Wisdom in Generosity | Ecclesiastes 11:1-6

Well, amen and good morning, church family. As

I said earlier, we are back in Ecclesiastes,

and as you heard in the call to worship, we're

going to be confronted with pursuing generosity

and wisdom. And it's not just to the end of seeing

you fill the baby bottles or increase church

giving. It's really seeing the heart of God in

generosity. And even connecting with last week,

as some of you might remember, that we're called

to a risky life and we're called to be generous

with risk. No guarantees, but yet it's a worthwhile

endeavor when done according to the Lord. Go

ahead if you have your Bibles and open to Ecclesiastes

Ecclesiastes 11 · chapter mention

chapter 11. Last time we wrapped up with the

theme of wisdom versus folly. And one of the

repeated themes of last time was that sometimes

a fool is put into leadership. And no, I'm not

making any political commentary whatsoever. That's

reality. You can think about it at work. You

can think about it in politics. You can think

about it throughout history. That is reality.

Sometimes the leader is inexperienced. Sometimes

they are just plain foolish. Now you can't stop

it. It's not good for the people, but it is an

opportunity for God's people to trust him, to

pursue wisdom, and to be thankful even for little

things. Now a common response to a foolish king

or to... foolish leadership might be to hoard

resources for yourself to look out for yourself

because you don't know what's going to come next.

I know many people today do the same, buy resources

and store items for the future in case of a natural

disaster, a nuclear fallout, government collapse,

etc. And look, I am not coming for the preppers

here. If that's you, don't be mad. There's room

for conversation, I think, actually, about wisely

approaching the dynamic of just simple freeze

-dried food and potable water. I don't think

that that's a foolish thing in and of itself.

But Solomon is going to have words for those

who put too much trust, too much emphasis on

their own provision. The reality, though, for

an overbearing leadership is that the people

often become prone to only look out for themselves.

It's clear the biblical record Solomon was very

hard on the people. You think about all those

building projects he pursued. They weren't free.

They didn't just get funded by trade deals. No,

again, I'm not making a commentary about today,

okay? Taxes went up. So did labor. The people

had to work hard. There's a testimony. You don't

have to turn there. I'm just going to paraphrase

it. But there's a testimony in 2 Chronicles 10.

The people appealed to Solomon's son, Rehoboam,

to lighten their load. They said their yoke was

heavy under your father, under your father Solomon.

Now in his foolishness, Rehoboam, he listens

to young advisors, his friends that he grew up

with. He rejected the counsel of the older men,

the older counselors who were with him. Then

he foolishly said that he would be harsher than

his father. That his father, disciplined with

whips, but that he would discipline with, some

of you remember, scorpions. That's what Rehoboam

said. Now, what do you think that harshness of

Rehoboam did to the people? How do you think

you would respond if you appealed for a lighter

load, for less burden, and yet you were told

that it's only going to get 10 times worse? How

would you respond? Well, in the biblical testimony,

The people rejected Rehoboam. They rejected his

leadership. They rejected the house of David.

And they all went their own way to look out for

themselves. Harsh leadership and hard times often

lead to people being selfish. Now, with that

as our stage, we can read Ecclesiastes chapter

Ecclesiastes 11:1–6

11, verses 1 through 6. Let's go ahead and stand

for the reading of God's word. I'm just going

to preface real briefly the statements here.

They're not very familiar with our context today,

but we are going to walk through each one of

them so that we can have a clear understanding

of God's word. Ecclesiastes chapter 11, verses

Ecclesiastes 11 · chapter mention

one through six. Cast your bread on the surface

of the waters and you will find it after many

days. Divide your portion to seven or even to

eight for you do not know what calamity may occur

on the earth. If the clouds are full, they empty

the rain upon the earth. And whether a tree falls

toward the south or the north, wherever the tree

falls, there it lies. He who watches the wind

will not sow, and he who looks at the clouds

will not reap. Just as you do not know the path

of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb

of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the work

of God who works all things. Sow your seed in

the morning. And do not put your hands down in

the evening, for you do not know whether morning

or evening sowing will succeed, or whether both

of them alike will be good. Amen. You may be

seated. Now, I doubt much of that made sense.

