Latest / INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living / A Needed Return to Joyful Generosity

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A Needed Return to Joyful Generosity · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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Speaker 1: It occurred to me recently that it has been since
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Speaker 1: we began this church, if you can believe that, that
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Speaker 1: I have not once really addressed the whole subject of giving.
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Speaker 1: I know that's been a vast disappointment to many of
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Speaker 1: you who've longed for a series of messages on that subject.
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Speaker 1: But seriously, I feel I've been derelict in my duty.
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Speaker 1: My responsibility as your shepherd, just as parents with their
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Speaker 1: children must address things that need to be known. There
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Speaker 1: are a number of you who need to know the
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Speaker 1: value of your, what Christians call, your stewardship. the way
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Speaker 1: you set aside for the Lord an amount of money
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Speaker 1: that you choose to give to his work. I fully
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Speaker 1: realize that much of our giving goes to ministries other
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Speaker 1: than the church. However, I do know that the very
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Speaker 1: first place where we should be giving the maximum of
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Speaker 1: our gift should be the local church. Because you have
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Speaker 1: always been models, and I really mean this, of generosity,
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Speaker 1: I've rarely felt the need for this. However, in recent months,
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Speaker 1: we've noticed a downturn and realized that there are many
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Speaker 1: of you who worship regularly here who do not give
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Speaker 1: to the work of this ministry. That's not meant as
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Speaker 1: an embarrassing rebuke. It's a fact. And it's my responsibility
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Speaker 1: to challenge you in that area. Then it is your
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Speaker 1: responsibility to do as God leads you. And I'm grateful
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Speaker 1: that His Spirit is at work and will use this
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Speaker 1: very brief series on the subject of giving to prompt
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Speaker 1: you who regularly ask receive benefit from this ministry to
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Speaker 1: realize the importance of giving to it. And so for
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Speaker 1: the next few Sundays, I will be addressing the subject,
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Speaker 1: and today we begin. I'd like you to take the
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Speaker 1: outline that I have provided in the worship folder and
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Speaker 1: place it in a section I'll not be reading in
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Speaker 1: this scripture reading time, but will later refer to it.
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Speaker 1: Acts chapter 20, when you locate that chapter, just slide
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Speaker 1: the outline in there, and that's where we will begin
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Speaker 1: for the series. And I mean this in the right
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Speaker 1: sense of it. Do take these words personally. These are
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Speaker 1: not words addressed to someone sitting around you. These are
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Speaker 1: words for you. And just as I deal with my
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Speaker 1: own heart in preparing messages, often tell people I speak
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Speaker 1: on what I need to hear and then I let
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Speaker 1: you listen in, if you will, today and these next
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Speaker 1: several Sundays will be no exception. I should be a
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Speaker 1: model of what I preach and I desire to be
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Speaker 1: that and hopefully the Lord will stir up within me
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Speaker 1: to give even more than we regularly give. What you
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Speaker 1: give is between you and the Lord, but it is
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Speaker 1: a vital part of your walk with Christ to participate
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Speaker 1: in the realm of your discipline of giving. It takes planning, thinking, prayer,
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Speaker 1: and then acting. In some of your cases, acting on
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Speaker 1: the basis of faith because you haven't much. So hopefully
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Speaker 1: the things I have to say will minister to every
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Speaker 1: one of us, no one excluded in that. Locate, if
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Speaker 1: you will, 2 Corinthians chapter 8. I'll be reading a
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Speaker 1: few verses from that chapter and then chapter 9 before
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Speaker 1: we have this morning prayer and our morning offering. 2
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Speaker 1: Corinthians 8 Verse 6, when you've located that, please stand
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Speaker 1: together for the reading of God's Word. 2 Corinthians 8, 6,
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Speaker 1: I'm reading from the New Living Translation. So we have
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Speaker 1: urged Titus, who encouraged your giving in the first place,
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Speaker 1: to return to you and encourage you to finish this
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Speaker 1: ministry of giving. Since you excel in so many ways
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Speaker 1: in your faith, your gifted speakers, your knowledge, your enthusiasm,
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Speaker 1: and your love from us, I want you to excel
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Speaker 1: in this gracious act of giving. I'm not commanding you
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Speaker 1: to do this, but I'm testing how genuine your love
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Speaker 1: is by comparing it with the eagerness of the other churches.
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Speaker 1: You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Speaker 1: Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became
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Speaker 1: poor so that by his poverty he could make you rich.
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Speaker 1: And then chapter 9, verse 7. You must each decide
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Speaker 1: in your heart how much to give. And don't give
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Speaker 1: reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a
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Speaker 1: person who gives cheerfully. And God will generously provide all
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Speaker 1: you need, then you will always have everything you need
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Speaker 1: and plenty left over to share with others. Verse 15,
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Speaker 1: thank God for this gift too wonderful for words. You
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Speaker 1: may be seated. Before the morning offering, may we bow
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Speaker 1: together for prayer. How faithful you are, our Father, to
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Speaker 1: change the times and the seasons. How good you are
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Speaker 1: to us to give us breath in our lungs, the
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Speaker 1: pulse beat in our hearts, minds and brains that are active,
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Speaker 1: eyes that see, ears that hear, tongues that make it
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Speaker 1: possible for us to speak, Hands to move in our
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Speaker 1: work and feet to take us to where we're going.
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Speaker 1: How good you are to us, Lord, in every way.
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Speaker 1: Teach us, our Father, through your constant giving, the value
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Speaker 1: of our learning the same from you. Make this a
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Speaker 1: very special time of growing and learning together. And I
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Speaker 1: pray that you will create within us an enormous spirit
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Speaker 1: of generosity and heartfelt delight in participating in this way.
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Speaker 1: May we be a model in the years to come
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Speaker 1: of a church that understands needs and responds to meet them.
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Speaker 1: So bless this series, I pray. And use it effectively.
