Sermon series: FROM BONDAGE TO FREEDOM

Subject: GIVING GOD’S WAY

Deuteronomy 12:5-14
"But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, even unto His habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:
And there ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks:
And there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee. Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes.
For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the Lord your God giveth you.
But when ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the Lord your God giveth you to inherit, and when He giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety,
Then, there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause His name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord:
And ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you.
Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest;
But in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shall do all that I command thee."

Leviticus 27:30-32
"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 unto the Lord.
And if a man will at all redeem aught of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof.
And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy

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unto the Lord."

Proverbs 3:9-10
"Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst with new wine."

Malachi 3:7-12
"Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed Thee? In tithes and offerings.
Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation.
Bring ye all the TITHES into the storehouse, that there may be meat in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.
And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts."

Luke 16:10-13
"He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much; and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?
No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."

2 Corinthians 9:6-1l
"But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as his purposeth in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all suf

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ficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever."

Our lesson series is a study of the journey of the children of Israel from the land of bondage to the promised land of freedom. In this study we are finding that many of the New Testament doctrines have their foundations in these Old Testament events and stories. We are finding a new appreciation for what we believe as Christians as we learn the events in history which formed the foundations of our beliefs.
During the early weeks of the journey of the children of Israel from Egypt to Canaan, God called Moses up to the mountain of Sinai to give him the instructions as to how to govern this newly released nation, as well as laws and commands concerning the building of a structure in which He would dwell and the worship which was to take place in this newly constructed House of God called the Tabernacle.
A careful reading of Exodus, Deuteronomy, and Leviticus shows how laws covering every aspect of life together as a Godly society were to be lived out in all relationships. As we learned in our last lesson, the priests were assigned this sacred task of interpreting and enforcing these laws and commands. But it wasn’t long before they lost the spirit of the laws and commands, and they became legalism. LEGALISM is defined as "strict adherence to law, especially to the letter rather than the spirit" of the law.
A legalism occurs when the creativity and spirit that combined to make up the law are lost. Laws come about because people need guidance to solve their confrontations. Laws, when they are first written down, have flexibility and "breathing room." Over time, however, the law becomes a legalism because those who are enforcing and interpreting it can’t see beyond the words. So laws are written to instruct, protect, and guide people.
Nestled among those laws were the first glimmers of what a TITHE is and how much it should be of a person’s income and wealth and what God thinks about the TITHE. If the TITHE is a legalism, giving to God, His work and missions, becomes much like paying a bill. When the TITHE as a legalism becomes the foundation for giving, it misses the spirit of the law while being true to

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what the law states. The TITHE, when based on a spiritual interpretation of the Old Testament, is not a legalism. It cannot be reduced to a mathematical formula applied to income. The TITHE of the Old Testament is a testimony to the interconnectedness of people and God. It incorporates a cycle of giving, receiving, and using. It signifies a relationship that can’t be content with using a strict formula from the past. The TITHE, like the message of the Old Testament, is a living witness to God! A living God does not rely on rules. God asks for giving based on the commitment. There is a significant difference between giving because of a legalism and giving because of being committed to, and loving God in a very real and personal relationship through Jesus Christ, His Son.
God taught His chosen people to TITHE. In its simplest form His law stated: "The TITHE is the Lord’s."
TITHING was a way of life; this much is clear from the Old Testament. Being a steward, giving the first fruits of their increase, and observing jubilee (every fifty years all the property returned to the original family of ownership established by God when He divided the Promised Land to the various tribes).
This suggests that treating the tithe as legalism, a law without spirit, is inappropriate.
It was a force in the lives of those people. I emphasize this point for too frequently when the subject of TITHING is mentioned, the preacher is often accused of teaching legalism of the Old Testament as a way of supporting the work of the Church today. This is a false charge and is usually used only to give the person a reason to reject TITHING as a way of worship for himself. He chooses not to honor God with his substance, but only with his lips which speak empty words. LOVE GIVES.
You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving! For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son! Loving always involves giving!
So we have noted from the Old Testament that God instructed the people to worship Him, and in the act of worship He included the matter of giving. "Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst with new wine" (Proverbs 3:9-l0).
Almost the last chapter of the Old Testament speaks of the neglect by the children of Isreal in regards to TITHING, and because of this neglect, God cursed the nation with a curse!
"Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed Thee?

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in TITHES and offerings.
Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation.
Bring ye all the TITHES into the storehouse, that there may be meat in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it." (Malachi 3:8-10)
The old prophet’s message brings out some fundamental perspectives with respect to the matter of worshipping God with our substance.
The prophet, employing a rare Hebrew verb, describes the actions of the people as a form of robbery! In keeping their TITHES and offerings to themselves, they acted as if they owned all that they had. Their attitude towards property was not one of stewardship, according to which their possessions were held as a sacred trust from God, but one of ownership. Our attitude towards property and wealth should therefore always involve an acknowledgment of God’s role in its acquisition, and this acknowledgment in turn will relax the tightness of our hold on that which we possess. The person who is stingy with wealth, refusing to give to God or to others, betrays a deep-seated lack of belief. Such persons do not really believe that God, if there is a God, has had any hand in making and giving them what they are and what they have. Small faith and small giving go hand in hand together. As a result of such stingy giving--itself an indicator of their spiritual density--a curse rested on Israel and all that they did. They were cursed with crop failure, low yields, and barrenness. Israel was to make no mistake: it was God Himself who had been defrauded; not Levites or the religious institutions of Israel! No one robs God without robbing himself at the same time!
In response to the obedience of men’s hearts as evidenced by this one area of giving, God will release the "floodgates" or "windows" of heaven and send abundant rains. In fact, He will send so much that men will not be able to contain them all! Moreover, God will rebuke the devourer and men everywhere will be amazed at God’s rich blessing resting upon the giver!
Now we come to a very interesting point in our lesson...How does this very important truth of the Old Testament relate to the teachings of the New Testament and to us who are Christ’s disciples? What should I as a Christian do about this matter of TITHING and are its promises valid today?

