Untitled Sermon (3)

THE GENEROUS LIFE

WEEK TWO - Action

Main Idea: As we become aware of the needs around us we are moved to take action.

Prayer: “I want to experience the joy that comes from being generous. I ask that today an opportunity to be generous will come my way, that I will recognize it when it does, and that I will have the courage to jump in and give.”

Scripture: Matthew 14:15-21, Proverbs 11:24

Introduction

We are in the second week of a three-week series called, The Generous Life, where we are looking at the life-changing power of being generous. We believe God has called us to partner with his kingdom work in the world by blessing the people around us in a variety of ways.

If you missed last week, we highlighted seven different ways in which we can be generous.

We can be generous with our thoughts, words, money, influence, time, attention, and belongings.

As we said last week, Generosity is about far more than your money.

Generosity is about taking your entire life - everything you are and everything you own - and using it to bless the people around you.

Last week we talked about the first step on the pathway to a generous life: awareness.

I pray the Holy Spirit has helped you keep your antenna up, and has shown you opportunities to be generous to the people around you.

This morning we are going to talk about the second step on our path towards a generous life

This morning we're going to talk about activating our generosity.

Main Teaching

The desire to be generous is important, but desire alone does not make us generous.

If we want to live a generous life, then we have to get active. This reminds me of my efforts to become physically healthy.

When I look in the mirror and see some things I want to change, that's a great first step. But if all I ever do is look in the mirror and I never change my diet or go to the gym, then I'm not going to become a healthy person. In order to drop the extra pounds I am carrying around, I have to move from desire to action.

I have to track my calorie intake, set aside time for the gym, and make sure it gets into my calendar.

The same thing is true with generosity.

If we want to become generous people, then we have to do generous things, and we have to do them on purpose.

So here's my question for you: what are you doing to be generous?

What are you going to do today that blesses another person?

Once we move from a desire to be generous to actually being generous, something amazing happens.

We start to see opportunities everywhere.

You might notice this same phenomenon taking place the last time you purchased a new vehicle.

Isn't it interesting that as soon as we purchase a new car, it seems like everyone else on the road is driving the same car?

In psychology, this is known as the, “Baader-Meinhof phenomenon” or “frequency illusion.”

No, everyone didn’t go buy the same car you have, it's your brain now adjusting to notice things that are important to you.

All of those cars were on the road before, you just didn't notice them until you took the step of purchasing the car.

The same thing is true with generosity.

Once we start living generously, our brain will start searching for more opportunities. How cool is that!

When we pray, the Holy Spirit helps us.

When we activate our generosity, our brain starts helping us as well!

It seems so simple doesn't it?

Generous people do generous things.

Why is it then that so many of us desire to be generous, but so few of us are actually living out that generosity in the world?

There's a story in the gospels I think might help us answer this question. It's found in Matthew chapter 14:15-21.

Let's take a look at the story.

“As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, this is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food. Jesus replied, they do not need to go away. You give them something to eat. We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish, they answered.”

I want to set the scene and give you some context for what's happening in this story.

Jesus is surrounded by thousands of people who are gathered together to see him. He is teaching, and he is healing sick people.

The passage tells us there were five thousand men present, but this doesn't include women and children, which means the number was probably closer to 20,000. It is a big crowd of people.

As it starts to get late in the day, the disciples come to Jesus with a problem. They notice it's starting to get dark, and the people haven't eaten dinner. The disciples are concerned that if the people aren't sent home to get dinner, they will be forced to travel at night. Traveling at night in the ancient world was very dangerous. So when the disciples come to Jesus, they aren't complaining, or being petty. Quite the opposite in fact. They identified a legitimate need impacting a large group of people. Now we would expect Jesus at this point to say something like, “You know what? You're right. Let's send them home to make sure that they get what they need.” Or maybe the disciples were thinking Jesus would do some sort of miracle to make sure everyone had the food they needed and got home safely. The disciples did exactly what all of us who believe in Jesus have been taught to do. They identified a need, and they brought the need to Jesus. This is what we are supposed to do right? This is what the Bible tells us to do. When you see a problem or identify a need, you bring it to Jesus. You pray about it. This is what makes Jesus' response so confusing. Listen to what he says:

“You give them something to eat.”

When the disciples come to Jesus with a problem, Jesus responds by telling them to solve it. He doesn't perform a miracle, he doesn't give them a solution. Instead, he puts the responsibility back on the disciples. And the disciples respond exactly how we would probably respond in the same situation:

“We only have five loaves of bread and two fish.”

