"Grace Giving: It's Not about the Amount, It's About the Heart"

Foundational Scriptures

2 Corinthians 8:1-9

Introduction

Let’s talk about something the church has either avoided, abused, or weaponized for too long: giving. For generations, we’ve heard it preached: “Will a man rob God?” We’ve been told, “If your don’t tithe, you’re cursed with a curse.” But we’ve also heard folks say in the modern church say “Tithing is Old Testament. We’re under grace, not the Law!” Let’s make sure we understand that the church Jesus built requires financial support from those who are members. Salvation and supporting the church are not separate; salvation should spur us to support the church financially speaking.

So which is it?

Is the tithe still required?

Or do we give however we feel led?

Let me be very clear:

“Tithing was never about the law, it was always about the Lord.”

Before Moses ever climbed Mount Sinai, Abraham tithed to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:20), not because he had to—but because he wanted to honor God’s greatness. So, yes the tithe has roots in the Law—but its heart is older than the Law, and its fulfillment is deeper than obligation. Under the New Covenant, we are not called to give by law, but by grace—and grace never lowers the standard. It lifts it.

“If the Law said give 10%, how much more should grace cause us to give?”

So today, I’m not here to make you feel bad if you don’t tithe. I’m here to challenge you to go even deeper than tithing, into grace giving, where giving isn’t driven by a calculator, but by conviction.

Sermon in a Sentence

Grace giving isn’t about meeting a percentage—it’s about reflecting the heart of a God who gave everything, not because He had to, but because He loved us too much not to.

What is Grace Giving?

Grace giving is the Spirit-led, joyful, and sacrificial act of generosity that flows from a heart transformed by the gospel—rooted not in obligation or law, but in the abundant grace of Jesus Christ, who “though he was rich, yet for our sake became poor” (2 Cor. 8:9), so that believers give not earn favor, but as a response to the favor they’ve already received (2 Cor. 9:7). In grace giving, our financial contributions are measured to the proportion of grace that we have been given.

Context of 2 Corinthians 8

Paul isn’t writing to raise an offering—he’s writing to raise their understanding. In 2 Corinthians 8, the apostle steps into the economic tension of the early church. The saints in Jerusalem were suffering—poverty, persecution, famine, and isolation. The mother church needed help, and Paul, with the wisdom of both pastor and a strategist, appeals to the generosity of the Gentile churches to support their Jewish brothers and sisters in the faith.

But instead of starting with commands, Paul begins with a story—a living testimony of what grace looks like when it has financial fruit. He lifts up the churches of Macedonia (Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea), who despite being broke and burdened, gave with joy and urgency. They didn’t wait for their breakthrough to give—they gave in the middle of their brokenness. They didn’t say, “we can’t afford to give”—they gave what they couldn’t afford to give, and God counted it as abundance. Paul says in 2 Cor. 8:2

2 Corinthians 8:2 ESV

2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.

Now that doesn’t make sense in worldly economics, but it make perfect Kingdom sense. Paul isn’t teaching about fundraising—he’s teaching about grace giving: Giving that flows not from excess, but from encounter. Giving not driven by guilt, but by gratitude. Giving not controlled by the Law, but compelled by the Lord.

“Faith in giving is not measured by how your give when you abound...faith is measured by how you give when you still give when you’re afflicted.”

It is here that Paul pivots to challenge the church at Corinth—wealthier, more gifted, but slower to respond. They had promised to give, but hadn’t followed through. So Paul says, “If they can give from nothing, surely you can give from something.” Again—he doesn’t manipulate them. He points them to Jesus.” Paul says in 2 Cor. 8:9

2 Corinthians 8:9 ESV

9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

Paul says in essence: “Look at the cross. That’s what real giving looks like.” He doesn’t shame them into giving—-he shepherds them into grace. Because grace giving isn’t about transferring money—it’s about transforming minds. It’s about how saved people see their resources differently, not as something to store up, but something to sow forward. This chapter reminds us that giving is not a tax of church memebership—it’s a testimony of spiritual maturity. The Macedonians gave with joy because grace had first gripped their hearts, and now, Paul invites Corinth—and us—to let that same grace grip us too.

