Our giving should be sacrificial

The Macedonian church gave generously out of the most severe trial and extreme poverty (8:2). When money and resources were scarce they still gave, even at personal cost to themselves! They clearly did not give from their surplus, they gave sacrificially. It cost the Macedonian church to give. Does our giving cost us?

Our giving should be in proportion to our means

The Macedonian Christians gave as much as they were able (8:3). See also previous post.

Our giving should be motivated by friendly competition

Paul challenged the wealthier Corinthian church to review their giving in light of the excellent example of the poor Macedonian church (8:13-15). Sometimes comparisons can be helpful, as long as they don’t provoke unhealthy competition and legalistic drivenness to be the best. How does your church’s giving compare to others?

Our giving should be done with a willing cheerfulness

“Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (9:7). Our attitude should be one of joy and expectancy that we get to give not that we have to give.

***

Good stewards should also budget and manage their finances wisely. Here are some biblical guidelines:

Good financial planning makes sense. “The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty” (Proverbs 21:5). “Be sure you know the condition of your flocks,
give careful attention to your herds; for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.” (Proverbs 27:23-24)

A budget includes paying taxes (Romans 13:7) and setting aside our giving to God and His church first, before other expenditure (Proverbs 3:9-10).

Live within your income and do not take on debts that could be impossible to pay: “Render to all men their dues. Pay taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due…Keep out of debt and owe no man anything…” (Romans 13:8) (See also Proverbs 6:1-3, Proverbs 22:7).

Have money in savings and take out good insurance (Proverbs 30:25). Have funds available to provide for family, grandchildren and relatives (Proverbs 13:22 and 1 Timothy 5:8).

***

If you have further questions and issues in relation to giving including objections still lurking at the back of your mind read Lead Pastor at Mars Hill, Jamie Munson’s article, ‘How to Talk About Money in Church’. Below are a few highlights. You might also benefit from reading The Gift of Giving by Dr RT Kendall.

“I’m ashamed of my debt and poor management | Talking about money makes me feel inept

As Christians, because our identity is secure in Jesus (not in our portfolio) we need not feel shame for the condition of our finances (Col. 3:3). Rather, we are free to bring all our iniquities into the light without fear (1 John 1:7).

I need to save money before I can give any

It’s not wrong to save or spend, but neither should replace giving. When the economy lags, our idols tend to shift from rash spending to incessant hoarding. Regardless of circumstances, God is trustworthy, so we mustn’t trade over-consumption for excessive self-reliance (Ps. 73:23–26; Mt. 6:28–33; Luke 13:21).”

***

For the lazy reader and/or for a helpful short sharp summary on tithing watch the Driscoll video below, ‘Should Christians Tithe?’

How should we serve God with our money? How can we be good stewards of the money God has given us? The Bible has ample answers to these questions. Let’s look at some reasons for giving, some guidance on how to give and budget our money and then deal with some common objections to giving (over the next couple of posts). I say “some” because there will undoubtedly be more than this post permits and this simple mind understands!

Reasons for Giving…

Reason one: it’s not MY money

Our money is earned with hard sweat and labour so we like to think that it is ours. We think of our income as MY money when actually it belongs to God. “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth…” (Deuteronomy 8:17-18a) Every good and perfect gift comes from God, including our finances (James 1:16-17). As Paul asks, “What do you have that you did not receive?” (1 Corinthians 4:7) Answer; nothing. We are stewards not owners. And so, when we give we are not determining how much of our income to give. Rather, we are deciding how much of God’s wealth to keep for our own uses. Let us not rob God of what belongs to him (Malachi 3:8).

Reason two: because He gave

For God so loved the world that He gave (John 3:16). God is the most generous giver. He gave us this world (Genesis 1). He gave us life, dignity, liberty and the capacity for rewarding work and meaningful relationships (Genesis 1-2). He gave us His Son, who unfathomably gave us His righteousness. Jesus took our death and gave us His life. And He keeps giving; He gives us the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts today for ministry service. God is generous and therefore we should be generous too, as we are conformed to the likeness of His Son (Romans 8:29). To be like God is to give – generously. And this was the counter-cultural practice of the early church, who sold their possessions and goods, land and houses, and gave to anyone as they had need (Acts 2:45; 4:32-35). What a powerful demonstration of the authenticity of the gospel message they lived and breathed. Surely it must have contributed to the Lord adding to their number daily those who were being saved (Acts 2:47).

Reason three: it’s an established principle

Abraham gave ten percent of his income from a victorious battle to Melchizedek, 430 years before the Mosaic Law (Genesis 14:18-20). Abraham gave voluntary and gratefully, acknowledging that God gave him victory against the odds. His motive was that of gratitude alone. The principle of tithing then was established before the Mosaic Law by Abraham’s example. It was codified for the people of Israel for their time and context. It was endorsed by Christ in the New Testament (Matthew 23:23). And it was alluded to by Paul (Romans 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 2 Thessalonians 1:9) and implied in 1 Corinthians 16:2. On this verse RT Kendall argues that the phrase in keeping with his income “is about as clear a reference to tithing as one could get without actually using the word.” (The Gift of Giving) Tithing then “is a minimum standard for Christian believers” (Keller, Counterfeit Gods). However, God does not enforce tithing today. But I do believe He longs for every believer to discover this eternal principle and to resolve to give God one tenth of their income as a starting point, since grace-giving should exceed the requirements of the law.

