So far in our New Covenant Giving series, we’ve looked at giving yourself to God first and giving in response to Jesus’ gift. Today, we’re going to look at the importance of giving with a sincere desire and love. When you give yourself fully to God, His love will live in you and will be evident in your desire to help others – especially the needy. Without God’s love and the sincere desire it produces, giving does you no good.

Having the Desire to Give

       Christian giving should be the result of a sincere desire to give. This sincere desire comes from God’s love dwelling in us, which compels us to look after the needs of others. In following Jesus’ teaching that we should love others as ourselves, we look after their needs as much as we do our own.

       ¹ If there is therefore any exhortation in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any tender mercies and compassion, ² make my joy full, by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind; ³ doing nothing through rivalry or through conceit, but in humility, each counting others better than himself; ⁴ each of you not just looking to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.

Philippians 2:1-4 (WEB) emphasis mine

       Jesus compels us to love each other, just as He loved us. Our love for one another is manifested in our desire to look after each other’s needs and to meet those needs as we are able. In fact, it is our desire to give that makes our gifts acceptable and pleasing to God.

       ¹⁰ I give a judgment in this: for this is expedient for you, who were the first to start a year ago, not only to do, but also to be willing. ¹¹ But now complete the doing also, that as there was the readiness to be willing, so there may be the completion also out of your ability. ¹² For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you don’t have.

2 Corinthians 8:10-12 (WEB)

       It is our desire, willingness, and love that make our gifts acceptable – not a certain amount or percentage. We know that God loves a cheerful giver, and this is why He wants us to give willingly what we have decided in our hearts. Christians aren’t going to give less because they’re no longer under a compulsory tithe. If we’re following God’s Spirit, we’re much more likely to give generously – even beyond our means. It’s all because God’s love is acting through us, and God’s extravagantly lavish love for us has been made evident to us through His Son.

Give with Love

       Jesus taught us that we will keep the whole Law if we focus on loving God and loving our neighbors. Love is the essence of God’s Spirit. And if we’re following His Spirit, we will do everything with love. Giving with love is so vital to New Covenant Giving that Paul said our giving does us no good if it’s not done with love.

       If I dole out all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but don’t have love, it profits me nothing.

1 Corinthians 13:3 (WEB)

       God doesn’t want us to give because “we’re supposed to”, because “that’s what Christians do”, or even because “it’s just the right thing to do”. He wants us to give because we love one another and have a desire to show that love through our giving. Even giving everything we have to the poor is meaningless if it isn’t a result of love. Giving sacrificially will mean nothing unless it comes from love. And giving 10% is certainly meaningless if it’s only done because of a commandment, obligation, guilt, misunderstanding, or a false teaching.

       We should do good because we love one another – not because we feel like we’re just supposed to do it. Our love for God and our love for each other are made evident in our actions – our deeds show proof of God’s love living in us.

       ¹⁰ In love of the brothers be tenderly affectionate one to another; in honor preferring one another; ¹¹ not lagging in diligence; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; ¹² rejoicing in hope; enduring in troubles; continuing steadfastly in prayer; ¹³ contributing to the needs of the saints; given to hospitality.

Romans 12:10-13 (WEB) emphasis mine

       When God’s love is living in us, we will do those things that show our love for each other. Giving to help each other is one way that we prove our love and the sincere desire that God places in our hearts. Freewill, sacrificial giving demonstrates the sincerity of our love and the fruits of the Spirit in our lives.

       I speak not by way of commandment, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity also of your love.

2 Corinthians 8:8 (WEB)

Give Even to Your Enemies

       The love of God is so powerful that it can even impel us to love and give to our enemies. God has shown His compassion and mercy to the whole world by giving His Son to die for our sins even while we were still in our sins and unrepentance. It is clear that once we accept His wonderful gift His love in us will be made evident in the good we’ll show not just to each other but to our enemies as well.

       ³² If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive back as much. ³⁵ But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back; and your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind toward the unthankful and evil.

