Learning to Give BY Faith
2nd Corinthians 8
March 9,
2014 AM
Pastor Craig
Ledbetter
Bible
Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland
I.
Introduction (Proverbs 11:24,25)
A.
Honeycombed Giving
1.
There are three kinds of
givers: the flint, the sponge, and the honeycomb. To get anything from the
flint rock, you must hammer it, and then you get only chips and sparks. It
is how people in old days started fires. It gives nothing away if it can
help it, and then, only with a lot of display.
2.
To get anything from the
sponge, you must squeeze it. It is good-natured, it yields to pressure, and
the more it is pressed, the more it gives.
3.
But then there is the
honeycomb. It gives without being asked at all. It just overflows with
sweetness.
B.
We are learning about Living by FAITH, and not by Sight.
1.
LOVING by faith, and not
just by sight, or by feelings
2.
WORKING by faith
3.
PRAYING by faith
4.
WORSHIPPING by faith
5.
MINISTERING by faith
6.
And it means GIVING by
faith
7.
Doing everything, by
FAITH, by trusting God, and trusting that HIS way is best!
C.
I want to preach this morning about FAITH PROMISE GIVING.
Giving by faith!
D.
Oh what a great subject! GIVING is the fruit of God’s
GRACE in our life
1.
We have been saved by
God’s grace – His GIVINGNESS!
2.
We are KEPT and Protected
by God’s grace
3.
And we are motivated to
GIVE by His grace as well!
4.
Has God been gracious to
you? Then you ought to want to be more like Him!
II.
Message
A.
Comparing the Tithe with Giving MORE than the Tithe.
Just look at how different each kind of giving
is!
Giving The Tithe – By Sight
compared with Giving to Missions – By
Faith
1.
We
give our tithes first by Commandment (Mal 3:10)
GIVING: We give beyond out tithes
because of God’s Grace in our lives (2Cor 8:1)
2.
10%
of our wages and income belong first to Him (Lev 27:32)
GIVING: As little or as much as you
want! (2Cor 9:8)
3.
Giving to our Church – not to charities, or to the poor, but our local,
Bible preaching church. Where people who get saved, are then grouped
together as a Church!
GIVING: Giving to Others! Whether
to poor, or to charities, but especially to Missions!
4.
To
Meet the Needs of this Church – we have bills to pay! A Church is not free!
a.
Think about it!
b.
Hymnals cost money
c.
Rent costs money – a lot
of money to rent this place
d.
Our Church Bus COSTS
MONEY! Insurance, Diesel, Upkeep
e.
Sunday School costs money
f.
Our Accountant costs money
g.
Insurance costs money
h.
Even TEA and COFFEE costs
money
i.
Its costs money to design
and print Gospel tracts
j.
It costs money to produce
our website
k.
It costs money to develop
everything that goes into our Youth Camps, Men’s Camps, and Bible Clubs
l.
Who pays for all that we
do? WE DO – by our giving of our tithes here, into that little Greenish/Blue
Box!
GIVING: To Meet the Needs of
Others. It is only to supply the needs of missionaries and church planting
projects (Philp 4:16,17).
5.
Out
of Obedience to God – because God said to do it
GIVING: Out of Love for God
6.
It’s
an Obligation / Duty of every Christian. Not just of rich people, but all
believers!
GIVING: A JOY (Acts 20:35) /
Opportunity
7.
Giving according to what you see in your wallet, and what you have in your
bank account
GIVING: Giving without looking, or
checking what you are able to do – just giving! (Prov 11:24,25)
8.
Not
a sacrifice – an obligation of what we owe God – just like going to the
Grocery Store, and gathering up a basket of foods… you pay for it all.
GIVING: IS a sacrifice – out of
what you need
9.
Is a
commitment to give 10% of all that we earn – out of the money we receive
every payday.
GIVING: It is a commitment of what
we can trust God to provide through us on a regular basis (2 Cor 8:1-4) -
giving “beyond your power
10.
Honours God (Proverbs 3:9) – part of our worship!
GIVING: Pleases God (2Cor 9:7)
11.
You
can Expect God to take care of you (Proverbs 3:10)
GIVING: Expect nothing in return!
You will actually often become poorer, so that others can be “rich” (2Cor
8:9)
12.
It
is Given as to the Lord (Col 3:23)
GIVING: Given as to the Lord (Col
3:23)
13.