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Speaker 1: In all our lives. Beginning with mine. Now Lord I
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Speaker 1: pray that you will use the offering that is given
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Speaker 1: this morning. For your purposes. For your glory. To sustain
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Speaker 1: your work. Especially as it goes beyond our own walls.
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Speaker 1: And moves into communities. and other states, and other nations
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Speaker 1: beyond our shores, some of which are facing extremely difficult times.
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Speaker 1: Remind us again and again, Lord, that apart from your grace,
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Speaker 1: we cannot continue. So we lean hard upon that. May
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Speaker 1: it come through loudly and clearly as we walk with
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Speaker 1: you and obey you. These offerings are yours and we
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Speaker 1: give them joyfully in the name of Christ and in
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Speaker 1: that name we pray. Everyone said amen. Not everything Jesus
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Speaker 1: said or did was recorded for us in the scriptures.
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Speaker 1: Matter of fact, John tells us that most of the
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Speaker 1: things that he either said or did are not recorded.
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Speaker 1: So it would be interesting to do a study through
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Speaker 1: the scriptures of various sayings that those who followed him
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Speaker 1: picked up. Sayings. We have an interesting colloquialism. I'm just saying.
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Speaker 1: This is just a thought. And sometimes we we have
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Speaker 1: sayings that we repeat. I remember to this day some
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Speaker 1: of my grandfather's sayings. Don't slam the door. That was
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Speaker 1: one of his sayings that he would say. Or my father's,
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Speaker 1: sit up straight, speak up. Now I'll learn that one,
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Speaker 1: that speaking up part. You know, there are sayings of
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Speaker 1: Jesus that that kind of quietly appear and then slip away.
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Speaker 1: And because they're not something we can locate in one
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Speaker 1: of the Gospels or some other part of the Bible,
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Speaker 1: we tend not to connect them to the Bible. For example,
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Speaker 1: we have a saying, it's better to give than to receive.
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Speaker 1: And we pass that along to the children when we
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Speaker 1: rear them and to one another when giving is difficult.
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Speaker 1: And you may not know it, but that is a
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Speaker 1: saying of Jesus that appears in Acts chapter 20, verse 35.
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Speaker 1: The speaker is Paul, who told them earlier, I have
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Speaker 1: not coveted any of your silver or gold or fine clothing,
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Speaker 1: verse 33. But he said, you will learn what it
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Speaker 1: means to work hard by looking at my example. And
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Speaker 1: then he adds this, very unusual. You should remember the
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Speaker 1: words of the Lord Jesus. It's more blessed to give
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Speaker 1: than to receive. And you know what? You can check
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Speaker 1: all four gospel writers. You can have a concordance that
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Speaker 1: lists all the words in the Bible and and trace
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Speaker 1: any one of those words, and you will not find
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Speaker 1: one reference in Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John where Jesus
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Speaker 1: said this. It's a saying. I rather believe that it
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Speaker 1: was one of those things he said rather often. And
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Speaker 1: the apostle when writing, or Luke when writing this book
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Speaker 1: of Acts, and referring to the words of Paul as
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Speaker 1: he's saying goodbye to a group of elders from Ephesus,
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Speaker 1: brought it to mind because it had been passed along
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Speaker 1: to Paul from those who had walked with Jesus when
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Speaker 1: he was on earth and they were among his 12.
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Speaker 1: You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus saying,
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Speaker 1: You ever thought about these words? It is more blessed
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Speaker 1: to give than to receive. I would imagine somewhat frequently
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Speaker 1: Jesus would make this statement. Don't forget, it's more blessed
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Speaker 1: to give than to receive when he's with his disciples. Remember, men,
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Speaker 1: you're happier when you give than when you get. You're
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Speaker 1: more blessed if you give than if you receive. I
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Speaker 1: love the statement not only because it is true, but
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Speaker 1: because he connects it with happiness. Eugene Peterson in The
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Speaker 1: Message handles this rather well. You're far happier giving than getting.
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Speaker 1: I happen to think that's one of the reasons Christmas
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Speaker 1: is such fun for everyone. After it's all said and
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Speaker 1: done and we're involved in the sharing of our gifts
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Speaker 1: around the tree or wherever you delight in doing that,
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Speaker 1: the joy I often find is in watching the one
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Speaker 1: who has wrapped the gift. One of our four, Carissa,
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Speaker 1: our older daughter, used to take such delight in that
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Speaker 1: And I would watch her out of the corner of
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Speaker 1: my eye because she had wrapped the gift she wanted
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Speaker 1: somebody in the family to get. And she's over there going.
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Speaker 1: And the person's unwrapping the gift. We always know this
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Speaker 1: is from Carissa, this gift. Why? Because she found greater
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Speaker 1: delight in the giving than the one who had received
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Speaker 1: the gift. That's a biblical statement. In fact, if you
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Speaker 1: take the word literally for what it means, blessed is
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Speaker 1: the word that is frequently rendered happy. Happier is the
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Speaker 1: giver than the getter. You've learned that, haven't you, as
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Speaker 1: an adult? You find when you have thought through something
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Speaker 1: that would mean a lot to someone else, that in life,
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Speaker 1: releasing that is a lot more fun than keeping it.
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Speaker 1: Or letting go is a lot more enjoyable than accumulating.
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Speaker 1: Being a generous person is far more fulfilling, and I
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Speaker 1: might add rewarding, than being a selfish person. Now, turn
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Speaker 1: from Acts 20, verse 35, over to this passage. seventh
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Speaker 1: verse in 2 Corinthians chapter 9. And there's a whole
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Speaker 1: historical setting that you'll miss if you just read the
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Speaker 1: verse and then go on about your life. The background
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Speaker 1: of this verse is in a context of two full
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Speaker 1: chapters where the Apostle Paul, who writes the letter to
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Speaker 1: the people of Corinth, is stirring them up, is reminding
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Speaker 1: them that A good word would be encouraging them to
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Speaker 1: complete something they said a year ago that they would do.
