Generosity vs Idolatry
PRINCIPLE: There Can Be No Significant Spiritual Growth Unless We Put Our Money and Our Attitude About Money Into God’s Hands.
Introduction
Haiti. Giving & response so far
- Americans donated more than $8 million via text message donations (as of Friday morning)
- On Friday $35 million had been donated from the US
Bob Bouwer’s comment:
Last night I watched some of the coverage of the earthquake on CNN, Fox, and the local news stations. They were speaking with leaders of Christian ministries already doing relief and mission work in Haiti. They were speaking to the director of World Vision, New Tribes Mission Agency, Save the Children and a few more. Only God knows the total "beforehand" missions and Christian relief agencies already on the ground. My own nephew is in Haiti on a short-term mission trip with his church. God sent him and his team at just the right time.
One other thing to ponder: I wonder if the atheist associations … have ministries on the ground helping the poor, the orphans, and the victims of this national disaster?
This tragic earthquake is a great opportunity to show the church's true colors and also the fact that America is still the most benevolent country in the world. May God bring glory to Himself through this terrible tragedy!
1. Generosity Is Easy to Bottle Up
How far does God’s generosity extend?
How far can it extend through us?
- Haitian Relief
- New Horizons
- Teen Runaways
- Breakfast 1/month
- Prostitutes and Human Trafficking
- 3 Friday Nights a month for 1 year
- The Pimps and Traffickers???
For me, I have a bottleneck in my generosity when it comes to the pimps and traffickers.
- I want to help the victims
- I want to feed people who are out on the streets
- But people who are taking advantage of others?
- The exploiters?
- That’s a different story
It’s not that I don’t want to spend my time and money to reach pimps for Jesus.
Part of me actively wants them to NOT be reached.
- I feel like the people being pushed around and used; the down-and-out… they are almost entitled to our best efforts.
- But the exploiters forfeit their rights to hear about Jesus.
- They are beyond the scope of forgiveness
- If I had a “get out of jail free” card to give away, I’d never give it to them.
And then I remember the Generosity of God.
“For you know 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.” (2 Corinthians 8:9, ESV)
ü I’ve given up my right to hear about Jesus too
- We all have
ü By rights, I’m beyond the scope of forgiveness
ü And God has every right to look at me and say, “Tim, if I had a million ‘get out of hell free cards’, I’d never give one to you.”
- I don’t deserve it
- I’ve only received God as a gift
- Unmerited Favor
- Pure Grace
- That’s the point
So when my heart wants to hold back help to this group of people, I’ve found a deep part of me that does not yet fully understand the Gospel.
“God Saves Sinners”
- That covers a sinner like me
- That covers you
- That covers the pimps and human traffickers too
I know that … but when it comes down to action I want to take my generosity and bottle it up.
Bottled up Generosity is also called “GREED”.
That’s the point Paul is making to the Corinthians.
- He isn’t writing these chapters to force them to give.
- He is writing to take the cork out of their generosity so that they can live up to the full measure of their faith.
v.8 - Participating in the relief of the saints is a way to “prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine.”
v.10 - A year ago you didn’t just begin this work (of giving), you desired to do it.
- There was a time, a year ago, when their generosity flowed freely.
- Now, for some reason, it’s been bottled up.
- Keeping generosity bottled up doesn’t just hurt the people who were expecting to receive money from you.
- God would provide through other people
- This is for your OWN GOOD.
- “And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it.” (2 Cor 8:10)
- “But thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same earnest care I have for you.” (2 Cor 8:16)
- “As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker for your benefit. And as for our brothers, they are messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ. ” (2 Cor 8:23)
Generosity or Greed is a key part of discerning your heart
“But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? ” (1 John 3:17, ESV)
Dictionary.com definition of Greed:
Excessive or rapacious desire, esp. for wealth or possessions.
My definition with Tahlia: Greed is wanting one more.
That might need to be tweaked a little.