Because we love God (John 14:15)
GIVING: Because we love souls (Rom
10:1)
14.
Hard
to get started! Works against our own coveteousness!
GIVING: Hard to stop!
B.
Giving Just for Missionaries and Church Planting (Romans
10:13-15)
1.
There are three
responsibilities for souls: Going, Praying, and Giving!
a.
They don’t normally just
come to us. We have to go to them! We have to start the conversations. We
have to suffer to let them know of the wrath to come, and how to be saved
from it!
b.
So, First, Going and
telling them they must be born again (Matthew 28:19,20). We ALL have to be
going. No exceptions! Jesus didn’t say, unless you are too busy, or you
don’t feel like going – He said GO! His LAST command!
c.
But when there are people
in far away countries, that need to hear as well, well, we cannot just
ignore them! Someone needs to go there too! And not every one of us can go
so far away!
d.
So those of us who cannot
go, then must be Praying, AND Giving so others can go!
2.
We often believe that
MONEY is not needed, but it IS
a.
How are people going to
hear and believe without preachers, missionaries, church planters?
b.
And, How shall they
preach, except they be SENT?
3.
People who cannot go,
SEND!
C.
What it means to SEND Missionaries/help support
Missionaries?
1.
We allow Missionaries to
ROB us – Taking what WE need, and giving to them! Missionaries (2Cor 11:7-9)
2.
Gladly spending and being
spent (2Cor 12:14,15)
a.
We know MISSIONARIES ought
to be spending themselves up for souls
b.
But so should WE too!
3.
Helping missionaries be
self-sufficient in a foreign country (3John 1:7)
4.
Not a burden to the people
there (1Thes 2:9; 2Thes 3:8,9), but free!
D.
How to Tithe
1.
The government demands
first take!
a.
20% of all income, with an
additional 1% Income Levy on top of that
b.
We pay 41% on every bit of
interest that we may make at the Bank through our meagre savings accounts
c.
THEN, we all pay a tax of
23% on almost everything we buy!
d.
And that doesn’t include
the Stamp Duty Taxes, PRSI taxes, Property Tax, Non-Principle Private
Residency Levy on people who own a second home, the Universal Social
Charges, and the list goes on and on!
e.
At the end of the week, we
have less than 50% of the money we worked for!
f.
That’s socialism.
2.
But do you know what? God
doesn’t care what government we are under.
3.
God deserves the 10% that
He asks for! And He deserves it FIRST, ahead of Revenue.ie!!!
4.
Look at your pay-packet,
baby-sitting money, ebay sale, welfare check, and note your income this week
– your total income before the government got its filthy hands on your
money!
5.
Remember, if you got any
income, God gave it to you! Gave you health, a beneavolent government, a job
6.
Take 1/10th of
that amount, and give it as an offering back to God. He SHOULD ask for all
of it back, but asks us to honour Him with just 10%.
7.
Then you are done.
8.
And God will take care of
you.
a.
It does not mean you will
be a millionaire, but He will bless you and take good care of you, as you
trust Him!
b.
God will make the monies
left over go further than if you didn’t tithe!
9.
Examples:
a.
You make €22,000 a year
(€423 a week)
1)
10% of that is €42.30
2)
The government will
automatically take out at least 30% as well
3)
But God will make the
monies left over go further than if you didn’t tithe!
b.
You make €85,000 a year
(€1,635 a week)
1)
10% of that is €164
2)
You would think you would
be more able to afford to tithe, but it is just as hard as if you only made
€22,000! Why? Because the government will take out over 40% of their income!
3)
But God will make sure the
monies left over will go further than if they didn’t tithe!
c.
You make €100 a week
Baby-sitting, or Mowing Grass
1)
10% of that is €10
2)
And do you know what? God
will make sure the monies left over will go further than if you didn’t
tithe!
10.
So, who all should tithe?
Every Bible believing Christian?
11.
Where do we tithe to? Our
local church, so it can pay its bills, and can rent its meeting hall, and
someday own its own building!
E.
Now, How to GIVE!
1.
After you have tithed, and
paid what we owe, now we can experience the joy of GIVING
a.
You may not enjoy tithing,
any more than paying taxes
b.
But you CAN enjoy giving
(and you will)!
2.
By Faith
a.
Given as to the Lord
b.
As little or as much as
you want
c.