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Speaker 1: What's this all about? Well, you have to understand, first
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Speaker 1: of all, two different churches. There's a church in Greece
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Speaker 1: named the Corinthian Church. The believers in that church are
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Speaker 1: addressed in this second letter and the first as well,
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Speaker 1: of course. the Corinthian church, and then there is this
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Speaker 1: church far, far away, east, southeast of Corinth, in the
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Speaker 1: land of Israel, in the city of Jerusalem. Jerusalem, obviously,
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Speaker 1: is in Israel, or called by many in those days
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Speaker 1: under the Romans, Palestine, though Jews do not like their
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Speaker 1: land called that, which is why we refer to it
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Speaker 1: as Israel. And The church in Jerusalem is older and
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Speaker 1: has gone through stages of growth and greatness and is
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Speaker 1: now on hard times. They're hurting in this older church.
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Speaker 1: The church at Corinth is doing well. In fact, it's
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Speaker 1: a church that's rich in many ways, rich in giftedness,
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Speaker 1: rich among the churches with speakers that could teach, rich
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Speaker 1: in possessions, they would be what we would call a
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Speaker 1: prosperous church. So Paul writes to these prosperous believers in Corinth,
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Speaker 1: and he reminds them of a commitment they made a
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Speaker 1: year earlier, that they wanted to give an offering to
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Speaker 1: the church in Jerusalem and let that be an encouragement
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Speaker 1: to those believers who who really were fighting for survival.
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Speaker 1: So the eighth and ninth chapters revolve around that subject
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Speaker 1: between these two churches in these cities. Now, there are
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Speaker 1: two words worth noting in verse seven of chapter nine of,
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Speaker 1: be sure you're in second Corinthians, not first. In second
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Speaker 1: Corinthians nine, seven, this is kind of the summing up
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Speaker 1: principle that Paul would leave with us and with the
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Speaker 1: Corinthians and all people who are followers of Jesus, you
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Speaker 1: must decide, you must each decide in your heart how
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Speaker 1: much to give. Now, in the context, he's referring to
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Speaker 1: giving to this need in the church in Jerusalem. For us,
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Speaker 1: it applies to the general principle. of giving. You must
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Speaker 1: make the decision. You will find that a good place
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Speaker 1: to start is with a tithe. A 10% going to
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Speaker 1: the Lord is a fair amount. It's the one mentioned
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Speaker 1: often in the Old Testament. But you're free to go
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Speaker 1: beyond that. But that's a good starting point. You have
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Speaker 1: to determine how much you should give. Now read on.
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Speaker 1: Don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God
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Speaker 1: loves a person who gives cheerfully. See the opposite words?
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Speaker 1: Look at them. Both of them are right here. They're
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Speaker 1: both adverbs, if you will, reluctantly and cheerfully. They're for
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Speaker 1: the purpose of drawing an opposite mind or meaning. Reluctantly
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Speaker 1: is to give with hesitation, to give grudgingly, or as
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Speaker 1: we often say, with your teeth gritted, okay. Okay. Kind
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Speaker 1: of like when it's your turn to do the dishes
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Speaker 1: and you're growing up. Okay. That's reluctantly. That's grudgingly. Don't
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Speaker 1: give like that. If that's your feeling, don't give. Don't give.
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Speaker 1: Because God loves a person who gives. Look at this word.
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Speaker 1: Think of the word that the Greek word might refer to. Hilaros. Hilaros. Hilarious.
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Speaker 1: The only time in all the New Testament this word appears.
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Speaker 1: One time only, and it's found right here. I think
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Speaker 1: that's significant. It isn't what you receive, it's what you
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Speaker 1: release that is significant. God loves it when we do that.
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Speaker 1: God loves it when we have grown up enough in
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Speaker 1: the faith to see I'll mention this again in later days.
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Speaker 1: He owns it all. We don't own this part and
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Speaker 1: then God has this part. Everything we have comes from him.
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Speaker 1: The very breath in our lungs. This invisible beat in
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Speaker 1: our hearts that keeps it going. The ability to see,
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Speaker 1: to hear, to taste, to smell, to touch. to walk,
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Speaker 1: to handle. These are all from the Lord who cheerfully
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Speaker 1: gives to us and he loves it when we follow
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Speaker 1: his model and we give cheerfully. It literally means truly happy,
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Speaker 1: genuinely glad to do it. I've often thought how fun
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Speaker 1: it would be if every once in a while in
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Speaker 1: an offering just a laughter would break out Honestly, in
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Speaker 1: all these years, I've never heard that, but I'm thinking
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Speaker 1: it would be fun to hear that. Somebody with great
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Speaker 1: delight gives with that kind of hilarity. You can't think
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Speaker 1: of hilarious without smiling. Not just happily, but hilariously. That's
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Speaker 1: the idea, and the Lord loves it. Now, it's not
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Speaker 1: just your money. Let's make it very clear. You give
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Speaker 1: your time to the some phase of the work of
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Speaker 1: the Lord, you get the great benefit, the great hilarious
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Speaker 1: joy of giving of your time. We who give our
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Speaker 1: service to the Lord. I can tell you, I don't
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Speaker 1: usually sleep real late on Sunday morning. I'm up early
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Speaker 1: because my heart is stirred, and I honestly can't as
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Speaker 1: I'm laying there trying to tell myself I should stay
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Speaker 1: in bed beyond four o'clock. I should stay here, but
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Speaker 1: I usually can't. I cannot wait for the joy of
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Speaker 1: giving my service to the Lord's work and doing what
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Speaker 1: I do. It would include giving of our giftedness. If
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Speaker 1: you happen to be gifted in music, when you give
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Speaker 1: your gift of music, then you are you're encouraged, certainly
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Speaker 1: would include our possessions, our money, compassion, and other things.
