May 18, 2003 Pm — Stephen Fenton

Grace Produces Generosity

We've been in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 over the last few weeks speaking about the grace that God works in our lives when he causes us to want to give. Everything in our lives as New Testament Christians comes out of God's goodness toward us.

We give because he has given and worked and blessed in our souls. There's no other reason. There's no other compulsion to give other than his goodness and he sets in our hearts as truly we know him a burning burning torch of generosity.

Generosity Beyond Finances

So that our hearts want to overflow in and it's not just finances. It's in every way. We long to pour out our praises we long to pour out our service. We long to be good to others. We long to take every opportunity to share the Generosity that has been shared with us.

That's what grace is all about. That's why you want to tell other people about Jesus. It's why he simply said to those whom he had rescued particularly the demoniac of the Gatherings. Now you just go home and tell others What God has done for you go home and share the generosity With other people who need it.

Generosity Connects to Stewardship

But It's not just about money. In fact, it's really not much about money at all it's about much deeper things than that, but it connects to our finances and. And I don't want to go over all of that ground again tonight but I want to come back to the end of chapter 9 where and Do a little bit of an overlap from where we were because we thought about this Generosity and how generous God has been to us.

We have thought about it again tonight. We thought about it last week. We've thought about it again tonight and I just want to point out to you in closing in this in this chapter the results of God's generosity and That generosity that pours out through us the results.

Reaping Generously Without Greed

One of the things that Paul makes very plain and in 2nd Corinthians and in chapter 9 and in verse 6 is that as We're generous. God is generous back. Now. That's not why we give and let's establish that.

And yet, you know, it's amazing how crass and how Materialistic and how shallow Christians can be but sometimes Christians make it about this. They give to God so that he'll give back to them. What is that?

That's not an understanding of generosity. That's not about grace. It's about greed. It's not what it's about for us. Good Paul says in in verse 6 remember this whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly.

Whoever sows generously Will also reap generously. God Gets excited when we get generous. And it's not just about our finances when we get generous with our love. God gets excited. When we reach out and go out of our way to pour out love and someone else God gets excited and he loves us back when we get excited about Our the things that he gives us to express like our musical talents.

That he gives back blessing. We started this morning. I I was just overwhelmed with the music. And I bless the Lord for a group of people who give themselves consistently week after week. Month after month, but you know what if you were to ask any single one of them it is not a burden.

Cheerful Giving in Worship

They're up there because they love to do it and and that's only one place you can serve the Lord, but they love to do it. It's it's a joy. If it's a burden. Then you know eventually the Lord will take them out of there because he loves cheerful givers.

Chad's always encouraging us. He did it tonight before we went up. He said let's practice. He's always encouraging us to be cheerful givers in our music. I the reason they're not smiling sometimes is they're concentrating so hard bless them.

They just need to pray that they'll relax and even make their mistakes and grin again because that's good for us when we do that, but They're cheerful givers, even though they may not look like it's like Kevin when he was Going to Ukraine last week, you know, he's just so he's so steady Kevin.

It's like and he said this is me excited. Cheerful givers. Judy on the other hand could hardly contain herself. I Just I went in to see Judy the other day on the day before they left and she She's ready to burst.

She didn't know if she'd make it to the next day. She was that excited. Cheerful givers and it's not a burden you went down this morning to See the kids. If you had opportunity to do that, there are people who are there who don't want to be there.

Serving Children as an Unseen Ministry

They're not cheerful givers. They're cranky, but you also meet people down there who cheerfully give and you know, they're there. They're their challenge is deeper in many ways because they're not seen.

We're up here enjoying the message and the worship and watching God work and they're down there taking care of our kids. Teaching them blessing them giving to them. It's not a burden though such a neat thing to meet a few weeks ago with some of the teachers who are involved in that and Just listen to their generosity of spirit.

How excited they were? How willing they were see Karen this morning. She's gonna be mad at me now because I talk about her. But see you're dressed up. I don't know what she was dressed up eyes, but it wasn't.

She was going to Egypt. So she's all dressed up as an Egyptian and Now we didn't see that kids got to see that generosity of spirit and anything is when you so in that way you read back and That's not why we do it.

God’s Blessing Is Not the Motive

We don't we don't do it for that reason God has already blessed us. So risky. What more do we need? I much more could he give us but sometimes he gives us so much more we could burst. That's right.