Overflowing Generosity

Today… the wisdom of Proverbs, the promise of Malachi, and the words of Jesus, we’re going to explore what it means to live open-handed in a closed-fisted world.

Yes! This message is about money (29 X’s); what overflowing generosity looks like; as both a response to what we’ve received in Christ, and our witness to the world.

There’s something that happens when you sit at that table long enough: you realize that God’s goodness isn’t meant to stop with you. His blessings aren’t a cul-de-sac where they dead-end; they’re a river designed to flow through you.

Prayer: “Father, thank You for overflowing our lives with grace and provision; make our hands open and our tables wide. Teach us to give freely and to let our generosity point others to Your kindness and truth.”

(S2)

Mom—”you share that with your brother!”

…taught to share as a young boy or girl?

Small boy with a single cookie. He notices his friend has none, so he decides to break the cookie in half and share. As they enjoy the cookie together, another friend arrives, and they break off a piece for him too. Before long, a simple cookie has brought laughter and joy to all three.

Our acts of generosity whether big or small can create a ripple effect, spreading joy and thanksgiving to those around us.

That’s what Paul meant...

2 Corinthians 9:11 “Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous.

And this is where faith collides with culture. The world trains us to live with a scarcity mindset — to clutch what we have, to protect what’s ours. God’s economy flips the script.

— Generosity isn’t about losing; it’s about letting go; being participants in God’s abundance

(S3)

The more you pour OUT, the more room there is for God to pour IN!

For the Christian, generosity is not a spiritual add-on…it is the way of obedience; that results in spiritual blessing.

— When you give, you’re not emptying your hands — you’re positioning them to be filled again.

Stewardship: (not in the Bible); but being a good steward of our God-given resources clearly is.

For the Christian, it is the recognition and faithful management of God’s gifts, including time, talents, possessions, and resources, for the purpose of advancing God’s kingdom.

Church Conference — our financial resources. I have heard it said that “people don’t give to budgets, they give to missions.” Your financial giving...is about the mission...our work that Jesus himself said is far greater...

John 14:12 ““I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.”

…lets be honest, money is most common to viewed through the lens of scarcity…instead of abundance which is what the Bible teaches.

It is about living a generous life in a holistic way, with the resources God has blessed us with. The more you pour out, the more room there is for God to pour in—generosity is about one word; TRUST

(S4) — {Prov. 11:24-25}

This doesn’t make sense in our consumer mindset, especially if we’re living paycheck to paycheck…we’re taught to believe that holding tightly to what we’ve got is gain.

But God says the opposite: those who hoard eventually lose, but those who give freely actually grow richer. Why? Because generosity is never just about money — it’s about trusting in the true source of our provision.

If I believe my job, my bank account, or my 401k is my ultimate and only life-source, then I’ll tend to live in fear; with closed hands. But, when I believe its God’s provision then I am more likely to release my grip on it and open my hands.

It’s like water flowing through a hose — the only way for the water to keep moving is if the hose stays open. The moment I clamp down in fear, the flow stops.

(S5) — Overflowing generosity is trusting God to...

I. SUPPLY in scaricity and plenty

Sold House/Jenny’s job/Debt

Generosity is letting go of what tends to have a hold on us — giving instead of holding back.

This is where gratitude enters in. Gratitude reminds us that everything we have is already a gift. When we recognize God’s hand in our lives, generosity stops feeling like loss and starts feeling like gain.

Every time we give, we’re saying, “Lord, I trust you will keep providing. I trust you more than I trust my own control.” — gratitude shifts our mind-set from anxious consumers into joyful givers.

2 Corinthians 9:7 “You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.””

If generosity begins with trust, then it grows through practice. God doesn’t just ask us to trust in theory — He invites us to step out in faith and put that trust into action and see what God can and will do!

1. Are you in a place of needing to trust God in scarcity or plenty?

Overflowing generosity is trusting God to provide in scaricity and in plenty.

Next, the prophet Malachi records God’s challenge to Israel and to every person of faith...

(S6) — {Malachi 3:10}

Tithe(tenth) — Storehouses(banks) — Temple (church)

…God says, “Go ahead — test Me.” Why? Because He knows how deeply we wrestle with fear in the area of giving. He knows how tightly we cling to what we have.

Matthew 6:19–21 ““Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”

And so He says, “Try Me. Step out in faith. See if I won’t show up.” This means to put our money/blessings in the best place possible for the greatest impact.

2. Where is God asking you to trust him to do abundantly more?

(S7) — Generosity is trusting God to...

II. MULTIPLY our faithfulness

...better than we can. I think He has proved that time and time again...

— Abraham/Sarah who had no children...

