1 00:00:08,200 --> 00:00:10,040 We're just about finished teaching through First 2 00:00:10,040 --> 00:00:11,760 Corinthians. We'll actually finish the book 3 00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:17,280 next week and then we'll have a a series focusing in on the Holy 4 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:21,640 Spirit for a few weeks and then we'll get back into Second 5 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:24,760 Corinthians. It's helpful because we know the 6 00:00:24,760 --> 00:00:27,760 context of of Paul's writing here to the church at Corinth. 7 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:31,680 So, you know, it makes sense to flow from First Corinthians into 8 00:00:31,680 --> 00:00:34,240 Second Corinthians. But tonight the title of the 9 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:37,920 message is now concerning giving and we're going to just focus in 10 00:00:37,920 --> 00:00:41,040 on the 1st 4 verses of chapter 16. 11 00:00:41,840 --> 00:00:44,800 Now as Christians, our lives are about lordship. 12 00:00:45,800 --> 00:00:48,560 We are surrendered people. We are people who acknowledge 13 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:53,440 Jesus Christ to be our Lord. Our lives are fully given over 14 00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:56,120 to Jesus in every area and in everything. 15 00:00:57,160 --> 00:01:00,520 And that's what it means in theory, but in practise it's 16 00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:03,760 often a different story. But what that means is that if 17 00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:08,000 Jesus is our Lord, does he have every part of our lives? 18 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:14,120 Is he Lord over our thoughts? Is he Lord over our dreams, our 19 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:19,480 goals, our ambitions? Is he Lord over our hearts? 20 00:01:21,920 --> 00:01:27,160 Is he Lord over our marriages, our children, our relationships, 21 00:01:27,520 --> 00:01:31,600 our parenting? Is he lured over our actions? 22 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:38,120 Is he lured over our words, spoken, written, texted? 23 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:41,800 Is he lured over our work ethics? 24 00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:46,080 Over our homes? Over our sexuality? 25 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:51,520 Over our material possessions? Is he lured over our money? 26 00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:56,000 And Christianity is about a life that is surrendered unto Jesus. 27 00:01:56,000 --> 00:02:01,200 And this includes how we handle and how we think about money, 28 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:03,640 about finances, about material possessions and. 29 00:02:03,640 --> 00:02:08,960 And this is what Paul deals with and for us tonight in these 4 30 00:02:08,960 --> 00:02:11,800 verses. In one Corinthians 16, Paul 31 00:02:11,800 --> 00:02:15,920 answers the final of what have been various questions, but 4 32 00:02:15,920 --> 00:02:18,800 specifically from the Corinthian church that they had written to 33 00:02:18,800 --> 00:02:20,560 him. Paul, we're new believers, We're 34 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:23,440 brand new. We're we're about 5 years old in 35 00:02:23,440 --> 00:02:27,120 their in their saving relationship with Jesus and they 36 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:29,800 had written to him seeking guidance on a number of things. 37 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:32,600 And we've looked at those and it's forced us to look at a 38 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:36,640 number of probably difficult passages and, and topics as 39 00:02:36,640 --> 00:02:39,360 we've done so. And they asked questions about 40 00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:42,480 relationships, about singleness, about marriage, about divorce. 41 00:02:42,480 --> 00:02:45,640 And he dealt with those in Chapter 7 in First Corinthians. 42 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:50,280 And then they were wondering, well, how far can you go as a 43 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:53,080 Christian? Is it permissible for us to do 44 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:56,400 this or to not do that and still name the name of Christ? 45 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:59,080 If we're followers of Jesus, does that mean if we do this, 46 00:02:59,080 --> 00:03:01,320 are we disqualified? Or if we don't do that, are we 47 00:03:01,320 --> 00:03:04,240 disqualified? What's the areas of what we call 48 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:06,560 today Christian liberties? And we looked at that in chapter 49 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:12,440 8, and then we had chapter 1213 and 14, considering spiritual 50 00:03:12,440 --> 00:03:17,320 gifts, The Holy Spirit, the greatest gift is given to each 51 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:20,480 and every one of us as the body of Jesus Christ. 52 00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:24,600 Different giftings that are to be a blessing unto God and to 53 00:03:24,600 --> 00:03:26,480 each other. And he deals with that in 54 00:03:26,480 --> 00:03:31,400 chapter 1213 and 14. And and now tonight, giving 55 00:03:31,880 --> 00:03:38,280 money, how much and how often? Chapter 16 in each of these 56 00:03:38,280 --> 00:03:41,960 questions, Paul begins, and this is the clue for us as we see it 57 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:43,960 in a moment in reading from verse one. 58 00:03:44,280 --> 00:03:47,640 Each answer to those questions begins with the phrase now 59 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:50,720 concerning, now concerning spiritual gifts. 60 00:03:51,120 --> 00:03:54,440 Now concerning tonight. The collection for the Saints is 61 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:57,520 how it begins in verse one. Now concerning the collection 62 00:03:57,520 --> 00:04:00,040 for the Saints. So tonight we will look at God's 63 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:04,640 view of giving. We'll see us being able to 64 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:08,520 direct our focus on how it is that we're to give and and why 65 00:04:08,520 --> 00:04:10,920 it is that we're to give and what that means for us as 66 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:13,880 believers if Jesus Christ is truly our Lord. 67 00:04:15,560 --> 00:04:18,279 I'm reading from the new King James Version tonight, verse one 68 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:20,800 now concerning the collection for the Saints. 69 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,360 As I have given orders to the churches of Galatia. 70 00:04:25,240 --> 00:04:29,520 So you must do also. So this isn't just a a random 71 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:33,600 isolated point of application for one church specifically in 72 00:04:33,600 --> 00:04:36,120 current, but he'd also instructed another collective 73 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:38,440 group of churches in the region of Glacia. 