Everything Is Awesome & Nobody Is Happy The Gift And The Giver

 Everything Is Awesome & Nobody Is Happy

The Gift And The Giver

Opening Illustration:

Friends, money is one of the hardest subjects to address here at church. I’ve got really good news for you this morning. I’m not talking about money this morning. Paul is. No, no, truthfully, Im not talking about money this morning, Im talking about giving. Ok, ok, you’ve got me, I will be talking about money and giving this morning. It’s funny because the Bible talks so extensively about money and possessions. Did you know that money and possessions are the second most referenced topics in the Bible? Money and possessions are mentioned more than 800 times. 

Money, specifically the pursuit of money, is pervasive in our culture. I’m reminded of the 1980’s movies Wall Street starring Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen. Remember the quote from Douglas’ character Gordon Gekko, “greed is good”. While that line was spoken some 40 years ago, it captures our culture in a nut shell. We see the subject of money reflected in our music. Chris Janson released a country song in 2015 entitled “Buy Me A Boat” where he stated the following:

“They call me redneck, white trash and blue collar

But I could change all that if I had a couple million dollars

I keep hearing that money is the root of all evil

And you can't fit a camel through the eye of a needle

I'm sure that's probably true

But it still sounds pretty cool”

Money, again the pursuit of money, is all around us. It is in our politics. Do you know what the number one political issue is currently here in the United States? People are upset because of inflation, goods cost more and we have less money. Gas prices are spiking at the pumps and energy costs are rising. This is taking money out of our pockets. Money is in the media, magazines, newspapers, movies. It is continually being brought up on social media. It seems that you cannot escape this singular topic. Well friends, not much has changed. It should not shock us, considering how much our society is driven by money, that God has some strong feelings about the subject matter. 

So, what is your attitude when it comes to the topic of money, possessions, tithing and giving? Does me bringing it up make you feel uncomfortable and uneasy? If it does, why? I think I know the answer. You see, where we spend our money tells us a lot about who we are, what we deem important, and whether or not we are good managers of what God has given to us. When we start to consider our bottom line, it becomes painfully clear sometimes that we have been pretty selfish with what God has entrusted to us. When we look at our checking accounts, we see how stingy we are with giving to the church, how stingy we are when giving to Christ-honoring charities, but how generous we are in purchasing things that bring us temporary happiness. 

This line of consideration reminds me of Jesus words captured in Matthew 6:21, 

Matthew 6:21 NLT

Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

So, fill in the blanks on today’s thought. When you give, are you sunny or selfish? When you give to the church, is your disposition cheerful, happy, joyful? When you give to the church are you cynical or critical? 

Today’s Thought:

When You Give, Are You Sunny or Selfish?

Point:

800 times! That is how often the Bible brings up money and possessions. You might be thinking that Jesus did have that much to say about our finances and how we are to give. You’d be mistaken if you take that train of thought. In actuality, Jesus talked more about money than He did about heaven and hell…combined. Eleven of the thirty nine parables He tells are about finances. Jesus spoke exhaustively about the subject of money. 

Fact:

“Jesus talked more about money than he did Heaven and Hell combined. 

Eleven of the Thirty Nine parables He tells are about finances.”

Background:

Before we read today’s text from Philippians 4:14-20, let’s remember the background and context of the passage. Remember that Paul is in jail in Rome when he wrote this letter. He is thinking about his life, where he has been, and the people that have influenced his life and ministry. At the top of that list of people who have helped Paul is the Church at Philippi. Paul sends them a “thank you” letter appreciating their partnership in spreading the Gospel. He also thanks them for their generosity. You see, the church had made signifiant financial gifts to Paul over the course of his ministry career. The church quite literally had bought in to Paul’s ministry. They supported him much in the same way that a church might support a missionary serving abroad. They didn’t just meet Paul’s needs financially, they exceeded his needs, giving him more than he requested. Brothers and sisters, I believe that there are some significant lessons to be garnered from the giving patterns of the church of Philippi. So, let read from Philippians 4:14-20, Paul’s words thanking the church for their generous offerings. 

