Unlocking the Generosity of God's Grace through Faithful Giving

John Hester

John

Our Blueprint for a New Testament Church • Sermon • Submitted 7 months ago • Presented 7 months ago

1 Corinthians 16:1–4

Offerings

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Introduction

Last week, we spent a lot of time considering the local churches of Macedonia. Our text was 2 Corinthians 8. Today, we are going back to 1 Corinthians and chapter 16. Let’s read our text together, and then I will provide some more of the backstory.

1 Corinthians 16:1–5 KJV 1900

1 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. 2 Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come. 3 And when I come, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality unto Jerusalem. 4 And if it be meet that I go also, they shall go with me. 5 Now I will come unto you, when I shall pass through Macedonia: for I do pass through Macedonia.

As you might recall from last week’s message, there was an offering being gathered from all the churches started by Paul on his various missionary journeys. The local churches in Macedonia led the effort, namely the churches in Ephesus, Philippi, and Colossi. In our text last week, 1 Corinthians 8:1-8, we learned that these churches were composed of believers suffering great tribulation and extremely poor. However, God was pouring out His grave upon them despite their circumstances. In doing so, God enabled these believers to give way more than they possessed. Note Paul’s astonishment in last week’s text.

2 Corinthians 8:3–5 KJV 1900

3 For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; 4 Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. 5 And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.

Note Paul indicates that they did not give as “we hoped.” In other words, we had no idea or expectation that these believers would provide as much as they did. Instead, they did something intentionally that led to God’s grace abounding in their lives. They “first gave their selves to the Lord…by the will of God.” As they did, God used them as beautiful examples of how God’s grace works. Remember that our text last week opened with this.

2 Corinthians 8:1 KJV 1900

1 Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia;

A few verses later, the Holy Spirit admonishes the believers in Corinth to follow the example of the Macedonian believers.

2 Corinthians 8:7 KJV 1900

7 Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.

What grace was the Holy Spirit speaking of here? He talks about the grace bestowed on the Macedonian believers through their sacrificial giving.

Now, don’t forget that all of this began with all the churches committing themselves to help the famine believers in Jerusalem. The church at Corinth was one of those who made the same commitment. Thus, in our text today, the Holy Spirit gave clear instructions about how they were to collect their offering.

1 Corinthians 16:1–2 KJV 1900

In these verses, we find not just explicit instruction for collecting an offering, but I believe we also have three practical keys by which we can unlock the generosity of God’s grace in our lives through giving.

Here is key number one.

The first key to unlocking the generosity of God’s grace is this.

Understanding Scriptural Teaching about Giving

Note in our text that the Holy Spirit states...

1 Corinthians 16:1 KJV 1900

1 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye.

The Holy Spirit tells the Corinthian believers that He has one more thing they need to know. They needed to learn more about the “collection for the saints.” In other words, He wanted them to know more about sacrificial giving. We must constantly study the text within context. Context refers to how this verse relates to the chapter, book, and God’s Word.

There is a lot of false teaching concerning giving in the Bible. I hope to clarify some of the false teachings today by sharing some fundamental principles of giving found in Scripture. Essentially, two types of giving are found within the pages of this great revelation from God.

Tithing

God established tithing long before He dealt with the nation of Israel. You can go back to Abraham to see the tithing in Genesis 14. Tithing is something that God directed His people to do for a long time. Israel, especially, was commanded to give the tithe, setting the example for us today.

Leviticus 27:30–32 KJV 1900

30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord. 31 And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. 32 And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord.

Many would argue that tithing is not for today, and I contend that they are wrong. God established tithing in the Old Testament, and it has not changed for today.

There are two verses on the screen behind me. The first is in the book of Malachi (the last book of the Old Testament). If you read the context of this verse, God is challenging Israel to be faithful in their tithes and offerings. They were being disobedient to His command and were withholding their tithes to them. God called them thieves, noting they had robbed Him of what belonged to Him.

Malachi 3:8–9 KJV 1900

8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. 9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, Even this whole nation.

Then He gives them this challenge in verse 10, saying...

Malachi 3:10 KJV 1900

10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be meat in mine house, And prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, If I will not open you the windows of heaven, And pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

There are two essential elements of this verse.

First, there is the command - “Bring ye ALL THE TITHES into the storehouse.”

No matter how you cut it, God demands the tithe. Either you are going to obey or disobey. This thought brings us back to the principles of stewardship that we have been learning. Remember, God Owns It All.

Believers, your money is God’s money. Your house, your car, your boat, etc., is God’s. It all belongs to Him. He simply has entrusted you with it.

In return, God asks that you give back to Him a tithe (a tenth) of what He has assigned to you.

