Preached:

LR
What is Giving?
(Christianity 101: Lesson 9)

Introduction
1. I have a wonderful little book in my office that I have referred to quite often
as I have been studying for these basic lessons on worship. It is a series of
lectures that was presented on the topic of worship.
2. While I love that book, it is amazing to me that there is not a single lecture on
the topic of giving in worship!
3. People don’t like to think about giving, but it is as much a Biblical topic and
an avenue of worship as is singing, preaching, or prayer.
4. We usually don’t like the topic for two basic reasons: (1) it hurts to give like
we should, and (2) many of us aren’t.
5. We want to take a survey-style look at some NT facts about giving in worship.
It is an act of worship, and it is not just a way for the church to “make
money.” It is, rather, a way for us to thank God for the blessing He has given
us, and a way to show our concern for the lost and needy in the world.
6. As we think about giving, I’m going to roughly use an article I read recently
by a good friend of mine who gave three “P’s” of giving. I’m using his main
thoughts, but most of the information has been added from other sources.
We want to discuss People who gave, Principles of giving, and a Practical
Point about giving.

Body
I. People Who Gave
A. God was and is the ultimate Giver.
1. God owns everything, since He is the creator and sustainer of the
universe. The Psalmist wrote of God, “Every beast of the forest is
mine,and the cattle on a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10). That verse,
though, just shows us a hint of all that is God’s, for not only is the
cattle and beast his, so are the forest and the hills!
2. But God isn’t some miserly Beingwho isn’t giving. In fact, God is
the most giving of all Beings. Consider the “golden text” of the
Bible:
a. For God [the greatest Being] so loved [the greatest of all things]
the world [the greatest number] that He gave [the greatest
attitude] His only begotten Son [the greatest gift], that
whosoever believes in Him [the greatest faith] should not perish
[the greatest tragedy] but have everlasting life [the greatest
reward].”
b. Notice that God doesn’t just give leftovers. God gives us so
many wonderful things, from the air we breathe, to the food we
 eat; but He also gives the greatest gift of them all: His Son,
Jesus.
3. If we claim that we want to be more like God, then we will give, and
give the best we have.
B. The widow of Mark 12 was a giver.
1. In Mark 12:41-44, we have the pictures of Jesus and His disciples
seeing a poor widow giving to the treasury. Notice the text:
And [Jesus] sat down opposite the treasury and watched
the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich
people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and
put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And
he called His disciples to Him, and said to them, “Truly, I
say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those
who are contributing to the offering box. For they all
contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her
poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live
on.
2. While we don’t know much about this widow, we do know that Jesus
praised her for her obvious trust in God to provide the needed
things in life.
3. She was the living embodiment of Matthew 6:25-26:
I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will
eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you
will put on. Is not life more than food,and the body more
than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither
sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly
Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
4. I don’t know of anyone who thinks this giving woman left and
starved to death. We need to trust that, when we give, God will
give back even more and will truly take care of our needs.
C. The Macedonians were givers.
1. In Second Corinthians 8, Paul wrote to a congregation at Corinth
that, seemingly, struggled in the area of giving. To help them with
this struggle, he presented a praise of a giving congregation in
Macedonia.
2. While this section of Scripture is a sermon unto itself, for our
thoughts this morning, just take a glance at it with me, and notice
the different things Paul mentions in this glowing review of their
giving:
a. Verse 2: They gave even while under affliction.
b. Verse 2: That gave with joy.
c. Verse 2: They gave though they were deeply poor.
d. Verse 3: They gave according to their power.
e. Verse 3: They gave MORE than they were able.
 f. Verse 3: They gave willingly.
g. Verse 4: They begged Paul to receive and use—administer—the
gift.
h. Verse 5: They surprised Paul with the giving, showing it was not
out of compulsion.
i. Verse 5: They gave this way because they had first given
themselves to the Lord.
j. Verse 7: They gave liberally.
k. Verses 8-9: They had been moved by the example of others and
out of their love.
l. Verse 10: They were committed to liberal giving.
m. Verses 11-12: They gave from a willing mind.
n. Verses 13-15: They gave so there would be equality.
o. Verses 16-17: They considered those who had urged the giving
to be ones who truly cared.
p. Verse 19: They realized that their giving would bring glory to
God and meet the needs of others.