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Speaker 1: Someone has written, anything we give, money, time, talent, service,
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Speaker 1: can be pulled from us like stubborn weeds, or we
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Speaker 1: can let them blossom naturally from a joyful heart. And
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Speaker 1: it's so true. He loves it when he sees that
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Speaker 1: kind of hilarious response on our part. Now, I was thinking,
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Speaker 1: how do I motivate everyone to see this as it
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Speaker 1: unfolded in the days of the Bible? A few examples
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Speaker 1: came to my mind, and knowing our time was short,
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Speaker 1: I would limit it to a couple of examples in
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Speaker 1: the Old Testament and a couple of quick ones in
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Speaker 1: the New Testament. And so to illustrate that, go back
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Speaker 1: to the book of Exodus and find chapter 25. Exodus 25.
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Speaker 1: You know, it's interesting when you travel to the land
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Speaker 1: of Israel, you will often see the name, it's in Hebrew,
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Speaker 1: of course, Exodus. Exodus. It means exit. Exit. You're on
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Speaker 1: a road and there's an Exodus sign. Exodus, we have
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Speaker 1: transliterated from the Greek, from the Hebrew, actually it's a
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Speaker 1: Hebrew word, and it means to go out, to exit.
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Speaker 1: So this is a book that covers the Hebrews under
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Speaker 1: Moses' leadership as they exit Egypt. So here we are,
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Speaker 1: chapter 25, in the middle of wilderness, and the Lord
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Speaker 1: is going to reveal to the leader, Moses, his plan
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Speaker 1: for a place of worship. It'll be a temporary house
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Speaker 1: of worship that will be carried along with the people
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Speaker 1: on the journey toward the promised land. They've left Egypt
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Speaker 1: and They're going toward Canaan. And along the way, the
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Speaker 1: Lord says, I want to have a place where the
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Speaker 1: people can meet with me as they worship me. So
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Speaker 1: that's what chapter 25 begins to talk about. Naturally, that
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Speaker 1: will take offerings. Look at this. The Lord said to Moses,
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Speaker 1: tell the people of Israel to bring me their sacred offerings.
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Speaker 1: Accept the contributions from all whose hearts are moved to
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Speaker 1: offer them. Look at that. not grudgingly, not of necessity,
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Speaker 1: but whose hearts are moved to offer their offerings. Here's
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Speaker 1: a list of sacred offerings you may accept from them.
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Speaker 1: And if you read on, I won't, but if you
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Speaker 1: were to read on through the rest of verse three,
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Speaker 1: all the way down through verse seven, you'll read all
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Speaker 1: kinds of things that they had with them. Now, wait
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Speaker 1: a minute. They're in the middle of the wilderness. They
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Speaker 1: have just left, well, recently left Egypt, and they've got
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Speaker 1: all of these things with them. Where'd they get them?
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Speaker 1: They ripped off the Egyptians. That's where they got them.
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Speaker 1: When they took off, they took things with them. Of course.
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Speaker 1: And so along the way, they've got all of these things.
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Speaker 1: The Lord knew exactly what he had in mind. He
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Speaker 1: didn't tell Moses. But when they took those things from Egypt,
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Speaker 1: in the back of the Lord's mind was, I've got
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Speaker 1: a plan. He always does. And now he's saying, this
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Speaker 1: is where I want them to use those gifts. So
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Speaker 1: tell them as they're moved in their hearts to give,
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Speaker 1: to give from what they have. Now go to chapter 35. Okay,
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Speaker 1: let's go from 25 to 35 in verse five. Take
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Speaker 1: a sacred offering for the Lord. let those, look at this,
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Speaker 1: with generous hearts present the following gifts to the Lord.
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Speaker 1: And there he goes. He names them again, different ones
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Speaker 1: and some of the same. Let them give those gifts
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Speaker 1: to me. And you can read down through verse 10.
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Speaker 1: You will see there were those. In verse 10, please notice,
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Speaker 1: come all of you who are gifted craftsmen. So these
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Speaker 1: are people who give of their talent, their ability to
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Speaker 1: do the work of craftsmen, construct everything the Lord has commanded.
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Speaker 1: He tells them how to build this house of worship
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Speaker 1: in the wilderness called the tabernacle. Okay, look at 35
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Speaker 1: verse 20. So the whole community of of Israel left
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Speaker 1: Moses and returned to their tents. Please observe. While in
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Speaker 1: their tent, they determined what they should give. All whose
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Speaker 1: hearts were stirred and whose spirits were moved came and
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Speaker 1: brought their sacred offerings to the Lord. Ties in with
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Speaker 1: the principle of of 2 Corinthians 9, 7. Not grudgingly
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Speaker 1: or of necessity, they are moved to give. Verse 22,
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Speaker 1: both men and women came, all whose hearts are willing.
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Speaker 1: Verse 23, all those who own the following items willingly
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Speaker 1: brought them. Verse 29, so the people of Israel, every
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Speaker 1: man and woman who was eager to help in the
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Speaker 1: work The Lord had given them through Moses. So you
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Speaker 1: see it over and over, willingly, willingly, all who were eager,
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Speaker 1: those who were happy to do so. And there's a
30:37
Speaker 1: sense of hilarity wrapped around it. Now look at 36,
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Speaker 1: beginning at verse 1. The Lord has gifted Bezalel and
30:47
Speaker 1: Aholiab and the other skilled craftsmen with wisdom and ability
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Speaker 1: to perform any task. Verse 2, Moses summoned Bezalel and
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Speaker 1: Aholiab and all the others who were specially gifted and
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Speaker 1: were eager to get to work. If you love to
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Speaker 1: work with your hands, you'll identify with those two men.
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Speaker 1: They are craftsmen who worked with their hands whom the
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Speaker 1: Lord used in the building of the tabernacle. Look at
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Speaker 1: the end of verse 3. The people continued to bring
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Speaker 1: additional gifts each morning and Finally, the craftsmen who were
31:24
Speaker 1: working in the sanctuary left their work. They went to
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Speaker 1: Moses and they reported. Now here you're going to read
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Speaker 1: something amazing. The people have given more than enough. Look
31:38
Speaker 1: at that. The people have given more than enough materials
31:42
Speaker 1: to complete the job the Lord has commanded us to do.
