Tag: giving

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Luke Devotionals

In order to give

Luke

[Jesus] kept giving [bread and fish] to the disciples to set before the crowd. Everyone ate and was filled. (Luke 9:16-17)

I like how this translation renders verse 16. “Jesus kept giving” the bread and fish to his disciples so that the crowd could be fed. 

Like the disciples, we don’t have much to give others, and yet their spiritual needs are so great.

But Jesus doesn’t simply say, “You feed them,” and leave us to our own resources. Rather Jesus keeps giving to us the grace and resources required to meet their needs.

But for that to happen, we need to constantly be plugged into him. We need to constantly put ourselves under the faucet of his grace so that we can be filled up and overflowing.

The question is, are we? 

As Jesus said, 

“I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me…

As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love.” (John 15:5, 9)

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Philippians

When we give

PhilippiansHope

I mentioned in my last blog that the problem with many Christians is that they are still self-centered. That they’re always focused on their wants and needs.

But that is not God’s will for us, and that’s not how the Philippians were. Paul said of them,

When I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only, for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. (Philippians 4:15-16)

For a lot of the churches, they apparently received a lot from Paul, but at that point, that’s all they were doing: receiving. They were not really giving of themselves to others and the Lord at that point.

Now as baby Christians, that’s okay. We need to be fed. But as we mature, we need to learn to not only receive, but to give. And from very early on, that’s what the Philippians apparently did.

Paul himself wasn’t so interested in receiving from the Philippians or anyone else. For the most part, he was self-supporting. But he was thankful to see the seeds of maturity in the Philippians in their giving hearts.

And he assured them that God would not forget what they had done, but that they would be rewarded.

It’s very interesting the phrase he uses in verse 17,

I seek the fruit that increases to your credit.

Is he saying that God will reward them because of the fruit of generosity growing in their lives? Or is he saying that their generosity in supporting his ministry will result in the fruit of saved lives, and that God would reward them because of that fruit?

I kind of think he means the latter, but both are probably true.

More, he tells them, that their gifts were a fragrant offering and acceptable sacrifice to God. And then he closes by saying,

And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. (19)

Sometimes when we give, we wonder if it’s worth it. We wonder if perhaps we’ve given too much. But Paul assures us here that if we are generous, God has more than enough resources to provide for our needs.

To be honest, I’m still learning that. So many times, it’s hard for me to let go of money in my life. But when we give, not only will we please God, but God will be glorified through that gift as people are blessed. And so Paul says,

To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (20)

How about you? Are you a giver? Or just a receiver?

May the gifts we receive from God not simply stop with us, but flow through us to touch those around us.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen. (23)

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2 Corinthians

Abounding in grace

2 Corinthians

I wonder how many people reading the title of this post, “Abounding in grace,” immediately thought in terms of us receiving grace from God.

Certainly, that is a part of what I’m writing about today, but it’s only half.

Paul wrote,

And 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. (2 Corinthians 9:8)

I really like this verse. It first talks about how God is able to shower his grace upon us so that we’ll have all that we need.

But what is the purpose of his showering his grace upon us? His purpose is that we will abound in every good work, showering the grace we have received on others.

Paul quotes Psalm 112 where it says,

He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever. (2 Corinthians 9:9)

Somehow, whenever I’ve read this passage, I’ve always associated it with Christ. I think I was confusing it with Ephesians 4:8 somehow.

But actually, the psalmist was talking about the righteous man and how generous he is.

He never fears the future because he trusts in the Lord, and that allows him to be as generous as he is, helping those in need and abounding in good works to those around him.

And that’s what Paul goes on to say in verses 10-11.

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.

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. (2 Corinthians 9:10-11)

In short, we can be confident that God will not only supply our needs, but will also increase what we have to the point that we can minister to others, being generous on every occasion.

The question is, “Do we trust God in that way?” I have to admit that I’m still learning to do so.

I want to be like that righteous man in Psalm 112, filled with the grace that God pours into my life, but not holding it in.

I want to be overflowing with the grace of God, touching those around me and blessing them, so that people may see it and glorify God.

How about you? Are you abounding in grace?

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2 Corinthians

Principles of giving

2 Corinthians

Here in this passage, we see two key principles of giving.