— Noah and only the few who made it on the Ark...

— Jesus multiplied the loves and fishes...

— The disciples became multipliers of the church...

The miracle of multiplication is in the letting go.

“It’s only as you put what you have in the hands of Jesus that it’s multiplied. We tend to reverse that. Well, if God multiplies what I have, then I’ll give it away. But God says, “Give it away, and it will multiply!” J.D. Greer

The principle here isn’t about twisting God’s arm or treating Him like a vending machine. It’s about trusting God, who is faithful to give us his best.

(S8) — {1 Peter 1:18-19}

The tithe is about bringing our first and our best to God to multiply for His kingdom...

Think about it: when you hold on tightly, you’re stuck with what’s in your hands. But when you release it to God, you place it into hands that are infinitely bigger, infinitely stronger, and infinitely more generous than your own. And somehow...he multiplies it; takes our little and makes it much; takes our obedience and turns it into overflow.

— I have learned that God is more trustworthy with money then I am

Lotto losers

Trusting God to multiply takes not only a mind shift...but a heart shift. We no longer give out of guilt or duty, but out of joy. We want to be part of what God is doing, because we’ve seen firsthand that we can never out-give Him.

So generosity starts with trust, it grows through practice, and finally—it blossoms into something even bigger than us.

— Trusting God to do more with our less...to multiply our faithfulness

(S9) — {Luke 6:38}

I find it interesting how we use certain phrases so casually without thinking where they came from — How many have ever said oh it must be ‘Karma’? ...it’s NOT Christian

— “It’s better to give than receive”...Jesus said that

Ever found this to be true?

That picture — “pressed down, shaken together (takes faith), running over” — is the image of abundance spilling out. It’s the idea that when God pours into our lives, it’s never meant to stop with us. His blessings are meant to flow through us, not just to us.

{Acts 20:32-35}

When you live generously, you’re not just blessing yourself; you’re changing the lives of others. Your open hand can feed the hungry. Your sacrificial gift can lift up someone in need. Your kindness can open a door for the gospel. Generosity becomes a witness — a living testimony that points people back to the giver of all good things.

James 1:17 “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.

(S10) — Generosity is trusting God to...

III. FILL us to overflowing

Here’s the beauty: as generosity flows out of us, gratitude flows back in. We begin to see life differently. Scarcity no longer defines us. Fear no longer controls us. We discover the joy of being part of God’s blessing to others. And that joy is contagious — it inspires those around us to open their hands as well.

So the question isn’t just, “What do I have to give?” but “who can I touch with my generosity?” Because when we give in Jesus’ name, lives are changed, needs are met, and thanksgiving rises up to God.

Isn’t that the kind of overflow the world is in desperate need of?

Let me ask you, do you trust God enough to pour out...leaving room for him to pour in his abundance? To MULTIPLY and do more than what we could ever imagine?

Romans 15:13 “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”

As we draw this series to a close, lets re-hear what God has been saying over the past three weeks.

Worry doesn’t work — our Father provides for the birds, clothes the lilies, and promises to care for the ones He calls His own.

2. God’s table is where belonging and healing begin — where strangers are welcomed, shame is met with dignity, and where there is room for more

3. Today we’ve seen the fruit of that work: when God fills our lives, what overflows from us becomes a blessing to others.

We’ve moved from the posture of a needy heart, living in scarcity; to the posture of abundance as thankful people.

The gospel says that God’s grace suppled to every beleiver, is not meant to stop with us — it is designed to flow through us into the lives of others.

(S11)

God SUPPLIES so we will SUPPLY

Some of us have means to give more than others. but generosity is not measured by what you have, but by the generosity of your heart.

Mark 12:43–44 “Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.””

How much we are willing to pour OUT, to make room for God to pour INTO our life’s

Thanksgiving isn’t primarily a holiday to consume more; it’s an orientation of heart — a reset that says, “What I’ve received is not only for me.” With God our giving is never wasted, and our open hands are a way of saying, “I trust the Giver more than I trust what I hold.”

Water Pouring

God supplies so we will supply—The one who waters is watered; the one who pours out is filled to over flowing

(S) — This is what overflowing generosity looks like

So what does that look like? God’s word is clear

— Give freely; be refreshed and refresh others

— Tithe faithfully and trust God to pour out his blessing so the church can bless others

— It is better to give than receive because it makes room for more

The more you pour out, the God will pour into your life! Test me in this!

May the grace that fill our plates and our hearts this season keep spilling through us, so that every table we touch becomes a foretaste of the great feast to come—Christ’s table prepared for all who believe.

There is always more than enough, when Jesus is our MORE THAN ENOUGH

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