Luke 6:32-35 (WEB)

       So do not give if it’s not out of a sincere desire that God has placed in your heart. And do not give if you’re giving for any reason other than love. God’s love will lead you to give according to His will – to give generously, lovingly, cheerfully, and even sacrificially when needed.

       And if you find you do not have God’s love producing that sincere desire in you, seek God’s Spirit and pray for His love to live in you. Give yourself fully to Him. Remember His unspeakable gift in Jesus Christ. Pour yourself out to Him, and He will surely give you His love and desire to care for others.

       Last week when we talked about New Covenant Giving principles, we looked at giving yourself to God first. Today, we’re going to look at giving in response to Jesus’ gift. True and complete generosity is possible only when we fully accept Christ’s gift of the cleansing of sin and eternal life for all that it really is. Once we understand the full power of His gift, we will see the things of this world in the light of eternity and value our heavenly treasures above our earthly riches.

God’s Sacrifice and Christ’s Gift

       The most powerful motivation we can have for giving generously to glorify God’s name is to look at His abounding and extravagant love in sacrificing His Son for our sins. We need only look at the gift Jesus gave us when He died on the Cross and freed us from the condemnation that we deserve.

       For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich.

2 Corinthians 8:9 (WEB)

       Because of what He did for us, we will have eternal life in Heaven if we will only believe in Him and repent from our sins. Then we are free from all chains – the chains of this world and the chains of death. We will live forever with Him. We have to remember that forever means eternity. If we don’t accept Him, our life on earth is as good as it gets because Hell is all that awaits us after we die. But if we do accept Him, we have our time on earth, and all of eternity after our death, to draw closer to Him. Our life on earth is just a shadow of the good things to come in Heaven. We cannot even imagine the riches we’ll enjoy there with Him. Once we realize that this life is nothing compared to the next, we can be free to give generously because of Jesus’ Gift.

       As a Christian, you must fully realize the implications of what Jesus has done for us and how it affects the decisions we make in this life. This life is not all there is! Your death is not the end. It’s only the beginning of your true life!!! That changes the perspective of everything! The things you have or can have in this life are absolutely nothing compared to what you’ll have in Heaven. That’s why we Christians should be giving so generously and freely in this life. What we have here is worthless compared to our treasures in Heaven! When we give generously we not only glorify God’s name in our loving gifts, but we also testify to the power of Christ in our lives. We show that we value His gift above worldly riches. We exemplify His teaching on giving to the poor. And we demonstrate our love and appreciation for Him and His Gift.

       Now thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift!

2 Corinthians 9:15 (WEB)

       Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift!!! There are not just words to describe the amazing love God poured out on us and the abounding grace afforded to us through His Son!! Our generous giving (resulting from love) shouts this statement to the whole world! When you’re faced with a decision or opportunity to give, remember to give thanks to God for His unspeakable gift. With that attitude, His love can flow through you to give more than you ever thought possible. You’ll lavishly give of yourself to others, and your sacrifice will result in many thanks to God, glory to God, and the spreading of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

       This is where contentment in Christ works with the rest of God’s Provident Plan for your personal finances to propel you into sacrificial and generous giving that truly glorifies His name. Once Jesus matters more to you than any worldly wealth – once you truly love God with all your heart, soul, and mind – you’ll be happy to give generously because you count everything as a loss compared to knowing Christ. Troubles, trials, and tribulations will have no effect on you because your hope lies completely in Him. This is the power of Christ in our lives, and this is the power of the Cross against all the evil we’ll endure in this world.

       Embrace the unsearchable riches of Jesus’ gift. Know and fully experience the power of His love and generosity in your life. Then you’ll understand the joy of sacrificial and generous giving motivated by pure love. And you’ll testify with your life and your words to the power of Christ and the glory and love of God.

       In the Old Testament, the Israelites gave through their mandatory tithes and through their freewill offerings. But in Christ’s teaching and the New Testament, we see a much better example of giving that comes through grace, generosity, love, thankfulness, and the leading of the Holy Spirit. God no longer mandates an exact amount we should give, but He instead asks us to seek His will and follow His Spirit to decide how much we should give.

