Giving

INTRO: There are 3 types of givers: the flint, the sponge and the honeycomb. The flint you have to beat to death with a hammer and even then you’re only getting maybe a few chips or sparks. The sponge you have to squeeze with all your might before you can get anything to drip from it. But the honeycomb is naturally overflowing with sweetness and doesn’t need to be beaten or squeezed.

2 Corinthians 8 - Paul is trying to motivated the Corinthians to be honeycomb Christians.

Paul shows us here the “Why behind the what” for our giving!

We’re good at knowing the “what”, we know what it is we do or are supposed to do. Perhaps the reason we fail to keep people on the correct “what” is because we don’t explain the “why” very well. Maybe we don’t explain the “why” because sometimes we forget after a period of time or we never knew to begin with.

Giving is a subject most don’t like because we’re naturally wired to hold on. From the time we’re little, our first instinct is to grab and keep — not to release and share. We cling to what’s ours because it feels safe. We like control. We like knowing we have enough. Somewhere deep down we believe that if we can just hold tight enough, we’ll be secure.

But faith turns that instinct upside down. The Christian life isn’t about clinging — it’s about trusting.

The only thing God tells us to cling to in this world is Him…which implies we have to let go of everything else.

We weren’t created to be “holders” and “clutchers”, we’re created to be channels through which God’s blessings flow.

Cheapness isn’t a spiritual gift. Stewardship isn’t about taking what God has blessed us with and rationing out a smidgen here or there and keeping the rest. We can’t give from the top of of our purse and call it sacrifice.

(PPT) We can’t offer God what cost us nothing and call it sacrificial worship.

Instead, be a honeycomb that overflows with sweetness.

We shouldn’t give only because we have to. In fact, yes, that is one reason why we do what we do. There needs to be layers understood and applied to what we as Christians do. If I only give because God said I have to, I’m missing HUGE biblical principles and understanding.

1 Corinthians 13:3 “If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” If I give without love I’m doing it in a shallow and meaningless way!

God doesn’t need your money. If God doesn’t need our money, then when we start talking about giving we don’t start talking about the amount or our obligation. Start where Paul started, which was where?

2 Cor.8:1

Paul started with GRACE! Not with an amount needed to be raised or a pie chart or bar graph with goals. And that makes sense, because everything for us Christians starts with God and Grace!

We give not because we’re simply commanded to, not because we’re trying to free ourselves from a life of materialism ————

(PPT) but the root of the reason is because God has given, He continues to give, and we want to be like our God!

Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,”

The free gift of grace given by God through Jesus should motivate us to want to give back out of what we’ve been blessed with. Our giving is a response to the good news and generosity of God!

So when we talk about giving as Christians, we’re talking about way more than just money.

2 Cor.8:2-4

They gave with the right motive, and they rejoiced in it!

V.2 says that affliction added to poverty added with joy = wealth of generosity!

Think about that for a second — these were not wealthy believers sitting comfortably. Paul says the Macedonian churches gave “out of their extreme poverty.” They weren’t giving because they had deep pockets; they were giving because they had deep faith! They didn’t wait until life “got easier” or the bills were paid off or the economy improved — they gave in the middle of their hardship.

Despite their poverty and persecution they wanted to give, and were excited to do so, begging to do so! The fact that they gave in spite of their poverty showed how much they trusted God to meet their daily needs!

(v.3) They gave SACRIFICIALLY

They didn’t shallowly look for what they could spare. Giving beyond their ability in our terms means it wouldn’t have made sense on paper — but made perfect sense in light of the cross! They gave up things they wanted, they pushed themselves to even more of a struggling point because they wanted to honor God more than they wanted to hold onto comfort.

No, it wasn’t reckless. It was sacrificial worship to God.

That’s what true giving looks like — it’s not convenience, it’s commitment. It means revolving our financial life around God, not squeezing God into what’s left over. It’s deciding ahead of time that God gets the best, not the crumbs, and sticking to it. That’s what makes it sacrifice.

So practically speaking, what does that look like? It means you don’t just fit giving somewhere in your budget — you build your budget around it. Maybe you give at the first of the month, or the first day of the week, but you do it intentionally — because you’ve decided that God comes first. Every other financial decision flows from that priority.

When you give that way, everything else you do with your money — every bill paid, every purchase made, every plan set — becomes part of your worship. God keeps being glorified in the rest of your financial life because you’ve already settled who’s first in it.

Our giving isn’t just giving an amount — you give Him authority.

God had it anyway. But will you recognize it with your wallet? 2 Cor.8:5

Underline it — if you give yourself to God first then giving won’t be a problem.

Those who have trouble turning lose of their money and are hindered in their giving have not given themselves fully to God first.

It’s not the money that’s hard to give up, its just paper or numbers on a screen these days...the problem is the heart - and the Macedonians were glad to give because they knew it pleased God and they even went further because they trust in God.

2 Cor.8:6-7

You do great at all these — but your giving needs work

You can’t do enough of these other things and act as if it replaces giving. Paul says it’s a different part of worship that you’re not doing. Paul says it’s a different part of worship that you’re not doing!

2 Cor.8:8-11

Follow through. Talk is cheap, don’t be cheap, give graciously!

