All through the Scriptures, God commands us to be generous. The life of Christ is an example of selfless giving. The Lord literally gave His own life to you and me for our salvation. From giving sight to the blind, giving the demon-possessed their lost dignity, and giving the bereaved their once dead relatives, Christ gave everything he could to humankind.
Everything You Own Belongs To God
Everything in the universe, living or non-living, belongs to God.
- To the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it. (Deuteronomy 10:14)
- “The silver is mine and the gold is mine,” declares the LORD Almighty. (Haggai 2:8)
I know you work hard for what you have. Indeed, earning a decent living these days takes hard work and persistence. However, God is the one who gives you the strength, skill and intellectual power to get up and work every day. All in all, you owe your existence to Him.
The king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, learned this lesson the hard way. He became puffed up with pride after seeing the glory and beauty of Babylon. He went on to boastfully say, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” (Daniel 4:30). God set things straight by condemning the king to seven years of insanity. He lived in the forest for seven years and ate grass like wild animals. After God restored sanity to him, Nebuchadnezzar could only proclaim the sovereignty of God and His absolute ownership of all things.
Who Should You Give To?
The Bible is clear that we should give to the poor and the suffering who are within our reach. In fact, God is offended when we refuse to show compassion and sympathy to the needy.
- He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker (Proverbs 14:31)
- He who closes his eyes to [the poor] receives many curses (Proverbs 28:27)
The poor refers to anyone in need of your assistance. You may not have thousands of dollars to give, but you may be capable of affording a single meal for the family next door. Or some new shoes for the beggar down the street. God does not require us to give large amounts of money to charity, but he asks us to sacrifice the little we can to lessen the burden of a fellow human being.
Giving Doesn’t Involve Money Alone
Financial wealth is not the only thing we receive from God. Our talents, time and attention also belong to our Maker, and we are called to give these too. This includes our unique gifts and abilities.
- Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change (James 1:17)
We are required to use them to serve humanity so that people who don’t know Christ can be pointed to Him through our lives of service. That is the point of the gospel!
- Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy (1 Corinthians 4:2)
You can start by taking some time to babysit for that single mother you know or volunteer your tutoring skills at the local children’s home. You can even spend some time visiting the kids at the children’s hospital each weekend. Giving once isn’t enough. We should follow the example of Christ and live every day for the service of humanity.
Give Until It Hurts
Faithful giving is inconvenient. True giving hurts. It involves a pinching sacrifice on our part. Self-sacrifice is a rare character trait in the world we live in today. Christ was immensely self-sacrificing and asked us to do the same.
- And walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (Ephesians 5:2)
- For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45)
A self-sacrificing love will teach you to depend on God. Imagine the poor widow at Zarephath giving the prophet Elisha her available meal. She desperately told the prophet, “As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die” (1 Kings 14:13). God honored the widow for her selflessness and gave her an unlimited supply of oil and flour until the famine ended.
Prayer For A Heart Of Giving
Dear Father, thank You for enlightening us about true giving. Forgive us for our selfish ways and help us to develop genuine love for others. Help us to be generous to all those around us, however inconvenient it may be. We thank You for giving us a perfect example in Your Son Jesus Christ. We ask that through the power of the Holy Ghost, you may help us live self-sacrificing lives so we can witness many souls being won to Christ. We make this prayer in Jesus’ holy name. Amen.