Good Morning Friends,
When we examine the fascinations of our life, what we give to financially, we suddenly discover what is important to us. We discover that not everyone has a generous heart and that few people are cheerful givers. We learn about greed and guilt, but hopefully also generosity. Friends, few love in a way that acknowledges that everything belongs to God. Few realize that there is no better investment than supporting the work of God’s people. Few people realize that when we love our enemies we give in a way that hurts. There is a teaching moment here, for when we do not give liberally God may well show us that something is wrong with our heart. What Do You Love To Give To Even If It Feels Like A Sacrifice?
Scripture: We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that has been granted to the churches of Macedonia; for during a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave according to their means, and even beyond their means, begging us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints— and this, not merely as we expected; they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us, so that we might urge Titus that, as he had already made a beginning, so he should also complete this generous undertaking among you. Now as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you—so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking. I do not say this as a command, but I am testing the genuineness of your love against the earnestness of others. For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.
2 Corinthians 8:1-9 (NRSV)
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:43-48 (NRSV)
who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,
Galatians 1:4 (NRSV)
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.
John 14:27 (NRSV)
Message: The world tells us that there is a fixed sequence of events that determine our future. But with Jesus counseling us with His peace and love I must believe that we are not set on an unalterable course. Regardless we live in a troubled world. One recent survey indicated that Americans were more angry now than a decade ago. I have not read the detail, but do hope we are making some progress on this front but somehow think that it has just gotten muddy. On Sunday mornings at church I imagine more than a few people are angry. Some think all this anger is linked to a decline in the belief in the American Dream. One study a decade old said that Whites were the angriest and then Hispanics and then Blacks. 77% of Republicans and 67% of Democrats said they got angry at least once a day. 53% of women and 44% of men said they were angrier than they use to be. Maybe the men were lying. Maybe things have changed but have they gotten better? It does not seem so. Against this backdrop in culture and society, this scenario seems to have the makings for an unhealthy condition especially when we look at all the events in the news. Friends, we are not to remain angry for long periods of time and our lack of generosity is a symptom of our illness. When you go to a doctor for a check-up, he or she will often begin to poke, prod, and press various places, all the while asking, “Does this hurt? How about this?” If you cry out in pain, one of two things have happened. Either the doctor has pushed too hard, without the right sensitivity. Or, more likely, there is something wrong, and the doctor will say, “We had better do some more tests. It is not supposed to hurt there!” Such is the case with our financial responsibility to God. Either the requester has pushed too hard or perhaps there is something wrong with our spirit that needs the hands of the Great Physician. Here the proof of our love of God is about parting with money, which then is also a test of God’s promises. And I always feel a little anxious about testing God. However maybe it is less about burden shifting amongst ourselves and more about sharing the burden with God. Here is the point. Generosity makes us healthier. We would be less angry if we gave more and if we loved more we would be richer spiritually as well. If the model is Jesus we have a lot more growing to do in our ability to give liberally. In fact, Jesus is telling us in today’s lectionary scripture that it is our duty as Christians to love those who do not love us. He means that we are to show practical kindness towards those who have no claim on our affections, who do not evoke any sense of delight in us, and who are seeking our harm. It is a radical thing that Jesus is calling us to. Now one of the questions that ought to be popping up into our minds right now is, “How can we do this? How can we possibly do this?” Typically, we love, either because we have been loved by the one we are loving or we love in hopes that our love will evoke a response of love from that person. But Jesus is talking about how we love those who do not love us and who do not even know us. So, our reward is either not going to come in that relationship or it may wait a long time until it comes. How do we love in that circumstance? How do we live rightly in a world filled with so much anger and fear of rejection? How do we love when somebody is not going to give back to us the love that we are giving? Jesus tells us that the only cure is to become more generous. Now tithe means 10 percent, and offering is what we give to God above the 10 percent and a type of faith promise offering is a promise to give above our regular tithes and offering on a systematic basis for a specific period for a specific need. In today’s text from Corinthians, the Macedonian Christians are an example of how divine grace works its way out in a group who had suffered for their faith. First they gave of themselves and then they gave money freely. We too can learn from how they gave.
And So, Abraham Lincoln said, “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” Ambrose Bierce said, “Speak when you are angry, and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” Benjamin Franklin said, “Whatever begins in anger ends in shame.” Leo Buscaglia said, “Don’t hold to anger, hurt, or pain. They steal your energy and keep you from love.” And Billy Graham said, “Suffering is part of the human condition and it comes to us all. The key is how we react to it, either turning away from God in anger and bitterness or growing closer to Him in trust and confidence.” Maybe if we were more generous we would be less angry.Maybe being a member of the body of Christ requires us to no longer be guided by perceived self interest but rather by love of our brothers and sisters.
Pray we realize that Christ’s example teaches grace and generosity. Pray we give because it is less self-serving and less fearful. Pray we give because it pays forward what we have received in grace from God. Pray we give because it proves the sincerity of our love for God. Pray we give because it paints a picture for others to see that is a witness for what Christ did for us when he gave everything. Pray we turn to God in the love of Christ who fulfilled the law and now give us a path with sure footing grounded in the grace of the King.Pray that our identity is in the unity of a loving community. Pray we live in peace as we experience His love and share it. Pray we love God with all our heart, mind and soul and our neighbor as ourselves. Pray we live with confidence in the power of God’s love. Pray we realize that unrequited love has a lot of the qualities of Jesus on the cross. Pray we realize that when it comes to sharing God’s love there are to be no haves and have nots. Pray we listen to the loving Counselor and not lose hope for something great and beautiful and satisfying in our lives. Pray we give thanks. Pray we dwell on the positive. Pray we are obedient. Pray we choose God’s peace and purpose. Pray we ask for greater faith and help in loving others. Pray we get over our fear of rejection. Pray we build our hopes on God’s unchanging love. Pray we risk love. Pray we are genuine in our desire to emulate Jesus when it comes to loving people and giving our all for peace.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 