Paul says,

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. (2 Corinthians 9:6)

This is true in all aspects of life. If, for example, you sow sparingly into your marriage, you will also reap sparingly.

That is, if you put little time or effort into your marriage, you will reap little benefit from it. In fact, your marriage will most likely wither and die.

If on the other hand, you sow generously into your marriage, you will reap great blessing from it.

The same can be said of raising your kids. If you sow sparingly in the lives of your kids, you will find that when they grow up, they’ll want little to do with you.

But if you sow generously into their lives, you will find that you have a great relationship with them after they have grown up.

But the key point here is with giving of your money.

A lot of people think, “Well, tithing isn’t for the New Testament church, so why should I give anything to the church.”

But if we sow sparingly into the church, what does that mean?

It probably means your pastor will have to take other jobs to support himself and his family leaving less time for ministering to the church.

It means your church will have less resources to touch your community. And it means that your church has less resources to minister to you and your family.

If you sow generously into your church, however, you will find that your church can be a great blessing to you, your family, and your community.

So if you’re complaining that your pastor or your church isn’t doing enough, a big question you need to ask yourself is this: am I sowing generously into the church so that they can do more?

Paul then goes on to say,

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7)

Our giving should never be done with an attitude of, “Well, I guess I have to give.”

It should never be done with the pain of pulling teeth or with the feeling of a gun pointed at your head.

It should be done with a heart of joy and generosity.

It should be done with a heart of, “I just wanted to thank you God for all you’ve done for me. You have given me an indescribable gift in your Son. Now I want to give something back to you.”

And when we give with that attitude, that is acceptable to God, whether we give a large amount or small.

The poor widow in Luke 21:1-3, had very little to give. But because she gave from her heart, Jesus was more pleased with her gift than with any of the large gifts that the richer folks had given.

So how about you? With what kind of attitude are you giving? And are you sowing generously, or sparingly?

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2 Corinthians

Our example in giving

2 Corinthians

How much do we know the grace of Jesus in our lives?

And if we really did know it, how would it change our attitude in our giving, not only of our money, but of our time, our resources, and of our very lives?

Paul told the Corinthians,

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. (2 Corinthians 8:9)

What is grace? It is the giving of something to a people that don’t deserve it.

And Jesus was full of grace, giving to us what we didn’t deserve. Think about what he did for us.

Jesus was “rich” in heaven. Not in that he had lots of gold or silver or money. Such things really have little worth in heaven.

But Jesus, while he was in heaven, shared in the glory of God, and was worshiped by the angels. He sat on the throne next to the Father, lacking nothing.

He in fact ruled over all things, and through him, all things in heaven and earth hold together. (Colossians 1:15-18)

And yet, he gave up all his glory in heaven to come to this earth as a man. Not as a king. Not even as a rich man. But as a mere carpenter.

Even when he began his ministry, it was as an itinerant preacher, one who never knew where he would lay his head for the night. (Luke 9:58)

And at the end of his life, instead of receiving worship, he was reviled. Instead of sitting on his throne, he hung on a cross. Instead of reigning in glory, he hung in shame. Why?

So that we might become rich. So that our sins might be paid for by his work on the cross. And so that one day we would become co-heirs with him in his kingdom (Romans 8:17).

That’s the grace of Jesus that he freely gave to us. So once again, the question is, “Do we know that grace in our lives?”

Has that truth truly sunk into our hearts? Because if it has, it will show in our lives as well. Generosity will spring out of our hearts just as it sprang out of Jesus’.

Honestly, it’s a truth that needs to sink a lot deeper into my heart.

How about you? Do you know the grace of Jesus in your life?

Is it overflowing out of your heart in generosity to others?

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2 Corinthians

Excelling in acts of grace

2 Corinthians

In this verse, Paul encourages the Corinthians,

But just as you excel in everything–in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us–see that you also excel in this grace of giving. (2 Corinthians 8:7)

The Corinthians were well known for their abundance of spiritual gifts as well as for their zeal and love.

But Paul says here, “Don’t just excel in faith, speech, knowledge, zeal, and love. Excel in giving as well.”

Many Christians want to excel in faith, in speaking out for Christ, in their knowledge of God, in zeal, and in love. But how often do we desire to excel as givers.