When Jesus puts the responsibility back on the disciples, their first response is to make sure he understands their limitations. They are talking about loaves and fish in this story, but really what they're saying is, “We don't have enough.” Have you ever felt this way? You see a problem in the world, you see a need in your neighborhood, you identify an opportunity to be generous, and what is the first thought that comes into your mind? I don't have enough! I don't have enough time, I don't have enough money, I don't have enough influence. We identify opportunities to be generous, and then we allow our limitations to keep us from action. This is the answer to the question I asked earlier. Why does our desire to be generous not translate into actual generosity? I believe the real reason is because we allow our limitations to stop us. But Jesus does not let his disciples off the hook here. He doesn't say to them, “You're right I guess, there's too many people and not enough food.” Instead, he gives them a very specific instruction:

“Bring them here to me.”

Don't miss this! Jesus tells the disciples to bring what they have, and give it to him. They have five loaves of bread, and two fish. This is all they have to feed a crowd of almost 20,000 people. The disciples aren't wrong in their assessment of the situation. They do not have enough food for 20,000 people. The mistake the disciples make is looking at their limitations instead of looking to the Lord. They are so focused on what they don’t have, they failed to see what they did have. And what do they have? They have Jesus sitting there with them. Look at what happens when the disciples look past their limitations and bring what they have to Jesus:

“And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the Five Loaves in the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the law. Then he gave them to the disciples and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and we're satisfied, and the disciples picked up 12 basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.”

Isn't this amazing? Something miraculous happens. Jesus does what the disciples could never do on their own, but he doesn't do it until the disciples take a step of action.

Is it possible Jesus has amazing things he wants to do in the world?

● Is it possible Jesus wants to take our effort and multiply it in ways far beyond what we could ever imagine?

Is it possible Jesus wants to do all of these things, but he is waiting on us to take the first step?

I love this quote from Saint Augustine, “Without God, we cannot. Without us, God will not.” God is waiting on his people to move from a desire to be generous, to actual generosity. And much as he did with the loaves and the fishes, when we take a step toward generosity he will multiply our efforts. If I was going to put this into a formula, it might look something like this:

What We Have + Who God is = Enough.

It really is this simple. If we have the faith to look past our limitations and bring what we have to God, he will use our generosity to change the lives of people. And it doesn't just change the lives of other people, this type of faithful generosity changes our lives as well. Not only does it bring us closer to the heart of God, it even helps us physically. According to a study done by The Stony Brook University School of Medicine in New York, generosity lowers our blood pressure, lowers our risk of dementia, lessens our anxiety and depression, reduces our cardiovascular risk, and increases our overall happiness. These physical changes do not only take place in the person being generous, but they also affect the recipient of generosity. The bottom line is this: activating our generosity makes everything better.

I want to share an amazing story with you today that demonstrates the power of taking what we have and giving it to God.

Friends, God has so much he wants to give us. He has so much he wants to do through us. He is waiting on us to take a step of faithful generosity, and what he does next will blow us away.

Conclusion

So here is the million dollar question: How do we do it? How do we move from a desire for generosity to active generosity? There are multiple answers to that question, but today I want to share one action step with you. I believe if you take this action step, you will see God move in powerful ways. If you want to activate your generosity: start small.

That’s it! All we have to do is start with something small and simple. Many times we delay generosity because we are waiting for the bigger or better opportunity to come along. But I believe God is providing opportunities for generosity right where we are. We can start with the people right around us we see everyday. And here’s the best part - If you are faithful with the small things, God will keep providing you with greater opportunities. Proverbs 11:24 says, "The world of the generous gets larger and larger." I love this verse. The Bible tells us when we become generous, the world gets bigger and the opportunities become more frequent. Start right where you are. Don’t allow your limitations to keep you from giving what you have to God. Trust Him to multiply your faithful efforts. Move from a desire for generosity to actually living generously. If you do, I can promise the results will be more than you can possibly imagine.

God is waiting on you. All you have to do is do something.

I want to end with the prayer we introduced last week. Will you pray this with me? For yourself, for our church, and for Christians everywhere.

Let’s pray together.

I want to experience the joy that comes from being generous. I ask that today an opportunity to be generous will come my way, that I will recognize it when it does, and that I will have the courage to jump in and give. AMEN