3. What an example! These people didn’t make financial excuses not
to give; they gave in spite of their financial struggles. We don’t
know if they were rewarded financially or in any other earthly way,
but they were rewarded in a far more important way: God knew
their giving and praised them for it! Which would you rather have?
II. Particulars about Giving. Now that we have looked at some people
who give us an example to follow, let’s turn our attention to one of the
great texts on giving: First Corinthians 16:1-2. Those two verses give us
five things to remember about giving as we worship God.
A. Giving is obligatory. Paul began with, “Now concerning the collection
for the saints, as I directed.”
1. Paul’s words here show that he was giving a command to be
followed.
2. Giving is just as much a command as is, “Repent and be baptized,”
and “Preach the Gospel to every creature!”
3. The word for “directed” is diatasso, and it not only carries the idea
of a command, but an arrangement. In other words, God has given
a commanded plan, an order, or an arrangement for financing the
work of the church, and it is a collection from the saints (from
Christians).
B. Giving is specific, relative to time. Paul wrote that this was to be done,
“upon the first day of every week.”
1. If you are reading from the KJV or ASV, you just have “the week,”
but the original Greek phrase clearly and literally says, “The first
day of every week.”
 2. The first day is significant to Christians for many reasons, but no
reason more so than that it is the Lord’s Day. Since it is His day,
should we not enjoy giving to Him on His day?
3. Also, we are commanded to come together as the church on the
first day of the week, so it only makes sense that we would follow
this command on that day. It is one of those things that is
inherently “decent and in order” (First Corinthians 14:40).
4. What if you are going to be gone on a first day, or what if you forget
your contribution (like leaving a check at home)? The collection is
taken—counted—on Sunday. There are ways to give so that your
contribution is counted on that day though you cannot meet with
this congregation. Make sure to give on the first day of every week!
C. Giving is personal.
1. Verse two continues with the phrase, “each of you.” Other
translations have “let every one of you.”
2. If you are blessed with money during the week—from income,
investment earnings, gifts, allowances, etc.—you are subject to the
command to give.
3. We often teach our children that every Christian should sing and
every Christian should think about the prayer, but we must be
reminded that the same God who commanded those things, also
commanded every one of us to give!
4. The age doesn’t matter; nor does the amount with which you are
blessed, you are to give.
D. Giving is deliberate.
1. Verse 2 continues with the phrase, “Each of you is to put something
aside and store it up.” We are probably more familiar with the KJ
English, “lay by in store.”
2. The word literally means, “I set” or “I place.” It carries two
connotations:
a. First, the word is an imperative,again, meaning it is a command.
We cannot fail to give and still say we are worshiping God
properly.
b. Also, the word is in the present tense, meaning it is something
that is to be continuously done. This simply reinforces that
giving is to be done every week.
3. But, notice, that it is to be “put aside” by each one. We see there
that this is, again, a personal decision, but it is something that is
given thought.
a. To set something aside from our regular budget and spending
takes thinking and planning. It is not something we can do on a
whim.
 b. It also implies that we think about it before we think about
spending our money on other things! God should get the first,
THAT should be set aside.
E. Giving is proportionate.
1. Verse 2 also contains the phrase, “as he has prospered.” As you
have seen before, our giving is reflective of our blessings NOW. If I
am giving the same amount I was 10 years ago, though I have been
given several raises at work, that’s wrong!
2. Notice I chose the word “proportionate.” Before our giving, we
sometimes pray that we will give back to the Lord “a portion” of
what He has blessed us with. Think about that. Folks, if I make
$10,000 in a week and give ONE DOLLAR, that’s a portion!
3. The command given by Paul is that we give proportionately. If I
have been blessed this week with more money for some reason,
then I should give more.
4. So, let’s briefly take a look at the question, “how much should I
give?”
a. As we do, remember the admonition found in Luke 12:48: “Unto
whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”
b. When we come to the NT church, and we are confronted with
passages about giving, there are exactly ZERO verses that tell
us an amount or a percent to give. Every verse just tells us to
give “liberally” or “as we have prospered.”
c. There is one requirement, though, that cannot go unnoticed or
unpreached: giving in the NT church is to be sacrificial.
(1) Do I ever go without anything in order to give?
(2) There are far too many Christians who spend more on their
Sunday meal than they give. Others have a larger car
payment than they give in a month (or even 2 or 3 months).
