Giving as Worship: A Stewardship Rooted in Grace

[00:14:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:14:33] I rejoice to greet each of you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and I pray and trust that you have known God's mercies over our extended absence from one another.
[00:14:49] I'm sure the words of the psalmist in the 84th Psalm resonate in our hearts these days.
[00:14:55] How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts.
[00:15:00] My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord.
[00:15:05] My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God, for a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.
[00:15:16] So may we know Christ's presence this morning among his church, and may we know his special love as we partake of the preaching of the word, as we pray, as we sing, as we listen to the word read,
[00:15:33] as we fellowship and engage with God together.
[00:15:37] As we begin our service, I have a few brief announcements.
[00:15:40] We're planning to meet here this Wednesday at 7.15 for corporate prayer.
[00:15:45] We are exhorted to rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
[00:15:55] So we invite you to join with us in the sweet work of prayer this Wednesday.
[00:16:01] James says, if the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.
[00:16:07] And if the Lord wills, at the close of the evening service tonight, we anticipate finally the installation of Mark Lewis as our newest addition to the diaconate.
[00:16:19] And following that, we are scheduled to have our first quarterly members meeting of 2026.
[00:16:27] Members, please plan to be a part of that important meeting as the primary focus of that meeting will be our plans for expanding our building.
[00:16:37] And in light of the family meeting tonight, we plan to celebrate the Lord's Supper next week, Sunday, January 15th.
[00:16:48] That is a time that we all want to spiritually savor, as it were, something that we do not want to rush. So please mark your calendars and make a note of that special time together next week.
[00:17:01] Finally, next week, there will be an ESL interest meeting immediately following the morning service.
[00:17:07] If you would like to serve or simply know more about that ministry, you are cordially invited to attend. Well, our call to worship is from a familiar text of scripture, 1 Peter chapter 2 verses 4 through 5. And when we worship, we can come before God weighed down by a nagging sense
[00:17:40] of having fallen short. We might wish we were different. We might wish we were better.
[00:17:49] but Peter gives us a call to worship that isn't so much concerned with how you view yourself right now or even what you one day hope to be instead it is concerned with who God has made you to be
[00:18:07] who God has made you to be as you come to him a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves, like living stones, are being built up as a spiritual
[00:18:22] house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
[00:18:34] So God has made us to be, right now, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, offering up spiritual sacrifices. Accepted through Jesus Christ. Accepted through Jesus Christ. Think about that.
[00:18:50] What we're getting ready to do. Accepted because of him. So that's who you are right now.
[00:18:59] So let us look to Christ. Let us worship and let us pray. Heavenly Father, it's through Christ that we approach you and it's because of Christ that we are accepted. And so we come into your
[00:19:16] presence, with reverence, with joy, and with hungry hearts. We have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, and even now we long for the pure spiritual milk. So we pray that you would feed us with your
[00:19:29] word. Father, we know that you oppose the proud, but you give grace to the humble. So by your grace, we humble ourselves under your mighty hand, trusting that at the proper time, trusting that even now you will lift us up. We cast all our anxieties on you because you care for us. May
[00:19:51] grace and peace be ours this morning, and it's in the powerful name of Christ that we pray. Amen.
[00:19:59] As the music begins, we will stand and sing our first hymn, hymn number 50, Praise to the Lord

[00:20:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:20:06] the Almighty. Our scripture reading for this morning can be found in Paul's letter to the

[00:23:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:23:39] 2 Corinthians chapter 9 and we will read verses 6 through 15. The scripture reading can be found on page 968 in the Bibles located beneath the seats in front of you. 2 Corinthians chapter 9
[00:23:57] verses 6 through 15. The point is this, whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make
[00:24:29] all grace abound to you so that having all sufficiency in all things and at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, he has distributed freely, he has given to the poor his righteousness endures forever he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food
[00:24:50] will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness you will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way which through us will produce thanksgiving to god for the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the
[00:25:08] saints, but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others,
[00:25:26] while they long for you and pray for you because of the surpassing grace of God upon you.