Not our context, but I pray by the end of our

time today that you're going to have a firm grasp

of Solomon's wisdom here regarding generosity.

Let me quickly remind us of the progress we've

made so far. So looking at the outline of the

book. There we go. We're nearing the end. I'm

not going to read all the portions of it, but

you see that we fall within this larger final

section of prescription, the prescription for

living with vanity and practical encouragements

to consider as Solomon makes his observations

about life. So now let's come back to that thinking

in the beginning about a harsh yoke promoting

a leader or a government that's so oppressive

and bringing suffering that people's response

is just to hoard things for themselves, keep

it for themselves because you don't know how

much harder it can be. Can you think of any similarities

among circumstances or situations today? Did

it come to your mind how natural it is for people

to hoard resources? Toddlers do it really good.

Now sure, you might be thinking, but Adam, there's

kindness at times, right? In hard times, I hear

on the news the testimony of kindness. Sure,

God's common grace can show up through all kinds

of situations, but don't you think it's much

more normal that when humans go through hard

times, they keep things for themselves? You know,

after World War II, it was common to hear testimonies

of Germans who lived near concentration camps

saying that they didn't know what was going on.

They had no clue such evil was happening right

next to them. No clue why those horrible smells

kept coming from the smokestacks. Did they really

have no idea? I'm not here to judge a heart,

but I can ask a question. Was it more convenient,

more comfortable, more safe to feign ignorance?

How about today? Take socialism. Some of you

know what's happening in Cuba. Some of you pay

attention to the news. Yes, there's a blockade.

Resources are scarce in the country. But do you

know the reality of life in that country even

before the blockade? They have a corrupt government.

The top leaders, those in power, they get everything.

While the average common person has suffering.

Cuba's government, like all socialist government,

it's no different, sees great wealth and prosperity

for that top level of people, those who are in

power. And then there's immense suffering, widespread

suffering for common people. And I've seen this

around the world. It's not a narrative of politics.

This is reality of life under the sun. So if

Rehoboam didn't learn and Cuba's leaders haven't

learned, what does that teach you about the human

heart? See, corruption and selfishness are at

the core of every human heart apart from God.

And that's where Solomon's wisdom comes to bear.

He recognizes that he was a harsh leader. The

people said it. Your father was harsh. He did

tax too much. He put too much pressure and burden

on the people. He was not a perfect leader. But

he learned. And what he learned, he applied.

And it applies not only to leaders, but also

to those under leaders. I hope that throughout

this series, it's become clear to you that the

materialistic life or hoping in this world and

the things that this world offers, I pray that

it's become clear to you that that's what Solomon

is warning us about. Don't find your hope. Don't

find your treasure. Don't find your trust in

things here and now. It's all vanity, he says,

right? It's a breath. It's a vapor. It's soap

bubbles. So enjoy it while you can. Because life

is fleeting, but make sure your treasure is sure

in the life to come. We need to learn that possessions

and wealth don't produce joy by themselves. Now,

yes, money and wealth can bring moments of pleasure.

Sure, it can. It can bring happiness and wonderful

memories and more. But to have a meaningful or

significant life, you need more than memories

and happy thoughts. The cure for a vain life

is one of meaning and one of purpose. Now, in

the previous chapter, Solomon taught us this

boomerang principle. Some of you know this saying

that what goes around comes around. See, it's

common. Now, it's a norm. It's not a promise

that generally things go that way. What he tells

us in the previous chapter, you should avoid

speaking wicked things about the king. Why? Because

it may come back on you. and the harm may befall

you. So that's the negative side of it. But now

he's going to teach us that the boomerang principle

can also apply to righteousness. What you do

may come back to you. So now look down at the

text, chapter 11, verse 1. Cast your bread, for

you may find it after many days. Now scholars

are split on the meaning and application. Some

think that it's all about investment strategy,

while others think that its focus is on charity.

