Extreme Giving

Do you give from your surplus or is it a true sacrifice?

Habakkuk 3:17-19 Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, 18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD!

I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! 19 The Sovereign LORD is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.

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Habakkuk chapter three doesn't make sense to anyone that has not established a personal relationship with God. If your circumstances are as bad as Habakkuk was facing would you have any reason to rejoice in tribulation? Would you be able to trust God's plan and purpose for your life?

Trusting God when it doesn't make sense is probably the most difficult when it comes to giving away a portion of what you have when you seem to have so little or when it isn't clear how much you will have.

In the Old Testament law God's people were required to bring a first fruit offering to the temple. This offering required a level of trust because you were giving a sacrifice at the beginning of the harvest before you knew how much you would earn. (Leviticus 23:14)

This idea of giving before we get is very foreign to us, we want to give after the paycheck or the bonus comes in, but the Bible teaches that our giving should show that we trust God to take care of us regardless of our financial circumstances.

Give Sacrificially

Mark 12:43-44 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. 44 For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.”

Jesus told his disciples that the poor widow at the temple was the best giver that day while he was in the temple. Her gift was a true sacrifice that created a financial struggle that none of the other people experienced that day.

Looking back at Habakkuk's situation, the country was in full economic collapse, their wealth had disappeared, the ability to provide for their families was destroyed and the possibility of having a meal on any given day was bleak.

Giving sacrificially requires that you give until it hurts, your giving should make you a little bit uncomfortable, and your lifestyle should be affected by your giving. Is your giving really a generous sacrifice? If you are only giving from your surplus then what happens when the surplus is gone?

Give Joyfully

Deuteronomy 26:8-11 So the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and powerful arm, with overwhelming terror, and with miraculous signs and wonders. 9 He brought us to this place and gave us this land flowing with milk and honey! 10 And now, O LORD, I have brought you the first portion of the harvest you have given me from the ground.’ Then place the produce before the LORD your God, and bow to the ground in worship before him. 11 Afterward you may go and celebrate because of all the good things the LORD your God has given to you and your household. Remember to include the Levites and the foreigners living among you in the celebration.

In the teachings about the first fruit offering they didn't just drop their offering in the collection box and walk away. Their offering was given joyfully with a testimony about the one that provided the offering.

We give our money cheerfully to the things that we are passionate about, it doesn't matter what your interest is, you will spend money easily on those things that you love the most. You will have to be careful not to spend too much on those things.

What do you treasure so much that you can effortlessly give money to? Do you give as cheerfully to God as you do to your earthly pleasures?

Give Graciously 

2 Corinthians 8:2-3  They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity.  3  For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will.

When you give your time, treasure or your talents to God it becomes part of God's grace to others. God didn't bless me so that I can accumulate the blessings and keep them to myself, I have been blessed so that I can introduce the people that I bless to my loving God who provided for me.

When God's people share their blessings we fulfill our mission here on earth, our blessings help bring charity, good works and justice to our hurting world. Our giving will help us be better ambassadors for our Savior who was the most extreme giver.

I need to be faithful to give even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the LORD!

RELATED ARTICLES

Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow: An Analysis (medium.com)
What Was The First Fruits Offering? (gotquestions.com)
Doxology (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)

The Widow's Offering - A Picture Of Jesus Sacrifice

The widow gave her all, Jesus gave his all, how is your giving? 

Luke 21:1-4 While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. 2 Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins.

3 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. 4 For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.”

Proverbs 11:24 Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything.

Philippians 2:3-5 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

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There was a lot of giving going on that day in the temple. It was difficult to miss who gave and who didn't give and it was easy to be recognized for how much you gave. The leaders in the temple probably looked on as the donations were made so that they could intimidate the people into giving, they may have known who gave but they didn't know what Jesus knew, he was the only one that knew the attitude of the giver.

Jesus saw the rich and famous and how large their gifts were and then he saw the poorest of the poor and Jesus told his disciples that in God's economy the widow was the best giver in the temple that day. The widow had it right, she didn't dwell on how little that she had, she didn't think about how big her needs were, her happiness, comfort and security were not as important as her humble obedience.

Do you think she knew that the leaders in the temple were going to spend some of the money on themselves? These are the same leaders that were scamming the people with the money changers and the animals in the temple. The fact that they were going to misuse the money didn't stop her from doing what she was supposed to do. She still gave and did so without animosity.

It isn't in scripture but the Religious leaders were probably furious, as closely as they were watching Jesus and analyzing everything he said and did, I bet that they heard what he said about the givers that day.

Research has shown that when your income increases the percentage that is used for charitable contributions tends to drop. Just like the scene in the story of the widow, those that had the most gave the least, we tend to give less the more we are blessed.

The widow's enormous sacrifice reminds me of the sacrifice that Jesus made for me. He sacrificed the riches of heaven, he subjected himself to the woes of the human experience, hunger, sadness, temptation and in a few days he would make the ultimate sacrifice.

