The Divine Benefits of Honoring the Lord

Introduction|

Attention:

One of the most touchy subjects within the church is the topic of giving and tithing. I also realize that you are the core group of Genesis Church, which means you are the most faithful in your attendance and giving. However, we come to this touchy subject in our study of . Since we have been walking through this section precept by precept, we come the the third command given by Solomon to his Son.   

Background: 

Solomon is encouraging his son to pursue wisdom by pursuing the Lord. One of the critical aspects of seeking knowledge and understanding is learning to honor God with your life and possessions. 

Need Element:

Sometimes, we need to be reminded of the importance of honoring the Lord with our finances. As a pastor, I hate to preach a message of giving to a group of people that provide above and beyond with their time, talents, and treasures. However, in our study of , God brings us to the topic of honoring Him with our finances. In our time together, I want to help us understand the importance of financial obedience. 

Textual Idea:

Solomon reminds his son that God blesses those who honor Him with their financial gain 

Big Idea: 

God blesses financial obedience! 

Interrogative:

When does God bless financial obedience?

Outline|

I. When we love the Lord, we will use our finances to honor Him (vv. 9)

Explanation:

Our spending habits reveal the affections of our heart! It might be a hobby such as fishing, golf, hunting, cooking, reading, or watching TV. It could be the needs of your extended family, such as rent, tuition, food, bills, etc. Our spending habits reveal what is important to us (family, hobbies, school, food, etc.). Solomon also understood that our finances show the affections of our heart. I want you to notice Solomon’s words: “Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase” (). The word honor is a command in the original text. It suggests “acknowledging something [or someone] as weighty [or significant].” When used to describe a person, it carries the idea of showing worth, value, or prominence. It is also closely connected with our adoration and affection for the Lord. In some languages, this phrase is expressed as “Show that the Lord is great,” “Show that the Lord is wonderful,” or “Show how much you respect the Lord.” Solomon urges his son to manifest his adoration and affection for the Lord with his finances. He says: “Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase” (). In ancient eastern cultures, wealth manifested itself in personal possessions and agricultural gains (livestock and crops). We can make two observations about honoring the Lord with our money.

We should worship the Lord with our finances.

First, we can use our possessions to worship the Lord—“with your substance.”

The word substance suggests an abundance of material possessions or resources. Many translations translate this word as “wealth” (ESV, NASB, NIV, NLT, and NET Bible). One translation translates it as “possessions” (CSB). In Solomon’s day, this would include land, livestock, and precious metals (gold, silver, and bronze). In our day, this would consist of our property, vehicles, bank account, and savings account. When it comes to our possessions, we need to remember that “everything comes from God and belongs to God!”

Secondly, we can use our financial gains to worship the Lord—“with the firstfruits of your increase.”

God commanded His people to give the firstfruits of their harvest to Him (, , and ). Thus, in the mind of the ancient Hebrews, the first grain harvested belonged to the Lord along with the firstborn male child and animal. This grain was then brought to the tabernacle or temple as a tithe and offering given back to the Lord for His faithfulness and goodness. The word increase carries two ideas in the Old Testament: 1) it suggests the annual harvest and 2) it denotes income or revenue. In that day, the land-owner would harvest the grain and then sale a portion of the grain in the city square. Thus, he would turn his harvest into a source of revenue. Before the land-owner made a dime, the Lord received his portion.

We can also worship the Lord from our finances.

The Hebrew text suggests the following translation: “honor the Lord from your substances” NASB and NET Bible). When you honor the Lord from your wealth, you part with some of your money. Thus, you “give it away for his sake.” The use of our wealth often reveals the object of our worship! This verse alludes to an act of worship from a heart of love.

Illustration:

Philip Guedalla, an eminent biographer, declared that the hardest problem the biographer faces is that of discovering the real person about whom he is to write. It is relatively easy, he said, to find out what the subject did, where the person went, and what the subject said; but what kind of person lives inside is a different matter. Guedalla illustrated his point by citing his biography of the Duke of Wellington. He came across unimpeachable evidence when he discovered Wellington’s old checkbook.

Argumentation:

Why should we honor the Lord with our finances?

We should honor the Lord with our finances for three reasons: 1) we give because God commands it; 2) we give because God owns it; and 3) we give because God deserves it! These principles are found in both the Old and New Testaments.

