Effect of Wisdom

Nehemiah 10: 39

Thus we will not neglect the house of our God.

To understand where this statement comes into play you need to read at least from verse 28. The context of this passage is that a group of people, Israelites, signed a document by which they made certain obligations of themselves. It caught my eye because verse 28 said that it was people who “had knowledge and understanding.” Since we saw the verse last Monday on God’s storehouse of knowledge, wisdom and understanding, (Proverb 2: 6 -7), I was very interested in seeing God’s perspective on where revealed knowledge takes us.

These people made a solemn vow to themselves, each other and to their God to give. The whole passage is about their giving. It is a wondrous passage. It speaks of giving the first fruits of all trees, crops and herds and the first-born sons. It tells how they will honor the sacred festivals with their giving. We are told that their giving will atone for Israel and provide for the priests and others who work in the house of God.

These people took on a sober obligation to support the house of God and its workers. The tithe was only part of their offering. They made a system of giving for themselves. Two thoughts occurred to me as I read this. One is, “No wonder the Jewish people always seem to have money and be the leaders in banking.” The other thought is that knowledge and understanding led them to give to the house of God. It makes me think that if we could get a revelation of what they understood, we would be givers and prosperous too. You need to understand that these contributions to the temple were what fed the priests, the Levites and all the temple workers. This was their tribute to the Lord, but it was also the upkeep of the ministers. The priests were to minister the Word to the people and go to the altar in prayer for the people. The people, in return, ministered to the physical needs of the ministers.

You know, this has not changed. Ministers are still supposed to spend their time on spiritual matters for the benefit of the people and the people are supposed to take care of the ministers. I don’t really think we are proficient in this yet. Many of us take for granted the work of our pastors and teachers and then the next thing you know the pastors and teachers become diluted in their sowing of time to the ministry of the Word. If we avail ourselves of the wisdom of God, He will show us how to live and how to give. We can see in our support of the ministry of the Word our own maturity in spiritual things. As long as we are like children, always taking and seldom giving, then we are only going to be able to partake in a child’s part. When we mature and take on the responsibility of the maintenance of the servants of God’s Word, then we will all be able to grow into a mature body. The attainment of knowledge, wisdom and understanding should change your life. This passage of scripture shows one of the ways that your life should be dramatically altered.

Further study: Nehemiah 10: 28-39

Unusual Kindness

Luke 6: 35

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great; and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.

Jesus says a lot in this short passage. It is a summation of the previous several paragraphs. He is giving us a model for living. This is the way He and His Father interact with others. Jesus tells us that God is kind to ungrateful and evil men as a way of showing us that we, being made in the image of God, should behave in like manner.

Anyone can be kind to those who are kind to them, but the life of Jesus calls us to a higher plane of existence. Jesus wants us to be like Him. To do so, we must expect more of ourselves than the simple life that anyone can accomplish. We should aspire to the high life, and that is the life and likeness of Jesus.

We need to love even when it is uncomfortable. We must learn to not only forgive those who transgress against us but also to pray for them; and moreover to pray from a generous and kind heart. We should learn to give generously, especially when there is no hope of a return. It is not a gift if you are expecting something in return. It is an investment. God, on the other hand, gives even to those who hate Him. He would have given His son even if there was only one person on earth and that person hated Him with the full strength of his being. Our God is a loving God, and we are seeking to be just like Him. Therefore, we must give from our heart love, goodness and every good thing, expecting nothing in return but just to please the Father.

Generous Blessing

Deuteronomy 15: 10        NIV

Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.

Yesterday’s Word of the Day set me thinking, so I ran a search on the word “generous.” This verse from Deuteronomy stood out to me in particular because I know that in a few chapters we will learn explicitly about The Blessing! Clearly, Moses had the blessing in mind when he wrote this because we see its operation.

I will be very honest with you. I want to be under the blessing. I want it chasing me down in the street. My life is much easier with the blessing working in it than without. Actually, something didn’t go exactly my way the other day and I was surprised. It wasn’t a big thing but it was noticeable because it frustrated my purposes slightly. On the other hand, a different matter worked out better than I could have orchestrated. The point is, I have become accustomed to the way life works with the blessing.

Now, do I give just so the blessing will work in my life? Not really, but I will say that God’s thoughts on giving do influence me. The blessing only works when you give freely, not begrudgingly. If you cannot give cheerfully, it is best to take the whole issue to God in prayer or even journal it.

Our challenges with giving sometimes have to do with brokenness in our spirits. So, if I don’t want to give, then I immediately begin to question it. What is wrong with me that I need to hold on to this? I think about people I know who are so generous and people like Sister Teresa and it reframes things in my mind. I see myself positioned differently. Then I imagine how I want to think and feel and I see myself in that posture. I see myself confident in my giving and generous. That helps me. If I am having a hard time letting go, it is a good sign something is wrong with me because that certainly is not God’s Spirit speaking within me. When we are in our right place with God, we are always generous. If we find ourselves hesitant to give, then something has gone wrong in our hearts. The most important thing to do is to ask the Father about it so that he can heal us or mend that which broke.

God wants to bless everything you touch. That is The Blessing that Moses wrote about in Chapter 28 of Deuteronomy. The blessing works through our divine connection with God the Father. You cannot be divinely connected to God and also be stingy. It just doesn’t ever happen that way. He is the supreme giver. This verse attests to that. Jesus’ life attests to that but God’s blessing flows according to the streams of life and one of the most significant of those is generosity. When we get in the flow with the Father, life bubbles along smoothly.

Be a generous giver. Not because I say so, but because it is God’s way. Speak with Him and ask Him to help you be generous in your giving and let the blessing flow in your life.

Not Fair!

Matthew 20: 12

These who were hired last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day’s work and the scorching heat.

Do you remember this story, how the landowner bargained with workers at the beginning of the day to pay them a certain wage for a day’s work in his vineyard? Towards the end of the day he took on more workers. At day’s end, he paid all the workers the same wage, even those who came late in the day. The workers who worked all day were upset that the people who worked a half day, or less, received the same wage as they. I might be upset too.

This is a two-fold message I believe. First, it is an obvious salvation message. Those who come into the vineyard, or in this case the kingdom, are rewarded as generously as those who arrived early. Second, it is a message about God’s kindness and generosity. Why are we upset that he chooses to be generous to those who worked one hour?

I believe part of the answer is that we are still locked into an earning mentality. The workers thought they “earned” their wage by their full day’s labor. They thought they earned the reward through their labor. This passage reveals a God who doesn’t make us earn His benefits. He gives freely. If He chooses to bless people who don’t deserve it, we should be happy rather than angry or jealous because we see God’s love in action towards all people.

Then there are the rewards of salvation. Those of us who have worked in the vineyard for years ought to reap a bigger reward than those who show up at the last minute. Right? That is what our worldly self says to us. Moreover, we feel legitimate in that thought. The reality is, though, that God is giving gifts to all. Salvation is free. None of us deserved His grace when He extended it to us but with time, we have begun to feel that we have earned something. Some people live like the devil and then in the eleventh hour pray to Jesus for salvation while other people have served him all their lives. What is the equity between these two groups? The only equity in God is love. Love bestows great gifts without regard for earnings. That does not square with our brains, but we need to allow it to settle into our spirits. Those who come after us are just as worthy and unworthy as we. The only way we receive a wage or salvation is by the free grace of the Father’s kindness and generosity. We didn’t have to earn it and neither do those people who are making their way towards the kingdom.

I think this story rankles within us because it is so “unfair” in the way we were raised to think. However, when we look at this from God’s perspective it begins to help heal our hearts. We needn’t lament God’s kindness towards anyone for it is that very kindness that blesses us today.

Thanksgiving Tuesday

Luke 6: 38

Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.

Today is giving Tuesday. It has been harder for generous people to give this year. Some of the places where you volunteered time were shut down for months. Some programs are still struggling for volunteers. Many, many charitable organizations have suffered tremendously. While some people have been able to buy a takeout meal at a local restaurant to help sustain the restaurant during these troubled times, non-profit organizations have not had the same opportunities. Churches and ministries have been among those most hurt by the coronavirus. We have all been, truly, living on faith.

At the same time, many ministries and churches are experiencing higher than normal costs. Money has, needfully, been invested into websites and online platforms. The cost of sending out God’s Word has escalated while revenues have plummeted. On this day, a day dedicated to giving, the balance sheet can be impacted for great good.

This year I am explicitly asking you to give to ministries. Giving Tuesday is about giving to organizations doing all kinds of good works. They are all worthy. How can one say that St. Jude, or the MS Society or any of the other great organizations are not doing great work? They are! But, where is the church in our giving plan? This Giving Tuesday I want to make it about what Christians can do for all the ministries that have been working so very hard this year to keep believers built up and encouraged. Ministers have suffered in their own spirits crying out to God for the words which would help believers during this challenging time. It is the closest most of us will ever come to sweating blood.

I want you to know that your pastors and ministers have toiled on your behalf and prayed their throats almost raw. It has been a tough year to be a minister, but I cannot think of a year when the job has been more important. So, this year I am asking you to bless the ministers and pastors in your life and the organizations through which they serve. It is a day to show appreciation and to encourage those who have tried so valiantly to encourage you over the last many months. Let your heart of compassion well up within you to show your appreciation and love. And may your gifts be multiplied back to you a hundredfold.

My Heroes

Luke 6: 38         KJV

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

I don’t use the King James version very often because I don’t speak Elizabethan English. Occasionally, though, there are verses that I just hear in the old KJV and you may as well. This is one of those verses. We understand, at least at one level, what this verse means. Taking a look at it in a modern version, though, is like hearing it in “plain English.” Here is the Passion Translation’s take on this verse, “Give generously and generous gifts will be given back to you, shaken down to make room for more. Abundant gifts will pour out upon you with such an overflowing measure that it will run over the top! Your measurement of generosity becomes the measurement of your return.” I like what the God’s Word version says too, “Give, and you will receive.” I mean, just say it plainly, right? Now, just in case we hadn’t noticed, this is Jesus speaking. What, then, is his point? Is he trying to get us to give, or to receive? It seems to me that he is teaching us how to receive. What do you think? I can imagine a question like, “Jesus how do I receive what I need and want?” Here is his answer, give!

I have some absolutely lovely friends whom I met through the MS bike ride. Recently when I inquired about bike racks, they made me one. WHAT?!! Crazy, right? They are so generous! They do a lot for their team, but they also do a lot for others. They are just crazy givers. I said to a friend, “How can they even afford to do all they do?” She answered, “Because they are givers.” Duh Ivey! Yeah, God pours into their lap because they give generously. That’s what Jesus said would happen, after all. Oh, me of little faith. Why didn’t I see that right off the bat?

We read these words, even believe them, at least in our minds, but they are only effective when they sink in and become a part of us. You can’t talk people into being givers, they have to get there on their own. You can encourage them, but the key is that if we really believed Jesus, we would all generously give. Jesus’ words can infect your heart and boy, when they do, it is awesome. I mean, you just want to be around people like that.

I want us all to learn to be generous in our giving. I should lead by example but then come with me. I want you to give so you receive, and then I want you to give again and receive again, and . . .. I want us all to be like these folks because not only do I have a beautiful bike rack for my team, but even better was the feeling they gave me in my spirit. How can I repay them for that? I cannot, but I pray to my dear Lord that he will bless them for their kindness, and I am confident that he will.

Ready to Share

1 Timothy 6: 18

Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share.

You can always recognize people who are full of the love of God. They are always generous. You have to be because God is generous. So, when you are full of Him, generosity naturally flows from you. Why then are some people, even believers, tight fisted? It is their lack of faith, lack of trust or their belief that their own hands have provided for them. Once you truly begin to trust God, you begin to understand that He will always provide for you. You are then able to release the death grip you have on money and things because you know that God is your source, not you.

As long as you see yourself as your source you will have a tendency to be stingy with your hard-earned money. Once you realize that you cannot do anything without God’s grace and that it is He who has blessed you, you will begin let God’s provision flow through you. You can let God use you as a conduit. You will stop being a dead end in God’s flow and instead be a multiplier. As you start really giving, you will see that your supply is not hindered at all and you will become an even greater giver. When we know God and trust Him, we can let go of every concern. Then we can let go of our resources. We become like God himself just looking for someone to bless. What a wonderful way to live life.