31:46
Speaker 1: Now look at Moses' response. Moses gave the command to
31:52
Speaker 1: this message was sent throughout the camp. Men and women,
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Speaker 1: don't prepare any more gifts for the sanctuary. We have enough.
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Speaker 1: Let me see one hand of anybody who ever heard
32:07
Speaker 1: a preacher say that. You don't hear us say that. Why?
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Speaker 1: Because we rarely have enough. But he's saying here, we've
32:16
Speaker 1: got enough. Stop them. We don't need more onyx. We
32:20
Speaker 1: don't need more gold. We don't need more bronze. We've
32:23
Speaker 1: got plenty to work with. We don't need any more.
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Speaker 1: And so look at this. The people stopped bringing their offerings.
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Speaker 1: Their contributions were more than enough to complete the whole project.
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Speaker 1: I just love that statement. More than enough. What a
32:42
Speaker 1: pleasure it is, and on occasion. I was facetious earlier.
32:46
Speaker 1: Every once in a while, we'll say that's more than enough.
32:50
Speaker 1: We took an offering for the needs for our special
32:55
Speaker 1: needs children and young adults, and we needed equipment for
33:00
Speaker 1: the outside, you may recall. As I remember, we needed
33:03
Speaker 1: around $ 45, 000, $ 50, 000, and you didn't stop giving until you
33:07
Speaker 1: gave over $ 100, 000. It took me a while to say
33:10
Speaker 1: that's enough, but I did finally say that. Those aren't
33:15
Speaker 1: words I'm used to using, and so I'm having fun
33:20
Speaker 1: with you. That brought me to tears. When I was
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Speaker 1: in my study and somebody brought a note to me
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Speaker 1: and said, are you aware of what our church has given?
33:30
Speaker 1: I thought immediately of Exodus 36. It's more than enough.
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Speaker 1: You are often models of that. What you are not
33:38
Speaker 1: models of is regular giving to the regular offerings at
33:43
Speaker 1: the church. And you may think all the needs are
33:47
Speaker 1: met because I don't harass you. You go to many
33:50
Speaker 1: churches and you're constantly, constantly cornered, told you need to give,
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Speaker 1: you need to increase your gift, you need to give
33:56
Speaker 1: more and more. And here, we're careful not to go there,
34:00
Speaker 1: but I probably have gone too far in the other direction.
34:04
Speaker 1: And I I owe you an apology. Some of you
34:08
Speaker 1: are reluctant to call it an apology, but I mean
34:11
Speaker 1: it sincerely. My responsibility is to prompt you to do
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Speaker 1: what the Lord is leading you to do, not to
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Speaker 1: hold you back. And I believe if we gave as
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Speaker 1: fully as we're capable of giving, I could say rather often,
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Speaker 1: that's enough. And I would say that. When we come
34:31
Speaker 1: to the place that we are in that kind of abundance. Now,
34:35
Speaker 1: it's not only, it isn't only money. As we said earlier.
34:40
Speaker 1: Turn from Exodus to Nehemiah. Okay? Whip over to Nehemiah.
34:47
Speaker 1: It's been a long time, hasn't it? Nehemiah is the
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Speaker 1: man who leads the project for rebuilding a wall around
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Speaker 1: the city of, the old city of Jerusalem to protect it.
34:58
Speaker 1: When they got back after they'd been in exile, there
35:02
Speaker 1: was not a wall that had been torn down and
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Speaker 1: the enemy was able to come in and go out
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Speaker 1: and had access to the city. So a city needed walls,
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Speaker 1: just like your house needs the doors and locks. A
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Speaker 1: city in ancient days needed a wall and gates and
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Speaker 1: gates that were guarded. So there is no wall. So
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Speaker 1: Nehemiah writes this book that tells the story of how
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Speaker 1: God led him to lead in the building of a
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Speaker 1: wall around the city of Jerusalem. And chapter 2, verse 15,
35:37
Speaker 1: picks up the story. Though it was still dark, I
35:41
Speaker 1: went up to the Kidron Valley instead, inspecting the wall
35:45
Speaker 1: before I turned back and entered again at the valley gate.
35:49
Speaker 1: The city officials did not know I'd been out there
35:52
Speaker 1: or what I was doing, for I had not yet
35:54
Speaker 1: said anything to anyone about my plans. and had not
35:58
Speaker 1: yet spoken to the Jewish leaders, the priests, the nobles,
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Speaker 1: the officials, anyone else in the administration. And now I
36:05
Speaker 1: said to them, you know very well what trouble we
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Speaker 1: are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins and its gates have
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Speaker 1: been destroyed by fire. Now look at the statement. Let
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Speaker 1: us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace.
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Speaker 1: He's talking to people who are not stonemasons. People who
36:28
Speaker 1: have not worked with their hands for the most part.