74 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:42,480 This information that we're reading on the first day of the 75 00:04:42,480 --> 00:04:45,000 week, verse 2, What is the first day of the week? 76 00:04:45,360 --> 00:04:50,040 Sunday the church had begun to gather, not on the Sabbath, as 77 00:04:50,040 --> 00:04:53,560 was the Jewish custom on the Saturday, but on the Sunday 78 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:56,440 being the Lord's Day, the day that Jesus rose again, the first 79 00:04:56,440 --> 00:04:58,840 day of the week. And so that was when they had 80 00:04:58,920 --> 00:05:03,200 begun gathering and meeting each week as a body corporately to 81 00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:05,200 worship God and to study God's Word. 82 00:05:05,880 --> 00:05:08,440 So he says on the first day of the week, let each one of you 83 00:05:08,440 --> 00:05:13,880 lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be 84 00:05:13,880 --> 00:05:17,960 no collections when I come. And when I come, verse 3, 85 00:05:17,960 --> 00:05:21,000 whomever you're approved by your letters, I will send to bear 86 00:05:21,000 --> 00:05:24,960 your gift to Jerusalem. But if it is fitting that I go 87 00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:28,120 also, they will go with me. And as I say, next week, we'll 88 00:05:28,120 --> 00:05:30,040 deal with the rest of the chapter. 89 00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:34,000 And it reveals Paul's pastoral heart to the church there. 90 00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:36,400 And we'll glean from that. But tonight our focus, God's 91 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:38,880 view on giving. Now concerning giving, 92 00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:42,920 interestingly, while spiritual gifts pulled out with over 3 93 00:05:42,920 --> 00:05:47,800 chapters, 12/13 and 14, he only gives 4 verses to money and 94 00:05:47,800 --> 00:05:50,240 giving. That doesn't mean that it's less 95 00:05:50,240 --> 00:05:53,520 important, but I think it to be less complicated. 96 00:05:54,440 --> 00:05:57,760 You see, there was a lot to deal with, with the treatment and 97 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:01,000 correction of their youth and abuse of spiritual gifts. 98 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:04,120 So he devoted a lot of time and energy and effort in chapter 99 00:06:04,120 --> 00:06:07,800 1213 and 14 to correcting those and guiding them in that. 100 00:06:08,280 --> 00:06:11,240 And here in these verses that we've just read, he answers in 101 00:06:11,240 --> 00:06:15,280 less space. Again, not less important, but I 102 00:06:15,280 --> 00:06:16,840 think less complicated. Why? 103 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:20,560 Because doesn't it seem that when it comes to money and 104 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:25,200 material possessions that you either have a lot of it, not a 105 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:30,600 lot of it, or just enough just right, kind of like Goldilocks 106 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:34,520 and the three bears. Because ultimately here, what 107 00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:37,800 we're getting into is the understanding that we need to 108 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:41,120 remember. And what is base at at this is 109 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:44,400 that whatever that we have, whether it be a little, whether 110 00:06:44,400 --> 00:06:48,680 it be a lot, whether it be just right in our estimation, 111 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:51,320 whatever we do have comes from God. 112 00:06:52,600 --> 00:06:56,400 And we are stewards entrusted with that material possession, 113 00:06:56,480 --> 00:06:59,120 with with those finances, with that money by God. 114 00:06:59,400 --> 00:07:01,560 And ultimately, what matters is this. 115 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:06,520 What honours God is how we gain what we have, how we've gone 116 00:07:06,520 --> 00:07:10,000 about acquiring those funds and those material possessions. 117 00:07:10,400 --> 00:07:14,720 And what honours God is, is what we give with what he has given 118 00:07:14,720 --> 00:07:19,560 us, with how we've been obtaining those funds, with how 119 00:07:19,560 --> 00:07:23,000 we have gained what we have, and then how we go about 120 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:26,560 disseminating or using that which we have been entrusted by 121 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:28,400 God. And all of it, again, all of it 122 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:31,400 comes from God's hand. He is sovereign over all of 123 00:07:31,400 --> 00:07:33,880 that. Now, I will say this for anyone 124 00:07:33,880 --> 00:07:39,240 perhaps new here tonight or maybe recently coming along, we 125 00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:43,400 don't often talk about money. This is not like that. 126 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:45,680 You've come in and gone. The very thing that I didn't 127 00:07:45,680 --> 00:07:48,640 want coming into church is the very thing that this preacher 128 00:07:48,640 --> 00:07:52,320 guy is talking about. What we do here is we go through 129 00:07:52,320 --> 00:07:57,120 books of the Bible and as we do, we teach them verse by verse, 130 00:07:57,120 --> 00:07:59,440 chapter by chapter and and book by book. 131 00:07:59,440 --> 00:08:01,760 We go that way. And what that does is it, it 132 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:05,800 forces us to deal with topics and subject matter that might 133 00:08:05,800 --> 00:08:10,600 not necessarily be choices of, of, of preference for us, but we 134 00:08:10,600 --> 00:08:13,080 need to deal with it because we're, we're concerned with the 135 00:08:13,080 --> 00:08:16,240 whole council of God's word. And that's why going through 136 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:19,520 First Corinthians has forced us to deal with certain topics, 137 00:08:19,520 --> 00:08:21,880 hasn't it? That might not necessarily be 138 00:08:21,880 --> 00:08:25,840 choices for us if we were to teach a, a topical message or to 139 00:08:25,840 --> 00:08:29,480 give topical preaching a priority here in our 140 00:08:29,480 --> 00:08:32,919 congregation. I mean, sexual immorality and, 141 00:08:32,919 --> 00:08:36,400 and, and the, the, the issues that they were dealing with in 142 00:08:36,400 --> 00:08:38,120 first current, That's not something that you go, yeah, I 143 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:42,080 want to teach on that. Like I said, the spiritual 144 00:08:42,080 --> 00:08:44,800 liberties and the things that we can go through and and can and 145 00:08:44,800 --> 00:08:48,880 can't do as believers, speaking on divorce and speaking on, 146 00:08:49,280 --> 00:08:52,680 speaking in in tongues, those aren't things that people 147 00:08:52,680 --> 00:08:55,120 necessarily go. If I'm looking for a text to 148 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:57,040 preach out of, I'm settled on that. 149 00:08:58,160 --> 00:09:00,840 And now money. Now our giving. 150 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:04,880 Now the Bible emphasises money a fair bit. 151 00:09:05,520 --> 00:09:10,480 Did you know that there are over 2300 verses about money in the 152 00:09:10,480 --> 00:09:13,520 Bible? And that is actually twice as 153 00:09:13,520 --> 00:09:16,400 many as faith and prayer combined. 154 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:20,720 So it's a pretty important topic through the Bible and important 155 00:09:20,720 --> 00:09:22,920 for us to know about as God's people. 156 00:09:24,040 --> 00:09:27,440 Jesus spoke more about money, listen to this than heaven and 157 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:29,960 hell combined. Isn't that interesting? 