Key #6 – Giving is the Antidote to Materialism
Malachi 3:8
• Notice that God says the Israelites robbed him by not only withholding the mandatory tithes but also withholding their voluntary offerings
• By giving less in their freewill offerings than he expected of those who were truly grateful for what he had done for them, they were also robbing God
• If they could rob God with insufficient freewill offerings, can’t we do the same today?
• God expects each of us to give what we can to reflect what is really in our heart
Deuteronomy 16:10
• God called his people to give in proportion to how much he had blessed them
• This doesn’t apply just to finances as in the OT times because God has blessed us spiritually in every way; it applies to our time, energy, resources, finances, possessions, wisdom, etc.
• Do you have a heart to give beyond a minimum amount and to arrange your life in such a way that you can give as much and as consistently as possible throughout your life to the Kingdom of God and the ways in which God desires us to use your resources?
Deuteronomy 16:16-17
• The principle of this passage that is applicable for us is that there is never an excuse to not give to God
• No matter what kind of year you have had, God expects us to give
• Giving to God wisely, despite the circumstances, demonstrates faith in God rather than in our wealth
• Our goal should be to start with a tithe and then give generously from our heart, with a goal to reach 11, 12, 13, 15, 20% and beyond
• Tithing starts us on the road to giving, it’s not our destination
• God is looking for people who are generous in heart and recognize that he has given us everything we have so the more we can give back, the better
• What is your specific goal in giving to God and the poor in the next year; the next five years; the next ten years; etc.?
Malachi 3:10
• This is not a promise for us that God will make us rich if we give but we can be assured that he will provide our needs and will bless our lives with everything we need
• Many of us rob ourselves of God’s blessing because we lack faith and we make and pay debt before giving to God
Haggai 1:9-11
• What is the important principle here for us today?
• If we pay our debt to God first, then he will provide for us to pay off our debts to men
• But when we rob God to pay men, we rob ourselves of trusting God and experiencing the fullness of his blessing
• It can be a vicious cycle that takes obedient faith to break out of
• Some might say that they can’t afford to tithe but is that true?
• When your income was 10% less than it is today did you starve?
• If your income was reduced by 10% would you be sunk or would you be able to cut back and survive?
• If you could then should realize that you could tithe, you just perhaps don’t want to
• But it is much better to live on 90% or 80% or 70% of your income inside the will of God than it is to live on 100% of your income outside of the will of God
• God’s new covenant people are not bound by a law of tithe but if anything that means we are free to give far beyond a tithe rather than less
• 2 Corinthians 8:7 says to “excel in the grace of giving”
• Is that your desire?
Convictions
• If you are not at least tithing do you see your need to repent and start giving?
• If you are already tithing or beyond then is it your heart to find creative ways that you can continue to increase your giving?
• Do you truly have the desire to store up treasures in heaven and not on earth?
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I know I have pretty much just been a 10% guy through the years. I have given here and there on occasion to other things, but not very intentionally. A lot of times I look at special missions as an opportunity to give whatever extra I have at the time. It will be a challenge to change my thinking and even more challenging to put it into practice. My wife and I are talking more about it now though, so I will prayerfully press on to new heights in this.
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