Now, in both cases, the same principle is at

play. Whether you invest or you're kind to others,

you don't know the future, and a blessing may

come back to you. Now, the reason that I'm convicted

towards the meaning and application of generosity

is historical context and hermeneutical continuity.

I know it's fancy words, but we're going to explain

it. Now, some of you have heard of the Jewish

Targum. It's an Aramaic version of the Old Testament

text. It's not really a translation, but it's

a version with historical and theological context,

kind of like a commentary or an interpretation

within the text, expanding on the original text

to make it more clear and relatable. It came

about because after the Babylonian exile of the

Hebrew people, the common language was no longer

Hebrew. They didn't understand their Old Testament

text. So to solve the problem, a translator would

stand alongside the reader of Torah and translate

verses into Aramaic on the spot. And over centuries,

those oral translations were then standardized.

They were expanded upon and eventually they were

written down. Now for this very passage, the

Jewish Targum says this. I want to show you it.

Give your nourishing bread to the poor who go

in ships upon the surface of the water. For after

a period of many days, you will find its reward

in the world to come. Now, while the Targum is

not an authoritative or inerrant word of God,

it did serve as an intentional commentary of

the word up to that point. And it would be immensely

more accurate in identifying intent and purpose

than anything we would imagine today, orders

of magnitude centuries later. Further, there's

an old Arabic proverb that actually reads very

similarly to this. It says, do good, throw your

bread on the waters, and one day you will be

rewarded. Now, it's very likely Solomon was using

this commonplace metaphorical proverb to help

people not to be stingy, even if you have a harsh

leader, even if times are difficult. But be careful

to think that the motivation for giving is only

personal benefit. I read in our call to worship

today, 1 Timothy 6, and it shared straight from

the mouth of Paul, but really from the heart

of God, that our motivation should be first to

set our hope on God, not riches and not things.

Second, that same passage says that in doing

so, in being generous, in letting go of things

of this earth, we actually lay hold of that which

is life, meaning that life is more than having.

Life is about giving. So this principle is further

expounded upon by Solomon in the next verse of

Ecclesiastes chapter 11. Verse 2 encourages what

Ecclesiastes 11 · chapter mention

investors think is the diversifying principle.

But it's actually closer to a few more passages.

I want to show you a connection here. Proverbs

30, 15 says this. The leech has two daughters,

give and give. There are three things it will

not be satisfied for that will not say enough.

And then it goes on to list. Proverbs 30, verse

Proverbs 30:18

18 says, Proverbs 30, verse 21 says, Proverbs

Proverbs 30:21 Proverbs 30:29

30, verse 29 says, See, this way of writing,

you know, three, then four, seven, then eight

in this case. It's a Hebrew poetry device. Here's

what it's designed to do. To help the listener

think more broadly, not to just limit yourself.

You know, it's like when you're making a list,

you're like, okay, I know that one, I know that

one. Oh yeah, and I forgot there's that one too.

It's the same thing as a poetry device. Each

one of those examples on the screen go on to

provide lists and emphasizing the increasing

nature of such things. They're not meant to be

exhaustive. They're meant to point you to think

more broadly, to not just say there's one thing,

there's not two things, there's three, oh wait,

there's four, to help you think beyond a limited

number. So Solomon here in chapter 11, verse

two, is saying that when it comes to generosity,

don't limit yourself. Your generosity should

be so broad, so indefinite. that you don't limit

yourself to an exact number. So when you're generous

to others, you consider what you can do within

your means, but can you help seven people, he

says. He says, great, but don't stop at seven,

because if you see another person be willing

to go to eight, that's the encouragement. Your

giving, your generosity, it shouldn't have artificial

self -made limits. At the end of verse two then,

and going into the next verse in verse three,

Solomon gives the rationale. for this kind of

extreme generosity. He says, you don't know what

kind of calamity may come. I'll put the text

on the screen and hopefully you're still turned

there as well. It's astounding that he gives

that as the rationale because it's the exact

same rationale the selfish person has to hoard

things for themselves. The selfish person, they

save up for themselves because they're worried

about the calamity that may come, right? They

store those treasures on earth because they focus

here and now like something bad is going to happen.