158 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:37,720 16 of his 38 parables Jesus told involved money or possessions, 159 00:09:38,160 --> 00:09:41,000 navigating through that and how to deal with that. 160 00:09:41,520 --> 00:09:45,320 So why is such an emphasis? Why is it given such priority 161 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:48,000 through the Bible? It's because of this, because 162 00:09:48,160 --> 00:09:52,120 money, material possessions often reveal the heart within 163 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:57,480 us, often indicate what we value, what we prize. 164 00:09:57,560 --> 00:09:59,320 Jesus said it this way, didn't he? 165 00:09:59,720 --> 00:10:02,040 He said in Matthew chapter 6, verse 21. 166 00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:05,680 Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 167 00:10:06,920 --> 00:10:10,080 You see, what we spend money on, what we're willing to prioritise 168 00:10:10,080 --> 00:10:15,080 and sacrifice for or not, that reveals where our hearts longing 169 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:17,760 is. And Jesus said that we're to not 170 00:10:17,760 --> 00:10:20,840 store up treasure here on earth, but to store up treasure in 171 00:10:20,840 --> 00:10:23,280 heaven. And what we're going to learn 172 00:10:23,280 --> 00:10:26,200 and what we're going to see through these verses tonight is 173 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:34,640 this is that generosity, greed, covetousness, these are all 174 00:10:34,640 --> 00:10:39,600 heart issues. And so is contentment. 175 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:47,960 And generosity enables us to be surrendered to God in ways where 176 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:53,640 greed and covetousness causes us to resist God's work and will in 177 00:10:53,640 --> 00:10:56,560 our lives. In all of these topics that Paul 178 00:10:56,560 --> 00:10:59,360 has been addressing through the book of, of Corinthians here, 179 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:03,400 First Corinthians, it's been about lordship in many of those. 180 00:11:03,600 --> 00:11:08,640 Is Jesus Lord over my sexuality when he dealt with that? 181 00:11:08,840 --> 00:11:12,240 Is Jesus Lord over my relationships when he dealt with 182 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:16,040 that? And here is Jesus Lord over my 183 00:11:16,040 --> 00:11:20,160 money, over my material possessions, over my giving or 184 00:11:20,160 --> 00:11:22,360 not? And that's continued in 185 00:11:22,360 --> 00:11:25,720 tonight's focus. If you're not a follower of 186 00:11:25,760 --> 00:11:28,000 Jesus Christ, how you handle money? 187 00:11:28,640 --> 00:11:32,880 Is it usually according to personal goals or principles or 188 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:36,960 ambitions that you might have? But as a Christian, you and I, 189 00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:42,000 how we view money reflects our view of God's authority in our 190 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:45,200 lives, of God's lordship over us. 191 00:11:45,520 --> 00:11:50,560 And how we make and manage money is a direct reflection of our 192 00:11:50,560 --> 00:11:54,080 relationship with God. You see, money will either 193 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:58,360 compete with our devotion to God, or it will complement it. 194 00:11:59,440 --> 00:12:02,800 It will either master us or serve us. 195 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:07,360 Jesus said that you cannot have two masters, didn't he not that 196 00:12:07,360 --> 00:12:10,880 you cannot serve Mammon, which was an understanding back then 197 00:12:10,880 --> 00:12:14,360 of money and of material possessions and serve God. 198 00:12:15,280 --> 00:12:18,480 And so it's for this reason that we need to consider the totality 199 00:12:18,480 --> 00:12:21,800 of the Bible's teaching on this before digging more deeply into 200 00:12:21,800 --> 00:12:24,680 these verses. And what we'll see and, and need 201 00:12:24,680 --> 00:12:30,720 to understand is that it will either cause or when we look at 202 00:12:30,720 --> 00:12:34,360 the Bible, the, the Bible either offer a 'cause when it comes to 203 00:12:34,360 --> 00:12:37,760 money or a caution when it comes to money and material things. 204 00:12:38,280 --> 00:12:41,960 And through the Scriptures, the, the cause of the source of all 205 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:47,400 material things is the Lord. This was given all the way back 206 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:52,000 in the Pentateuch in in the the book of Deuteronomy, Moses 207 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:54,520 reminded the people of Israel when they would head out into 208 00:12:54,520 --> 00:12:57,240 the promised land, a land that was given to them as a land that 209 00:12:57,240 --> 00:12:58,760 would be flowing with milk and honey. 210 00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:03,760 And he says to them, Deuteronomy 8 verse 17 to 18. 211 00:13:04,600 --> 00:13:09,400 You say in your heart, my power and the might of my hand have 212 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:13,520 gained me this wealth. And you shall remember the Lord 213 00:13:13,520 --> 00:13:17,600 your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth that he 214 00:13:17,600 --> 00:13:21,240 may establish his covenant which he swore to your father's as it 215 00:13:21,240 --> 00:13:23,760 is this day. You see, there are many people 216 00:13:23,760 --> 00:13:28,040 who say, well, I'm a self, self made man and I've pulled myself 217 00:13:28,040 --> 00:13:30,720 up by my bootstraps and, and what I have and what I possess 218 00:13:30,720 --> 00:13:34,160 is all because of my acumen, all because of my ability, my 219 00:13:34,160 --> 00:13:38,200 decisions, my capacity. But but God through Moses 220 00:13:38,200 --> 00:13:41,200 reminds the people of Israel. Lest you be tempted to say that, 221 00:13:41,480 --> 00:13:44,960 let me remind you that the cause of this power, the cause of this 222 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:48,360 might is me. That I am the God who has gifted 223 00:13:48,360 --> 00:13:52,040 and enabled you to earn this, to, to make those decisions that 224 00:13:52,040 --> 00:13:55,440 have borne such fruit. To recognise that I am the 225 00:13:55,440 --> 00:13:59,200 'cause that I am the source of all provision materially that 226 00:13:59,200 --> 00:14:01,480 comes to you. So God is to be seen when we, 227 00:14:01,480 --> 00:14:03,960 when we look through the Bible, when it comes to money and 228 00:14:03,960 --> 00:14:08,160 material possessions, God is to be seen as the 'cause as the 229 00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:11,400 source of that. But then as we read through the 230 00:14:11,400 --> 00:14:15,160 Bible, there's always cautionary information given to us, 231 00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:19,520 cautionary to not become greedy, cautionary to not become 232 00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:23,600 covetousness, to desire what other people's have and possess 233 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:28,200 so that it consumes us, or to make an idol out of material 234 00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:29,560 things. Paul dealt with that when he 235 00:14:29,560 --> 00:14:33,280 focused on idolatry. And we know this passage quite 236 00:14:33,280 --> 00:14:36,320 well, one Timothy chapter 6 verse 10, because it's often 237 00:14:36,320 --> 00:14:40,160 misconstrued and and misquoted, but it says for the love of 238 00:14:40,160 --> 00:14:45,680 money is a root of all kinds of evil for which look at this, 239 00:14:45,800 --> 00:14:48,880 some have strayed from the faith why? 240 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:53,200 In their greediness and pierced themselves through with many 241 00:14:53,200 --> 00:14:56,360 sorrows. That's a caution that's given to 242 00:14:56,360 --> 00:14:59,920 us in the Bible. And then Jesus, Luke 12 verse 243 00:14:59,920 --> 00:15:04,480 15, he said to them, take heed and beware of covetousness. 