2 Timothy 3:16-17; Luke 6:38; Psalm 23:5c
- The magnitude of your sowing will determine your harvest.
- Incremental giving leads to running over blessings from the Lord (Psalm 23:5b).
- Exceptional giving is part of our stewardship, and God expects us to be faithful.
- The Apostles gave without measure, and they reap beyond measure (Matthew 19:27-29).
Hudson Taylor, who founded a great missionary work in China, once said: ‘My experience has been that the more I give to others, my soul is all the more filled with happiness and blessings.’
P1. The Mystery of Biblical Giving
Romans 11:25a; Ephesians 1:9; 3:3-4; Ecclesiastes 11:1-2; Proverbs 11:24-25; Ecclesiastes 11:6
- Mystery is beyond human comprehension until it is explained. It excites wonder.
- Giving is universal, and its demands cut across different stages and levels in the house of the Lord. We have the Lad, couple, Priest, Levites, and the Church.
- The only Potentate Father initiated it, which is expected to diffuse to all His children.
- Giving foundation is embedded in the law of sowing and reaping and the law of retribution.
- Giving is part of our Christian duties, and we are expected to be faithful in discharging this duty. Giving is a manure that triggers fruitfulness.
P2. The Misery of a Sparing Giver
2 Corinthians 9:6a-7; Proverbs 19:17; Luke 6:38b; Galatians 6:7-9; Proverbs 11:24b; 1 Samuel 25:3
We have three categories of people in the Church. We have the robbers (Malachi 3:8-9), sparing and bountiful givers.
- A farmer who sows little seeds on some farmland will have little harvest.
- Teaching cheerful giving is not an exploitation but an exhortation for God’s special blessings.
- Examples of biblical sparing givers are below:
King Saul, the stingy giver – (1 Samuel 15:3,9-15).
Ananias and Sapphira, the covetous givers – (Acts 5:1-10).
The immodest givers are those who give to be seen by men. They had their only reward here on earth (Matthew 6:1-2).
P3. The Manifold Blessings of a Bountiful Giver
2 Corinthians 9:6b-13; Luke 6:38a; Psalms 41:1-3; Proverbs 22:9; Hebrews 6:10; Malachi 3:10-12