Solomon says, be radically generous because bad

things are going to happen. It is so opposite

of the world. He says, be radically generous

because you know the storm is coming. Here's

the reality. Even if you try to avoid earthly

calamity, you can't. You can't. Solomon knows

disaster is coming for Israel. That's actually

in the history. But he also knows the principle

of eternal judgment. Verse 3 talks of a storm

coming, that nothing can prevent that tree from

falling. And that it falls, it's kind of just

a given. What matters is kind of where it ends

up. Now, throughout God's word, storms, they

often indicate hard times, but they also often

indicate judgment. Just think of the flood in

Noah's day. It was a massive worldwide storm

to do what? To judge the earth for the wickedness

of mankind. Now, a storm that's powerful enough

to topple trees is no small thing. Yet think,

friends, think about this. Think of the wealthy

in our age who think they are impervious to any

kind of natural disaster. The hubris, the pride

of mankind, it knows no bounds. We trust so much

in our ability. to evade hardship that we think

we can outsmart calamity. True? I dare you to

try to prove that wrong. It's written everywhere.

Now, that doesn't mean that calamity is awesome,

great, and that we should want it. But it points

out our pride in thinking that we can avoid it.

So humans, what do we struggle with? We struggle

with storing up treasures for ourselves here

and now. We want to accumulate, save for our

future. And then we often become very self -focused

in that endeavor. And Solomon continues to challenge

then towards generosity and really a commitment

to generosity here and now, not later. So go

ahead and look at verses four to six. Verse four

to six, I want to read them again. He says, he

who watches the wind will not sow and he who

looks at the clouds will not reap. Just as you

do not know the path of the wind or how bones

are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman,

so you do not know the work of God who works

all things. Sow your seed in the morning. Do

not put your hands down in the evening, for you

do not know whether morning or evening sowing

will succeed or whether both of them alike will

be good. First, in verse 4, he points out there's

no advantage in waiting to be generous for the

future. That's what he's pointing out. If you

keep watching for the wind, you'll never sow.

you won't plant. You'll miss the opportunity

to do good and judgment will come before you

know it. That storm is coming. Those who delay

their generosity until they're ready, they're

never gonna understand the real meaning and significance

of life. They'll be too focused on material things.

They're going to miss the reality of spiritual

and eternal things, what we were meant for. Solomon

is telling us this. Stop being cloud watchers.

Stop being future predictors. Be generous today

while you have an opportunity to do good and

before it's too late. He doubles down on that

challenge to commit to generosity by underscoring

the reality of the unknowableness of God's plans.

We can't predict the future. Even our best technology

only guesses, only guesses at the potential path

or impact. of a hurricane. Some of you remember

Hurricane Milton in 2024. Forecasters said it

was going to be apocalyptic, that it would be

history altering for the region of Tampa Bay.

And while it was in the Gulf, wherever you decide

the Gulf is, it sustained winds of 180 miles

per hour. That's no small thing. Now, meteorologists,

they warned of a 15 -foot -tall storm surge.

of water, basically a wall of water that would

end up making the region unrecognizable. Now,

Hurricane Milne, it did make landfall, and there

was damage to certain areas, but it was nothing

like what they feared. In fact, the storm had

shifted directions south of Tampa, and because

of the counterclockwise nature of the storm,

they actually had a reverse surge. And so instead

of a 15 -foot -tall wall of water, residents

woke up to a bay drained dry down to the mud.