244 00:15:04,640 --> 00:15:09,160 Covetousness for one's life does not consist in the abundance of 245 00:15:09,160 --> 00:15:14,360 the things he possesses. When it comes to talking and 246 00:15:14,360 --> 00:15:18,040 discussing money in in the church and from the pulpit, it 247 00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:20,920 can be contentious. And I think because the church, 248 00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:25,080 largely capital C, has had problems with money, hasn't it? 249 00:15:26,080 --> 00:15:31,920 There's been great abuse and and misuse of funds, and teaching 250 00:15:31,920 --> 00:15:36,200 out of the Bible usually seems to err on on one of two sides of 251 00:15:36,200 --> 00:15:39,200 the spectrum. That either there's this poverty 252 00:15:39,200 --> 00:15:42,800 theology that that all money is to be renounced, that all 253 00:15:42,800 --> 00:15:47,000 possessions are bad or are evil, and that the poorer that you 254 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:51,560 are, the more holy and righteous that you are and closer to God 255 00:15:51,560 --> 00:15:54,800 as a consequence. That's one end of the extreme. 256 00:15:55,320 --> 00:15:58,920 And the other end is the prosperity doctrinal prosperity 257 00:15:58,920 --> 00:16:02,960 theology, that that money is a blessing and that you need faith 258 00:16:03,280 --> 00:16:06,120 and that when you are blessed, it's a declaration of faith and 259 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:08,960 you're a King's kid and and you're entitled and you have 260 00:16:08,960 --> 00:16:11,360 certain rights. And it's that whole health and 261 00:16:11,360 --> 00:16:14,120 wealth prosperity doctrine that's that's often taught. 262 00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:18,400 And, and we swing from one end of the spectrum to the other. 263 00:16:18,400 --> 00:16:20,440 And what the Bible is about is balance. 264 00:16:21,000 --> 00:16:23,640 So therefore, what we need to be about is balance. 265 00:16:23,840 --> 00:16:26,960 We need to avoid the extremes of of the poverty gospel, that 266 00:16:26,960 --> 00:16:29,640 money is evil, that you should have nothing when it comes to 267 00:16:29,640 --> 00:16:33,560 possessions or the other extreme of the prosperity gospel that 268 00:16:33,560 --> 00:16:37,240 God wants everybody who is a follower of him to be rich and 269 00:16:37,240 --> 00:16:38,680 wealthy. Both are distorted. 270 00:16:39,480 --> 00:16:42,280 The truth is this, we give you what the Bible says. 271 00:16:42,280 --> 00:16:51,480 Proverbs 30 verse 7 to 9 Give me neither poverty nor riches, lest 272 00:16:51,480 --> 00:16:57,520 I be full and deny you, or lest I be poor and steal. 273 00:16:58,520 --> 00:17:02,320 In other words, the writer of the Proverbs there says, if I 274 00:17:02,320 --> 00:17:06,680 have too much, I can be apartment or prone in that 275 00:17:06,680 --> 00:17:10,560 fullness, in that abundance, to forget about God, and it 276 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:14,480 dishonest him as a consequence. And I will deny God as the 277 00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:17,280 source. I will claim credit and glory 278 00:17:17,280 --> 00:17:22,400 unto myself, unto my own again acumen and intellect and 279 00:17:22,400 --> 00:17:25,839 ability, and then the dependence is on myself, and I will 280 00:17:25,839 --> 00:17:30,080 dishonour God as a consequence. Or if I have too little down the 281 00:17:30,080 --> 00:17:33,360 other extreme, I can be apartment or prone to seek or to 282 00:17:33,360 --> 00:17:37,040 seek to steal and thieve and to take unto myself will become 283 00:17:37,240 --> 00:17:40,960 covetousness and likewise bring dishonour unto God. 284 00:17:41,640 --> 00:17:47,120 You see, whether you have little, whether you have much, 285 00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:53,600 your heart can drift. And so the antidote, the cure to 286 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:55,640 that. It's our first point tonight. 287 00:17:55,640 --> 00:18:00,880 And that is this, as Paul brings it out, give generously, give 288 00:18:00,880 --> 00:18:04,120 generously in Second Corinthians. 289 00:18:04,120 --> 00:18:07,960 Later on, he'll write to the church these words in Chapter 9, 290 00:18:08,280 --> 00:18:13,240 verse six and seven. But this I say, he who sows 291 00:18:13,400 --> 00:18:17,440 sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows 292 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:20,320 bountifully will also reap bountifully. 293 00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:25,920 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not 294 00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:31,440 grudgingly or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. 295 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:36,240 I just read from the new King James Version and it said not to 296 00:18:36,240 --> 00:18:41,000 give out of necessity, but I like how the NIV says it says 297 00:18:41,000 --> 00:18:45,720 not to give under compulsion. You ever been in those contexts 298 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:49,000 where the plates been passed around or you have this, this 299 00:18:49,000 --> 00:18:52,760 pressure almost like this, Gee, I, I better give and, and you're 300 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:56,200 looking and, and this was kind of a little bit of my, my 301 00:18:56,200 --> 00:18:58,240 childhood upbringing. Some it was a little more 302 00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:00,040 popular. We don't deal so much in, in 303 00:19:00,040 --> 00:19:03,680 cash these days, But you know, the plate would whip around and 304 00:19:03,680 --> 00:19:04,800 it's like, no, there's not enough. 305 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:06,880 Bring it around again and bring it in. 306 00:19:06,880 --> 00:19:10,120 And, and so there was this compulsion going on. 307 00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:13,120 And Paul says that's not how it's to be, but God loves a 308 00:19:13,120 --> 00:19:18,640 cheerful giver that there should be this welling up within us of 309 00:19:18,960 --> 00:19:22,800 oh, how joyous, how wonderful, how good and how right, how 310 00:19:22,800 --> 00:19:25,600 blessed I am. And, and then I, I love, I want 311 00:19:25,600 --> 00:19:29,080 to, I get to do this sense of the privilege of being able to 312 00:19:29,080 --> 00:19:30,880 give. Let me give you an illustration. 313 00:19:30,880 --> 00:19:33,280 Maybe you know the name Rockefeller. 314 00:19:34,840 --> 00:19:39,440 So John D Rockefeller, in 1916, he became America's first 315 00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:44,840 billionaire. But he lived in such poor health 316 00:19:44,880 --> 00:19:50,360 and distress at age 53 because of the the pressure and the 317 00:19:50,360 --> 00:19:53,440 worry and the anxiety that consumed him about the money 318 00:19:53,440 --> 00:19:57,880 that he possessed. His diet was milk and crackers 319 00:19:59,120 --> 00:20:01,360 because he literally worried himself sick. 320 00:20:02,080 --> 00:20:05,800 It was all that he could consume that would kind of soothe his 321 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:09,040 stomach. But then he discovered by his 322 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:13,400 own testimony the biblical principle of tithing, and it 323 00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:17,840 changed everything for him. He adopted the financial 324 00:20:17,840 --> 00:20:22,800 philosophy of John Wesley, who was a preacher many years before 325 00:20:22,800 --> 00:20:29,120 him, who said this earn all you can, save all you can, give all 326 00:20:29,120 --> 00:20:32,120 you can. And that transformed the way 327 00:20:32,120 --> 00:20:36,120 that Rockefeller approached and thought about money and about 328 00:20:36,120 --> 00:20:39,440 his material possessions. And his health improved to the 329 00:20:39,720 --> 00:20:43,360 to the point that he actually lived to to the age of 97. 