Your money and Your Life! I Corinthians 16:1-4

Your Money and Your Life!

I Corinthians 16:1-4

Introduction: Some of you may remember the old Jack Benny skit, when he was confronted by an armed robber who said, “Your money or your life!”  There was a long pause, and Jack said nothing, until finally the robber impatiently shouted, “Well?!”  Benny replied, “Don’t rush me, I’m thinking!” Americans in general have such abundance compared to many in the world, yet it is almost the norm to want just a little bit more. Of course generosity does not always come easily even to Christians. Something was said in Sunday School recently, paraphrasing, “God gives us more so we have more to give.” There was the story of a pastor who was preaching in his country church, “Now let the church walk!” the pastor exhorted. A deacon in the back said, “Amen, let it walk!” “Let the church run!” said the preacher. “Let it run!” echoed the deacon. “Let it fly!” said the preacher. “Amen brother, let the church fly!” said the deacon. “Now it’s going to take money to let the church fly brother!” said the preacher. “Let it walk,” said the deacon, “Let it walk!” 

       The Bible surely warns us against the love of money, and challenges us, to be faithful, and generous, with what God has entrusted to us.  After the lofty doctrine of I Corinthians 15 when Paul focused so deeply on the promise of our future, resurrection life, he makes a rather sudden transition at the beginning of chapter 16, “Now concerning the collection...”  It seems abrupt, but there is a practical connection between the themes of our future hope and being generous with our money and possessions. If we realize that we are sojourners, that this present world and everything in it is temporary, we should view ourselves more directly as “stewards,” those who have been entrusted, for a time, with all that we have.  There isn’t much sense in grasping tightly to what we accumulate here, because you can’t take it with you! When you think of it from that perspective there is actually a powerful connection between our hope and our attitude toward material things. Our stewardship demonstrates our faith. Ryrie: “How we use our money demonstrates the reality of our love for God. In some ways it proves our love for God more conclusively than depth of knowledge, length of prayers, or prominence of service. These can be feigned, but our use of our possessions shows us up for what we really are.”

The Maine Idea: Joyful giving is a response of faith, an act of love, and a recognition of our responsibility to be good stewards.

I. Be Generous: Giving is a normal part of the Christian Life (1).

“Now concerning the collection for the saints: as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do.”

       The phrase, “Now concerning...” seems to signal the transition to the next issue that the Corinthians had asked Paul about. As we’ve gone through this letter over the last year you know that Paul was addressing in the second part of the letter some questions that the Corinthians had sent to him in writing. In 7:1 the phrase appears for the first time, “Now concerning the things about which you wrote...” And then he talks about things like marriage, and singleness, meat sacrificed to idols, and our participation in pagan gatherings. He reminded them of the significance of the Lord’s table and importance of spiritual gifts. After teaching about the promise of the resurrection, he turns now to a practical issue that was apparently mentioned in the letter they had sent him: the offering. The principles here were taught also in other churches.

       “...The collection...” The fact that Paul uses the definite article indicates that he is referring to a specific collection, something that the Corinthians knew about and were expecting.  It is specifically referred to as the collection “...for the saints [i.e., God’s people]...”  It seems that funds were being accumulated that could be sent to the church in Jerusalem which was in severe need.  The persecution that led to many being scattered after martyrdom of Stephen didn’t just go away. Add to that a period of famine which made life difficult for everyone and there were significant needs.  So the “then and there” is dealing with a specific “project” that was before the church. The application can be broader for us “here and now” as we think about the principles that motivated and guided their giving.

       Paul had already talked about the responsibility of believers to support the work of the local church back in chapter 9:1-18 (you can refer to the text of my message on my blog from July 12, 2015).  So here we are, a little over six months later, talking about money again!  Imagine the poor guy who stopped into the church that day, and then didn’t come back for six months. And he pops in this morning!  “You see, all they do is talk about money in this church!”  Not really. We go through books of the Bible, and when we encounter it, we deal with it.  For the Corinthians, who probably received this letter from Paul and read it aloud in the assembly from beginning to end, this would be only a half hour or so after chapter 9!  The emphasis is a little different. Back then we affirmed that when God has called someone to full time ministry among us, to the degree that we are able, we are obligated to support them in such a way that they are free to serve. Here we see that joyful giving is a response of faith, an act of love, and a recognition of our responsibility to be good stewards.

II. Be Consistent: Giving regularly in proportion to how God has blessed (2).

“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.”

       Consistent, periodic giving (On the first day of every week...). The idea is that we should support the Lord’s work in a systematic, ongoing way. The significance of “the first day of the week” seems to be that that is when the church would gather for worship.  Some ask couldn’t this be saying that each person should “set aside” money designated for the offering each week and save it up at home? I don’t think so, as Paul says, “so that no offering be taken when I come.” The idea seems to be a weekly offering, the funds being “saved” until the time that it should be turned over to those who would deliver it to Jerusalem. So the idea of an offering when we come together is not without precedent! Why then have we decided to try an offering box by the door rather than passing the plates as we have done for so long? For one thing, it is still an offering, and it is still an act of worship. It is still each one of us entrusting to the church a portion of what God has given us.  By putting the boxes by the doors (rather than passing an offering plate) we are making it even clearer that this is a “free will” offering. It is an effort to emphasize that we don’t want any one giving “out of compulsion,” but rather we want each one to give what they can cheerfully, thankfully, worshipfully.