Today’s Scripture:

Philippians 4:14-20 ESV

14 Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. 15 And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. 16 Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. 18 I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. 19 And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20 To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.

“It’s what you sow that multiplies, not what you keep in the barn.”

-Dr. Adrian Rogers 

How Did The Philippian Church Give?

I. They Gave Enthusiastically 14-15

Philippians 4:14-15 ESV

14 Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. 15 And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only.

Point:

Paul states that it was “kind” of them to share in his trouble. He goes on a bit further and states that while other churches had chosen not to fund Paul’s mission, the church in Philippi continued to give. He even states “except only you”. The people, the men and women, in this church were so faithful. They were people who appreciated the evangelical vision of Paul and they felt that by giving to Paul they too were taking place in the Great Commission. 

Their giving funded mission work. Plain and simple. They knew this to be true and they were excited about giving to that end. They gave enthusiastically. They gave cheerfully. They understood that their offerings were being used to fund Paul’s life. Paul was able to eat, purchase clothing, find transportation, and put a roof over his head because of this church. Why is this important to understand? Paul, although a tent maker by trade, would not have to spend his time working to make a living. Paul, because of their giving, could focus his mind to studying Scripture, prayer, and sharing the Gospel. 

The giving of the Philippian church had a direct impact on the eternal outcome on anyone and everyone who encountered Paul. This direct impact gave the church great joy and it filled Paul’s heart with joy. 

Point:

Friends, we should also understand that it is a great privilege, a beautiful honor to give to the Lord’s work completed through the local church. Your giving directly impacts the eternal outcome of human life. Your giving provides opportunities for coaches to share the Gospel at Upward Basketball. Your giving allows for relationships to be built on Tuesdays and Thursdays in our tutoring ministry. Children hearing and being exposed to the Gospel. Your giving helps members go on mission trips. Your giving funds ministries that creatively engage our community and the world with the Great Commission.

It is my prayer that you give and that you give cheerfully. 

Illustration:

Many of you remember Charles Dickens’ classic “A Christmas Carol”.  There have been several adaptations over the years.  It is one of my favorite Christmas stories.  Remember, it is the story of Ebenezer Scrooge.  Scrooge is the penny pinching miser who refuses to part with any of his money.  He is wealthy.  However, he is all alone with his money.  He reluctantly gives time off to his only employee Bob Crotchet on Christmas Day.  Why?  Scrooge hates Christmas.  As Scrooge goes home for the evening he is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley.  Marley informs Scrooge that he will be visited by three spirits.  The ghosts of Christmas past, present and future.  

Of course you know the rest of the story.  Following Scrooge’s visitations, he is transformed.  No longer does he refuse to give, he gives generously and cheerfully.  He finally understands that there is joy in giving.  He blesses everyone around him understanding that his management over this money he possesses is only temporal.  Why not use our money to bring joy and blessing to those around us who hurt? 

So, what lessons do we learn from miserly and miserable old Mr. Scrooge.  

We learn first that riches are meant to be used, not hoarded away.  

2 Corinthians 9:7 ESV

Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Proverbs 3:27 ESV

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it. 

Another lesson we learn is that wealth and prosperity doesn’t bring happiness. Scrooge was wealthy but no one would think that he was happy.  He had riches but it did not fulfill him the way giving cheerfully did.  

Ecclesiastes 5:10 ESV

He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.

Lastly, greed closes our eyes to the suffering of those around us.  Scrooge’s employee Bob was poor and hurting.  His son Tim had a debilitating disease that in one vision cost him his life.  Scrooge was not able to see the pain because his eyes were so fixed on his wealth.  Learning how to be a giver pops the bubble of selfishness around us, revealing to us that God can use us to be a huge blessing.  

Proverbs 22:9 ESV

Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor.

How Did The Philippian Church Give?