36:31
Speaker 1: And he's telling them, let's give this as an offering
36:34
Speaker 1: to the Lord. Let's learn that ability to do it
36:37
Speaker 1: and let's work together and lay those stones. He told him,
36:40
Speaker 1: verse 18, I told him about how gracious the hand
36:44
Speaker 1: of God had been on me and about my conversation
36:47
Speaker 1: with the king. Look at this response. Yes, let's rebuild
36:53
Speaker 1: the wall. So they began the good work. The project
36:59
Speaker 1: was not without its problems and without those who didn't
37:03
Speaker 1: want it built. But you get to chapter 4, verse 6,
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Speaker 1: and you reach a milestone. See Nehemiah 4, 6, at
37:12
Speaker 1: last the wall was completed to half its height. So
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Speaker 1: Nehemiah's telling us about the building of the wall. It's
37:19
Speaker 1: come halfway up. Why was it true? Because the people
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Speaker 1: had worked with enthusiasm. There was no grudging giving. There
37:28
Speaker 1: was no reluctance. They wanted to build that wall. They
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Speaker 1: wanted their city protected. Now go from there to chapter 6,
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Speaker 1: verse 15. So on October the 2nd, the wall was
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Speaker 1: finished just 52 days after we had begun. And of course,
37:48
Speaker 1: when the enemies saw it, they were frightened, and that's
37:51
Speaker 1: another story I'll not get into. I want you to
37:54
Speaker 1: see the rejoicing that follows. Chapter 12, verse 27. For
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Speaker 1: the dedication of the new wall of Jerusalem, the Levites
38:09
Speaker 1: throughout the land were asked to come to Jerusalem to
38:12
Speaker 1: assist in the ceremonies. Look closely. They were to take
38:17
Speaker 1: part in the joyous occasion. Note the word. the joyous
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Speaker 1: occasion with their songs of thanksgiving, with the music of
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Speaker 1: cymbals and harps and lyres. So they came and they
38:30
Speaker 1: brought the singers and they rejoiced over the accomplishment that
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Speaker 1: God had made possible. Look at verse 40. There were
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Speaker 1: two choirs that were giving thanks and then proceeded to
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Speaker 1: the temple of God where they took their places. and
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Speaker 1: Nehemiah went with them. Look at verse 43. Many sacrifices
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Speaker 1: were offered on that joyous day, for God had given
38:56
Speaker 1: the people cause for great joy. The women and children
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Speaker 1: participated in the celebration, and the joy of the people
39:03
Speaker 1: of Jerusalem could be heard far away. Isn't that a
39:09
Speaker 1: wonderful example? We saw it in Exodus where they built
39:12
Speaker 1: the tabernacle and the people had a desire to give
39:15
Speaker 1: and they gave of the possessions they'd gotten out of Egypt.
39:18
Speaker 1: And here they had the desire to build a wall
39:21
Speaker 1: and they give of their time and energy and in
39:23
Speaker 1: 52 days they build the wall and not long afterwards
39:26
Speaker 1: they celebrate the accomplishment of that. Look in the New
39:30
Speaker 1: Testament and I'm going to have you turn to Matthew
39:33
Speaker 1: chapter 2 and you're going to look at an example
39:36
Speaker 1: you probably haven't thought would represent joy but it did
39:42
Speaker 1: even though I've never seen a Christmas card that shows
39:44
Speaker 1: their faces smiling. Matthew chapter 2 is the story of
39:48
Speaker 1: the Magi. the wise men from the east. We don't
39:51
Speaker 1: know if there were three of them or eight of
39:54
Speaker 1: them or 12 or whatever because they brought three gifts.
39:58
Speaker 1: We think of them as the three wise men. There
40:01
Speaker 1: may have been more. Jesus was born in Bethlehem in
40:05
Speaker 1: Judea during the reign of King Herod. About that time,
40:08
Speaker 1: some of the men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem asking,
40:12
Speaker 1: where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw
40:14
Speaker 1: his star as it rose and we have come to
40:17
Speaker 1: worship him. Look at verse 10. Skip the other part
40:22
Speaker 1: and go to verse 10. When they saw the star,
40:28
Speaker 1: they were filled with joy. There it is. They saw
40:34
Speaker 1: the star and they're filled with joy. They entered the
40:40
Speaker 1: house and they saw the child with the mother Mary.
40:42
Speaker 1: They bowed down and worshiped him. They opened their treasure
40:45
Speaker 1: chests and they gave him gifts of gold and frankincense
40:49
Speaker 1: and myrrh. It's a whole festive setting where they're doing
40:54
Speaker 1: it with joy. And every picture we've ever seen of
40:58
Speaker 1: the wise men, they look like they're eating corn cob
41:01
Speaker 1: through a picket fence. But they're rejoicing. They're doing a
41:14
Speaker 1: Persian jig or something like that. You know, they're delighted
41:19
Speaker 1: in the fact that the star led them to the
41:23
Speaker 1: child and they had the opportunity to worship with their
41:27
Speaker 1: gifts that they had brought. We don't know what it
41:29
Speaker 1: was worth, but they were in some ways invaluable. If
41:35
Speaker 1: you take the time to trace gold, frankincense, and myrrh,
41:39
Speaker 1: you'll see a reason for each of the three given.
41:42
Speaker 1: And they, whether they knew the details of that or not,
41:45
Speaker 1: knew that that's what they had and that's what they
41:48
Speaker 1: wished to give. Now one more and we'll draw some
41:51
Speaker 1: principles and I'm through. Over in 2 Timothy chapter 1,
41:57
Speaker 1: turn there toward the end, Paul writing his last letter
42:02
Speaker 1: 2 Timothy, I'm asking you to change hats here. We
42:06
Speaker 1: were in the Exodus scene. We've been in Nehemiah. We
42:10
Speaker 1: saw the birth of Jesus as the child grew and
42:14
Speaker 1: they brought their gifts. Now we're all the way to
42:17
Speaker 1: the end of Paul's life. He's in a dungeon. He's chained.
42:24
Speaker 1: His days are numbered. We don't know how long he
42:27
Speaker 1: has before death. Some say months. Others say weeks. Some
42:32
Speaker 1: even say days. But he's in the Mamertine dungeon, and
42:36
Speaker 1: he mentions in verse 16 and following the name of
42:41
Speaker 1: a man who brought him great joy. Look, if you will,
42:46
Speaker 1: at verse 16 of 2 Timothy 1. May the Lord
42:52
Speaker 1: show special kindness to Onesiphorus. Looks like a misprint, doesn't it? Onesiphorus.