Pray, plan, pray, follow through!

2 Corinthians 9:6–8 “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”

Paul mentions grace AGAIN, he talks about how giving is meant to be be Grace inspired giving.

Here’s Paul’s message about giving: God will take care of you, He gave you everything you have, He also gave you His son, so surely He will provide you with the necessities of life! So don’t be stingey, God isn’t!

The heart of a honeycomb Christian isn’t hardened or hesitant — it’s full and overflowing. True giving doesn’t have to be pried out or pressured out. It just pours out. The way we give shows whether we’ve truly tasted the sweetness of God’s grace or if we’re still clutching what was never ours to begin with.

And at the end of it all, what right do we have to hold on to anything? We don’t have a right to be clutchers of our stuff. You are not an owner, you’re a STEWARD. An owner says this is mine, and says this is my money I made it so it belongs to me —— but who even made you who are able to go make the money? It all goes back to God.

(PPT) —— IT DOESN'T BECOME THE LORD’S MONEY WHEN YOU GIVE IT TO THE CHURCH! It’s was His to begin with.

That’s the shift Paul wants us to make — from owners to stewards, from clutchers to conduits. A steward understands that what’s been placed in their hands is meant to flow through them, not stop with them.

When you start to see life in light of God’s grace and that we’re meant to have grace inspired responses, then giving stops feeling like losing out and more like worship.

Mark 12:41-44

You think Jesus watches our giving today? What does He look for?…the amount? What is Jesus focused on in watching our giving?

Hers was less than everyone, but Jesus used it as the standard of maturity for disciples of Christ! Why? No fanfare, humble offering - from the standpoint of men it was nothing, but to God it was priceless. It wasn’t the amount, it was the attitude — what’s the attitude? It’s having the proper heart right? We say that a lot - but what is the proper heart in this situation? Her giving was physically and spiritually giving her whole self to God and trusting God to take care of her.

How much is enough? We tend to try to measure by the dollar amount but God measures by the condition of the heart from where it came. It’s easy for us to look at it and say “was that wise? Probably wasn’t smart to do, was God going to strike you dead if you kept one of the two?” No. Would God understand if you kept both because it’s been a hard week or two? Yes. But she gives everything she has.

So what does that say to us? We have to give our entire paycheck each week? No that’s not the point. The amount of the gift never matters as much as the cost to the giver. It’s not the dollar amount, but it’s what you’re truly sacrificing to God and for God…and most of us HATE that.

At the end of the day, giving by Christians is meant to be sacrificial. GOD JUDGES WHAT WE GIVE BY WHAT WE KEEP. The wealthy gave out of abundance, it was large sums but had so much more left for themselves, they weren’t going to miss it. The widow gave what she had and therefore made sure she only had faith in God to sustain her.

If you give what you don’t need, is that really giving? Is that really trusting? Is that really worship? The amount we keep indicates more than what we give! One undeniable fact we see about giving is that it includes sacrifice… It’s meant to hurt.

Our giving is a direct result of who has our heart — so giving is a stewardship issue and a Lordship issue.

Jesus knew that money would be one of his greatest rivals for the hearts of people! That’s why Jesus Himself instructs us to pray in Matthew 6:11 “Give us this day our daily bread,” to help train our hearts.

Have you ever prayed “don’t make me too poor and don’t make me too rich, give me just enough and help me trust in you the most”??? How many of us can really say that we pray “help me live paycheck to paycheck”…

We tend to not want our daily bread we want our years worth and our retirements worth of bread too. And we justify it saying “I want to be sure my kids have enough bread later too and leave them with more bread than I had growing up”.

I’m not saying it’s wrong to have money or sinful to be rich. Abraham was rich. Job was vastly wealthy. Having money isn’t a sin or a problem. But what is sinful is finding security, significance and satisfaction in those things. Are we bowing down to God or to Dollar?

GIVING TAKEAWAYS:

Giving Is Sacrifice, Not Convenience. Revolve Your Finances Around What You Give To God

Giving shows where our heart is! Matthew 6:21, “Where your treasure is there your heart will be also”. Where is your treasure? Is it in heaven or on things in this world? Is my heart on my house, is it on eating out, is it on other things I store up here? We’re not to be lay by and storing for this life,(1 Cor.16) but for the one to come.

Every time I give I move my heart in a “God-ward” direction, looking to Him and eternity not looking to what is here that isn’t my eternal home

Don’t Tip God

Plan and keep to the plan

God’s Grace Is Our Motive

He’s given so much to us, and we’re giving back out of what He’s blessed us with. Be a “honeycomb” Christian.

CONCLUSION:

When Paul talked about giving, he didn’t start with guilt — he started with grace.

When Jesus watched the widow, He didn’t see the size of her gift — He saw the size of her trust.

And when God looks at us, He isn’t counting dollars — He’s looking for hearts that overflow.

We serve a God who never gave sparingly. He gave His only Son.

He poured out heaven’s best for people like us… So, let that affect your giving in a way that worship-filled giving flows to the praise of God.

Have you obeyed the Gospel and recognize His Lordship alone? Have wandered from that? We’d love to encourage you.