Dr. Ron Sumners
November 9, 2003
I recall one of the Andy Griffith episodes that I think illustrates very well the matter of giving. It seems that Andy had been elected the chairman of the needy children’s charity drive. They were taking up money at the school for this charity as well as in the town of Mayberry. Word got back to Andy that Opie, his son, had only given a penny at school for the charity. Opie had a pretty good sum of money saved in his piggy bank, but he had given only a penny.
Andy thought that this was a bad reflection on him since he was the chairman of the drive. On several occasions, he tried to explain to Opie why he should give more than he had to the charity. That he should care about needy children.
Opie told him he could not give because he was saving his money for a special purpose. Andy, of course, assumed that Opie was saving for something that would be the object of desire for a child. He sent Opie to his room. He became totally disgusted with his son.
Finally, Aunt Bee scolded him for being overly concerned about what others would think of him because his son had not given enough to the charity drive. Then she reminded Andy what a good boy Opie had always been, and asked him if he could forget that Opie didn’t give enough on this one occasion.
Andy called Opie for supper and told him that they would just forget about the whole incident. If he wanted to skimp out on this charity this one time so he could buy something that he wanted, it was okay. It was only then that Opie told his father why he was saving the money. It seems that there was a little girl in his class who needed a coat, and he was saving his money so that he could have enough to buy her one before winter.
Andy says, “Opie,you never told me that was why you were saving the money.” Opie responds, “You never asked me, Paw.
”One said, “Money isn’t everything, but it is way ahead of whatever is in second place.” Then there is the business person who says, “We operate our business by the golden rule. Whoever has the gold makes the rules.”
As we consider this matter of stewardship, I want you to understand that this is not a sermon solely on our need to give our money to God, for God wants more than that. Additionally, the giving of our money can never make up for a heart that is not right with God. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were noted for their strict obedience to God’s laws, laws which required the tithing of their money or goods.
Listen to what Jesus said to them on one occasion, “How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! You are careful to tithe even the tiniest part of your income, but you ignore the important things of the law – justice, mercy, and faith.
You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave undone the more important things.”It seems to me that Jesus is saying there are stewardship things we need to be involved in that don’t relate to the giving of our money and that are more important than the giving of our money. God desires for us to give our money for His kingdom’s work. But He also desires our heart!
So, as we think on this matter of stewardship, remember that we are talking about much more than the giving of our money to God. We are talking about the giving of ourselves and everything that God hasendowed us with.
While this is true, we know that it is impossible for God’s church to operate and do His work without money. We can have many volunteers, which can save the church fromhaving to spend money to do a job, but it still takes money for God’s church to operate. But if everyone only gave money and did not work in any way in God’s church, it still could not operate. It takes a combination.
Think about it. What if everyone just sent their money in every week but never showed up for any services or to use their talents. How could we disciple and train?Jesus did not just give money for us. He gave Himself totally. We can give no less to Him and His work. It is unfortunate that God’s churches are reduced to having bingo, raffles and bazaars to raise money to do His work. It is unfortunate that we have to preach sermons like this one to remind us of what should be a natural reaction for every Christian.
Giving, for the Christian, should be like breathing; a natural function. If every person in this church would tithe and give themselves, we would be amazed at what could happen.The principle hindrance to the advancement of the kingdom of God is greed. It is the chief obstacle to true revival in the church. It seems that when the back of greed is broken, the human spirit soars into regions of unselfishness.
I believe that it is safe to say that there can be no true revival without a commitment to stewardship. And I don’t believe that giving comes as a result of revival; I believe that revival comes after we have crushed greed and begun to really give.
The sad reality is that there are many in our church that will never be convinced of their need to give to God’s work. The church is the place that they give their leftovers: their leftover money, their leftover time, and their leftover commitment. They reason away their responsibility to give by saying they have nothing left to give. Their bills and family responsibilities take everything they make.
I realize that many of us live with heavy debt. That is no secret. The question asked often in this community is, “How can people afford these houses?” The answer, of course, is that many of us can’t but we do anyway! Even though this is the case, we are not relieved of our responsibility to give ourselves to the Lord.
WHY SHOULD I GIVE?
One thing that will help us answer this question is our realization that everything we have has been given to us by God. Some people have trouble with that concept. They don’t see God giving them anything. They believe that it is the sweat of their brow or luck of the draw or a family inheritance that is responsible for what they have. Ultimately, everything comes from God! God is the owner of all we possess. If He gave it to us, it is ours but ultimately,He owns it. What we call ours is a gift from God.
My lawnmower belongs to God. My house and automobiles belong to God. My life belongs to God! We should give first to God because God is the owner of all we possess. When we give, it is an acknowledgement of God’s ownership and lordship in every area of our life.
