The Spiritual Rhythm of Stewardship Giving

Introduction

A young couple just starting out on their marriage journey are being faithful to the Lord as they enter the world hand in hand. The young man will be finishing his college studies, the young woman will be working. Each works, they make enough to provide for their needs, unless that get hit with a medical bill or something happens with their car. They try to save what they can and live within their meager means.

This way of living was normal for several years of their life together. They faced challenges and God always provided when it was needed. But, there were moments when the young man in particular was challenged with the view of tithing or giving. See, he was working in the ministry, studying to become a pastor and it was easy for him to justify in his own heart that he was already giving so much to the Lord; why do they need to tithe regularly?

Thankfully this man’s wife held it down, stood her ground on the biblical principles and faith that the Lord would take care of them. At times they would flip flop their places, but together they committed to the the stewardship of giving.

The key truth learned in those days and even to this day 19 years later. The Lord is faithful to provide and the act of worship in giving is greater for their own growth than not.

This couple is of course, Jenny and I.

I’m speaking today on the spiritual rhythm of stewardship giving. I understand this is not one that is typically enjoyed by people, nor is it a favorite of pastors to preach. In some places it has caused a great stir of contention in churches as members disobediently respond to faithful messages or as some pastors deliver ignorant and wrong teaching.

I also understand that I am preaching on this topic in the month of pastor appreciation, giving to the state convention, and when our giving is under what our budget needs to be. Understand this, I do not preach this message to increase anything in those areas.

This is not a telethon plea for money. This is to help chisel at the heart of who we are as disciples, followers of Jesus to live in Christlikeness. This is what all the disciplines are intended for.

Overarching Principle

Before I even get to our text, I must address an over arching principle found in Scripture as it relates to giving. That principle is this:

You own nothing and are a steward of what is given to you

1 Corinthians 10:26 CSB

26 since the earth is the Lord’s, and all that is in it.

Paul speaks of an important fact we often forget. The earth and all that is in it belongs to Him before it “belongs” to anyone of us. If we couple this verse with Genesis 1 and 2 we see that Adam and Eve were created and called upon by God to manage, caretake, steward what the Lord had made.

This means we are stewards of the Kingdom.

We are stewards of our money, time, resources, family, jobs, community, church, etc.

In the story of the Lord of the Rings there is a character who is a steward of a kingdom of men. The line of the king appears to be broken and lost and so this man was placed as steward until the rightful king could be found.

However, over time this man develops the mindset that the kingdom is his and his sons will rule one day when he is gone. He goes crazy with power and jealousy over this kingdom as his heart is twisted into believing he is now the rightful king.

Here is the problem, we too can develop this same mindset or “heartitude”. We can believe the money in our bank account, the house we live in, the car we drive, the community we live in, the school we have, the church building we meet in, the family we have is OURS. It is our kingdom that we have built when in fact they are gifts of the King and we are simply stewards of those gifts.

Now, the King is kind and good and He desires us to enjoy what He provides, but we must be mindful of our heart when it comes to stewardship giving.

Stewardship Giving as a Discipline

So, why then is stewardship giving a discipline? Because our hearts need to be disciplined to think and live a particular way in relation to our giving. Even more, giving and the use of money is a spiritual issue for God and it is reflective of our growth in Christ.

Donald Whitney explains,

the reason our use of money and the things it buys indicates our spiritual maturity and godliness is that we exchange such a great part of our lives for it. Because we invest most of our days working in exchange for money, in a very real sense our money represents us. Therefore, how we use it reveals who we are, for it manifests our priorities, our values, and our heart. To the degree we use our money and resources Christianly, we prove our growth in Christlikeness.

Like the steward from the LOTR; we cannot let our hearts be undisciplined to believe we are the true King of what we have. Often w approach giving with a heart that asks, “How much of my money should I give back to God?” The better question, the question of the disciplined heart is, “How much of God’s money should I keep for now?”

So, how do we discipline the heart to be a heart of stewardship giving?

Turn with me to 2 Corinthians 9:6-13 as we discover the truth of God’s Word.

Disciplining the Heart to Stewardship Giving

Contextual Background

This passage is dealing with a group of people who are trying to send a financial gift to fellow Christians and the debate has come up- how much should we give? Paul addresses them, but understand these are poor Macedonian Christians. They do not have much to give and it will be a sacrifice for them.

To give could mean missing a meal or 2 as a family. It could mean not getting the proper feed you need for your animals. It could mean not being able to travel as they wanted.