[00:25:33] thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift and may God add his blessing to his glorious word pray with me heavenly father we once again draw near to you through the son the Lord Jesus Christ
[00:25:59] and it's through him that we offer up spiritual sacrifices of praise and adoration for according to your great mercies you have caused us to be born again to a sure and living hope through the
[00:26:15] resurrection of Christ from the dead and in him in Christ you've given us an inheritance imperishable undefiled unfading kept secure and safe in heaven for us in him you are keeping us secure and safe through faith in him you are preparing us for a glorious salvation
[00:26:37] ready to be revealed on the last day and for this we thank you and adore you and we bless your holy name and heavenly father we confess we miss the mark we sin we far too easily become distracted
[00:26:54] by the pleasures of this perishing world we far too easily find our satisfaction and that which is fading away and we are grieved that our lives fall short of our glorious calling and we ask that
[00:27:07] you would forgive us that you would forgive us cleanse us that you would strengthen us and your word assures us that christ has pardoned us christ has ransomed us not with perishable things such as silver or gold but with this precious blood like a lamb without blemish or
[00:27:28] spot because of what christ has done you have cleansed us from all our sins and we thank you And because of Christ, we are emboldened to trust in you, to look to you for daily mercies,
[00:27:41] to rest secure in your redeeming love.
[00:27:44] You have accepted his sacrifice for our sins.
[00:27:47] You've raised him from the dead.
[00:27:49] And we believe in you.
[00:27:52] And we trust in you.
[00:27:54] And we rest in Christ.
[00:27:57] And for this, we thank you.
[00:28:00] And we ask that you would grant us resolve to forsake our sinful human passions that grieve your spirit and that wage war with our souls. We ask that you would give us strength to live for your will. We ask that you would grant us that renewal of the mind that we would
[00:28:16] not be conformed to the passions and pursuits that characterize our lives before knowing you.
[00:28:21] We ask that you would help us to prepare our minds for action to be sober-minded and to set our hope fully on the grace that is to be revealed to us when Christ comes again.
[00:28:33] and father you've made us a chosen race a royal priesthood a holy nation people of your own possession that we may proclaim your excellencies and so we ask that you would add your blessing to that proclamation we ask that you would bless the word ministries so near and dear to us the
[00:28:54] men's and women's bible studies we ask that you would bless the ongoing training of the men and the Pastoral Apprentice Program, Jose Dominguez, Will Knight, Dylan Gomez.
[00:29:04] Strengthen each of these men.
[00:29:06] Sustain them as men of high character and calling.
[00:29:11] We ask that you would sustain their love for the living and abiding word.
[00:29:17] Sustain their love for you.
[00:29:20] Sustain their love for others, especially your people.
[00:29:25] And Father, you know all things.
[00:29:27] You know that we have been grieved by various trials.
[00:29:30] We know that they're for our good and for your glory, but we need grace to help in our time of need.
[00:29:39] So we ask that you would be near to several precious families.
[00:29:44] We pray for Addie and Burt Decker, Paul and Jean White, Fran and Andrew Hunter, Diane and Ron Vandiver.
[00:29:51] We ask that you would draw near to Emma Hinkle.
[00:29:53] We ask that you would grant these strength in the inner man, grant them healing to their outer man.
[00:30:00] and there are those among us in need of surgical procedures, specialized treatments, intensive therapy. There are family members and loved ones that need the healing that no physician or medicine can easily give. And we ask that you would make all of these a means of grace. And at the end of
[00:30:20] the day, we ask that you would grant healing of body, of mind, and of soul that we so desperately need and father we don't forget our missionaries in foreign fields in the far east and abroad
[00:30:33] we ask that you would protect them that you would bless their labors we ask that you would cause your word to run swiftly we pray that much fruit would be born as a result of the african pastoral
[00:30:45] training this past week we ask that you would make those men to be christ-like men vigilant we ask that you would make the men of purity and of power and we pray for the church
[00:31:00] plant in ashboro we ask that you would provide for their every need we ask that you would enlarge and multiply the efforts there like the loaves and the fish we ask that you would give
[00:31:13] them good gifts for father you are the one who gives good gifts you're the one who gives varied grace for the very trials we must all endure. So we ask that you would strengthen us this morning
[00:31:29] by your word. We ask that you would strengthen Pastor Jones in these next moments, that he would speak as one who speaks the very oracles of God. We ask that he would preach the word and the
[00:31:40] strength that you supply so that in all things you may be glorified through the Lord Jesus Christ.
[00:31:47] Father, we look to you. We ask that you would come now by your spirit and strengthen us to hear to receive to be built up in our most holy faith and it's in christ's strong name that we
[00:32:03] pray all these things amen for our offertory song we will remain seated and sing for all the saints and in preparation for the preaching of god's word we will stand and sing there is a redeemer

[00:32:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:32:20] we're thankful to the lord for his mercy in bringing us back together this lord's day

[00:39:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:39:02] I invite you to turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 16, 1 Corinthians 16, 1 to 4.
[00:39:11] That will be a sermon text for this morning.
