Week 6: A Generosity That Pleases God

I'm so glad that you're here this morning. Man, this weekend I was wondering

if I was going to be here this morning.

Jen and I spent, you know I'm sick if our good friend Kevin Negard texted me

yesterday morning and said, hey, I got tickets for the Hawkeyes,

you want to go? And I said...

I'm in bed sick. I've been there before with like 102 fever.

I went to the Nebraska game, took Trey, took your grandson Trey to the Nebraska

game last year with 102 fever because it's Hawkeyes.

But I was in bed sick and Jen and I both showed up with low grade fevers this

morning and we were like, okay, we're going to get through it for Jesus.

And so we're here. So thanks for joining us on a weekend where it is one of

those weekends where you just want to take a nap and I am going to do so.

And yeah, praise God for camping weekends and weekends you can just rest.

For the last several weeks, we've been asking one question together.

What does a church that pleases God actually look like? Because at the end of

the day, that's an important thing we need to answer because it matters.

You know, we can have a church that pleases God. We can have great music.

We can have comfortable seats.

We can have good coffee, programs for the kids. We can have a building.

We can have lots of activities. We can have outreaches.

We can have people walk out of the service and say, that was good,

or I really enjoyed church today.

And I hope that we do all those things. But the question still remains,

is God pleased with our church?

Is God pleased with Generations Church? And over the last four weeks,

we've discovered several things that God desires to see in us and in the body of Christ.

We talk about, in week one, we talked about the reverence that pleases God because

we don't want to be a church that's lost its awe of who God is.

And we talked about living in obedience to the word of God, being strong in

the word of God and living with a fear of God. And that doesn't mean being afraid.

We ought to come into this place, and I hope you did this morning,

with great expectation that God wants to speak to you through his word this morning.

We talked about a boldness that pleases God in week two, and we looked at the

early church in Acts and saw these ordinary people who simply could not stop talking about Jesus.

They weren't ashamed of the gospel. They weren't afraid to stand for the truth.

And we want to be those kind of people. We want to be bold witnesses in our

culture and in our world and in our neighborhoods.

In week three, we talked about having a unity that pleases God.

Jesus prayed that his people would be one.

Not that they would agree on absolutely everything or that they'd all have the

same personalities or would like the same music or would like the same temperature

or would like this together.

No, we're all unique, but Jesus himself prayed that we would be one.

Last week, we talked about a love that pleases God.

We looked at the Good Samaritan, and we were reminded that biblical love isn't

just something we feel inside, but love sees, and love, if you were here with us,

you'll be reminded that love is driven to action. Love gets involved.

Love is sacrificial. It costs us something. And so today we're going to add

another piece to that picture of what it looks like to please God.

Because we cannot only be a reverent church or a bold church or a loving church or a unified church.

But if we're going to be a church that pleases God, we have to be a generous church.

And I know what happens when the pastor says generosity. A lot of you,

you close your ears off right then. You're like, oh no, here comes the money sermon.

But before you grab your wallet or your purse and you head for the exit,

But let me just say that this message isn't really about your money or my money. It's about your heart.

There are few things that reveal the condition of mankind's heart more clearly

than what we do with what God has placed in our hands.

Our money reveals what we value, what we cherish, what's important to us.

And our possessions reveal where we find security. So today,

we're not asking, how much do we give?

We're going to wrestle with a deeper question.

What does the way I give reveal about our hearts?

Because according to 2 Corinthians 9, there is a kind of generosity that gets the attention of God.

There's a generosity that flows from faith rather than fear and insecurity.

A generosity that comes from joy rather than guilt.

I don't want any of us to give out of guilt.

That's not a generosity or a giving that pleases the Lord.

A generosity shouldn't ask how much I should give.

It asks, God, what could I do with the things and what could you do with the

things that you've placed in my hands if I gave it back to you.

And so before we get into our main passage this morning, I want you to see something

that happened just one chapter earlier, because before Paul teaches us what

generosity looks like in chapter nine, he shows us.

What it looks like in chapter eight. An example he gives probably isn't the

example we would expect.

If I asked you to paint a picture of a generous church, what would you think

of. You'd probably think of a lot of wealthy people, right?

Maybe a church with a lot of wealthy people, maybe a church with a huge budget,

a church where people have plenty of disposable income.

We tend to think generosity is something you do when you have extra, right?

If I made a little bit more money, I'd give more. If I could get these bills

paid off, I would be more generous.

If things weren't so tight right now, I'd love to help somebody.

