Giving it all you've got
0 comments | Posted by Steven Layson on 15 Jun 2008 in From Steve's Study ::
“If you give what you do not need, it isn’t giving.” – Mother Teresa.
“I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.” – C.S. Lewis.
“I never would have been able to tithe the first million dollars I ever made if I had not tithed my first salary, which was $1.50 per week.” – J.D. Rockefeller
“Give according to your income, lest God make your income according to your giving.” – Peter Marshall.
Giving is always a touchy subject to talk about in church. Perhaps it’s because so much media attention has been given (rightly so) to churches that have tried to fleece their members for all they can get out of them, while their ministers drive around in expensive cars and go on extravagant holidays. As a reaction to this, many churches today are scared to even bring the topic up. Money has joined sex & politics as a “taboo” topic.
This was certainly not the case for Jesus, especially if it is true that, as one commentator has calculated, in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, something like one in every six verses deals with money, & of the 29 parables Christ told, 16 deal with a person and his money.
It is hugely important for Christians to think carefully and prayerfully about what they do with their money, for as Jesus reminds us in the “Parable of the Talents” (Mt 25:14-30), we will be judged according to what we have done with the many gifts God has given us.
So how should Christians give? Paul gives us some helpful advice in 2 Cor 8 & 9. Here, he shows us that our giving should be: Church centred (8:1), from the heart (8:2-9), proportionate to what God has given us (8: 10-15), handled honestly (8:16-24), generous, well considered & cheerfully given (9:5-11). The result is great blessings to both the givers and recipients, and will result in great glory to God (9:12-15).
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