Following Jesus with Your Finances
Part 2 - The Right Motivation for Giving
2 Corinthians 9:6-11
March 13, 2011
NOTE: THE ME/WE/GOD/YOU/WE FORMAT IS FROM ANDY STANLEY'S BOOK, "COMMUNICATING FOR A CHANGE."
Audio of this message can be heard at www.aberdeenwesleyan.org.
Me: We’re in the second of a four-part series on following Jesus with our finances.
Our emphasis for 2011 is following Jesus in every area of our lives, and money is definitely a part of our lives, right?
Anybody here over the age of 12 that didn’t think about money yet today?
Probably not.
Money has a grip on our lives, mine included, and we need to see what it means to follow Jesus with our finances, since Jesus has a lot to say about money.
We’re not talking about this because of anything other than this was the time I picked a few months ago as the time I would address it.
Someone asked me what I was preaching on today, and I said finances.
He mentioned how in his experience, whenever the pastor was about to start some fundraising campaign or building program, the money sermons would start.
When I told him that neither of these was the case, he was a bit surprised.
We’re talking about money because God talks about it.
We: When we look at the issue of giving, like we’re going to do today, the feeling of many people is that I’m going to spend all my time beating you up about tithing, and trying to make you feel guilty about it.
Well, I hope that’s not how you leave here today feeling.
My hope for today is that all of you will leave here today with a different perspective of what giving is all about.
It’s not about prying your wallet open and wrestling your money out of it so we can keep the lights on.
Giving is about understanding God’s part in all this and how He is involved in our giving.
God’s involved in our giving to Him? You bet. And when we can get a real handle on that, it can revolutionize how you give to advance God’s kingdom – both here and around the world.
God: Today we’re not going to look at a quote from Jesus, but rather from the Apostle Paul.
There are two main parts to the passage we’re going to look at today that show us where our motivation for giving needs to come from, which is primarily that God makes it possible for us to give to His work.
Part 1 consists of verses 6-7 –
6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Four things from these first two verses:
You reap how you sow.
Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
Now I’m no farmer or even a gardener.
I couldn’t keep a plant alive if my life depended on it. I can’t tell you the last time someone asked me to take care of their plants – because I’ve never been good at it.
But even I get the idea here.
Now look at something. It doesn’t say you reap what you sow. It does say that later, in Galatians when the apostle Paul talks about sowing according to the sinful nature as opposed to sowing to please the Spirit.
Here it says we reap how we sow.
If we give sparingly, we will be sparingly blessed. But if we give generously, God can bless us generously.
Now let me be clear about this, so that there are no questions about where I believe the Bible stands on this deal:
I do not believe that the Bible teaches that God will make you rich financially because you give.
So you’ll never hear me say that you need to give to God through this church so that God can multiply your gift a hundred-fold.
First of all, I don’t have the looks and the hair to be one of those kinds of preachers anyway.
Second of all, that’s a misuse of Scripture.
Here’s what this passage is telling us: as we invest generously in the kingdom, God blesses us, and that blessing might be financial.
This verse doesn’t promise untold riches. It promises that God will bless you abundantly.
It might be great spiritual blessing, and it might be great financial blessing, or even both.
The point is that as you trust God in sowing into His kingdom, God will take care of the rest – and better than you know right now.
God says if you’ll put the Kingdom of God first, He’ll take care of all the rest of your needs. He’ll take care of the food and the clothes and stuff.
He does promise that and I can tell you from personal experience that He always comes through.
You reap how you sow.
Give generously and watch what God does in your life.
Our giving needs to be intentional.
Verse 7 –
Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give…
The key word in that phrase is “decided.”
Our giving isn’t supposed to be an afterthought.
It needs to be something that’s done after prayer and thought, preferably with our spouses and out of a desire to honor God, in line with the income we currently have.
Our giving isn’t supposed to impulsive. It’s supposed to be deliberate.
But what about those times when someone comes to church and needs money for their ministry or missions?
That giving should still be deliberate, because you and your spouse prayed and decided before hand what you would give in those situations, over and above your tithe, which is supposed to come to the church.