       All are expected to participate, “...each of you is to...” The idea of full participation in the offering stands out. It’s not optional, it’s not only for the wealthy or for someone with a special “gift” of giving, all of us have a responsibility to participate. We make a point of saying in this church that is you are a visitor with us, please don’t feel any obligation to give. That is the responsibility of the members and regular attenders of the church. That is who Paul is speaking to here, the members of the church in Corinth.

       We are to give in proportion to what God has given us.  Notice the phrase, “...as he may prosper...” That is the answer to the question, “How much should I give?” We don’t insist that means the same percentage for everyone. When we see the Old Testament teaching about a “tithe,” a tenth, that does not in my opinion translate into a “law” for New Testament believers. But how could we imagine giving less under grace than we would be required to give under the law? It seems to me that ten percent would be a good starting place!  I remember the story of a guy who had a modest salary, but every week he would faithfully give the church ten percent of his gross income. After some years he advanced into a high paying position, and all of a sudden it seemed like ten percent was an awful lot of money to give every week. He confessed this to the pastor and asked him to pray for him. The pastor prayed, “Lord, help this brother give in proportion to his income, or, bring his income into proportion with his giving!” Remember the country pastor who asked a farmer, “Harry, if you had three fields like this, would you give one to the Lord?”  The farmer replied, “Yes, in a minute I would!”  Then the preacher asked, “If you had five horses, would you give one to the Lord?” The answer came, “Yes pastor, I would!”  Then the minister asked, “If you had three pigs, would you donate one to the church?”  The farmer said, “Now cut that out pastor, you know I have three pigs!”  What do you have that you have not received? You are a steward. Do you believe that?   Joyful giving is a response of faith, an act of love, and a recognition of our responsibility to be good stewards.

III. Be sure that all is handled with the utmost integrity (3).

“And when I arrive, I will send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to Jerusalem.” 

     “Those whom you accredit...” The assumption is that the church will do it’s due diligence, making sure that those who are entrusted with the offering are of the highest integrity. Remember the story in Acts 6 when the Greek speaking widows were being overlooked in the distribution of food?  Paul instructed the Hellenists to “...pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty...” Acts 6:3.   First, they were to be picked out by the Hellenists, by their own people, the people who knew them best. Then notice the requirements, “...men of good repute...” What was their reputation? Were they respected by those within and outside of the church?  They were to be filled and directed by the Holy Spirit. They needed to be wise. They were not giving a theology class here, they were serving tables, distributing food to widows. Paul’s point is that the depth and reality of our faith will impact how we live.

       Back in I Corinthians 4 we read that “It is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy." That means those who handle the finances for the church have a great responsibility. And we are blessed to have people of integrity dealing with your offerings, counting them and dispersing them, for the glory of God. It is not unheard of for wrong attitudes to creep in about money.  After all Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver!  Achan hid some of the spoils from Jericho for himself and brought defeat and chastening on the people of God. Ananias and Sapphira lied about the piece of land they had sold and were judged for it. Simon the magician thought that he could “buy” the spiritual power and authority of the apostles!  We can pretty easily get it wrong when it comes to money.  Remember the supreme example of giving that motivates us: God spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all.  God so loved the world that He gave... Joyful giving is a response of faith, an act of love, and a recognition of our responsibility to be good stewards.

IV. Be available: You are a part of the answer (4)!

^“If it seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.”

       This is just a detail that Paul includes, but it shows he is open, he is available to be directed, and to be redirected by God. If it seemed helpful, he was willing. Paul was a servant. He knew that all that he had, all that he was, he owed to the Lord. So he was available to be used for the good of the church and for the glory of God.  When we talk about “stewardship” and finances with young couples is that it is not wrong to plan, in fact that is part of being wise and careful about what God has given us. But I always encourage young couples to trust God, and from the very start, to agree together to be generous and consistent givers.  It is good if we can give to the church, but also, to be flexible and generous when we see other needs come up.  The Schlosser family’s trip to Uganda is an example of that. You know this family. You’ve watched their faithfulness through the years. The idea of the entire family traveling to Uganda together to be involved in ministry is a big undertaking!  You may not be able to go with them, but could it be that God would have you to make a generous donation that would allow them to make this trip?  (If you designate a gift for this project we can hold it in reserve until they need it, and give you a tax deduction as well. The Lord loves a cheerful giver!  How much? In my view, the tithe is a good place to start in your regular, weekly support of the ministries of the local church. But God is also interested in our attitude, and in our availability, to share from the other 90 percent when it serves His purposes. C.S. Lewis said “I don’t believe that we can settle on how much we ought to give... the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.”

What is God saying to me in this passage? Joyful giving is a response of faith, an act of love, and a recognition of our responsibility to be good stewards.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Earlier in this letter Paul asks, “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as if you had not?” Jesus said, “Give as was given unto you...” Jesus did not hold back, he gave himself, he gave his life for us! Remember the context of today’s passage. Because Jesus died and rose again, so will those who are His. This world is passing away, God has a future in mind for us that is greater than we can possibly imagine.  One way we abound in the Lord’s work is by being generous with what he has entrusted to us. That includes recognizing that the church is God’s plan for bringing the message of his grace to the world – and we, the members of the church, are called to work through the church in carrying out that mission.    AMEN.