Precious few, I would guess. But that’s what God desires for us. That we would be givers, and touch the lives of the people around us.

I think that’s primarily what Paul is talking about here, and it’s how the NIV translates it. But as I look at the ESV, it puts this verse this way:

But as you excel in everything–in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you–see that you excel in this act of grace also.

I want to focus on that last phrase: “This act of grace.”

Again, this is specifically talking about the grace of giving, namely to the hurting Jews in Jerusalem.

But it strikes me that God wants us to excel in all acts of grace:

In the act of speaking words of grace to those around us.

In the act of showing kindness to others.

In the act of showing forgiveness to others.

In the act of showing mercy to those who are hurting.

We are to be people of grace. Why? Because God is a God of grace, and we as his children are to imitate him.

How about you? Are you a person of grace? Are you a person that excels in acts of grace to those around you?

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2 Corinthians

What giving is all about

2 Corinthians

Generosity. Giving.

These are two things I have to admit I’m still working on in my life.

Perhaps it comes from being the youngest child in my family.

Perhaps it just comes from my sinful, selfish nature.

But generosity and giving are two things that are definitely not natural to me. They should be, though. These things should flow naturally out of all Christians.

It certainly was the nature of these Macedonians. According to Paul, despite their troubles and their poverty, they begged to be allowed to give to the poor in Jerusalem.

You almost get the impression that Paul had told them, “No, no. It’s totally okay. You don’t have to give. Others are giving and it should be sufficient to meet the needs of the hurting in Jerusalem.”

But the Macedonians begged Paul to be allowed the privilege of giving. That’s how they considered it: a privilege.

It’s so easy when we’re going through our own problems to focus on ourselves. To become selfish and think only of how to make it through our own trials.

But the Macedonians refused to focus on themselves. Rather, Paul says of them,

They did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will. (2 Corinthians 8:5)

That’s what giving ultimately is all about. It’s the giving of ourselves to God, and to others. Or as Jesus put it,

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. (Matthew 22:37)

and,

Love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:39)

So if you are stingy, if you are tight with your money, the question you need to ask yourself is this: “Am I truly loving God with all my heart, soul, and mind? Am I loving my neighbor as myself? Or do I love my money more?”

The other question you need to ask yourself is: “Am I so concerned with my own problems, that I can’t see past myself? Or am I like the Macedonians, who could see past their own troubles to the needs of others?”

Where is your heart today?

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1 Corinthians

When we give

1 Corinthians

As Paul often did when he visited the churches, he collected offerings to support the poor Christians in Jerusalem.

And in his instructions, I think we see several principles concerning our giving.

First, give in accordance with your income. Don’t feel like you have to match the giving of someone who makes twice as much as you do.

God knows how much you make and how much you can afford to give. He doesn’t really care how much you give, so long as you give from your heart. (See Luke 21:1-4)

Second, be intentional about your giving. What does that mean?

For one thing, don’t give because you feel pressured to, but because you want to.

For another thing, make it a point to set aside how much you want to give from the very beginning. In other words, put it into your budget.

Don’t just think, “Well, I’ll take care of all my expenses first, and then if there’s anything left over, I may give a portion of what remains.”

Rather, from the beginning, think about what you want to give. Make it a purposeful part of your budget.

And then as necessary, cut down on your other expenses so that you can give what you planned.

All these principles we can see in Paul’s words. He said,

On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up so that when I come no collections will have to be made. (1 Corinthians 16:2)

Finally, make sure that there’s financial accountability in the institution or church you’re giving to. Paul said,

Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem.

If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me. (1 Corinthians 16:3-4)

All of this seems to be intended to make sure that everything was done above board, and that the money was handled by people who could be trusted.

The money we have is a trust given to us by God. Let us treat it that way and use it in ways glorifying to him.

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1 Corinthians

Bringing something to give

1 Corinthians

One excuse people often use as to why they leave the church is, “I’m just not getting anything out of it.”

It’s almost as if they expect to be entertained or coddled, and if that’s not happening, they are no longer interested in coming to church.

But that way of thinking is purely selfish, and it is not how we are to think of church. Paul wrote,

What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.