Then when a need comes up, you will have already decided how you’d handle it, and you can move on that. It’s still intentional.
Our giving needs to be voluntary.
…not reluctantly or under compulsion…
How many people here like to give to things we believe in?
How many of us like to be pressured to give?
How many of you are real tired of the appeals we get over the phone for the different charities that are out there?
It’s not that they aren’t legitimate charities looking to meet legitimate needs. But it’s a guilt trip, most of the time. Am I right?
My answer now is, “If I choose to give, I will give it directly to the charity, since they only get a fraction of what you collect as professional fundraisers. Thank you. Goodbye.”
No one likes to be pressured into giving.
In the church this is especially touchy because anytime the pastor mentions money or giving, it can come across as trying to pressure the people in the church to give.
And that’s one of the reasons I don’t talk about money a lot.
But the other problem comes when it’s ignored completely, in spite of how often the Scriptures talk about it.
And that gives the impression that Christians shouldn’t think about it, which isn’t true.
Paul didn’t want to use urgent appeals or pressure tactics to coerce the Corinthians to give. Even though he was the one appealing for the money, he was careful to give the Corinthians enough time to think and to pray about how much God wanted them to give.
Paul didn’t want anyone giving reluctantly or in response to pressure.
He knew that God weighs the heart and not the amount of money; he looks at the giver and not the gift. (LACNT)
Give because you desire to be obedient to God’s direction, not because someone is trying to pressure you.
Our giving should be done cheerfully.
…for God loves a cheerful giver.
On the last two points I said our giving “needs” to be something. It needs to be intentional and it needs to be voluntary.
Why am I not saying that it needs to be done cheerfully?
Because bottom line, our giving is a matter of obedience to God, and if you’re like me, I don’t always obey God cheerfully, even when I give, although God has really helped me to be able to do that 99% of the time.
And the other 1% is usually due to selfishness or fear on my part, but I give anyway, because I want to be obedient to God.
“But Pastor, doesn’t this verse mean we should only give when we’re excited about it?”
I have heard some pastors teach that, and I’ve heard other people say that unless you can give cheerfully, you shouldn’t give, because you’re attitude isn’t right.
Well, let me ask all the parents in the room – when you tell your kids to do something do you tell them that they only have to obey when they’re excited about it?
“You know what, son? You don’t have to clean your room and empty the garbage, because you can’t do it cheerfully! I’ll talk to you mother and tell her to get off your back about it, okay?”
That’s call lousy parenting.
No, we expect our kids to obey, whether they feel like it or not, and oftentimes they don’t feel like it, right?
God expects the same from His children. Obedience to Him is not negotiable, and it certainly doesn’t depend on our moods.
Let me tell you something I’ve learned from my own experience: as I’ve given when I wasn’t excited about it, God gave me a greater appreciation for His care and provision for me, and not giving isn’t a burden. It’s something He’s caused me to enjoy.
Because I gave when I couldn’t do it cheerfully, He made it so I could give cheerfully.
You want to know the key to being able to give cheerfully?
It’s acknowledging the fact that it all belongs to Him anyway, and that everything you have – including your finances and the ability to earn a living – comes from God.
When you can give out of a grateful heart, you give cheerfully.
Let’s take a look at part 2 of this passage and see what we can learn from it.
8And 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. 9 As it is written: "He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever."
10 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. 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
Two things here:
As we give, God takes care of our needs.
Back to verse 8 –
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.
Okay – did you catch that? I emphasized on purpose the fact that as we give, God takes care of us.
This is another indication of when our priorities are in line with kingdom priorities, God makes things happen for us.
Here’s how Jesus put it in Matthew 6:
31 “So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Living – which includes how we handle our money – according to kingdom priorities brings God into the picture and allows us to experience His provision.
God Himself gives us the ability and resources to give.
Verses 11 here give us the untold story of our giving. We don’t talk about this enough, I don’t think.
You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion…
The idea here is this: as we give, God makes us able to give more.
Folks, it’s a bit weird, when you think about it, at least in terms of comparing it to how things operate here on earth, but God says in this passage that He will give us the money we need to be able to give back to Him so we can partner with Him to advance His kingdom.