What is the tithe? Well, essentially, a tithe is 10%.

It is at least a good starting point. That means that God directs you to give Him 10% of all you earn. For what reason? Note verse 10 again.

Malachi 3:10 KJV 1900

The way God finances His Work is through His People.

As you tithe and give back to the Lord by giving to this local church, God uses you to keep the work and ministry of this church functioning. When God’s people stop obeying God’s tithing program, His Work suffers.

Now note one other essential element in this verse. Not only does God expect you to give your tithe, but...

He challenges you to do it so that you can prove Him.

Look again at the verse.

Malachi 3:10 KJV 1900

God is saying to you to try Him. Be obedient and tithe, putting Him to the test. What is His promise here? If you are obedient, He will “open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” When you are obedient to the small things, God blesses you with more responsibility for bigger things. Thus, He says, “Prove me.” God says, “I challenge you to tithe and see what I will do.”

Now, again, some would argue that tithing is not for today.

What about that argument? I say that argument is bologna.

The basis for their argument is the New Testament does not command tithing—those who make such an argument like to separate the Old Testament from the New. The last time I checked, God’s Word applies to today and every believer. Remember 2 Timothy 3:16.

2 Timothy 3:16–17 KJV 1900

16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

I am pretty sure that “all” means “all.” Therefore, the Old Testament is just as pertinent to us as believers today as is the New Testament, and tithing is still expected of us today.

As for tithing in the New Testament, many often overlook the context of Christ’s ministry.

Christ came first to Israel to offer Himself as the Messiah, the Savior. Israel, as a nation, rejected Christ’s offer. Christ extended His offer to all countries and all men as He died upon the cross of Calvary. Context is everything. Christ started the New Testament local church. He said...

Matthew 16:18 KJV 1900

18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

The early believers were Jews. Even though the nation rejected Christ, some believed and accepted Him as Messiah. From those early believers and followers, Christ started the first local church, later known as the local church in Jerusalem. The church in Jerusalem, which became the model for all other churches, was mainly comprised of Jewish believers. Jewish believers already knew to tithe and understood it as a command from God. Christ never taught that tithing should cease. Instead, on occasion, He encouraged tithing. I will give one example: the next verse on the slide.

Matthew 23:23 KJV 1900

23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Note that Christ is addressing an issue with scribes and Pharisees. He called them hypocrites. Why? These religious and very proud men would grow the most miniature plants like mint, anise, and cumin. Then, they would give 10% of their spice, boasting how faithful they were in paying the tithe. Yet, they did nothing in the weightier matters of the law concerning judgment, mercy, and faith. In this verse, you will note that Christ says, “…these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” In other words, they did right in tithing. It was the right and proper thing to obey God’s command to tithe. However, there were other things they should have been attentive to do as well.

We find Christ encouraging obedience to tithe. The early believers who were Jews had no problem with tithing.

Later, as we get into Paul’s epistles, the Holy Spirit encourages believers to give and even reminds us to give on the first day of the week.

I say all that to say this. Tithing is an important command to obey today, just as it was in the Old Testament, and nothing has changed. And, if you go back to Malachi, God challenges us today just as He challenged Israel to tithe and prove Him.

Personally, my wife and I have lived by this command since the day we were married. I honestly have no idea how much we have given back to the Lord over all those years. What I do know is this! In all the years we have tithed and given sacrificially to missions, God has proved Himself to us repeatedly. He has always provided for my family and me. We have seen Him “pour out” His blessing upon us. He will do the same for you. However, to experience it, you must be obedient.

Let me encourage you this morning to start being obedient through tithing. I am convinced that if every believer who is a member and faithful attendee of our church were obedient in this one area, we would have more than enough money to fund everything God wants us to do here at Calvary Baptist Church. However, it takes every single one of us to be obedient.

Sacrificial Giving

I spent a lot of time last week talking about sacrificial giving. We find these churches taking part in the giving for the believers in Jerusalem. I am not going to preach that entire message again this week. I would encourage you to go to our YouTube channel and listen to it there. However, I will say that sacrificial giving is based on God’s grace. At the heart of our salvation lies God’s grace.

Ephesians 2:8–9 KJV 1900

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

How is God’s grace reflected in salvation?

John 3:16 KJV 1900

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

God so loved us that He gave the most precious thing He possessed, His only begotten Son. Even when we did not deserve God’s love, God demonstrated it anyway. His love and offer of eternal life are His unmerited favor towards us. There is nothing we can do to earn it. Instead, God purchased it and freely offered it to all who believed. Thus, at the heart of God’s grace is the gospel.