Giving to God first was the idea behind the giving of the first fruits in the Old Testament. God’s people were instructed to bring the first fruits of their crops to the Lord. It was an acknowledgement that he owned what they had and was responsible for their crops
We are accountable to God for how we use what has been given to us. This includes our money, time and talents. We are stewards of what He gives us, not owners. We give because God is the owner of all we possess.
We also give because God tells us to. That, by itself, should be enough reason for every Christian to give. In Malachi, God accuses His people of robbing Him. (Mal. 3:8)They ask how they have done that. He says, “You have cheated Me of the tithes and offerings due Me.” As a result, God had placed a curse on them. They would be punished for their disobedience.
Giving is not relegated to the Old Testament. Jesus talked more about giving and material possessions than any other subject except the kingdom of God. Paul wrote, “Remember this – a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. You must each make up your own mind as to how much you should give. Don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure, for God loves the person who gives cheerfully. God will generously provide all you need.
”Another reason to give is because of the great need. God’s work depends on God’s people giving! If every member of this church gave what they ought to, our budget would be two and a half times what it is now. If every one of us gave themselves in service, we wouldn’t have committed people doing two, three, and four jobs and every person could concentrate on doing one thing well. We would have more funds for mission support. We could do more for the poor, hungry and homeless. We could start a mission church right now! We could pay off the building debt in less than three years. The list is endless, but it is a fanciful list because we don’t give 10% of our income. We give about 4%.
A further reason for giving is because of the promises of God. Listen to Malachi 3:10, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great that you won’t have room to take it in! Try it! Let Me prove it to you!”
Do you see the challenge? God challenges us to see if we can out give Him. Maybe the greatest reason we should give to God is because of our gratitude for all He has done for us. No matter how difficult our circumstances in life have been, the Lord has blessed us. We can always look around and see someone who has more severe circumstances than we do. We can give out of a heart of love to God because He has given to us out of a heart of love.
A mother was surprised one day by her five-year-old son who presented her with a bouquet of dandelions. The dandelions were available, they were abundant and they were hers because they grew in her yard. What made the bouquet so special was because it was a declaration of love from her child.That is what our giving is: a declaration of our love for God.
WHAT SHOULD WE GIVE?
Theologians and Christians are divided on this issue. Some believe the tithe is just as binding today as it was in the Old Testament time. Others believe that the New Testament does not bind the Christian with tithing. If that is true, then we should give from a heart of New Testament grace for what we have received through Jesus Christ and give more than simply what the law requires, which is the tithe. I would be thrilled if Meadow Brook Baptist Church was simply obedient to the law!
Jesus reminds us that where our treasure is our hearts will be also. That is, what we consider important we give our time and money and attention to. When we think that God’s work is important, no onewill have to beg us to give our money or our time or our talents.
WHERE AND WHEN SHOULD WE GIVE?
There are many wonderful, benevolent organizations that we can give to, but for the Christian, our primary place to give is the local church. That doesn’t mean that we should give exclusively to the church, but that’s where the first 10% should go!
The scripture says that we should give on the Lord’s Day. I think that this says that we should have a regular schedule for our giving. Too many church members give some money when they happen to attend. When they come once a month, once every six weeks, it makesit difficult to tithe unless theygive an offering of 4 or 6 times morewhen they do attend. My suspicion is that does not happen. Your giving should not be hit-or-miss. If your employers decide to pay you only when it suited them, how would you meet your obligations? Since Christians worship on the Lord’s Day, we should give every week. You can give once a month, twice a year or once a year as long as it is consistent and God honoring.
The church is the only human agency Jesus established. He gave His life for the church. The church is the storehouse to which we bring our offerings to God. God’s kingdom work begins in the local church.
The story is told of a millionaire who had his offices on the second floor of a bank building. He would ride the elevator up to his office but would take the stairs coming down. He was an arrogant man who was once poor but who had risen up in the world. He did not notice the down cast people any longer. In that building was a woman who scrubbed the stairs and the halls. He had walked past her often but had never really seen her. His head was high in the airas he thought of his million and his importance.
One day when he left his office and was making his way down the stairs, the scrub lady was halfway down them. On one of the top stairs, which was wet with soapy water, sat a bar of soap. The millionaire stepped on it. One foot flew to the east and the other to the west and he descended the stairs. However, he did not descend as he had intended. The scrub lady moved to one side and let him pass by just as she always did. He considered whether or not to fire her. He decided against it. But one thing is for sure, he never descended the steps again without noticing the scrub lady!
The point of the story is this: it is sad what God often has to bring us to in our lives to help us see what has been there all the time. We give because God is the owner of all we possess, because he commands us to, because of the great need, because of the promises of God and because of the gratitude in our hearts for what he hasdone for us. We should give regularly, cheerfully and in proportion to our income and we should give to our local church.
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