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Ten
New Testament Principles of Giving
This article is about the giving of our prosperity, which disciples of
Christ are to do each first day of the week (1 Corinthians 16:2).
Whether you consider yourself a “good giver” or a “bad giver,” please
read the following points. It could be we all need to rethink our
giving.
[1] All disciples are to give.
The Bible says, “let each one of you give,” which would include
you, if you are a Christian, regardless of your age, gender, or
status in life. The amount may be one dollar or a thousand (more on that
in a moment), but if you are a Christian, you are to give.
[2] What you give is actually
God’s in the first place. When the
Corinthians gave, it was called God‘s “indescribable gift“ (2 Cor.
9:15). Beloved, everything we have belongs to God. “The earth is the
Lord’s, and all its fulness” (Psa. 24:1; cf. 1 Chron. 29:11-16).
What this tells us is that we are actually stewards or managers of
everything we have, including our money. Until we learn this principle,
we will probably possess a proud and stingy spirit in our giving.
[3] To be able to give is
a blessing! Paul calls the ability itself a “grace”
or gift of God (2 Cor. 8:7). How fascinating! Instead of viewing our
giving as some tax or troublesome obligation, we should see it for what
it really is, a blessing of God's grace.
[4] Our giving will bring glory
to the Lord, if done properly (see 2 Cor. 8:19).
Paul even wrote of some Christians who, observing the generous spirit in
others, glorified God for their “liberal sharing” (9:13).
[5] Our giving is one way by
which we show how sincere our
love is for God and even others. Paul said as much to
the Corinthians, and then reminded them of the supreme example of Jesus
who, “though He was rich, yet for [their] sakes He became
poor, that [they] through His poverty might become rich” (2
Corinthians 8:8,9). Yes, it is true that giving exorbitantly is not
proof positive that an individual loves God -- Yet it is just as true
that one who does not give as they should evidences a lack of love for
the Lord, His church, and the gospel. John put it this way: “My
little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and
in truth” (1 John 3:18).
[6] The God-approved giver gives
self first. As one has said, “Personal consecration
must precede pocketbook consecration,” and Paul praised the churches of
Macedonia for doing just that (2 Cor. 8:5). Such a person doesn’t ask,
“How much do I have to give,” but rather, “How much can I give?” We are
reminded of the poor widow who practically threw her own self into the
temple treasury. Though she had but thrown in two small copper coins,
Jesus said she had given more than anyone else because “she out of
her poverty put in all that she had” (Mark 12:41-44).
[7] The God-approved giver gives
cheerfully. We cannot give grudgingly, “for God loves a
cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7). In another passage, the Bible says
that “he who gives” is to do so “with liberality,” which
literally means with sincerity or singleness -- or to put it another
way, not with duplicity (Romans 12:8). The Christian in his giving isn’t
to be thinking about everything else he could be spending this money on.
No, he is to give willingly, which in truth is the core principle behind
all our service rendered to the Lord (cf. Philemon 14).
[8] The God-approved giver gives
with purpose -- “as he purposes in his heart”
(2 Cor. 9:7). Forethought and planning must go into our giving. Giving
what is “left over” after the week would not be purposeful giving, nor
for that matter would it be giving as we’ve been prospered.
[9] The God-approved giver gives
based on his ability. “For if there
is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and
not according to what he does not have” (2 Cor. 8:12). He is to give
“as he may prosper” (1 Cor. 16:2). No specific amount or
percentage is set in the new covenant, but certainly as we are “prospered”
more, we will give more. Some have wondered if perhaps we ought to give
as much or more than the Israelites, who under the Mosaical covenant
were to “bring in the tithe” (10%) of everything they had. Well,
we’re not given any such commandment. But this warning should be
sounded: No disciple should use the freedoms of the gospel as a means of
liberating himself from sacrificial giving. Think about that.
[10] We all will “reap” what
we “sow.” As he spoke of the Corinthians’ gift,
Paul said, “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he
who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Cor. 9:6).
Sincere individuals who give liberally will be richly blessed by the
Lord. This does not guarantee them a bounty of this world’s goods (as
some have thought), but the doing of it is with a view to “storing up
for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay
hold on eternal life” (1 Timothy 6:19).
--Mike Noble
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