Being a generous people

Sermon Series: Biblical Ways of Being
1 Timothy 6:18 and Proverbs 3:9-10

January 27, 2008

Manuscript

Big Idea: The Bible calls us to be a generous people because God is the owner of everything and he calls us to steward his blessings in our lives in accordance with his generosity.

Review:

This morning we take another step in our New Year series: Biblical Ways of Being – As we stand on the front edge of a new year it is the perfect time to do some reflection. It’s a great time to reflect about:

The kind of person we are and dare to dream about the kind of person we want to become.
The status of the relationships in our lives and dare to dream about how we can make them better this next year.
The kind of people we are as a community of believers here at Church of the foothills and dare to dream about where God will take us in this New Year.

Since God is the designer of life and the engineer of our lives, He understands how we can get the most out of our lives and relationships. And so, He calls us to certain fundamental ways of being.

We started with Biblical Way of Being #1 – The Bible calls us to be a committed/dependable people. We are called to live thoughtfully and intentionally, loving what God loves and hating what God hates. We are called to be people of our word, dependable and reliable...doing what we commit to do and not doing what we commit to not do. Think about all the different relationships you have...please realize that your commitment and dependability or lack thereof, impacts every one of those relationships. Spouse with spouse...Parents with kids and kids with parents...employers and employees...friend with friend....and most importantly your commitment and dependability impacts your relationship with God. Your dependability in all these relationships has huge implications.

Biblical Way of Being #2 -- Being a Unified People: Proverbs reminded us that God hates disunity and dissention. Disunity is perhaps the enemy’s greatest weapon to keep the church off mission and keep her spinning her wheels. But, unity in a church like ours is one of God’s most powerful tools to advance the church. A unified people can accomplish more and reflect the glory of God in greater degrees to the community around her. But, listen carefully: for us to experience the joy of unity...EACH ONE OF US has to be paying attention to our attitudes, speech and conduct. Disunity never happens without a person stirring it up...so pay attention to yourself and make sure that you are not the one stirring it up because unity is high on God’s values list he gets real serious about the person who stirs up disunity.

Last week Pastor Roy reminded us of Biblical Way of Being #3 – Being a growing/maturing people. As we get going in this New Year, are you setting the course of your days, weeks and months making sure to be involved in habits and practices that will build you and grow you in your walk with Jesus? Roy refuted the myth that just coming to church one hour a week and hearing a 30 minute message will enable you to thrive in your spiritual life. Each of us really needs to seek to expose ourselves to personal time with God and small group time with his Word in addition to our corporate time together.

This week we come to Biblical Way of Being #4 – Being a generous people. Since God is the One who created us, it makes sense that He would know exactly how you and I can experience the greatest joy and satisfaction in our lives. And one of the areas that God frequently addresses is how you are to manage all that you have in your life...your time, your gifts and abilities, your talents, your intellect and of course all your material possessions. And the undeniable message that God wants us to hear is that those who follow Christ are to be a generous people.

[Transition] - This morning I want to refresh us in the fundamental principles of generosity. Again, as we are on the front edge of a New Year, it is helpful for us to revisit this theme and once again do a personal inventory and personal evaluation on how we are managing all that God has allowed us to have. This Way of Being might possibly be the most difficult one for us to keep aligned with God’s will. So, let’s revisit some of the fundamental teaching on it from God’s Word and take courage to be honest with ourselves and to realign any areas of our heart that are misaligned.

The fundamentals of Biblical generosity begin with the truth that God owns everything. Look at Psalm 24:1 on the screen....

Fundamental principles of generosity

Generosity principle #1 – God owns everything.

Psalm 24:1 – “The Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world and all who live in it;...”

Do you really believe that? Think about it for a moment...do you really believe that? The Bible’s posture on generosity starts right here!

This is so basic, so fundamental and yet...so easy to live like it’s not true. We speak often of “my stuff” or “my money” or “my savings”, but the basic fact of Scripture is: we actually own nothing! God owns it all. Think about it, when a wealthy person dies, how much does he/she leave? They leave it all. All their earthly possessions stay right here, becoming the property of someone else who will also die and leave it all right here, and so on and so on.

It’s so easy to get possessive with what we have because we reason that I earned it...I worked hard for it...I acquired it...so, I have a right to own it and use it for myself or do with it what I want. It’s at that point in our thinking that we have to remember who gave you the ability to earn it, work hard for it and acquire it.

Turn in your Bibles to Deuteronomy 8: 10-14, 17-18 God is teaching his people about how to manage all the good blessing he is going to give them-

“When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. 11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God,...17 You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." 18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth,...”

[ Transition] – God is the owner of everything...the Biblical teaching on generosity begins with this fundamental truth. Now, let’s pause for a moment to ask ourselves a question: Do I really believe that? Ask yourself that question. It’s important to settle that question first...because the next fundamental principle flows directly out of that one. The next fundamental generosity principle is that God –the owner – calls you to be the manager of his possessions.

Generosity Principle #2 – God calls you to be his manager.

[Illustration] – I read a story about an advance team of movie scouts who were scouting locations in south Florida for a popular TV series and they found the perfect site for an action sequence they had in mind. It was an impressive house with an expansive, lush lawn. Unfortunately, the script called for the cars to be spinning and crashing on the lawn, tearing out shrubs and moving down flower beds. But the residents of the home were so infatuated by the possibility of having their home featured on a prime-time show, they gave their approval on the spot. Days later, the film crew arrived and began shooting. Cars driven by Hollywood stunt drivers were soon careening wildly across the front yard, violently ripping through the turf. That was when a neighbor called the owner of the house—in New York. The scouts had asked the residents for their permission to film, without realizing that they were only the tenants who had absolutely no authority to allow the property to be harmed, much less destroyed. Understandably the owner was not a happy guy...the director was embarrassed...the lead guy on the advance team was looking for a new job and the residents were looking for a new place to live (Nowery, Kirk, Revolutionary Generosity, p. 39-40).

This story really helps us get our arms around a fundamental truth: Renters are not owners, they are stewards. And the biggest difference between renters and owners can be defined with two words rights and responsibilities. God is the owner of everything and therefore has the right to set the standard for how the possessions he owns are to be managed.

We are tenants in the flesh and blood God has given us. We are stewards of all that God has allowed us to have at this point in our lives. The air we breath, the health and energy we have during our days, the positions we fill, the children we nurture, the people we influence, the homes we inhabit, the cars we cherish, the things we use, the money in our accounts – must all be recognized as belonging to God and entrusted to us as his manager.

And I would submit to you that managing our possessions according to God’s desire is the most challenging of all of these. Some might struggle with being generous with their time or their talent but the most difficult thing for most of us is to practice godly generosity with our possessions (Revolutionary Generosity, page 42-43). And this is not simply an American issue or a 21st Century culture issue...or an El Dorado County affluence issue.

[Quote] – Martin Luther astutely observed that when a person becomes a Christian and begins to walk with Jesus: “There are three conversions necessary: the conversion of the heart, the mind and the purse. Of these three, it may well be that we find the conversion of the purse the most difficult.”

[Transition] – Since God is the owner of everything and we are his tenants, God has the right to articulate how he wants the possessions he entrusts to us to be managed. And the Bible clearly lays out God’s call on our lives as his stewards. He calls us to be a generous people. I want to show you an example of this. Turn in your Bibles to 1Timothy 6. As you are turning there, let me give you some context...Paul is coaching Timothy regarding his teaching ministry. Paul assures Timothy that the teachings he has passed to Timothy are sound, wholesome teachings of Jesus and they are the foundation for a godly life. And he also assures Timothy that the folks who teach other things are arrogant, teaching false doctrine and basically using religion to make money. Then he reaffirms a few key truths regarding the proper perspective on wealth and possessions...look at verse 6

Generosity Principle #3 – God calls you to be a generous manager.

1 Timothy 6:6-10

“But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

Now skip to verse 17 and pay attention to these important words...

Verse 17-18:

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”

I want to point out four key truths from this passage:

Don’t put your hope in wealth, it is too uncertain.
Put your hope in God, He is the one who richly provides us with everything we need.
Generosity is a commandment.
Generosity in this life is an investment in your eternity.

[Transition] - God is the owner, you and I are managers and as managers we are called to be generous with what God has given us to manage. And when we are generous, KNOW THIS --God is faithful to honor those who honor him with their generosity. Turn in your Bibles to Proverbs 3:9-10

Generosity Principle #4 – God is faithful to the manager who honors him with their generosity.

Proverbs 3:9-10:

9 Honor the LORD with your wealth,
with the first-fruits of all your crops;

10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
and your vats will brim over with new wine.

Proverbs 11:25

“A generous man will prosper;
he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.”

Now, please realize, these are not prosperity gospel principles. These proverbs are not saying the more money you give to God the more he’ll give back to you. The blessing and refreshment that these Proverbs talk about might have to do with money but they might not. The blessing and refreshment can come in all sorts of ways. Trust me...God knows the best ways to bless you.

I believe blessing results when generosity is practiced because generosity breaks the grip of materialism in our lives. Giving and generosity keeps us from the insidious slide of trusting in junk rather than Jesus...from trusting in stuff instead of a savior...from trusting in luxury rather than our Lord.

When your trust subtly begins to rest in the material possessions of life you place money and possessions on the throne of your life rather than God.

But nothing places God in the center of your life like generosity. Think about it -- Nothing says “God, I am grateful for your care of my life” like giving and nothing says, “God, I trust you for tomorrow” like giving. And nothing says, “God, my life is in your hands” like giving.

In our culture the prevailing passion is for ownership. We want to own houses, own cars, own investment portfolios, own everything we can get our hands on. But we can easily put ourselves at spiritual risk by getting so focused on this temporal world that we forget to set our affections on things above. The inescapable reality is as Paul said to Timothy “...we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.”

But, when we wise up about all of this and we honor God with the wealth he has entrusted to us then the Bible assures us that God will be faithful to us as we are faithful to him.

Notice the Proverbs says “first-fruits.” We are to honor God first, not wait to see if there is any left over, any that we don’t need and then give that to him. In other words, our generosity, our giving is to be a priority, it is to be intentional. Our giving is to set the pace in our values. Our way of living or our lifestyle is to flow out of our priority of honoring God first out of the wealth he has allowed us to have.

[Illustration] - In the January 6th, 2008 edition of the Sac Bee there was an article by Kathy Kristof, author of “Kathy Kristof’s Complete Book of Dollars and Sense.” Her article talked about some wise resolutions for how you should manage your money in the New Year. The article was entitled, “Our money and values are inseparably linked.” The article rightly argued that the choices you make with your money reflect your values. And as you look at this New Year...if the choices you are currently making with your money don’t match your values, then it’s time to make some changes.

Jesus said it this way, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Luke 12:34).

Closing:

With this truth in mind, here is a penetrating question: Are the choices you are currently making with your money demonstrating that God is first in your life? Does your checkbook demonstrate that you value God as owner and that you are being a generous steward? If not then now is the time to make some changes.

As this New Year gets underway, it’s a good time to be intentional about honoring God with your wealth. It’s a good time to get out the pencil and paper and calculator and make the exhilarating, freeing choice to put God first.

If you have only given randomly, with the generosity principles we reviewed today in mind, I would challenge you to begin giving regularly.

If you have never given, with the generosity principles we reviewed today in mind, I would invite you to take a step of faith and start giving ten dollars or twenty dollars per week.

The reality is, sometimes because of debt etc., it takes some time to get our financial house in order before we can begin to give. If that is your reality, then I would challenge you to sit down and make some tough choices to get on a plan to get things in order so that you can put God first in your life. If you want to get serious this year about putting God first in your finances...Let me recommend a book to you – The Treasure Principle by Randy Alcorn.

There are many of you in this church who have understood God’s call on your life to be a generous and faithful steward. When people like you are faithful and found to be good stewards God is honored in your lives and you are position for his richest blessing...beyond what you might ask or imagine. So, I just want to cheer you on...and say, Great Job! Keep going! Keep trusting God...Keep stepping out in faith and keep looking for ways to be generous.

Those of you who made Imagine commitments, we only have four more months to go so I want to encourage you to finish strong. And here’s something to pray about...once Imagine is over, consider redeploying a portion or all of the amount you were giving to Imagine to another area. You could continue to give it to the building fund or you could redeploy it to support our global reach through Alliance missions or into our general fund for deployment in the ministries for our church and community.

Here’ what I know, when people like you are faithful and found to be good stewards more and more lives are touched by God’ healing love and forgiveness and power for living. Ministry to lives is expanded and everyone is blessed...God is blessed by your choice to honor him with your wealth...you are blessed for your obedience...and others are blessed by the touch of God in their lives which you enabled. All of this together is the blessing of being a generous people.