOR? Followed by, DO YOU KNOW HOW TO USE IT? Faith, like the capacity to anchor a boat, is something we need to develop and use before we face a cataclysm. (Paul Adams, Niagara Falls, Ontario)
- So the apostle Paul, knowing that faith needs to be exercised regularly, taught the church at Corinth, saying: On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. (1 Corinthians 16:2)
- What we don¡¦t make a regular part of our lives, usually doesn¡¦t happen
- Samuel Johnson¡XTHE PERSON WHO WANTS TO DO A GREAT DEAL OF GOOD AT ONCE, WILL NEVER DO ANYTHING.
- As we close, let me ask you to take a bill out of your wallet or purse¡K
- What¡¦s it say on the back, above the written form of the value¡K
- IN GOD WE TRUST
- These words really sum up our call to stewardship; asking us to ponder what difference it makes if we actually handle that piece of paper in a way that reflects those four simple words.
- Underlying all these principles is the beauty of trusting God.
- John Maxwell¡XIt¡¦s not how much we have of the world that dictates our generosity towards God, but how much God has of us.
