Found Faithful Bonus Lesson 2 - "Christian Giving 101"

Redeemer Bible Fellowship

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October 2, 2024

00:05: That's probably the easy part of this discussion because when you start to read the Old Testament this issue of the tithe gets a little
00:11: More complicated, so I want to do my best to keep it simple But you will need to track with me a little bit as we think about this
00:18: Let's start by thinking about tithing before the law Let's start there because one of the interesting things about this concept of the tithe is you do see it practiced prior to the law of Moses, so Genesis chapter 14
00:33: Place to start Genesis chapter 14 so Genesis chapter 14 beginning in verse 17
00:56: This is 14 17 after Abram. So just actually give us context. This is the rescue of Lot by Abram and essentially his militia
01:05: So this is right after that verse 17 After Abram returned from defeating Kael Dolomar and the kings who were with him
01:14: The king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Shaveh Valley. That is the Kings Valley Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine.
01:22: He was a priest to God most high He blessed him being Abram said Abram is blessed by God most high
01:28: Creator of heaven and earth and blessed be God most high who has handed over your enemies to you
01:35: I want to focus on verse 20 and Abram gave him a tenth of everything so from the spoils that he receives
01:47: Abraham gives to Melchizedek this Tenth this tithe.
01:53: In fact, if you go up on the King James Version, that's how it translates this It says that he gave him a tithe of all gives him this tenth portion of His Income essentially from this raid
02:10: The next time that you see the tithe is with Jacob So in Genesis chapter 28
02:23: Genesis chapter 28 so this is after the Jacob's ladder vision as was often known as verse 18
02:32: Genesis 28 18 Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker
02:40: He poured oil on top of it and named the place Bethel. So previously the name the city was named
02:45: Luz Then Jacob made a vow if God will be with me and watch over me
02:52: During this journey I'm making if he provides me with food to eat and clothing to wear and if I return safely to My father's family then
03:01: Yahweh the Lord will be my God this stone I have set up that I have set up as a marker will be
03:07: God's house and I will give you a Tenth of all you give me so again
03:15: Another manifestation of this principle of giving a tenth to God Following a act of deliverance or an act of mercy on his part
03:25: So before the law you see the principle of tithing Well for a moment, let's think about tithing as it actually happened under the law
03:35: So those tithing before the law and then there is tithing under the law
03:41: Like I said, this is where we it's gonna get a little bit complicated. I'm gonna need you to follow with me under the
03:48: Mosaic Covenant under the covenant that God made with Israel with Moses being the mediator
03:54: Israel actually paid three tithes So not just one they paid three
03:59: The first of these tithes you could call the Levitical tithe or the tithe for the
04:06: Levites So we're gonna look at a few passages numbers 18 numbers 18 verse 21
04:32: Numbers chapter 18 verse 21 says look this is God speaking. I Have given the
04:37: Levites every tenth in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work They do the work of the tent of meeting
04:44: The Israelites must never again come near the tent of meeting or they will incur guilt and die
04:49: The Levites will do the work of the tent of meeting and they will bear the consequence of their iniquity
04:56: The Levites will not receive an inheritance among the Israelites This is a permanent statute among your generations for I have given them the tent
05:05: That the Israelites present to Yahweh as a contribution for their inheritance This is why
05:10: I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites So the
05:16: Levites were the priestly tribe within the nation of Israel. They administered Israel sacrificial system and its priesthood and so God says because you are the
05:27: Administration for this priesthood you do not get to have a specific inheritance
05:33: Within the land remember Know your Bible well end of Joshua the land gets basically chopped up and given to the various tribes
05:40: Levi don't get a section of their own instead Because they are the priestly tribe and they need to be able to represent the
05:47: Lord throughout the nation They are given cities throughout the nations But to maintain their work and to provide for them
05:54: God says that the people were to provide a tithe And so the first tithe that you see is a
06:04: Levitical tithe it's a tithe for the upkeep and the
06:09: Maintenance of the priesthood, but there's a second tithe. So that's tithe number one, tithe number two
06:15: You could call the tithe of rejoicing or the celebration tithe So Deuteronomy chapter 14,
06:34: I should send it one more note on the first tithe the Levitical tithe Which is
06:39: I want to talk about where we're supposed to go This tithe we're told was supposed to go to the place where the
06:49: Levites directly serve That's gonna be important because we're gonna look at a rather popular passage on tithing and it's going to make this point
06:56: It just often gets missed because we don't know the historical context So that tithe was supposed to go to where the
07:02: Levites served. There was a place where that tithe was stored up All right tithe number two, Deuteronomy 14 verse 22
07:13: Deuteronomy 14 and verse 22 and God is speaking and giving instruction to his people
07:23: Each year you are to set aside a tenth of all the produce going in your fields You are to eat a tenth of your grain, new wine, fresh oil and the firstborn of your herd and flock in the presence
07:35: Of Yahweh your God at the place where he chooses to have his name dwelt So that you will always learn to fear
07:41: Yahweh your God But if the distance is too great for you to carry it since the place where Yahweh your
07:47: God chooses to put his name is too far away from you and Since Yahweh your
07:52: God has blessed you then exchange it for silver Take the silver in your hand and go to the place Yahweh your
07:57: God chooses. You may spend the silver on anything you want Cattle, sheep, goats, wine, beer or anything you desire
08:05: You are to feast there in the presence of Yahweh your God and rejoice with your family Do not neglect the
08:11: Levite within your city gates since he has no portion or inheritance among you
08:21: So this is the second tithe that we see so the first tithe goes to the Levites This one is slightly more interesting.
08:29: The recipients, the people who receive this tithe Are the offerers themselves
08:34: It goes back to them Part of it would obviously go to the
08:41: Levites That's why verse 27 says do not neglect the Levite within your city gates since he has no portion or inheritance with you but by and large, this is for the enjoyment of those
08:53: Who offer it Turn over to Deuteronomy 12 gives us a little more detail on this
09:02: Deuteronomy chapter 12 So God is giving this warning against idolatry saying don't worship
09:12: I mean the place you decide to choose because God is the one who gets to regulate worship pick it up with me in verse 4
09:18: Says don't worship the Lord your God this way instead Turn to the place Yahweh your God chooses from all your tribes to put his name for his dwelling and go there
09:29: You are to bring there your burnt offerings and sacrifices your tents and personal
09:35: Contributions your vow offerings and free will offerings and the firstborn of your flocks and herds
09:41: You will eat there in the presence of Yahweh. So you see how same thing as what we just read in Deuteronomy 14
09:47: You will eat there in the presence of Yahweh your God and rejoice with your household in everything you do because Yahweh Your God has blessed you jump down to verse 11
10:01: She's a sign verse 10 when you cross the Jordan and live in the land Yahweh your God is giving you to inherit and he gives you rest from all the enemies around you you live in security verse 11
10:09: Then Yahweh your God will choose the place to have his name bring there everything I command you your burnt offerings sacrifices offerings of the 10
10:18: Personal contributions and all your choice offerings you vow to Yahweh More verse verse 17
10:28: Verse 17 is within your city gates You may not eat the tenth of your grain new wine or fresh oil The first born of your flock and heard any of your vow offerings that you pledge your free will offerings or contributions verse 18
10:40: You are to eat them in the presence of Yahweh your God at the place Yahweh your God chooses you your son and daughter your male and female slave and the
10:48: Levites who is within your city gates Rejoice before Yahweh your God in everything you do and be careful not to neglect the
10:55: Levites as long as you live in your land One more passage just to make the point verse jump over to chapters
11:06: You trying to be 16 You trying to be chapter 16
11:25: Again, sort of similar principle being given a deuteronomy 16 All your males are to appear before me three Appear three times excuse me a year before Yahweh your
11:34: God in the place He chooses at the festival of unleavened bread the festival the weeks of the festival shelters No one is to appear before Yahweh empty -handed
11:42: Okay, you see this principle when people gather in the presence of Yahweh in the place. He chooses. They are not to come empty -handed
11:49: So tag number two is this what's often called the rejoicing tide or the tides of joy?
11:56: essentially you are to take the burst of your produce that you receive you
12:04: Take of that you go to the place that Yahweh has chosen and you basically have a feast in the presence of Yahweh If there was too much to carry to where you need to go the idea was you could exchange it for money and Then take that money buy things in or closer to the place and same thing you have this feast in the presence of Yahweh I read this passage in Deuteronomy 16 because most of the scholars acknowledge that that typically happened during this these particular feasts and It's interesting that this time is a little bit different Because it's the individual rather than okay
12:48: This is going to the Levites and they will administer it how they want is the individual who gets choice over how they spend this time
12:57: So again, remember we read in Deuteronomy 14 26 you're to spend it on whatever your heart desires
13:03: Up to the individual to choose which of these or which of the various things they could enjoy that they wanted to That's tithe number two, tithe number one.
13:13: There is this Levitical tithe or the tithe for the Levites Number two, there is this rejoicing tithe or the tithe of joy
13:20: And then there's a third tithe The third tithe and this was known as the poor tithe So go back to Deuteronomy 14 verse 28,
13:38: Deuteronomy 14 28 At the end of every three years bring a tenth of your produce for that year and store it within your city gates
13:49: Then the Levite who has no portion or inheritance among you the resident alien the fatherless and the widow within your city gates may come
13:56: Eat and be satisfied and Yahweh your God will bless you in all the work of your hands that you do
14:03: Again, there's a third tithe. So if you're kind of counting we're doing the numbers There's 10 % 10 % so that's about 20
14:09: But this tithe this third tithe that we see here is at the end of every three years So it's 10 % split that in three over the course of three years
14:19: So that comes to about something like 23 and a third percent kind of following me on that one
14:25: Okay, so 23 and a third percent. That was how much Israel was expected to give
14:34: Now this is where the question about tithing and the Christian gets interesting because Are we supposed to give in line with this?
14:47: There are some people who would say Somewhat inconsistently, but they would say yes
14:52: And they will often point you to one passage right at the end of the Old Testament. That would mean to Malachi 3 I think this verse gets a bad rap because I do think it has some to teach us about arguing
15:09: But I think we need to get some work done before we can apply this passage So Malachi chapter 3, let's pick it up in verse 7
15:21: So Malachi 3 7 but again God is speaking if you know the flow of Malachi It's basically a series of indictments that God gives the people respond.
15:32: Like what are you talking about? And then God explains Why he's bringing this indictment. So verse 7
15:39: Since the days of your ancestors you have turned from my statutes. You have not kept them Return to me and I will return to you says
15:48: Yahweh of armies Yet you ask how can we return will a man rob
15:55: God? Yet you are robbing me. God says you are robbing me and the people ask.
16:04: Well, how do we rob you? Here's God's answer by not making the payments plural of the tenth and the contributions
16:13: Well, what are the tenth and the contribution? We just read about them. So these particular tithes
16:21: We're not being paid and God says you are essentially robbing me Verse 9 you are suffering under a curse yet.
16:32: You the whole nation are still robbing me Here's the verse that makes everyone very uncomfortable verse 10
16:37: Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house Test me in this way says
16:44: Yahweh of armies see if I will not open the floodgates of heaven He pour out a blessing for you without measure verse 11
16:51: I will rebuke the devourer for you so that it will not ruin the produce of your land and the vine in your field
16:58: Will not fail to produce fruit says Yahweh of armies Verse 12 then all the nations will consider you fortunate for you will be a delightful land says
17:08: Yahweh of armies Now Cite this verse and one of two things happen you get some folks who get really excited about this and some folks who really don't like this and Neither of those responses
17:23: I think are helpful First of all, if you're gonna get excited about this, please know remember
17:28: I told you to file away this idea where the type what at least one of those tithes was supposed to go To the
17:33: Levi knows he says verse 10 bring the full 10th into the storehouse There was a place where Tithe was supposed to go the
17:43: Levites was supposed to keep that and to administer that as necessary That was not happening.
17:49: So God says bring that full 10th I think he's talking about the Levitical tithe here bring that tithe to the designated place
17:57: It's supposed to go and that's why he says test me in this way
18:02: See if I were to open the floodgates of heaven Most scholars acknowledge that that's talking about an actual famine that it hit the land
18:10: In other words when he's talking here about open the floodgates and pour our blessing this you say See if I don't essentially reverse this famine as a result of your obedience
18:21: Verse 11, I will rebuke the devourer for you. If you have a Christian standard Bible, do you know the footnote that's in there?
18:28: Using that tiny print that most of us can't read but 311. It says perhaps locusts Devours a more than likely a literal plague that had come on the people if I was using the
18:39: Prophet Joel in his book In chapters 1 & 2 talks about this plague of locusts that was consuming the land
18:47: Which makes sense if you know Leviticus 26 and you told me 28 That's one of the things God said would happen if his people didn't obey him so far from this passage being a threat to make people give or More positively a promise that if you give
19:06: God will bless you Now I did say last week in the sermon that I do believe that that happens I just don't think this is the passage you go to to make that point
19:14: Because I would argue this passage is talking about something very specific So we've kind of asked the question.
19:21: What is the tithe? We've looked at the tithe before the law the tithe under the law Let's get to the question that probably was concerned most of us
19:29: Our new covenant Christians expected to tithe Okay, okay
19:37: Sure Mm -hmm. So The tabernacle itself gets set up in a few places first at Shiloh that kind of becomes the unofficial place
19:55: Eventually Pre the temple's construction. It's moved to Jerusalem. So if you remember in 1st
20:01: Samuel Shiloh is where Eli Lives Samuel will essentially set up there.
20:06: The Oramas is hometown. So Shiloh is the original place It then becomes
20:12: Jerusalem It's interesting in the Exile. I think it's reading as a time, but Nehemiah 10,
20:18: I believe it says that this when they start recollecting this tithe it gets stored up in synagogues
20:24: So it kind of shifts over time Shiloh is the original place then it becomes
20:29: Jerusalem. Then it become the tabernacle in Jerusalem. Then it becomes the temple in Jerusalem. I Later on it will kind of shift again after the destruction of the temple
20:45: But sure answer it kind of moves a number of places Across the Old Testament depending on where Israel is in its history.
20:58: Yes. Yes No, I'm right New covenant
21:05: Christians are they expected to tithe? First of all, let's just clarify what I mean when I use that phrase new covenant Christian As Christians the
21:12: Bible teaches us that we are partakers of a new covenant Jeremiah chapter 31 and Hebrews chapter 8 more time.
21:20: I'd read them, but I do want to keep moving With that new covenant comes a change in the
21:27: Lord The Bible tells us Hebrews chapter 7 verse 12 where there is a change in priesthood. There is a change in law
21:34: So then Old Testament doesn't mean the Old Testament invalidated or has nothing to teach us It has plenty to teach us.
21:40: The question is when it comes to the subject of the tithe. Where does that fit in?
21:48: Well, I have a few thoughts on this there are some who would argue I'll be honest I used to argue this That since we're in the new covenant
21:55: The tithe entirely is just dead does not apply to you at all I've come to say
22:01: That might be a simplistic way of looking at this because there I think there are a few considerations That might make us maybe not go all the way to saying
22:10: Okay, we practice a tithe one -to -one like believers under the Old Covenant did But should we get rid of the tithe entirely?
22:18: Like I said, I'm not entirely convinced. Allow me to give you a few reasons why New Covenant Christians expected to tithe.
22:24: First of all, the principle of supporting the Lord's work is assumed in the
22:29: New Testament So one of these tithes at least was given to the Levites to support the
22:34: Lord's work That principle is never gotten rid of in the New Testament. In fact, it is assumed in the
22:40: New Testament So again some passages Galatians 6 .6 This last week, but just by way of review
22:47: Galatians chapter 6 and verse 6 Galatians 6 .6
22:54: says let the one who is taught the word share all his good things with the teacher the one who teaches and I take the view
23:03: Most commentators that when it says good things are to be shared with the teacher the good things refer to material things 1
23:12: Corinthians 9 1st Corinthians chapter 9 1st Corinthians chapter 9 verse 13 and interestingly
23:32: Note the basis for Paul's argument here. 1 Corinthians 9 .13
23:39: Don't you know that those who perform the temple services eat the food from the temple and that those who serve at the altar
23:47: Serve the offering serve share, excuse me in the offerings of the altar in the same way
23:53: The Lord has commanded that those who preach should earn their living by the gospel
24:00: Notice Paul's argument here Paul argues based on The Levites they were the ones who worked the temple
24:09: He says that those who basically did the work of the Lord were supported Materially by that very work and Paul says in the same way
24:19: The Bible marking time you want when a circle underline whatever is you to emphasize that line there
24:24: In the same way The Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should earn their living by the gospel
24:36: God's design is That those who minister vocationally in the preaching and teaching of the word ought to be supported in that work
24:47: There may be reasons why they need to be to use the modern term by vocational But that I would argue is not
24:54: God's norm That's a that is an exception to the rule is an exception caused by necessity
25:00: It's not a demand and I say that because there are Believers in the 21st century who have become quite vocal about the fact that they well every pastor should be by vocational and I want to say
25:14: Not according to this you might need to be in fact It's interesting Paul says that first 415 actually he says for my part
25:21: I have used none of these rights nor have I written that these things make me a that Nor have
25:26: I written that they may be applied in my case but it would be better for me to than for anyone to deprive me of my boast if the sake of the gospel a pastor says or a
25:35: Minister of the word says, okay. I am going to willfully kind of skip that Paul says
25:40: I've applied that to me but the same Paul says that the norm is those who minister the word are to be supported in Ministry so the principle of Supporting the
25:56: Lord's work is assumed in the New Testament and in the case of 1st Corinthians 9 Paul takes the principle we just read about with the
26:04: Levites being supported in their work and applies it to Those called to vocational ministry in the
26:11: New Testament so the principle of supporting the Lord's work is assumed in the
26:16: New Testament a Second thing is the principle of giving in proportion is stated in the
26:21: New Testament So again, the 10th is a proportion is not God doesn't just say give me everything.
26:28: No But every hundred if you will you give me ten for every ten you give me one.
26:34: That's a proportion This give principle of giving in proportion is stated in the
26:41: New Testament We're gonna see this again when we get to principles of giving in a moment but turn to 2nd
26:47: Corinthians 9 2nd Corinthians chapter 9 2nd
27:09: Corinthians and chapter 9 have the right reference in my notes here
27:24: If I should be 1st Corinthians 16, let's turn there for a moment. I think that's what I'm looking for 1st
27:30: Corinthians chapter 16 Okay so I think it's 16 to you on the first day of the week each of you to set something aside and save in keeping with How he is prospering so that no collections will need to be made when
27:49: I come. There we go. That's reference. I was looking for but there is Supposed to be this
27:55: Proportional principle in relation to how we give so out of what the Lord has given us we give a certain amount we saw that in the old that under the
28:04: Old Covenant the Principle of giving is it's a tenth based on what
28:10: God has given So again, the principle of giving in proportion is restated in the
28:15: New Testament so follow the logic the support of gospel work and Gospel workers financially that's taken from the
28:25: Old Testament principle. So that's assumed and then The idea of giving in proportion is assumed and stated in the
28:33: New Testament This is a point that the third point is a point I think that often gets missed which is that the practice of a tithe is never repealed in the
28:42: New Testament I said I had to change my view on this because I had been taught people who trained me who
28:49: By the way, Christians can disagree on this and be fine. This is not a matter of heresy or matter of false teaching
28:54: It's looking at biblical data and coming to conclusions But one of the things I was taught is what you never see a tithe mentioned in the
29:00: New Testament Well, here's the thing. Well, yes,
29:05: I mean, let's just again. You should be always talk about intellectual honesty when you study. Yes The tithe is not explicitly
29:16: Mentioned in the New Testament. In fact, the one reference to tithing in the New Testament is actually a negative turn to Matthew 23 Matthew 23
29:29: Jesus is issuing this scathing denunciation of the Pharisees pick up with me in verse 23
29:37: There's woe to you scribes and Pharisees Hypocrites you pay a tenth of mint dill and cumin and yet you have neglected the more important matters of the law
29:48: Justice mercy and faithfulness these things interesting know what Jesus says These things you should have done without neglecting the others
29:59: So Jesus mentions the tithe and rebukes the Pharisees because you're really meticulous about paying tithes, but Justice not so much mercy not so much and being faithful not so much
30:11: But notice Jesus doesn't say therefore stop tithing. He says these things you should have done your tithing
30:21: Without neglecting the others don't keep these really small parts of the law without these more weightier parts of the law
30:29: That's the only reference tithing in the New Testament Apart from that the tithe is never repealed in the
30:35: New Testament There are lots of laws that are explicitly repealed in the
30:41: New Testament so when we came to church this morning, we didn't set up a barbecue in the
30:47: Parking lot and offer bulls and goats this morning. But why didn't we do that?
30:55: Because I mean God gave that law He said morning and evening People of God are to offer sacrifices to him
31:02: Well, that law has been repealed. It no longer applies. Why because Christ has come Christ has come.
31:08: He's the one for sacrifice for sin. And since he's the one for all the sacrifice for sin We don't offer sacrifice anymore.
31:13: But here's the thing when the Bible gets rid of something. It's very explicit. It's getting rid of it
31:20: The tithe is never gotten rid of When you put all these three things together the the principle of the
31:28: Lord's work or supporting Lord's work is assumed in the New Testament The the principle of giving in proportion is stated in the
31:35: New Testament and that the tithe is never repealed in the New Testament What do we do with this?
31:41: Put it in one sentence. This is my conclusion as I've studied this The Christian is not under the tithe as a law
31:51: Why because we are no longer under the Old Covenant and the law that came with it but The tithe provides a wisdom principle for how we should give
32:04: I believe it was a Chuck Swindoll who just actually announced his retirement recently Chuck Swindoll said years ago.
32:12: I heard him on the radio as a new Christian at the time. I was like 14 15 So remember him saying that he said 10 %
32:20: Shouldn't be your ceiling 10 % should be your floor Another time thinking
32:28: I grew up in a tradition where they really emphasized 10 % Like in fact, you remember every time it came up in Sunday school class
32:37: The debate would be should I give a tithe on my net or tithe on my gross? I don't even know what that meant as a kid.
32:45: I Let it worked out. Okay. One is pre -tax. One is post -tax thing um But that was the big debate like people are very hung up on this tent
32:52: So to hear him say actually no 10 % is not the ceiling I often kind of heard it as that was the ceiling and if really if you gave more is because you want
32:58: God to do Something for you. That's very problematic But temp is it oh,
33:04: I think he's round something that 10 % is your baseline Where do I get that from?
33:09: Well, I want to consider let me say this Once again, the Christian is not under the tide as a law So Malachi 3 does not apply to Christians in the same way
33:20: But the tithe provides a wisdom principle for how we should give But is it the only principle for how we should give
33:29: I'm gonna say no actually there are plenty of principles we want to consider so real quickly Run through I might not get through all of these but you have them in the study guide
33:37: So I encourage you to read them and look up those passages in your own time. I Want to look through some principles of grace giving from the
33:44: Word of God so we've Kind of answer the question should the Christian tithe? I'm gonna say my conviction from scriptures.
33:52: I've reexamined this in the last year and some change The Christian is not under the tide as a law.
33:59: Nevertheless, I think 10 % should be the Christian starting point Now if the Lord is anything we're gonna see this moment if the
34:05: Lord prospers you and you can give more than that great I've heard of some folks. I've met one maybe
34:10: I've heard of plenty of folks who do something called reverse tithing Where they give 90 % and hold 10 more power to him,
34:20: I don't know if I could do that. Mm -hmm.
34:32: Oh interesting Wow So again more power to him if you can do that great Let's think about some principles of grace giving first off.
34:43: These are not original to me I'm in the interest of plagiarizing anyone if you want to know why I got this from excellent book that I've recently just come across It's by a
34:52: Lutheran author actually Excellent books called giving to God the Bible's good news about living a generous life.
34:59: The author is Mark Allen Powell Giving to God the Bible's good news about living a generous life.
35:06: I won't say it's Replaced money possessions and eternity by Randy Alcorn for me, but this is a good number two, actually.
35:16: It's a very Down -to -earth and very biblically saturated take on the subject of our giving so again giving to God The Bible's good news about living a generous life in that book.
35:29: I believe it's chapter 4 chapter 5 He gives some principles for giving that as I read those it I can't improve on me
35:34: So I'm just going to give them to you. That's why you have them in the study guide And we're gonna march through as many of these as we can in 15 minutes.
35:41: So number one Giving is both a duty and a delight
35:49: Something we ought to do and something we are pleased to do We want to start with the heart.
35:55: So let's ask the question. How should in our hearts? How should we view the subject of giving giving is both a duty and a delight something?
36:03: We ought to do and something we are pleased to do Let's look at that passage there Romans chapter 15
36:08: Romans chapter 15 interesting
36:26: Paul's talking about the same collection that he will deal with the Corinthians in in just a moment Romans chapter 15 verse 25
36:33: Paul says right now I'm traveling to Jerusalem to serve the Saints because Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the
36:42: Saints in Jerusalem interesting this principle of giving to the poor which we saw in the Old Testament is assumed in the new
36:51: Verse 27. Yes, they were pleased and indeed are indebted to them.
36:57: So you see side -by -side They are pleased. There's a delight aspect to this they're doing this from their hearts, but there's also a duty
37:04: They were indebted to them But if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual benefits, then they are obligated to minister to them in material needs
37:15: So for the Christian giving is both a duty and a delight It's good to hold those two in balance if giving just becomes a duty
37:26: Then the heart is no longer engaged in that if it just becomes a delight Well, what happens when it doesn't feel like a delight you don't do it
37:34: So both of those need to be true. They're giving is both a duty and a delight together something that we ought to do and Something that we are pleased to do is for number two
37:50: Giving is to be regular and systematic according to a plan So I'll read it again, but 1
37:58: Corinthians 16 2 Paul says Interestingly, he's all about this same collection for the Christians in Jerusalem And he says when you plan to give he says basically set it up so that on the first day of the week typically why
38:10: Christians have collected giving Of Sunday worship whether it's during the service or just having a means to collect that offering
38:19: Picking up on this principle Who says? Let's read it again
38:26: Can never read too much Bible 1st Corinthians 16 2 What says on the first day of the week each of you is to set something aside and save in keeping with how he's prospering
38:37: So that no collections will need to be made when I come This set something aside
38:44: That's the systematic part. There's a plan And it says on the first day of the week.
38:49: So this is a regular thing Christian should not give haphazardly
38:57: Shouldn't be okay in the car. Oh shoot. I've not thought about my giving. Okay. Um, what do I have on me? Let me do that.
39:03: Like no, there should be some intentionality to our giving as Christians Giving is to be regular and systematic
39:10: According to a plan 10 second with his eight and nine We're gonna spend the rest of our time in second with his eight and nine
39:18: There's one number three Giving is a demonstration of God's grace Giving is a demonstration of God's grace
39:30: So second Corinthians 8 1 Paul says we want you to know brothers and sisters about the grace of God that was given to the churches
39:37: Of Macedonia, what was the grace that was given? During a severe trial brought about by affliction their abundant joy and their extreme poverty overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part
39:50: So Paul essentially points to the example of these clearly poorer Christians than the
39:55: Corinthians even in their poverty they showed the grace of God in how does he describe in verse 2 a wealth of generosity and to 2nd
40:07: Corinthians 9 14 Paul says and as they those who are gonna receive this offering pray on your behalf
40:20: They will have deep affection for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you
40:27: The fact that the Corinthians would be willing to give was a demonstration of God's grace again
40:33: That's an important part of giving to think about That we give to the
40:38: Lord's work We give to support those who are doing the Lord's work as a demonstration of the grace of God principle number four
40:50: Giving need not be hampered by difficult circumstances for even those who suffer affliction and experience
40:57: Poverty may exhibit generosity So again verse 2 of 2nd Corinthians 8
41:02: Paul points to the churches of Macedonia who were not rich churches by any stretch and yet out of their poverty
41:08: They still demonstrated generosity. That's an important principle. Let me park here for a moment We cannot say that generosity is only for people who have means
41:20: We can't limit generosity to just those who've got the means to do it because before generosity is an amount
41:29: It's an attitude of the heart Growing up. I used to my my dad was a pastor as I've said to many of you and You know every so often people tell my dad that You know, if the
41:45: Lord prospers me, I'll be able to give more but right now I can't I don't know my dad I used to think my dad was really cool when he says some of this stuff and I've now come to realize
41:54: Maybe his delivery could have been better But he had a point because he would say to the person no you won't
42:02: Hey, if you struggle to give now when you've got more you want to keep it You really will struggle and I'd like to say that my dad was wrong and it never happened.
42:11: He was right every single time Why? Giving is not
42:18: Let's take the word giving out from what just the word generosity generosity is not tied down to your circumstance
42:26: It's not a Circumstance based attitude Generosity is a heart attitude that looks for opportunities to manifest
42:36: So the Christian is supposed to have the mindset whether you have a little or you have a lot That we want to exhibit generosity when we can of course you do so wisely of course you do so Recognizing.
42:50: Okay, what can I do even if it's not what I would like to do There's wisdom to be applied here, of course, so let's not go too far
42:57: But giving need not be hampered by difficult circumstances for even those who suffer affliction and experience poverty may exhibit generosity
43:06: This one number five Given this giving is to be voluntary not under compulsion.
43:17: So if that's the case I As the pastor here, we can't come up and basically threaten people into giving
43:26: But that doesn't that should not be happening and any pastor who does that should be looked at very suspiciously
43:34: Why because giving is supposed to be voluntary. So second Corinthians 8 3 I Can testify that according to their ability and even beyond their ability of their own accord
43:46: They begged us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in the ministry to the Saints 9 5
43:54: Therefore I considered it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead of you and arrange in advance the generous gift you promise so that it will be ready as a gift and not as an extortion the
44:05: CSB says so I see this one more verse verse 7
44:13: Each person should do as he has decided in his heart not reluctantly or out of compulsion since God loves a cheerful giver
44:21: I do want to point something out about this verse I went back this week and looked at it and read some great commentators
44:27: So how many of you have heard the translation of this is that God loves the hilarious giver? small problem that's
44:36: To give you a fancy seminary term that they use. That's what's called a word root fallacy
44:43: I actually didn't know this until this week was fascinating So all that means I'm getting into all the weeds of way grammar works
44:51: It's taking the roots of a word and then assuming our English definition matches that root word
44:58: Because the word that's used here is The roots that we get the English word hilarious form or something being or someone being hilarious or hilarity the state of being hilarious it
45:11: However, the word itself the original Greek word carries this idea is why most Bible translations translated as cheerful or happy That's the general idea
45:20: So I learned this week Maybe not the best way to translate that it's kind of doing a little too much with what that root word means
45:29: But the principle remains the same which is that God loves a cheerful giver one who gives cheerfully not under compulsion
45:36: So the sort of threatening that happens if you turn on so -called
45:45: Christian TV You don't give God won't bless you again.
45:52: I think there's a principle that God gives but God blesses when we give But you can't use that as a stick to beat people principle number six
46:04: And we kind of talked about this I won't hang here too long giving should be proportionate to one's income and circumstances as Each is expected to contribute according to his or her means and we've talked about us.
46:13: I won't go here too long Again giving it's all both in the Old Testament and in the new should be proportionate to what you have
46:24: So I've heard of people say well You know, I've heard people say I've heard people ask, you know, mostly of the televangelist type
46:33: You should not like if you don't have it put it on a credit card
46:41: Well, oh Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa danger will Robinson danger will Robinson like if you're putting on a credit card, that means you don't have it like that Shouldn't happen just to be very understated about that No, it should be partial to your income and circumstances
47:05: I'm sorry to me. I mean to be blunt for just a moment. It's the high of idiocy To ask somebody to go into debt
47:12: So that God will bless them if they go into debt then they can't give at all
47:21: Like I want to like shake some of these guys in their $3 ,000 suits and say like have you thought about the logic of what?
47:27: You're saying No giving it should be proportionate to one's income and circumstances number seven
47:35: Giving can also be taken as a sack undertaken as a sacrifice as some will feel inspired to give beyond their means so Hope you hold on.
47:46: You just say that giving should be proportionate. Yes however, somebody may decide Is it what cove was if it's been that and the televangelist simple one is basically compelling you to do it compulsion
47:59: But same things eight three says that the Macedonians Above what they were able to do decided to give
48:08: That can be a heart attitude that a believer can have now again
48:13: That's what a believer to kind of weigh up. This is the best way for me to do this Is there wisdom in me doing this?
48:20: It's still voluntary it still comes from the heart of the believer that word voluntary from the word volition from the will
48:28: So sometimes a Christian may say, okay, I want to give in a much more sacrificial way
48:33: Simple way of talking about sacrificial giving a way that might hurt However for the sake of this cause it's worth it to me to do so.
48:43: Yes, it's not expected Yes, absolutely. So question was according to Bible.
48:59: Are we not supposed to be in debt? So that's that's a great question because you can
49:07: You can read there are people who can go to real big extremes with this. So thank you for asking the question I really appreciate it the
49:13: Bible Presents debt as something that is unwise for a Christian or for a believer period both
49:20: Old Testament and new Now is it a sin if a
49:25: Christian enters into debt? I Would say no But that's the thing for example in our culture you can ever own up You're right.
49:33: You couldn't the mortgage system is a ongoing debt until you pay off. I mean you can buy one use
49:40: I suppose Um Well, it's a great question because I think it gets the heart of okay, how should we view debt
49:50: And there are some debts you take on recognizing that Okay, there is a wisdom in taking on this debt like a mortgage like when
49:57: I went to college I took a student loan out, you know stuff like that I think that's one category of debt that I would say is not the same as unwise debt.
50:07: So living beyond your means I would personally put gambling in this category if like you're taking all this money in Essentially like wasting it on games of chance that and you'll end up in debt as a result.
50:20: That's not wise debt So is all debts wrong?
50:26: No But there is a kind of debt that is wrong. And that's what the Christian should avoid
50:33: It says that's I kind of answer the question Yeah, yeah,
50:49: I mean the system is kind of built that way is not much you can really do So no, it's not a sin to be in debt. Just have to be wise about the kind of debt you are taking on You know what time for one more again you have all of those about 15 total you can read them in your own time
51:07: Actually, let me go to number nine. This would be a good one to end Giving involves more than financial contributions.
51:13: We first commit ourselves to the Lord and to the church at large. So 2nd
51:18: Corinthians 8 5 I See the song in verse 4 They begged us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in the ministry to the
51:25: Saints and not just as we had hoped instead They gave themselves first to the
51:31: Lord then to us by God's will Ultimately the matter of Christian giving is a heart issue
51:38: It starts with Committing ourselves literally giving ourselves to the Lord first and foremost
51:43: This is why we're talking about this in the context of a series on stewardship It's saying God you have graciously given me everything
51:50: I have Therefore I in turn am first and foremost giving of who I am to you and by extension.
51:59: I'm giving of myself to your people Giving is ultimately a heart issue if our discussions of giving start with amounts and Amounts and certain things that we want to give like I think that can miss the point
52:15: Giving in the Bible begins with the heart a heart that says That what I have is not mine what
52:20: I have belongs to the Lord and then from there thinks about okay Since it belongs to the Lord. How does the Lord want me to use it part of that being give
52:28: I Am right up at 10 o 'clock. So I'm going to pray and again I encourage you to read that material in your own time.
52:35: We pray and we'll wrap up Well, how many father we thank you for the grace of giving the gift that We get to employ in your service father help us that we would glorify you in our giving
52:49: That we would give in line with your word while they help us to develop hearts of generosity Hearts that reflect the grace of God in the gospel be with us as we prepare for our worship gathering in a few minutes