Sunday, July 21, 2013 - 6:15 pm

This week, Pastor Mike Bronson spoke on generosity as part of God's blueprint for our lives, from the book of Exodus, when Israel was donating for the tabernacle. They didn't donate their leftovers, they gave their very best, and they were so generous that not only was everything provided for, but they actually had to stop the people from giving because they had more than enough to do the work. How exciting would it be to live as a culture of generosity, where any time we see a need that God wants us to fill we would just help each other, giving more than enough to get the job done? Wouldn't it be weird, instead of worrying whether enough money or resources would come in, we had to worry about whether we'd get a chance to give before we got cut off because there was already a surplus?
If we want to be more like Jesus, generosity is a must. Jesus gave His own life for us, and He really didn't have to. I don't mean there was any other way for us to be saved, I just mean that the price He paid was not His debt. God is our ultimate example of generosity. When we look at our life, health, spiritual security, the many aspects of God's grace and His mercy, none of it is because we somehow earned it and received it as a payment. God loves to be generous - no wonder 2 Corinthians 9:7 says He loves a cheerful giver. Generosity kills greed - it leaves no room for it - but it does leave room for selfless love, the kind God has given us.
We can be generous in our everyday living, since we know that the money is not ours anyway, but God's. If we live generously, God will give us what we need to keep being generous. We can also give God His tithe, and our own offerings beyond that. It's not God's intention that our church would just get by, but that we would thrive, having all we need to do what God calls us to do. The challenge to each of us is to give, even when it costs us something, maybe especially when it costs us something. King David was known as a man after God's own heart. Just like us, he made mistakes, and sinned against God, but even after he makes a prideful choice and disobeys God, we see his heart in 1 Chronicles 21:24, as he demonstrates this principle of giving: "... '...I will not take for the Lord what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.' "