330 00:20:44,320 --> 00:20:49,560 Why he became generous, his mindset, his attitude, his heart 331 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:53,000 changed. He began to give back unto God 332 00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:56,640 and to God's work and, and generosity within him began to 333 00:20:57,040 --> 00:20:59,480 to bring peace in his heart and in his life. 334 00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:02,600 And as a consequence, even impacting him physically where 335 00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:06,160 once it it was not a good situation for him. 336 00:21:06,840 --> 00:21:09,560 And here's what we know about generosity. 337 00:21:09,720 --> 00:21:13,440 When we're generous, it reflects God's heart. 338 00:21:14,400 --> 00:21:18,080 It reflects the God that we purport to serve, the God that 339 00:21:18,080 --> 00:21:22,040 we call Father. You see, God is generous. 340 00:21:22,960 --> 00:21:24,760 That's an attribute of his character. 341 00:21:25,360 --> 00:21:29,360 It's who he is. James one verse 17 says that 342 00:21:29,360 --> 00:21:32,680 every good and perfect gift comes from above, comes down 343 00:21:32,680 --> 00:21:35,680 from the Father of lights in whom there is no shadow or 344 00:21:35,680 --> 00:21:37,440 turning. In other words, that that 345 00:21:37,440 --> 00:21:40,240 Scripture declares that everything that we possess that 346 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:44,480 is good, it rightly has its source, has its cause in God. 347 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:46,600 Why? Because God is good and God is 348 00:21:46,600 --> 00:21:49,480 generous, and he gives out of that generosity to us, his 349 00:21:49,480 --> 00:21:53,160 people. John 316 We know it so well, for 350 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:56,440 God so loved the world that he gave. 351 00:21:56,880 --> 00:22:00,080 He's one and only Son. So when we are celebrating 352 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:03,240 Christmas, when we're remembering the gift that is 353 00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:06,400 Jesus Christ, the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes in a 354 00:22:06,400 --> 00:22:09,400 Manger, it's effectively a celebration of the generosity of 355 00:22:09,400 --> 00:22:13,080 God. When we remember Easter, that is 356 00:22:13,080 --> 00:22:16,760 effectively a celebration of the generosity of God that Jesus 357 00:22:16,760 --> 00:22:20,880 would willingly give up his life to die in our place upon the 358 00:22:20,880 --> 00:22:25,080 cross for our sin. And then as we've been studying 359 00:22:25,080 --> 00:22:27,520 through and, and we're going to get into a series of it. 360 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:31,960 When we consider the gift of the Holy Spirit, that an attribute 361 00:22:31,960 --> 00:22:35,200 of, of the Holy Spirit is that he gives gifts to us, his 362 00:22:35,200 --> 00:22:38,120 people. You see, there's this generosity 363 00:22:38,120 --> 00:22:41,920 that is in the the Trinity that is the Godhead, Father, Son and 364 00:22:41,920 --> 00:22:46,000 Holy Spirit. God's generosity is evident and 365 00:22:46,000 --> 00:22:49,920 it is unmatched. And so if we're to be followers 366 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:55,880 of God, then generosity is to be part and parcel of who we are, 367 00:22:57,560 --> 00:23:02,160 just as families share attributes and characteristics. 368 00:23:02,240 --> 00:23:05,360 You know, we look around, we know people here and we can see 369 00:23:05,360 --> 00:23:08,760 certain mannerisms, certain phrases and, and certain things 370 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:12,520 that identify and mark as well. They've got to be related, we 371 00:23:12,520 --> 00:23:15,960 say. If God our Father is generous, 372 00:23:15,960 --> 00:23:19,000 then we, his children, his sons and daughters, as we sung 373 00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:22,600 tonight, should it not stand to reason that we too are generous 374 00:23:23,360 --> 00:23:27,400 with what he has given us? It is part and parcel of who God 375 00:23:27,400 --> 00:23:31,600 is, and God has modelled that for us to follow, to emulate, to 376 00:23:31,600 --> 00:23:35,360 imitate Him as His children. You see, when we give, when we 377 00:23:35,360 --> 00:23:39,840 imitate our generous Father, not just with money, but with time, 378 00:23:40,120 --> 00:23:43,160 with, with love that has been bestowed upon us, with patience 379 00:23:43,160 --> 00:23:46,480 towards others, with forgiveness towards others, anytime we are 380 00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:50,760 generous, not just with money, we are reflections of our 381 00:23:50,760 --> 00:23:52,840 Father. Why? 382 00:23:52,920 --> 00:23:56,520 For He is generous. And so our giving our first 383 00:23:56,520 --> 00:24:01,160 point tonight is to be generous. The second I'll go back to verse 384 00:24:01,160 --> 00:24:07,040 2 here, for this is to give proportionately on the first day 385 00:24:07,040 --> 00:24:10,320 of the week. He says let each one of you lay 386 00:24:10,320 --> 00:24:15,120 something aside, stirring up as He may prosper, that there be no 387 00:24:15,120 --> 00:24:19,920 collections when I come. Let me read verse 2 again, this 388 00:24:19,920 --> 00:24:22,800 time from the NIV. I've mentioned a couple of times 389 00:24:22,800 --> 00:24:26,240 because I really want you to hear the language of how the NIV 390 00:24:26,360 --> 00:24:29,000 presents this. It says this on the first day of 391 00:24:29,000 --> 00:24:32,920 every week, again Sunday. Each one of you should set aside 392 00:24:33,280 --> 00:24:36,280 a sum of money in keeping with his income. 393 00:24:36,480 --> 00:24:41,840 That's the proportion of part saving it up so that when I 394 00:24:41,840 --> 00:24:45,280 come, no collection will have to be made. 395 00:24:46,240 --> 00:24:48,840 So what Paul said very practically was that when he 396 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:52,240 came to visit, he didn't want to have a whip around the hat. 397 00:24:53,200 --> 00:24:55,760 All right, everybody, we've got to give money to Jerusalem to 398 00:24:55,760 --> 00:24:58,440 help God's work there, to support and benefit the the body 399 00:24:58,440 --> 00:25:01,080 of believers over there. And just as the other churches 400 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:04,320 in Galatia have done, and just as the churches in Macedonia do, 401 00:25:04,480 --> 00:25:07,520 now it's your turn. OK, everybody and and you know, 402 00:25:07,520 --> 00:25:10,400 at the time when it's this one off giving, you kind of think, 403 00:25:10,400 --> 00:25:14,240 wow, that's that's a fair bit and can I afford that and so on. 404 00:25:14,480 --> 00:25:16,400 So it's very practical in many sense. 405 00:25:16,400 --> 00:25:19,240 And so he says to the Corinthians to give in 406 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:24,440 proportion to their income. Now that's a principle that we 407 00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:27,200 would understand through the Bible and we call, you know, we 408 00:25:27,200 --> 00:25:29,520 pray for it. We give of our tithes and 409 00:25:29,520 --> 00:25:32,680 offerings and and that's that's language that's in the Bible. 