43:02
Speaker 1: When was the last time you heard that name? He's
43:05
Speaker 1: virtually unknown, at least to us. May the Lord show
43:11
Speaker 1: special kindness to Onesiphorus and all his family. Why? Because
43:18
Speaker 1: he often visited and encouraged me. He was never ashamed
43:26
Speaker 1: of me because I was in chains. When he came
43:32
Speaker 1: to Rome, he searched everywhere until he found me. May
43:38
Speaker 1: the Lord show him special kindness on the day of
43:42
Speaker 1: Christ's return. And you know very well how helpful he
43:46
Speaker 1: was in Ephesus, meaning the church in Ephesus. And suddenly
43:54
Speaker 1: we're brought to a kind of a brief vignette, just
44:00
Speaker 1: a little biographical sketch of a man like a meteor
44:04
Speaker 1: in the sky who appears and then passes away from
44:08
Speaker 1: the scene. But what joy he must have brought to
44:12
Speaker 1: Paul as he searched for him and found him. When
44:16
Speaker 1: you travel to Rome, I want to say again, ask
44:19
Speaker 1: your guide to lead you to the Mamertine prison where
44:22
Speaker 1: you're able to go down and see quite likely where
44:26
Speaker 1: Paul certainly was one just like it. Down below the
44:30
Speaker 1: surface of the of the street, down in what we
44:33
Speaker 1: would call a dungeon where Paul was living out his
44:36
Speaker 1: last days and his last hours. And Onesiphorus found him
44:43
Speaker 1: and ministered to him. I love the way Alexander White
44:49
Speaker 1: refers to him. Onesiphorus went about seeking for Paul day
44:56
Speaker 1: after day, week after week, often insulted, often threatened. often ill-used,
45:01
Speaker 1: sometimes arrested and detained, till he was set free again
45:05
Speaker 1: only after great suffering and great expense, till at last
45:10
Speaker 1: his arms were around Paul's neck and the two old
45:13
Speaker 1: men were kissing one another and weeping to the amazement
45:17
Speaker 1: of all the prisoners who saw the scene. Noble-hearted Onesiphorus,
45:24
Speaker 1: we bow before thee. What a coal of holy love
45:29
Speaker 1: must have burned in thy saintly bosom. Thou hast taught
45:34
Speaker 1: us all a much-needed lesson. For we also have friends,
45:38
Speaker 1: and especially in the ministry, whose backs are often at
45:42
Speaker 1: the wall, whose names are often under a cloud, who
45:47
Speaker 1: are forsaken of all men who should have stood with them.
45:50
Speaker 1: May we all come to be of thy vigilant and
45:55
Speaker 1: hospitable household. May we all have thy lifelong and unquenchable
46:01
Speaker 1: loyalty to all who suffer for righteousness' sake. If you've
46:08
Speaker 1: ever been cornered, if you've ever been in need of mercy,
46:12
Speaker 1: if you've ever been in prison, if you've ever known
46:16
Speaker 1: what it is to be in an impossible situation and
46:22
Speaker 1: had someone come to you to bring relief, you know
46:25
Speaker 1: at that moment, the spirit of joy that that brings,
46:30
Speaker 1: and the inestimable value of that person sacrificing time and
46:37
Speaker 1: attention to give to you. That's onesiphorous. And he's saying
46:43
Speaker 1: because of his mercy, my life became more bearable. Sometimes
46:48
Speaker 1: your giving is that kind of giving. And let me
46:51
Speaker 1: tell you ahead of time, you'll never have the time
46:57
Speaker 1: It'll never be easy for you to take the time
46:59
Speaker 1: to do what you should do on behalf of those
47:04
Speaker 1: in need. Whether they be someone you know in a
47:09
Speaker 1: prison or someone who's laid aside, someone who is in need,
47:16
Speaker 1: your presence is an act of giving that is in
47:22
Speaker 1: the realm of the hilarious giving. If you give it
47:25
Speaker 1: with the right... Now I want to give you four
47:30
Speaker 1: practical suggestions and then we're through. Here are some ways
47:34
Speaker 1: to make the giving more meaningful for you. I want
47:40
Speaker 1: you to write them down. First is the word reflect.
47:43
Speaker 1: Next is the word remind. Third is ask. And fourth
47:48
Speaker 1: is change. First, reflect. Reflect on God's numerous gifts to you.
47:58
Speaker 1: Just think about it. Where would you be today apart
48:04
Speaker 1: from the grace of God coming to you and rescuing you,
48:13
Speaker 1: encouraging you, providing that place of occupation, giving you that
48:19
Speaker 1: health that you have, providing a roof over your head,
48:25
Speaker 1: wheels to drive, family to love, friends to enjoy. Think
48:32
Speaker 1: of the gifts of God. Reflect there. Bless the Lord,
48:36
Speaker 1: O my soul, Psalm 103, and all that is within me,
48:39
Speaker 1: bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,
48:42
Speaker 1: and forget none of his benefits. Your giving will be
48:45
Speaker 1: enhanced when you start there. You think about what God
48:50
Speaker 1: has given to you. We're all eminently wealthy today. compared
48:57
Speaker 1: to the third world around us. All you have to
49:01
Speaker 1: do is travel abroad, and you will realize needs you've
49:06
Speaker 1: never encountered in these United States. Reflect there on God's
49:13
Speaker 1: numerous gifts. Second, remind. Remind yourself of his promise to
49:19
Speaker 1: reward generosity. He loves a cheerful giver. He blesses those
49:31
Speaker 1: who give willingly, voluntarily, without obligation. Remind yourself of his promises.
49:40
Speaker 1: to reward generosity. Here's the third, ask. Ask some probing
49:49
Speaker 1: questions as you think about the value of generosity. I'll
49:56
Speaker 1: give you a few examples. As I get older, am
50:02
Speaker 1: I becoming more generous or less? When I was little,
50:10
Speaker 1: I gave because my parents were there to teach me
50:12
Speaker 1: to give. Now that I'm older and on my own,
50:17
Speaker 1: am I more generous now that I'm on my own
50:20
Speaker 1: or less? Here's a second question. Does my giving match
50:28
Speaker 1: God's blessings? Not a question to bring guilt. It's a
50:33
Speaker 1: question to bring an evaluation. As you look at the blessings,
50:39
Speaker 1: You're giving a reflection of those kinds of blessings from God.
