1.
Dear Lord, sanctify us in the truth. Your Word is truth. Today is the first message in our 3 week
program titled, “Empowered by Grace to
Tithe.” God's Word for today comes
from 2 Corinthians, chapters 8 and 9.
The Apostle Paul, speaking of the Macedonian Christians and a gift that
they are going to send to the people in need in Jerusalem, wrote, "And they did not do as we expected,
but they gave themselves first to the Lord…” Second, Paul pointed out very
clearly that they gave beyond their ability to give. "…
they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability." Outsiders would look at them and ask, "How can they do that?" Third, Paul encourages each of us today to be
cheerful givers.
2.
A missionary
pastor in Chile had been proclaiming the Word of God to the people he
served. They were a very poor people. Because he was wrestling with something and
didn't know what it was, one of his conversations with the Lord went something
like this: "Lord, what is it in addition to justification by faith
alone? What is it in addition to
proclaiming Jesus Christ crucified for the forgiveness of our sins? What is it that I'm missing in telling Your
people from Your Word? In addition to
Jesus and the empty tomb and the words, He’s not here; He’s risen,’ what is it
I'm missing?" The missionary
pastor felt that he was missing something he should’ve been proclaiming to his
people. After months of wrestling in God’s
Word and in prayer he came to one thing that he felt the Lord wanted him to do. He felt compelled by the Holy Spirit to teach
his people about the tithe – giving ten percent and more – to the Lord. The result was that he got up on the next
Sunday in worship and proclaimed the tithe.
3.
The next week
the people came back and at the time of the offering they put their chickens on
the altar; they put their eggs on the altar (after all, they lived off the
land); they put their grains and some of their crops on the altar. They put the clothes they had woven on the
altar. They put leather goods on the
altar. The altar was just heaping with
the gifts from this very poor people.
After the service was over, still feeling guilty for taking these things
from these poor people, the missionary pastor took some things and distributed
them among the destitute and poor in the community. Some of it he was able to sell and use some
money from the proceeds to provide for some things the church had long needed,
since it was just a rundown building.
4.
Sunday after
Sunday they came back again and again with their offerings, and then the
people, along with the pastor, began to realize that the Lord was really
blessing them. Their crops were
abundant; the harvest was bountiful. It
got to the point that the communities around them were buying things from them
because their crops were so plentiful.
They were making money now. Now
they were not only bringing some of the firstfruits and the ten percent, the
tithe, from their goods and what they had made off the land, but they were
bringing offerings of money as well. It
was an incredible turnaround for this small congregation, this small group of
people gathered together in the Lord's name in Chile. All because the pastor was faithful to
proclaim the whole counsel of God.
5.
I stand
before you today as a pastor like that Chilean missionary who has struggled,
prayed, and studied God’s Word with regard to bringing before you this Sunday
and next Sunday messages about tithing ten percent or more. I'm very aware that in the Old Testament, the
tithe was the requirement. You were
required by the law to give ten percent or more, and believe me, they gave
more. In the New Testament it is not a
requirement of the law to give the ten percent, but Paul wrote, "You will be made rich in every way so
that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will
result in thanksgiving to God" (2 Corinthians 9:11). I pray that, as we read and learn what
Scripture has to say to us about the stewardship of our time, talents, and
treasurers, we will rejoice in the foundation that God has built for us to
stand upon and that we will become the kind of givers that He desires us to be
– givers who honor and please Him and give glory to His name.
6.
What did Paul
have to say to us in 2 Cor. 8 & 9? One
of the first things that struck Paul is that these people did not give as he
had expected them to give. By God’s
grace, they gave themselves first to the Lord.
What does it mean to give yourself to the Lord? When it comes to giving,
I think it means that you recognize God's ownership of everything in your life
– everything, including yourself. That's
right. When you were baptized, you became a child of God. Through faith in
Jesus Christ, a relationship is established that we are His. Let me illustrate. A man,
a seller, had a beautiful pearl, just an exquisite pearl. Someone came along and said, "I want to
buy that pearl; I've got to have it."
You would say the same thing. "How much is it?" he asked. The seller responded, "Well, how much do
you have?" He answered, "Well,
not a whole lot. Will I be able to
afford it?" "Everyone can
afford it," replied the seller.
"How much do you have?" "Well, I've got $10,000 in the
bank. Is that enough?" "What else do you have?" The man
reached in his pocket. "Oh, you
mean like in my wallet. Okay, in my
wallet I have 10, 20, 30, 40, 60, 80, 100, $120.” "Fine. I'll take it.
What else do you have?" "That's it." "Well, where do
you live?" "Oh, in my house." "Great. I'll take your house." "My house, too?" Does that mean I'll have to live in my
camper?" "Oh, you have a
camper!" "Yeah.” “Good.
I'll take it, too." "That
means I'll have to sleep in my car."
“Oh, you have a car?" "Well, actually, I have two." "I'll take them both." “ Well,
that's it. I don't have anything
else." The seller asked, "Are
you alone in this world?"
"No," replied the man, "I have a lovely wife and three
children." "I'll take them."
"Well, now I am left alone."
"Oh, I forgot to tell you," the seller exclaimed, "I want
you too! You belong to me. Everything you have belongs to me. It's mine, but I'm going to let you use it. I'm going to give it back to you to use, and
any time I need any of it I will ask for it. That's what it means to give yourself first to
the Lord: to recognize His ownership, which begins with baptism, with faith in
Jesus Christ, and trust in Him alone for salvation.
7.
What’s the
second thing Paul saw? When he looked at
these Macedonian Christians, he said, "They
are giving beyond their ability – very generous givers." People were observing them and saying, "Wow! Where did all this come
from? They don't have this." I'm sure the missionary pastor in Chile
was thinking similar thoughts. "Where is this coming from?" Or better yet, a question might be, "What has enabled them to give like that?" The same thing enables you and me to give
like that. The grace of God that’s
given to each one of us by the power of the Holy Spirit enables us to be people
different than what we ever imagined we could be.
8.
The Holy
Spirit alive inside our hearts can change us, transform us. We're not a people who are takers; we are
givers. We're people who are servants of
our Lord and of one another. God's grace
enables us to give beyond our ability.
May God receive the glory for that as we rejoice at how He is using
us. He has changed us. We're different, never to be the same
again. God's grace also enables us to be
cheerful givers. The Lord loves a
cheerful giver and would rather that we not give under compulsion. He wants to change our "have to give" into an "I want to give." In fact, it's the difference between Old
Testament tithing and New Testament tithing and giving. And, I’ve seen in our congregation here at
St. John how God has enabled us to give of our time, talents, and treasures. The people who serve tirelessly on our church
council year after year, our Ladies Aid and their service to our congregation,
the community, and the world. Our SIGHT
Ministry Center making large print devotional materials for those who are
visually impaired. Those who give of
their time to helping with Vacation Bible School and our Sunday School. Our organists, ushers, and acolytes who
assist us in worship. Our altar guild
who give of their time in order to set up for communion, the banners of our
church, and the candles. Those who have
given of our church to support: our local food banks, Rev. Tim & Lisa
Beckendorf of Lutheran Bible Translators, our giving to support our local
Lutheran Grade Schools and Christ Our Savior Lutheran High School. And these are just a few areas that the
people of our congregation have been using their time, talents, and treasures
to serve the Lord in His Church and to further the Gospel of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
9.
In the Old
Testament, a believer was required to give 10 percent or more. In the New Testament, it's by the grace of
God that a person is empowered by grace to give. In fact, Old Testament law required more than
one tithe. When we read the Old
Testament Scriptures carefully, we find that there was a tithe for the priests,
a tithe for the festivals, and a tithe for widows and orphans every third year
resulting in giving about 23 percent of one’s income during the course of a
year. Talk about giving.
10.
But, a survey
has revealed that today Christians give, on average, 2.5 percent. The reason that's sad is that it would appear
that the requirement of the law was accomplishing more than the power of grace
through the Gospel which proclaims Jesus Christ as the One Who causes us to be
transformed and motivated to give in a way that is far beyond what anyone could
ever imagine.
11.
Maybe we've
lost the enthusiasm, the excitement, and the heartfelt joy of that first Easter
morning. The women went to the tomb, and, when they got there, they were
frightened, but they heard the message: “He
is not here; He has risen!" (Luke 24:6). Maybe we've forgotten
Jesus' promise: "Because I live, you
also will live" (John 14:19). Maybe we've lost the joy and the
excitement that is ours as the Holy Spirit through Word and Sacrament opens our
eyes to see things differently than we've seen them before. Then we have the joy of the Resurrected Lord,
the joy of being people who have also been raised up and daily rejoice in the
effects of our baptism. By God's grace,
His forgiveness, His Holy Spirit, we can do things we've never done before.
12.
And so we
give ourselves first to the Lord. We
give beyond our ability, and we give cheerfully. May God grant His grace to work so powerfully
and abundantly in your life and in mine that we might continue to see new possibilities
as we live lives of faith in Jesus Christ and trust in Him alone for salvation. Amen.
Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for all that You do and all
the gifts You give us in service to Your people. Thank You for the gift of Your Spirit Who works
faith within us and stirs us up to acts of love for others. Lord, open our eyes and give us hearts full
of gratitude for Your great and wondrous love revealed in Your Son, Jesus
Christ. Amen.
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