410 00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:36,760 But what we need to understand and and hopefully what you'll 411 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:41,520 understand as I I teach through this is this is no longer an 412 00:25:41,520 --> 00:25:46,960 obligation for us under the law, but is a motivation that springs 413 00:25:46,960 --> 00:25:52,360 out of grace. Understand it's discipline 414 00:25:52,360 --> 00:25:55,480 giving Paul's instruction give on the first day of the week 415 00:25:55,960 --> 00:26:00,200 again Sunday. It's when early Christians would 416 00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:02,600 gather to worship. It's why we we worship on a 417 00:26:02,600 --> 00:26:05,560 Sunday, Jesus rose. It's when they would meet for 418 00:26:05,560 --> 00:26:11,480 worship and he wants the giving to therefore be a part of that 419 00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:15,560 gathering for the giving then to be a part of that worship 420 00:26:15,560 --> 00:26:19,320 service in devotion unto God. He says for them to set 421 00:26:19,320 --> 00:26:22,920 something aside regularly and intentionally. 422 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:27,000 Now for you and I, as we seek to consider application out of 423 00:26:27,000 --> 00:26:29,760 that, does that mean that that where to give weekly? 424 00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:33,320 Not necessarily. That may be your practise, but 425 00:26:33,320 --> 00:26:36,400 you might give monthly, you might give fortnightly, you 426 00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:39,760 might give on a six monthly basis or an annual basis. 427 00:26:40,200 --> 00:26:43,920 But what the point is, is there's to be regularity to that 428 00:26:44,480 --> 00:26:46,680 and discipline to that. Why? 429 00:26:47,040 --> 00:26:51,520 Because small, consistent discipline beats sporadic 430 00:26:51,520 --> 00:26:55,960 emotion. He didn't want a scramble when 431 00:26:55,960 --> 00:26:59,040 he arrived. He didn't want an overwhelming 432 00:26:59,040 --> 00:27:01,440 sense of burden either when he arrived. 433 00:27:01,920 --> 00:27:05,960 But again, for it to be a regular, habitual, disciplined 434 00:27:05,960 --> 00:27:09,560 part of their worship unto God. Why? 435 00:27:10,520 --> 00:27:14,400 Because haven't you found this to be be so that generosity 436 00:27:14,400 --> 00:27:20,400 grows through habit in our lives before it becomes joy. 437 00:27:22,680 --> 00:27:29,480 And so Paul recommends a regular amount be given a portion for it 438 00:27:29,480 --> 00:27:31,840 to be a disciplined part of their worship. 439 00:27:33,160 --> 00:27:36,880 Notice what Paul does not specify as this the portion 440 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:40,840 amount, nor the portion percentage. 441 00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:46,200 It doesn't name a percentage. The Bible speaks of the tithe, 442 00:27:46,200 --> 00:27:50,000 which literally is a percentage, the 10th as a guideline. 443 00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:54,000 That was Old Testament, what the Jews were encouraged as a 444 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:57,040 baseline, kind of like the poorest of the poorest 445 00:27:57,320 --> 00:28:01,960 Israelites under the the system of Judaism that they were to 446 00:28:01,960 --> 00:28:05,280 give a tithe. Now 41 times in Scripture, that 447 00:28:05,280 --> 00:28:08,160 word, that phrase tithe is provided. 448 00:28:08,160 --> 00:28:11,680 I'm going to give you 2 tonight. You're welcome in the Old 449 00:28:11,680 --> 00:28:16,640 Testament and one from the New Testament, Malachi chapter 3, 450 00:28:17,240 --> 00:28:22,240 verse 8 to 10. Will a man rob God? 451 00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:26,160 Is the question asked. Yet you have robbed me. 452 00:28:27,320 --> 00:28:31,680 But you say in in what way have we robbed you in tithes and 453 00:28:31,680 --> 00:28:34,680 offerings? You are cursed with a curse, for 454 00:28:34,680 --> 00:28:37,880 you have robbed me. Even this whole nation. 455 00:28:38,920 --> 00:28:41,400 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse. 456 00:28:41,400 --> 00:28:45,280 Now the storehouse was a reference to the temple place of 457 00:28:45,280 --> 00:28:49,360 worship and to God. Bring all the tithes into the 458 00:28:49,360 --> 00:28:52,120 storehouse, that there may be food in my house. 459 00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:54,800 God says, and try me now in this. 460 00:28:54,800 --> 00:28:59,000 Test me now in this, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not 461 00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:02,760 open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such 462 00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:05,480 a blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. 463 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:12,120 And in the New Testament there had been and, and the Pharisees, 464 00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:17,040 the religious leaders had sort of swung over to the other end 465 00:29:17,040 --> 00:29:20,440 of the spectrum, where in the Old Testament, what Malachi and, 466 00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:23,240 and the people of Israel at the time were doing was abandoning 467 00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:25,760 altogether the giving of tithes and offerings. 468 00:29:26,120 --> 00:29:30,360 At the time of Jesus, the Pharisees were very Pharisaical 469 00:29:30,360 --> 00:29:36,200 about it to the letter of the law about it and Jesus here in 470 00:29:36,200 --> 00:29:41,080 Matthew 23 verse 23, he affirms tithing as as being important as 471 00:29:41,080 --> 00:29:43,040 being a practise that they were to do. 472 00:29:43,480 --> 00:29:48,240 But he emphasises the heart in that he says woe to you scribes 473 00:29:48,240 --> 00:29:54,640 and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you pay tithe of mint and anise 474 00:29:55,120 --> 00:29:57,920 and cumin. So these were herbs and spices 475 00:29:58,160 --> 00:30:00,520 that they were very particular and pedantic about. 476 00:30:00,520 --> 00:30:05,400 And it's like, OK, let's break off the mint leaves. 12349 for 477 00:30:05,400 --> 00:30:10,200 me, one for God. And and that's how precise they 478 00:30:10,200 --> 00:30:13,120 were about it. But then he says you have 479 00:30:13,120 --> 00:30:18,800 neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy 480 00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:22,800 and faith. These you ought to have done 481 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:25,720 without leaving the others undone. 482 00:30:26,320 --> 00:30:29,440 So this is, I'm not dismissing the tithe and the offering 483 00:30:29,440 --> 00:30:33,480 altogether, but your heart has gone Askew. 484 00:30:33,480 --> 00:30:34,880 You're focusing on the wrong things. 485 00:30:34,880 --> 00:30:37,440 You think that you're, you're doing the right thing by being 486 00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:40,520 so particular about that, but you're neglecting justice and 487 00:30:40,520 --> 00:30:45,720 mercy and faith. And So what we see and to 488 00:30:45,720 --> 00:30:49,800 understand is it's not about God needing your or my money. 489 00:30:50,520 --> 00:30:53,880 He owns it all. The Bible tells us that again, 490 00:30:53,880 --> 00:30:58,840 but it's about whether or not God has your heart, and the 491 00:30:58,840 --> 00:31:02,280 tithe is a great starting point in that. 492 00:31:02,280 --> 00:31:05,320 And let me just emphasise this again. 