And there's always this idea that someday when I finally have enough,

then I'll become the generous person that the Lord wants me to become.

But Paul introduces us to a group of Christians who completely destroy that

idea. And this is incredible. 2 Corinthians 8, 1-2, this is what it says.

We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that was given

to the churches of Macedonia. He's saying, you're not going to believe what's

going on in Macedonia. Check this out.

Verse 2, During a severe trial brought about by affliction, their abundant joy

and their extreme poverty overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.

Did you catch that? Severe trials brought about by affliction,

they still kept their joy intact.

They still had joy even though they were in affliction, even though they were

extremely impoverished people.

Their generosity overflowed.

How can that be? Don't miss those words. They were in a severe trial.

They were in affliction. They were people with extreme poverty.

And these people weren't giving because everything was going great and they

had won the jackpot in the lottery.

We usually think abundance plus maybe a little extra cash equals generosity,

but the Macedonian believers show us something completely different.

I want you to get this point. Generosity isn't determined by what you have.

Generosity is determined by what has your heart.

Did you get that? Generosity is not determined by what you and I have in our bank account.

It's determined about the situation of our heart, the health of our heart.

It gets even more incredible. Verse three, he says, For I testify that according

to their ability and even beyond their own ability of their own accord,

they gave. They begged us.

Now, this is amazing. They begged us earnestly for the, say that word with me.

Let's try it again. Privilege of sharing in the ministry to the saints.

Paul says they didn't just give according to their ability. They gave beyond

their ability. Nobody begged them. Nobody manipulated him.

Nobody had to pressure them to give their tithes.

Nobody guilted them. In fact, verse 4 says, they were begging for an opportunity

and for the privilege to give.

Man, wouldn't that be awesome? Can you imagine that?

Like, I would never have to give it up in church and say, hey,

we're taking an offering this morning. Give generously.

You'd never feel like, oh, we have to do this. No, it's different because when

your heart is right with the Lord, it's, man, what a privilege that God wants

to put things into my hand to bless other people.

And that principle that we've been blessed to be a blessing to others begins to overtake your life.

You, my friends, have been blessed, whether it's in a lot or in a little,

you've been blessed to be a blessing in other people's lives.

And so the key here that I want you to see before we jump into chapter nine

is that before God had their possessions, God had their hearts.

And when God has your heart, generosity begins to change.

When God has your heart, something happens and generosity just becomes part of your DNA.

We stop looking at everything as if it's mine, mine, mine, mine,

mine. You've seen it in kids, right? We don't have to teach them,

our children or our grandchildren, we don't have to teach them how to be selfish. They just are.

Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine.

But then we begin to say, God, this is yours. This is not mine.

It's yours. You gave it to me.

How do you want me to use it?

And that's the kind of generosity that we're talking about.

Turn in your Bibles to 2 Corinthians 9, and we're going to be in verses 1 through 15.

It's a chunky passage, and we're going to look at five characteristics of a

generosity that pleases God. If you don't have your Bible, it'll be on the screen

behind you, and here's what it says, verse 1.

Now, it is not necessary for me to write to you about the ministry to the saints,

for I know your eagerness.

And I brag about you to the Macedonians, saying that Achaia,

which is just a region that they had been ministering in, has been ready since

last year, and your zeal has stirred up most of them.

But I am sending the brothers so that our boasting about you in this matter

would not come in vain, and so you would be ready just as I said.

Otherwise, if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared,

we not to mention you would be embarrassed in their situation.

Therefore, I consider it necessary to urge you brothers to go

on ahead to you and arrange in advance the generous gifts you promised so that

we'll be ready as a gift and not as extortion.

The point is this, the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,

and the one who sows generously will also reap generously. If you have your

Bible or your app that you use, man, I would highlight that verse.

That is a great life principle.

Verse 7, each person should do as he has decided in his heart,

not reluctantly or out of necessity.

Why? For God loves a cheerful giver.

Not only that, verse 8, and God is able to make every grace overflow to you

so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.

He's saying, there is so much grace available to you and to I that as we give,

whether in abundance or in need, that grace will flow to you and God will meet

every single one of your needs.

This isn't prosperity gospel that you're going to get rich if you give. No, that's not it.

He's going to meet you where you're at and he will take care of you.

It's that same principle of seek first the kingdom of God and everything else,

will fall into his place.

Verse 9, as it is written, he scattered, he gave to the poor.

His righteousness endures forever.

