OFFERING TIME
"So He said, 'Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.'" - Luke 21:3-4
In the passage above, I see a woman who wanted to give herself much more than the little she had and that she did, she had the least of substance, but she gave the best offering. How come that which appeared so little became so much in the sight of God? By this simple but profound scene of the scripture, I realise that our offerings goes beyond what we put into the box, our offering is a show of our commitment to God; our offerings is also about us, and yes God demands our offering.
When Cain and Abel offered to God, the scripture says that God had respect for Abel and his offering and not upon Cain; this also gives me a clear understanding that, it is not everyone that should bring an offering to God. If you have not accepted Jesus, he doesn't need your offering, it is not everyone that is permitted to give unto the Lord. If the Lord does not accept you, then stop bringing substance, come and offer yourself first. Paul commended the Macedonian church for giving out of poverty and even giving the.selves first unto the Lord.
I am not sure that offering time is always blessing time, I am also not too sure whether we can ever give enough to God, but I am sure that it is more blessed to give than to receive, I am sure that God loves a cheerful giver. If we pay attention to giving our lives to Him everyday by living for Him, then it will not be a burden to give our substance.
In the prayer of Psalm 20:3, it is stated that the Lord should remember our offerings, He remembered the offering of Cornelius and visited Him with salvation. Therefore, giving is an investment that will pay dividend in the end. We must delight in giving; offering is what we give willingly but it is also sacrificial.
BRING ME AN OFFERING
"Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering." - Exo 25:2
Offering is not a support to the church, it is actually a command from the Lord; we will do well if we stop seeing giving as our quota to the growth of the church. Though that is what the offering is used for, but that is not what your attitude should be when there is a call to give offering. Offering is God's ordinance but there are precautions that makes offering an offering indeed. If your offering does not come willingly from the heart, then you have not given an offering at all. You just made a contribution.
When the Lord demanded an offering from the children of Israel, there was no one who was exempted from giving, everyone was called to give, whether poor or rich; it was important that they gave unto the Lord. It is the Lord that demands it and not really your pastor.
Some of us may want to know what the offering is meant for before we move close to the box, sometimes, we become critical seeking fo know what the previous offering you gave were used for; no matter what your attitude or disposition to this is - have it in mind that it is unto the Lord we give and not unto men. Though the money may be handled by men, it is on behalf of God that men collect.
"So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver." - 2Cor 9:7
Let us not begin to think that if we do not give unto the Lord that the work of God will suffer - nothing can be farther from the truth. As the Lord didn't need your money to create the earth, giving is more of a personal commitment from the giver rather than the substance itself.
Let it also be clear to you today, that the Lord will not ask you to bring an offering that you do not have; the Lord will not even demand what we do not have to give. Therefore, if the Lord demands an offering from you, it surely means you have it to give. Remember that your offering is not necessarily from your abundance, but in obedience and your value for God and His work.
QUALITY OF OFFERING
"'And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favourably?' Says the LORD of hosts." - Mal 1:8
I personally believe that a man who has offered himself as an offering unto the Lord will understand the concept of sacrificial giving and also giving that pleases God. Sometimes we have given less than we should and pretended as if it is all that we had, we have given stolen money as offering and expect that the Lord be pleased. God cannot be mocked.
The quality of our giving comes from the quality of life we live. If we live a good life of integrity and sincerity, we will sure know the right amount to give unto the Lord. When we also consider that we cannot out-give Him, then we would always long to give Him the best.
I may not be able to give a measure or suggest how a man should give his offering, but I can say for sure that every man knows the measure of himself and everyone can be able to identify what should proceed from him as an offering. Nobody can tell us what to give, lest we under-give or give with the wrong motive; but every man should have a budget for giving and not a spare.
"Then the king said to Araunah, 'No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing.' So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver." - 2Sam 24:24
When we give our best to the Lord, we are not proving anything to Him, but just showing how much we value Him, and we must also know that there is nothing really that we give that He cannot afford by Himself. When our offering becomes too easy, we may have began to esteem him lightly. Giving is an act of worship, and we must value it so.