- Wanting one more for me
- If necessary, wanting one less for you
- Wanting to expand my ability to possess beyond my needs for survival
- Finding pleasure in the amount of possessions
Greed is sneaky “be careful you are not greedy”
“And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” ” (Luke 12:15, ESV)
Jesus is saying that Greed, unlike other sins, can sneak in when we don’t expect it.
Why does it harm us when our generosity is bottled up?
Because Greed is more than a bad habit.
Greed is Idolatry.
2. Greed Is Idolatry
“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ” (Colossians 3:5, ESV)
“For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. ” (Ephesians 5:5, ESV)
Bottled Up Generosity Flies in the Face Of Jesus’ Life
“Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. ” (Philippians 2:4, ESV)
Jerry Bridges points out that greed (selfishness) doesn’t happen with our money.
- Greedy Conversations
- Talk about your own grandkids, problems, vacation, hopes
- Not let the other person get a word in edge-wise
- “A good test of the degree of selfishness (greed) in our interests would be to reflect on a conversation you just had and ask yourself how much time you spent talking about your own interests compared to listening to the other person.” (Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins)
- Greedy with Time
- Inconsiderate
- Talk loudly on cell phone
- Whistling loudly in one room while a meeting is in the same room
- Inconsiderate of other people’s feelings
Three Things We Do To Idols:
Love
Trust
Obey
3. The Gospel Can Change Greed Into Generosity
“By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission flowing from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others… ” (2 Corinthians 9:13, ESV)
9:13 – submission (to giving) flows from your confession of the gospel of Christ
- When you see Jesus dying to make you His treasure
- It’s suddenly understandable … and desirable … to make Him your treasure as well.
- And when that happens, money stops being your treasure / idol
- It suddenly becomes just money.
Keller:
“If you live for money you are a slave. If, however, God becomes the center of your life, that dethrones and demotes money. If your identity and security is in God, [money] can’t control you through worry and desire. It is one or the other. You either serve God, or you become open to slavery to Mammon.”
The Story of Zacchaeus
- Eager to See Jesus
- Outcast / Chief-Tax Collector
“Zacchaeus did not approach Jesus with pride but with humility. He did not stand on his dignity and wealth; instead he put aside his station in life and was willing to be ridiculed in order to get a glimpse of Jesus. Ultimately, it was not Zacchaeus who asked Jesus into his life, but Jesus who asked Zacchaeus into his.” (Tim Keller)
“And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” ” (Luke 19:8–10, ESV)
- Give away 50% of his income to the poor
- That’s a lot more than the normal 10%
- Keller’s answer when people ask him if they should tithe
- “No, you don’t have to tithe.” (sigh of relief)
- “I’ll tell you why I don’t see the tithing requirement laid out clearly in the New Testament. Think. Have we received more of God’s revelation, truth, and grace than the Old Testament believers, or less?”
- Uncomfortable silence
- “Are we more ‘debtors to grace’ than they were, or less?”
- “Did Jesus ‘tithe’ his life and blood to save us or did he give it all?”
- Zacchaeus also wanted to fix the cheating he’d done
- Mosaic law had a provision for this
- That’s a lot more than the normal 10%
“He shall also make restitution for what he has done amiss in the holy thing and shall add a fifth to it and give it to the priest. And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and he shall be forgiven. ” (Leviticus 5:16, ESV)
“he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. ” (Numbers 5:7, ESV)
- You had to pay back 20% interest
- But Zacchaeus said he’d pay it back “fourfold” (4x)
- That’s 300% interest
Jesus’ response “Today Salvation has come to this house.”
- Salvation didn’t come because Zacchaeus gave away so much of his money
- The fact that Zacchaeus’ attitude toward money had changed so radically
- That was PROOF of the fact that salvation had come to his house.
“… they will glorify God because of your submission [to giving] flowing from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others” (2 Corinthians 9:13, ESV)
PRINCIPLE: There Can Be No Significant Spiritual Growth Unless We Put Our Money and Our Attitude About Money Into God’s Hands.