All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church. (1 Corinthians 14:26)

In Paul’s thinking then, when we come to church, our attitude should not be “Gimme, gimme, gimme,” and “me, me, me.”

Rather our attitude should be, “What do I have to give? How can I strengthen the people in the church?”

And Paul doesn’t say that just the pastors should be doing this. Rather, he says “everyone” who comes ought to bring something to give.

From the most mature Christian to the least mature, all should be thinking, “How can I bless the people I meet at church today?”

Even a young Christian can share something that they read in the Bible that week that touched them. Even a child can share a song they learned praising Jesus.

Just this week, my five-year-old daughter was singing a song she learned in Sunday school to someone who was feeling down, which said, “Where is God? God is here, and he’s with you wherever you go.”

So as we go to church, let us not go with a self-centered attitude of “What am I going to get from church today?”

Rather, let us look for ways to encourage and build up those we meet.

And let us consider, contemplate, and plan how to spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day of the Lord’s return drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

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Romans

Sharing with those from whom we receive spiritual blessing

Romans

Money is always a touchy subject. And talking about tithing always is within the church.

A lot of Christians argue that tithing is not a New Testament teaching, and I believe they’re right. (There are others that do differ with me on this).

However, I do believe that the Bible is clear that we are to support those from whom we receive spiritual blessing.

I think we can see this principle in this passage, though the situation is not talking about tithing.

In this passage, Paul talks about how he was going to Jerusalem with a gift that the people from Macedonia and Achaia had given to support the poor in Jerusalem.

And Paul says a very interesting thing about it. He says,

They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them.

For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. (Romans 15:27)

Two things to note here. They wanted to do it. They had hearts that were willing to give.

But second, Paul said that in a sense, it was something they owed the Jews, because salvation came from the Jews. (John 4:22)

That is, God chose to bring the Savior through the Jewish race. The Jews, through people like Peter, Paul, and Barnabas, spread the good news of God’s salvation to the Gentiles, and as a result, many were saved.

So Paul says, “Since they have received these spiritual blessings through the Jews, they owed it to the Jews to share their material blessings with them.”

I believe the same is true with us and our pastors.

They have shared many spiritual blessings with us. They dedicate their lives to us that we may know God better, and come into a closer relationship with him.

It is only right that we share our material blessings so that they can support themselves and their families.

But again, this needs to be something done, not simply from a heart pulled by obligation, but from a heart that is willing. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians,

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7)

So if you’re not willing to give, don’t give.

But if you have a heart that is so in love with money that you are not willing to give to those that support you spiritually, then that’s an area that you’re going to need to grow in if you want to be like Jesus.

Jesus was a giver. He gave up heaven for us. He gave up his very life for us.

If we really love Jesus, shouldn’t we have that kind of heart as well?

How about you? Are you a giver?

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Luke Luke 14

Giving

Luke

As Jesus looked around the room, I wonder what kind of people he saw?

A lot of people were invited to this dinner, and I would guess that he was the only one who was not considered at least moderately well off.

And so he said,

When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.

But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. (Luke 14:12-14)

Two things strike me here. Although this “prominent” Pharisee undoubtedly gave alms to the poor, I strongly doubt he ever invited any of these poor to his dinners.

At another guess, I doubt if the thought of entertaining the poor to a dinner at his house had ever even crossed his mind.

Why not? Probably because he was more interested in gaining the admiration of his friends and the people around him for his house and the food he served.

He was more interested in hanging out with his friends and furthering his reputation among them than reaching out to the hurting around him.

Many times, we give tithes to the church, but use the rest of our money solely for ourselves. We think that now we’ve given our tithes to the church, our “duty” to God is discharged in terms of money.

But God calls us to be givers. Not just inside of church, but outside the church. And if you can give to help someone you know in need, God will bless you.

The second thing that strikes me is our attitude in giving.

Are we giving expecting to be given back? Or do we give freely of what God has given us, expecting nothing in return?

Jesus makes it clear here that it is the latter that God blesses.

I have to admit, I struggle with giving. I’m not a natural giver.

But if we are to be like Jesus, we need to learn to give as he did: sacrificially, expecting nothing in return, helping those who are hurting.