[00:39:14] You can find that on page 962 of the Pew Bibles, 1 Corinthians 16, 1 to 4.
[00:39:39] The Apostle Paul writes under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do.
[00:39:52] On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come.
[00:40:05] And when I arrive, I will send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to Jerusalem.
[00:40:15] If it seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.
[00:40:22] Let us pray.
[00:40:26] Our Father, your word is the greatest treasure.
[00:40:31] It revives our hearts and rejoices our hearts.
[00:40:34] It makes the foolish, the simple wise.
[00:40:38] It tastes better than honey.
[00:40:40] It's more precious than gold.
[00:40:42] It instructs and equips and reproves and trains in righteousness.
[00:40:47] It is like silver refined seven times in a furnace in the ground.
[00:40:53] We praise you for it.
[00:40:55] And I am keenly aware of my own weaknesses and how those can come in the way of the beauty of your word shining forth to your people.
[00:41:04] So I pray now that you would come in power and give me clarity that is of your spirit.
[00:41:10] Give us hearts and minds that listen with the attention given by your spirit.
[00:41:16] And ultimately, strengthen faith that there might be a greater flourishing of each one of us in the obedience that comes from faith.
[00:41:27] We praise you and give you glory. In Jesus' name. Amen.
[00:41:31] Let me begin this morning by reminding us of what we said three Sundays and two snowstorms ago.
[00:41:43] So three weeks ago I mentioned that one evidence of grace that has marked Grace Reformed Baptist Church as a church, both in the past and in the present, is the generosity of its members.
[00:42:00] The pastors of this church do not need to urge too strongly for you, the members of the church, to gladly take ownership of paying the cost of the ministry of the gospel in this church and through this church.
[00:42:17] And praise be to God that that has been true both historically and in the present as well.
[00:42:24] So if there is such a thing as preaching to the choir, then an example of that would be preaching to the members of this church on giving.
[00:42:35] But you know, sometimes it's good to preach to the choir.
[00:42:38] Sometimes it's even necessary to preach to the choir because the choir has to continue to be the choir.
[00:42:46] We always need the reminders of God's word to continue to flourish and thrive in bearing the good fruit that we are bearing now that we have borne in the past and that God commands us to continue to bear into the future.
[00:43:02] And that is particularly the case for us as a church regarding the subject of giving because in addition to the regular ministry of our church, the ministry happening here and happening through our church, we are looking to see a new church planted in Asheboro
[00:43:20] in a matter of months.
[00:43:22] And as I mentioned three weeks ago, we praise God for some of you who have already given and are giving to that work we thank you for investing in that kingdom kingdom endeavor furthermore we are looking to expand our current sanctuary with the aim and
[00:43:39] hope to provide more sitting for more people to sit and hear the word of god we are not just committed to the gospel we truly believe that faith comes by hearing and we want to be as
[00:43:53] hospitable as we can be to see faith thrive and flourish in as many hearts as the Lord would give us opportunity to be instruments in seeing that come about. So in that light, in the light of
[00:44:08] those responsibilities beginning three weeks ago and ending this Sunday, I have been trying to remind us of the great privilege and responsibility that is ours as god's people to pay for the cost of the ministry of the gospel to pay for the advance of the gospel within our church and
[00:44:30] through our church in the first sermon three sundays ago i argued that god wills for us god intends for us god purposes for us to contribute to paying for the cost of gospel ministry in our
[00:44:45] church and we saw that that's a basic christian responsibility the example the inspiring generosity of the believers in macedonia showed us why that is the case why it is the case that giving for the ministry of the gospel in your church is god's will for you but we also saw what that kind of
[00:45:07] giving should look like now that's that's our review from three weeks ago now this morning i simply want to ask one very simple question with you and it is this how can you honor god
[00:45:20] in your giving and that's it's a very basic question but it's a very important question to think carefully through because in our regular human experience recipients of gifts do not get glory it's the benefactors who get glory beneficiaries are not glorified people
[00:45:42] are not exalted for receiving gifts people are exalted for giving gifts so when we give to god does the glory become ours for giving to him and god forbid that we think that but if that's not
[00:45:57] the case how then can we give to god in such a way that he is always the benefactor in our giving and we are always the beneficiaries in our giving i mean notice that in our texts the bible does not
[00:46:15] assume that we know how to do that see paul says in verse one now concerning the collection for the saints as i directed the churches of galatia so you also ought to do so paul did not assume
[00:46:29] that they have the holy spirit they know how to give in such a way that god is glorified no he gave specific down to earth directives as to how they ought to give so we need directives
[00:46:41] and instructions on how to give to god in such a way that his glory is not diminished And that's my burden for us, for myself and for you this morning.
