The insistence on giving

Yesterday, I wrote about the secret of giving - that God calls us to give in secret. It may have made more sense to start with today's post- that God insists on giving.

These thoughts stem from a series we're in at Genesis Church on giving. My thoughts are based on the scripture from Matthew 6:1-4, where Jesus lays this out:

“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

The one word that continually stands out to me in this passage is a small one: "When."

Jesus doesn’t say IF you give, or on the rare occasion we decide to give, he says when you give. Jesus just assumes that anyone inside the kingdom of God will be a willing participant in funding it. He assumes that anyone who has been outside the Kingdom, walking in the dark, and who comes into the light of Christ will be so undone and overwhelmed by the grace of God that to give back a small part of their income would be natural. But, it’s not always like that.

Life gets in the way and our daily living expenses get in the way and we’re so caught up in it that giving back to God takes a back seat.

But, Jesus continues: “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."- Matthew 6:19-21.

See, this is the reason for giving. Not because God needs your money, because he doesn’t. Anything he wants to do he can do without money. But because he knows that, for many of us, money has a grip on our hearts. And God wants your heart, and he wants my heart, and he knows that wherever our treasure is, our hearts will be also.

Many of us cling tightly to our money, because it is visible, or at least the things we can buy with it are visible. But, think of your giving as an investment, and you get a whole different view. Look at the change in your life or in the lives of those around you this church has made. Look at other churches or organizations that are built solely or mostly on contributions, and look at how they change the landscape in which they operate. If you think about sowing generously to a cause you believe in, and you think about the change that can bring about, you are more likely to want to give.

When you give, do not announce it with trumpets, do not let your left hand know what the right one is doing. But when you give, give in secret. Then your father, who knows what is done in secret, will reward you.