Tragically, yes, some people still lost their

lives through direct damage of the storm, falling

trees and debris. Actually, there were tornadoes

that popped up further away because of the change

that happened at a higher level with the altitude

and the winds. The initial estimates, though,

of casualties for that storm event were orders

of magnitude larger than what actually happened.

Verse 5 here in the text reminds us that we don't

know the path of the wind. We don't know how

bones are formed in the womb of a pregnant woman.

And so we don't know the work of God who works

all things. Therefore, our approach to generosity,

to caring for others, should be with an emphasis

on today, not waiting for a more optimal time.

Finally, in verse 6, Solomon makes his most clear

appeal to timely generosity. He draws us back

to that sowing and reaping principle again in

verse 4. And that cautioned against waiting for

an optimal time to give. It cautioned against

watching the wind and seeing when to go. Instead,

he says, reader, listener, sow from morning until

evening. All the time. The rationale is you don't

know which time is going to be more successful.

morning or evening. You don't know where God

is going to use your generosity for the best

results. So take every opportunity to do good

morning until night. Now, if you understand all

of that, you have a handle on Ecclesiastes 11,

one through six. Now you can understand the casting

your bread and all of that, hopefully. Now to

the casual reader, it is one of the more difficult

passages to decipher because those phrasings

aren't common to us today. Those are ancient

Near East sayings. But I know that some, especially

if you've ever read any commentaries on this,

are going to lean towards an investment principle

when you read. But I want to explain why it isn't

the primary application and why it would actually

be a bad interpretation here. First, some of

you may see the diversification principle in

verses 1 through 2 and divide your portion among

many. But I would ask, how do you tie that in

with verse 5, that you don't know what's going

to happen? Now, sure, preventing against calamity

could make some sense with a diverse portfolio

of stocks, right? One thing fails and another

may succeed. But when you look at verse 5, do

you really think that Solomon is reminding us

that we don't know the work of God only to tell

us he might bless you financially with one stock

over another? Is that what he's spending his

time talking about? You don't know. Tesla's rising.

See, my problem is it reeks so much of eisegesis

or reading our own life into the text. A second,

I think that Targum explanation that dates back

to the, really the Babylonian exile period is

a helpful context for this passage. I want you

to look at it again. It says, give your nourishing

bread to the poor who go in ships upon the surface

of the water for after a period of many days,

you'll find this reward in the world to come.

The emphasis is to serve who? The poor. Now,

the Targum is very specific. It doesn't even

say just don't give your scraps or your leftovers.

It says don't give your scraps. Give your nourishing

bread. Give your best. Give that which helps

you. Give your valuable, consumable resource

to desperate travelers. And further, these travelers,

they're sailing away. So the reward isn't even

for here and now. The reward is for the world

to come. And it's a fascinating dynamic. But

even if you reject that Targum, even if you reject

the Aramaic explanation, you're like, no, I got

to cling to the Hebrew text. Amen. Now think

about the practicality of bread sitting on water.

What happens to bread that sits on water after

many days? Is it there? Have you ever fed ducks

in water? I mean, does the bread last? Even if

the ducks don't eat, I mean, ducks eat the bread,

right? But no, it becomes soggy within minutes.

Within days, it's going to be completely disintegrated.

It will not be there. So let me ask, how in the

world would you find it after many days? Think

who said this? He's the wisest, most observant

man the world has ever seen. So is he pulling

your leg? Now see, here's the thing. Even ancient

people, thought about what happens after you

die. That's why there was that old Arabic proverb,

and I quoted it earlier. It said, do good, throw

your bread on the waters, and one day you'll

be rewarded. And you see that contrasted with

Ecclesiastes 11 .1. See, the purpose is not to

go and find disintegrated bread after many days.

It's to find a future reward. Now, I would say

this regarding that investment principle. Any

reasonable financial advisor should not try to

apply this to financial investment strategies.

