FUNDAMENTALS OF CHRISTIAN BELIEF
by John H.Parker

Lesson 39

WORSHIP: GIVING

   The first worship recorded in scripture is that of Cain and Abel, who offered sacrifices to God from the products of their work: Cain from his crops, and Abel from his flock (Gen. 4:3-5). The record reveals that God accepted Abel's offering, but he rejected Cain's.

   Among the lessons about worship which this incident reveals, three especially stand out. First, worship involves giving and sacrifice. Second, sacrifice offered in keeping with God's will brings his approval and blessing. Third, not just any act of giving will be acceptable to God: giving, like all worship, must be done in faith, according to his will (Rom. 10:17).

⁴By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.

   In this lesson we will consider the teachings and accounts about giving revealed in the Bible, the responsibilities that we have in giving, and the rich blessings which giving brings now and in eternity.

   Sacrifice and giving were integral to the worship of God during the Old Testament periods of history. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob offered animal sacrifice to the Lord, and throughout Israel's history the nation brought both commanded and freewill offerings as worship.

   An ancient practice of giving was to give one-tenth of one's possessions in worship. Abraham gave tithes to Melchizedek, the priest of God (Gen. 14:18-20; Heb. 7:1-4). Later Jacob vowed to give to God a tithe of all that God gave him (Gen. 28:22).

   Tithing was also a part of the Law of Moses. In Lev. 27:30-33 God required a tithe of Israel's crops and animals.

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 to the Lord.
³¹'If a man wants at all to redeem any of his tithes, he shall add one-fifth to it.
³²'And concerning the tithe of the herd or the flock, of whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the Lord.
³³'He shall not inquire whether it is good or bad, nor shall he exchange it; and if he exchanges it at all, then both it and the one exchanged for it shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed.'"

   This tithe was given to the Levites, who in turn offered to God a tithe of this amount which they had received (Num. 18:21-28). Later, in Deut. 12:5-18 the Lord commanded that tithes, along with other offerings, be brought in worship to the place which he would choose (Jerusalem) in the land of Israel (see also Deut. 14:22-27). Finally, the tithe of every third year was devoted to the Levites and the poor (Deut. 14:28-29).

   It is clear that, contrary to popular belief, the Israelites gave far more than ten percent of their income to God. They gave the various tithes commanded, and in addition the people also offered to the Lord other commanded and freewill sacrifices on various occasions.

   Giving in the early church was cheerful and liberal, as revealed in these accounts of the churches in Jerusalem and Macedonia:

⁴⁴Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, ⁴⁴and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.

¹Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia:
²that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality.
³For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing,
⁴imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.

   Paul gave commandment in 1 Corinthians regarding how Christians are to give in worship. He was coming to Corinth on his third missionary tour, and he expected to receive from the Christians there funds for the poor saints in Jerusalem. Prior to his visit he wrote instructions as to how these funds were to be collected in anticipation of his arrival:

¹Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also:
²On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.

   Each Lord's Day, then, in keeping with this apostolic command, each Christian worships by contributing to the work of the church that amount which he has carefully planned to give in consideration of how he has been prospered. The elders of the church then use the money collected in accomplishing the work which the Lord as authorized it to do (cf. Acts 11:27-30).

   Freewill giving as taught in 1 Corinthians 16 is the only method of collecting money for the work of the church authorized in the New Testament. There is no authorization for any other method, such as those engaged in by religious groups of our day who operate businesses or engage in sales and other fundraising schemes. Especially reprehensible is the practice of some religious organizations in conducting gambling operations such as raffles and bingo games. In the face of these, the wisdom of holiness of the Lord are demonstrated in his command that Christians give for the support of the church and its work.

   In order that he might develop the proper attitudes and practices in giving, the Christian needs first to realize that he is a steward, not an owner, of the material possessions in his charge. A steward is one to whom the care of another's possessions or money is entrusted. His responsibility is to care for and preserve those possessions and to use them wisely so that they will increase and be profitable for his master. Examples of good and bad stewardship are found in the parable of the talents (Mt. 25:14-30), of the minas (Lk. 19:12-27), and of the unjust steward (Lk. 16:1-8). Faithfulness and responsibility are the priorities of a good steward:

⁴²And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season?
⁴³"Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
⁴⁴"Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has."

