SCRIPTURE
2 Corinthians 8:1-7 (NRSV)
Encouragement to be generous
We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that has been granted to the churches of Macedonia; for during a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave according to their means, and even beyond their means, - and this, not merely as we expected; they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us, so that we might urge Titus that, as he had already made a beginning, so he should also complete this generous undertaking among you. Now as you excel in everything - in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you - so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking.
DEVOTION
Yay! Today’s scripture gives me the opportunity to talk about one of my very favorite topics—STEWARDSHIP!
To be a “steward” means to be responsible for the welfare of resources that are not your own. We know that everything that we think we “own” actually belongs to God. God allows us to hold “God’s stuff” in trust, with the understanding that it ultimately belongs to God and that we will willingly and obediently relinquish it whenever God asks for it.
Malachi 3:10 says, “Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple.”
A tithe is equivalent to 10% of your gross income. In other words, as Christians we are mandated to return 10 cents out of every $1.00 we earn to God. Now if you think about it, that’s not very much!
God could have legitimately requested 90% of our income, but God didn’t. God could have rightfully asked for 75% of our income, but God didn’t. Instead, God asks us to return a meager 10% of all that God has blessed us with!
Wow! Isn’t God incredibly generous?
Now, you may be asking? What does The Church do with all that money? I’m glad you asked!
The tithe is the means by which God’s kingdom building work is done on the Earth. Just like it takes money to run your home or business, it takes money to run God’s ministry on the Earth.
It is the tithe that pays the mortgage or the rent on the church building. It is the tithe that provides the lights, heat, air conditioning, and technology that keeps us comfortable on Sunday morning. It is the tithe that pays our pastors and worship leaders a living wage so that they can work full-time in our churches carrying out ministry activities five to six days a week!
But, the tithe does some other important things as well. It is the tithe that feeds the hungry and gives drink to the thirsty. It is the tithe that clothes the naked and houses the homeless. It is the tithe that sends out caretakers who visit the sick and imprisoned and offer care to widows and orphans. And it is the tithe that sends out missionaries in the United States and throughout all the nations of the world to carry the GOOD NEWS message that Jesus saves and He saves to the utmost!
Now, let me tell you, I’ve actually heard Christians say, “Well, since God is so rich, why doesn’t God supernaturally provide for the ministries of The Church?” I always answer this statement in the same way, “God did supernaturally provide for the ministries of The Church when God trusted God’s children to obey the commandment to tithe!”
WOOT, there it is!
In today’s Bible passage, Paul is bragging on the Christians in Macedonia, who although they were by no means wealthy, were able to raise a large and generous offering in support of the work of the church!
In fact, when they were encouraged not to give because of their own poverty, the Macedonians actually begged earnestly for the privilege of sharing in the ministry to the saints!
Can you imagine? Have you ever gone to church and begged for the opportunity to give a large and generous offering in support of God’s kingdom building work?
As a clergywoman, I am sad to say that I have never seen this happen. In fact, in most churches when the offering is announced, people look downright mad and/or sour; they dig out a coin or a dollar and toss it into the basket like it is a punishment to give, rather than a privilege!
Oh my! Lord, please have mercy on us!
Here’s what I know my friends. It is our honor to give anything to the Lord! Although many of us are not able to be in full time ministry 24/7/365, our financial offerings make it possible for another saint of God to be at the ready to serve God’s children when they are in need!
Wouldn’t it be awful if a person wanted to pray, but the church building was closed because the congregation could not afford the heat bill? Wouldn’t it be horrible if someone needed to be funeralized, but the pastor was absent because s/he was working at the mall? Wouldn’t it be sad if someone wanted to give his life to Christ, but could not find a Christian to tell him how?
Oh God forbid! Let us become like the Macedonian Christians! Let us become obedient unto God and gladly and cheerfully give of our tithes and offerings! Let us beg for the privilege of sowing good seed into the ministries of the church! And let us give according to our means—and then a little more than that--as a sign of our faith!
I’ve heard the old ladies in The Church say, “You can’t beat God giving, no matter how you try!” And you can’t saints of God! I’ve tried over and over again and the more I give to God, the more God gives to me!
Look, we can’t pay God for the love, joy, and peace we enjoy on a daily basis. We can’t pay God for the sunshine, rain, food, clothes, and shelter that we are dependent upon for our very lives. We can’t pay God for the smile on our children’s faces, the love we feel from our spouses, or the health that we take for granted every day.
I could go on and on, but I bet you get the point. We can’t pay God back for all that God has done for us! When God gave JESUS to die on the cross to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life, God gave us a gift that priceless beyond measure!
So, since we know that we cannot pay God, what can we do? We can show God our appreciation by being obedient to God’s commandment that we bring the tithe into the storehouse! We can show our love and support of God’s ministry in the Earth, by providing the financial resources necessary to run The Church’s ministries with excellence!
If everyone in the church just obeyed God’s commandment to tithe, all of our churches would have more than enough to grow and to prosper!
Remember, God is not asking for equal giving; God is asking for equal sacrifice!
Your ten percent might be 50 cents p/week; my ten percent might be 200 dollars p/week. What we give does not matter. How we give does--Let us give of our tithes and offerings obediently and with a cheerful heart!
Si se puede! Yes we can!
Remember, you absolutely cannot take any of your wealth or fame with you.
Therefore, it is only what you do for Christ that will last.
Will you trust God and bring your tithes and offerings to church on Sunday?
Holy God, thank you that you are so generous toward me! It is my honor to give anything to you. I cheerfully release my tithes and offerings to Your Kingdom Building Work! I am so honored that you allow me to invest in what you are doing! Thanks so much for Jesus and for your continued work in the world. I love you and I will share Your Love with others! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Congratulations to all of those people who have recently put all of their hope in Jesus! Welcome to the Christian family! We love you and we are praying for you even now in Jesus’ Name!
If you would like to put all of your hope in Jesus today, please visit my blog entitled, “Putting All Your Hope In Jesus” located at
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/putting-all-your-hope-in-jesus.html
If you have additional questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, "Come to Jesus"
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/03/come-to-jesus.html
Pastor Yolanda is now publishing another blog entitled, “A Spoken WORD” in celebration of Holy Hip Hop, Gospel/Christian Rap and Spoken Word. Please check it out @ http://aspokenword.blogspot.com/
You are invited to follow Pastor Yolanda on Twitter www.twitter.com/PastorYolanda
Good News has now added a Prayer Ministry. http://www.kindlejoy.com/groups/goodnews
You are invited to leave comments or questions regarding today’s devotional. These comments are public.
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Thanks for reading and please come again. Pastor Yolanda extends a very special welcome to all of our friends reading outside of the United States of America! We are honored that you are sharing with us today.
From Pastor Yolanda's blog http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com
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