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Lesson 8. What Doth the Lord require of Thee? In Reference to Giving As Christian gather together on the first day of the week to worship God, they think about the great love He manifested to all men when He allowed His Son, Jesus to die on Calvary. I John 4:9-10 When this is done, it becomes a reality in one’s mind that God has the right to expect something from man in return. Under the Old Testament, He was extremely displeased with His people when they failed to return a fair portion to Him. Since the law is “a shadow of good things to come” Hebrews 10:1, and the follower of Christ should have righteousness to exceed that of the scribe and Pharisee Matthew 5:20, Then we should consider the following passages very carefully from the Old Testament. I. Some Important Old Testament Lessons.
A. Haggi 1:2-6 – this stresses the important of putting God first Matthew 6:33 B. Malachi 1:6-8—here we are shown how we might go through life deceiving ourselves in references to our giving. C. Malachi 3:7-10—it is obvious that the writer here is showing the possibility of the creature robbing God, by failing to give to Him. II. New Testament Teaching on Giving. A. Our giving should be regular. I Corinthians 16:1-2 A congregational budget depends upon each member giving a portion of the budget. B. Our giving should be with purpose. II Corinthians 9:7 It would involve looking at your income and planning what portion you were going o return to God. C. Our giving should be with sacrifice. II Corinthians 8:5; Luke 21:2-4 God gave the supreme sacrifice. John 3:16 Let us be willing to make sacrifice in out giving to Him. D. Our giving should be with the understanding we are God’s stewards. I Peter 4:10; I Corinthians 4:22 as the stewards of God, let us look around us an see the sin, sickness and great need in this world today III. Additional Lessons on Giving from the Bible. A. Our giving should be with proper attitude. Acts 20:35 It becomes difficult for us to have the right attitude toward material things. Christ emphasized a right attitude toward material things. Read Matthew 6:19-21.25-34. Here is the kind of attitude we need in reference to out giving. 1. Trust the Lord – know He will always care. Proverbs 3:5,9-10 2. Know you will never be forsaken. Psalms 37:25 3. Realize that God loves a cheerful giver. II Corinthians 9:7 4. Give, knowing that it helps carry the gospel to others. Philippians 4:15-16, II Corinthians 9:10-12 B. Our giving should show an acceptance of personal responsibility. II Corinthians 8:12-15 1. The rich should not be expected to do all the giving. The poor, if prospered at all, should never fell they are exempted from giving their portion unto God. IV. How to Meet a Budget. A. Remember that the giving Christian is a living Christian. The Sea of Galilee is a beautiful body of water. Out of the southern end flows the Jordan River. This little Sea gives. The Dead Sea receives but does no give-hence, it is basically useless. B. Assume your personal responsibility and give. 1. Christianity is individual. II Corinthians 5:10 C. Love God with all your being. Matthew 22:37-38 D. Support the work with enthusiasm, time and talent. Romans 12:11 E. Encourage the elders in their work of overseeing the work of the church. Hebrew 13:17 Only the gospel of Christ will help the conditions to improve. Yet, we all know it takes money to send men overseas to preach the Word. It takes money to build church buildings. It takes money to take care of the less fortunate. This money must come from the stewards of God who willing return a portion of their earnings back to God to be used in spreading the good news of the gospel to a lost and dying world. Then after all has been said about giving and even though you may think you have done above and beyond your share, remember the following passage Luke 17:10. If each member of the Lord’s church would do but his share, think how many places in the world would be able to welcome missionaries just as soon as those men could pack and arrive in those countries. Staggering thought isn’t it.
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