(3) Now, before you get all upset with me, I have no idea how
much any member of this congregation gives except my own
family. I am not passing judgment on any family or
individual.
(4) I do know this, however. We have 201 households in our
congregation. If every household just earned $30,000 per
year (which is over $10,000 below the national average), and
if we just gave 10% of that amount, our contribution every
week would be over 11,500!
(5) I’m just saying that it may be time for us to give up
something in our lifestyle if we are going to truly sacrifice the
way God asks us to.
(6) If giving is always the last line on your family’s budget, then
you need to do some soul-searching, Bible study and prayer.
 God comes first, and if that means that something else has
to be sacrificed, then so be it!
III. Two Practical Pointers on Giving
A. Now that we have looked at the basics, I’d like us to make two more
observations before we close.
B. First, notice that love and giving cannot be separated.
1. Why did God give His Son? Because He loved us. “For God so
loved the world that He gave” (John 3:16).
2. Why did Christ give His life for the church? Because He loved her.
Paul concluded a thought in Ephesians 5:25 with these words:
“Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her.”
3. Why would a husband be willing to give his life for that dear
spouse? Because he loves her! The beginning of Ephesians 5:25
commands husbands to love their wives in the same way that
Christ loved the church.
4. Why would a mother be willing to die for a child? Because she
loves that child.
5. Why will a young man be willing to work an extra job to purchase an
engagement ring for that sweet lady who has moved his heart?
Because of love for her.
6. Why would a parent risk financial ruin in order to invest money in
the business of a child? Because of love for that child.
7. Why would a child spend hour after hour at a hospital with a parent
who no longer can even say his or her name when that child could
be anywhere else? Because of the love for that parent.
8. Folks, you get the point. When we love, we give. When we love
more, we give more. When we love deeply, we give sacrificially. Do
you ever think, when you put that check or those dollars into the
plate, that what you are really saying is, “God, I love you this
much”?
9. Listen to the words of one author: “When our hearts are filled with
love for the Lord, for his church, for the teeming numbers lost in sin
and for the countless numbers of widows, orphans, hungry,
homeless, inadequately clothed and abused, we will have no
trouble with our giving” (Wendell Winkler, Giving: The Unrecorded
Beatitude, page 17).
C. But what if we don’t give as we should? Then, to make our second
practical point, we are robbing God and do not love Him as we should.
Turn to the OT book of Malachi.
1. Malachi contains four distinct things: Israel’s Privilege as God’s
people, Israel’s Pollutions (or sins), Israel’s Prophets (which told of
the coming of John the Baptist), and God’s Promises to Israel. It is
one of these pollutions that continues to plague people who claim
to be devoted to God even today.
 2. In Malachi 3:8, the prophet gave this stinging rebuke: “Will man rob
God? Yet you are robbing Me.” I don’t know of any of us who would
want to be confused with being a thief, but that was the charge.
So, the people asked the question, “How have we robbed you.” And
notice God’s response through the prophet: “In your tithes and
contributions.”
3. It’s obvious that the people were bringing something. They didn’t
fail to give, but they were still robbing. How? Chapter 1:6-8 tells us
that they weren’t bringing the best. Under the old law, the Jews
were told to bring the best of whatever they brought, from animals
to grain, but they were bringing polluted sacrifices.
4. I think we are given a hint as to why in 1:2. God said to the people,
“I have loved you.” Notice, now, they had to ask, “How have you
loved us?” They had forgotten God’s love, but it was really they
who had lost their love. And, when that occurred, they failed to
give as they should.
5. So, we see again, love and giving are tied together and cannot be
separated.
Conclusion
1. Giving is a difficult topic to speak on, because it always seems to cause
people to be angry.
2. But when we think of all the wonderful things God has blessed us with, we
should give our best and we should give sacrificially to His cause as a tribute
to Him.
3. An unknown poet wrote:
Leftovers are such humble things,
We would not serve to a guest,
And yet we serve them to our Lord
Who deserve the very best.
We give to Him leftover time,
Stray minutes here and there.
Leftover cash we give to Him,
Such few coins as we can spare.
We give our youth unto the world,
To hatred, lust and strife;
Then in declining years we give
To him the remnant of our life.
4. Let’s give God our best. It is a way with which He has blessed us to honor
Him as we worship in spirit and in truth.
5. He certainly gave His best [invitation].