Application:

We should give from a heart of adoration and affection. I want to provide you with four ways you can honor the Lord with your finances.

First, you can give with a cheerful heart. Instead of giving begrudgingly, you can give with a cheerful heart. Paul reminds us that God loves a cheerful giver ().

Secondly, you can give with a generous heart. In , Paul develops this concept by reminding his readers that God has been generous to them. Because God has been generous to us, we ought to give generously to His work of redeeming the nations.

Thirdly, we can give with a gracious heart. Once again, Paul develops this idea in . Because we have experienced God’s grace, we extend grace to the nations by giving through the local church to reach the nations.

Finally, we can give with an obedient heart. God told his people to “bring the full tithe into the storehouse” (, ESV).     

II. When we honor the Lord, He will reward us with financial abundance (vv. 10)

Explanation:

At this point, Solomon reminds his son that God honors and blesses financial obedience. Solomon says: “so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine” (). Another way to say it is: “then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine” (, ESV). Once again, we find two agricultural analogies. In these agricultural analogies, God blesses those who honor Him with financial abundance. First, the storehouse will be filled with plenty. The phrase be filled suggests filling the storehouse to its max capacity. In the context of , God is the one who causes the barns to be filled to their max capacity. Secondly, the wine-vats will overflow with new wine. The phrase will burst forth suggests the idea of something overflowing past its limit. Once again, it is God who causes these wine-vats to overflow with new-wine! In these agricultural analogies, we are reminded that “God’s capacity to give far exceeds our capacity to receive.”

Matthew Henry says: “God will bless you with an increase of that which is for use, not for show, for giving away, not for hoarding. Those who do good with what they have shall have more to do more good with.”

Illustration:

I have seen God reward financial obedience in the last couple of months. While I haven’t been given a million dollars, I have seen God display his faithfulness because our obedience to Him and His Word. My wife and I received a 200 dollars check in the mall from HMG the week before our vacation. Someone gave us a holy-handshake the day of our trip. When we arrived in Cincinnati, our rental house was unfit and unsafe for me and my family. So, we had to unexpectedly cancel our rental house and book a hotel room for three days. After the cancellation of the rental house, we only got back 125 dollars due to the late cancellation. After finding a hotel room, we booked a hotel room for three nights for 400 dollars. It happens that that random check and the holy-handshake covered our unexpected stay in a hotel. Personally, I believe that it was God blessing our financial obedience to Him and His Word.

Argumentation:

Why does God bless financial obedience?

God blesses financial obedience because He is faithful to his word.

God says: “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. (, KJV).

Application:

This verse invites us to trust Him with our finances. We can trust Christ because He is faithful to keep his promises. It also summons us to obey Him. God blesses obedience and faithfulness to his Word. I want to encourage you to be obedient with your finances. God says: “put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need” (, ESV). We have been reminded that “God’s capacity to give far exceeds our capacity to receive.”

Conclusion/Application|

Visualization:

If you have been obedient to God in your tithes and offerings, you have witnessed God pour out his blessings upon your life in many ways. While this doesn’t mean that if you give money to God, He will make you productive. If that were the message, the Lord “would not be honored, but he would be used.” However, it does mean that God honors and blesses obedience to His Word

Action:

God invites us to respond in obedience to his Word. If you are not obedient to the Lord in your tithes and offerings, I want to encourage you to begin giving God His ten percent. If you are giving your ten percent, I want to help you to remain faithful to His Word. However, maybe God has blessed you to the point that you can give more, I want to encourage you to give generously and graciously from the abundance of God’s blessings! God also invites us to experience the rewards of financial obedience. When you are obedient to God with your income, we promise to reward your faithfulness and obedience to His Word.  

Appeal:

I do not know how God has spoken to your heart this evening! Maybe God has convicted you about your lack of obedience to His word in the area of your finances. If God has spoken to your heart, I invite you to step out and make the commitment to be faithful with your finances. God might have spoken to your heart about your ability to give generously and graciously towards God’s work. If God is leading you to begin giving more, I encourage you to be obedient to the leading of the spirit. Maybe God has reminded you of His faithfulness. I want to invite you to find a place around this altar and thank him for keeping his promises!