Title: Live To Give
Date: 2007-11-04
Reference: Luke 6:38
I heard on the radio this week that Elvis Presley remains the best paid deceased person in the nation. This last year, 30 years after his death, he actually earned another 50 million dollars in royalties. Of course he personally will not enjoy any of it.
An inescapable reality, one we really don’t like to think about, is we brought nothing into this world and it’s certain we’ll carry nothing out. When a billionaire dies he leaves it all behind. All of his earthly riches stay right here in this world becoming the property of someone else who will one day also abandon them.
It’s good to remind ourselves that God owns it all. God owns everything. We speak of our possessions but the basic fact of Scripture is we own nothing. We are stewards of all God has place in our trust.but we are not owners. And one day we will leave it all behind.
Our task is to be good stewards of all God has allowed us to enjoy. How we live our lives and how we share of our time, talents, abilities, and possessions is our management of God’s resources. The days we live, the positions we fill, the people we influence, the homes we inhabit, the cars we drive, the money in our accounts must all be recognized as belonging to someone else.
The Bible says: “The Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it belongs to the Lord.” Our faith has no room for self-centered hoarding. Jesus warned us to be on guard against all kinds of greed.
This is not an easy lesson for many of us.
In America our prevailing passion is for ownership. We want to own our houses, cars, investment portfolios. We want to own everything we can get our hands on. If there is one quality we value above all others it is self reliance. There is nothing that demonstrates self reliance more than ownership. We love to own things because we love the feeling of controlling the details of our lives. It doesn’t matter if one is running a multinational corporation or cashing checks at Paychecks Plus each week, you love the feeling money gives. The only way I know to release the grip of money in our lives is to give up the idea of ownership. We must come to realize God is the real owner of everything we have. God doesn’t need our stuff. We don’t even need all our stuff. God does want our heart and a relationship with each of us. Again as Paul wrote in I Tim.”We didn’t bring anything with us when we came into the world, and we certainly cannot carry anything with us when we die. “ At best our job is to manage what God has blessed us with. That’s why God put us here in the first place, to manage God’s stuff which includes rivers, seas, plants, animals, and resources of all kinds.
The plain fact is everything we claim to own is simply in our possession for a time. One day this earthly life will end. By disease, accident, our bodies wearing out with age, we will leave this existence. On that day we will take nothing from this world with us. The only thing we will ultimately keep is what we give away.
We have been so blessed. And we are blessed to be a blessing. The early New England Pilgrims were discussing the hardships and challenges they were still facing. One person suggested they set aside a special day for fasting and prayer.
Another stood up and said: “We are dwelling too much on our problems and not enough on our blessings. Our colony is making good progress. The harvests are becoming more abundant. The streams are full of fish and the forests provide plenty of game. We are enjoying the liberty we came here seeking. Rather than a day of fasting I recommend a day of Thanksgiving.”
We have so much to be thankful for. I think we have serious lapses in memory. We count the weeds and not the flowers. But when we do pause to thank God for His many blessings we must also consider the responsibilities that accompany the blessings. Responsibilities to share them with others around us.
Another timeless truth is God’s work in this world must be supported by God’s people. Giving of our possessions, our time, our energy, our talents is a lifestyle not an activity. When we give we reflect God’s nature. God is the ultimate giver. We are fulfilled when we give. We are never more like God than when we give.
One of the first lessons we learned as children is to share. We feel better about ourselves when we share. It feels good to give and giving differentiates us from takers. Jesus said: ”It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Society teaches us to look out for number one. Many today are living only for themselves. They are not interested in other people. They focus only on what they want and they lead very shallow lives. God created us to be givers. We are never completely fulfilled until we learn the simple secret of how to give life away. We were created to give. Whatever we give will be given back to us. If one smiles one usually receives smiles. A kind word and response is usually met with the same.
The Bible says when we are generous to others in their time of need, God will insure that others are generous to us when we need the help.
Scripture says when we help the poor through our giving we are lending to God. The closest thing to the heart of God is helping others. John Bunyan author of Pilgrim’s Progress once wrote: “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone else who cannot pay you back.” God depends on us to share what we have with others in need.
Another timeless truth is that God holds us accountable. Daniel Webster was once asked what was the most profound thought he ever had.
He replied.”The most profound and important thought ever to occupy my mind is that I am individually accountable to Almighty God.” Webster knew his Bible well. Especially the truth that each of us must one day give an accounting for how we lived and how we managed the assets God has placed in our care.
God is delighted when we give of ourselves out of a willing and joyful heart. God’s plan is for us to invest His resources and not squander them. To invest the talents he has given us and not waste them. To make a difference in this world and to leave this world a better place. It is only reasonable to believe that one day God will be interested in what kinds of stewards we really were.
As we give we remember God desires equal commitment and not equal contribution. Jesus made it clear that a very wealthy person who gives a welcome substantial gift may not be giving sacrificially while a person who makes a smaller gift may be sacrificing.
God is most honored when we give out of need and not out of abundance. One must give up something and not just give away something. Remember the poor widow in the temple. All around her were very wealthy people giving very generous gifts out of their bounty. The gifts they were giving were welcome and would be used well. But what was given would not really be missed in the long run. This poor widow gave two pennies. But she gave all she had. And Jesus noticed. And Jesus was appreciative. And Jesus said God noticed and was appreciative.
Finally, God blesses the giver in proportionate measure. God does not really need anything. Yet God has planned that we would grow in grace as we give to Him. And God has promised to bless us accordingly. Jesus said: “Give and it will be given to you. Good measure. Pressed down. Shaken tightly. Running over. For with the same measure that you use to give it will be measured back to you.” If you give with a teaspoon, giving back to you will be with a teaspoon. If you give with a shovel it will be given back to you with a shovel. Again Jesus said: “If you sow sparingly you will also reap sparingly. If you sow bountifully you will reap bountifully. The size of the harvest depends on the amount of your seed.
Giving to God and in His name giving to others is not something that we do as Christians. Giving to God is the result of what we are.We are children of God. When the branch is receiving life from the vine, it cannot help but give. The branch exists to give. For the branch giving and living are one in the same. To live is to give and to give is to live. We cannot selfishly hold onto the blessings God gives. If we are abiding in the vine we cannot help but share.
The portfolio for which we are responsible includes a wide range of assets and God’s expectation is that we make the most of each one. All the assets we have under our management.money, time, possessions, opportunities, influence, relationships, and much more. This doesn’t even include the spiritual assets with which we are entrusted. The Gospel of Christ, the mystery of Godliness, the gift of prayer. Everything in life is sacred and should be received as a sacred gift from God. But all of our gifts are meant to be shared with the world around us.
Trustworthiness is the mark of a good steward. A Christ Centered steward is the by product of a Christ like attitude. God wants us to be a people He can count on. May we be found faithful.