[00:46:54] So here are three truths from 1 Corinthians 16, 1-4 that will guide us and guard us from mixing the categories of giver and receiver when we undertake our Christian duty and responsibility and privilege of giving to God.
[00:47:16] So here's number one. Take personal responsibility. When it comes to giving to the ministry of the gospel within your church, you should take personal responsibility. It's not an announcement that just comes to the general community. Yes, it does. It's not just an exhortation that comes to the general community. It's something you should personalize. You should take to yourself.
[00:47:40] Look at verse 2 of our passage.
[00:47:41] 1 Corinthians 16.
[00:47:44] Paul says this.
[00:47:45] On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come.
[00:47:58] Notice the two words, each one or each of you that Paul uses.
[00:48:05] Those two words, small and maybe insignificant as they may be in that text, They show us that it is God's will that the advance of the gospel, the meeting of the needs that arise in the midst of God's people,
[00:48:19] should cause me something personally.
[00:48:22] That I should be personally involved in meeting the needs that arise in the midst of God's people.
[00:48:30] God purposes for me to take personal ownership of meeting those needs, of paying for the ministry cost of my church.
[00:48:40] so how does that honor God well like this it shows that I have been overcome by the grace of God it shows that the generosity of God in Jesus Christ has dethroned the God of self in my heart has dethroned the God of mammon in my
[00:49:02] heart I no longer count my security as depending on how much financial security i can build for myself i know god has so richly overflown to me in christ i cannot help but give to god remember we saw three weeks ago second corinthians 8 9 such a beautiful verse you know
[00:49:23] the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich yet for your sake he became poor so that you, by his poverty, might become rich.
[00:49:36] I heard a preacher say, the poorest Christian is richer.
[00:49:42] At the time, Bill Gates was the richest person in the world.
[00:49:44] So he said, the poorest Christian in God's kingdom is richer than Bill Gates.
[00:49:50] That's true.
[00:49:51] We have been infinitely enriched by God in Jesus Christ.
[00:49:57] You know the grace of our Lord Jesus that though he was rich yet for your sake he became poor so that by his poverty you might become rich so when i give as a believer for the gospel ministry of my church i am never a
[00:50:16] benefactor to god i am always a beneficiary i am always on the receiving end even though the deduction happens from my bank account it's not me meeting a need in god it's always god supplying the grace both in saving me and rescuing me from the love of money and the love of myself
[00:50:34] and in giving me a heart that rejoices in giving you remember what we saw last three weeks ago in second corinthians chapter 8 paul says to the corinthians we want you to know the grace that
[00:50:48] has been given among the churches of macedonia and what grace is he talking about you're thinking maybe he will say somebody was miraculously healed or somebody was raised from the dead he said the generosity of their giving they begged and pleaded to participate in the favor of taking
[00:51:06] of participating in caring for the saint the poor saint in jerusalem so so when we take personal responsibility for paying or to pay for the cost of gospel ministry in our church and through our
[00:51:22] church, we are never God's benefactor. We are always beneficiaries. We are always on the receiving end of what God gives. There is this gripping story in 2 Samuel chapter 24, in which in pride and self-congratulation, David undertook an unlawful census in Israel when he was king.
[00:51:47] and then he realizes himself his conscience smooth him and he he prayed in repentance and god forgave him but sent a devastating plague among the israelites as discipline for david but but in mercy god instructed david to go up to the the threshing floor of aruna the jebusite
[00:52:11] and build an altar there for god so david quickly goes and as he gets to the threshing floor aruna is utterly startled that the king of Israel has come to him he's wondering if he's in trouble he
[00:52:23] feels like he's been called to the headmaster's office or something but then David says he's come here to offer his sacrifice oh and then Arunah is utterly relieved and says my lord take here is the
[00:52:34] oxen and here is the wood and here is the sledge and everything build the altar and offer to give to God the offering that you want to offer and may God the Lord accept your offering how did David
[00:52:47] respond to that? His response was, no, but I will buy it from you for a prize. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God. That cost me nothing. That's what David said. 2 Samuel 24 24.
[00:53:06] So David understood that doing God's will includes paying financial costs. For you and for me, what that looks like is that we take responsibility to pay the cost of the advance of the gospel of
[00:53:20] the glory of God in the face of Christ. The advance of the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God. Paying for the advance of the gospel is a responsibility we are not to pass
[00:53:34] along to someone else. It's a responsibility that when we hear of we should be able to say I have a part in that too. It's also a non-negotiable in my personal budget. It's also a non-negotiable in my family's personal budget.
