God's Promises for Giving

In 2012 there was a series of ads on TV about giving to nonprofits,

One of the Ad Council's most effective public service commercials is the "Don't Almost Give" campaign. One ad shows a man with crutches struggling to go up a flight of steps. The narrator says, "This man almost learned to walk at a rehab center that almost got built by people who almost gave money." After a pause the narrator continues, "Almost gave. How good is almost giving? About as good as almost walking."

Another ad shows a homeless man curled up in a ball atop a pile of rags. He is covered with a ratty bed sheet. The narrator begins, "This is Jack Thomas. Today someone almost bought Jack something to eat. Someone almost brought him to a shelter. Someone almost gave him a warm blanket." Then after a pause the narrator drives his point home, "And Jack Thomas? Well, he almost made it through the night."

Our needs will be met- v8

I love the way that The Message interprets this verse. It says “ God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done” Our God is a need-meeter. It is what he does.

God promises that when we are generous, hill will come through and meet our needs. In his letter to the Philippians Paul said it another, he said And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus”

Preacher Charles Spurgeon tells of a man to whom was entrusted a large sum of money for the benefit of a poor minister. He thought it would be best to distribute the gift, instead of sending it all at once.

So he mailed the poor minister five pounds and, inside the envelope, he placed a little slip of paper on which was written, "More to follow."

Thus, for ever so long, the old minister received regularly his little package of money, always with the "More to follow" note inside.

And this is how God deals with us. The grace we receive today is but a pledge of that which will be given tomorrow; that which we receive tomorrow will likewise be stamped, "More to follow."

Sure, it may seem more obvious in some moments, but God’s provision is real everyday- it is easy to see the astonishment when someone hits the $50million lottery, but as I told one older member of our congregation a few years ago- some call hitting the lottery a miracle, but I think it is also a miracle to wake up and go to a job every day for 50+ years.

Think about the Israelites, remember God’s provision for them in the desert? One of the things it is easy to miss is found in Deuteronomy 29:5; God reminded the Israelites “I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn off your feet”

Maybe they didn’t get new shoes- no Jordan’s, or Prada high end shoes- just their normal everyday shoes that lasted- 40 years. That is astonishing- I think Ethan has gone through 3 pairs of shoes this year alone!

God’s promise is not always prosperity, it is often provision, he will meet our needs and make sure that we have what we need to live the life he has laid out for us. Think of it this way, God is not going to lay out a plan for your life and then put the responsibility for providing for that life on your shoulders, no way! God says that he has a plan for your life, and he has the means to provide everything you need along the way!

Our ministry will increase- v11

So many sermons and teachings about generosity are rooted in God’s promise to overfill our cups. It’s almost like we are given an insensitive to give that we will become wealthier if we give our money away, but the increase that Paul is talking about in 2 Corinthians 9 is not an increase in finances per-say, it is an increase in ministry.

So, what’s the difference? Well, its is who is getting the focus and the glory. If we are generous because we think we are going to reap a benefit or get more things then we are focusing on us getting the glory. Much of the prosperity Gospel is rooted in this kind of thinking- if I am generous and give to the Lord, then he will make sure I have the big house, the best car, the most of everything. The focus is you.

Notice, though, that Paul is saying something different in verse 11; Paul says that we will be enriched to be generous so that God get’s the glory. The one who is glorified is God.

Here is the promise in simple terms, if you make your goal in life to glorify God, and you use your money and possessions to do that, God will continue to lay out more and more opportunities for you to glorify him with your money and possessions. He will bless you.

The Blessings will Pour

I love this one! So many people spend their lives trying get rich quick schemes, trying to manipulate every dollar, and twist every financial opportunity to milk out every last cent. Jesus is clear, when you are generous you wont have to do that- it will be poured in your lap!

This stirs an image in my mind. Have you ever been sitting in a chair, maybe by a pool, or at a cookout, and had someone sneak up behind you and dump a bucket of water right on top of your head, right in your lap? You didn’t go looking for the water, it was dumped on you, and now you're all wet-

This is the image that I get when I think about Jesus’ words in the passage. An unexpected dowsing in his blessing.

Jesus does not want us to use our energy chasing blessings, he wants us to use our energy chasing him. In the Kingdom of God the keys to God’s blessings Seek the Kingdom of God and be generous with others- Jesus promises an overflow of blessings.

The Blessings will be eternal!

Buy a new car- it will break down eventually

Buy a new house- it will need repairs

New fridge- average life expectancy 14-17 years

New TV- average life expectancy 10 years

New pair of jeans- 4 years

Investing in the Kingdom of God- eternal investment.

Abundance isn't God's provision for me to live in luxury, but his provision for me to help others live.

Jesus trusts us with the resources of this world so that we can invest on his behalf.

You see, many people see themselves as the ultimate decision makers of how their money will be spent, they live as though they get to decided how to spend their money, and while that has some truth to it, as Christians we also have a responsibility to God in how we spend the money he allows to come to us.

Many of us know the names of Steve Jobs and Steve Wosniak- they were the founders of Apple Computers- at least 2/3 of the owners. Did you know that there was a third man who was in on the startup? Ronald Wayne was the third co-founder of Apple, with a ten percent ownership stake. Remember that figure: ten percent. He wasn’t an engineer, but he had a significant role in the early days of the company: he designed the first Apple logo, he wrote the user manual for the Apple 1 computer, and in general he provided administrative oversight of the new venture. He was the unofficial adult in the room: he was in his forties at the time.

So why haven’t most of us ever heard of Ronald Wayne? Is he a wealthy recluse, staying out of the public eye while he sails around the world on his 300-foot luxury yacht? Perhaps he’s a philanthropist, distributing his millions to deserving charities. No. No, neither of those things is true. In fact, today Ronald Wayne is far from wealthy. Because just twelve days after these partnership documents were signed, he and the others signed a second document [Dissolution of partnership document]. And in this document, he gave up his ten percent stake, in exchange for eight hundred dollars. Eight hundred dollars.

Let me ask you, would you be willing to pay $800 for ten percent of Apple Computer today? So what happened? Well, Wayne had second thoughts. As a partner, he would have been liable for any debts incurred by the new company, and that was a risk. He had assets that creditors could come after if the company went broke. He also felt a bit out of his league with Jobs and Wozniak, these two whiz-kid geniuses. And so he bailed. Took the $800 check and parted ways with them. And the rest is history.

Now, just for fun, let’s calculate what Wayne’s ten percent stake in Apple would be worth if he had held on to it all these years. Apple today is worth about $800 Billion dollars. And so that ten percent stake in 1976 would today be worth about $80 Billion dollars. That’s right. The ownership stake that Ronald Wayne relinquished in 1976 for eight hundred would today be worth over eighty billion dollars. In other words, about a hundred million times what he sold it for. Just let that sink in for a moment.

Here’s the bottom line, friends, as Christians we live under the conviction that our money is given to us by God, and while we may be free to spend it how we want, we also have a God that wants to give us direction on how we use the resources that He has brought into our lives. In our home, we try and teach our boys this in a very practical way.