Now the one who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide

and multiply your seed and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

You will be enriched in every way for all generosity, which produces thanksgiving to God through us.

For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints,

but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

They will glorify God for your obedience to the confession of the gospel of

Christ and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone.

And as they pray on your behalf, They will have deep affection for you because

of the surpassing grace of God in you.

And then Paul closes out, thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.

All right, so five characteristics of a generosity that pleases God.

Number one, generosity that pleases God, plants in faith.

Plants in faith. The person who sows sparingly, verse 6 says.

Will reap sparingly. And the person who sows generously will also reap generously.

Paul takes them immediately to something that they're going to understand.

They're going to understand agriculture and the farm. And every farmer understands this principle.

You can't reap what you're unwilling to sow.

Imagine a farmer standing in his barn holding onto the bag of seed.

You know, he paid money for this seed and he doesn't want to get rid of it.

And he says, I can't plant this. Do you know how valuable this is?

So he keeps it and he protects it. He stores it.

And then harvest comes and there's nothing in the field. Why?

Because he never planted anything.

And it's the same way. That's what we do with our finances. We are unwilling to sow.

The second thing we see is the seed that is kept can never become a harvest.

We've planted Generations Church, and we're all here together,

and we're in this together, and we're wanting a harvest.

But to get the harvest, we have to sow a lot of seed, whether that's financially,

whether that's taking invitation cards, whether that's, hey,

can you help lead a small group? Or, hey, can you help do this this weekend?

Jim, by saying yes, you're scattering seed, brother.

And more than you blessed the people, and I know you blessed me and you blessed

these people, I promise you it did something in your heart, didn't it? It did.

We can't hold on to the seed if we want to harvest.

Every time we give, we're releasing something that we could have kept.

And that's why generosity requires faith. And when that farmer scatters that

seed and he's releasing something valuable, he's doing it because he believed

there's something greater that's going to happen in the future, right?

There's something greater that's going to grow because of his sacrifice of what that is.

And so when we give, we're saying, God, I believe you can do more with what

I release than what I could ever accomplish by simply holding on to it.

Paul's not saying, give God $100 and he's going to send you $1,000.

That's not what this is about. But sometimes it's a family being helped,

children being fed, ministry being done.

There's always a harvest that will be collected.

Think about how this connects with the Macedonians that we read about previously.

They didn't have much seed to sow, but they sowed what they had because they

believed God's kingdom was worth investing in.

Do you believe that the souls in our neighborhood and in the Cedar Valley and

in the world are worthy of investing in? I do.

I want you to remember this. What you hold on to can provide security for today,

but what you place in God's hand can produce fruit for all of eternity.

When the offering plate is passed by, the question that we ask isn't,

how much can I keep so that I feel secure?

The best question is, God, what have you placed in my hands that you want to use for your kingdom?

Because what you hold on to may take care of you for a little while,

but what you surrender to God will keep bearing fruit for all of eternity.

Hudson, I'm going to skip down because otherwise I'm going to go really long. Number two.

Doesn't just care that we sow, he cares about why we sow. Number two,

generosity that pleases God comes from the heart.

Paul said in verse seven, each person should do as he has decided in his heart,

not reluctantly or out of compulsion.

I love how clear Paul is here.

Don't give because somebody pressures you. Don't give because somebody embarrassed

you. Don't give because the person next to you is giving.

Don't give because you're worried about what someone's going to think about you.

Paul says, give because you've already decided in your heart.

You see, biblical generosity is intentional.

It's intentional. When we come into God's house and he's given us this incredible

blessing of being part of something larger than ourselves, We should come in these doors

excited that we have the opportunity to multiply everything that God has given us.

Generosity is exciting.

It's prayerful. It's personal. It's purposeful. And I think this is important for us as a church.

I don't ever want you to give because you got talked into it or you feel like you have to.

And I say this all the time about so many things.

But what we're speaking on is not about what I want from you.

It's always about what we want for you.

And living a generous life will do something so special in your heart and in

your life as we release our security and we hand it over to the Lord.

You'll see Him do incredible and amazing things in your life.

And that's what was happening in the New Testament church. And it was because

God already had the hearts.

You see, God isn't after your wallet or your purse. He's after your heart.

And when he has your heart, your wallet follows.

Our giving reveals something about our heart. And Paul goes even further to.

He says, God doesn't merely care that the gift comes from your heart.

He also cares about the attitude of the heart that gives it.

Generosity with joy, number three, is given with joy.

Generosity that pleases God is given with joy.

