Psalm 50:7-12 Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify against thee: I am God, even thy God. I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices or thy burnt offerings, to have been continually before me. I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he goats out of thy folds. For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.
Somewhere along the way we turned God into a poor God who needed us and our offerings. We complained about how He couldn’t make it without us and Heaven would dry up without your giving. I know that is an exaggeration but I still think it expresses some of what you have been made to feel.
In this passage He says, I am God. I made everything. I own everything. I don’t need you. The shocking part of the verse is this, if I were hungry I wouldn’t tell you! Now let’s talk offerings.
We give to God because we want to. We give to God because we love Him. We do not give to Him because He needs us! We do not give to Him because we feel pressured.
Many have been guilt givers. They give because they are bad if they don’t. They give because they were told that they were supposed to. That will sure suck the joy out of giving. Can you imagine giving a Christmas gift to the person you most love because you have to and you are a bad person if you do not?
Many are need givers. God needs me. He can’t make it without me. I will give to keep Him going. What kind of God are you serving? He doesn’t need us. And like Esther was told, if you don’t do what God wants you to do He will certainly take care of it another way. Esther 4:14
Many are requirement givers. They give the tithe and exactly the tithe. They want to be legal. They want to meet the minimum but they do it because they have to, they should. They feel like if they give a tenth of the net or the gross income then they have done their duty. Oh, my! What kind of love is that!
How many are love givers? How many can say, I give because I love God and I want to give? This morning as you go to church do not look at the church as the IRS. They are not there to charge you and judge you if you don’t give. And if they are then you are in the wrong church.
God loves a cheerful giver. One that gives because he or she is in love with God and what He is doing. He wants you to give because you want to. He wants you to give out of a grateful heart. 2Corinthians 9:7
So here it comes, if you give today give because you want to not because you have to! Give because you get to and do it because you are in love!
Wonderful thought, I pray I will do the same with the life God has given me as well as the money he has in trusted me with.
Great article on giving. A very good balanced view of this. Makes me really want to give generously to God. Thank you for these daily devotions. They are a blessing to me.