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God Loves A Cheerful Giver!

 


God Loves A Cheerful Giver: 2 Corinthians 9:6-7

But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. 

Matthew 9:36 NKJV  

 

God wants us to give out of generosity, not obligation or need. He will reward those who give with a cheerful heart! 

Because of our sin nature, giving often does not come naturally. Yet we are told in Scripture that God loves a cheerful giver, and those who give much will also receive much. Therefore, we should give not “grudgingly or of necessity,” but out of the generosity of our hearts (2 Corinthians 9:6-7). Here are five things we can learn from Scripture about giving: 

  1. We should give with a pure heart. In the story of the widow’s mite (Luke 21:1-4), the widow’s small gift is contrasted to the large contributions of the rich men. Jesus says the widow’s gift was more valuable because she gave everything she had. Her generous heart showed in her contribution. It was a gift of sacrifice, not obligation, and Jesus valued her small, sacrificial gift. 
  1. No gift is too small. In John 6:1-14, Jesus fed a crowd of over 5,000 people, and in Jesus’ hands, a little boy’s lunch of five loaves and two fishes turned into enough to feed the entire crowd to satisfaction and return twelve baskets of leftovers. God is not limited by our finances, abilities, or talents, and any gift in his hands is worth more than it is in our own. 
  1. God is more important than money. A rich man in Matthew 19:16-26 went to Jesus, inquiring how he might receive eternal life. He believed he had accomplished all the moral rules Jesus told him, but he learned that his desire for material possessions would prevent him from receiving eternal life, because he valued his money and possessions more than God. Anything we hold above or before God in our lives is an idol and prevents God from blessing us fully. 
  1. Money can drive a wedge between us and God. The rich ruler walked away from Jesus sorrowful (Matthew 19:22) because he let his monetary wealth and possessions come between him and God. This is a cautionary tale to us as well. Even with our good intentions, we cannot serve both God and money (Matthew 6:24).  
  2. Giving is a lifestyle. In all the accounts above, money is a habit and lifestyle. Most likely, the widow’s contribution was not her first – it takes discipline to live sacrificially. The rich young ruler lacked the discipline of living without ties to wealth. God himself is the ultimate giver, who generously gave us his only son to die in our place, rise from the dead, and bring us eternal life. Scripture says we love others because he first loved us (1 John 4:19), and ultimately, we will find great joy in living a generous life! 

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