Jesus on Giving

Transcript

Rob McFarlane 1:00

We're going to look at what Jesus taught about giving. Let's look at three things Jesus taught about giving. Number one, the blessing of giving. We have received freely, and we are blessed to be able to give to others with the same generosity that Jesus has shown us. In Acts 20, verse 35, in the second part of that verse, we read, remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, It's more blessed to give than to receive. We shouldn't approach life as to what we could get out of it, but rather, what can I give in life? It's a blessing to be in a position to be generous towards others. The second verse I'd like to look at is Matthew 10, verse 8. And again, the second half of that verse, Jesus said, Freely you have received, freely give. Or I love the way the New Living Translation puts it, where he says, Give as freely as you have received. We have received so much from the Lord, and we need to demonstrate that same generosity to others. Now often when people talk about giving, they only think about financial giving. And yes, that is important, but we also need to be generous in many other ways. Jesus taught about servanthood, and we've also seen that he taught about love. And in servanthood and love there needs to be a spirit of generosity. We need to consider others' needs as important. We need to treat others as they deserve to be treated as children of God. It's important for us to recognize the blessing of being in a position to give and letting the blessing that we've received from God freely to be demonstrated and extended to others. Now Jesus taught we shouldn't give as a public display, but rather privately and in secret. And when we do that, he says that he will reward us openly. Let's listen to Matthew chapter 6, verse 2 to 4, and I'm reading from the New Living Translation. Jesus said, When you give to someone in need, don't do as the hypocrites do, blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets, to call attention to their acts of charity. I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. But when you give to someone in need, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father who sees everything will reward you. Our giving as children of God should not be something that we draw attention to ourselves. Now it's so easy for us in a world in which we we now live where people are constantly drawing attention to their acts of charity. And we can also fall into that trap as Christians or as churches. We can feel that in order to get kudos or acceptance by people in the world around us, that we should tell others what we are doing for the poor or the needy and how we're doing charitable acts. But Jesus taught against that. He said we should do it in secret. He even said we shouldn't let our left hand know what our right hand is doing. And what we do in private or secretly will be seen by our Father who will reward us. Now it is important in a church to have financial accountability and to be able to give reports from time to time on the different ways that we are serving others, but we shouldn't do it for a sense of acceptance by man, but rather because we have already received so much from God and we want to extend that generosity to others. My second point is the measure of generosity. We determine what we receive by what we give. We determine the way that we receive by the way that we give. In eight words, Jesus outlines a law, the law of sowing and reaping, or the law of reciprocity. What you give will come back to you. And he continues in verse 38. He says, Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. And then he ends verse 38 by saying, For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. We determine what we receive by the measure that we give. Let's be generous. Now we need to understand generosity is not determined by the amount that you give, but by your heart, and in fact, how much you keep for yourself. Let's look at Mark chapter 12, verse 41 to 44. Reading from the New Living Translation. It says Jesus sat down near the collection box in the temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Jesus is watching our giving. What he noticed was this many rich people put in large amounts. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins, and Jesus called his disciples to him and said, I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on. You see, generosity is not determined by the amount you give, but your attitude of heart and how much you retain or keep for yourself. Now we believe in tithing, we practice tithing, and a tithe is ten percent. And I think it's such a wonderful thing that God has put in place the principles of tithes and offerings because ten percent is absolutely fair. If you earned 10 pounds and you gave one pound, as far as God is concerned, it's the same as if you earned a thousand pounds and gave a hundred pounds. Tithing is an equalizer. We all are giving in God's eyes the same amount. It's important that we have the right heart and we remain generous. And I want to encourage us to be generous, to give with a good measure, knowing that we will receive a good measure back. And remember, this principle applies to finances, our actions, our attitudes, the way we treat others. If we treat others with kindness, we'll get it back. Pressed down, shaken together, and running over. It'll be poured into our lap. And finally, my third point is the ultimate gift. My three points are first of all, we looked at the blessing of giving. Then we spoke about the measure of generosity, and finally the ultimate gift. John chapter 3, verse 16. Jesus said, For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. God sending his son Jesus Christ to live as our example and lay down his life as our substitute is the greatest act of love and giving. God demonstrated his love for us while we were yet sinners. And it also says Romans chapter 8, verse 32, if he didn't spare his own son, how will he not give us all things? You see, we have a God who is so generous, and if he sent his son, surely he can take care of whatever needs we may have in our lives. My question today is Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? The Bible says, whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. The Bible says we should believe in our heart and confess with our mouth that Jesus has risen from the dead and confess that He is Lord. And then it also says we should turn from sin and we should follow Him. That's called repentance. We accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior through faith in him and repentance, turning from sin and turning to Him. So, in summary, we've seen today the blessing of giving. Giving brings joy and fulfillment, and it's more blessed to give than to receive. Secondly, we saw the measure of generosity. Our generosity determines the measure of what we receive. The more we give, the more we are blessed. And finally, we looked at the ultimate gift. God's gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, is the ultimate example of love and giving. Let's pray. And as we do, let's ask the Holy Spirit what He's saying to us through today's sermon. Holy Spirit, what do you want us to do? Let's pray. Father God, thank you for the teachings of Jesus that remind us of the joy and blessing of giving. Help us to live generously, reflecting your love and grace in our words, actions, and attitudes. May we always remember that it's more blessed to give than to receive. And may we trust in your promise that as we give, we will also receive. Thank you for the ultimate gift of your Son, Jesus Christ, who showed us the greatest love through his life as our example and as our substitute. This week we ask that you use us to demonstrate your love and generosity to others in this world. We ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen.