The Riches of Their Liberality - Part 2

Thank you for listening to this message from the ministry of Morse Corner Church in Leverett, Massachusetts. Morse Corner is a non-denominational church that is committed to the preaching and teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our church was founded in 1896 by two students of the famous evangelist D .L. Moody. We seek to encourage and edify the body of Christ through the proclamation of God's word through the ministries of the local church.

The Poverty of the Jerusalem Church and the Macedonian Offering

If you'd like more information, visit our website morsecornerchurch .com. We hope you enjoy the message. Now, I think it's worth mentioning when we talk about giving and freewill giving and giving to the poor and poverty, I think it's worth bringing up that the people in Jerusalem, they were what we would call destitute.

It's safe to say that life was very difficult for Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. Anytime you think you have a bad, imagine what that would have been like. Being a Jewish Christian 2 ,000 years ago in Jerusalem, they looked at them like they were despicable.

The Jews hated them. If your family member converted to Christianity, they would be shunned. They were dead to the family. Being a follower of Jesus would probably would cost you everything. Your family, your friends, your ability to do business.

I mean, they had no help whatsoever from people and forget the governing authorities. There was no welfare, there was no social security, no soup kitchens, no nothing. Nothing at all. The church was poor in every sense of the word.

And this is poverty that we're just not familiar with that. Most of us are simply not familiar with this kind of struggle. So for the churches in Macedonia and then in Corinth, and they weren't all that well off either, to pool together their resources when they didn't have all that much.

This was a godsend. Can you imagine the saints in Jerusalem when they received this? This was literally a godsend. This was the grace of God at work. And Paul, what did he do? You have to give. You need to give this much.

It wasn't enough. Let's pass the plate again and again until we get what we need. No, he simply hands it over to the Holy Spirit. Work in their hearts. You give whatever you feel is right. Let's just say hypothetically, Paul and Timothy commanded, okay, you must give this amount.

I don't think he would have done that. But let's just say he asked for a set amount. I heard of one church that once or twice a year they did what is called a sacrificial offering. Basically, the idea was give, give some more, and give until it hurts.

And they were told, the members of the church were told by the pastor that at least once or twice a year, you got to give your entire paycheck, your entire check. It's like, wow, well, you know, I'm sure many of them did that.

But many of them probably did it begrudgingly. This is why the topic of giving, quite frankly, it's often a touchy subject because those tactics are sometimes used. And many times people can see it for what it is.

I had mentioned guilt trips. You know, if you don't give this much, I guess you don't really love the Lord. You know, if you want to sour people on a ministry, that's a pretty good way to do it. That's a good way to do it.

Notice, though, Paul is not doing that. Paul is not doing that at all. He does want them to give. These people need help. But let's leave it up to them. You know, Christian liberty is a wonderful thing where you actually leave it up to the individual to do what they believe is right in the sight of God.

This was a blessing to be able to give. It was a blessing to receive. But when you make it a law thing, you're kind of robbing people of the blessing. And whatever led to this famine or whatever led to this situation of famine and persecution, a combination of the two.

Here's the thing. Difficulties present us with opportunities. This was a great difficulty. It presented the Christians 2 ,000 years ago with this amazing opportunity. And God will do that. He will use difficulties to open up the windows of heaven to pour out blessings upon his people.

This is just a side note. I was listening to a well-known pastor online talking about just the past year dealing with COVID -19 and his church has remained open. Just let you know that. But he said that the church had not passed around an offering plate since March of last year.

They have not taken up an offering, not passed the plate. And people maybe had wondered initially, well, is that how is this going to go? Is giving going to be down for this year? Guess what? Not only was giving not down, that was one of the best years for giving that the church had ever seen.

And when I heard that, I said, that's what happened here. That's what happened here. So the grace of God has been at work over this past year. And like the churches of Jerusalem, Corinth, Macedonia, you know this, we've seen our own challenges.

There's things that we've had to face, certainly to a lesser degree than these folks. But at times, things have been difficult. Whether it's with the church or your personal life or whatever the case, new challenges rise up.

But these are the times where what happens? You kind of see what people are made of. And maybe all the things that could go wrong kind of go through your head. This could happen. What about this? But what do we do?

We walk by faith. We put one foot in front of the other and we pray and leave it in God's hands. And when we do that, then it's now up to God to provide the blessings. And that's what he does. So trials and adversity often lead to new blessings.