Let's go back and read the rest of verse 7. Each person should do as he has

decided in his heart, not reluctantly or out of necessity.

What's it say? For God loves a cheerful giver.

Maybe you've heard it in church before. That word cheerful is from the Greek

word hilarious, hilarious, to where we get the English word hilarious.

The fact that God wants to use us to fulfill his mission should make us so happy.

Like what Paul's saying is, guys, you should be over the moon.

Like he's not just going to do it himself.

The message of the gospel and growing the kingdom and building the kingdom of

God and setting captive prisoners free and releasing them from bondage and giving

them a new purpose and a new joy and a new peace.

That's not just something that he's going to make happen on his own, although he could.

He wants to use you. He wants to use me.

That should put so much joy, so much excitement in our lives that we get to

give and we get to be part of what God wants to do. In his kingdom.

About receiving a gift from your child. Imagine your child walks in,

it's your birthday, and says, here, mom said I had to give this to you.

And then they throw it on the table.

Now, technically, they did give you your present.

But compare that to a child. Maybe they were like, oh man, dad,

I got you something so good.

I can't wait to give it to you. You're going to be so excited.

And for like three weeks, they're just holding it all in and they just can't

wait to give it to you. And it may have only cost a quarter.

It comes to your birthday and they give it and they're just like with anticipation.

They can't wait to give it to you.

I'm not sure the last time we've had an offering where I'm like,

where I look out and I see people like, oh, I can't wait to see what God does with this.

That's hilarious giving because we get to be part of what God wants to accomplish in his kingdom.

And it is a privilege and it is a freedom and it is incredible that he wants

to use you and he wants to use me.

And generosity begins to change us. Instead of asking, how much do I have to give?

We begin asking God, what do I get to give?

That's the Macedonian church.

They had an abundant joy.

They had joy because they had Christ, and that joy because they had Christ overflowed

into their hearts and into their lives and into their serving and in doing life

together and in giving and in their generosity.

They were experiencing poverty and joy at the same time, but it was Jesus that

was overflowing in every area of their lives.

How can we release what we have? And this is a struggle, and this is real, and I get this.

How do we release what we have when we're worrying that we're going to run out?

Just being honest, right? Isn't that something that we all deal with?

Man, if I'm looking at our books, and if I tithe, I don't know how I'm going

to make it to the end of the month.

Being real? And Paul answers that question in verse 8.

He said, and God is able to make every grace overflow to you so that in every way,

always, I would circle that, every way and always having everything you need,

you may excel in every good work.

Number four, generosity that pleases God, trusts God to provide.

I want you to notice those three words. God is able.

God is able. That's the foundation of our generosity, that God is able and that

in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.

The foundation is not that we have plenty or that we have abundance or that

we have security in all the things that we have.

It's not, my retirement looks good now so I can give. It's not,

I have enough money in my savings so I can give now.

It's God is able.

Paul isn't saying generous Christians will become rich. He's saying,

because God is our provider, we don't have to live controlled by fear.

You see, scarcity says, I better hold on to everything because I don't know

what's going to happen to me.

I don't know how I'm gonna pay these bills. I don't know how I'm going to get by.

But faith says my security isn't in what I have. Do you get that?

Our security doesn't come in what we have.

Our security is in the God who provides and God is able.

Over in Mark 12, Jesus was sitting near the temple treasury.

It says Jesus was watching how the people were coming and they were giving their offering.

And the text actually says they threw in, like the Greek word says they were

casually coming by and just tossing it in casually, almost carelessly tossing coins in.

It says these were people with plenty that were giving from their surplus.

10 coins or 100 coins, it didn't matter.

They still went home with plenty. They still went home with their full bellies,

with their secure roofs, with their wardrobes overflowing.

Then the scene changes and Jesus observes that there's a widow that comes and

she gives two copper coins.

It was the smallest denomination worth almost nothing.

But Jesus stopped his disciples mid-conversation. He said, did you see that?

Did you see that? That woman just gave more than all of them combined.

The disciples must have been confused, but it was only two coins.

How is that more than what the rich man just threw in? I mean,

that was like a year's wages he tossed in.

But Jesus wasn't measuring generosity by the size of the gift.

He was measuring it by the sacrifice behind the gift.

The others gave out of their abundance, and she gave out of her poverty.

Her gift required something theirs didn't necessarily require,

and that was trust and faith. She had to trust God.

And here's what we learned from that. God doesn't measure generosity simply

by the amounts that we give.

God measures generosity by sacrifice, not size.

