The Spirit of Giving – October 24, 2021
Deuteronomy 16:10-17, II Corinthians 9:6-15
October 24, 2021
In this series we’ve been talking about the Spirit. We’ve talked about “Living in the Spirit,” “Walking by the Spirit,” “The Unity of the Spirit,” and then last week “The Security of the spirit” – putting on “the whole armor of God.” Now today, we’re talking about “The Spirit of giving.” And yes, the Spirit is part of that, too!
This is a good thing to talk about. Because over the years I’ve heard “discussions” about the place of the “The Offering” in worship services. I’ve heard people say that taking an offering “seems like a distraction.” or “It seems unworthy of worship somehow.” And some have even said, “Offering seems like a ‘worldly’ thing, in a time and setting when we’re supposed to be concentrating on the ‘spiritual.’”
Well, whenever I’ve heard those kinds of things, I’ve tried to point out (gently!) that the giving of offerings has always been part of the worship of God’s people. It’s always been a part of their spiritual lives.
Think about it. We can only imagine – or maybe we can’t imagine – what it was like in Old Testament times, when people were bringing baskets of grain and produce, and animals and birds into the temple. That was their “offering.” And that is to say nothing of the sacrificing of animals and the sprinkling of blood! And it was all spelled out in their scripture what they were to give!
It’s hard for us to imagine that kind of offering. But that’s the way it was. And at the very least, I think we have to recognize that our offerings are an important part of our worship, just as theirs was. We have to see that this – this worship service – is not just a spiritual time and place. It is a time and place where the physical world and the spiritual world come together. And I believe that’s so important!
If you think about it, giving offering, as part of worship, is symbolic of the way our spiritual life must impact our physical life. If it doesn’t, if we keep those two things separate, we can easily become hypocritical, not “practicing what we preach.” That’s what can happen when we concentrate on the physical world above all else, and only give lip service to the spiritual. Our spiritual lives can end up having no bearing on our physical lives, and we can end up living in ways contrary to what we say we believe.
That’s what can happen! To be God’s people, our spiritual life must impact our physical life. And vice-versa! Our physical life must impact our spiritual life. You’ve heard me say before, that “Some people are so heavenly minded, they’re no earthly good.” We must recognize both worlds.
Over the centuries, there have been those in religious circles – of every faith – who have chosen to separate themselves from the physical world. There have been those who were called “religious ascetics.” Maybe you’ve heard that term. (That’s not to be confused with the word “esthetics,” which has to do with the beauty of things.) Ascetics were people who practiced “severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of worldly indulgence.” They would say that the spiritual was the most important, and that the physical world was to be avoided.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying spiritual pursuits are bad. Many of us have been on “spiritual retreats.” And maybe those were times when our lives were changed! And that’s great! But even spiritual “retreats,” are not meant to teach us “isolation” or separation from the world. We still “come home,” don’t we? Retreats are meant as a time of “spiritual grounding,” a time to concentrate on the spiritual so that we can better manage the intersection between the physical and the spiritual. Let me say that again. Retreats are meant as a time to concentrate on the spiritual so that we can better manage the intersection between the physical and the spiritual.
I believe we need a good balance between the two. And so, here in our worship service we bring those two worlds together. Here, we talk about things in the world, and how our faith impacts them. And here we talk about “Stewardship,” especially in this month of October.
As we do so, we find that our Bible talks a lot about Stewardship. Jesus talked about it. He told parables about it. He recognized the widow, whose small gift, he said, represented more than all the rest, because it was all that she had. He taught us, that, “if you are giving your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you. Leave your gift – right there – and go and be reconciled to your brother.”
Here in our reading, Paul was writing to the people in Corinth. And Corinth was a huge commercial center at the time. It was a very interesting place! And in this part of his second letter, he was talking about the Corinthians and their offerings – their contributions to God’s work. He was telling them that their gifts were essential, and they were greatly appreciated! And I believe he was telling them that the physical and the spiritual had come together. Because he also told them that they were “blessed by God,” because of their contributions.
