Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP180009A
|
00:01 The Bible tells us, "In the beginning was the Word,
00:03 and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." 00:07 It says, "To receive with meekness 00:10 the implanted Word 00:11 which is able to save your souls, 00:13 and to be diligent to present yourself approved to God, 00:17 rightly dividing the Word of truth." 00:20 Join us now for the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:25 Our study today is 00:27 "Stewardship Motives of the Heart." 00:32 Hello and welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:35 I'm Jill Morikone 00:36 and we are delighted that you are sharing this time with us 00:39 as we open up God's Word and study together. 00:42 We are in first quarter here, 2018, lesson number 9, 00:47 Stewardship Motives of the Heart. 00:49 And last week we talked about tithing. 00:51 This week, I love this week, it's about offerings, 00:55 offerings of gratitude. 00:57 Right now I want to introduce to you our panel. 00:59 We have sitting next to me Shelley Quinn, 01:02 then Greg Morikone, 01:04 this is a privilege to introduce 01:05 my husband here on the panel, 01:07 so, sweetie, it's good to have you here too. 01:09 Next to you is Pastor Kenny Shelton 01:11 and Mollie Steenson. 01:13 It is a joy to have each one of you here 01:15 and to open up the Word of God and to share together. 01:19 I want to encourage you, 01:20 you can always follow along with us. 01:22 You can go to the website ABSG.Adventist.org. 01:28 That stands for Adult Bible Study Guide.Adventist.org. 01:33 You can download the lessons and follow along 01:36 or we always encourage you 01:38 to visit your local Seventh-day Adventist Church 01:40 and they will give you one of these quarterlies for free, 01:44 and you can join a Bible study group there. 01:47 Before we go any further 01:48 into our lesson on offerings and gratitude, 01:50 let's go to the Lord in prayer. 01:52 And, Shelley, would you pray for us? 01:53 Absolutely. 01:54 Heavenly Father, we come once again to thank You 01:57 for Your grace to thank You 01:59 that You are the giver of every good and perfect gift. 02:02 And that You have entrusted to us 02:04 Your possessions as stewards. 02:07 And, Lord, we want to give You an offering of gratitude. 02:11 And we want to learn how to be good stewards. 02:14 So please send Your Holy Spirit to be our teacher today, 02:17 speak through us, give us all ears to hear 02:20 what the Holy Spirit has to say 02:22 and His power to put it into practice 02:25 in Jesus' name, amen. 02:26 Amen. Amen. 02:28 The foundational principle of God's government 02:31 is self-sacrificing love. 02:34 We know that sin originated in self-seeking. 02:37 Lucifer in heaven, he had a spirit of pride, 02:41 a spirit of covetousness, 02:44 a spirit of greed 02:47 and that spirit continued from Lucifer, 02:51 it was introduced here on this earth 02:53 when Adam and Eve made the choice to eat of the fruit 02:56 from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 02:58 And from that point, that spirit of me first, 03:04 that spirit of covetousness 03:06 is present in each one of our hearts, 03:09 that spirit God wants to eradicate, 03:12 but in the natural human heart it is present. 03:14 And we see that spirit even present in the church. 03:17 I only give because I have to, right? 03:21 That is the spirit of selfishness 03:24 instead of the spirit of giving. 03:27 I only give because God says, "Oh, bless me, 03:29 so maybe I'm going to give something." 03:32 The true motive, the motivation for giving is 03:35 because we love our Father in heaven. 03:37 Amen. 03:39 Because of His gifts to us, and our joy, and gratitude, 03:43 and sacrificial giving back to Him... 03:46 Amen. 03:48 It is the spirit of self-sacrificing love. 03:50 You think about Jesus from the cradle to the cross, 03:53 He lived to bless others. 03:56 He had the essence of self-sacrificing love. 03:59 Now we're talking this week about offerings. 04:03 When Greg and I got married, just before we got married, 04:05 when we were engaged, 04:06 we talked about some of those things 04:08 young couples talk about and one of them was money, 04:11 how are we going to handle our finances 04:13 as a married couple? 04:15 And I remember we discussed 04:17 the issue of tithe and offerings. 04:19 And I always paid my 10% tithe and Greg did too. 04:23 But to be honest with you, my offerings were hit and miss. 04:27 I would hear a special appeal, and my heart would be moved, 04:30 and I'd give an offering. 04:32 Greg on the other hand gave systematically, 04:35 "God I want to give You 04:37 this percentage every week in offerings." 04:41 And then sometimes will give in even greater percentage. 04:44 And that was something we made a covenant together, 04:47 when we first married that we would do 04:49 and God has blessed us immeasurably. 04:52 So let's read our memory text, then we'll get into Sunday. 04:55 It's John 3:16, 04:56 you can quote it at home with us. 04:58 Let's read it together, 05:00 "For God so loved the world 05:02 that He gave His only begotten Son, 05:05 that whoever believes in Him should not perish 05:09 but have everlasting life." 05:12 Amen. Hallelujah. 05:14 Sunday we'd look at where your treasure is 05:17 or storing treasure in heaven. 05:20 Before we get to our key scripture for Sunday, 05:23 I just want to lay just a little groundwork 05:25 since we're talking about offerings. 05:28 The principle of money throughout the Bible, 05:30 you think about the Old Testament, 05:31 it's very clear on the system of tithing, 05:35 they were to give their 10% 05:38 to the work of the Levites and the priests, 05:41 the work of the tabernacle in the temple. 05:43 There were also to bring freewill offerings 05:46 and the Bible is clear on that. 05:47 And the New Testament, 05:48 I think the New Testament focuses 05:50 almost more on the motive, 05:53 the giving from the heart and the sacrifice. 05:57 I just want to look at a couple of points real quick 05:59 before we jump into the other about where your treasure is. 06:03 Matthew 23:23, let's look at that scripture, 06:07 we have talked about it on previous lessons 06:10 but let's look at that, Matthew 23:23, "Woe to you..." 06:13 Jesus is speaking, "Woe to you, 06:15 scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! 06:17 For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, 06:20 and have neglected the weightier matters of the law, 06:24 justice and mercy and faith." 06:26 So Jesus was not negating the tithing principle 06:29 in the New Testament. 06:30 It was still in force, 06:32 but they were supposed to continue 06:35 with the other things as well 06:37 and not make tithing legalistic. 06:40 They were to do it out of that gratitude 06:42 and that joy of the heart, 06:43 the motives of the heart made a difference. 06:46 Also in the New Testament 06:47 we see that money is to be given 06:49 to support the gospel minister. 06:52 In 1 Corinthians 9:14. 06:55 It says, "Even so the Lord has commanded that those 06:59 who preach the gospel should live from the gospel." 