This was a great hardship for the church of Jerusalem. But receiving this offering, it must have felt so good. They must have praised God for that. Paul said in Romans 5, we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance.

And perseverance, character. And character, hope. And then what does he say? And hope does not disappoint. You know, God will not disappoint you. If you're in need, if you're trusting in him, you're walking by faith, he will not disappoint you.

The churches in Macedonia faced adversity, poverty, and yet the grace of God was at work within them. And they gave above and beyond even what Paul could have expected. Look at verse 5. And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord.

And then to us by the will of God. So we urged Titus that as he had begun, so he would also complete this grace in you as well. But as you abound in everything, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us, see that you abound in this grace also.

Giving Yourself to the Lord Before Giving Your Offerings

And don't miss this. This is key. Before they gave their offering, what did they give? They gave themselves to the Lord. Before we can be useful for God, before God can use us, he needs to receive us.

Before we can do anything for God, before we can be useful, we must give ourselves to God. Hebrews 11 verse 6 says, without faith, it is impossible to please him. For he who comes to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.

So before we can do anything, before we can give anything that would be pleasing to him, we must first give ourselves. You know, there's a lot of people who give a lot of money to a lot of different causes.

And many of those we would consider good causes. And I think it's interesting. There are people who don't even go to church, but they will give money to churches. And listen, I think anytime someone gives to a good cause, that's a good thing.

But you know what God wants most? He wants you. He wants your heart. He wants your devotion. He wants your commitment. Scripture says in Romans 12, 1, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is what?

Your reasonable service. God made you. You belong to him. Give yourself to God. So Paul continues in 2 Corinthians chapter 8, verse 8. I speak not by commandment. But I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others.

Christ's Poverty and the Believer's True Riches

For, you know, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes, he became poor. That you, through his poverty, might become rich. There's a well-known passage in Psalm 50, or people quote, God owns the cattle on a thousand hills.

Right. You've heard that. Psalm 50, verse 10. This is what it says. For every beast of the forest is mine and the cattle on a thousand hills. He then goes on to say, the whole world is mine and all its fullness.

Have you ever heard someone talk about someone who's wealthy, someone who's rich, and they say about that person, this guy, you know, Jeff Bezos or Bill Gates, he has more money than God. Have you ever heard someone like talk like that?

Well, no, I don't think so. Everything belongs to the Lord. It's all his. And if everything belongs to the father, what else does that mean? Everything belongs to the son also. So Jesus, when he was dwelling, before he was born in Bethlehem, he was dwelling in eternity with the father.

Jesus was rich. That doesn't even begin to describe it. Jesus was rich. And yet, what did he do? He set all of that aside to be born to a poor, humble family, live a humble life. What did Jesus say about himself?

The son of man has no place to lay his head. Jesus set aside his riches and glory. And why did he do it? He became poor that through his poverty, you might become rich. What's the sermon about? Giving, free will, giving.

Well, God has given freely. He has offered mankind a free gift. Nobody has given more than God. Nobody has ever paid more than Jesus Christ. John 3, 16, verse, we all know for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

For the one who has done that, for those who believe, you see, you're rich. Whether you know it or not, you are rich. How much money you have in the bank doesn't really tell the story. And it's not going to last anyway.

Which is why Jesus tells us to do what? Lay up for yourself treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, he says, there your heart will be also.

Stewardship, Eternal Investment, and Closing Prayer

So in conclusion, we need to be good stewards. We understand that there's people that depend on us, family, and we have responsibilities. So, you know, a bank account is good. Retirement accounts are good.

If you're able to make investments, hey, that's great. But there's one investment we shouldn't forget. Helping those who are in need and investing to further the gospel ministry, that is an eternal investment that will pay back throughout all eternity to the glory of God.

Let's close in prayer. Father, how thankful we are that you've saved us. And we are most thankful for the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. As we read that though he was rich, yet for our sakes, he became poor.

Lord, give us opportunities to minister the grace of God to others. Draw many men, women, and children unto thyself. We ask all this in Christ's name. Amen. Thanks for listening. I'm Pastor Michael Grant from Morris Cornick Church.

If you'd like to listen to the complete message, or if you'd like more information about the ministry, visit our website, MorrisCornickChurch .com. And we'd love to have you join us some Sunday morning here in Leverett.

Until next time, may the grace of God be with you.