Title: Saints Offering with Joy
Contents
10.10.03 Sunday morning worship
Saints who offer joy (2 Corinthians 9:5-11)
Chapters 8-9 of 2 Corinthians tell a lot about the life of the offering of the saints as a whole. Of course, teachings about giving are appearing in many other places besides this one. Perhaps that is why, there seem to be many misunderstandings regarding donations, as there are many differences of opinion among the members according to their experiences and positions.
And when I see people who sometimes meet in the field while evangelizing say that they do not want to go to church because of donations, it is very heartbreaking to see that the image of donations is becoming an obstacle that is difficult to overcome for people without faith or for people in the world, no matter what the image of giving in a world that is sensitive to material like recently.
Today, I hope that this will be an opportunity to restore the richness of a saintly life by examining the life of giving, which is a turning point between the practical difficulties and abundance of the Christian life, and finding the principles of the giving life that God is pleased with, and strengthening the will to practice. I wish you.
Above all, we must know the reason for giving and become a donor (1 Chronicles 29:14). Everything belongs to God, but the most important thing in our life of giving is to realize that what we are enjoying now comes from God. In 1 Chronicles 29, David prepared beyond his might to build the temple and confessed, “All things come from you, and I have only given them to you.” Please believe that God is pleased with and accepts the gift and life offered with the same confession as David.
In this way, offering is a gift that is returned to God with thanks and joy from everything received from God.
So what about donations?
1) It must be prepared in advance (verse 5). Looking at the process of preparing an offering without blemish in the Old Testament times, it seems that there are so many things that we need to look back on in our present life. Just as we prepared sacrifices without blemish and offer the best livestock and the first livestock to God, believe that God is pleased with the preparations and offerings we do now.
Shouldn't it be worse than bringing a gift to God with a wedding gift? I hope that all the members of the congregation who give the gifts prepared with heart and devotion will become.
2) You must give with all your might (verse 6). This means that he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. However, the prior knowledge we need to know here is that the expression of more and less in the Bible is mainly used as an absolute concept, not a relative concept. When Jesus saw a widow offering two lepton offerings with a rich man, he once said that the widow put in more than everyone else (Luke 21:1~4). I pray that you will become saints who give their best in the midst of being like a widow.
3) Each must give according to what they have decided in their heart (verse 7a). I want to explain this verse from two perspectives. The first is to be wary of giving voluntarily, and the second is to give a set offering while praying. This is because, as people, there is a lot of risk of falling into convenient thoughts all of us, if we leave it only to the individual's autonomous judgment when deciding on the donation. Therefore, it is good to set up and give your offerings with faith and prayer that all things come from God.
4) Not stingy or compulsion (v. 7b). This means that you have to give voluntarily. We are well aware of the incident in Acts 5 where Ananias and Sapphira died while offering money to God. This was to teach clearly how important it is not to have a large or small amount before God, but how important an offering that contains the truth is important.
5) We must give with a joyful heart (verse 7c). We must also give with riches and generosity (verse 11).
On the other hand, just because we must not force ourselves to do so, we must not misunderstand that each member of the church can or cannot donate according to his or her heart. It is realized as faith matures, but please remember that offerings are the basics of a believer that anyone who has received God's grace should give.
That's right. We should live a life of giving to God with thanks and joy what we have received from God. And when giving
1) You must personally give the gifts (tithes, thanks) that God has commanded. Even if it is not the Old Testament sacrificial community, we must offer a gift that can be faithfully obeyed in our relationship as Creator and Creator, Heavenly Father and children. This is not optional.
* There are two types of tithing to God. First, according to Leviticus 27:30, the tithe was given to the Levites or priests by dividing 1/10 of all the produce at the end of the harvest. This was to ensure the livelihood of the Levites and priests who were only doing religious duties.
The second is the cost of giving thanks to God by dividing 1/10 again from 9/10. It was given as a party expense, an offering, or an offering. Also, in the third and sixth years, Levites, strangers, poor, orphans, widows, etc. were gathered from each place to give as alms.
* What is practically important is the use of offerings made to God, including tithes. Our church is used for work for the expansion of the kingdom of God, but the internal operation needs are reduced to the minimum even if there are some inconveniences, and the donations, including those that have endured the inconvenience, can be used to care for the poor and needy neighbors. I hope we can work together to make it happen. - Jeonju Antioch Church
2) We must give our talents and time. We don't just have wealth. We have God-given talents, time, and experience. God is pleased when we give our talents, time, and experience for the good work of the kingdom of God.
On one occasion, Jesus said in Matthew 22:23, “… He once rebuked the scribes and Pharisees, saying, "You tithe mint, anise, and cumin, but you have forsaken the weightier matters of the law: righteousness, mercy, and faith." If we consider these words one more time, I think it is a rebuke to us today. At this time of hesitating due to various thoughts about giving, I want to be able to look back on whether we are making the mistake of overdoing the Lord's righteousness, mercy, and trust, as well as fragrant gifts in the meantime. .
We must keep in mind. May we always remember what the Apostle Paul said through the Apostle Paul, 'He is able to abound in all grace, that in all things always suffices to abound in every good work' (2 Corinthians 9:8), to those who live a life of giving according to the Word. wish. We don't do our best to donate to receive blessings, but we want to be able to give our best efforts to God while giving joy with expressions of gratitude and love. Then God says that we will have all things abundantly. He also says that with his abundance he will again abound in good works. I hope that you can realize that a single penny of our sincere gift is the secret of blessing that blesses life, expands the kingdom of God, and truly enriches the life of those who give it.
Dear brothers and sisters, I pray in the name of the Lord that you now live a life that gives the best for the good work of the kingdom of God rather than our own abundant material life, and that you experience the grace of God abundantly in everything. Amen.