You want a financial advisor to tell you about

consistent yields and long -term patterns. That's

what you want. You don't want them saying, yeah,

maybe, maybe someday you'll get a reward. So

Christian teachers, when they try to tie it in,

I think they're missing the nature of necessary

risk when you live for Jesus. Last week I spoke

of the Christian life being intrinsically risky.

And yes, that even involves generosity because

you don't determine the outcome of it. When you're

generous to others, you can't force an outcome.

Here's the reality. Sometimes people receive

generosity and they multiply the outcome for

good. And sometimes people receive generosity

and they don't steward it well. Your generosity,

though, doesn't change based on the outcome.

You may choose to be generous elsewhere if somebody

is not being faithful or wise with your generosity,

but your heart of generosity should not change.

It's a spiritual dynamic. But in the financial

world, friends, it would be crazy for an advisor

to tell you, hey, so this stock I want you to

invest in, it has never performed. It has always

lost money. But after you die, it might be worth

something. It also might not. Who knows? So I

can't lean in to an investment application here.

Even though many commentators, many supposed

Ecclesiastes experts think that it might be.

I'm just going to add that many of those who

think that this passage is good financial advice,

they reject Solomonic authorship. I mean, that

should be your first indication, like, wait,

okay, you don't think it was Solomon, then how

do we know if he's good with money? They also

don't see any hope in the key phrase, vanity

of vanities. They think it's the most depressing

book in the whole entire Bible and would rather

avoid it. But while this passage clearly isn't

about financial advice, I understand why people

sometimes see it, but let me encourage with a

hermeneutical principle. I used that phrase earlier.

Here's what I mean. When we study God's word,

our first goal is to understand authorial intent

than to interpret the passage for what it meant

at the time that it was written. Now, side note,

it becomes a little more difficult if you don't

know who the author is, but we cover that in

the introductory sermon to this series. You can

go check that out. Now, in aiming for the interpretation

or the meaning of a passage, we are working to

understand timeless truth. What would God teach

any generation learning from his word? Now, in

this passage, The clear meaning is toward radical,

risky, and yet wise generosity. Generosity here

and now, generosity without limit, generosity

without expectation, and generosity with eternal

life in mind. That's primary. So our first applications

should come from that singular intended meaning.

Be generous. Don't put your limits on giving.

Be generous as a pattern of life. Value the right

things the right way. And the list could go on.

The question is, can we make secondary applications?

Yes, we could. We can. Maybe that's where investment

diversification or financial advice could come

into view. Is diversifying wealth a wise thing

to do? I mean, yeah, it probably is if you're

able. But does this passage teach about that?

No, it really doesn't. There are other passages

that would give that indication. I'm not even

going to give the examples because it's not the

point of the sermon, but there are other passages

that speak about wealth and investments and diversifying

to test yields, but not this one. So the issue

that I have with that financial interpretation

is it's not whether diversification is helpful.

It can be. It probably is. My issue is that to

change the meaning of the text and to focus on

finances would rob you, the reader, of an opportunity

to worship God in light of the intended meaning.

And see, that's why it's so important for shepherds,

for pastors and preachers to labor in their study

of God's word, to understand it rightly, and

then to rightly apply the word of truth. And

that's something that I want to thank Jeff for,

that week after week. He comes in to do faithful

study, bringing us a variety of potential meanings

that scholars wrestle with, and then sharing

his conviction over which one seems most reasonable,

truthful, and honorable to the text in light

of his study. My final thought on why generosity

is the focus here is regarding consistency with

Solomon. Throughout this letter, he challenges

the reader to think beyond today. to think beyond

this life. And he keeps telling the reader, your

life is more than what you see here and now.

It's not a hopeless letter. It's only hopeless

if you find your best life here and now. He keeps

driving the reader to think about God, to think

about life in terms of eternality, not temporal

things. So it doesn't fit that here he would

be advocating for either A, financial wisdom

to get a better return on investment here and

now, or B, even charity for a return blessing

for you here and now. Instead, he seems to be

teaching the reader that life should be lived

in view of what's to come. If you know the storm

is coming, if you know that judgment is coming,

then live in light of where you plan to be when

all is said and done. Where is your tree gonna

fall? It will fall. Is it gonna fall in God's

everlasting kingdom with Christ? Or is it gonna

fall on the other side? So as you look at Ecclesiastes

11, one through six, my prayer is that you see

the beauty of God's calling for your generosity.