No one has asked you to lay rams on altars, no one will ask you to even give your life, yet no one is asking you to offer worthless things to God. Just don't let your offerings be routine, try as much as possible to give quality things and not spare things, let the need in the church also be top priority when you are giving.
PROPHETS OFFERING
"Then Saul said to his servant, 'But look, if we go, what shall we bring the man? For the bread in our vessels is all gone, and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have?' And the servant answered Saul again and said, 'Look, I have here at hand one-forth of a shekel of silver, I will give that to the man of God, to tell us our way.'" - 1Sam 9:7-8
If the ministers of God in our day should ever make the mistake of depending on the church congregation for their well-being, many of them may eventually die in penury. It is scriptural to honour God's ministers, God does not overlook such sacrifice, especially when the ministers have a right standing with God.
I consider it a privilege to give unto ministers of God for their personal wellbeing, as this is well pleasing to God. The Levites of the old testament were not suppose to work, and whatever the other tribe of Israel brought in as tithe was used for their welfare, and God was faithful to bless the givers.
Don't forget that your pastor is also human and has responsibility, even though he or she works part-time, you are really not doing anyone any favour in giving to them, they may even appear richer and more comfortable than you - but I am sure it doesn't exclude you from giving unto them. The pastor is God's instrument of watering your life spiritually, and they sure deserve to be watered back.
"He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward." - Matt 10:41
There is a reward for honouring prophets and that widow of Zarephath can bear witness to this, the woman who anointed Jesus' feet knew that she got a special attention from Him. If the calling of God is sure upon a minister's life, that is a good soil to sow seeds and God does not forget such act of giving.
Paul in Philippians chapter four recalled the generosity of the Philippian church towards God's ministry, and of course he said some profound prayers into their lives, God sees this act and we shouldn't become too critical of giving to them. It is also important that you do not wait for them to ask before you give to them.
ACCOUNT FOR THE OFFERING
"Moreover they did not require an account from the men into whose hand they delivered the money to be paid to workmen, for they dealt faithfully." - 2Kings 12:15
If there are faithful ministers of God, the church need not to be too critical of the church fund. Faithful men will be transparent in their dealings and they will even desire to give account when no one request it of them. This is the way it is suppose to be as regards finance in the church.
It is true that we have unfaithful men in the church in our days now, who have become like Judas, they regularly deep their hands into the church offering for personal use, when they are asked to give account, they ask for some weeks in other to 'put their house in order' - this is nothing other than stealing. Maybe you are the one that handles your youth finances, it will be needful for you to become faithful, lest you become a disaster waiting to happen.
I usually wonder what made Judas the candidate to betray Jesus, a scandal in a man's life doesn't just start with that scandal, it usually starts when a man disregards faithfulness in little things such as money, especially when it belongs to God.
"Then Moses was very angry, and said to the LORD, 'Do not respect their offering. I have not taken one donkey from them, nor have I hurt one of them.'" - Numbers 16:15
Samuel boasted about this also during Saul's coronation, Paul too made the same claim and no one could fault him in this regard. When we have men who can subject their love for money well, evil and accusers will be far from them.
Nothing vindicates a leader more than integrity, especially in regard to finance and sexuality, if a man has dealt faithfully in the matter of finance, it will help him against accusers and he can prove his worth with his head raised high, and God honours such.
The minister needs to be careful as it is not all 'offerings' that one receives, there are some that are given to shut the mouth of the minister from saying the truth. A minister will do well to reject this even though the economic situation say otherwise. Balaam couldn't understand this principle, he received gifts from Balak and ended his ministry abruptly.
CONCLUSION:
Giving offerings is God ordained, but we must first be acceptable to God before He accepts our offerings. Give good offering to God and honour His ministers, finally the minister too must have integrity when it comes to God's offering.
God bless you and I love you
Akinsuroju Femi
© The Fundamentals
In the passage above, I see a woman who wanted to give herself much more than the little she had and that she did, she had the least of substance, but she gave the best offering. How come that which appeared so little became so much in the sight of God? By this simple but profound scene of the scripture, I realise that our offerings goes beyond what we put into the box, our offering is a show of our commitment to God; our offerings is also about us, and yes God demands our offering.
