How Much Money Should You Give God?

Bro. Arlou Gulles Requiroso  s.b.g.

 

For the most part, Christian teachers and even the Grace pastors/teachers and alike, have taken two approaches to giving. Either they talk about it constantly and make it the only measure of faith and blessing or they completely ignore the issue because they don't want to be accused of being a "money hungry preacher". Neither approach is proper. What is needed is a careful study of what God has to say about giving.

 

I.     GIVING  under the Dispensation of Law

In time past, under the law and kingdom economies, the amount of giving was specified in great detail. In the book of Deuteronomy God gave Israel a specific percentage for their giving.

A. During Moses but before Christ ( Tithes or 10% )

          Lev 27:30- ALL the TITHES of the land…

    31 -if you cannot give the 10 % or the tithe, you shall add 5 % of it the next time you give 

               tithes. It is very strict!

32 -Tithe of the herd or of the flock…

33 - you cannot change or swap whether the herd/flock be good or bad, but

34 - if you change or swap, both it and the change cannot be redeemed for it is holy unto the Lord.

Deut 14:22,27,28 Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. . . . And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. . . . At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year , and shalt lay it up within thy gates:

Notice that aside from 10% which they will give during Sabbaths, they were obliged to give 10% year by year until the third year. By the third year, it is not only 10% but 30%!

B. During Christ and the Twelve Apostles ( requires 100% )

As the kingdom is presented as being "at hand" in the earthly ministry of Christ and early Acts, the level of giving is increased dramatically.

Mat 19:21Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

Luke 12:32,33a Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell that ye have, and give alms:...

Acts 2:44,45 And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.

Acts 4:31-32, 37 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common. Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet.

 

While the amount of giving in these two circumstances is different, it is clear that in each instance the specific amount was plainly spelled out. There could be no misunderstanding about the amount of giving God demanded under the law and kingdom programs. And, as we saw in the last section, those requirements were enforced with some very severe punishments if they were not met.

               Mal 3:4         - it speaks about Judah and Israel.

6                         - …Sons of Jacob” referring to the nation Israel or the 12 tribes of Israel.

8                 - …they robbed God in Tithes and Offerings…

9                 - “ Ye are cursed with a curse for ye have robbed me”

10           - Bring ye ALL the TITHES ( not only money but everything that they have )

 

Deut 6:2        - …that thou mightest FEAR the Lord thy God….that thy days may be prolonged.”

13                    - …that thou shalt FEAR the Lord thy God

15- If you DON’T OBEY…I will destroy thee from the face of the earth.

 

Acts 5:1-10   - Story of Ananias and Saphira about robbing God in keeping part of the price. Ananias & Saphira die because they robbed God.

 

Acts 5:11      - And GREAT FEAR came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.

                *MOTIVATION: by FEAR

 

 

II.             GIVING under the Dispensation of Grace

 

Acts 20:35…it is more blessed to give than to receive.

 

2 Cor 5:14 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

2 Cor 8:8 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.

1 Cor 13:13    - the greatest is CHARITY or LOVE

*MOTIVATION: by LOVE

 

Eph 1:3         - Blessed with all spiritual blessings….

 

2 Cor 9:6       - The principle of Sowing and Reaping

       7     - …Give according as he purposeth in his heart…for God LOVETH a cheerful giver

             8     - The result of Grace Giving

Notice that in the above passage, Paul tells us that we are to purpose in our hearts. That means that we should prayerfully consider how much we can give to the Lord's work, just as we would consider any other financial commitment that we would make.

Our giving should be with a plan and a purpose, not based on how much we happen to have in our wallet on Sunday morning. Notice also that our giving is to be cheerful. You should give God as much as you can give Him and still have a cheerful attitude about it. If you can give P100 cheerfully, but you begrudge the 101st peso then you should stop at P100. It is far better to give P100 with the proper attitude than P1,000,000 with a grudging heart.

Finally, we must remember that we will reap in direct proportion to where we sow. If we "invest" in spiritual things we will reap eternal, spiritual reward.

If we spend our money on corruptible things they, like all the rest of the world, will one day melt with a fervent heat. The amount or our giving in the Age of Grace is not governed by a specific regulation, as it was under the law and kingdom economies. The amount of our giving today is based upon the principles of grace revealed to us in Paul's epistles.