More than focusing on wealth, accumulation, or

financial blessing, God calls us to something

better. And that's why Paul's instruction to

Timothy in 1 Timothy 6 for the wealthy of this

age to give generously, set our hope in God,

is so applicable here. We read it earlier today,

but let's read it again. It says, Command them

to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous

and ready to share, storing up for themselves

the treasure of a good foundation for the future,

so that they may take hold of that which is life

indeed. Now God teaches us through Paul some

1 ,000 years after Solomon. He says that riches

are uncertain. And so let me ask, if God doesn't

change, Were riches certain in Solomon days?

No. It's been consistent throughout human history

because it's a fallen, unpredictable, broken

world. Riches aren't certain, but there is one

who is certain. And that's the key, that if we

grasp who God is, what he has done in and through

Christ, then we get to respond with worship and

take hold of that which is actually life. And

you guys know we teach this all the time. Worship

is more than singing. It's not not singing. It

is singing, but it's more than just singing.

It's a whole person orientation of life. You

give yourself over to the one that you worship.

The caution is always make sure that's not yourself.

Make sure that's not this life that you worship

in light of convictions from God's word. And

so worship is always action. There's action involved.

This generosity then that Solomon speaks of,

that Paul speaks of, it's rooted in worship or

response to the one who holds eternity in his

hands. The one who judges the living and the

dead. The one who has the keys to eternal life.

So my prayer is that you see generosity not as

something you're just responsible to do, like,

oh, I guess I gotta do this. No, that you would

see it as a blessing that you get to do it and

you only get to do it here. You don't get to

do it later. It's for now. So it's a privilege.

It's something you get to do because you know

who holds your life. Because you know where you're

going. You know where you're going to fall. So

my prayer is that you wouldn't see generosity

just as an opportunity to look good in God's

eyes or to get something good in return here

and now. That's works righteousness. But that

you would see generosity as an opportunity to

bring blessing to others. To encourage them to

believe. to share of your trust in Christ, to

point them to the one who owns a cattle on a

thousand hills, to help them not find their hope

in things here and now, but to help them set

their gaze on eternity, things that actually

matter. So in principle, Solomon is teaching

us to give. And yes, that could include tithes

and offerings. It's not a sermon, though, on

getting you to just give more money. And yes,

it could involve giving to the baby bottle boomerang

or other things. But it's more about your heart

of generosity than it is on what you have and

what you're just trying to give financially.

So it includes finances, but it's not limited

to finances. It's your time. It's your effort.

It's your schedule. It's your plans. It's all

of you. So give without knowing what's going

to come back to you. Give without setting limitations

on how much. Give what's valuable to you. Give

to bless. Give because you can't take things

of this earth with you in the life to come. Give

with thoughts, though, of that life to come.

And I'm thankful that I've seen a heart of generosity

among our members here at Oak Hill for many years.

My own family, we've been those who have received

generous support in times of need. I remember

early on, there were some members who are still

with us today here who blessed our family in

times of need with groceries, with gift cards

for groceries, with diapers, when we didn't know

what we were gonna do and they richly supplied

and we didn't even ask them. Just their heart

of generosity came forward. We see the generosity

in this church when the support for missions

goes beyond what we ask. And over the years,

We bless churches and servants of the Lord around

the world. Myanmar, Romania, Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar,

Zimbabwe, and there's more. Incredible. I've

seen our church be generous in meeting practical

needs. Simple things like rides to the airport.

Man, we do a lot of traveling here. I'm just

going to throw that out. A lot of traveling.

