Generous People
Grateful • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Grateful ppl are Generous ppl
The more grateful we are, the more generous we can become.
God’s economy: Being generous leads to being prosperous.
25 A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
Why God loves blessing those that bless others
11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
generous on every occasion / generosity will result in thanksgiving to God
More Grateful = More Generosity = More Grateful = More Generosity
38 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 with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
For the measure you use - measured to you
1. Gratitude fuels generosity: When we recognize how much we have been blessed, we are more inclined to give freely to others.
“Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for.” - Zig Ziglar
More Grateful = More Generosity = More Grateful = More Generosity
2 In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
The Macedonian churches that Paul was using as an example had experienced severe difficulties, and yet they had given generously. They had not simply gone through “affliction”; they had experienced a “great trial of affliction” (2 Cor. 8:2).
They were in deep poverty, which means “rock-bottom destitution.” The word describes a beggar who has absolutely nothing and has no hope of getting anything. Their difficult situation may have been caused in part by their Christian faith, for they may have lost their jobs or been excluded from the trade guilds because they refused to have anything to do with idolatry.
But their circumstances did not hinder them from giving. In fact, they gave joyfully and liberally!
No computer could analyze this amazing formula: great affliction and deep poverty plus grace = abundant joy and abounding liberality!
It reminds us of the paradox in Paul’s ministry: “as poor, yet making many rich”
10 sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
Grateful for your Salvation:
Grace not only frees us from our sins, but it frees us from ourselves. The grace of God will open your heart and your hand. Your giving is not the result of cold calculation, but of warmhearted jubilation!
18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.
3. A grateful heart is a giving heart: True gratitude expresses itself in generosity and sharing.
11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
- "You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God."
4. God's provision inspires giving: Remembering that every good gift is from God inspires us to give to others.
James 1:17 "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."
17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
5. Generous living reflects God's love: Our generosity is a reflection of God's abundant love and grace towards us.
18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.
"They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share."
