Proverbs 11 - 10.3.23
SCRIPTURE: Proverbs 11:24-25 "One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed."
OBSERVATION: The theme flowing out of this portion of the Book of Proverbs describes how to model generosity. We are taught about the blessings of generosity as well as the consequences of our selfish ambitions.
In the Old Testament the focus was on the law and obedience. In the New Testament God introduced another concept for generosity, which is GRACE.
In the Old Testament there were actually 3 different tithes that were required by law: 1) Tithes that took care of the Levites and the priests. 2) Tithes that were designed to make trips to Jerusalem to worship God. 3) Every 3rd year they were to tithe in order to take care of the widows and the orphans.
In the New Testament, a beautiful thing happened after Jesus died and was resurrected! It's called God's Grace! God poured out His grace on us when Jesus died on the cross for our sins, making a way for ALL to come near Him through Jesus. We are no longer under law, but under grace.
APPLICATION: In view of ALL that God has given to us, our genuine love for God is modeled by the way we willingly and generously give back to Him and others. Statistics have shown that the average Christian only gives about 2 percent of their tithes to the Lord, verses what is required, which is 10 percent. When we "short change" God we are literally taking advantage of all that He has given us! When we hold back our tithes, we are actually putting other things ahead of Him! In Malachi 3:8-10 it says that they were robbing God by not bringing their whole tithes. God has blessed us with 100 percent of all we have, and by faithfully giving at least 10 percent back to Him, we will be blessed by the One Who is faithful to reward our obedience. A super neat thing about the Lord is that He sees everything, and He never forgets anything! He sees when we use our talents, our time, and our resources to give generously back to Him. "Remember this, whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work."
PRAYER: I thank You Lord for the gift of grace. I pray that the motives of my heart will be pure, and that I will trust You with my whole tithe, and be willing to give generously towards the needs of others. And, thank You that even when we do a simple thing like giving a cup of cold water to someone, it increases our eternal account in heaven.
- Robin Orefice