493 00:31:05,320 --> 00:31:08,760 Tithing is not a mandate of the law. 494 00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:15,320 It is a motivation of the heart. We read earlier out of Second 495 00:31:15,320 --> 00:31:18,320 Corinthians that God loves a cheerful giver. 496 00:31:20,320 --> 00:31:25,760 No one should ever feel obligated to have to give 10% of 497 00:31:25,760 --> 00:31:30,440 your income because we're not under the law, we're under grace 498 00:31:30,440 --> 00:31:33,280 now. And because we're under grace 499 00:31:33,560 --> 00:31:40,560 now, you should feel free to give 20% or 30% or 40% or 50%. 500 00:31:40,560 --> 00:31:42,280 We kind of laugh at that, don't we? 501 00:31:43,440 --> 00:31:44,760 No way. But whatever. 502 00:31:44,760 --> 00:31:50,600 God lays on your heart. Yeah, there's a common 503 00:31:50,600 --> 00:31:53,320 objection. Maybe even you're thinking this 504 00:31:53,320 --> 00:31:54,640 tonight. I don't know if you've ever 505 00:31:54,640 --> 00:31:56,440 heard it. Oh, tithing is Old Testament. 506 00:31:56,440 --> 00:31:59,360 It's it's so Old Testament. It's it's the law and and we're 507 00:31:59,360 --> 00:32:02,920 free from that. Usually what I found is that 508 00:32:02,920 --> 00:32:06,040 whenever people ask that or are thinking that they're coming 509 00:32:06,040 --> 00:32:10,520 from the position of wanting to do less than 10%, You know, I 510 00:32:10,520 --> 00:32:14,600 know I'm not under obligated under the 10th under the tithe 511 00:32:14,600 --> 00:32:17,840 anymore. And and yes, whilst that's true, 512 00:32:18,880 --> 00:32:22,880 we're not under law, what we are under now is what grace. 513 00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:28,480 So let me ask you this in thinking about that, does grace 514 00:32:28,480 --> 00:32:34,720 do more or less than the law? Grace is more than the law, 515 00:32:34,760 --> 00:32:37,400 isn't it? So while we shouldn't feel 516 00:32:37,400 --> 00:32:42,400 obligated, Paul wrote, as I said, a cheerful giver to give, 517 00:32:42,640 --> 00:32:45,280 as we've read here, in proportion. 518 00:32:45,600 --> 00:32:49,080 And God doesn't want us to give out of compulsion or obligation, 519 00:32:49,480 --> 00:32:53,520 but because of grace, because of what God has given. 520 00:32:53,520 --> 00:32:57,000 I want to honour, I get to honour the Lord with a portion 521 00:32:57,440 --> 00:33:00,840 of what he has given to me, whether that be 10%. 522 00:33:00,840 --> 00:33:04,320 I think that's a great baseline for us to be honest, or whether 523 00:33:04,320 --> 00:33:08,720 that's 11 percent, 12%, 21%, whatever. 524 00:33:09,040 --> 00:33:12,960 You are convinced and and convicted by God that yes, this 525 00:33:12,960 --> 00:33:16,360 is in proportion God to the grace that you have given that I 526 00:33:16,360 --> 00:33:21,640 am desirous to give back to you. And so because if I'm living 527 00:33:21,640 --> 00:33:26,480 under the grace of God's, if if you know, the riches that God's 528 00:33:26,480 --> 00:33:29,840 given through his grace to me are showered on my life and on 529 00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:32,400 your life, that that bounty of provision that he has blessed us 530 00:33:32,400 --> 00:33:34,800 with. And don't you think that we 531 00:33:34,800 --> 00:33:37,600 should maybe consider to give a little more than the poorest of 532 00:33:37,600 --> 00:33:40,400 the Israelites some 2000 years ago under the old law? 533 00:33:42,120 --> 00:33:45,080 And so we're to give proportionately, whether that's 534 00:33:45,080 --> 00:33:49,640 the 10th or something else. You know, personally, when, when 535 00:33:49,640 --> 00:33:53,800 April and I got married, tithing wasn't an issue for us. 536 00:33:53,800 --> 00:33:56,480 It was just a matter of fact part of our budget. 537 00:33:58,480 --> 00:34:02,040 And because we'd both been raised in homes where, you know, 538 00:34:02,040 --> 00:34:05,240 this was already a principle instilled in US. 539 00:34:06,480 --> 00:34:09,719 And so when we came together and sorted through that in our, in 540 00:34:09,719 --> 00:34:12,080 our planning, in our budgeting, it wasn't a big deal. 541 00:34:12,080 --> 00:34:15,120 But let me tell you, when it was a big deal for me was when I was 542 00:34:15,120 --> 00:34:19,520 8 years old. You know, we'd do the odd job 543 00:34:19,520 --> 00:34:23,480 around the house and whenever we would get some pocket money, 544 00:34:24,320 --> 00:34:27,679 your mum or dad would, would say, you know, it'd be good for 545 00:34:27,679 --> 00:34:30,600 you to give some tithe out of that unto God. 546 00:34:30,600 --> 00:34:34,320 And we grew up in a home where we didn't really get an, an 547 00:34:34,360 --> 00:34:37,840 allowance because I think mum and dad figured we had free room 548 00:34:37,840 --> 00:34:41,639 and board and, and that was pay enough for wedding and vacuuming 549 00:34:41,639 --> 00:34:44,159 and so on. And so, you know, the odd chore 550 00:34:44,159 --> 00:34:45,960 that you'd get and that that's wonderful because that's 551 00:34:45,960 --> 00:34:47,920 certainly what I've instilled in my kids too. 552 00:34:49,520 --> 00:34:52,280 But you know, when we did receive some, some, you know, 553 00:34:52,280 --> 00:34:56,159 funds for chores or we're saving up for something, you know, 554 00:34:56,159 --> 00:35:00,840 $0.50 of $5 was huge back then. Back in the 80s, you could buy a 555 00:35:00,840 --> 00:35:06,320 car for $0.50. It felt huge to me. 556 00:35:06,840 --> 00:35:13,040 How much $0.50 out of $5.00? But you know, as I obediently 557 00:35:13,680 --> 00:35:17,920 followed through that, then that obedience to God in those small 558 00:35:17,920 --> 00:35:23,120 things, it grows into a life of trust and again and again and 559 00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:25,000 again. Here's what I found God to be 560 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:27,320 faithful to what he said in Malachi. 561 00:35:27,320 --> 00:35:32,080 You can test me on this. And there's been times when, you 562 00:35:32,080 --> 00:35:34,440 know, I thought, well, we could use that, that money for 563 00:35:34,440 --> 00:35:38,640 different things. But no, God has been odd. 564 00:35:40,320 --> 00:35:44,360 A God who is true to His Word and blessed and provided, and 565 00:35:44,360 --> 00:35:46,440 we've never gone without as a consequence. 566 00:35:46,440 --> 00:35:53,000 But we give, and so we give generously, and we give 567 00:35:53,000 --> 00:35:56,160 proportionately. And thirdly and finally in this 568 00:35:56,720 --> 00:36:01,240 give graciously. When I come, verse 3, whomever 569 00:36:01,240 --> 00:36:04,000 you approve by your letters, I will send to bear your gift to 570 00:36:04,000 --> 00:36:07,120 Jerusalem. But if it is fitting that I go 571 00:36:07,120 --> 00:36:13,560 also, they will go with me. The express purpose of this was 572 00:36:13,560 --> 00:36:16,880 a gift to the body of believers in Jerusalem. 573 00:36:18,560 --> 00:36:21,720 And Paul gives some very practical instruction in these 574 00:36:21,720 --> 00:36:24,600 verses that we've just read. He wanted them to appoint some 575 00:36:24,600 --> 00:36:26,720 trustworthy people to deliver the offering. 576 00:36:27,880 --> 00:36:31,120 It wasn't just collecting money himself, but he ensured here 577 00:36:31,360 --> 00:36:33,840 accountability and integrity in there. 578 00:36:34,720 --> 00:36:40,200 But notice the word that he uses, gift, and in the Greek 579 00:36:40,800 --> 00:36:46,600 that is the word charis or charis, which is Greek for 580 00:36:47,120 --> 00:36:53,440 grace. Giving then is an act of grace. 581 00:36:56,320 --> 00:36:59,200 At the end of verse 3, you could effectively read it. 582 00:36:59,240 --> 00:37:04,440 I will send to bear your grace to Jerusalem, Your gift to 583 00:37:04,440 --> 00:37:09,280 Jerusalem. Giving is a part of us being 584 00:37:09,320 --> 00:37:14,720 gracious. Grace means love, Yes, kindness, 585 00:37:15,120 --> 00:37:19,080 generosity, all of those things that have been extended to us by 586 00:37:19,080 --> 00:37:21,000 God. But at the core of it is this 587 00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:26,320 because we don't deserve it. It is undeserved favour. 