Tithing was the floor—Grace is the ceiling

Ref.: Malachi 3:10; Matthew 23:23; Genesis 14:20

Let’s clear this up right now: the tithe was never the finish line—it was the starting block. In the Old Testament, the tithe—the first tenth—was required as part of the covenantal system God established with Israel. It was a training ground, a spiritual baseline, to teach the people that everything they had came from God. Not just their flocks, not just their fields, but their very ability to produce was a gift from from the Lord (Deut. 8:18).

The tithe was systematic, structured, and sacred. But grace is supernatural, spontaneous, and overflowing. Before the Law was even written, Abraham tithed to Melchizedek (Gen. 14:20), not under obligation, but out of revelation—he gave because he had seen the greatness of God and responded with honor. That’s grace giving before the Law was born. Then Jesus steps in during Matthew 23:23

Matthew 23:23 ESV

23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.

Jesus is not speaking to poor people, but to religious leaders who tithed meticulously but were spiritually malnourished. Simply translated, “Yes, tithe, but don’t think tithing gets you off the hook for justice, mercy, and faithfulness.” Christians understand that giving does not provide you a get out of work pass. Christians must be able to multitask; giving and working. See, for Jesus, the tithe was not abolished—it was exposed. It was never supposed to be the ceiling—it was always the foundation. Tithing is like spiritual training wheels—its helps teach discipline, but it was never meant to be the destination. Because you grow in grace, giving becomes natural, not negotiated. You don’t need to pushed—you’re already pulled by love. So yes, tithing is biblical. Yes, it’s a beautiful starting point, but don’t get stuck at 10% if God’s grace has covered 100% of your sin, 100% of your shame, and 100% of your story. Here’s the questions: If the Law required 10%...What does the cross require?

“The Law demands 10%. Grace transforms 100%.”

When grace grabs your heart, you don’t ask “How much do I have to give?” You ask, “How much can I sow to show my gratitude for what Christ has done?” Let’s be real—some folks tithe down to the penny but won’t give the Holy Spirit an inch. That’s not worship. That’s calculation. Grace giving isn’t calculated by percentage—it’s expressed by passion. If God gave us everything in Jesus, how dare we argue over fractions.

Psalm 116:12 ESV

12 What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits to me?

“God nowhere tells us to give up things for the sake of giving them up. He tells us to give them up for the sake of the only thing worth having, viz., life with Himself.”

Oswald Chambers (Lecturer and Missionary)

Grace giving starts with surrender, not the wallet

2 Corinthians 8:5 ESV

5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.

In Greek, the phrase, “they gave themselves first to the Lord” uses the word (heautous)—a reflexive pronoun. They gave their whole selves, not just a portion. It reflects complete devotion—like a burnt offering in the Old Testament that wasn’t partially consumed—it was fully surrendered. So when Paul describes their giving, he doesn’t start with coins—he starts with consecration.

Before they reached for their pockets, they reached for the presence of God. Before they gave their offering, they gave their obedience. Before they filled a plate, they emptied their hearts. Paul says these Macedonian believers—who were already suffering—”gave themselves first to the Lord.” That’s not just financial language—that’s covenant language. That’s worship language. That’s surrender language.

Grace giving is never about money first—its about mastery. Who is your Lord? Who owns your heart? Who has your trust?

These people didn’t give because they were manipulated. They didn’t give because they were made to feel guilty. They gave because they had already given themselves to God. The offering they gave was just an overflow of their surrender.

“Grace giving doesn’t start when you write the check—it starts when you yield the heart.”

Too many in the church are trying to give without being given over. They want to fund the kingdom but still control the terms. They want to give a little seed and expect God to do everything—but haven’t surrendered themselves. Paul says, until you give yourself, your gift isn’t complete.

Real giving starts in the soul. If you’re still holding back your will, your worship, your walk—then your wallet isn’t the issue. Your lordship is...God is not impressed with dollar amounts. He’s moved by devoted hearts. The Macedonians gave so powerfully because they weren’t trying to earn grace—they were responding to it.

Let me say it this way:

You can tithe and still be spiritually dry.

You can sow and still be selfish.

You can give publicly and still be withholding privately.

“Grace giving says: “Lord, I give You me—then I’ll give You my money.”

This is about ownership...because when you give yourself fully to the Lord, your resources follow naturally. Your giving becomes worship, not wages...your generosity becomes a gospel echo, not a religious exercise.

You have to ask yourself:

Have I given God my money, but withheld my motives?

