A missionary once
asked a new convert, “Pablo, if you had a
hundred sheep, would you give fifty of them to the Lord’s work?” He answered,
“You know I would gladly give them.”
“Pablo, if you had fifty cows, would you give
twenty-five to the Lord’s work?” “Yes, you know I would be more than happy to
do that.”
Again the missionary asked, “Pablo, if you
had two pigs, would you give one of them to the Lord’s work?” “That’s not
fair,” Pablo replied. “You know I have two pigs.”
Many people are
extremely generous in theory but not in practice. They say, “If I only had a
million dollars, I would give half of it away.” This is simply not true. If we
aren’t faithfully giving even ten percent of our money right now, we wouldn’t
give away half a million dollars if we had it.
(Written
by Kent
Crockett, Making Today Count for Eternity,
Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 2001, p. 151-152)
The word "give" is used over 1,500 times in
the Bible. When we look at what Jesus had to say about giving, we discover that
Jesus was much more interested in the motive of the giving,
rather than the amount of our giving.
2nd
Corinthians 8:7 describes the importance of excelling in grace giving. The Apostle Paul said, "Just as you excel in everything else, 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."
God wants us to grow in giving, as much as you grow in faith, in love,
and in knowledge.
Growing up attending church gatherings every week, I saw the
“collection plate” passed out to everyone every time. Everyone around me put money into the
“plate.” My dad would give all his six
kids a quarter so we would have money to put into the “plate” too. I never quite understood the point of giving
until I grew up a bit a saw the value of supporting the local church body. Over the years, I have discovered a few
theories about giving.
Giving shows our
appreciation for our blessings – We
know that God is the source of all that we have. He's the source of our life. He's the source of our abilities. He's the source of all the natural
resources.
Giving shows our
commitment to the church – God does not want your money. He wants YOU! He wants your LIFE. He wants you to COMMIT yourself to
Him. Remember, our commitment and faith
in God will give the resources necessary to grow a great church!
Giving shows our
commitment to the poor – That's why Proverbs 19:17 says, “When you give to the poor it's like lending
to the Lord and He repays wonderful interest on your loan.” (Living Bible)
God is in the business of blessing His children
abundantly. When we give out of our own
poverty, God gives out of His own richness.
He gives so much more than we can ever imagine.
Remember, Be God Controlled,
Brian