Anchored in Truth™ Striving Not to Build 'Great' Churches, but 'True' Churches

12/9/2008

Posted By Pastor Jeff Noblit

During this season of celebrating, I want to exhort you to especially do one thing: give generously.  This year, as we celebrate the incarnation of Jesus Christ, we are reminded that God gave generously in order that we might be redeemed.  I hope that you would follow God’s example and be marked by giving this season and this following year. 

In the most recent sermon series I have preached, I have been instructing the church family on How to Be Financially Successful.  While this series title has the sound of a modern-day prosperity preacher, I have found that God has given us numerous instructions regarding our finances.  This series began with Working Hard, followed by Spend Responsibly, then Invest Wisely, and concluded this past Sunday with Give Generously.  It is this last topic that I want to exhort you toward.

As Christians, there should be priority placed upon giving.  After all, our giving reveals the true nature of our hearts.  From the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6 Jesus instructs us to lay up for ourselves treasures in Heaven because, “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  One of the litmus tests of the heart is our giving.  The Bible is filled with numerous examples of those giving to God the firstfruits of all their income. (Proverbs 3:9; Nehemiah 10:35-36; Exodus 34:26; Numbers 18:12; 1 Corinthians 16:2)  When we as the children of God give our “firstfruits,” we remind ourselves who is to be first place in our lives.  Also, there must be a priority toward giving because our giving meets the needs of the Lord’s earthly work. (Ezekiel 44:29-30; 1 Corinthians 9:3-14)  If we desire for the kingdom to be advanced, giving cannot be optional!

We may also be encouraged to give because we know that there is a great profit in giving.  In the Old Testament, we read instructions and promises of blessing if we give.  Proverbs 11:25 states, “Whoever brings a blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.”  This principle was a surprise to me!  If we give to God, God will often give back to us and give more abundantly than we could have ever imagined.  Not only the Old Testament (Proverbs 8:21, 22:4; Malachi 3:10) but also the New Testament gives examples of this principle. (2 Corinthians 9:8; Philippians 4:19; Luke 6:38; and Mark 10:29-30)  I can confidently say through my own experiences and through the authority of God’s Word: If you will give, God will give to you!

Lastly, we give because of the great pleasure of giving.  God does not call us to do anything that does not increase our pleasure.  There is both an immediate pleasure and a growing pleasure in giving.  As we give, God cultivates a joy in our hearts as we continually confess that we give because we trust the Lord.  Our trust is not in our finances but in God.  The seasons of giving condition the heart to take joy in God.  The goal of giving is never to get rich but to increase our pleasure in God.

God made us to be conduits not reservoirs.  Out of obedience, gratitude, and joy Christians should be cheerful givers.  That is, there should be an exceeding happiness that flows out of our desire to give.  Hilarity should mark our giving spirit.  As we know, God’s primary avenue of giving is to and through the local church and I hope that this Christmas you will be an obedient, cheerful giver!