Lesson 89 · Unit 13 · The Body of Christ
Money and the House of God
Giving is not a membership fee. It is the outlet of gratitude.
Open
The offering bag is coming along the pew. You count: four more people and it reaches you. In your wallet there is a hundred and a ten; there is a QR code as well, but scanning means typing in an amount, and the amount is a statement of attitude. You pull out the ten and it feels shabby; you pull out the hundred and something in you mutters that the rent is not paid yet. The bag arrives, your fingers let go, the ten goes in, and your face is warm.
On the way home the question surfaces: how much does the church actually want from me? That question is pointed the wrong way. When the Bible talks about giving, the first sentence is never "how much is required," but "how much have you already received?"
Scripture
Paul puts giving back inside grace; Proverbs teaches offering the first fruits of the harvest. (2 Corinthians 9:6-8; Proverbs 3:9-10, WEB)
6Remember this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
7Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that you, always having all sufficiency in everything, may abound to every good work.
9Honor Yahweh with your substance, with the first fruits of all your increase;
10so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine.
See
One great outpouring comes first, and then all giving
When Paul urges the Corinthians to give, the example he holds up is the Macedonian churches, who were flat broke: in a severe ordeal of affliction, "the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded to the riches of their generosity" (2 Cor 8:2). Where does a heart like that come from? The next paragraph shows the card: "You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor" (2 Cor 8:9). The cross is the emptying that came first. Giving has never been a membership fee paid to a God who is short of funds; it is what people filled with grace do when they find an outlet for gratitude. Which is why 9:7 sets the key with three phrases in a row: as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly, not under compulsion. What God looks at first is not the figure, it is the gladness.
God's scale weighs what is left over
Jesus once sat down opposite the temple treasury and watched people putting money in (Mark 12:41-44). A poor widow put in two small coins, and Jesus said she had put in more than all of them - because the rest "gave out of their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, gave all that she had to live on." God's scale does not weigh how much you gave; it weighs how much you kept for yourself. And people under financial pressure can rest easy first: "if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you don't have" (2 Cor 8:12) - God looks at willingness first, and never asks you for what you do not have.
Does the tithe still apply today
On this question, Christians who are faithful to Scripture have come to different understandings. There are two main views: one holds that a tenth is still the baseline for giving today - Malachi 3:10 commands, "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse," and Jesus, speaking of tithing, says "you ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone" (Matt 23:23); the other holds that the tithe is an Old Testament principle and that the New Testament measure is willing, generous giving inside grace - 2 Corinthians 9:7 says only "as he has determined in his heart," and fixes no percentage. This book will not make the decision for your church - take these passages and ask the pastors of the church you belong to. People who differ with you on this are still your brothers and sisters.
Let gladness reach the account
Gladness is not the same as a spur-of-the-moment impulse; it can have an order to it. Proportion first - decide a willing percentage rather than seeing what is left at the end of the month. Inside the budget first - write giving onto the first line of the budget, which is exactly the "first fruits" of Proverbs 3:9: offer the first, not the leftovers. Agreed at home - husband and wife decide together, so that giving never becomes a secret account inside the family. And on the church's side, the finances should be transparent; if you would like to understand gently how your church's giving is used, do ask - that is not unspiritual. Keeping the books of God's house well is itself a part of worship.
Deeper
Cheerful (2 Cor 9:7)
not grudgingly, not under compulsion; the pass mark for giving is not an amount, it is willingness.
First fruits (Prov 3:9)
offer the first, not the leftover - proportion first, inside the budget first, agreed at home.
God weighs what is left (Mark 12:44)
two small coins more than all the rest; God's scale weighs how much you kept for yourself.
According to what you have (2 Cor 8:12)
when money is tight, willingness comes before the figure; God does not ask you for what you do not have.
The tithe
a second-tier question; take the passages from both sides and ask the pastors of the church you belong to.
Story
In John Wesley's first year teaching at Oxford his income was thirty pounds; he lived on twenty-eight and gave away two. The next year his income doubled, and he still lived on twenty-eight and gave away thirty-two. Later it rose to ninety pounds, then a hundred and twenty, and his standard of living did not move an inch - everything above the line went out. He turned the practice into three phrases: gain all you can, save all you can, give all you can. In his old age the royalties on his books ran into tens of thousands of pounds, and they left his hands as fast as they came; he even wrote that if he died with more than ten pounds in his possession, people were free to testify that he had been a thief. He was not being ascetic. He had simply changed his ledger: money was not a balance to be held, but running water meant to pass through him and honour God.
(Source: John Wesley's sermon "The Use of Money," 1760; the figures are from his journals and biographies.)
Respond
Reflect — alone, or talk it through together
12 Corinthians 9:7 stacks up three phrases - not grudgingly, not under compulsion, cheerfully. Why does God care about the heart in giving more than the amount?
2"God's scale weighs what is left over" - on that scale, how does your giving read at the moment?
3"The outlet of gratitude" and "a membership fee" - which do you more often treat giving as? Where does the difference come from?
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Pray together
Lord Jesus, who was rich and for our sakes became poor: you poured yourself out first, and only then did I have anything to give. Lead me out of the calculation of "how much do I owe" and into the counting of "how much have I received." Teach me to offer the first and not the leftover; teach my household to decide together, gladly. My hand keeps wanting to clench - loosen it after the pattern of your self-giving, so that giving becomes the outlet of my gratitude and not the thing that makes my face burn. Amen.
Walk
This week's actionabout 20 min
Begin Milestone 13 - formally commit to one local church (join the membership roll, or tell a pastor face to face that you are committing yourself), and begin one specific place of service; do it for four weeks, then review it with a pastor or a companion. This week take the first step: arrange that face-to-face conversation with a pastor, and agree a willing percentage with your household.
Mark it when it happens — this week, at your pace.
Spiritual practice
Before every gift, take one minute to count three mercies you have already received, and then give what you have decided - let gratitude walk in front of the figure.
Memory verse · 2 Corinthians 9:7
Leteachmangiveaccordingashehasdeterminedinhisheart,notgrudginglyorundercompulsion,forGodlovesacheerfulgiver.
Walk further
The generosity of Barnabas, the widow's two small coins, a devotional on offering the first fruits, lesson 17 on time, money and desire, and a prayer for a generous heart.
Milestone 13 · Commit and Step In
Formally commit to one local church (join the membership roll, or tell a pastor face to face that you are committing yourself), and begin one specific place of service - do it for four weeks, then review it with a pastor or a companion.