Sermon Tone Analysis

2 CORINTHIANS 9:6-11

WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME?

 

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

As it is written:

"He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor;

his righteousness endures forever."

Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.

You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

 

Disgruntled Donor Sues Church.

That was the headline which appeared some years back in the Houston Post.

It seems that a member of a large Pentecostal congregation in the city had drawn the conclusion, based upon a sermon about or an interpretation of *Luke 6:38*, that God had pledged to reward those who give to support the church.

You remember the verse: Give, and it will be given to you.

A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.

For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

As I recall the story, the disgruntled former congregant stated that she had given over eight hundred dollars in a year and had not received any benefit.

Viewing giving as an investment, she expected at least a thirty-fold increase, and I would presume she hoped for a hundred-fold return [*Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23*].

Therefore, she sued for the moneys she had given, plus lost income, plus unspecified pecuniary assessment by the courts.

The case was ultimately settled out of court when the church returned the eight hundred dollars to the disappointed investor.

Does a Christian have a right to ask, *What’s in it for me if I give to support my church*?

Though we may view the motives behind such a question as suspect, I would remind you that God has pledged to reveal Himself as generous toward those who are generous toward His work.

Saying that, I do not want to lead you into false assumptions concerning God’s obligation toward us—God is not obligated to anyone.

It is, however, an axiom of the Faith that the blessings of God are in proportion to the generosity which an individual demonstrates.

The Principle Stated — Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

In a previous message, we discovered that there is a law of sowing and reaping which applies to the issue of giving.

This law is not a law of material promise; rather it is a law of spiritual proportions.

There is not a court in the land which can compel God to meet material expectations.

Neither can any human parliament reduce the promise of God to mere formulae.

Yet God is pledged to review the heart of His child, taking note of the spirit which motivates giving, and when that spirit reflects the heart of the Master God will return in abundance His love and care for that soul.

We discovered in an earlier message that the principle of blessing based upon our own participation in the work of God is stated throughout the Word.

For the purpose of refreshing our memories through review, recall some of those passages, especially from the Old Testament.

You will remember no doubt the pointed passages from the *Psalms* and *Proverbs*:

One man gives freely, yet gains even more;

another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.

A generous man will prosper;

he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

People curse the man who hoards grain,

but blessing crowns him who is willing to sell.

[*Proverbs 11:24-26*]

 

It is well with those who deal generously and lend,

who conduct their affairs with justice

[*Psalm 112:5*].

I have often stated (and the truth is confirmed in this proverb applied to human action)—attitudes precede action.

In other words, attitudes are of greater importance then are actions.

God reviews the intent of the heart—the desire which underlies deed, the purpose hidden in the mind of every person—to discover why one does what is done.

It is never comfortable to attempt to deceive God, for in the effort one succeeds only in deceiving one’s own heart.

Consequently, each time the Word of God is read and applied that heart is exposed to itself as deceitful and corrupt.

Consequently, the deceiver grows increasingly uncomfortable in the presence of the Lord and until the heart repents, the individual resents God and His Word.

This is the insight of the author of the Hebrew letter when that unknown saint writes, the word of God is living and active.

Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.

Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account [*Hebrews 4:12-13*].

It is the thoughts and the attitudes of the heart which are judged because actions follow attitude.

In this same *Second Corinthian Letter* which we are exploring to discover truths related to our giving, Paul issues a plea for correct thinking.

Listen to his words in *2 Corinthians 10:1-6*.

By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am ‘‘timid” when face to face with you, but ‘‘bold” when away! / /I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world.

/ /For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.

/ /The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.

On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

/ /We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

/ /And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.

Christian thinking leads to warfare with the mind as the child of God struggles to make every thought obedient to Christ.

The thinking of this world is associated with that which is destined for dust and is thus unworthy of the mind of the Master.

Perhaps we cannot help but be effected by the thinking of this world.

In greater or lesser measure I suppose that each of us carries the mindset of this present world into every facet of life.

Are we attempting to deceive God?  Are we attempting to coerce God?  Are we attempting to manipulate God?  Are we trading in divine grace?

My dear people, we must be ruthless in examining our motives to discover why we do what we do and remove every motive unworthy of Christ.

The Principle Applied — Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

At the risk of becoming tiresome to you, I am compelled to traverse again ground which I know has grown increasingly familiar for you.

Giving is an intimate act.

Our moneys represent something far more personal then mere possessions.

The request to give is always met with an emotional response out of proportion to the request.

Our moneys represent our labours, being the expression of the skill with which we have applied our abilities, whether physical or mental.

The funds we hold speak in great measure of personal aspirations and represent the fulfilment of past dreams.

Consequently, interest in our funds does not cease when we have given our gifts, whether those gifts are given to the church or whether those gifts are donated to a secular charity or whether those gifts are given to individuals.

We want to know what impact we have had in the world through our investments.

Paul recognises this, acknowledging that each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give.

Christian giving pleasing to God originates in the heart.

One of the great needs of our own congregation is a closer tie to our gifts.

By that, I mean that we would benefit in a far greater measure then we can anticipate from an active, vigorous programme designed to insure accountability.

We need a missionary union composed of men and women with spiritual insight to direct us in disbursement of our gifts to insure maximum impact in our giving.

We need a women’s missionary circle willing to involve our women in missionary support and participation in mission activities.

We need a men’s mission group willing to take leadership in participatory missionary labours.

We need a body within the structure of the congregation to regularly instruct us where our giving will have the greatest impact, to assess the effect our investments have had in the advance of the Kingdom, and to advise us how we may insure greater effectiveness in Christian investment.

As needs arise I make the effort to inform our people, permitting each one opportunity to share in meeting that need.

Unfortunately, because we meet but once each week it is very easy to lose contact with the gifts we bring after they have been given.

Therefore, I believe we would benefit from greater involvement through groups such as those I have just mentioned.

I further believe that we would benefit from closer interaction with those missionary endeavours we choose to support.

If there is a weakness in this particular denomination, it is the lack of regular accountability with our missionaries through participation in the life of the churches.

Paul calls for nothing less than active participation in the giving of Christians, insuring that we do more then merely make a contribution.

We are called to invest our hearts and our love in those in whom we are investing our earthly goods.

Currently the pastor is promoting teen and youth ministries within the church.

We have begun a teen ministry and I long to initiate an Awanas group.

If we simply give a gift and cease concern at that point, our giving will have been an utter failure.

The gifts we bring should lead us to pray for the success of every outreach, to eagerly ask the Master to insure that we will benefit through expansion of the Kingdom through bringing young men and women to the knowledge of Christ and to enter His service.

Our gifts should lead us to seek out our own youth, asking that they make a commitment to Christ and that they consider whether God has called them into Christian service.

When God calls them to His service, and He will call some, we should have obtained such confidence in the institutions we have underwritten that we confidently encourage our own youth to prepare there!

Someone with exceptional insight into human character opined that there must exist a sensitive nerve which is connected to our pocketbook.

For the average person, the existence of such a nerve explains the experience of discomfort and pain at the request to donate—whatever the origin of the request.