DEVELOPING GENEROUS HABITS - 1 CORINTHIANS 16: 1-4

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 16)

16 Now about the collection for the saints: Do the same as I instructed the Galatian churches. 2 On the first day of the week, each of you is to set something aside and save in keeping with how he is prospering, so that no collections will need to be made when I come. 3 When I arrive, I will send with letters those you recommend to carry your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it is suitable for me to go as well, they will travel with me.

BIG IDEA: GENEROUS HABITS ARE DEVELOPED THROUGH CONSISTENT GIVING.

The story is told that one day a beggar by the roadside asked for alms from Alexander the Great as he passed by. The man was poor and wretched and had no claim upon the ruler, no right even to lift HIS hand TO BEG. Yet the Emperor threw him several gold coins. A ROYAL AID was astonished at ALEXANDER’S generosity and commented, "Sir, copper coins would adequately meet a beggar's need. Why give him gold?" Alexander responded in royal fashion, "COPPER coins would suit the beggar's need, but gold coins suit Alexander's giving."

WHAT SUITS YOUR GIVING?

A GENEROUS - LIBERAL GIFT?

OR A GIFT THAT DOESN’T COST YOU ANYTHING?

ALMOST A MONTH AGO, I ASKED THE QUESTION: DO YOU BELIEVE YOU ARE A GENEROUS PERSON?

TAKE A MOMENT (NOW) AND LOOK AT YOUR PAST SEVERAL WEEKS OF GIVING, OF SOWING, EXAMINE YOUR CHECKBOOK OR ELECTRONIC ACCOUNT - ARE YOU A GENEROUS PERSON?

I SUBMIT TO YOU THAT GENEROSITY IS CULTIVATED WITH CONSISTENCY - CONSISTENCY.

WHEN WE PRAYERFULLY SEEK OPPORTUNITIES TO BE A BLESSING, GOD WILL POSITION US TO BE A BLESSING - CONSISTENCY! THEN AND ONLY THEN WILL THE HABIT OF GENEROSITY BE CULTIVATED...

IN TODAY’S SIMPLE PASSAGE, PAUL IS TEACHING THE BELIEVER’S AT CORINTH (AND US) THE VALUE OF CONSISTENCY - THE VALUE OF DEVELOPING GIVING HABITS...

16 Now about the collection for the saints: Do the same as I instructed the Galatian churches.

OUR PASSAGE FOR TODAY IS PAUL’S RESPONSE TO AN OBVIOUS INQUIRY ABOUT GIVING SUBMITTED BY THE BELIEVER’S AT CORINTH...

TO WHICH PAUL INSTRUCTS THEM TO: DO AS I TOLD THE OTHER CHURCHES…AS YOU READ TODAY’S PASSAGE WITH ME, PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS OFFERING WAS AN “EXTRA” OFFERING - THIS OFFERING WAS FOR THE BENEFIT OF ANOTHER MINISTRY - FOR OTHER BELIEVERS...

NOW, BELOVED, BEFORE WE DIG DEEPER INTO OUR GIVING, DO YOU BELIEVE YOURSELF TO BE A MEMBER OF THE LORD’S CHURCH? DO YOU BELIEVE, THEN, THAT YOU ARE EXPECTED TO ABIDE BY THE EXPECTATIONS (SCRIPTURALLY SPEAKING) OF THE LORD’S PEOPLE?

IF YOU AGREE WITH THESE QUESTIONS, TURN TO YOUR NEIGHBOR AND SAY, “I DO!”

HERE’S OUR FIRST MOVEMENT:

GENEROUS HABITS ARE DEVELOPED WHEN WE GIVE GOD OUR FIRST AND OUR BEST!

2 On the first day of the week, each of you is to set something aside and save in keeping with how he is prospering, so that no collections will need to be made when I come.

NOTICE HOW OUR GIVING IS TO BE PRIORITIZED: FIRST!

IT’S SO IRONIC HOW THE WORLD (AND MANY WITHIN THE CHURCH) FREQUENTLY SUGGEST THAT THE CHURCH IS MANIPULATING SCRIPTURE TO GET RICH...

THIS VERSE ISN’T BEING MANIPULATIVE: IT SAYS FIRST...

PROVERBS 3:9 SAYS: 9 Honor the Lord with your possessions and with the first produce of your entire harvest;

FIRST.

IF OUR GIVING IS NOT PRIORITIZED, IT WILL NOT LIKELY BE GENEROUS.

If our priorities are right, our offering to the Lord will come first, right off the top of our income. Not only that, our offerings will consist of the best we have. We don’t want to offer God the dregs of our time, talent, and treasures. True love will offer Him the very best we have.

Ingram, Chip .

FIRST & BEST GIVING REQUIRE A FAITHFUL HEART.

YOU’VE GOT TO BELIEVE THAT GOD HONORS OBEDIENCE.

YOU’VE GOT TO TRUST GOD AND TEST GOD’S RESPONSE TO HIS VERY WORD.

LET’S DIG A LITTLE DEEPER:

NO ONE IS OVERLOOKED. “EACH OF YOU...”

NO AMOUNT IS TO BE QUESTIONED. “HOW HE IS PROSPERING...”

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 9)

6 The point is this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each person should do as he has decided in his heart—not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver.