Give to Meet the Needs of
Others. It is only to supply the needs of missionaries and church planting
projects (Philp 4:16,17).
d.
Out of Love for God
e.
At every Opportunity
f.
Without worrying about
where it is going to come from – just giving! (Prov 11:24,25)
g.
AS a sacrifice – out of
what you need
h.
Trusting God to provide
through us on a regular basis (2 Cor 8:1-4) - giving “beyond your power
i.
Expect nothing in return!
j.
Because we love souls
3.
As a Promise
a.
Not just because you feel
like it
b.
But because you decide to
GIVE by faith as much as you have decided to LIVE by faith!
c.
Promise God, that as long
as he gives you extra money, you will give it for souls to be reached with
the Gospel!
d.
Missionaries need us to
promise that money will be there for THEM
4.
For Souls - To
Missions and Missionaries!
a.
Missions is not about
feeding the poor, doing medical work, education, human rights, housing,
helping with addictions…
b.
Those are all great
efforts, but the core reason why we send missionaries is to preach the life
changing, soul-saving Gospel (Mark 1:38; 16:15)
c.
Give, for souls to hear
how to be saved from the devil’s grip! According to Romans 10:14,15, they
are NOT going to get saved without a PREACHER, and preachers are not going
to be able to go, unless we SEND them!
5.
FAITH, PROMISE, MISSIONS, GIVING!
Not tithing, but GIVING! All money, when designated for Missions on the
Brown Offering Envelopes, will go directly to our 8 Missionaries! And
prayerfully to more as we give more!
III.
Conclusion
A.
We are on a year long journey of Learning to Live by
FAITH, and not by Sight, which means:
1.
LOVING others by faith,
and not just by sight, or by feelings
2.
WORKING by faith, instead
of only by strength or ability
3.
PRAYING by faith
4.
WORSHIPPING by faith
5.
MINISTERING to others by
faith
6.
And it means GIVING by
faith
B.
So, this morning we have heard not just about Tithing,
but about Faith Promise Giving. Giving by faith!
C.
What kind of a Giver are you?
A flint, A sponge, or a honeycomb? I
can tell just by your response to this message from God’s Word! I desire to
give by faith!
D.
Giving by Sight means the Tithe. Something we are
supposed to do! Something you should already be doing.
1.
It Meets the Needs of this
Church – we have bills to pay! This is not free!
2.
An Obligation / Duty of
every Christian. Not just of rich people, but all believers!
3.
Honours God (Proverbs 3:9)
4.
Because we love God (John
14:15)
E.
Giving By Faith means Giving to Missions – something we
all need to start doing!
1.
It Meets the Needs of
Others.
2.
It is a JOY (Acts 20:35) /
Opportunity
3.
It Pleases God (2Cor 9:7)
4.
Because we love souls (Rom
10:1)
a.
How are people going to
hear and believe without preachers, missionaries, church planters?
b.
And, How shall they
preach, except they be SENT?
c.
People who cannot go,
SEND!
F.
Are You Tithing?
1.
Tax Evaders are
Law-Breakers and should go to jail shouldn’t they?
2.
God deserves the 10% that
He asks for! And He deserves it FIRST, ahead of Revenue.ie!!!
3.
Do you understand HOW to
tithe now?
4.
Good!
5.
Do you want to get OUT of
debt? Then start honouring God with your money first, and you will have
enough for the rest of the bills.
G.
Are You Ready to GIVE?
1.
By Faith?
2.
As a Promise?
3.
For Souls? To Missions and
Missionaries!
H.
In a few weeks, I will
hand out some commitment Cards, and we will find out if we are all ready.
I.
If you would like one
today, while the iron is hot, so to speak, then take one, and fill it out
and put it into the Green Box. Your commitment could be a great commitment
to someone else!
J.
Let me tell you now about
the Greatest Giver of all time…
1.
His name is Jesus
2.
He left everything behind
Him, and was born into poverty and want
3.
Everything He ever did,
was FOR others, at great personal cost to Himself
4.
In the end, no one thanked
Him, and almost everyone called for His death
5.
And even in death, He gave
to others
a.
To that thief next to Him,
He gave the gift of eternal life
b.
To the world, He offered
forgiveness
c.
To sinners He gave grace
d.
To the lost, He opened
heaven’s door
6.
“For God so loved the
world, that he gave his only begotten Son…”