Returning Our Hearts to Him

Big Idea: Stewardship isn’t just about returning what is His, it’s about returning our hearts to Him.

Hello YM! It’s a joy to be with all of you this afternoon! I wanna thank your YM team for inviting me to share God’s word with you this Saturday. Today is Stewardship & Pledge Weekend and it’s a time in the church calendar when we take time, as a church community, to reflect through our stewardship and giving unto God. But before we jump too far ahead, let me pray for us.

[PRAY] Lord, would you still our hearts so that we might listen to you. Hide me behind your cross as I share your word. And now, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts truly be pleasing to you, our Lord, our rock and redeemer. Amen.

So just a show of hands, how many of you have watched the movie How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies? // Alright! I see a number of hands. Did you all use a lot of tissue? So like some of you, I went to catch this movie, and turned out that it was such an emotional, moving film. In fact, this was us before and after watching How to make millions before grandma dies. We cried a bit lah. So for those who didn’t raise your hands just now, maybe your small group activity is to catch it after service. (No kidding).

But real briefly, this is a beautiful story of a young man whose grandmother has just been diagnosed with terminal stage cancer. He initially plans to win his grandmother’s inheritance money by becoming her number one caregiver. However, as he spends time with her, his superficial motives transform into genuine love and care for her. Through this story, we see the man’s transformation from being motivated by selfish intentions to heartfelt generosity. His relationship with his grandma evolves from a transactional mindset to one of genuine devotion. In the same way, our giving to God should move beyond mere obligation to an act of heartfelt worship and devotion. //

Friends, today I want to challenge you that:

Big Idea: Kingdom stewardship isn’t just about returning to God what’s His, it’s about returning our hearts to Him.

Would you turn your bibles to Mark 12:41-44. In Mark 12, Jesus is outside the temple treasury. This is where the Jews come to submit their tithes. There is a conversation that he has with his disciples about giving. The scripture goes like this, //

The Widow’s Offering

41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

This is the word of the LORD.

So Jesus was at the temple treasury. Just before, He had reprimanded the scribes for having fake, counterfeit devotion. // “Beware of the scribes,” he says, “who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces… they devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive greater condemnation.” This was a harsh scolding by Jesus for the scribes and religious teachers. He called them fake, their devotion to God, just for show. He warned the disciples to be cautious of them.

Now, the temple treasury was where the Jews brought their tithes to offer to God. If we were to jump to the Old Testament for a moment, the Old Testament Law required God’s people, the Israelites, to tithe. This is where the discipline of tithing comes about. The word “tithe” means “a-tenth”. Deuteronomy 14:22-23 writes, //

22 Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. 23 Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always.

So in the Old Testament, the Israelites were mostly farmers. When they reaped a harvest, they were required by God to give 10% of their produce from crops grown in the land of Israel or cattle that feed off the land of Israel. This is where tithing originated. It was a beautiful practice of returning a portion of what was produced to God, who was the rightful owner of the land and all that was within it. //

Now, here’s what not many people know. There were three different kinds of tithes that the Israelites set aside for God. The Levitical Tithe is the produce set aside to support the Levites and the Priests, those that were working in the temple. Today, that could be equivalent to the funds set aside to support our pastors and full-time staff in the church. // The Festival Tithe was produce set aside for the Jews to participate in their religious festivals. If the festival required a huge feast or the Jews to travel, this tithe funded it! // The third tithe was a tithe for the poor. Collected every third year, produce had to be set aside for the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. Because God wanted his people to store up funds to help the poor, the needy, those that were often excluded and ignored in society.

So, a typical Israelites giving might look something like this. (In the first, second year, they’d give 20%. In the third year, charity tithe kicks in so they gave 30%. The cycle repeats for another time. Then the 7th year is the Jubilee year: all debts are forgiven, all land returned to original owners, no agricultural work is done so 0% tithing. It was a way of resetting everything)

Year 1

Levitical and Festival Tithe

20%

2

Levitical and Festival Tithe

20%

3

Levitical, Festival and Charity Tithe

30%

4

Levitical and Festival Tithe

20%

5

Levitical and Festival Tithe

20%

6

Levitical and Festival and Charity Tithe

30%

7

Jubilee Year

0%

Often we think that the Old Testament teaches to give 10% of all that we have to God. While that’s a good baseline for giving, actually the Jews gave twice, sometimes three times that! What about us? Do we give 10%, 20%, 30%? Well, we aren’t Old Testament Jews. // But we can learn from the Jews that stewardship is about returning to God what is rightfully His. We do it as an outward sign of inner commitment to God. We do it as a form of material surrender prompted by spiritual surrender.