For one person, $20 might represent genuine sacrifice. I know it is for a lot of us.

For another person, $2,000 might barely be anything for them.

And that's why comparison has no place in generosity.

The question we need to be asking isn't, what is everybody else giving?

The question we need to ask is, God, what does trusting you look like for me?

And there's something else I don't want you to miss in verse eight. Why does God provide?

It says, and God is able to make every grace a flow to you so that in every

way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.

Paul says, God gives us grace so that we have everything we will ever need. Why?

So that we can excel in the good works that he has for us.

You see, God simply doesn't simply provide for us. God provides through us.

God gives us everything we need so that we can be used to meet the needs of others?

What if God has put resources into your hands because He wants you to be the

answer to someone else's prayer?

I was thinking about this this week. How many times have we thwarted someone's prayer?

Maybe they didn't get answered. They're begging God to meet a need,

and God wants to use you or use me to meet that need, but we weren't obedient,

and it caused that person to go without.

I think for some of us, God isn't focused on increasing your standard of living.

He wants us to increase our standard of giving because we trust Him and we want

to be used by Him. Number five.

Generosity that pleases God points people to Jesus. Look back at verse 11.

It says, you will be rich in every way for all generosity, which produces thanksgiving.

Your generosity produces thanksgiving to God through us.

For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints,

but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

Did you happen to catch what takes place when we live generously?

The first thing that happened, Paul says, is that your life will be enriched,

not just in the area of finances or your money. He says, in every way for all generosity.

Have you heard someone say it's, you know, it's blessed to, more blessed to

give than to receive? That comes from Acts 20, 35, and it's true.

Some of you have never experienced the joy of giving generously because you've

never given out of a sacrificial faith.

But when we give generously, there's this chain reaction that I want you to

see that happens in the text.

God provides for you, and then you generously give, and then someone else's

needs are met, and then they thank God, and then God receives glory.

And that's the ultimate purpose of generosity, is that God receives glory and

that the kingdom is built.

Generosity is never about making much of the giver.

It's not about, hey, look how much I gave. I'm the lead giver at Generations Church.

You might be, but it's about making much of God.

Imagine someone praying, God, I don't know how I'm going to make it.

God, I don't know how I'm going to pay this bill. I don't know how I'm going to feed my family.

I need you to provide, and that God speaks to the heart of someone in his church

to give, and now you get to be the answer to prayer.

Your generosity means that someone else is going to experience that answered prayer.

They're going to experience the goodness of God in their lives,

and it's because you were obedient, because I was obedient.

Now, Paul finishes this entire sections with one of my favorite statements in this passage.

After talking about giving, after talking about generosity, after talking about

meeting needs, after talking about sowing, Paul ends in verse 15,

and he ends it with this, thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.

Suddenly, Paul isn't talking about giving anymore. He's talking about God's,

giving, the gift, this indescribable gift that we have in Jesus.

And don't miss this. Before God ever asked you and I to give anything,

He gave His one and His only Son.

God is generous. It's in His nature.

The more that we become like Christ, the more we're up to serve like Christ,

to give like Christ, to be.

Loving others like Christ. If we're going to be a generous church,

it starts by our hearts having the heart of Jesus.

We're going to pray and we're going to take our offering.

We did it intentionally. We're going to take the offering at the end of the

service today because some of us, we've been guilty before God of not giving

sacrificially or not giving generously as the Lord has wanted us to give.

And so we're just going to take a minute and we're going to pray and we're going to ask the Lord,

to help us give sacrificially today and to give today, trusting that he will

supply every one of our needs.

Lord, we come to you this morning and we thank you that we have the opportunity this morning to give,

that we get to be a part of what you're doing in the world, that we get to be

a part of your plan and your kingdom.

We don't want to give begrudgingly. We don't want to give,

because the pastor's asking. We don't want to give because it takes money to build a church.

We want to give because we want to be like you.

And we want to give out of obedience. forgive us when we do not give and we

think that we know better and so we hold on to things thinking that,

we'll be better off if we just keep the seed in the barn and we don't scatter it, we don't invest it,

Lord, we love you you've called us to build this kingdom and to build this church

would you help us be a generous, generous people,

that gives with great joy, even out of our trials, even out of.

Our poorness.

We pray that you would help us to give sacrificially this morning and always.

We love you in Jesus' name. Amen.

Thanks for listening to the Generations Church Podcast. We hope today's message

encouraged you and helped you grow in your relationship with Jesus.