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In our opening verses for this lesson, we referred to the passage in Luke 16. This is the way the Amplified Bible translates these verses:
"He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much, and he who is dishonest and unjust in a very little thing is dishonest and unjust also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the case of unrighteous mannon (deceitful riches, money, possessions), who will entrust to you the true riches?
And if you have not proved faithful in that which belongs to another, whether God or man, who will give you that which is your own, that is, the true riches?
No servant is able to serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stand by and be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (riches, or anything in which you trust and on which you rely" (Luke 16:10-13).
In verses 10 and 11, the lesson is that a man’s way of fulfilling a small task is the best proof of his fitness or unfitness to be entrusted with a bigger task. No man will be advanced to higher office until he has given proof of his honesty and ability in a smaller position. But Jesus extends the principle to eternity. He says, "Upon earth; you are in charge of things which are not really yours. You cannot take them with you when you die. They are only lent to you. You are only a steward over them. They cannot, in the nature of things, be permanently yours. On the other hand, in heaven you will get what is really and eternally yours. AND WHAT YOU GET IN HEAVEN DEPENDS ON HOW YOU USE THE THINGS OF EARTH! What you will be given as your very own will depend on how you use the things of which you are only stewards!
"For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it? (1 Corinthians 4:7)
"Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of light, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning" (James 1:17).
Our Bible is very clear that what we have is a gift from God Himself, even our very life! Our health, our ability to reason and think, the air we breathe, comes from our God and we should live our lives to show appreciation to our God who gives us all things to enjoy! We are not owners! We are stewards and God expects us to worship Him with all that we are and all that we have, and that includes life’s possessions and wealth!

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Wealth! Possessions! Money! Our Bible has much to say about these. In a sense, money is a good barometer of our spirituality, because the way we handle our money is an indication of our performance as a Christian steward. One has said, "Let me see the record of the checks you have written on your bank account for the last year, and I can tell how much you really love God and the degree of your concern for eternity." Jesus said, "Do not gather and heap up and store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal. But gather and heap up and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worms consume and destroy, where thieves do not break through and steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" (Matthew 6:19-21).
Our Bible says: "The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine, declares the Lord of hosts" (Haggai 2:8). Deuteronomy 8:18 adds, "But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth." Notice! All money is God’s; and He grants to men and women the ability to earn which is His--wealth, money. Money is one of God's gifts to us!
Think! If we were executives in a corporation and handled company funds like we sometimes handle God’s money, we would go to jail for embezzlement! God holds all of us responsible for the way we handle His money, and we must not take that responsibility lightly.
The Apostle said in 1 Timothy 6:10: "The love of money is a root of all sorts of evil. It is through this craving that some have been led astray and have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many acute mental pangs.
Since we are not to love money, it follows that we’re not to trust in it. In fact, to trust in money is idolatry, one of God’s most serious charges against anyone. Money is not the problem...it is the love of money that is the problem. You can have a lot of it and not love it, and you can have none of it and love it. It’s the love of money, not money, that disgusts God!
When you derive your sense of security from your money rather than from your God, you’re trapped in idolatry. God or money--we must choose who will be our master.
Proverbs 11:28 says: "Trust in your money and down you go! Trust in God and flourish as a tree!"
"Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, cease from your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth cer-

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tainly makes itself wings, like an eagle that flies toward the heavens" (Proverbs 23:4,5).
THESE MATTERS WE HAVE OBSERVED THUS FAR IN OUR LESSON: God included giving and offerings in His plan of worship. He warned that if this aspect of worship was negated, His blessings would be withheld and one would suffer negative effects in his monetary resources. Wealth and money can become our god and if so, we are guilty of idolatry! Jesus told us that the way we use our resources here on earth will have an effect on what we will receive in eternity! Jesus told us to lay up our treasures in heaven, and not here on earth.
IN CONCLUSION, LET US CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING ASPECTS IN WORSHIPPING THROUGH GIVING.
(1) The early church worshipped God through giving. "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also." (1 Corinthians 16:1) The early Christians were taught to give generously. "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:6-7). The sincerity of one’s love for God is proven in his giving. "But as you abound in everything--in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us--see that you abound in this grace (the grace of giving) also. I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich." (2 Corinthians 8:7-9)
Paul gets very serious about this matter of giving: "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life." (Galatians 6:7-8). Paul reminds us of an eternal truth...He insists that life holds the scales with an even balance. If a man allows the lower side of his nature to dominate him, in the end he can expect nothing but a harvest of trouble. If we use our resources here for that which satisfies our fleshly cravings, we will end up empty-handed in heaven, and before we may get there, we will have much trouble along the bumpy road of life!
Let’s worship God, not only with our heart and our lips, but with our time, talent, and the resources of life that He gives us!