07:02 So we see that in the New Testament Church, 07:05 not only is our motivation important 07:07 on what we give for tithe and offerings, 07:09 but we're to support the work of the gospel ministry. 07:12 Number three, we're to give to support the gospel work 07:15 in other parts of the world. 07:18 We see that in 1 Corinthians 16. 07:21 Let me turn over there real quick. 07:24 1 Corinthians 16, 07:28 we'll look at just the first couple of verses. 07:32 "Now concerning the collection for the saints, 07:34 as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, 07:36 so you must do also, 07:39 on the first day of the week lay something aside, 07:42 storing up as he may prosper 07:44 that there be no collections when I come." 07:46 So Paul says, just pick a day and laid aside every day, 07:49 every week so that when I come, 07:51 we don't even have to take up a collection, 07:53 you will already have the money prepared. 07:55 And then they would send the money 07:58 to those who were struggling, 08:00 those who were in need in Jerusalem 08:02 take up that collection. 08:04 Number three, we're to give 08:06 from the heart willingly and cheerfully. 08:10 What does it say? 08:11 "Each one give as he purposes in his heart," 08:13 2 Corinthians 9:6 and 7. 08:17 Not grudgingly, how many times do we give grudgingly? 08:20 Not grudgingly or of necessity, I just give because I have to. 08:26 What does it say? For God loves a cheerful giver. 08:30 Hilarious. 08:32 Number five, give sacrificially even when it hurts. 08:38 2 Corinthians 8, 08:40 the first five verses of that section, 08:42 it talks about the churches in Macedonia. 08:45 They gave out of their deep poverty 08:49 to support the work elsewhere. 08:51 The Bible says they gave even beyond what they were able 08:55 and they still gave, they gave freely, liberally, 08:59 urging their sacrificial gift upon Paul 09:01 and then he would take it 09:03 to the needs of those who were in need elsewhere. 09:06 So give even when it hurts. 09:09 Next one, give to relieve 09:12 others' needs or others' sufferings. 09:15 Acts 11:29, let's turn there. 09:19 Acts 11:29. 09:25 Verse 28 talked about this prophecy 09:29 that Agabus gave that there was going to be a great famine 09:33 throughout all the world. 09:34 Verse 29, "Then the disciples determined 09:37 each according to his own ability determine to send 09:41 relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea." 09:43 And they sent it by the hands of Barnabas and Saul, 09:46 so they gave to relieve others' needs. 09:50 And then finally the parable, not the parable, 09:53 but the lived out object lesson 09:55 of the widow with the two mites. 09:57 Because that wasn't the story Jesus told, 09:59 it was something the disciples watched in action. 10:02 Remember the rich men came in 10:04 with all their trappings of success 10:06 and they gave just a few coins into the temple treasury. 10:10 And this poor woman who had two mites, 10:13 she turned it in and Jesus said, "She gave all she had." 10:18 Yes. 10:19 When I think about that giving radically, 10:23 in my own life, in my own experience, 10:26 I don't think I've ever given radically. 10:29 Confession is hard on the reputation 10:32 and that's the honest truth. 10:33 I don't think I have given sacrificially, sometimes, 10:37 but I don't think I have ever given radically. 10:39 So I think as we talk about 10:41 this principle of giving to God, 10:44 ask God what He would have you do to support His work 10:48 around the world. 10:49 Let's look at Matthew 6. 10:51 This is storing your treasure in heaven. 10:53 We want to make sure we get to that. 10:54 Matthew 6:19-21 is our passage here for today. 11:00 Matthew 6:19-21, 11:03 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, 11:07 where moth and rust destroy, 11:09 and where thieves break in and steal. 11:11 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, 11:14 where neither moth nor rust 11:16 destroying were thieves do not break in and steal..." 11:19 Then the clincher, "For where your treasure is, 11:23 there your heart will be also." 11:27 We talked in the beginning the principle of God's Kingdom 11:29 is self-sacrificing love. 11:32 Whatever we put, time, money, 11:35 and effort into that is what we love. 11:38 That is what we will grow to love. 11:41 And that's the principle that Jesus is laying forth here, 11:45 whatever His disciples, that's you and I, 11:48 whatever we put time into, whatever we invest money into, 11:52 and thought that is what we are eventually 11:55 going to grow to love. 11:58 The word for moths in the Greek is a clothes-moth 12:02 and I have definitely seen some of those, 12:04 and they can wreck some damage, havoc. 12:07 They can really get in and eat. 12:09 The word for rust is in this sense meaning corrosion. 12:13 Now rust does corrode, rust destroys, rust eats away. 12:19 The word for thieves, 12:20 talking about a thief who comes in 12:22 and steals in secret. 12:25 And so if we lay up our treasure, 12:27 if we put our time, 12:28 our effort, our money, our every energies 12:30 into earthly things, 12:32 it's going to eventually be eaten up, 12:34 it's going to be eventually be destroyed, 12:36 but if we set it on heavenly things, 12:39 what an incredible difference? 12:41 That treasure is secure forever. 12:43 Let's look at one more scripture Colossians 3. 12:46 Colossians 3:1-2. 12:52 "If then you were raised with Christ, 12:54 seek then those things which are above, 12:57 where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. 13:01 Set your mind on things above, not on things of this earth." 13:06 It's kind of the same principle as Jesus explained in Matthew 6 13:11 about putting those treasures in heaven, 13:13 we're to set our mind, our thoughts, 13:15 our affections, things above. 13:19 So practically speaking, how do we accomplish that? 13:22 Three things, number one, spend more for eternal things. 13:28 Give more for the needs of others. 13:30 Give more for the salvation of souls. 13:33 Give more for spreading the gospel, spend more. 13:36 If I think I want to a new dress 13:39 or I could spend that to help someone else. 13:41 Now that does not mean, we do need clothes, 13:44 so we're not talking about that. 13:46 But at the same time where are my priorities. 13:49 And take a look at that, 13:51 how many dresses do I already have in the closet 13:53 and do I really need that 13:54 or can I spend that to support the work? 13:57 Number two, radically alter your lifestyle 14:00 so that it becomes focused on other people. 14:03 Becomes focused on spreading the gospel. 14:05 I think Jesus is relentless 14:07 in His call to a radical lifestyle 14:11 to spread and sacrificially give for others. 14:15 I think about the people 14:16 who write us and call us here at 3ABN. 14:19 I think about one person 14:20 who said they gave up eating out. 14:23 This makes me want to cry, 14:25 so that they could send that money 14:27 to support the gospel work going forward here. 14:32 Now that is a radical, right? Yeah. 14:34 They still ate and we need to eat, 14:36 but that's a radical choice to get out of our comfort zone 14:40 and seek to support the work of the gospel. 