Giving reaps blessing from the Lord. (v.6)

*How do we expect a harvest of spiritual blessing if we don’t sow generously? This can go beyond giving to serving, evangelism, bible study, prayer, etc.

*The farming analogy applies. If a farmer only plants a small acreage of crop, but expects a 3,000 acre harvest will he get it? No.

*We can expect a good harvest of blessing when we sow generously in the things of God.

—> Now I must address an evil teaching that has infected the church related to this verse. You and I do not get to treat God like a vending machine to simply get what we want.

Just as with farming a crop is not always guaranteed, neither is blessing from the Lord. Faithfully sowing generously generally reaps blessing.

Blessing is also not always monetary or in a physical sense. It is more often spiritual in nature as it reaps much in the kingdom of God and in the life of the giver.

Giving is a decision and attitude of the heart. (v.7)

There are two practices of the heart being described in verse 7.

Giving is a decision

Note that Paul does not provide an exact amount in this situation. It is what the will of the Spirit provides to the will of the heart.

This is often where people get hung up about the amount of give. The OT did require 10% and that principle is a good one to carry over, but under the new covenant of Jesus it is not necessary. What is necessary is that it is a decision of the person to give.

Decide with the Lord what He desires of you to give. As we see in the Scripture we are called to generous giving. That may be 5% or 20%. Generous giving is what the Lord lays on our renewed and regenerated hearts.

Understand, there is expectation placed in this verse. It is not a suggestion of whether one should give or not. It is understood that it is a part of one’s worship unto the Lord.

Giving is an attitude of the heart

Paul says to not give reluctantly or out or compulsion, but to give cheerfully.

We are not called to give with an attitude of grief that we are parting with our money. In fact, that attitude reveals idolatry if we cannot return back to the Lord what is His.

Side note- we cannot use our poor attitude as an excuse to not give. “Well, i feel like I’m giving reluctantly or out of compulsion today, so I just won’t give.” The better response is, “Lord as I give this gift, I recognize my heart is not right. Please change the attitude of my heart to joy in giving.”

On another side of this, giving is voluntary and not something to be coerced or forced to take place. Too many pastors and churches demand of giving. I’ve heard of churches that require a certain amount to be given and those who do not place the names of members on a public list.

I’ve heard some be told their loss of anything in life was due to unfaithful giving. Unfaithful giving was deemed not sowing a seed of a certain amount.

To give cheerfully, it is good to know and to see the joy the gift brings to people. We won’t always know that, but it certainly helps.

This is why we show videos of mission emphasis. This is why we love to give testimony of ministry and ways God is working in faithful giving.

Plus, I cannot help think of all that the Lord has provided to me and my family.

To think that I bring joy to the Lord when I give with this attitude brings me joy.

As a child I gave my grandfather a Detroit Lions tin that I won at a claw game. It was his Christmas present and he kept change in it for years. I actually have it now after he has passed. I remember the joy he had in receiving it and the joy I had in giving it. So it is to be with the Lord.

Giving leads in trust that God will provide. (v.8-10)

Paul reminds the people that the One to Whom they are giving offers a grace that overflows to us- provision.

He provides for our needs

In our faithful giving, we have never been without a need. Sure, we weren’t eating steak and potatoes, but we had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We didn’t have the fanciest cars, but they were reliable and took care of our needs.

He provides for us to excel in every good work.

Spiritual work that comes with giving develops a trust in provision for the physical and the spiritual. IF the Lord is capable of supernaturally providing a check for our rent; He is certainly capable of leading me to excel in every good work. In fact, Peter attests to this:

2 Peter 1:3–4 CSB

3 His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 By these he has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire.

Giving produces spiritual growth and gratitude in us. (v.11)

Paul says we will be enriched in every way for all generosity and thanksgiving to God is produced in us by giving.

As we faithfully steward what is given and we faithfully give back to the Lord we find that He is faithful to produce in us spiritual growth and a growing thankfulness towards Him.

I’ve shared this before, but the times when Jenny and I were “living by faith or on a prayer” were some of the deepest times of growth in us as believers. It wasn’t easy always, but it was definitely like the process we’ve heard about in how muscle grows. You lift weights, put the muscles under stress to create small micro tears. The body comes and repairs those tears and makes the fiber stronger as a result.

Faithful stewardship giving has been a part of the process for us spiritually.

Think of the boy who had some fish and loaves of bread. He gave up what he had unto the Lord. The Lord was able to use it to feed 5,000+ people. What if the boy decided to eat his lunch and not give? First, it wouldn’t have impacted so many around, but I can’t help but think about his own growth in Jesus in that moment.