Give Like Jesus

Jesus gave until it hurt. He was willing to help the worst of sinners. If anybody had a good reason to not be an excellent giver it would be Jesus, he gave to those that don't deserve it, his generosity and attitude in giving set the standard high for us to follow. We have benefited from his generosity despite the ugliness of our sin.

In order to be like Jesus I must be selfless and humble, willing to be humiliated and suffer for those that don't deserve it, I can not judge them. I must be willing to look out for the needs that are around me and be willing to meet them with the right attitude. I can not help them only when it is convenient or when it doesn't cost too much.

Just before Jesus gives us his all he makes sure that we see what he expects us to give. I will never go broke being generous if I am generous with the right motives. Jesus wants my sacrifice but he only wants it with the right attitude.

I want to be a generous giver Lord, thank you for your generous gift of salvation!

Mercy In Action

Here are some practical ways to show mercy.

Luke 6:37-38  “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you; a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”

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Yesterday's post told us about love and about extending mercy just as radically as God has given mercy to us.

That leads us up to today's post about  judging and being generous, remember in Luke 6:31 from yesterday, Jesus told us "Just as you want others to do for you, do the same for them." In today's verses we get some practical "how to" tips so that we can be radical about being full of mercy.

First of all we need to be merciful by not being judgmental, we need to be forgiving so that we will be forgiven, pretty simple when you see it written down but the day to day application isn't so simple. After all being merciful is about giving up my rights and we all like to have everything that we can get, this world doesn't live with the attitude that it is going to give up anything but that is the lifestyle that God has called us to.

The second way to be merciful is by giving to others. The greatest way that God displayed mercy to us was when he gave us the greatest gift that we could ever receive. Being merciful is directly linked to generosity and with being a cheerful giver, in fact everybody loves a cheerful giver.

Forgiveness and generosity must be a part of my lifestyle, I need to live this way so that others will be drawn to Jesus and they will experience his mercy as I have.

Help me Lord to be cheerful about giving up my rights and showing mercy to those around me.

You might like to read:
Mercy! Do I Have To Do That? // Mercy, I Didn't Deserve That! // Forgive The Offenders

What's In Your Wallet?

Lay up your treasure in the right place.

Matthew 6:19-21  "Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal.  20  Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.  21  Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

1 Timothy 6:17-19  Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment.  18  Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others.  19  By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life.

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Accumulating wealth is a great idea, go for as much of it as you can get, in fact let's be greedy about it. Well that is if you are thinking about the treasure that you are storing away in heaven.

I need to let go of  my earthly treasure and use it to help me accumulate treasure in heaven. I must not be proud of how well I can provide for my needs or place my trust in my earthly wealth, instead I need to be generous and willing to help those that are in need that I have the ability to help. That way my treasure will be stored in the right place to prevent suffering any loss, there isn't any access for thieves and the stock market won't crash, this treasure is made to last.

1 Peter 1:4  and we have a priceless inheritance--an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.

Help me Lord to remember that my money belongs to you, help me to know how to use it for your purpose.

You might like to read: Commands of Jesus blog series

Disciples Of Jesus Are Called To Give

Giving helps me to preach the gospel without using words.

 John 3:16  "For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

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Jesus gave his all, literally, there was nothing that he held so tightly that he was not willing to give up for the advancement of the kingdom. He gave it all away his hands were wide open up until the day that they were nailed to the cross.

Just how much generosity do I have? How much am I willing to give so that Christ will be seen in my life? The less sacrifice attached to the message the less meaning it has to those that we are trying to reach.

"He is no fool who gives what he can not keep to gain what he can not lose" - Jim Elliot

The giving potential of a follower of Christ is rarely maximized, I am pretty sure that I can do more to help those that are in need so that they will have to say to themselves "Why does this guy keep on giving so much?"

Help me to share the good news Lord by giving sacrificially so that people will notice you in me.

Give Generously

God's Economics 101 class

Proverbs 11:24 Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything.

Proverbs 19:17 If you help the poor, you are lending to the LORD--and He will repay you!

Deuteronomy 15:10 Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do.

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God's ways are beyond logic sometimes, his economic principles are totally opposite what the world tells me to do with my money, check out Economics 101 at any school and you will see how God's ways are different from our ways.

God says to be generous, give it away and do it with a good attitude, I can go through the motions and lay the money out there but if my attitude stinks then it doesn't matter what my actions were. Anybody can do the right thing with a little bit of effort but my attitude proves the condition of my heart and shows how much I am like my Savior.

Jesus gave it all away for me, he left his home in heaven and even gave up his life, certainly I can give of my time, talent and resources to help somebody in need and do it without complaining.

Lord, help me to always be a cheerful giver. I want to give you my money, my time and my talents to you so that I can be a part of the work that you are doing.