What kind of giver are you?

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Luke Luke 8

From blessed to blessing

Luke

This is a passage that’s very short, but teaches a very important lesson.

We see Jesus here going out from town to town, preaching the gospel. And along with his disciples, we see three women, Mary Magdalene, the wife of a member of Herod’s household named Joanna, and another woman named Susanna.

We don’t know much about these women. What we do know is that they had all been touched by Jesus.

Mary Magdalene had had 7 demons cast out of her, and Joanna and Susanna either had had demons cast out or been healed of their diseases (or perhaps both). In short, they had all been blessed by Jesus.

Out of their gratitude, they began to follow Jesus, but not only did they follow, they supported his ministry financially.

What can we get from this?

We’ve all been blessed in some way by Jesus. Most importantly, he has blessed us by saving us from our sin by dying on the cross.

But for some of us, he has also rescued our marriages, he has restored our families, he has delivered us from alcohol or drugs, or he has healed our pasts.

But while it’s nice to be blessed, are you also a blessing? Are you always receiving as a Christian, or are you also giving?

Some Christians think, “Why should I tithe? It’s not New Testament teaching.”

That may be true, but we are called as Christians to be givers, even if we’re not told how much to give (2 Corinthians 8:7).

Why? Because God doesn’t simply want us to be a container of his grace. He wants us to be a channel of his grace. He wants his grace to flow through us to touch the lives of others.

Part of that is giving money to support your church, but it goes far beyond that. It means investing your very life in the lives of others.

How about you? Are you simply a container of God’s grace? Or are you a channel of his grace as well?

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Malachi

Is tithing Biblical?

Tithing basket

Some people may see this and wonder, “Why are you talking about tithing? That was Old Testament law. The New Testament says nothing about Christians tithing.”

That’s true.

When Malachi was talking to the Israelites, he was talking to people under Mosaic law.

Some people point to Abraham tithing to Melchizedek, who the writer of Hebrews uses as a type of Jesus (Hebrews 7), and say this proves that since tithing was before the law of Moses, it’s applicable to the Christian too.

I’d be more convinced if the point of the passage were that Christians should tithe. It isn’t. It’s merely pointing out the superiority of the Melchizedek priesthood to the Aaronic one.

To take this passage and say therefore “All Christians should tithe” seems to be stretching things beyond the limits of the passage.

That said, I think that there are some things to point out about tithing that are applicable to the Christian today.

First, God does ask us to support our churches, and namely our pastors.

As we saw in Nehemiah, the people were not supporting the Levites and as a result, they had to leave their posts in the temple and work in their fields just to survive.

If we force our pastors to split their time between ministry and supporting their families, who does that hurt? Not just them. It hurts us as well.

Paul wrote (and this is New Testament),

The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.

For the Scripture says, “Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.” (1 Timothy 5:17–18)

In 1 Corinthians 9:7–12, Paul says that while he and Barnabas did work to support themselves, they had every right to be supported through the ministry they were performing.

That’s why God told the Israelites,

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. (Malachi 3:10)

The food wasn’t for God, who doesn’t eat. It was for the priests and Levites who worked there.

Second, there seems to be an attitude that some Christians take saying, “This is my money. And since I’m not required to tithe, I’m not going to.”

But remember this: As a Christian, your whole life belongs to God. You were bought with a price, the blood of Jesus.

That means that everything that you have really belongs to Christ. You are merely his steward. So it’s not your money at all. It’s God’s. You see this in the parable of the talents. (Matthew 25:14–30)

And while people often think of this story solely in terms of using the spiritual gifts God has given them, remember that another gift (though not a spiritual one) that he has given us is the ability to make money.

As a result, he will hold us responsible for how we use the money we have earned.

God reminded the people of this by sending them poor crops.

And he told them, “You’re taking what is really mine and using it for yourselves alone. That’s why you’re struggling so much. But if you’ll remember who all this really belongs to, I’ll send so much blessing upon you that you can’t contain it.”

How about you? Do you feel your money belongs to you? That it’s yours and yours alone to use for your purposes.

Remember who you belong to. And remember that as a result, your money is his as well.

Not ten percent. But 100 percent.

Are you using it solely for your purposes. Or for his purposes as well?