![]() ![]() (NIV ® )Ī few chapters later inn Acts 5, there’s the famous story of Ananias and Sapphira. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. In the beginning of the book of Acts, which contains the history of the early church, we read this:Īcts 2:44-45 All the believers were together and had everything in common. The early church practiced needs-based giving. Irenaeus, an early church father who lived in the second century, (130-202 AD) and is thought to be a disciple of the Apostle John, writes, “The Jews were constrained to a regular payment of tithes Christians, who have liberty, assign all of their possessions to the Lord, bestowing freely not the lesser portions of their property, since they have the hope of greater things.” In other words, the Jews of the Old Testament may be commanded to give 10%, but Christians are able to give more because they’ve been given everything in Christ Jesus. So should we tithe? One reporter who investigated tithing concluded, “If a pastor or church leader has ever told you that the Bible commands Christians to tithe or give 10% of their income… asked you to donate to a mysterious ‘building fund’ or give a ‘first-fruit’ offering… You are getting played.” His message is clear-the tithe is a myth. However, this verse is not about regular church offerings, but a special offering (v. He doesn’t want a sad giver, but a joyful one excited to join in his work. God cares about the state of our hearts as we give. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. In 2nd Corinthians, we see Paul encouraging people to give joyfully.Ģ Corinthians 9:6-7 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. I want to begin by noting that both positions agree that God loves a cheerful and generous giver. Offerings: God says to give generously, but sets no specific amount. The second position says God gives us the tithe (10%) as a starting point for greater giving.īefore we begin, let’s pray. Tithes: God says to start by giving 10%, but grow from there. The first position says the Bible just teaches us to give a “grace offering” or “free-will offering”-but doesn’t say how much. What does the Bible have to say about giving, specifically what does it have to say about giving tithes and offerings? There are generally two positions: We need to know what God expects of us because we can trust that his expectations for giving will meet our needs for ministry. That means the responsibility falls to us. Although we’ve been paying for most of our bills up to this point, our parent church has been helping us out. Third, Lord willing, in the next couple months we’re going to become an autonomous church.Second, the book Ten Most Common Mistakes Made by New Church Starts lists #7 as, “Fear of Talking about Money until It Is Too Late.” Now it’s not too late, but I apologize, we’re a year and half in and I should have talked about this sooner.First, I haven’t fully taught what the Bible calls us to give, and you should know.Why? I’m preaching this sermon for several reasons: What’s the real reason? 2) What does the Bible have to say about giving? Let me answer the first question. When you hear we’re talking about money, I imagine two questions pop into your mind: 1) Why are we doing a sermon on giving? aka. We’re learning not how much to have, but how much God calls us to give away. Jesus taught a lot on money, so today we’re talking about it too. With money, life is better, or as the singer puts it, “Always sunny in the rich man’s world.”Īt some level, we all believe in the power of money to make our lives better. After all, money can buy a white toga covered in rhinestones, or if you have money, you’ve got lots of shiny coins, or even better, if you meet a rich man, you can ride in his red convertible and throw back your head and just laugh and laugh. ABBA is serious about Money, Money, Money.
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