Coming back to our passage for today. //

Jesus observes many rich people giving large sums. Many of them were probably putting in their 10%/20%/30% due.. Perhaps some even gave much much more than was required, and they were proud of it. But then a poor widow came along and put in two small copper coins.

Lets not overlook the detail that she is a widow. That should already tell us something about her life circumstances. They weren’t great. Widows in that time were excluded and overlooked people in society. They had no rights and few livelihood options. And, she puts in two small copper coins (no surprise there because that’s probably all she had). //

In Greek, these coins are called Leptons. The lepton was the smallest and least valuable coin in circulation in Judea. I happen to have two replicas here, and shortly I’ll pass them around. But as they come to you, I’d like you to hold the pair of coins in your hand. Notice how tiny, insignificant, easily overlooked, of little value they are. This was probably how this widow felt. And then, imagine these two coins being all that you have. Because that was where this widow was coming from.

Now here’s Jesus’ punchline. //

This, Jesus says, and not the scribes before, is a picture of true devotion to God. In fact, this poor widow gave more than all the other rich people combined. Friends, God desires your devotion, not your donation. He is looking for your true devotion. And this widow’s giving revealed a heart that was seeking to return to Him. // Kingdom stewardship isn’t just about returning to God what’s His, it’s about returning our hearts to Him.

3 discipleship lessons on stewardship that I wanna distill out for us today. //

1. First, It’s really not about the amount, but the heart.

The rich gave out of their surplus wealth. The widow gave out of her poverty, giving all she had to live on. In a sense, the rich first made sure they had enough to spend on all their needs and wants. Finally, what was left over (which was thankfully still quite a lot), they gave to God. It was an easy gift because this was spare change for them. They had nothing else to spend on, and so they decided to give it to God. Not so for the widow. She put aside for God first. And even if it cost her in terms of her livelihood, she still gave.

Friends, God looks at the heart behind the gift, not the monetary value. A small gift given sacrificially is worth more to God than a large gift given flippantly.

What does that mean for us today? For many of us, perhaps we receive an allowance from our parents. Some of us may be serving in the army, receiving an NSF’s pay. For others, perhaps we’re even working part-time or full-time jobs. Do we set aside for the LORD first? Or do we leave him our spare change? Does the way we give reflect true devotion for him? Else I think we need to do some serious reflection on where our hearts are at. Kingdom stewardship is about returning our hearts to Him. //

[Insert illustration/anecdote] - Planning our expenses

You know, recently my wife, Gina, and I wanted to be more intentional about stewarding our finances well. We created a family budget for food, transport, all the different categories of expenses that we had. We tried our best to have the discipline of tracking our expenses. That means, at the end of the day, keying them into a google spreadsheet. After discussing among ourselves, we decided to allocate 10% of our monthly earnings to tithe to the church. Apart from that, we tried to set aside a small percentage to give to charity and missions, and a certain portion to save. Now let me tell you why this was so tough! Because we always failed at keeping to what we budgeted for our personal expenses. And the biggest culprits for us were always food (because we always enjoy expensive cafe brunches, our pricey western food) and online shopping purchases. For me, I like to spend most on tech gadgets. I usually justify to myself that I need the latest smartphone, tablet, laptop etc etc in order to be productive, in order to be up-to-date.

Friends, if we can't even set aside for God when we have little living expenses, it's not about to get easier when we get older and have more lifestyle needs and responsibilities. // We need to get this principle right now. Stewardship isn’t giving beyond our means. It's intentionally living within our means so that we have enough to offer unto God. //

2. Second discipleship principle, sacrificial giving reflects the right heart.

The offering of the rich didn’t require them to sacrifice much. They didn’t have to make lifestyle adjustments to give. They could still live their lives status quo and continue giving. But the widow’s offering was a costly sacrifice, it cost her her entire livelihood. While the rich people gave 10%, 20%, maybe even 30%, the widow gave 100% of what she had. Are we willing to give, even when it hurts us? Because when, like the widow, we’re willing to sacrifice much to offer unto Him, this reflects true devotion for Him. This reflects a heart that genuinely puts God first. And this heart delighted God. //

King David had this heart. In 2 Samuel 24, he wanted to make an offering to the LORD. Araunah the Jebusite offered David a free gift of the land and the oxen required for the offering. So here was an opportunity for David to make an offering to God totally provided for by someone else. This was David’s response. He says to Araunah, “I will not offer unto the LORD that which cost me nothing” (repeat). Deep in David’s heart was this principle that my offering needs to be costly to me in order to be worthy of God. Are we willing to let our giving cost us? //

Sacrificial giving honors God because the gospel of Jesus Christ hinges on sacrifice. We can't ever outgive God because He has paid the ultimate sacrifice on the cross for you and I. He doesn't ask for anything in return, just that we return our hearts to Him. Friends, Kingdom stewardship is about returning our hearts to Him. //

Friends, what is the sacrifice that you need to make in your giving to God? For some of you, it’s simply taking out your phone and making sure you scan the QR code or remembering to bring the physical offering to put in the offering bag. For others, perhaps it requires us to make adjustments to how we live. Maybe we need to intentionally spend less when we go out with our friends. Maybe we need to attend less concerts. Or maybe we need to take grab less and at times consider taking public transport more.