14:43 And number three, 14:45 we experience the joy of giving, Acts 20:35, 14:49 "It is more blessed to give than to receive." 14:53 So when we give, 14:54 when we store up treasure in heaven, 14:56 it's not that we're going to get, 14:59 but the blessings we receive 15:02 just far surpass anything that this world has to offer. 15:05 Amen. Well said, Jill. 15:08 Thank you so much. 15:10 It's interesting when you think of offerings of gratitude. 15:15 My lesson is Monday's lesson, stewards of the grace of God. 15:21 And if there is anything for which I am thankful, 15:25 it is for God's grace. 15:27 Let's look at Ephesians 2:8, the Sabbath School lesson says, 15:32 "What according to Ephesians 2:8 15:34 is something else we have been given by God. 15:38 And Ephesians 2:8 tells us, it's salvation by grace. 15:44 It says, "For it is by free grace 15:46 by God's unmerited favor that you are saved, 15:51 that you're delivered from judgment, 15:53 and made partakers of Christ's salvation 15:58 through your faith." 15:59 This salvation is not of yourself, 16:01 it's not of your own doing, 16:04 it came not through your own striving, 16:07 but it is what the gift of God. 16:10 Amen. That's right. 16:12 Let me quote this from the quarterly, 16:13 well written, "Grace is undeserved favor, 16:17 it is a gift you do not deserve. 16:19 God has poured out His grace on this planet, 16:21 and if we would simply not rejected, 16:26 His grace will reach down and transform our lives 16:29 now and for eternity. 16:32 All the wealth and power of heaven 16:37 is embodied in the gift of grace 16:41 and even angels long to look into these things. 16:44 No question of all that God has given us, 16:46 the grace given us in Jesus Christ 16:49 is the most precious gift of all..." 16:50 Yes, amen. 16:52 "Without grace we would be without hope. 16:54 Since doleful impact on humanity 16:57 is too great for human power ever to free themselves of it, 17:01 even obedience to God's law couldn't bring us to life." 17:06 And then it quotes Galatians 3:21, 17:09 "It is the law then..." 17:11 It is the law, Paul asks against the promises of God, 17:15 "God forbid for there not been a law 17:19 given which could have given life 17:22 verily righteousness should have been through the law." 17:25 And it says, "After all..." 17:27 If any law can save us, it would be God's law, 17:29 but Paul says, "That even that can't do it, 17:32 if we're to be saved, it would have to be of grace." 17:36 I want to share with you 17:38 when God was showing me what grace, 17:42 when I was trying to understand grace 17:45 and I'm just sitting at the feet of the Lord, 17:48 and finally it soaked in and I understood it, 17:53 and I asked the Lord for an illustration, 17:56 and He gave me the illustration of the grace pipeline 18:00 for which I've written a book by that title 18:02 and done a program by that title. 18:04 But here's what God showed me, 18:07 God's heart, just think of up there in heaven, 18:09 God's heart is welling over with love for you. 18:14 He says, "I've loved you with an everlasting love." 18:16 And therefore, He is wooing us with loving kindness. 18:20 Well, from that overflowing well of love, 18:25 all, He is the giver of every good and perfect gift 18:28 and it comes down to us through the grace pipeline, 18:32 every gift comes to us by God's grace. 18:36 Romans 5:2 says, 18:37 we have access into grace by faith. 18:40 So faith is how you tap in to the grace pipeline. 18:47 Then how do we open up the faith faucet? 18:50 The prayer of faith... Amen. 18:52 Trust is the foundation for the prayer of faith, 18:56 relationship is the foundation for trust, 18:59 and love is the foundation for relationship. 19:03 See we only love Him 19:04 when we understand how much He first loved us. 19:08 But the more we understand His love, 19:10 the more that we then come 19:13 into that intimacy of relationship with Him, 19:16 the closer we are in relationship, 19:19 the more we trust Him, 19:21 and lean not on what our thoughts are 19:24 but on what His word is... 19:26 Then the more we trust Him, the more we pray 19:29 and that prayer of faith we tap in to His grace pipeline. 19:34 And let me tell you God's three greatest gifts of grace. 19:38 Number one, Jesus told the woman at the well, 19:43 John 4, he said, "If only you knew the gift of God 19:48 and who it is that speaking to you, 19:51 for God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son, 19:54 that whosoever should believe in Him would not perish, 19:57 but have everlasting life. 19:58 Jesus is God's greatest gift of grace. 20:01 The second greatest gift of grace is the Holy Spirit 20:06 and the third greatest gift of grace 20:08 is the Holy Scriptures. 20:09 Amen. 20:11 So when we think about God's grace, this is, 20:13 I liked what this lesson said 20:17 that all the wealth and power of the heaven 20:20 is embodied in the gift of grace. 20:23 See, grace doesn't give us license to sin. 20:26 Grace is what enables us to overcome the power of sin. 20:32 In 1 Peter 4:10, 20:36 we have received this grace. 20:40 Everything we have is by grace. 20:42 And 1 Peter 4:10 shows us 20:46 how we are to be stewards of God's grace 20:48 and make this offering of gratitude. 20:51 1 Peter 4:10 says, "As each one has received a gift..." 20:56 Every one of us have received a gift. 20:58 Every Christian has received a gift of grace, 21:03 minister that gift, "Minister it to one another, 21:07 as good stewards 21:10 of the manifold grace of God." 21:15 So he's referring here to a spiritual gift, 21:18 the divine endowment that God has given to each one of us. 21:23 And you know God doesn't give it to us 21:25 so that we can be show offs. 21:28 God doesn't give it to us 21:30 that we just use it for our own benefit. 21:33 He gives it to us 21:34 for the benefit of the body of Christ 21:37 and anyone who is living 21:39 in the light of Christ's Second Coming 21:40 and we know He's coming soon. 21:43 I mean, I believe that with all my heart, 21:45 but if you're living in the light of that knowledge, 21:49 knowing He's coming soon 21:51 and you want to demonstrate agape love, 21:55 this unconditional love, 21:57 the self-sacrificing love of Jesus Christ, 22:01 then what you need to do is take those gifts of grace 22:05 that God have given you 22:07 and intensely serve others with them. 22:12 That's how we demonstrate love. 22:15 And this is how as we share 22:19 that we are faithfully ministering 22:24 the manifold grace of God. 22:27 We are only agents of grace 22:31 and we're supposed to share with others. 22:34 Let me read this to you from Matthew 10:8. 22:40 Matthew 10:8, 22:45 Jesus is speaking here 22:48 and He says, "Freely you have received..." 22:52 Yeah, that's right. Freely gifts. 22:53 "Freely gifts." 22:54 See everything that we have, even our time, 22:58 boy, you can attest to this, can you not, Kenny? 23:02 Our time is a gift from God. That's right. 