IN BOTH OF THESE PASSAGES, THERE IS AN EXPECTATION OF GENEROSITY AND THERE IS A TRUST FACTOR THAT WHAT YOU SOW IS TO BE GENEROUS...

Tony Evans Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Giving)

A FAMILY sat down to the dinner table and started talking about the church service. The son started off by saying, “The sermon was boring today, Dad.” The sister chimed in, “Boy, you sure are right; the pastor stumbled over the Scripture.” The mother jumped in and said, “Yeah, and the choir, Lord have mercy! They were pitiful! They weren’t in tune at all.” The father finally threw in his comments. He said, “Well, you know you guys really ought to hush. What do you expect for a five dollars?”

REVIEW FIRST POINT: GENEROUS HABITS ARE DEVELOPED WHEN WE GIVE GOD OUR FIRST AND OUR BEST!

NO ONE IS OVERLOOKED. “EACH OF YOU...”

NO AMOUNT IS TO BE QUESTIONED. “HOW HE IS PROSPERING...”

THE TEXT IS MOVING: 2 On the first day of the week, each of you is to set something aside and save in keeping with how he is prospering, so that no collections will need to be made when I come. 3 When I arrive, I will send with letters those you recommend to carry your gift to Jerusalem.

GENEROUS HABITS ARE DEVELOPED WITH CONSISTENT AND SYSTEMATIC GIVING!

PAUL SAYS: THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK - EACH WEEK...

SET ASIDE AND SAVE - IN KEEPING WITH OUR INCOME (HOW HE IS PROSPERING)...

SO THAT WE DON’T HAVE TO WONDER IF WE HAVE ENOUGH TO FULFILL THE VISION OR TO MEET THE NEED...

I FEEL YOU ALREADY: HOW CAN I GIVE WEEKLY WHEN I GET PAID MONTHLY?

HERE IT IS: GIVE AS YOU RECEIVE!

IF IT’S WEEKLY, GIVE WEEKLY - BI-WEEKLY, GIVE BI-WEEKLY, MONTHLY, GIVE MONTHLY...

GIVE AS YOU RECEIVE.

THIS CREATES CONSISTENCY IN OUR GIVING.

PRIORITIES ARE ESTABLISHED.

YOUR ENTIRE HOME COMES INTO ALIGNMENT.

SYSTEMATICALLY SPEAKING, PAUL SAYS, “SET ASIDE AND SAVE, ACCORDING TO HOW YOU’VE BEEN PROSPERED...”

PAUL NOR JESUS EVER REQUIRE A TRADITIONAL OLD TESTAMENT TITHE. THAT LANGUAGE ISN’T USED IN THE NEW TESTAMENT.

THE CHURCH HAS TYPICALLY INTERPRETED A TITHE WITH A 10% STANDARD - THIS HELPS FOLKS TO HAVE AN AMOUNT TO WHICH TO GIVE...

PAUL’S SYSTEM SAYS: IN KEEPING WITH HOW HE IS PROSPERED - AND AS HE DECIDES IN HIS HEART...

LET’S STACK IT UP: EVERY BELIEVER MUST SET ASIDE AN AMOUNT, WHICH ACCURATELY REPRESENTS A PORTION OF HIS/HER PROSPERITY, WHICH IS TO BE GIVEN CONSISTENTLY - CHEERFULLY - LIBERALLY!

I’M FINISHED BUT DON’T MISS THIS LAST PART. PAUL SAYS, “AND DON’T MAKE US WAIT ON IT.”

DON’T MAKE US BEG FOR US. DON’T MAKE US QUESTION THE TOTAL AMOUNT BASED UPON HOW WE ALL LIVING...

GBBC, THE LORD HAS BLESSED US LIKE HE HAS, BECAUSE HIS EXPECTATIONS ARE GREAT FOR US...

BELOVED, I WISH I COULD ARTICULATE WHAT I SEE THE LORD DOING THROUGH THIS MINISTRY - THE IMPACT I KNOW HE EXPECTS US TO MAKE - THE LIVES I KNOW HE EXPECTS US TO TOUCH - THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE LAND THAT HE HAS GIVEN TO US - THE SIZE OF MINISTRY WE ARE DESTINED TO BECOME...

WATCH THIS, AS THE LORD CULTIVATES VISION IN MY HEART AND MIND, HE’S CULTIVATING RESOURCES IN YOURS...

AN IN THE FULNESS OF TIME, HE WILL MARRY THE VISION HE’S GIVEN WITH THE RESOURCES HE’S GIVEN...

AND IN THAT DIVINE MOMENT, WE WILL ALL SEE HOW THE LORD CAN DO EXCEEDING ABUNDANTLY ABOVE ALL THAT WE CAN ASK OR IMAGINE...

WILL YOU BE A PART OF THIS MOVEMENT?

WILL YOU GIVE GOD YOUR FIRST AND YOUR BEST?

WILL YOU GIVE CONSISTENTLY AND SYSTEMATICALLY....AND ESPECIALLY CHEERFULLY?

WILL YOU EMBRACE GENEROSITY AS A WAY OF LIFE, ALWAYS LOOKING TO BE A BLESSING TO SOMEONE ELSE?

THEN TURN TO YOUR NEIGHBOR AND DECLARE, “I WILL.”