In Your Bible Read This Out Loud:
Ecclesiastes 11:1-2
Memorise This Verse: John 9:4 'As long as
it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me'.
Afterwards Talk About This: How can
you ensure that you get the maximum benefit out of your giving in the
time you have left on earth.
Something To Do Before Next Time:
If God has spoken to you to change an aspect of your giving then do so
before you next meet.
Written Diploma Work: Write one
side on the implications of someone delaying the decision to become a
giver.
Meditate Word By Word On This
Verse: Ephesians 5:15
Having seen the principles of giving into
both a heavenly and a spiritual bank account and seen previously the
idea of heavenly rewards on judgment day there is a further principle
that is applicable to heavenly rewards, heavenly bank accounts and
earthly bank accounts. This principle is that the time to give to a
heavenly/earthly bank account and the time to start earning heavenly
treasure is NOW and the time to start giving into the work of God is
NOW. If you are not yet a giver there should be an urgency and almost a
desperation to start giving as delaying this decision will have eternal
costs that will be suffered on judgment day.
Perhaps God has spoken to your heart
about opening an earthly bank account to save for a specific purpose
such as an orphanage, a hospital, a piece of medical equipment, a
missionary or a specific project to extend the Kingdom of God and it
will take 4 or 5 years to save for. For example, if you wait 2 years
before you start to save because you spend your money on luxuries as
opposed to saving it, then you are delaying a blessing that Jesus wants
to extend to those in need. If God has spoken to you to start saving
then in obedience to this it is important that you show discipline in
your spending habits and your saving and it is even more important that
you start to save now.
Perhaps God has spoken to you about your
heavenly bank account and the need to start giving and to view your
giving as a payment into a heavenly bank account which he could
administer for you the time to give and make deposits into your account
is now. For example, suppose in 2 years time a recession hits your
country or a war or a famine if you have been giving faithfully then you
will have a large heavenly bank account that God can preside over. If
you have chosen not to give then you will have no blessings to call upon
and the same financial calamity that comes upon the non-Christians could
come upon you, as you are not rich towards God. Dark times of hardship
could come upon our countries or cities in the future but those who have
built up a large heavenly bank account will have large reserves of
blessings to call upon and will be able to laugh at the financial panic
that the non-Christians will experience!
'Well do I remember the days of the
depression. Hundreds of men came to the church office for help.
Several times I questioned them. Not one of them was ever able to say
that he had squared with God during the days of prosperity. God looks
after those who remember him'
Oswald J Smith 'The passion for souls'
This truth is very much expanded in
Ecclesiastes 11:1 which says, 'Cast your bread
upon the waters, for after days you will find it again. Give
portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may
come upon the land'. How true this verse is!, due to terrorism, war,
famines, sickness and many other factors we simply do not know what
disaster will come upon our lands, our towns and ourselves - we
undoubtedly live in times of great uncertainty.
However those who sow to God during the
good times when things are going well will certainly be able to reap
back from God in the bad times, and their previous giving will be an ark
of protection against any financial calamity that comes upon the
land. Why not start now to invest for your financial future by
being a generous giver and build up a strong ark of financial protection
around your life this thought of shielding yourself from financial
calamity is spoken of in Psalm 37:18. 'The days of
the blameless are known to the Lord, and their inheritance will endure
forever. In times of disaster they will not wither in days of famine
they will enjoy plenty'
Perhaps God has spoken to you that you
have little heavenly treasure and through not giving systematically you
have touched few people for eternity. If you delay the decision to
become a systematic giver and invest your money into the conversion of
lost souls to the Kingdom of God then you will reduce the time you have
left on earth to earn heavenly treasure. Remember that Jesus himself
said that we will be welcomed into heaven by those whose lives we have
impacted by our giving. Will you enter heaven amongst jubilation and
celebration or will you enter in solitude and silence as you have not
impacted people's lives through your giving? the time to start making
friends for eternity is now, the time to give is
now.
Perhaps you are a young person and as you
read this book your faith has been quickened to believe God to see
thousands and millions invested into the work of God. In order to start
to activate the laws of sowing and reaping into your life start to give
now, and you will experience a lifetime of giving into the work of God
younger friend - the time to start giving is now. It could be that God
has ordained that you spend the next 50, 60 or 70 years as being someone
who releases untold amounts of money into world mission and in order to
start this wave of blessing you need to start to give and sow financial
seeds.
Perhaps you are old and your days on this
earth are numbered, why not make the most of the time that is left
really count by heavily investing your money into the work of God.
Remember that Jesus said in John 9:4 'As long as
it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when
no-one can work' older friend, the time is coming when you will
never have the chance to give to the work of God, the time to give is
now before that day catches up and overtakes you. The scripture below
shows that even older people can bear lasting fruit for God - for the
sake of the time you have let on this earth, why not use your money to
draw people unto Jesus.
Psalm 92:12 'The
righteous will flourish like a palm tree....They will still bear fruit
in old age'
If God has spoken to you about the place
where you give your money to being unfruitful and of the need to invest
elsewhere then the time to make the change is now. Why bother spending
more of your money on an organisation that is not bearing fruit and
where you are seeing few returns for your hard earned money? If you
persist in giving to an unfruitful organisation you only serve to
perpetuate something that is not fulfilling it's God given mandate, and
you are foregoing the chance to invest in somewhere that is doing the
work of God. The time to make any necessary changes in the place to give
your money to is now - even if you have given to a church all your life,
if it bears little fruit you should seek out a fruitful organisation
that is worthy of your hard earned money.
A House of
Prayer for the Poorer Nations
Pray for Hungary
10,035,568 people, 92%
Christian
Church growing after communism
but mature leaders in short supply.
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