[00:53:53] We saw again from three weeks ago how a poverty-stricken, afflicted, yet supernaturally joyful Macedonian believers were begging to give for the cause of the gospel.
[00:54:10] so brother beloved here is a test for your heart and for my heart for us to see to gauge and see how we are doing in this question of christian giving when you hear of a need that has arisen
[00:54:30] among god's people when when the deacons present our budget and talk about where we are at and what's happening with our budget and the needs we have to address. When you hear that, do you think
[00:54:43] that's something that should preoccupy me too? That's a need I should take part in meeting as well. It's my privilege to spend some of what God has given to me for that particular cause. Do you
[00:54:57] think that or do you think someone else is going to do that? I have a lot going on in my life right now that's a good test to run your heart through how do i think about this my burden is to cast
[00:55:13] before all of us a vision of stewardship financial stewardship that frees all of us more and more to lay up treasures for ourselves in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do
[00:55:28] not break into steel some of you who are younger maybe still in school maybe still developing a career maybe still figuring out what you are going to be professionally speaking or maybe you are even an older believer but you have just never given focused attention to seeking to excel in
[00:55:48] the grace of giving the lord would have you make some resolutions about that the lord would have you make some commitments about that god wants you to embrace and fulfill with joy and regularity the responsibility of paying for the cost of gospel ministry happening here in your church
[00:56:10] and through your church just remember what david said i will not offer burnt offerings to the lord my god that cost me nothing here's the second thing the second way that we should give to glorify god
[00:56:26] plan just one one word point plan make a plan about how you give look at verse two again Paul says to the Corinthians on the first day of every week each of you is to put something aside and store it up of course the first day of the week was
[00:56:47] Sunday the day Jesus was raised from the dead that day came to be called the Lord's Day and Christians gathered for the first time on that day to celebrate Jesus's resurrection and have done that for 2,000 years as we still do today but
[00:57:07] what were the Corinthians on this occasion and the believers in Galatia what way did what what what were they to do in this season on the first day of the week Paul says they were to lay aside money and they were to do so
[00:57:23] regularly notice the text says every week and they were to do that to what end with the purpose of saving it up so that when Paul arrives there might not be any collection happening when he arrives so that's that's quite striking because Paul does not want to come and
[00:57:41] then launch a brief fundraising campaign in Corinth he doesn't want to just bring his weight as an apostle for a few weeks or however long he was going to be there and then drive a fundraising
[00:57:52] campaign and then bring the money to jerusalem paul is building a principle of planning into christian giving right here and here's the reason why we just saw that every believer according to god's will should take responsibility for giving now if everybody's going to give then you have to
[00:58:11] give room for people to make adjustments in their budgets and make plans in their budgets on how they are going to give so that they might accumulate savings and be able to give paul recognizes not everybody has discretionary income people have to make adjustments in their budget
[00:58:29] and therefore he says begin to work ahead of time on the first day of every week store something up so that when i come there might not be any need for any collections in fact even those who have
[00:58:43] extra money discretionary income will not just through the change of their shopping into the offering plate they too will need to sit back and think and plan and we'll see more of that in a
[00:58:55] moment so paul is setting forth here for us a principle of christian giving namely plan and give you should be systematic in your giving god is honored when there is full thought given to what
[00:59:12] we give when there is planning given to what we give so we should prayerfully make decisions about how much we give how regularly we give the amount we give and the regularity with which we give
[00:59:25] it's not something we should just wake out of bed and just kind of threw into the offering basket no we prayerfully think we prayerfully make those decisions whether it's going to be weekly or bi-weekly or monthly or quarterly or whatever works for you you should give invest planning
[00:59:43] into that beloved one of the things i fear for myself and i grew up in an economy that was very very very different from the u.s economy and therefore one of the things that i think about
[00:59:57] and self-consciously seek to guard myself against is that I could become so comfortable and so satisfied that I forget that giving, if it becomes infrequent in my life, then there is a spiritual deadening that settles in on my soul.
[01:00:18] There is a spiritual apathy and lethargy that settles in on my soul.
[01:00:25] We always have to guard against that.
[01:00:27] You know, if I don't pay my mortgage, there's something that reminds me about that.
[01:00:32] If I don't do car payments, there's something that reminds me about that.
[01:00:36] If I don't pay my bills, there's something that reminds me about that.
[01:00:39] But if I don't give to the church, I don't necessarily get a real life reminder that you did not give.