As I said a few weeks ago, Paul would have agreed with James. If you remember, James is the one who said that “faith without good works is a hollow faith.” Do you remember that? He said, “If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them ‘Go in peace, be warmed, and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?”
James would tell us that how we give of ourselves, is directly related to our faith. And I believe Paul would agree. He tells us today that there is an attitude – a spirit – of giving. “The point is this,” he wrote. “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. And he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” In other words, if you put a lot of seed in the ground, you reap a great harvest. If you don’t, you end up with gardens like mine! Isn’t it great how he makes his points using examples of things that came right from their lives and experiences! Jesus did the same thing in his parables!
“He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” And then Paul tells us about the practical part of this. He says that, in our giving, “Each one must do so as he has made up his mind…” Think about that. “Each one must do so as he has made up his mind…” What does that sound like? It sounds like pledging, doesn’t it? Each of us must give as we have made up our mind to give, as opposed to giving as we feel like giving, in any particular moment. In pledging we make a decision – ahead of time, and we “pledge” to “stick to that as our plan.” That’s very practical of Paul, isn’t it?
Well, then he tells us of the attitude – “the spirit of giving.” We don’t give, as he says, “reluctantly, or under compulsion.” “Because there’s a better way.” There’s a much more positive attitude of giving. And that’s where we find this iconic line. “For God loves a cheerful giver.” There’s the spirit in giving! There’s the spiritual! Because what’s the result of all this? Abundance! That’s one of Paul’s favorite words! And he uses it several times here. “And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that you may always have enough of everything, and may provide in abundance for every good work.”
Now, I don’t want this to sound like we “give in order to get.” There are any number of people out there preaching that message. “Give to the church and you will get!” You’ve heard it! Then they have someone on the screen telling the story of how they gave to the church and then a big, unexpected check came in their mailbox. I’m not saying that doesn’t happen, but it is not the reason we give. It is not the spirit in which we give.
And this is about the spirit! Stewardship is about the sowing bountifully and reaping bountifully. This is the bringing together of the physical and the spiritual. It is about our faith. And it’s about the joy in living that God wants for us and that God gives us.
One of the greatest examples of Stewardship came right after our first banquet. Do you remember? I tell people about this all the time. We were in our annual meeting, and it was pointed out that we netted over $9,500 dollars from the event. And Patty spoke up and said, “We should make it “$10,000, and I’ve got $40 dollars that I’ll put in right now!” “Who else will?” And she held up the $40. And someone else said, “I will!” And another said, “Me too!” And this enthusiastic, joyful contribution happened at that moment, and we soon had the “$10,000. And I’ve always seen that as the best example of Stewardship I’ve ever experienced! It was a joyous, positive, encouraging giving of ourselves! And the result was? Abundance!
I’ve been talking a lot about stewardship through the pandemic. And I’ve been bragging about all of you. I keep thinking that this could have been a difficult time financially. And it has been for some churches. But you have stepped up and made it all happen. And I’m so excited about that! And I’m so proud of you! And I hope you’re all feeling that encouragement and joy I’ve been trying to give you for months now! There’s a difference between giving “pleas for help,” and saying, “keep up the good work!” And that’s a big difference, isn’t it? We’re much more likely to contribute when there’s a positive attitude happening! And when it happens, we feel good about it. And we feel blessed, don’t we? At least we should! We even feel “enthusiastic.” A teacher once pointed out that the word “enthusiastic” contains the Greek word “Theus,” meaning (what?) “God.” The word literally means “having God in us.”
As we think about all that, may we be – may we continue to be – encouraged in our stewardship. May we indeed be “enthusiastic.” And may we know that God does love a “cheerful giver.”
Prayer
Eternal God, help us to continue to be good stewards of all you have given us. Help us to look to the future with enthusiasm and joy, knowing that we are part of your kingdom, part of that great “cloud of witnesses” down through the ages of the Church. For this we pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.