588 00:37:26,960 --> 00:37:30,840 It is nothing that we have done to warrant it or to merit it in 589 00:37:30,840 --> 00:37:35,680 ourselves to earn it, but it is a gift, It is generous. 590 00:37:35,840 --> 00:37:39,280 It is grace. And when we give, we echo the 591 00:37:39,280 --> 00:37:44,840 grace that God has shown to us. And Paul wanted the Corinthians 592 00:37:44,840 --> 00:37:50,760 to excel in the grace of giving as they excelled in other 593 00:37:50,760 --> 00:37:54,320 graces. And he holds for them an 594 00:37:54,320 --> 00:37:58,440 example, a group of people in what's called the Macedonian 595 00:37:58,440 --> 00:38:01,120 churches. And we see this later on in 596 00:38:01,120 --> 00:38:05,520 Second Corinthians chapter 8. Let me read 7 verses to you out 597 00:38:05,520 --> 00:38:08,200 of this. Because the Macedonian believers 598 00:38:08,200 --> 00:38:13,680 were extremely poor, but they were rich in generosity and 599 00:38:13,680 --> 00:38:17,440 grace. So Second Corinthians chapter 8, 600 00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:20,200 verse one to seven. And again, I'm going to read 601 00:38:20,200 --> 00:38:25,200 from the NIV. So if you've got an electronic 602 00:38:25,200 --> 00:38:27,360 Bible, you can perhaps flip translation. 603 00:38:27,680 --> 00:38:30,240 It'll be new King James Version on the screen. 604 00:38:30,240 --> 00:38:35,760 But the NIV says, and now, brothers, we want you to know 605 00:38:35,760 --> 00:38:39,160 about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches 606 00:38:40,320 --> 00:38:46,000 out of the most severe trial. They're overflowing joy and 607 00:38:46,000 --> 00:38:49,560 their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. 608 00:38:50,680 --> 00:38:54,720 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able and even 609 00:38:54,720 --> 00:38:58,680 beyond their ability entirely on their own. 610 00:38:59,280 --> 00:39:02,960 They urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in 611 00:39:02,960 --> 00:39:05,160 the service to the Saints. See how they saw it. 612 00:39:05,800 --> 00:39:11,440 They saw it as a privilege, and they did not do as we expected, 613 00:39:12,240 --> 00:39:14,280 but they gave themselves, and here's why. 614 00:39:14,480 --> 00:39:18,480 They gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us, in 615 00:39:18,480 --> 00:39:22,480 keeping with God's will. And so we urged Titus, since he 616 00:39:22,480 --> 00:39:25,560 had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this 617 00:39:25,560 --> 00:39:30,880 act of what does he call it? Grace on your part, but just as 618 00:39:30,880 --> 00:39:35,920 you excel in everything, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, 619 00:39:36,640 --> 00:39:40,720 in complete earnestness, and in your love for us, see that you 620 00:39:40,720 --> 00:39:43,960 also excel in this grace of giving. 621 00:39:46,880 --> 00:39:51,640 And so in other words, what Paul says and declares to them is, I 622 00:39:51,640 --> 00:39:54,360 know your excellence in all of these areas. 623 00:39:55,160 --> 00:40:00,040 You excel in this way, in your faith, in your trust of God, in 624 00:40:00,040 --> 00:40:03,240 your speech, in what you declare, in your knowledge of 625 00:40:03,240 --> 00:40:06,240 things of the Bible, in your complete earnestness, in your 626 00:40:06,240 --> 00:40:08,360 love towards us. But here's what I want you to do 627 00:40:08,360 --> 00:40:11,040 also. I'd I'd love for you to excel in 628 00:40:11,040 --> 00:40:16,720 this privilege of gracious giving, for that to also be a 629 00:40:16,720 --> 00:40:19,640 part of your character and of your attributes. 630 00:40:20,680 --> 00:40:23,760 The Macedonians says they gave beyond their ability. 631 00:40:23,760 --> 00:40:27,200 Why? Because they first gave 632 00:40:27,200 --> 00:40:31,320 themselves to the Lord. You see, the heart was connected 633 00:40:31,320 --> 00:40:36,080 to an understanding of who God was, and out of that flowed this 634 00:40:36,080 --> 00:40:39,600 sense of wonderful privilege. Now that God has been so 635 00:40:39,600 --> 00:40:44,600 gracious, God has been so good, God has been so kind, we want to 636 00:40:44,600 --> 00:40:46,360 our man. He has blessed us. 637 00:40:46,360 --> 00:40:48,560 We want to be a blessing to those that need it. 638 00:40:49,000 --> 00:40:52,080 We want to be a blessing to the Lord's work here on earth just 639 00:40:52,360 --> 00:40:59,080 as in heaven. So these 4 verses we've looked 640 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:01,360 at now concerning the collection for the Saints. 641 00:41:01,360 --> 00:41:05,000 As I've given orders to the churches of Glacier, so you must 642 00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:07,320 do also on the first day of the week. 643 00:41:07,320 --> 00:41:10,920 Let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as 644 00:41:10,920 --> 00:41:13,640 he may prosper that there be no collections when I come. 645 00:41:14,080 --> 00:41:16,720 And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters, I will 646 00:41:16,720 --> 00:41:18,480 send to bear your gift to Jerusalem. 647 00:41:19,200 --> 00:41:21,960 But if it is fitting that I go also, they will go with me. 648 00:41:24,920 --> 00:41:30,520 God doesn't want your money. God doesn't need your money. 649 00:41:31,760 --> 00:41:38,320 What God wants, what God needs is you, who's Lord of your 650 00:41:38,320 --> 00:41:43,520 wallet. You see, our wallets, our bank 651 00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:47,760 accounts, often tell the truth about who or what rules our 652 00:41:47,760 --> 00:41:53,000 hearts. So today Paul's challenge, give 653 00:41:53,000 --> 00:41:57,360 generously from the heart, not out of guilt. 654 00:41:58,880 --> 00:42:04,400 Give proportionately as a discipline, with regularity, in 655 00:42:04,400 --> 00:42:08,800 keeping with God's provision for us, and give graciously. 656 00:42:08,800 --> 00:42:15,600 Thirdly, as an act of love and of worship, as we first give 657 00:42:15,600 --> 00:42:24,520 ourselves unto the Lord. So God in my life, God in your 658 00:42:24,520 --> 00:42:28,120 life, am I? Are we honouring you in how we 659 00:42:28,120 --> 00:42:33,000 gain and in how we give our money, our material possessions? 660 00:42:37,480 --> 00:42:41,080 You know, here's a final thought for you and I Speaking of the 661 00:42:41,080 --> 00:42:44,040 generosity of God. If if God never gave us any 662 00:42:44,040 --> 00:42:49,400 other thing but Jesus Christ, he's already given us more than 663 00:42:49,400 --> 00:42:53,360 enough, right? And yet he can't help himself. 664 00:42:54,720 --> 00:43:01,120 He continues to bless. We have such riches in the 665 00:43:01,120 --> 00:43:04,480 heavenlies. Yes, that might be material and 666 00:43:04,480 --> 00:43:08,240 many times it's it's more spiritual in in what we've been 667 00:43:08,240 --> 00:43:10,560 blessed with and how we've been saved. 668 00:43:10,560 --> 00:43:14,320 But, you know, as people who name the name of Christ 669 00:43:14,360 --> 00:43:19,920 Christian, as people who call Godfather, then it would stand 670 00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:23,600 to reason that we as followers of Jesus, that we as sons and 671 00:43:23,600 --> 00:43:28,000 daughters of God, that we as those that have the Holy Spirit 672 00:43:28,360 --> 00:43:32,800 dwelling within us, that we would be generous, that we would 673 00:43:32,800 --> 00:43:37,120 be givers, that grace would flow out of us just as it has been 674 00:43:37,120 --> 00:43:38,320 given to us.