I wonder how he grew in faith as he realized that the little to nothing he gave to Jesus resulted in something so much more.

I wonder if we miss a growth in faith because we are even reluctant to give even a little in faith and we are missing the “more” that He is capable and willing to do from our little.

Giving is an act of worship and investment in the kingdom. (v.12-13)

*Plain and simple: Love of God motivates giving to God and the things of God.

Paul says that the gift of this church will supply the needs of the saints, but it overflows into expressions of thanks to God. Even more, it leads to God being glorified.

Giving of the joyful giver is an act of worship and investment in the kingdom. It also brings forth worship as it advances the kingdom of God further.

2 examples

Our church has given money to the missionary pastor in India to purchase Bibles for a group of people who have never had the Bible in their particular dialect. He was able to buy several hundred of them. Our investment of a $1,000 led to hundreds of people receiving the Bible in their language. This translation didn’t exist until this year! FBC Farwell got to be pioneers of that people group getting God’s holy Word in their hands!!! That should elicit worship of our hearts and to know that it led to the worship of God from those people.

One day in the seminary years our car had some trouble that required service. The cost was about 1,400 total. We didn’t have it. We prayed and I think we asked for prayer from some folks. Later that day my professor and mentor called me to his office. He handed me a check for 1,400 from him and his wife. Through tears I asked why? His response: This is the Lord’s money and it is a spiritual investment. I believe the Lord will use you in many wonderful ways and I am investing in your ministry. Here me out. His investment in our lives was a puzzle piece that would one day lead me to come to FBC Farwell. He didn’t know what my ministry held, but he knew that he and his wife were helping us to advance in the ministry the Lord called us to and would call us to.

Giving is reflective of your confession of the gospel of Jesus.

Paul says that the ministry of this financial gift is reflective of their obedience to the confession they hold in Jesus.

*Spiritually we are destitute, poor before God in our sin. God in His grace, love, and mercy gave to us Jesus, His one and only Son, to live perfectly, die in our place as punishment to our sin, resurrect 3 days later to defeat sin and death and grant to us eternal and abundant life in Him.

What else do we need to convince us that we should discipline our hearts to give?

Imagine you are talking with your friends and the conversation of family vacation comes up. Colorado, Hawaii, South Texas, Florida all are places talked about. You don’t say much and someone asks where you guys are going. Instead of saying where you are going, you share that you are helping fund the mission trip of missionaries to another country so they can share Jesus. Or let’s say you are saving money normally designed for a family vacation for a family mission trip instead.

Let’s conclude that some of your friends are unbelievers. What kind of impact could that decision of giving have on them to see the sacrifice and joy you have in prioritizing the gospel of Jesus? Could that impact them to want to understand Jesus more; to share the gospel with them?

We give, because He gave to us. There really isn’t any other reason for the matter than this.

How to discipline your heart toward stewardship giving.

Make a decision to give and ask the Lord what He desires of you.

Prioritize stewarding your money to be able to give. This might mean sacrificing some comforts of life.

Don’t make giving a public spectacle

Include your children in the process.

Remember giving includes the financial, but goes beyond just dropping $$ in the plate. There are other ways to give-time, leadership, energy, talent- and your heart matters.

Pray for the Lord to give you a cheerful heart in giving.

Be intentional about the ways and ministries you can give. I believe Scripturally priority is given to the local church as the local church is the vehicle in which God uses to advance His kingdom.

Conclusion

One of my favorite memories of Jude as a child was the day he tithed his mints. We had a lady in the church who loved our boys and almost every Sunday she would have a bag of mints for them. One service as the plate was being passed by Jude placed 2 of his mints in the plate. He was beaming as he gave up a portion of what was given to him. His heart was one of gratitude, love, and I think even worship. He didn’t fully understand the idea of offering in that we give money, but for him he gave up what he had. It was the most real picture of what 2 Corinthians 9:6-13 is speaking of.

The faith and the heart of a child to give without abandon. To give joyfully and completely of what was special to him. It was a moment I believe ordained by the Lord to teach me, but to give me a picture of His truth. It is a heart I have hoped to discipline and cultivate in my life.

Perhaps the Lord has used this sermon to bring a little discipline to your heart in the aspect of Stewardship Giving. Perhaps it means making some changes to priorities and spending to give more. Perhaps it means sacrificing and trusting that He will provide even when it is difficult to do so. Perhaps it is to elevate your worship and see this action as worship. Perhaps it is to contribute to the kingdom work of this church and the many things happening around the world.