[01:00:47] But as I said, there is a spiritual lethargy that begins to settle in in my soul that deceives me to think my security and my comfort and everything about me depends on how much savings I have. But beloved, giving sacrificially and regularly and generously
[01:01:10] for the ministry of your church is a powerful, ongoing confession of your faith. It's a way of saying my security my joy my confidence does not rest in how much i have it rests in my heavenly
[01:01:24] father who did not spare his own son but gave him up for me and therefore he will along with his son graciously give me all things you know we have to fear when the bible says the seed that fell on
[01:01:40] stony soil or on thorny soil represents those who hear the word and they receive it but the word gets choked in them by the cares of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth so persevering in the
[01:01:58] faith and running the race set before us and enduring all the way to the end includes giving regularly sacrificially and generously for the ministry of the gospel in and through your church that is part of what it means to be a living sacrifice offered to god holy acceptable that
[01:02:21] is part of our spiritual worship so how do we give to god in a way that honors him we do so by taking personal responsibility recognizing we are never benefactors of god we are always beneficiaries
[01:02:35] we do so by planning thoughtfully intentionally and building the amount and building the regularity so that it's not fluctuating depending on whether i ate out this month or whether i went to movie or this thing came on the radar screen of my stewardship no it's fixed and it is coming
[01:02:53] off that one of the first things i do at the beginning of a pay period here's the third You give as God has prospered you.
[01:03:08] Look again at verse 2.
[01:03:11] On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up.
[01:03:16] Then notice this phrase, there's this clause.
[01:03:19] As he may prosper.
[01:03:23] So there will be no collecting when I come.
[01:03:27] So that phrase, as he may prosper, is my favorite truth.
[01:03:33] about Christian giving.
[01:03:36] Sometimes when we say God wills, God purposes, God commands for each one of us to give for the ministry of the gospel, especially that happening in the church where we have our membership, the retort can sometimes come like this.
[01:03:55] But some church members are richer than others.
[01:03:59] Well, yes, of course.
[01:04:01] Some are richer than others, and God knows that.
[01:04:04] And the Bible knows that.
[01:04:06] But the question of what we give, the question of how much we give, is never predicated on whether we are rich or whether we are poor.
[01:04:16] Last, three weeks ago, we saw how poor Macedonians were begging to give.
[01:04:21] This is the third time I'm referring to them in this sermon.
[01:04:25] But how much we give is an aspect of the Christian life in which God has given us clear guidance and remarkable freedom.
[01:04:33] clear guidance and remarkable freedom so here paul is writing to a church and there is a specific goal in mind it's to collect money for the poor and starving saint in jerusalem but paul does not
[01:04:47] come close to suggesting an amount let alone prescribing an amount instead he says as he may prosper beloved our heavenly father is not out to put crippling financial burdens on us when he commands us to give so when he commands us to give generously and sacrificially and
[01:05:16] regularly he is saying so and saying in keeping with how i have prospered you to the extent to which i have prospered you to that same extent you should give in other words those who are
[01:05:32] well off should give more and just listen to what paul says in second corinthians 9 7 each one must give as he has decided in his heart not reluctantly or under compulsion for god loves a cheerful giver isn't that remarkable as i as i wrote that down i just
[01:05:54] thought to myself what an amazing thing that no one of us can throw a surprise party for god just none of us what do we have what does any of us have that we did not receive david said in
[01:06:08] first chronicles 29 14 who am i and what is my people that we should be able thus to offer willingly for all things come from you and of your own have we given you no one of us can throw a
[01:06:24] surprise party for God. I like the words of Jim Elliot, who in speaking in a missionary context said very insightfully, he is no fool who loses what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.
[01:06:40] That's very much true about missionary work. It's also very true about financial stewardship as a believer. God himself could personally just pour money from heaven and it'd be more than sufficient to pay for every gospel endeavor that would have happened between the cross
[01:06:58] and the second coming of jesus christ but he delegated to us his people the opportunity to give for his work and that gives us opportunity to experience generosity what does generosity feel like our god our heavenly father has been so generous to us in jesus christ now how does that
[01:07:18] feel like god gives us the opportunity to give to his work and then we experience what generosity feels like he gives us the opportunity to experience what sacrificial giving feels like because he sacrificially gave his only begotten to us and he draws us into participating tangibly
[01:07:36] in an ongoing way in our relationship with him i mean just think if god just announced from heaven today no more giving for the next 10 years there's going to be a certain distance that builds
[01:07:48] in the way you think about god so he gives us opportunity to experience these things so paul does not compel believers to give but encourages them to give with generosity a generosity that is dictated by each person's financial prosperity listen to second corinthians
[01:08:11] 8 12 for if the readiness is there i love this verse for if the readiness is there it meaning the gift is acceptable according to what a person has not according to what he does
[01:08:27] not have so the preacher or the church that you should run away from is the preacher or the church that spells out the amount that they say is god's will for you to give the preacher or the church
[01:08:43] that ties certain specific blessings to giving a certain spelled out amount is the kind of preacher that you should run away from.