I. They Gave Enthusiastically 14-15

II. They Gave Consistently vs. 16

Proverbs 3:27 ESV

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.

How Did The Philippian Church Give?

I. They Gave Enthusiastically 14-15

II. They Gave Consistently vs. 16

Philippians 4:16 ESV

16 Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again.

Point:

Paul inserts a small but important statement in the close of his letter to the church. He states that even when he was in another city, they sent him help to take care of his most basic needs. The temptation for us this morning it to give and walk away with a smile on our face. We checked the box, we can move on from here and God has been appeased. That is not the way it works. The church, as they gave to Paul’s ministry, gave continually, consistently, making sure that Paul was covered. 

As good stewards, we should do the same. We should manage our resources in such a way that the church, that the ministries have what they need on a continual basis. 

Point:

So, lets address the elephant in the room. What should I give if I don’t have anything? Well, I have searched and searched the Bible trying to see if there was any prescription allowing for someone with nothing to give nothing. I looked and looked and sadly I never was able to find anything in the Bible where it says if you only have a little, you can give a little. In fact the opposite is true. Do you remember the story of the widow’s gift. 

If you open your Bibles to Luke 21:1-4, you can read along with me.

Luke 21:1-4 NLT

Jesus looked up and saw rich men putting their money into the money box in the house of God. 2 He saw a poor woman whose husband had died. She put in two very small pieces of money. 3 He said, “I tell you the truth, this poor woman has put in more than all of them. 4 For they have put in a little of the money they had no need for. She is very poor and has put in all she had. She has put in what she needed for her own living.”

This woman was about as poor as poor could get and still she gave. In fact she gave all she had. Now, am I saying that if you have 10 bucks in your checking account and your rent is due tomorrow that you should write a check to Eastern Shore Baptist Church for 10 bucks? Absolutely not! In fact, the church needs to help you. The church needs to help you get on your feet. We not only need to help you, but we need to teach you how to better manage God’s resources so you don’t find yourself in that situation ever again. We need to introduce you to some of our brilliant financial minds that can help you build a budget and hold you accountable to staying within that budget. 

What I am saying is that if you have little, you should give little. If you have a lot, then you should give more. For those of you who feel that you have nothing to give, you can consistently give in other ways. You can give your time. Volunteer. You can give your talents. Show up and use a gift that God has given you. Again, there is no verse in the Bible that let’s us off the hook for giving if we don’t have very much. Again, I will point you to an Old Testament story about a widow and her son. They have an encounter with Elijah that is pretty amazing. You can read it for yourself in I Kings 17:7-16. Elijah visits the home of a poor widow and her son. He is invited to her house where he is recognized as a prophet of God. He commands her to bring him some bread but she confesses that she only has enough flower and oil to make one more loaf of bread. After she and her son were to eat that bread, they were going to die of starvation. Elijah commanded her to do as he had asked and she complied. She gave everything she had, emptying her oil and flower. You know the rest of the story. The Lord rewards her obedience in giving with unending flower and oil. 

Friend, give. Give continuously from your big or small. It’s Biblical and the Lord will reward you. 

Proverbs 3:27 ESV

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.

III. They Gave Generously vs. 17-18

Philippians 4:17-18 ESV

17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. 18 I have received full payment, and more.

II Corinthians 9:6 ESV

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 

Joke:

Ann Landers had an interesting letter in her column. It was from a girl who was writing about her uncle & aunt. She said, "My uncle was the tightest man I’ve ever known. All his life, every time he got paid he took $20 out of his paycheck & put it under his mattress.  Then he got sick & was about to die. As he was dying, he said to his wife, "I want you to promise me one thing." "Promise what?" she asked. "I want you to promise me that when I’m dead you’ll take my money from under the mattress & put it in my casket so that I can take it all with me."  The girl’s letter went on with the story. "He died, & his wife kept her promise. She went in & got all that money the day he died & went to the bank & deposited it, and wrote out a check and put it in his casket."