Reason four: it facilitates gospel work

Herein lies a mystery. God owns everything. The cattle upon a thousand hills belong to him (Psalm 50:10). And yet, He chooses to depend on us to tithe. He wants us to excel in giving (2 Corinthians 8:7). This irreconcilable tension – that God owns everything but will have nothing unless His people give to Him – is hard for our human minds to comprehend. Nevertheless, it is true. We give money to support gospel work, to sow into the Church in faith that our money will reap a gospel reward of converts to Jesus and mature disciples. Imagine what could be done for the Church of God were every believer to tithe. Christian Smith, sociologist and expert on American Christianity did some research on this and asserts that if committed Christians in the US gave 10 percent of their after-tax income it would provide an extra $46 billion per year. Some of the things this money could fund include, 150,000 new indigenous missionaries and pastors in nations most closed to foreign workers, triple the resources being spent on Bible translation, and provide food, clothing and shelter to all 6,500,000 current refugees in all of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East! Imagine what could be done in the UK or even Westminster Chapel if every church member tithed.

Reason five: it pleases God

Giving done in faith pleases God. Our obedience pleases God just as Abraham’s obedience in being willing to sacrifice his son delighted God (Genesis 22:12). Our trust and dependence on the Lord to provide pleases our Heavenly Father.

Reason six: it benefits us

Giving benefits us materially and spiritually. Spiritually, it benefits us by releasing us from bondage to greed; it brings us freedom from anxiety about our finances, as we learn to trust God for our provision. Giving stores up treasures in heaven where our investments will not take a downward turn or be effected by economic recession (Matthew 6:19-21). It also benefits us materially. But we need to be careful here not to take a wrong turn down Prosperity Gospel Avenue. Why? There are no guarantees that a cheerful giver will not experience financial difficulties because God sometimes “hides His face to test our motives” to quote Dr RT Kendall. See the book of Job if you’re not convinced that holiness and obedience don’t always result in blessing and prosperity. But God does have a way of blessing us materially: the 90% that we keep for ourselves has a way of going far beyond what the 100% could have purchased had we kept it all. You cannot out-give God. Kendall writes, “Until we are consistently, regularly and faithfully tithing there is something defective about our Christian life that will not be remedied by any other form of Christian obedience. But when that area of obedience is dealt with, the reward will be wonderful indeed.” (The Gift of Giving)

So if Jesus talked about money a lot why do we talk about it so little? Three reasons come to mind (but there are almost certainly more). (1) Culture: We Brits are shy and somewhat secretive about money. (2) Suspicion: Ministers and pastors are uneasy taking about money because they are concerned that people will be suspicious of their motives. (3) Denial: Keller writes, “even though it is clear that the world is filled with greed and materialism, almost no one thinks it [greed] is true of them. They are in denial.” (Counterfeit Gods)

That last point is a little hard to swallow so let’s give it a bit more thought. Jesus warns people far more often about greed than, for example, sex. “Watch out!” He cautions, “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” (Luke 12:15) Why does He single out greed? I believe it is in part because greed is a subtle, pernicious sin that tends to hide itself from its victims.

The average UK salary is £26,510 (ONS). Is that enough to live on? Most people I know, including myself, would not be satisfied with it but how much is enough? “A recent poll revealed that Americans who earned $25,000 dollars a year believed it would take $54,000 a year to fulfil the American dream. Those who made $100,000 believed it would take $192,000. In other words our contentment requires about twice as much as we currently have.” (Discipleship Explored) I know people who earn more than £100,000 a year who say that money is tight. It is hard to accept since such an income is almost 4 times the national average, a wage which some would be incredibly grateful to receive. Our dissatisfaction with what we have and desire for more can be a sign that greed has us in its clutches. Keller sheds some light on how this can come about when he writes, “Everyone tends to live in a particular socioeconomic bracket. Once you are able to afford to live in a particular neighbourhood, send your children to its schools, and participate in its social life, you will find yourself surrounded by quite a number of people who have more money than you.  You don’t compare yourself to the rest of the world; you compare yourself to those in your bracket. The human heart always wants to justify itself and this is one of the easiest ways.” (Counterfeit Gods)

In a busy city, like London, that idolises money, greed can so easily entangle us. Keller asserts that money is the most common counterfeit god there is. Jesus’ preaching emphasis confirms this. So we would be wise to begin with the possibility that this could be a problem for us.

Greed is a form of idolatry. We can become servants of money believing that it – and not God – will provide us with significance and security. It can make us anxious and fearful and no matter how much money we make it never delivers what it promises (Ecclesiastes 5:10). Let us take heed also of what the apostle Paul said about money: “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6:9-10)

There is a way out from greed, a path of freedom from living in fear of financial adversity; it is to give generously. We cannot serve God and money but we can serve God with money. Giving liberates us, it delivers us, sometimes from bondage that we did not even realise we were in until we were released. OS Hawkins, US Baptist pastor, says this about greed: “The principal hindrance to the advancement of the Kingdom of God is greed. It is the chief obstacle to heaven-sent revival. It seems that when the back of greed is broken, the human spirit soars into regions of unselfishness. I believe it is safe to say that there can be no continuous revival without ‘hilarious’ giving. And I fear no contradiction: wherever there is ‘hilarious’ giving there will soon be revival!”

Has greed subtly crept upon you? Is it time you prayerfully reconsidered your giving?