23:06 The devil tried to take you out last year, 23:09 and God has given you the gift of time, hasn't He? 23:12 Amen, that's true. 23:14 I mean, every day when I wake up, 23:15 I thank God for the gift of time, 23:17 I thank Him for this new day. 23:21 There is none of us know... That's right. 23:24 You know, none of us are promised of tomorrow, right? 23:27 So everything we have, it is our time, our talents, 23:32 all of our treasures, 23:33 all of our possessions actually belong to God. 23:36 They were freely bestowed on us, 23:39 entrusted to us by God our Father, 23:42 but why does He give this to us? 23:45 It is to... 23:47 So that we will have the opportunity 23:50 to develop our character 23:51 and to further His kingdom message, is it not? 23:55 Oh, yeah. 23:56 So as God showers us with His blessings, 24:00 what Jesus is saying is we should generously, 24:05 freely we receive, freely give. 24:08 I just want to encourage you at home, 24:11 maybe you don't know the Lord Jesus Christ 24:13 as your personal Savior, 24:15 maybe you would like to know the abundant life 24:19 that He has come to give you. 24:21 You know, Jesus said in John 10:10, 24:24 "The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy, 24:26 but I have come that they may have life abundant." 24:30 And maybe you're in the church, 24:33 maybe you've got the head knowledge, 24:34 but you've never developed the relationship with Jesus, 24:39 if you want to connect to Jesus, 24:42 all you have to do is pray and ask God 24:45 to let Him come into your heart 24:47 to send His Holy Spirit into your heart. 24:50 And by the power of the Holy Spirit, 24:53 by the power of Jesus Christ, 24:55 by the power of the Word 24:57 you will receive the grace of God 25:01 and you can become a steward of the grace 25:05 to share the message with others. 25:07 Amen. Amen. 25:09 Well said, Shelley. Praise the Lord. 25:10 It's a blessing to open His Word. 25:12 Yes, it is. 25:13 It is a study and it's always a blessing to, 25:14 I know we're here on the Sabbath School Panel, 25:17 but we know that you're studying at home 25:18 and it's always nice to know that 25:20 and to realize that we're one big family... 25:23 And we're studying the Word of God. 25:24 Mine is Tuesday and it's our best offering. 25:29 And what kind of gifts do you give to your family? 25:33 I hope good gifts. 25:35 I won't ask if it's chunk of coal or anything like that. 25:38 We are here at the end of February already, 25:40 it's hard to believe, 25:41 but several months ago was Christmas 25:43 and Jill and I have several nephews 25:46 and it's always a lot of fun 25:47 'cause we go and buy the Christmas presents. 25:50 And many times we can be there together 25:52 as they open them 25:54 and it's a lot of fun to watch the little youngsters, 25:56 they're getting older now, but to open their gifts. 25:58 And it's always, we enjoy that time 26:01 of family fellowship together, 26:02 but to give good gifts. 26:04 I remember as a child, 26:06 my parents were trying to get out of debt 26:07 and we didn't have much, 26:09 we would eat a lot of beans and rice 26:11 and my birthday came around, 26:14 and this is probably giving my age, 26:16 but for my birthday I received a record player, 26:20 it wasn't a CD player or cassette player, 26:21 it was a record player. 26:23 And looking back, I was just a young man, 26:26 but looking back now on that I realized that my parents 26:29 sacrificed to give me a good gift. 26:32 It wasn't brand new, it was used, 26:34 it was from a yard sale, 26:36 but it was what they could afford 26:38 and they wanted to see me happy. 26:40 So I knew that they were giving me what they could, 26:42 looking back on now. 26:44 I want to look at Matthew 7. 26:48 Matthew 7. 26:51 I'm in Luke 7, let's get to Matthew 7, 26:57 and let's look at verses 8-11. 27:02 And it says, "For everyone that asketh, receiveth 27:06 and he that seeketh, findeth, 27:08 and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." 27:11 And then ask the question, "Or what man is there of you, 27:15 whom if his son asks for bread..." 27:18 What does it say? "Will he give him a stone?" 27:20 Of course not, for father loves his son, 27:22 he's going to give him bread if he certainly can. 27:25 "Or if he asks for a fish will he give him a snake?" 27:29 No loving father would do that. 27:31 No. 27:32 "If ye then being evil, 27:34 know how to give good gifts unto your children..." 27:36 I'm thinking of my folks giving me 27:38 that used record player, 27:39 it's all they could afford, 27:40 "How much more shall your heavenly Father 27:45 give good things to them that ask Him?" 27:49 Yeah. It's good. 27:50 Beautiful passages, isn't it? Yes. 27:52 We think about God's illustration 27:53 of the human family here, 27:55 we like to give good gifts to each other. 27:57 But He wants to give us gifts, doesn't He? 28:00 And that's a precious thing. 28:02 Yes. Amen. 28:03 But our lesson is what? 28:05 Is entitled Our Best Offering, 28:06 that's giving back to God, isn't it? 28:08 Yes. Yeah, it sure is. 28:10 There's a beautiful scripture 28:12 and that's the Luke 7 that originally had, Luke 7, 28:15 a great story of Mary 28:18 and the alabaster box of perfume. 28:22 And for the sake of time you all know the story well, 28:26 but here is a lady that didn't have much, 28:30 but she had the alabaster box of oil which was a lot. 28:33 I understand I think, Shelley, was that may be a year's wage. 28:37 Yeah. A very expensive perfume. 28:39 Yes. This is her retirement. 28:41 Her retirement, yeah. There you go. 28:43 And so here she is washing Jesus' feet with her tears 28:46 and anointing Him with His very precious perfume. 28:49 And there was some murmurings going on 28:50 amongst the people that were in attendance, 28:52 they could smell the wonderful perfume 28:53 and saying, "Well, this could be given to the poor. 28:56 You could have done better with this." 28:58 And what does Jesus say? 28:59 Well, let's see, skipping down to verses, 29:02 well, there is certainly a lot here. 29:06 Let's just start with Luke 7:45. 29:09 "Now gaveth me no kiss..." 29:10 He's talking to Simon who is hosting this dinner. 29:13 "But this woman since the time 29:15 I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet, 29:19 my head with oil, Simon, you did not anoint. 29:22 But this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. 29:25 Wherefore, I say on to her..." 29:27 Beautiful, isn't it? 29:29 "Her sins which are many are forgiven, 29:31 for she loved much, 29:33 but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. 29:36 And he said unto her..." 29:37 Powerful, isn't it, Pastor Kenney, what does it say? 29:39 "Thy sins will be forgiven." 29:41 That's right. Yes. 29:43 She had a lot to be thankful for, didn't she? 29:44 Oh, wow. Yes. 29:45 So you think about what she was doing for Christ. 29:47 Yes, maybe her ointment could have been sold 29:49 for much money for the poor, 29:51 but what she was doing was giving her offering of what? 29:54 Gratitude for what God had done for her. 29:58 I want to read this from the lesson, 30:01 it says, "His generosity..." 