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How often this is the unspoken heart cry of many a church member upon learning that the pastor is about to begin his annual "stewardship" series of messages! How well I recall being part of a church in which at the same time each year the pastor would preach a series of messages on the importance of being faithful in the giving of our tithes and offerings. I did not appreciate then what he was trying to do, but I can certainly see today that we as Christians do not fully understand what Dr. Jack Taylor has called "God's plan of economy"!
Three vital truths come to mind regarding the importance of our giving, beloved, the first of which is that God has made it compulsory. In both Old and New Testaments the command is clearly and succinctly stated, revealing to us that obedient giving in all the commodities of life is no option:
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse..." (Malachi 3:10)
"Give..." (Luke 6:38)
"...let each one of you put aside..." (1 Corinthians 16:2)
"Give..." (Luke 6:38)
"...let each one of you put aside..." (1 Corinthians 16:2)
In fact, so compulsory is the act of faithful giving, beloved, that God said to His people through Malachi that not to be obedient in this area is actually to "rob God" (3:8)! Thus, for us ever to consider not giving according to the leading of God's Spirit is an act of rebellion against the God who has provided all of our needs.
A second vital truth regarding the importance of our giving is that we can expect it to be compensatory. In a day in which many Christians were raised to believe that in giving to the Lord we are never to expect something in return, to "give to get," so to speak, the Scriptures have a very different perspective for us. Let's return to those same verses above which we have only considered in part:
"'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows'" (Malachi 3:10)
"Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour into your lap. For by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you in return" (Luke 6:38)
It is difficult to imagine God expecting us to expect Him to bless us, beloved, but that is precisely what the Scriptures reveal to us! We cannot imagine that God's command for us is that we "give to get," yet that is without a doubt what is woven into His eternal plan of economy for us. As surely as His requirement for us to give faithfully is compulsory in every sense of the word, it is also just that much compensatory in that we should expect Him to pour out His blessings upon us.
Finally, the word of God teaches us that the importance of our giving lies in the fact that ultimately it is to be contributory. And this element is what explains fully His promise to pour out upon us such blessings that we will not be able to take them in ourselves:
"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed" (2 Corinthians 9:8)
As we have discovered, good stewardship as Christians involves a giving that is compulsory, as seen in the simple command of Jesus to "give." It is further compensatory in that God has promised to bless us beyond measure when we do give faithfully, causing us to focus in our giving upon "giving to get." Finally, we discover the reason for this "giving to get" when we realize that our giving is to be contributory in that we "give to get to give again." God promises to bless us beyond measure so that we may take that abundance and pour it into the lives of others in genuine need. He wants us to have "an abundance for every good deed" because that is how He wants to have those around us see His love in us and to come to the Savior in faith.
Another stewardship sermon, then? Absolutely! And another opportunity for us as believers to finally come to see how glorious is God's "plan of economy" and to bring our lives into line with the principles by which He governs this world. How faithful are you to God's plan of economy, beloved?
Just think! GIVE! GIVE TO GET! GIVE TO GET TO GIVE AGAIN! What a way to live!
Ron
A second vital truth regarding the importance of our giving is that we can expect it to be compensatory. In a day in which many Christians were raised to believe that in giving to the Lord we are never to expect something in return, to "give to get," so to speak, the Scriptures have a very different perspective for us. Let's return to those same verses above which we have only considered in part:
"'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows'" (Malachi 3:10)
"Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour into your lap. For by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you in return" (Luke 6:38)
It is difficult to imagine God expecting us to expect Him to bless us, beloved, but that is precisely what the Scriptures reveal to us! We cannot imagine that God's command for us is that we "give to get," yet that is without a doubt what is woven into His eternal plan of economy for us. As surely as His requirement for us to give faithfully is compulsory in every sense of the word, it is also just that much compensatory in that we should expect Him to pour out His blessings upon us.
Finally, the word of God teaches us that the importance of our giving lies in the fact that ultimately it is to be contributory. And this element is what explains fully His promise to pour out upon us such blessings that we will not be able to take them in ourselves:
"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed" (2 Corinthians 9:8)
As we have discovered, good stewardship as Christians involves a giving that is compulsory, as seen in the simple command of Jesus to "give." It is further compensatory in that God has promised to bless us beyond measure when we do give faithfully, causing us to focus in our giving upon "giving to get." Finally, we discover the reason for this "giving to get" when we realize that our giving is to be contributory in that we "give to get to give again." God promises to bless us beyond measure so that we may take that abundance and pour it into the lives of others in genuine need. He wants us to have "an abundance for every good deed" because that is how He wants to have those around us see His love in us and to come to the Savior in faith.
Another stewardship sermon, then? Absolutely! And another opportunity for us as believers to finally come to see how glorious is God's "plan of economy" and to bring our lives into line with the principles by which He governs this world. How faithful are you to God's plan of economy, beloved?
Just think! GIVE! GIVE TO GET! GIVE TO GET TO GIVE AGAIN! What a way to live!
Ron