God wants to bless us as we trust Him in this. And not just financially.
He says He’ll make us rich in every way.
Have you noticed something? Generous people are usually kind, loving, patient, joyful, peaceful… Get the idea?
It’s been my experience that generous people are, on the whole, people who exhibit the fruit of the Spirit more fully.
And they can interact with others in ways that bless them more than with finances.
God grants them riches in areas of character, and that, according to Scripture is worth more than silver or gold.
God promises here that if we invest generously in the Kingdom, He will make it possible for us to be generous in other areas. (v. 8)
You might be thinking, “Pastor Brian, I give a little, because that’s all I can afford. Why isn’t God giving me more to give?”
It could be that you are giving only what’s left over instead of the firstfruits that He asks for.
You’re giving what you see you can afford, not what you know you should give.
Maybe you’re giving a little, but you’re not tithing. You’re not trusting God enough to give back to Him that 10%.
God blesses those who walk in trusting obedience.
I know – on paper it doesn’t look like you can tithe. But God doesn’t ask us to live according to what’s on the paper. He asks us to live according to His promises to provide for us as we trust Him with our finances.
Let’s take a look at what I see is kind of the scale that people kinda live on in regard to their giving:
1. Disobedience.
This is driven by things like ignorance of God’s Word on the issue, and fear that there won’t be enough to cover the rest of what it takes to live.
2. Grudging obedience.
You give only because you don’t want God to beat you up or punish you, or because your spouse is browbeating you into it or something.
By the way, I don’t think God punishes you for not giving. I think God withholds blessing – blessing that He truly wants to give you!
3. Joyful obedience.
And that joyful obedience happens…
• Out of gratitude.
Recognition that everything we have – our very breath, our skills, our income, everything – comes from God, and without His grace, we would have nothing.
• Out of recognition of God’s ownership.
It’s not so much our giving God anything, but rather our giving back to God what He has already given us.
• In anticipation of God’s blessing.
Financially, in terms of our faith and character, and in whatever other ways God chooses to bless you.
So where are you – right now – on this sliding scale between disobedience and joyful obedience?
Get honest with yourself and God about that, and if it’s not in the joyful obedience category, then you need to hear the main application of today’s message and that it to…
You: Ask God to give you a kingdom mindset regarding money.
In other words, ask God to help you see this whole money thing from His perspective, not your perspective tainted by our limited vision.
Ask Him to help you see giving, and especially tithing, not as burdens to bear, but opportunities to partner with Him to see lives changed for eternity.
Ask Him to give you the will and the determination to adjust your money handling in ways that bring glory to Him as you trust Him to cover your needs.
Ask God to help you move from disobedience, right on past the grudging obedience and into joyful obedience.
By the way, I’m fully aware that none of this is easy. I know because I’ve been there, and at times I’m still there, wondering where God is going to get what I need to cover my needs as I give in obedience.
And that’s why I’m not saying, “Start tithing today if you haven’t already,” although I honestly believe that if you want God to start blessing you right away, then you need to start tithing right away.
That’s where I want you to get, and the sooner the better.
But I fully realize that for some of you, it’s going to take some time in prayer and counsel with your spouse before you can get there.
So I want to pray with you and for you. If you come to me and tell me that you’d like to move toward tithing, then I’ll be glad to help you do that in a way that helps you get a grasp on that whole idea as God grows your faith.
My prayer for you is that you won’t look at why you “can’t” tithe, but rather you’d look at God and say, “…
We: Christians are known for their faith in Jesus for forgiveness of our sins and a home in heaven.
They are also known, for better or worse, for their different views on political issues.
But unfortunately, one of the things I’ve noticed that a lot of Christians are NOT known for is their trust in God to provide as they give to advance God’s kingdom.
If you can trust God for heaven, you can trust Him with your checkbook.
Let’s show the people out there that our hope isn’t just for when we get to heaven, but that our hope includes what God has for us in the here and now – as we go from day to day, handling the money that we use to pay our rent or mortgage and gas and phones and food.
We can trust Him for all of that. And He wants you and me to show the world that we do.
Let’s pray.