50:47
Speaker 1: Here's a third question. Have I prayed or is my
50:50
Speaker 1: giving all impulsive? Impulsive giving is fine. It's just not
50:57
Speaker 1: the kind the Lord encourages. Each person according as he
51:01
Speaker 1: purposes in his heart, not as he impulsively thinks about
51:06
Speaker 1: the need. So ponder these things. Change. Change whatever keeps
51:16
Speaker 1: you from being a generous follower of Jesus. Change whatever
51:25
Speaker 1: keeps you from being a generous follower of Jesus. You
51:33
Speaker 1: may simply have the habit of being afraid. I'm afraid
51:36
Speaker 1: if I give like I should, I'll run out. Rarely
51:41
Speaker 1: in my life have I ever met anyone who truly
51:44
Speaker 1: ran out because they gave too much. More often than not,
51:48
Speaker 1: those who give more than they did before find the
51:53
Speaker 1: blessings of God come in unusual and unexpected ways. The
52:05
Speaker 1: ideal model, of course, is the Lord Jesus himself. Back
52:08
Speaker 1: to where we started in 2 Corinthians chapter 9. Look
52:14
Speaker 1: at the very last verse. Thanks be to God for
52:20
Speaker 1: this gift too wonderful for words. Remember the words out
52:30
Speaker 1: of chapter 8. I think it's verse 7. Yes, 8-7 says,
52:40
Speaker 1: since you excel in so many ways, your faith, gifted speakers, knowledge, enthusiasm,
52:45
Speaker 1: I want you to excel also in this generous act
52:48
Speaker 1: of giving. That's what I want for you. I want
52:51
Speaker 1: you to know the joy of hilarious giving. And when
52:54
Speaker 1: God gave, he gave like that. He gave his own
52:57
Speaker 1: son a gift too wonderful for words. God's gift to us,
53:04
Speaker 1: generous beyond measure. not only the source of eternal life,
53:11
Speaker 1: but his one and only son. God's gift is an
53:18
Speaker 1: act of love fulfilled through sacrifice, motivated by joy, resulting
53:27
Speaker 1: in forgiveness and leading to a life of generosity. I
53:34
Speaker 1: want you to now listen in closing to the most
53:36
Speaker 1: familiar verse in the Bible. I want you to hear
53:39
Speaker 1: it through new ears because you know it. I won't
53:43
Speaker 1: even ask you to turn to it. You can say
53:47
Speaker 1: it with me. For God so loved the world that
53:52
Speaker 1: he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in
53:57
Speaker 1: him should not perish but have everlasting life. Now listen
54:04
Speaker 1: to this. For God, the greatest giver, so loved the
54:16
Speaker 1: greatest motive, the world, the greatest need, that he gave
54:25
Speaker 1: the greatest act, his one and only son, the greatest gift.
54:35
Speaker 1: That whosoever. The greatest invitation. Believes in him. The greatest response.
54:47
Speaker 1: Should not perish. The greatest deliverance. But have the greatest assurance.
54:56
Speaker 1: Everlasting life. The greatest. Possession. Isn't interesting the most. familiar
55:05
Speaker 1: verse in all the Bible is all about our giving God.
55:13
Speaker 1: Isn't that interesting? It's what characterizes God. Is it what
55:21
Speaker 1: characterizes you? Bow with me, please. Just quietly there, sit
55:36
Speaker 1: and close your eyes and think. First of all, am
55:49
Speaker 1: I truly a child of God? Do I name Christ
55:53
Speaker 1: as my own Savior and Lord? The answer is yes,
56:00
Speaker 1: we go on to the next. But if it's no,
56:03
Speaker 1: stop right there. Your great need today is not to
56:08
Speaker 1: give something to God. It's to receive his matchless gift.
56:16
Speaker 1: His one and only son. Whom he gave for you.
56:21
Speaker 1: He died that you might live. And he lives that
56:25
Speaker 1: you might learn how to live like he does. Now,
56:32
Speaker 1: if your answer is yes, I know the Lord. then
56:36
Speaker 1: you need to ask, how has this message spoken to me?
56:43
Speaker 1: What do I need to come to terms with? What
56:49
Speaker 1: do I need to change? How can I express to
57:00
Speaker 1: the living God the depth of my gratitude through my giving?
57:07
Speaker 1: Is it some service I should be involved in? Some
57:11
Speaker 1: act of generosity? Or is it something I possess that
57:18
Speaker 1: someone else needs and I should give to them? Or
57:25
Speaker 1: is it my money? Should that be revisited? Re-evaluated? So
57:36
Speaker 1: that my habit changes. And is your giving truly. Cheerful. Consistent.
57:53
Speaker 1: Does it represent his favor. And blessing in your life.
58:00
Speaker 1: If so that's magnificent. If not. You've got some homework
58:06
Speaker 1: to take care of. So some are here that are
58:12
Speaker 1: dealing with their souls, and if you've never trusted in Christ,
58:16
Speaker 1: that's your decision today to make. If you know the
58:19
Speaker 1: Lord and you find yourself being spoken to by the
58:26
Speaker 1: Spirit of God, please pay attention. Do as He's leading
58:34
Speaker 1: you to do. May it make a major difference, not
58:41
Speaker 1: only in the act of giving, but in the level
58:43
Speaker 1: of your joy, which you're missing. Thank you, Father, for
58:49
Speaker 1: the pleasure of your company through this message and for
58:52
Speaker 1: your help in communicating these delicate things. May they be
58:57
Speaker 1: understood clearly and applied wisely, generously, accurately, and well. We
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Speaker 1: give you thanks ahead of time for the way you
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Speaker 1: will use the message to prompt your people in this
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Speaker 1: area of stewardship. And we commit each of us to
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Speaker 1: you to guide us in the way we should go.
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Speaker 1: For we ask it in Christ's dear name. Everyone said. Amen.
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Speaker 2: The preceding message and needed return to joyful generosity was
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Speaker 2: copyrighted in 2015 and the sound recording was copyrighted in
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Speaker 2: 2016 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide.