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Key verse: 2 Corinthians 9:7 "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."
Biblical truth: Giving is a part of our worship and it recognizes that all we have comes from God and all that we give Him is a portion of what He first gave to us. It recognizes that the work and mission of God in this world is worthy of our offerings, and most of all, God is worthy to receive offerings of valuable things from us.
Though God does not need money, His work on this earth is supported by His children. Whether that means we give of time or things or money, His work is supported by His children. God owns all the earth and all the silver and gold is His. (Haggai 2:8) We are creatures full of lust and selfishness and so giving is also a part of our spiritual growth. We are to give generously and cheerfully to the Lord
The purpose of this lesson is to help the Christian to see the blessings in giving, but also to take on their personal responsibility to give to the work of the Lord. God has designed the ministry such that the offerings of the people can support the local church and also the work of foreign missions. It requires trust in God and faithfulness on our part. (I Corinthians 4:2)
God is the creator and owner of all things. (I Corinthians 10:26)
a. We don't own anything (Haggai 2:8)
b. We come into the world with nothing and that is how we leave (I Timothy 6:7)
c. All things were created by Him and for Him (Colossians 1:16)
God gives us the power to get wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18)
a. He does it so that He can establish His work and His church in this world.
b. God warns us that we tend to forget Him after He gives us wealth (Deuteronomy 8:12-14)
c. Sometimes we go through times of loss or setback in our financial lives as a way of reminding us who gave us the power to get wealth (Psalms 66:10-14)
All that we give back to God is just a portion of what He has already given us.
a. All good and perfect gifts come from the Lord (James 1:17)
b. He already owns the things we give Him back (I Chronicles 29:14)
c. As we give to God He sends it back to us in many ways (Luke 6:38)
With or without money, God has promised to take care of us. (Matthew 6:6-34) Giving is about trusting God. In these verses;
a. He compares us to birds, and we are of greater importance.
b. He tells us to trust Him daily for our provision
c. He tells us that He knows what we need even before we ask for it
d. We are to lay up treasures in heaven, not on the earth
e. Our hearts are connected to our treasures
f. We are warned about trying to serve two masters (money and God)
g. We are told to take no thought three times
i. Too much thought about money can make it a god
ii. Too much thought about what we will eat, drink or wear can make us whiny and forget that God has provided everything we need
iii. Too much thought about the problems we face will cost us our joy
h. God wants us to seek Him first and let Him add all the basic necessities that we need to us.
Giving involves learning contentment. (I Timothy 6:6-19) We are taught in this chapter about how contentment will give us peace, versus living a greedy and covetous life which will drown us.
a. Godliness with contentment is great gain
b. We brought nothing into this world and will take nothing out
c. The measure of contentment is food and clothing, not even a house
d. Those that desire to be rich will find that pursuit of riches brings a painful life void of peace
e. Loving money and making it lord in your life is at the root of all things that are evil. It makes a man pursue riches at any cost. The cost is always much greater and much more painful than he expects.
f. We are allowed to enjoy the things we have been given without guilt, but should be generous with them.
How does my personal economy change if I acknowledge that God owns everything?
Giving begins with tithing. Tithing is not a law we are under or a requirement for acceptance with God. It is a system that God gave us to help us learn to give regularly and systematically, recognizing the things that God has placed in our hands.
a. Tithing is easy to understand. It is simply ten percent of your income or the goods that come into your possession (Genesis 28:22, Nehemiah 13:12)
b. Tithing is regular and systematic. We receive our incomes usually weekly, sometimes daily and it is at that instant that we should recognize that it was God that gave it to us and we should give back to Him in thanks (I Corinthians 16:1-2)
c. Tithing was instituted willfully before the law in the Old Testament by men like Abraham and Jacob as they recognized the work of God in their lives. (Genesis 28:22, Genesis 14:14-20)
d. Tithing was given under the law as the method that God used to support His priesthood and His house of worship and atonement (Numbers 18:21-24)
e. The priesthood also was to give tithes of what they received (the tithes of the people (Numbers 18:26-27)
f. Tithing was preached by the prophets as a way for the people to see the goodness of God. (Malachi 3:10)
g. Tithing in the New Testament is talked about primarily as it refers to the care of the work of God, but it is not as prominent as the radical giving that they did in the book of acts because of their excitement about what God was doing.
i. They shared all their goods (Acts 4:32)
ii. Sold land and brought the price (Acts 4:34-37)
Giving advances past tithing to sacrificial giving (II Corinthians 8-9)
a. Tithing is a good start and acts as a way to help us recognize the goodness of God in our lives. (I Corinthians 16:1-2)
b. As we grow spiritually, we move past tithing and begin to give sacrificially. Sacrificial giving means that we sacrifice comforts or possessions in this life in order to give more to God (II Corinthians 8:1-5) they first gave themselves.
c. Like the widow that gave all her living (Luke 21:1-4)
d. Christians gave offerings to help another church while they themselves were in deep poverty (II Corinthians 8:2)
e. Others were joyful even through the spoiling of their goods for the ministry (Acts 2:45)
f. Some gave up businesses to follow Jesus (Matthew 4:20)
g. Others sold their land and houses and put all into the work (Acts 4:34-37)
h. Tithing is a great way to get started, but as we grow spiritually, it will become sacrificial giving.
Giving also includes special gifts we make to God to advance His work in other countries. To reach the remote parts of the world where the Gospel is not available or readily available. This type of giving we call faith promise (Ezra 1:6)
a. The term faith promise is not in the Bible but it embodies the promise we make with God about the gift to missions.
b. We promise that we will trust God to provide for our needs while we give above our tithes and offerings, an amount specifically for preaching the Gospel and planting churches around the world. (Matthew 6 -- the whole chapter)
c. Typically there is a mission conference held yearly at the church in which missionaries present their work and the services focus on missions.
d. At the end of the conference, those that want to be involved in supporting the mission work of the church make a promise on a card and turn it in. The church adds up the amounts promised so it has an idea of how much it will have that year for the support of missions. The people then give according to their promise, trusting that God will bless His work and care for them.
e. Faith promise giving is not a Bible doctrine, but the great commission is. (Matthew 28:19-20, Acts 1:8) We can go or we can send, but we are all responsible.
Can you list the ways that God has blessed you and taken care of you?
What impact has the giving of others had on you and your life?
If you were involved in regular giving in the past, what thing or things made you stop?
What are the biggest barriers to regular and faithful giving in your life?
Getting started or started back in your personal giving to God and His work is not difficult. It involves meeting with God in prayer and reading about His plan of giving and the way He cares for us and blesses us while we trust Him.
Make a list of the income God has given you (Deuteronomy 8:18) and multiply it by 10% - This is the starting point.
Remember that this is not a payment to God to make Him like you or so that you will be accepted. This is a recognition that all things come from God and we are giving back to Him a small portion of what He gave to us.
Then consider how blessed we are by God in so many ways that we take for granted. Our health, our family, opportunity and most of all, our salvation. What is that worth to us if we could even buy it? That is the basis for the offering that I will add on top of my tithe.
Finally, consider how wonderful it is to be saved and to know that my sins have all been forgiven. I have a home in heaven that I will go to when I die and will be with Jesus for all of eternity. But not all people are saved and for the majority of the world, they have never even heard. How important is it that I sacrifice so that the Gospel can get to the world. This is my (faith promise) mission offering.
Start with a tithe and learn to trust God more each day until you start adding an offering and then faith promise. Avoid starting with an amount smaller than 10% because it is the plan of God to grow your trust and faithfulness by tithing. Use the tithe as a starting point and learn to trust Him.
List some things God has done in your life since you started tithing.