Pinching Pennies

It has been over two months since we last spent time in 1 Corinthians. That’s a long time! You have heard a lot of sermons from many different people on many different topics. Some of the sermons were delivered by people just starting in the sermonizing realm. One was given by someone just leaving this earth. Paul Boeker preached his last sermon here and entered glory a few weeks ago.

One day, when Christ calls us home, we will see him again, in a place where there is no more crying, death, or pain. Jesus said: behold, I am making all things new.

9 weeks ago, we finished 6 weeks in 1 Corinthians 15, we discussed the Gospel and the resurrection. How, because the amazing gift of Jesus Christ, his dying on the cross for our sins, allows us an eternity in paradise with him.

Paul wrote of the Gospel:

1 Corinthians 15:1–8 NIV

Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

Those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ, who have believed and stood upon the Gospel is promised, guaranteed a resurrection in the end of time.

Paul says:

1 Corinthians 15:20–23 NIV

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

Paul is writing to a church that confesses to have placed their faith in Jesus Christ, but he knows that some are in that church who have not.

The same is true here at Calvary Bible Church. So many of us come because we want to worship God. Great! That’s why we should be here! To worship God, to learn about him, and to push each other towards holiness and good works.

But, some are here for other reasons, because they have not made the personal decision to trust Jesus as their savior, to receive the gift that he has offered. The hope of eternity is not theirs.

Which one are you? Have you made the decision yourself to receive Jesus’ gift of salvation, trusting in him alone and entering that personal relationship that lasts for eternity. Some might say that they have done it, but it is because they took communion or were baptised or did all sorts of religious things. But that isn’t it.

Trusting in Jesus is not about our works. It is about giving up. Turning to Jesus and saying: I believe that you are the Son of God and that you died on the cross for my sins, because I couldn’t do anything to save myself. I realize that I need you alone, so I trust you, not in my works to save me.

Those who believe in Jesus alone will be saved. Have you done it? Do it today.

So, Paul is writing to a church were some are not followers of Jesus Christ. But, many are.

And to those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ, who are guaranteed the coming resurrection, he writes:

1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

He says: If we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus died for us, because of his love for us, we will live for him. We will “always give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord.”

Because of the promised resurrection, guaranteed by Jesus’ death on the cross, Paul writes in our passage today:

1 Corinthians 16:1–4 NIV

Now about the collection for the Lord’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me.

Paul believes that our salvation will change how we worship. He believes it will change how we live. He believes that Gospel changes how we handle our money.

Because of the blessing of God, the followers of God give wisely and systemically from the provision of God to bless others.

While that is my outline and the point of this sermon, I want to narrow it down for us. God blessed us, so let’s bless others.

The Blessing of God

Let’s discuss the blessing of God.

I find it fascinating the term that Paul uses for the gift that the Corinthians are collecting and will send down to the need in Jerusalem. The term is “grace.”

The same word that Paul uses in

Romans 3:23–24 NIV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Grace: something that God gives to those who do not deserve it. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Grace. Redemption and reconciliation. Grace. Guarantee of eternity on a perfected earth. Grace.

God has blessed us with so much. But, we could talk about so much more. We could talk about the Holy Spirit and our spiritual gifts. Grace. We could talk about the ability to serve God. Grace.

But, let’s be even more practical. The cars that are in our parking lot. Grace. Air conditioning and heat. Grace. The health that we have. Grace. The money in our pockets or in our bank accounts. Grace.

2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

We are people who are so fortunate. Everything that we have is because of the graciousness of God. And he has promised to provide everything that we need for all of eternity.

Warren Wiersbe writes this:

“It is interesting that Paul mentioned the offering just after his discussion about the resurrection. There were no “chapter breaks” in the original manuscripts, so the readers would go right from Paul’s hymn of victory into his discussion about money. Doctrine and duty go together; so do worship and works. Our giving is “not in vain” because our Lord is alive. It is His resurrection power that motivates us to give and to serve.”

God has blessed us so much.

The Followers of God

Let’s discuss the followers of God.

As I said earlier, there is a group of people who have turned from their sins and declared their faith in Jesus Christ.