[Anecdote: Saved on house reno to give to Afghanistan]

Let me share with you how I wrestled greatly with this. // When Gina and I were moving into our first home, we had our dream of how the house would look like. We even did up this model of how we would design the house, and then we agreed to dedicate a sum of money for renovation costs. One of my favorite features was this inbuilt settee by the window. I dreamed about waking up to my morning coffee, just chilling on this settee while watching the sunrise. We engaged our contractors and were good to go. As this was happening, we saw in the news how the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan had caused instability in the country, leaving many families homeless, worsening the refugee situation and poverty there. I have to give credit to my generous wife because she was the one who came to me, shared with me that at least we have a home, shouldn’t we give out of our housing budget to this cause. I looked at our housing budget, “where would we cut from?” My first instinct was to cut from the smaller items, but then we calculated that this wouldn’t come up to a lot. Finally, I think it was Gina’s idea to give up the settee. It wasn’t easy for her either. The settee was a little dream of hers as well. But we reminded ourselves to look at needs from an eternal perspective. One would give us a bit more comfort. The other would save lives for God’s kingdom work.

What is the sacrifice that you need to make in giving to God? //

3. Finally, our giving reveals where we place our trust.

We usually spend most on what we treasure most. Matthew 6:21 writes, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Friends, what are we trusting in most today? Where have we placed our hearts today? The poor widow gave 100% of all she had to God. It demonstrated, without a shadow of a doubt, where she placed her trust. Perhaps in her desperation and poverty, God was all she could turn to. There was a quote by Tim Keller that goes like this, // “You don’t realize Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have.” Friends, does God really need to bring us to a place of having nothing but two copper coins in our wallets before we’re willing to return our hearts to Him?

Would you allow your hearts to return to Him today? //

Friends, Kingdom stewardship isn’t just about returning to God what’s His, it’s about returning our hearts to Him.

I wanted to close by challenging us to examine our hearts and to take the next step in our giving to God. Because in giving well, we allow our hearts to return to Him.

You see, in my preparation for this message, I came across this idea of a “giving ladder”.

The person that came up with this idea had an interesting theory that there are six types of givers and they can all be stacked on this ladder of giving. //

There’s the non-existent giver at the bottom. Those who don’t give anything. These people say, “What’s mine is mine, and maybe what’s yours is mine too.” These people are really takers, not givers. //

There’s the self-promotional giver. These people give. But deep down, their hearts are with themselves. They give in order to look good. //

Next, there’s the self-appeasing giver. They give in order to feel good. These people say, “I’ll give just so I don’t feel guilty.” It’s not a terrible reason to give, but their hearts are still with themselves. There’s much room to grow. //

There’s the emotionally-driven giver. They give only when they feel like it. Only when a cause or need compels them enough, they will give. //

There’s the percentage giver. This was where the Old Testament Jews were at. They tithed faithfully, consistently, as a practice of returning to God what was rightfully His. //

But friends, there is a sixth level. Today, I think what God wants us to strive for is the sacrificial giver. This isn’t just percentage giving, it’s beyond that! It’s giving to God even when it inflicts a hefty cost on us. This is the giver motivated by a deep trust in God and an all-out devotion for Him, because that’s exactly what God has done for us in giving His Son on the cross. It’s in giving and worshipping like this that we allow our hearts to truly and fully return to Him. //

Kingdom stewardship isn’t just about returning to God what’s His, it’s about returning our hearts to Him.

Where do you stand on this ladder? Will you take your next step today? Will you allow your hearts to return to Him?

Let us pray.

Call to Response

I’d like us to take a few moments to be still in God’s presence. Don’t let His word pass you by flippantly. Have we been giving to Him out of mere obligation, or have we true devotion for Him. Are we willing to give to Him, even when it hurts us? Will you take some moments to ask Him right now to draw your hearts back to Him.

Lord, thank you for first giving to us. We ask for forgiveness for the times that we’ve given or worshipped while our hearts are really with ourselves. Lord, I want to come back to the true heart of worship today, a heart that is truly and fully devoted to you, motivated by a deep deep trust in you. Would you bring us, as one YM, back to this heart where is really all about you, all about you, Jesus. In Christ name, I pray, Amen.