30:03 God's generosity," also prompts us to give. 30:08 And when coupled with our gratitude, 30:11 both make up ingredients of meaningful offerings 30:13 including our time..." 30:15 We talked about time, Shelley, remember that? 30:17 Talents, treasures, or money, and our bodies. 30:20 So I have here God's generosity which is amazing, 30:26 plus our gratitude equals a meaningful offering to God. 30:30 Why do I give my best to God? 30:33 Again, a quote from the lesson, 30:34 "Giving God the best shows that we put Him first in our lives." 30:39 Yes. Mercy. 30:40 "We don't give offerings in order to receive favors." 30:43 You know, many times we take that Malachi text and say, 30:45 "Oh, okay, so I'll give, so I'll get more." 30:47 No, we don't do that, 30:48 we look at the motive of our heart which I know, 30:50 that yours, Pastor Kenney, is the motive, right? 30:52 That's your lesson. Yeah, your day. Okay. 30:54 Instead we give what we have out of love. 30:57 I like that. Amen. Yeah. 30:58 Gratitude for what we have been given 31:00 in the wonderful gift of Jesus Christ. 31:03 We've been bought with a price." 31:04 1 Corinthians 6:20. 31:08 Let's see our offerings that are pleasing to God, 31:10 I have several things written down here, 31:12 how do you give your best to God? 31:14 We have several references in the Bible. 31:16 One is going back to the Old Testament 31:19 and the Israelites, 31:20 when God said in Exodus 34:26, 31:24 "The firstfruits of your land you shall bring to the Lord." 31:28 So he had very specific instructions 31:30 on what to give back to him. 31:32 And let's look at the Proverbs. 31:34 It's wonderful to open God's Word. 31:35 Proverbs 3, 31:38 I see Psalms, 31:39 Proverbs 31:42 3:9-10 says, 31:47 "Honor the Lord with your substance, 31:51 and with the firstfruits of all your increase, 31:53 so shall your barns be filled with plenty, 31:57 and thy presses shall burst with new wine." 32:01 I have honored the Lord with the substance 32:03 and with the firstfruits of what God has given to you. 32:06 So we have, how do you give your best? 32:07 I have down, "Giving God the firstfruits." 32:10 Number two, "Bring God an unblemished offering." 32:13 And again, going back to His instructions 32:16 to the children of Israel in Exodus 12:5, 32:21 it says "Your lamb shall be without blemish," 32:24 that means the sacrificial lamb, 32:26 which is representation of who, Shelley? 32:28 It's representation of Jesus. It is, isn't it? 32:31 The unblemished lamb for sure. 32:33 So in Malachi, let's look at Malachi. 32:36 So many scriptures here, Malachi 1, 32:41 get here, just before Mathew. 32:46 Malachi 1, 32:50 let's look at verses 6-8. 32:54 And it says, "A son honoreth his father, 32:57 and a servant his master: 32:59 if then I be a Father, where is Mine honor? 33:04 And if I be a Master, where is My fear?" 33:07 So God is asking a question here 33:08 because He's not being honored. 33:11 Okay, so where is my fear saith the Lord of hosts unto you, 33:14 "Oh, priests, that despise my name 33:17 and ye say wherein have we despised you?" 33:20 And here is the answer, 33:21 "You have polluted bread upon mine altar. 33:24 You say where and how we polluted you? 33:27 And that you say the table of the Lord is contemptible." 33:32 And let me just read one more verse 8, 33:34 "And if you offer the blind for sacrifice." 33:37 So here the people were bringing blind animals. 33:39 What do we just read about in Exodus? 33:41 Unblemished. Unblemished. 33:43 "So they're bringing blind sacrifices, is not this evil? 33:47 And if you offer the lame, 33:48 they're bringing lame sacrifices and sick, 33:51 is it not evil? 33:52 Offer it now unto thy governor, will He be pleased with you?" 33:56 Of course not. 33:58 "Or except thy persons saith the Lord to hosts." 34:00 Basically, they were bringing 34:02 a corruptible sacrifice to the Lord. 34:06 Yes. That's blasphemous. 34:08 It is. It's blasphemous. 34:10 So God has specific instructions, 34:12 bring unblemished offerings. 34:14 Now for us we don't bring a lamb anymore, 34:16 but what we give to God needs to be our very best. 34:19 Amen. It really does. 34:22 Let's see, dedicate all to God. 34:24 So how do we give our best to God? 34:25 Give our firstfruits, 34:27 bring in unblemished offering to God, 34:28 dedicate all that we have to God. 34:31 And I have down, time, talents, money, and ourselves. 34:37 In closing I have several things 34:38 'cause time has gotten away from me. 34:41 I have here several points. 34:42 We should give God the best in terms of our money. 34:47 And quickly 2 Samuel 24:24, 34:50 David was faced with the choice 34:53 and he wanted to give an offering 34:55 that cost him something. 34:56 Yes. He did. 34:58 He wanted to give an offering to God that cost him something. 34:59 So we should give God the best in terms of our money. 35:03 Number two, we should give to God 35:05 the best in terms of quality... 35:08 We're talking about the unblemished. 35:10 Number three, we should give to God 35:12 the best in terms of our priority. 35:15 Think of Matthew 6:33, 35:17 "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God." 35:19 Number four, we should give to God 35:21 the best in terms of personal integrity, 35:25 our motives. 35:27 I think of again Malachi, there's a verse in Malachi, 35:29 where we make a vow and that serious. 35:31 Sometimes we can make a vow 35:32 and say, "Look at me, look at me, 35:34 and then behind closed doors..." 35:35 You know what? 35:37 Maybe I really shouldn't do that, 35:38 we do it for public demonstration 35:39 which we shouldn't do. 35:41 So I want to encourage you to give your best to God, 35:44 but with the happy attitude. 35:46 Amen. Amen. Amen. 35:48 Sorry, I took some of your time. 35:49 No, well covered. That's alright. 35:50 No, it's all good. Good. 35:52 We're going to be looking at the motives of the heart, 35:54 you know, I think it's our Wednesday's lesson 35:57 and I want to just go back just a little bit, 35:59 I think Sister Jill brought it up in the very beginning, 36:01 the widow giving. 36:03 I think it was two mites, two mites 36:04 and we realize that's not very much, 36:06 but the story of the widow's mite 36:08 shows her true character, 36:10 we've been talking about here and her heart, 36:12 we just opened up. 36:14 Really, it's not all the noise that she made 36:15 when she went by like the rich man. 36:17 That's right. 36:18 Some will say, "Well, the rich just, 36:20 you know, went by and just gave a little bit." 36:21 But in my mind, if you let me do this, 36:23 in my mind some of the rich, 36:24 they had nice big bags probably of whatever, coins 36:27 and I think when they went by, 36:28 I won't say the offering, the place they deposited, 36:31 I think they rattled it a little bit, 36:32 they shake it up a little bit, make a little bit of a noise, 36:34 and when they went in there you go, "Wow!" 36:37 You were embarrassed to follow them through. 36:41 And here comes the lady anyway 36:42 from an honest heart and true motives of the heart, 36:45 she gave all that she had, 36:47 what's been brought out here in our lesson, Luke 21. 