These followers of Jesus Christ are part of every nationality and gender. They span the economic tiers. They come from all backgrounds. And Jesus saves them all as they come to him in humility and say: “I need you. I cannot survive by myself.”

When they come to him in humble faith, he saves them. He makes them into new creations spiritually. But, he leaves us as we are physically.

That’s why we have people in the hospital. That’s why we have medicine. Because we are still living in a body and in a world that is marred by sin. We are waiting for eternity. It hasn’t come yet.

Throughout our lives, we will go through cycles where we have needs that we cannot supply for, whether those needs are emotional, physical, financial. We need our family, the church, to come alongside us and meet those needs.

Other times, we go through a cycle where we have abundance, emotionally, physically, financially, whether we realize it or not, in order that we might help the followers of Christ in their moments of need.

Now, I have to speak very carefully here. Because, in my discussion of the cycle of life, I have almost painted a picture of a group of people who are the givers and the group of people who are the receivers.

However, when God gives commands to his people, he never partitions the commands. His people, because of the blessing of God, are urged to respond to that blessing by blessing others.

If we are followers of Jesus Christ, no matter what situation we are in, we are wallowing under the blessing of God, and therefore should respond, not with self-pity and victimhood, but with an overwhelming realization of how much we have been blessed. Seizing that identity and living according to it.

With that identity, we can more fully understand 2 Cor 9 8

2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

He blesses us, so that we can abound in every good work.

We have looked at the blessing of God. We have looked at the followers of God, who are the recipients of God’s blessing.

Because of the Blessing of God, the Followers of God Give

Because of the Blessing of God, the followers of God give.

Or, as I mentioned before: God has blessed us, so let’s bless others.

In our text, Paul writes:

1 Corinthians 16:1–2 NIV

Paul has an expectation that the people of God would give. This giving was not necessarily out of a sense of obligation, but out of an understanding of all the ways that God has blessed us. It is interesting that in the early church, salvation was followed by giving.

We can look at the very beginning:

Acts 2:42–45 NIV

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.

Why?

Because Paul and the early church never called giving a tithe. It was never something done out of obligation, instead the terms that they use are “gift of kindness or of generosity; act of service; act of fellowship, partnership, sharing, or solidarity; a blessing; an act of service to God”

Paul, the rest of the apostles, and most of the early church, realized that what they did with their finances showed who they worshiped and they resolved to show through their finances that God was their God. He was the one who provided everything that they needed. Because he had provided everything, they resolved to be used by him to provide for others.

Because of the blessing of God, the followers of God give.

Because of the Blessing of God, the Followers of God Give from the Provision of God

Because of the blessing of God, the followers of God give from the provision of God.

Now we are getting into the mouthful. Just in case you have forgotten the short phrase:

God has blessed us, so let’s bless others.

Some people might look at the concept of giving and say: That’s great. But, have you seen my bank account? It’s non-existent. Many people live paycheck-to-paycheck. They don’t know how to pay their bills and provide food on the table, much less take some money to give to someone else.

Those people look at these passages and say: That’s great, but Paul must be meaning those who are rolling in the dough. They can give because they can afford it.

Unfortunately for those people, Corinth was a lot like our church. They had people from all levels of the socioeconomic scale. They had people who were well-off, and people who were barely scraping by.

Paul looks at this church and he does not say:

1 Corinthians 16:1–2 (NIV)

Now about the collection for the Lord’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you who are rich should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.

No, he says:

1 Corinthians 16:1–2 NIV

He expected everyone who was a follower of Christ to worship with their wallet. And they were to do it, “in keeping with their income.” Which is a rather poor translation. May of these in the church were slaves and had no real income. It should rather be translated: “in keeping with whatever success or prosperity may have come their way that week.”

It is saying: you know, God has blessed me this week, and I am going to give out of that blessing. The early church didn’t do the tithe. Which many of us are glad to hear, because we don’t want to give a tenth of our income. What we don’t like to hear: the early church gave so much more than a tenth of their income. Many of the rich ones sold houses and properties and gave everything to the church.

I like to tell people that a tenth is a good base-line, to make sure that finances are not our God, but we should be willing to give more, because God gave everything to us.

Maggie and I in our budget, set aside at least a tenth of what we receive. A little more than tenth of what the church gives to us, we give back to the church to help with the ministries here. A tenth of what we receive from our supporters, we give regularly to a few missionaries here in the US and in other countries..

