“Good Giving” – FBC Morning Light (11/28/2023)

Hosea’s Graphic Object Lesson for Israel

Well, a good Tuesday morning. I hope you're doing well this morning. I hope you had the opportunity already to get into God's Word. If not, let me just encourage you to read with us today in Hosea chapters 1 and 2, as well as the little letter of 3 John.

So, beginning the book of Hosea today and beginning and ending the letter of 3 John. We're going to focus in 3 John here, but let me just mention in passing that, without a doubt, the opening chapter of Hosea is a very challenging chapter to digest because of what God has commanded Hosea to do.

And just as a way of reminder, what God is asking or telling Hosea to do is to provide a very graphic object lesson for Israel. He's going to take a woman who ends up becoming an adulteress and has children of that adultery and children in that relationship and the children serve as messages as well.

So, just bear that in mind. This is a very living, graphic object lesson. Well, anyway, I wanted to look at 3 John today. In 3 John, John is writing to a friend of his, his name is Gaius, and it seems that, as best I can understand, Gaius is probably an elder in the church and perhaps even the church that John wrote his second letter to.

But nevertheless, there is another man in the church, his name is Diotrephes, and it seems that Diotrephes may have more power or sway in the congregation because John mentions the trouble that he's had with Diotrephes.

He says in verse 9, I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. So it seems that Diotrephes was kind of like a gatekeeper for the church, and he didn't let John's communication in, didn't let John in.

Supporting Missionaries as Fellow Workers for the Truth

But that's not what I wanted to focus on. I wanted to focus on the praise that John gives to Gaius, his friend Gaius, in verses 5 through 8. He says to him, you do faithfully whatever you do for the brethren and for strangers.

Now, by strangers, he's talking about those, in verse 6, who have borne witness of your love before the church. He says, of them, you send them forward on their journey in a manner worthy of God, you do well, because they went forth for his namesake, taking nothing of the Gentiles.

All right, so these strangers are people who are taking the gospel to other places, they're like missionaries, missionary preachers, if you will, taking the gospel to other places, and they're passing through town, passing through the city that Gaius and this church is located in.

And Gaius has been very generous to take these people in, to house them, to express hospitality toward them, and to financially contribute to them as they continue on their way. And he says, John says in verse 8, we therefore ought to receive such that we may become fellow workers for the truth.

So John is commending Gaius, because he has been doing this, he's encouraging Gaius to keep on doing this, and then he expands it and says, this is exactly what we ought to be doing. We ought to be encouraging those who are going to other places with the gospel, and help them on their way.

And he says, as we do so, we become fellow workers of them with the spreading of the gospel, fellow workers of the truth. Diotrephes, who doesn't want to have anything to do with this, he's to be rejected, he ought to be ashamed of himself, and he should not be in that position.

John's gonna make sure he deals with him in time. But what I want us to...the way I want us to apply this today is to encourage us in our giving to the work of missions. There are hundreds and thousands and thousands of missionaries who need to be supported in taking the gospel all around the world.

Faithful Giving to the Local Church and Missions

It takes, of course, discernment and understanding of which missionaries would be worthy of your support, but nevertheless, it is commendable, and I would say even vital, for us to help them on their way.

So our church has several missionaries that we support, and would love to do more for them, and would love to have more missionaries that we can support. We try to do what we can in this regard, but we should always be praying for God to increase our income so that we can increase our outgo, increase our giving to those who are endeavoring to take the gospel to other places.

This is a good thing to do on an individual basis, on a personal basis, and it's a good thing to do on a corporate basis. So let me encourage you, let me encourage you to think about your own financial giving.

Are you giving faithfully to your local church? That's the first question, because there's your first line of offense, of getting the gospel out, your local church. Our church, for example, does this in a variety of ways, you know, not only with our personal witness as individuals, but we think about even what I'm doing this morning.

I'm sharing the gospel, I'm getting the word out by way of livestream, and this thing is actually going around the world. We broadcast it in several different venues on YouTube and Facebook and Sermon Audio, and so this goes out all over the world.

We do the same thing with our Sunday services, and those means of ministry need to be supported. And so we need to give to our local church, but then also, do you give to the missions program of your local church?

We have a way of designating funding strict so that all those funds that you give in that particular category go to the missions program. How about on an individual basis, do you have any missionaries that you support?

Maybe somebody you know personally from your past, and you've just been burdened for them, and you share in their financial need as missionaries. Whatever the case, I hope you'll evaluate that, and perhaps even in the coming year, establish some goals for your giving to spread the gospel in other places.

I encourage you to do that. All right, let's pray. Father, thank you for those who have given themselves to take your word, take the truth of the gospel, and spread it around this world. Help us to be faithful in encouraging them, not only with our prayers, but with our financial resources as well, to speed them on their way.

And we pray this in Jesus' name, amen. All right, listen, have a great rest of your Tuesday. May the Lord bless you in it. Good day.