36:51 I think that's probably in the US, 36:53 less than a penny, isn't it? 36:54 Wow. 36:56 Two mites is probably less than one penny right now. 36:58 And maybe not so funny, my uncle says, 37:00 sometime he'd asked me, one time he said, 37:03 "You know, who has change for a penny?" 37:07 I said, "No." 37:08 I said, "I don't know." He said, "I do." 37:10 I said, "How do you have change for a penny?" 37:11 He says, "I have a meal, his wife's name was Mildred. 37:15 So anyhow, that's food for thought, okay. 37:18 So anyway, it's less than a penny. 37:20 So, but she still gave all. 37:22 So again, I want to look at what are our motives. 37:26 So maybe just to look at the question, 37:28 what are our motives? 37:30 What does it really mean? Motive is our inner drive. 37:33 That's what I looked up, it's our inner drive. 37:35 It's our impulses that causes us 37:37 to act a certain way 37:39 or to do things in a certain way, 37:42 is our motives. 37:43 And a lot of times you just look at somebody said, 37:45 "Oh, they're doing so well, but yet the motive, 37:47 you know, their heart might be different than..." 37:50 So we're not to judge that, 37:51 but eventually it will show up what I've found out in life, 37:54 eventually it will show up what the motive really is. 37:57 Now is it possible, a major question here, 37:59 is it possible to have 38:00 the right actions with the wrong motives? 38:04 Oh, yes. Yeah. 38:05 The right action doing the right thing, 38:07 but the wrong motive, I think we have to say yes. 38:10 So, you know, how much faith then does it really take 38:12 when you think about it for us to give, 38:16 maybe a whole lot of stuff. 38:17 We've got a whole lot of stuff 38:19 and so how much faith it take to give 38:21 as it were some of this stuff, money, material things, 38:23 whatever it might be. 38:25 You know, if you've got a lot, 38:27 it really doesn't take a whole lot of faith 38:29 or the right motive just to give 38:30 'cause you've got a whole lot left. 38:32 I heard one person say one time, 38:34 they said, "Well, you know..." 38:35 Someone came in, they said, "Well, you know, I want a can, 38:38 you know, I need some food so a can of soup." 38:41 They went to the cupboard, there was 10 cans there 38:44 and so they gave one, you know, and said, 38:47 "What kind of sacrifice is that, 38:48 is that really sacrificing?" 38:50 The guy looked and says, "It's not much of a sacrifice 38:52 because you've got nine left." 38:53 Yeah, that's right. 38:54 Well, you should be glad to get the one, 38:56 but if you think about it, 38:58 you know, if I just have one can in the cupboard 39:01 and Sister Mollie needs that can, 39:03 and vice versa you give me that can, 39:06 I mean, you've given all. 39:07 That's sacrifice. That's a big difference. 39:09 That's a whole big difference. 39:10 It is always judged on what we have left. 39:12 Yeah. 39:13 So and so gave, I'll be careful. 39:15 So and so gave $100,000. 39:18 You know, hair on the back of our neck stands up 39:20 and we say, how... 39:21 And it is, praise God for those kind of folks that have it. 39:24 But the question what comes back was how much is left? 39:27 That's not for us to ask or do, 39:29 but it may not be a sacrifice at all 39:31 and a dollar is for you or for me. 39:34 So, you know, as I look at this, 39:35 remember, giving is left up to the conscience. 39:38 I like this. 39:39 You know, there's a lot of people 39:41 who try to judge what a person is giving maybe, 39:43 you know, things are written down, 39:44 well, they're giving this tithe enough 39:46 and I don't think that's, 39:47 you know, correct tithe or whatever. 39:49 It's up to our conscience. 39:51 God leaves it up to us and holds us accountable. 39:53 3 Testimonies 3:94 says this, notice. 39:56 "As the amount required God 39:58 has specified 1/10th of the increase..." 40:01 I've heard a lot of discussion on the increase. 40:03 Yeah. Notice. 40:05 "This is left to the conscience and the benevolence of men 40:08 whose judgment in this tithing system 40:11 should have free play." 40:13 It's kind of an interesting thought, 40:14 so I have to ask another question, 40:16 you know, what is left to the conscience? 40:18 Here it is. 40:19 It says, it's left to the conscience, 40:20 but what is left to the conscience? 40:22 The 1/10th or the increase, what is he talking about? 40:27 Well, I think the 1/10th will settle, how about, 40:29 are we right, panel? 40:30 The 1/10th is already settled, so let's not lift, 40:32 "Well, I am free to choose what I want to..." 40:34 God has already made a statement on that. 40:36 That's right. 40:37 But then so we have to look at the, 40:39 then giving the 10th, you know, our increase. 40:42 And so we have to judge, sometime people say, 40:44 "Well, my increase, you know, is it, 40:46 when I get on my paycheck or is it what I make?" 40:49 So all those debates are going on. 40:50 We just better make sure 40:52 our conscience is clear with God 40:53 when we get because we're going to have to answer for that. 40:56 Reading on, 3 Testimonies 3:94 40:58 it says these, I want to get some couple of points in here. 41:01 It says, "He has required a tenth of this, 41:04 he claims as his very least." 41:06 I think that's been brought out somewhat here. 41:09 God asked just for what? 41:11 One-tenth, that is the least. That's right. 41:13 Think about, the least, that man should return to Him 41:18 and then we go back and we say, in Mosaic dispensation, 41:21 think about as we go back, there is also what? 41:23 They had the sin offering, they had peace offerings, 41:26 they had thank offerings that they all gave, 41:29 you know, some more money 41:30 in addition to that 1/10th or the increase. 41:34 And then even in Israel we realized, there was what? 41:36 Three occasions during the year that they were, 41:40 the God said, "Don't come now to these occasions." 41:42 And that was the Feast of Tabernacles 41:44 and what, the Feast of Weeks, 41:46 and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 41:49 But He said, "Don't come empty-handed." 41:51 Wow. 41:52 So it says, "Give as you are able." 41:55 Yeah. 41:56 And so what it looks, then, at that point of time 41:58 they were giving we say, "A good Israelite, 42:00 a good Jew was giving at least a third of their income 42:04 back to the cause of Christ." 42:06 It's kind of interesting, 42:07 but again what are the motives for giving? 42:10 You know, we do not give God back that 10%, 42:13 we know we've been reading that we rob God. 42:16 And one word is embezzling, we'll read in a moment. 42:19 It's embezzling from God's treasure, its record in heaven. 42:22 Now, if you rob God maybe for many years, 42:24 I think this is important point. 42:27 Maybe we come to the point 42:28 that we find out that God requires this of us, 42:31 it's not just Old Testament. 42:33 It's heaven approved, it's Jesus approved. 42:35 Yeah. He gives us the nod. 42:38 This is the right thing to do. 42:40 And if we come this is a reality 42:41 because I dealt with an individual, 42:44 years of not, going to church, 42:46 but realizing should be tithing, 42:48 but wasn't tithing when giving their 10%. 