[01:08:54] It's the kind of ministry that you should run away from.
[01:08:57] They are overstepping their bounds in doing so.
[01:09:00] When churches impose specific amounts, they burden the poor and they limit the rich.
[01:09:07] That's not God's design at all.
[01:09:11] So as a church, when we talk about giving to a regular budget or giving to a project like what we have coming, our key goal is not so much whether we make budget or not.
[01:09:22] It's not so much whether we meet the target or not.
[01:09:25] It is something more profound.
[01:09:27] It's something more spiritual.
[01:09:28] It's something more eternal than meeting the budget, than the dollar amount that is collected.
[01:09:37] When Paul received generous gifts from the churches in Philippi, as he was serving in macedonia he thanked them for sending the money and praised god for their partnership with him in the work of the gospel and then he said something quite striking philippians
[01:09:53] 4 17 not that i seek the gift but i seek the fruit that increases to your credit it's amazing he means that giving and the kind of way the bible talks about is like scattering seed there's
[01:10:08] something that will increase to the credit there's fruit that will increase to the credit of the giver and that's what paul is seeking for for the philippians it's not so much the dollar amount of
[01:10:18] what they sent to him because whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly whoever sows bountifully will reap bountifully and god does not measure bountiful giving by the dollar amount given but by how what is given is proportionate to how he has prospered you that's what paul
[01:10:37] means by that. Early in my ministry, I was very nervous about preaching on giving because I tended to think that it will make me sound like a peddler of God's word, someone who is in the ministry
[01:10:54] for money. But God has since rescued me from that defective way of thinking and has taught me from his word, that when I open up God's word to God's people, to people who have the spirit of the
[01:11:10] living God, as the word is written, without adding to it, without taking away from it, opening it up to them, as it is written, I am not seeking the gift, I'm seeking the fruit that increases to the
[01:11:26] credit of the giver. So as a church, we are after something more eternal, more enduring, more joy inducing when we see our Lord than the dollar amount that gets given. And therefore, I could say to you on the authority of God's word, your giving and my giving to the regular ministry of
[01:11:48] our church, your giving and my giving to the building project that we are looking to undertake, to embark on should be undertaken in such a way that it's proportionate to how God has prospered you. The church should always expect vast differences between the gift that the members
[01:12:06] give because every person by God's design is at a different place. If you go back and read the account of how the Israelites gave for the construction of the tabernacle, you will see an astonishing diversity of the kind of gifts and the quantity of gifts that were given. Some gave
[01:12:25] gold earrings and gold objects. Some gave blue and purple and scarlet yarn. Some gave silver and bronze. Some gave acacia wood. Some women came with their skill and spun the yarn into all kinds of fabrics that were needed. Some gave costly stones like precious stones, onyx stones. Some
[01:12:44] gave oil for the lambs and for the incense and all sorts of things. Everybody gave as they had prospered. That is a foundational principle in Christian giving. So how are you to give in such
[01:13:02] a way that the glory of the living God is not diminished in your giving? You do so by taking personal responsibility to pay for the cost of ministry at your church. You do so by planning
[01:13:15] on the amount that you give and on the regularity with which you give. You do so by giving as God has prospered you. As I said, we as a church are looking to embark on a construction project
[01:13:31] that will enable us, we believe, to more effectively minister God's word here, Disciple people deploy missionaries and church planters for the advance of the gospel.
[01:13:45] Right now, our building committee, made up of four men, one elder, and four deacons, has consulted with and worked with a firm here in our area.
[01:13:57] They have, through those efforts, been able to determine that the project that we have in mind will cost about $2.2 million.