Point: A Starting Point

“According to Scripture, a tithe is a gift offered in support of the priests and priestly people—the Levites (Num. 18:21). Not all Levites were priests... but the whole tribe of Levi was a priestly people. Today an equivalent might be all ministers and those who serve the Church: religious sisters and brothers, missionaries and groups that serve the Kingdom of God.”

The word tithe means literally “ten,” and 10% constituted a full offering in the Bible. A tithe is also referred to as the “first fruits”: sacrificing to God the best we have to offer. In Old Testament times, this meant the best lambs or the best part of the harvest. Most of us work for money now, so the tangible fruits of our labor end up being figures in a checking account or stock holdings. The concept is the same.

From the beginning of time, God gave.  As believers in God we should want to be like him.  We should want to imitate Him in every way.  

Point:

A tithe serves two purposes. It supports the Church, and, more importantly, a tithe is a symbolic gesture that all we have really belongs to God. By offering back the first 10% of our income to God through the Church, we literally show that we trust Him. “God’s true desire is to be generous with us, but even more, as a loving Father, He wants us to imitate Him in generous love.” God the Father offered his “first fruit”—His Son—to us on the Cross, replacing the Old Testament sacrifices with His Son on the Cross and at Mass. We imitate the Father’s love by offering the best we have to offer. 

Point:

So, should we be legalistic about 10%.  I would say “no”.  Don’t misunderstand me.  10% should merely be the starting point.  There are some in this very church who give much much more than 10% of their overall income.  They give to missions and missionaries.  We have members who have gone far and above their normal tithe to purchase necessary items for our church.  Some have both carpet, paint and other electronics that helps us make “church happen”.  As a pastor, I am thankful for such generosity.  

So, what is Paul saying?  Is he saying that if I give $10,000 that God will give me $20,000?  Unfortunately no, that is not what he is saying.  Fortunately, God does not just reward generosity with money.  God brings the richness of His presence.  God brings unexplainable peace.  God brings fulfillment when we help the church and one another with our giving.  

Can God reward with material possessions?  Sure.  God can do anything.  However, that is not what this Scripture is promising.  It is simply stating that there is a reward.  A bountiful reward.  

Psalm 37:21 ESV

The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives…

Proverbs 11:24-25 NASB

There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, and there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want. The generous man will be prosperous, And he who waters will himself be watered.

IV. They Gave Worshipfully vs. 18

Philippians 4:18 ESV

18 I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

Point:

In this final point, I want you to understand that the church in Philippi gave to Paul as an act of worship. Their gift to Paul was like a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. Clearly Paul believed that what they did for him they were doing also for Jesus. 

Don’t miss this point brothers and sisters because it is the most important point in this message. If for no other reason, we believers give because it is an act of worship to the Alpha and Omega, the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace. When we give, we worship Jesus. You might say that the most holy activity that occurs in this place on a Sunday morning is not when we sing a song or when you hear me preach. Perhaps the greatest act of worship in this place is when we put our gift in the offering plate. I had a seminary professor tell me years ago that a worship service that does not involve us giving, sacrificing for God, is no worship service at all. When we refuse to give, we refuse to worship. 

Point:

Giving as worship reminds me of Luke 7:36-50,

Luke 7:36-50 ESV

36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and reclined at table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40 And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.”

41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” 

Point:

This women did what was right. Again, not to belabor the point, but this woman gave everything she had, not withholding anything, and it was her act of worship. 

Brothers and sisters, let me encourage you today that when you give, your reward is Jesus. Jesus is pleased when we sacrifice with a contrite and cheerful heart. He is pleased when we place Him at the top of our priorities. When we give, we receive His peace and we are taught to trust Him even more. When we give we grow our dependability muscles and it helps us focus our spiritual eyes on Christ. It is my prayer that we will give generously to God’s work here at Eastern Shore Baptist Church. 

Proverbs 3:9 ESV

Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first-fruits of all your produce…

If You’re Not Giving, You’re Missing Out On A Heavenly Reward!