42:50 And then they come into the advent movement 42:53 and they realize the importance of tithing, 42:55 and for years they haven't. 42:56 Every once in a while sitting in the church, 42:57 they're just doing a 10 or 20 42:59 and they said, "That's good enough." 43:01 Well, they found out that wasn't good enough, 43:03 they'd been robbing God for years. 43:05 And He went back, guess what he did? 43:07 How do you do this thing? 43:08 Let me read these 3 Testimonies and tell you the quick story. 43:10 He said, "It is not enough for them to change their course 43:14 and begin the work 43:15 from the time upon right principle." 43:17 In other words, they just now learned, 43:19 but they've been years robbing God, 43:20 notice this, "This will not correct the figure 43:23 made in heavenly record 43:25 for the embezzlement of the property 43:27 committed to them in the trust and to return to the lender." 43:30 Wow. So what does one do? 43:32 I thought was very interesting. 43:33 I sit down and I talked and this was my step dad. 43:37 Thought it was interesting thing, 43:38 we could sit down, we could talk, 43:40 and you know, put our arm around on each other, 43:41 and we love and say, "What does God require?" 43:43 Well, we sat down and we look and he said, "For 10 years, 43:46 I haven't paid a correct tithe. 43:48 For 10 years I've made this amount of money." 43:50 Wow. "And I owe God this amount." 43:53 But that's way too much, I don't have it. 43:56 I can't give it all right now. 43:58 I said, "Well, how would you suggest 44:00 maybe giving this back to God 44:01 since you said you've robbed Him, 44:04 your conscience have been pricked with the truth, 44:06 you want to do the right thing." 44:08 He said, "Sit down," 44:09 he said, "I tell you what I'm going to do. 44:10 I'm going to give as I'm able extra and above, beyond my 10%. 44:15 Every week, every month 44:17 I'm going to give to God back 44:18 until I die or till I make up that amount. 44:22 And then I think I'll be square with God 44:24 and I think I'll be square with heaven." 44:26 I mean what a wonderful insight 44:28 that is that there are people who really care. 44:29 Yeah. 44:31 The right motives of the heart, 44:32 you see, encouraged him to come down and say, 44:36 it's not enough just to come and say, 44:38 "Oh, I've robbed Him all time." 44:39 We have to make things up, 44:41 it's recorded in the Book of Heaven 44:42 that I'm a robber. 44:43 I'm an embezzler, that's got to be cleared. 44:45 So, you know, everybody may not think along those lines, 44:47 but I want to think about 44:49 if I've taken something for someone here, 44:51 then I have a duty to give it back. 44:54 Didn't know maybe to begin with 44:56 but my conscience, you see, 44:57 the Spirit of God, I need to give that back. 44:59 Not just, "I'm sorry, I took your ten." 45:01 Right? 45:03 Brother, Greg, I took ten from you, I'm sorry. 45:04 You'll say, "Well, give me the ten back and we're okay. 45:07 We'll be settled." 45:09 I believe that there is a way in which it can be worked out, 45:11 everyone have to pray about it and see them, 45:13 make sure it's all right with God. 45:15 Last one, quickly 3 Testimonies 3:95, 45:17 "When they rob God in tithes and offering." 45:20 It's children of Israel, 45:22 "They were made to realize 45:24 that they were not only robbing Him, 45:26 but themselves, for He limited..." 45:29 This is interesting, "For He limited His blessings to them 45:32 just as in proportion 45:34 as they limited their offerings to Him." 45:36 Wow. 45:37 Man, if you want blessed, just do, 45:39 be obedient that we've talked about before 45:41 to what God says in His Word. 45:42 Yes. 45:43 "I'll open the windows of heaven." 45:45 Oh, glory, "And pour out a blessing, 45:46 they'll not be room enough to receive it." 45:48 And that's exactly what He says, 45:50 that's exactly what He will do, that's not having to withhold 45:53 those blessings that we won't desire. 45:55 I love that, the motive of the heart. 45:57 And I was thinking 45:58 if a billionaire gives a $100,000... 46:01 Go on. 46:02 Well, thank God, we, 46:04 you know, you need the income to further the cause of Christ, 46:07 but the little widow that gave the two mites, 46:10 the motives of the heart, 46:12 who was the greatest giver? 46:14 It has to be that widow. 46:15 It's not equal giving, it's equal sacrifice. 46:19 And I think that's the motive of the heart. 46:21 Well, I have Thursday, 46:23 and I'm looking at the experience of giving. 46:27 You know sometimes we just need to experience something 46:31 before we really understand the value of it. 46:36 Now here is a scripture that is contrary to our... 46:41 At first I put human reasoning, 46:45 then I decided it's contrary 46:47 to our untested human reasoning 46:52 and that's Acts 20:35. 46:54 And it's just the latter part of it. 46:57 It says, "And remember the words of the Lord Jesus 47:01 that He said it is more blessed to give than to receive." 47:07 Now untested human reasoning, 47:10 it's hard to convince someone of that 47:12 until they have experienced it. 47:14 Any of you ever experienced the blessings of giving? 47:18 Oh, yes. I can remember... 47:22 Oh, years ago, around the holidays 47:28 I was privileged to be able to take food baskets to people 47:33 that didn't have food for the holidays. 47:37 And how blessed I was to see the look on their face and, 47:42 you know, something that we were quick to do 47:45 was tell people, 47:46 praise God from whom all blessings flow. 47:49 Don't thank us, 47:50 but I left with my heart so full, 47:53 no gift that could have been given me 47:55 would have made my heart overflow with such love, 48:00 as that being able to minister to others. 48:03 Okay, just hearing someone say something 48:07 doesn't convince anybody of anything. 48:10 Actually experiencing the blessing 48:13 that comes from giving is the only way 48:17 we are going to be convinced. 48:19 Now Christ came to this earth 48:23 to reveal to us the character of God, 48:28 to let us know what God is like. 48:31 Satan lied about God's character, did he not? 48:35 Where did he lie about God's character? 48:37 It was in heaven. That's right. 48:40 Then he lied about God in the Garden of Eden. 48:43 And I wanted to just look at that. 48:45 I think I've got that scripture marked, it's Genesis 3. 48:51 I got it marked, Genesis 3. 48:53 And here is what the serpent in lying, 48:59 in lying to Eve in the Garden of Eden. 49:03 Dirty. 49:06 It says, "For God doth know 49:10 that in the day you eat thereof..." 49:12 Well, first of all, let's go back. 49:14 He asked Eve, "Hath God surely said?" 49:19 And Eve said, "But of the fruit of the tree 49:23 which is in the Garden," this is Genesis 3:3, 49:27 God has said, "You shall not eat of it, 49:28 neither shall you touch it, lest you do," what? 49:31 "Lest you die." 49:32 Now here's what Satan said to her. 49:35 "The serpent said unto the woman, 49:38 'You shall not surely die.'" 49:39 What was he doing? 