[01:14:05] dollars of this money god has already provided one about 1.2 million dollars so if we can raise as a as a community of god's people if we can raise 1 million dollars we will be able to pay
[01:14:20] for that project cash and debt free but we don't need all the 1 million dollars up front to start the project. If we can raise an initial amount of $450,000, we can start. Our desire, the desire of
[01:14:38] the leadership of the church would be to do that project debt-free if the Lord wills. So let me give you three different ways that you can participate in the project. First, as your elders, we are requesting members of Grace Reformed Baptist Church
[01:14:59] ourselves included members of Grace Reformed Baptist Church and their leaders to pledge an amount for our building project beyond your regular giving so in addition to your regular giving we have prepared pledge cards I have one of them with me right here
[01:15:18] we have prepared these pledge cards we are requesting you to each take those pledge cards home with you after service today prayerfully think and seek the lord as to what you or you and your family can invest in this project again proportionate to how god has prospered you
[01:15:40] and beyond your regular giving indicate that amount on the pledge card and return return those to the offering plate next sunday you can plan to fulfill your pledge anytime between now and december of this year you can break the payment down just however you please however you are able
[01:16:01] however it's whatever amounts are manageable for you we just need to know the amount for planning purposes so that's one way you can participate in the project here's a second way if you are in a
[01:16:16] place financially where you cannot give anything beyond your regular giving before the lord you know, you've considered your budget and your financial realities, and you can't give anything beyond your regular giving, we ask you to continue to generously give regularly as you have been
[01:16:33] giving to the budget and for the payment of the gospel cause that goes, the ministry of the gospel that happens at our church. Just keep doing that and join in praying that God will provide the
[01:16:44] remainder of what we need for the project. We truly believe that the prayers of God's people are effective and god hears and answers here's a third way that you can participate in the project if you as a member of grace reform baptist church you have a friend or have friends who may be
[01:17:05] inspired by what we stand for as a church what we are striving to do here in terms of gospel ministry and you believe they are believers in jesus christ and may be interested in joining
[01:17:17] with us in this project you could invite them to give to the project if you have questions about more details regarding the project you could talk to any one of the building committee members our
[01:17:28] brother deacon david richardson would be a good person to talk to our brother pastor ken thompson would be another person to talk to if you have any specific questions that would need information to prepare you to share that vision with someone outside of our church if you're not a member
[01:17:45] of our church, but you are a believer in Jesus Christ. We invite you to join us in this endeavor.
[01:17:51] You simply can write checks and on the memo line put building fund or building project. If you give online, just choose from the options that are given, from the building, from the options that are given, just choose the building fund and we will gladly receive your giving for that purpose.
[01:18:08] May the Lord do his good purpose among us in regard to this project. But let me close by pointing you to a detail in the texts as we wrap up our time this morning look again at verse 1
[01:18:21] of first corinthians 16 now concerning the collection for the saints as i directed the churches of galatia so you also are to do so these are directives for churches to act on and what's a church paul tells us this in in the first chapter of first corinthians
[01:18:44] of his letter to the corinthians to the church of god that is in corinth to those sanctified in christ jesus called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name
[01:18:58] of our lord jesus christ both their lord and ours that's the church the church is a community of individuals who have been sanctified in christ saints who are called who call on the name of
[01:19:12] the lord people who have been set apart to be holy and that's why you are hearing this word this morning it's because of god's work of sanctification inducting you in the realm of the holy and setting you apart as a holy one if you're here this morning you've never called on
[01:19:30] the name of the lord to be saved it means you are not sanctified it means you are not inducted into the realm of the holy it means all the filth of the sins you have ever committed are still clinging
[01:19:42] to you right now and as a result the wrath of god hangs over your head and therefore the application of this sermon to your life is not that you give money to the building project it's rather that you
[01:19:53] turn from your sin and trust in jesus christ we do not have a right to give to the living god the god who needs nothing when we have not first received from him the gift that secures eternity
[01:20:05] for us so if you have not repented of your sins and trusted in jesus christ the bible says everyone who believes in him who calls on the name of the lord will be saved so call on him today for
[01:20:18] salvation turn from sin and place your faith in christ christ will christ suffered once for sins the righteous for the unrighteous that which paid for your sins is the sinless lamb of god and you can turn to him today for repentance and forgiveness and the gift of an inheritance that
[01:20:38] will never perish. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you and praise you for your word. We thank you for the high honor of being called by your name, being sanctified through the redemption that is in
[01:20:56] Christ, being forgiven of our sins, and even being given the privilege of being part of what you are doing in this church and through this church and in the world. We pray that you would walk among us
[01:21:09] in such a way that all human boasting will be shut out and the spotlight will be on Jesus Christ.
[01:21:17] Because that's what we want in everything we do, whether we eat or drink.
[01:21:22] In his name we pray. Amen.

[01:23:34] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:23:34] Receive the benediction.
[01:23:37] And God is able to make all grace abound to you so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.
[01:23:50] Amen.