Am I sowing finances but holding back faith?

Have I given myself fully—my dreams, decisions, direction—to the Lord?

My beloved, don’t confuse charitable acts with Christ-centered surrender. God doesn’t just want your offering—He wants you. Because if He has you, the giving will follow. If He has your heart, He won’t have to beg for your hand, and when you give yourself first, your generosity becomes a testimony—not of wealth, but of worship.

“When the heart is surrendered, the hand is generous.”

Grace giving reflects the heart of the gospel

2 Corinthians 8:9 ESV

9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

This one verse is the theological center of the whole chapter. This verse is not just sentimental—it’s Christological. It reflects kenosis—the self-emptying of Christ (Phil. 2:5-8). He did not count His riches as something to be exploited, but emptied Himself. So when Paul talks about giving, he doesn’t quote Leviticus—he quotes the life of Christ. Paul moves the conversation from money to the Messiah, from generosity to the gospel, from what we give to what Christ gave. At the end of the day, grace giving doesn’t come from church culture, stewardship campaigns, or tithe envelopes. It comes from Calvary.

“You can’t preach the gospel of grace and practice greed in giving.”

Paul says, “You know the grace...” In other words, this isn’t foreign to you. You’ve already been changed by it. You’ve already been saved by it. Now let it flow through your hands the same way it flowed through HIs.

Let’s break it down:

“Though He was rich” — Jesus existed in divine glory, seated at the right hand of the Father, surrounded by unbroken worship and eternal majesty.

“Yet for your sake...” — He chose to leave heaven’s riches for earth’s rejection.

“He became poor” — Not just financially poor, but spiritually emptied. He took on flesh, carried sin, bore our poverty so we could walk in eternal riches.

This is the gospel economy—sacrificial exchange. He gave Himself, so we could be redeemed. He lost His status, so we could gain our eternal salvation. Paul says, “That’s your standard.” So now when we give, we’re not just supporting ministry—we’re mirroring the Messiah. Giving becomes a theological statement, not just a financial one. It becomes a form of incarnational living—where we pour out what God poured in.

Jesus didn’t tithe His blood—He gave all of Himself. How can we meet that sacrifice with stinginess?

You see, the gospel is not a message of convenience. It’s a message of cost, and if Jesus was willing to lay aside divinity to dwell among the poor, we should be willing to lay aside comfort to give from a place of conviction. Because under the law, we give by requirement. But under grace, we give by reflection. We give because He gave. We pour out because we’ve been filled. We share because we’ve been shown mercy.

Application Questions

Does my giving resemble the generosity of the gospel I claim to believe?

Am I giving in a way that reflects Jesus—or just my leftovers?

What in my giving shows that I understand the sacrifice of the cross.

Now my brothers and sisters, let’s bring this in. You see, giving has never been about money—it’s always been about the Master. It’s not about dollar signs—it’s about divine surrender. Because when you understand the depth of grace, your giving becomes more than routine—it becomes revelation.

Grace giving doesn’t start with income—it starts with intimacy. It starts when you realize that the same Jesus who left riches of heaven to meet you in your brokenness—is the same Jesus who says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you.” Not because your bought a blessing—but because you’re walking in the blessing that He already paid for.

If you’re still arguing about percentages, you might have missed the person of Jesus...if you’re withholding your offering, it might because you’re still withholding your heart...and if you only give when it’s comfortable, it’s not generosity—it’s convenience.

But grace giving says:

I give not out of pressure, but out of promise.

I give not because I’m scared—I give because I’ve been saved.

I give not to meet a requirement, but to reflect a relationship.

When grace is your reason, giving becomes your rhythm.

We give because He gave...we sow because we’ve been shown mercy...we release because we’ve been rescued.

Jesus didn’t tithe His blood—He gave all of Himself. He didn’t wait to give until it was easy—He gave when it was eternally costly. So what are we holding back for?

You see, tithing may be the starting line—but grace is the finish, and grace will always ask for more than your hands. It wants your heart...it wants your loyalty...it wants your life.

So today I dare you—-not just to give—but give from grace. Give like someone who knows what it’s like to be forgiven...give like someone who remembers where the Lord brought you from...give like somebody who knows you were broke in the spirit, and Jesus paid the debt your could never afford.

“When grace grips your heart, generosity will flow from your life.”