       The motivations for giving in the New Testament come purely from love for God, love for others, the grace God has given us, and our contentment and thankfulness in Christ. Tithing was an obligation for the Israelites as part of the Law. But Christ has fulfilled all the requirements and obligations of the Law for us – our salvation and righteousness no longer relies on our ability to keep the Law. Instead, we place all of our hope of salvation and holiness in the death and resurrection of Christ. This grace which God has afforded us calls for a lifestyle dominated not by the Old Testament Laws but by the Law of the Spirit of Grace. Just as Jesus taught the full intent and spirit of the Law, we no longer focus on the letter of the Law but on the intent and spirit of the law. It is in giving ourselves fully to God and the guidance of His Spirit that we will be able to reflect His nature to others.

Give Yourself to God First

       When Paul describes the generous giving of the church at Macedonia, he tells the Corinthians that they gave more than expected because they gave themselves to God first.

       ¹ Moreover, brothers, we make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the assemblies of Macedonia; ² how that in much proof of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded to the riches of their liberality. ³ For according to their power, I testify, yes and beyond their power, they gave of their own accord, ⁴ begging us with much entreaty to receive this grace and the fellowship in the service to the saints. ⁵ This was not as we had hoped, but first they gave their own selves to the Lord, and to us through the will of God.

2 Corinthians 8:1-5 (WEB)

       The Macedonian Christians gave generously, even though they were in deep poverty themselves, to help our those in Jerusalem who were suffering from a famine. Why would they do this? They were in need themselves, but they saw the excessive needs of others as more important than their own. This is not something humans would naturally do. Many people give out of their abundance, but few non-Christians give generously and joyously while they are themselves in poverty. It doesn’t make sense by worldly standards. This is not to say that God requires poor Christians to give when they can hardly meet their own needs – it just testifies to the power of God’s Holy Spirit that poor Christians can give generously and joyously despite their own needs.

       The believers at Macedonia were only able to give with such generosity and joy because they gave themselves to God first. They fully subjected their will to His will. They gave out of their love for God, love for others, and their contentment in Christ. Because their fulfillment came from Christ, they saw no affliction in their own poverty. The joy and love of Jesus compelled them to give even beyond what they were able – beyond what anyone could have expected of them. And they did it with pure joy and a strong, driven spirit.

       This type of generous giving can only come from God. When we find contentment in Christ, we no longer count material things as important. We can be satisfied with much less in this life so we can fully follow Jesus’ teaching of giving generously. We understand that what we have and own in this life have absolutely no value in eternity. We look at the example of Christ’s generous gift and are compelled by the Spirit to give in response. We submit ourselves to God’s will and give to meet the needs of others. This generous giving is a clear, outward sign of our love for God and dedication to His ways. And it’s a shining example of the extravagantly merciful and overflowing giving nature of God.

       Apart from God, we can only see our own needs and wants. We desire our own well-being first and foremost, and then we might give if we have some extra and feel guilty because of our relative wealth compared to those in need. We are primarily selfish creatures, and we are especially so when we find ourselves in need or want of something. Only when we come to God and give ourselves to Him can we put aside our selfishness and look to the needs of others instead. Apart from this submission to God’s love and will, we cannot duplicate the generosity of His true children who value Him above all else.

       The only way we can have this continually generous giving nature is to first give ourselves fully to God. Our lives cannot be governed by grace and mercy until we accept the gift of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Once we do that, we can begin to find our contentment in Him, develop and strengthen our love for God, and begin to give generously in response to Christ’s love and gift – no matter what our situation is…rich or poor. We won’t give grudgingly or out of compulsion by some requirement imposed by man. We’ll give out of pure joy and happiness in the Lord.

       If you want to learn more about New Covenant Giving – giving that is completely freewill, generous, joyful, and sacrificial – continue to check back here at Provident Planning. Or better yet, click here to get free updates in your email or favorite feed reader!