As Dave Ramsey says: let’s live and give like no one else.

Because of the Blessing of God, the followers of God give from the provision of God.

Because of the Blessing of God, the Followers of God Give from the Provision of God to Bless Others

Because of the blessing of God, the followers of God give from the provision of God to bless others.

Again, the mouthful. What was the small phrase that you were supposed to remember?

God has blessed us, so let’s bless others.

What is our giving, our offering, to be used for?

This passage is focused solely on giving to those who are followers of Christ, needy, and not in their community.

1 Corinthians 16:3 NIV

Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem.

There was a famine in Judea and many people in Jerusalem didn’t have work or enough food to eat.

We see Paul taking collections for poor Christians in many places he ministered. He writes about it in Gal 2, 2 Cor 8 and 9, and Rom 15. We see this ministry throughout Acts, and we see the advancement of the Gospel, among both the rich and the poor because of the church stepping up to help those whom no one would help.

Our church has a line-item in our budget to help those who don’t have food or who cannot meet their utility payments.

We give to bless others who don’t have enough.

But, before this offering for the poor was taken, the churches were also taking an offering for the leadership of the church. I preached a sermon that was very awkward to preach last year on October 16th, where Paul writes:

1 Corinthians 9:7 NIV

Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink the milk?

He continues to talk about how those who preach the Gospel, who pastor a church, deserve to be paid for what they do.

So, God has blessed us, so let’s bless others, by giving so that the needy might be taken care of, by giving so that the pastor might be taken care of.

In addition to taking care of the pastor, there was an offering for the ministry of the church. We use that for caring for our building and grounds, for outreaches, for Sunday schools and youth groups. All ways to bless others spiritually.

God has blessed us, so let’s bless others.

I struggled whether I should do this or not.

But, let’s be practical. We have 38 families who attend Calvary Bible on a semi-regular basis.

If each family was on the federal poverty line, roughly an income of $23000 a year. And each family merely tithed on that income. We would have an operating budget of $87400.

This year, based on current giving, we could have had an operating budget of $67820.

What would we as a church do, if we gave control of our finances over to God. If we said, “God has blessed us, let’s bless others.” And we pooled our resources to show our community who our God is.

Because of the blessing of God, the followers of God give from the provision of God to bless others.

Because of the Blessing of God, the Followers of God Give Wisely and Systemically from the Provision of God to Bless Others

Now, I need to talk about two words really quickly: wisely and systemically.

First, systemically.

Paul told the Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 16:2 NIV

On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.

The early church met on Sunday, the first day of the week. We can talk about why another time. We still have this practice. Paul told them to lay aside every week out of what they had been blessed with.

They were not to have a “oh, when I feel like it.” or an “oh, I don’t have enough.” or an “I really didn’t like the sermon” or “I don’t really like the direction of what is happening.”

The giving was to be systemic. A system. A routine. God blesses us all the time, so we turn around and bless others all the time.

It is interesting. There are many ways to tell the health of a church. One is by the emphasis on prayer. One is by the emphasis on evangelism. One is by the depth of discipleship, the learning about Christ. One is by the amount of men stepping up to lead spiritually. But, a huge tell is by the giving in the church. A spiritually-healthy church will be a church that gives to bless others. A spiritually-dying church is full of people who pinch dimes and pennies.

Our giving is to be systemic.

Our giving is to be wise.

Paul told the Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 16:3–4 NIV

Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me.

Every church that gave to help Christians in other parts of the world never gave the money to Paul to take. He always asked the church to take the money themselves. They went as a group to protect the money on the way and make sure all of it was deposited where it needed to go.

We desire to be wise about gifts given by to God. We ditched the offering plate in the back to help with that. We now have a box. We have online giving options to remove the person factor from the mix. When we count money, our policy is to have two people in the back, and sometimes Brook, Gene, or Dean grabs one of you to sit back there with them. Roxie does our finances, but she cannot sign any of the checks. All this is to protect. To be wise with the gifts that God’s people gives.

I’ve run out of time.

Because of the Blessing of God, the Followers of God Give Wisely and Systemically from the Provision of God to Bless Others.