LORD WHAT HAVE I GIVEN YOU?
A man was driving home from church one Sunday feeling so good about himself thinking about all the great things he had done and how dedicated he was to the Lord that week. The Pastor at the church had given a well not his greatest message titled “What Have You Given Me.” Suddenly a voice down deep in his soul said “What have you dedicated to me?” Immediately the man stopped his pickup truck and beginning praying Lord I give you my family who I love so much they are yours. The voice spoke out again when are you going to give me the house you live in and the car you drive? Once again the man cried out to the Lord “the house, the car, pickup are yours Lord.” Once again the voice burning in his heart said when are you going to give me yourself? I want your heart, mind, soul, I want your physical body, I want your job, bank account, I want all I have given you. I want your total trust in me. I do not need any of these things I have mentioned because its all mine anyway. This time the man got on his knees and prayed out to God for not giving all that he had. Through out his life he was just giving the bare minimum to God wondered many times why there was a void in his life. Sure God was blessing him but was the testing that God was placing on him spiritually was he giving everything to God. He cried out to God asking for forgiveness, telling God his family, job, home, vehicles, all his worldly processions. Belonged to him. He told God you now have all of me.
Why do so many Christians fit this illustration? I believe it because many of us are weak in our complete Faith in Him that He will take care of us. God wants us to voice our needs not our wants to Him. Even though He already knows our needs He still wants to hear from us. God is jealous, He dislikes when we place ourself over Him. Why do we do the things we do? What motivates us? Why do you go to church? Why do you pray? Is it to please us, make us feel good or is
It to please God? 1st Corinthians 10:31 whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye
present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your
reasonable service.
The Text comes from 2 Corinthians 9: 6-11
But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
(As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth forever.
Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)
Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.
Lets Pray
Today we will be looking at four points in our service to God
I. Are We Receiving All Of Gods Blessings That He Has For Us?
II. Is There Something In Our Life That Is Hindering These Blessings?
III. If There Is Something I Am Not Doing What Must I Do?
IV. The Old Person Is Dead The New Person Is Alive And Well
I. Are We Receiving All Of Gods Blessings That He Has For Us?
A. This would be a question YOU would have to ask yourself
1. Are YOU putting your complete trust, faith in ME (being Christ)
2. Am I just going through the motion, I believe in giving, but I do
not like how the way MY offering is being used ( stop is it your
offering or is it God offering?)
3. I want to do more but (you fill in the blank)
4. Well I just can’t give any more time or resources, Aren’t you glad Jesus does not think like this
5. Jesus Loves YOU and He wants the very best for You, should we be any different
B. One of the greatest spiritual values Jesus gives us is that God blesses
people in proportion to their blessing others.
1. Want to get a boat load of blessings from God, give a boat load of
Blessings to someone.
2. In 2 Corinthians 9:6 it talks about the farmer, if he plants little
(sparingly, thinly) his harvest will be much less.
3. Helping others to meet their needs is like sowing seed.
4. Those you help will want to give back, you have made an impression on them.
5. When Paul is talking about to give is to sow, this is speaking of the
quality, not the quantity.
II. Is There Something In Our Life That Is Hindering These Blessings
A. Are we putting our complete Trust in God
1. Trust and Faith go hand to hand you can’t have one without the
other.
2. In Matthew 17:20 and Jesus said unto them, because of your unbelief; for verily I say unto you, if ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, remove hence to
yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
3. Is it about I (a lot of school athletic teams have tee shirts that say
“THERE IS NO I IN THE WORD TEAM.” We are a TEAM at Parkway Garden Baptist Church.
4. Are we doing things begrudgingly, or of necessity as 2nd Cor. 9:8
states. Jesus want us to pray, worship a living Christ who bore our sins on the cross, by loving our fellow man as Christ loves us. He want US the Church to support not only in our work but also financially.
B. Are we rendering to Jesus Sacrificially in Prayer, Studying God Word,
doing for others, giving, supporting missions and Bible School?
1. Sacrificially means to me Giving up Something (example could be
that dessert when you eat out, those extra sodas, as for me going to
Bojangles, or even if you chew tobacco cutting back.)
2. I for one want a lot of Blessings from God
3. Romans 2:11 For there is no respect of person with God
III. If There Is Something I Am Not Doing What Must I Do
A. First of all You must ask God to reveal to you what I must do to
serve Him to the best of my ability.
1. A lot of Christians are still on the “Milk of the Word”
2. New Believers in Christ if given “Meat” Many will be lost in the word. ( It like a baby you do not feed a new born baby Meat you give it milk.
3. You must take the Word of God Literally what it says is what it means.
B. You are never to Young or Old that God cannot use you REPEAT
1. Being active in the church is like a person that exercises to improve
their health.
2. We are more happy when we serve the Lord
3. When we serve, and give (God will give back more than we ever invested in him) Example I was watching the Christian Channel on TV the other night. On most of the programs the Pastor or speaker was asking to send in donations to their ministry. They were saying if you did, in the near future you would receive a large sum of wealth. Is this God talking or man?
4. In Malachi 3:10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
5. For just a moment search your heart and ask yourself Wow I never thought of it like that.
IV. The Old Person Is Dead, The New Person Is Alive And Well
A. 1 Peter 2:21-25 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
Who did not sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:
Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
1. We are a New Creature in Christ
2. Ours Sins are washed under the blood of Christ
3. We are alive and well in Jesus Christ our Lord.
B. The Old Person is Dead
1. Serving Christ is a joy
2. Our relationship with Jesus (He is our Father, Creator, Shepherd,
King, Jesus is the one that gives us our health, food, water, shelter, clothing, our Jobs, He gives us so much and so many times we take it for granite.
3. Jesus wants you to accept this precious gift today, Please today is
Day of Salvation
Conclusion: Many times you see on TV about a product to buy and it will say
Try it for 30 days and if you are not completely satisfied send it back
with full refund but as our gift keep some part of the advertisement.
You can’t just try Jesus you must commit I promise you it will be
the most important decision YOU will ever make. As Vicki come to lead us in The Old Hymn Rock of Ages
