Giving in Faith

God's heart is full of love and generosity, and He looks for the same heart and generosity in His people.  The way we use money is a very tangible measure of our surrender to God. Money used in a way that honours God will always bring blessing to others and will also draw us close to God. However, if we use and manage our money in a self-centred way, it can lead to misery and pushes our Christian discipleship to one side. This is why Jesus taught openly and clearly about money and our attitudes towards it.

"Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For the measure you use, it will be measured to you" (Luke 6:38).

When Paul teaches on giving to the Corinthian churches he says, "Each person should give what they have decided in their heart to give, not reluctantly, or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Cor 9:7).

That's excellent advice. It does us no favours if we give grudgingly! The word "cheerful" is a strong word. So, let's smile and laugh as we give generously, knowing full well that God's Kingdom will advance as a result, and we will be personally blessed too.

Malachi, the prophet, puts it bluntly when he says, "If there is no stewardship we are robbing God" (Mal 3:8). In fact, he goes one step further and invites us to test God with our giving. "Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it" (Mal 3:10).

As we think and pray about giving it is also good to see things from God's point of view. From God's perspective, the only successful thing we will ever do is to do His perfect will. Many of us will leave this world having achieved nothing that the world would call remotely successful. Few of us will be remembered more than occasionally only twelve months after our departure. Yet, when we give in faith we will leave this world to hear the Lord Jesus proclaim in a triumphant voice, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

It may be that in responding to the call, God will stretch your faith, stretch your reliance on Him, and enlarge your responsibilities. Jesus says, "One who is faithful in very little will be faithful in much..." (Luke 16:10).

Last updated 01/2020