49:41 He was calling God a liar, was he not? 49:42 Yes, he was. 49:44 He was defaming the character of God. 49:47 And then he goes on, 49:48 "For God doth know that in the day you eat thereof, 49:52 that your eyes shall be opened, 49:53 and you shall be as God, knowing good and evil." 49:55 You know, what he was conveying to her. 49:58 God is withholding something good from you. 50:00 Yes. That's right. 50:02 So Christ came to earth to set the record straight, 50:07 to reveal to us the true character of God. 50:11 He continues to lie to this very day. 50:14 He hasn't stopped lying to humanity 50:19 about the character of God. 50:20 Christ is showing us the blessings that come to us 50:25 by being obedient to God's instructions. 50:28 He loves us. 50:30 And God wants the very best for us. 50:33 Amen. So that's what Christ is doing. 50:35 God doesn't ask us to do anything 50:38 that isn't designed to ultimately benefit us 50:42 to be in our very best interest. 50:45 So now we come to this tithing issue. 50:48 And what do people are giving are alms and their offerings. 50:53 What is the thought? 50:55 God wants my money. 50:57 And we have found through this study 51:00 that everything belongs to God. 51:02 We get to keep 90%, that 10% is holy. 51:09 Amen. And it's committed to God. 51:13 Our being generous with others doesn't just benefit them. 51:17 What does our being generous to others? 51:19 Bless others. 51:20 You know, you re-bought yourself. 51:22 And if you sow meagerly you're going to reap, 51:25 but if you sow with a generous heart 51:29 and Corinthians 9:7, 51:33 I've got that scripture here, "But this I say..." 51:37 2 Corinthians 9:6-7, "But this I say, 51:41 he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly 51:46 and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 51:50 So let each one give 51:51 as he purposes in his heart," where? 51:54 "In your heart." Yes. 51:55 Where do you make the purpose of your giving? 51:58 It's in your heart. 51:59 "Not grudgingly or of necessity, 52:02 for God loves a cheerful giver." 52:06 He wants us to experience the joy that comes with giving 52:11 and He also, see God wants to bless us. 52:15 God won't, He won't chase you down to bless you. 52:18 If you're willing and obedient, 52:20 then all the blessings of God will come upon you, 52:23 and if you bring all your tithes and offerings 52:26 into the storehouse, the blessings come on you. 52:28 And we don't, oh, we've made this so clear, 52:31 we don't give to get, 52:33 we give because we love God 52:35 and we want to be obedient to what He... 52:37 Well, in doing so we're putting 52:40 into practice a biblical principle 52:45 and when you put into practice 52:47 or into operation a biblical principle, 52:50 you are going to receive the principle, 52:55 the blessing that comes with it. 52:57 If God says, "If you bring all your tithes and offerings 53:00 into the storehouse, 53:01 He's going to rebuke the devourer 53:03 and pour you out a blessing you can't contain." 53:05 Do you know that if you are a tither, 53:08 that biblical principle comes into play in your life, 53:11 nothing can stop it. 53:13 The devourer is going to be rebuked 53:16 on your behalf and again, 53:18 God's going to chase you down to bless you. 53:21 Okay, Luke 6:38. 53:25 "Give and it will be given to you, 53:28 good measure, pressed down, shaken together, 53:30 and running over will be put into your bosom. 53:34 For with the same measure that you use, 53:36 it will be measured back to you." 53:38 Again, you're putting into a biblical principle, 53:41 "Give and it's going to come back to you. 53:45 Pressed down, shaken together, and running over." 53:48 If that's the motive of your heart, 53:50 then pray and ask God to remove, 53:53 God will put in your heart the right motives. 53:56 It is God who, Shelley, quote this for me, 53:59 both to will and to do of His good pleasure. 54:03 Okay, our giving is very personal. 54:05 And oh, I've got to get to this. 54:07 To the extent that we're able to, 54:09 we need to keep it between ourselves and God. 54:12 Yes. 54:13 Here's what Jesus tells us, 54:15 "Take heed that you do not do 54:17 your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. 54:20 Otherwise you have no reward with your Father in heaven. 54:24 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, 54:27 do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do 54:31 in the synagogues or in the streets, 54:35 that they may have glory from men. 54:37 Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward." 54:40 You know at 3ABN, occasionally, 54:43 you'll see these little white envelopes going around. 54:46 Somebody will get a little white envelope on their desk, 54:48 if somebody that's in need 54:50 and there is nobody's name on it, 54:52 this comes from. 54:54 And anytime, anybody receives anything, 54:56 again, it so, we better say, 54:59 "Praise God from whom our blessings flow." 55:02 And I want us to read Proverbs 19:17. 55:06 Proverbs 19:17. 55:11 Proverbs 19:17, "He that have pity 55:16 and that's he that ministers to upon the poor, 55:21 look at who he lendeth to, 55:23 he that hath pity upon the poor who gives, 55:26 who ministers to the poor lendeth" unto who? 55:30 "Lendeth unto the Lord," 55:31 and the scripture goes on to say, 55:33 "and that which He hath given will He pay him again." 55:38 God is the one then that will take care of you. 55:42 Oh, I just don't have time 55:45 to get through with all of this, 55:46 but I just wanted you to say, if Jesus tells you something, 55:51 you can believe it. 55:53 And it was Jesus that says, 55:55 "It is more blessed to give than to receive." 55:58 And if Jesus says it, 56:00 it's more blessed to give than to receive. 56:03 Amen. Thank you so much, Mollie. 56:05 What a blessing. 56:07 One thing you said many things, 56:08 but one thing in particular piqued my interest, 56:10 not equal giving, but equal sacrifice. 56:14 Yeah, I like that. 56:15 On Friday's day of the lesson, 56:17 there's a quote from Ellen White. 56:18 This is from Advent Review, and Sabbath Herald, 56:20 October 17, 1882. 56:22 "The spirit of liberality is the spirit of heaven. 56:26 The spirit of selfishness is the spirit of Satan. 56:30 Christ self-sacrificing love has revealed upon the cross. 56:35 He gave all that He had 56:37 and then He gave Himself that man might be saved." 56:42 And so, as you consider what God wants you to give 56:46 and it's not even what God wants you to give, 56:48 but He has given to you everything, 56:51 and what you can share in return to Him 56:55 and to other people. 56:56 Think of the spirit of self-sacrificing love, 57:00 the Spirit of Jesus, 57:02 that is the essence of the gospel. 57:04 I want to thank, Miss Mollie, 57:05 Pastor Kenny, my husband Greg, and Sister Shelley. 57:09 Thank you so much for sharing from your heart 57:11 and your experience in the Word of God. 57:13 And we thank you at home for joining us. 57:16 What a blessing to open up God's Word 57:19 and to study together. 57:21 I want to encourage you to look into your heart 57:24 and see what God wants you to give to support His work. 57:28 We'll see you next time. Bye-bye. |
Revised 2018-05-17