We also do a lot of moving here in this church

too. Meals, you know, when people are sick, when

babies come, when there are, you know, surgeries

and the like. Now, as you hear these encouragements,

you know, even if you're somebody who has modeled

serving in a generous way, my encouragement is

excel still more. Excel still more. Keep showing

that your treasures are not of this world. Keep

showing that. Keep showing that you're building

the kingdom that is to come. Cast your bread

upon the waters because you're not expecting

an immediate return. You're focusing on trusting

the Lord with the ultimate outcomes. Now, being

generous is difficult for you. Begin to pray

that God's going to help you see this as a matter

of worship, as a matter of gratitude. Because

if you're saved, you have every spiritual blessing

in Christ. Your generosity then is the outflow

of Christ's generosity to you. You've received

much, so give much. If you're not saved here

today, and all of this sounds wild, just crazy,

Come talk to myself, come talk to another elder

after church and hear why we would promote such

wild, risky, and radical generosity. At the end

of the day, here's the reality. We must all come

before the Lord, every single one of us, and

we must all and we will all recognize that only

he can save unto eternity. No good that we've

done, no works that we've done, no amount of

generosity can save us. But the only way that

we are going to have and lay hold of eternal

life is by letting go. Letting go of the temporary

entanglements we have here on earth. And loosening

our hold of this life, we're able to grasp the

eternal life of Christ. That's the reality. I'm

going to put some questions on the screen for

you to consider. In a moment, I'll pray as we

transition. As you look at these questions, I

do this every single time, but please consider

them seriously. Consider them for your own heart.

Consider them for yourself. Don't just say, oh,

it's another question. Think about it. Not for

my sake, but for yours. That you would consider

generosity in light of God's word and who Christ

is. In a moment, I'll pray for us as we wrap

up. Father, I'm sure that when Some of us may

have seen the call to worship today. We might

have thought this is just another giving sermon.

This is just another push to give more finances,

get more money, a push for a tie -in with the

baby bottle boomerang. Father, I pray by the

end, everyone here has seen that the push towards

generosity is because of you, because of your

character, who you are and what you've done in

Christ. My prayer for each and every one of us

here today is that we would understand That a

heart of generosity is only rooted in Christ.

We are selfish. We hold on to things. We hoard

things for ourselves. We don't share. Yet you

richly share. Every one of us born into sin and

yet by your grace some are saved. Some are drawn

near to you. Some are given of your everlasting

eternal blessings. Rescued, redeemed, given new

hope and new life. drawn from the pit of despair

and given new hope. That's the reality for those

who are in Christ and not by works that we've

done. So therefore our generosity in response,

it is not to earn your favor. We can't do that.

Our generosity then is simply a response of worship.

It's a response of gratitude. Seeing what you

have done in Christ and saying, everything I

have is yours. Every bit of wealth, every bit

of time, every bit of energy, it's all yours.

If we're called to be living sacrifices, that's

all of us. The whole person, not just part of

us. So I ask, help us to think well and wisely

about being generous. Giving of ourselves, yes,

our finances, but of course the rest of us, our

time, our effort, our thoughts, yes, even our

prayers. that we give our lives over for others,

for the good of others, because that is what

you have done. So help us to pursue radical and

risky but wise generosity. God, we thank you

for the character of generosity you display perfectly

in Christ. We ask that you would help us understand

and comprehend that kind of selfless generosity,

that we would model his life. that we would follow

his example, giving of himself. So conform our

hearts to yours. May we set our hope on you.

May we take hold of that which is truly life

by letting go of this temporary one and the things

that are so sparkly at one moment and so dim

the next. We ask it now as we transition to praise

and song that you would lift our hearts and voices.

that we would exalt the name of Christ, that

we would find our hope, our joy in the slain

lamb who died for our sins and yet now lives,

who rescues sinners from the destruction, the

calamity that is sure to come, and who gives

new and living hope to all who trust in him.

We praise your name, Jesus, and we pray in your

name. Amen.