   The wealth of a Christian is part of what God has entrusted to him as his steward. The child of God is never to regard that wealth as his own; rather he is to see it as what God has put in his care to use in his kingdom.

   The Christian's foremost concern regarding his money and other possessions should therefore be not how he can use it for his selfish and worldly concerns, but how he can best use it to benefit the Lord's work so that when the Lord calls him to give account of his stewardship he will be approved and rewarded, much as were the good stewards in the parables and examples described in the verses above. Whether he has little or much, he is to use it wisely and prudently, always considering what the Lord would want him to do.

   The worshiper whose giving pleases God is the one who gives willingly and cheerfully out of love for the Lord and his cause. He does not give unwillingly and grudgingly out of compulsion; rather he gives gladly because he loves the Lord and wants to serve him.

⁷So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

   The true worshiper recognizes that all that he has and is come from God (Jas. 1:5, 17). Consequently he wants to demonstrate his love for God by giving liberally to his work. Such was the attitude of Barnabus in Acts 5:36-37, and of the poor widow who was praised by Jesus:

⁴¹Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much.
⁴²Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans.
⁴³So He called His disciples to Him and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury;
⁴⁴"for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood."

   In contrast to those who give to be seen of men, like the hypocrites described in Mt. 6:1-4 and Ananias and Sapphira described in Acts 5:1-11, the true worshiper gives out of a pure and generous heart, humbly grateful for what God has done for him and anxious to render service with his wealth.

   The acceptable worshiper also gives with purpose, carefully taking account of how he has been prospered and planning how he will give:

²On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.

⁷So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

   Giving is not to be a spontaneous, unplanned action. Usually the person who gives unthinkingly will give little. Rather giving should be carefully thought out and prepared for, so that the right attitude will be demonstrated and the proper amount will be given. The thoughtful Christian will also plan what should be done with his wealth when he dies, so that it will go for the purposes which the Lord would approve.

   In The Fairie Queene, Edmund Spenser describes a parade containing representatives of what Renaissance theologians regarded as the seven deadly sins. One of these was Avarice:

And greedy Avarice by him did ride,
Uppon a camell loaden all with gold;
Two iron coffers hong on either side,
With precious metall full as they might hold,
And in his lap an heap of coine he told [counted];
For of his wicked pelfe [wealth] his god he made,
And unto hell him selfe for money sold:
Accursed usury was all his trade;
And right and wrong ylike in equall ballaunce waide.

His life was nigh unto deaths dore yplaste [placed];
And thred-bare cote [coat], and cobled shoes, he ware,
Ne [Nor] scarse good morsell all his life did taste,
But both from backe and belly still did spare,
To fill his bags, and richesse to compare;
Yet childe ne kinsman living had he none
To leave them to; but thorough daily care
To get, and nightly feare to lose his owne,
He led a wretched life, unto him selfe unknowne.

The Faerie Queene I. iv. 26-27.

Here Spenser pictured the ultimate state to which a man comes who allows himself to be consumed with a desire for money and things.

   The scriptures contain many solemn warnings about the disasters to men's lives and souls caused by the love of money:

¹⁰"When you have eaten and are full, then you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you.
¹¹"Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today,
¹²"lest--when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them;
¹³"and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied;
¹⁴"when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage."

²⁴"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

²⁴"And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

¹⁵And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."

⁹But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.
¹⁰For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

   Rather than love money and consequently meet the disaster which hoarding it brings, the scripture tells us to set our values on spiritual things, and to use our wealth wisely for the work of the Lord. In turn, we will be blessed here and in eternity:

¹⁹"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;
²⁰"but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
²¹"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

⁶But godliness with contentment is great gain.
⁷For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
⁸And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.

¹⁷Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.
¹⁸Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share,
¹⁹storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

   May each of us nurture the wise and right attitude toward the money and possessions which are in our care, so that we may use them for the Lord's work and consequently receive his approval when this brief time of our possessing them is past.