Now, here in our church, we use sacrificial giving to finance our efforts to reach the world for Christ. That is the purpose of this month’s emphasis. We encourage you to further unlock the abundance of God’s grace through obedience to the tithe and sacrificial giving. Sacrificial giving is giving above and beyond the tithe. By the way, tithing is given according to your power. Sacrificial giving is giving beyond your power. When you give sacrificially, you say to the Lord, “I love you, Lord! You loved me first by dying for my sin. Now, I seek to repay that love by giving so that others can hear the same wonderful message of salvation that I did.” Sacrificial giving happens when you first give yourself to the Lord.

What have we learned? When you get involved in giving through tithing and sacrificial offerings, you unlock the generosity of God’s grace in your life.

Here is the second key. Remember, there are three in our text.

The second key to unlocking the generosity of God’s grace in your life is...

Obeying the Scriptural Instructions of Giving

Obedience is fundamental to experiencing God’s grace. As a believer, you have already experienced this in your life. God’s offer of salvation was unlocked the moment you obeyed by believing. Remember Romans 10:9-10

Romans 10:9–10 KJV 1900

9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Now, the Holy Spirit is saying to you, as a believer, experience more of God’s grace by once again obeying. Note the specific instructions the Holy Spirit lays out concerning this sacrificial offering.

1 Corinthians 16:2 KJV 1900

2 Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

These words are very similar to the instructions of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament concerning tithing.

Malachi 3:10 KJV 1900

In both instances, the Holy Spirit instructs us to bring or lay by in store the tithe and sacrificial offerings. In out text this morning, 1 Corinthians 16, the Holy Spirit adds, “Upon the first day of the week.”

Now, here is a tricky question! When is the first day of the week? It is not Monday. No, the first day of the week is Sunday. It is the same day we have set aside to come together as a church to worship the Lord in obedience to His commands. Part of those commands concerns giving. Thus, the instruction, as I see it, from the Holy Spirit is that we bring our tithes and offerings to place before Him each Sunday of each week. We are to obey each week through our giving faithfully. When we do, the Holy Spirit promises us in Malachi that He, God, will “pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

Now, understand this. I am not preaching a prosperity gospel this morning. I am not saying that if you tithe and give sacrificially, God will reward you with untold riches. No, what I am saying is this. According to 1 Corinthians 8, God will cause His grace to abound in your life if you completely obey Him. In a nutshell, God’s grace gives you the desire and the ability to live according to His will. It has nothing to do with great riches. The verse in Malachi uses the word “blessing,” not the word “riches.” There is a big difference between those two words. God’s blessing comes in a multitude of ways. God may bless you with good health. He may bless you with longer-lasting tires on your car. Or God may bless you with a greater desire for Him along with more power in your life to live for Him. I tend to think the latter. Victorious Christian living is not how much we gain in this world. Victorious Christian living is about how much we accomplish for Him in this world. God’s promise is His blessing or His grace in our lives so that we can accomplish more for Him. How He chooses to do that in our lives is entirely up to Him. Our simple duty is to obey and trust Him for the rest.

Now, quickly, let me give you the third key and we are done.

The third key to unlocking the generosity of God’s grace in our lives is...

Increasing Our Giving as He Blesses Us

Look again at our text.

1 Corinthians 16:2 KJV 1900

2 Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

This last point centers on the phrase “as God hath prospered him.” The word “prospered” simply means to be marked by being in fortunate circumstances financially. In other words, if you will prove the Lord by giving Him the tithe and through sacrificial giving, God will bless you. I have found over time that those who become involved in giving God’s way are blessed with a greater sense of financial management. It seems that God blesses them with wisdom in many different areas but more so in financial decisions. Additionally, there is a principle throughout Scripture which teaches how God entrusts more to those prove themselves faithful.

Luke 16:10 KJV 1900

10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

Luke 19:17 KJV 1900

17 And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.

I truly believe that if you will demonstrate to God your faithfulness through consistent obedience then God will reward you by entrusting more to your stewardship. However, it begins with you demonstrating faithfulness to Him. In fact, the Holy Spirit already established the means and the time for you to demonstrate good stewardship. The means is tithing and sacrificial giving. The time is each week and on the first day of each week.

Conclusion

Here is the question. Will you accept the challenge of faithfulness and obedience? Do you, as a believer, desire God’s blessing on your life? If so, then the answer is simple. Commit to Him. Get involved. If you are not tithing, then surely that is the place to start. Tithing is all about obedience. If you are tithing but not giving sacrificially to our Mission’s Program, then I encourage to step out on faith and demonstrate your love for the gospel committing to give this year to it as well. If you are tithing and giving sacrificially, take another step of faith and give more than you did last year. Again, your involvement in God’s program of giving unlocks the generosity of God’s grace in your life.

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