When Cain and Abel offered to God, the scripture says that God had respect for Abel and his offering and not upon Cain; this also gives me a clear understanding that, it is not everyone that should bring an offering to God. If you have not accepted Jesus, he doesn't need your offering, it is not everyone that is permitted to give unto the Lord. If the Lord does not accept you, then stop bringing substance, come and offer yourself first. Paul commended the Macedonian church for giving out of poverty and even giving the.selves first unto the Lord.
I am not sure that offering time is always blessing time, I am also not too sure whether we can ever give enough to God, but I am sure that it is more blessed to give than to receive, I am sure that God loves a cheerful giver. If we pay attention to giving our lives to Him everyday by living for Him, then it will not be a burden to give our substance.
In the prayer of Psalm 20:3, it is stated that the Lord should remember our offerings, He remembered the offering of Cornelius and visited Him with salvation. Therefore, giving is an investment that will pay dividend in the end. We must delight in giving; offering is what we give willingly but it is also sacrificial.
BRING ME AN OFFERING
"Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering." - Exo 25:2
Offering is not a support to the church, it is actually a command from the Lord; we will do well if we stop seeing giving as our quota to the growth of the church. Though that is what the offering is used for, but that is not what your attitude should be when there is a call to give offering. Offering is God's ordinance but there are precautions that makes offering an offering indeed. If your offering does not come willingly from the heart, then you have not given an offering at all. You just made a contribution.
When the Lord demanded an offering from the children of Israel, there was no one who was exempted from giving, everyone was called to give, whether poor or rich; it was important that they gave unto the Lord. It is the Lord that demands it and not really your pastor.
Some of us may want to know what the offering is meant for before we move close to the box, sometimes, we become critical seeking fo know what the previous offering you gave were used for; no matter what your attitude or disposition to this is - have it in mind that it is unto the Lord we give and not unto men. Though the money may be handled by men, it is on behalf of God that men collect.
"So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver." - 2Cor 9:7
Let us not begin to think that if we do not give unto the Lord that the work of God will suffer - nothing can be farther from the truth. As the Lord didn't need your money to create the earth, giving is more of a personal commitment from the giver rather than the substance itself.
Let it also be clear to you today, that the Lord will not ask you to bring an offering that you do not have; the Lord will not even demand what we do not have to give. Therefore, if the Lord demands an offering from you, it surely means you have it to give. Remember that your offering is not necessarily from your abundance, but in obedience and your value for God and His work.
QUALITY OF OFFERING
"'And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favourably?' Says the LORD of hosts." - Mal 1:8
I personally believe that a man who has offered himself as an offering unto the Lord will understand the concept of sacrificial giving and also giving that pleases God. Sometimes we have given less than we should and pretended as if it is all that we had, we have given stolen money as offering and expect that the Lord be pleased. God cannot be mocked.
The quality of our giving comes from the quality of life we live. If we live a good life of integrity and sincerity, we will sure know the right amount to give unto the Lord. When we also consider that we cannot out-give Him, then we would always long to give Him the best.
I may not be able to give a measure or suggest how a man should give his offering, but I can say for sure that every man knows the measure of himself and everyone can be able to identify what should proceed from him as an offering. Nobody can tell us what to give, lest we under-give or give with the wrong motive; but every man should have a budget for giving and not a spare.
"Then the king said to Araunah, 'No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing.' So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver." - 2Sam 24:24
When we give our best to the Lord, we are not proving anything to Him, but just showing how much we value Him, and we must also know that there is nothing really that we give that He cannot afford by Himself. When our offering becomes too easy, we may have began to esteem him lightly. Giving is an act of worship, and we must value it so.
No one has asked you to lay rams on altars, no one will ask you to even give your life, yet no one is asking you to offer worthless things to God. Just don't let your offerings be routine, try as much as possible to give quality things and not spare things, let the need in the church also be top priority when you are giving.
PROPHETS OFFERING
"Then Saul said to his servant, 'But look, if we go, what shall we bring the man? For the bread in our vessels is all gone, and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have?' And the servant answered Saul again and said, 'Look, I have here at hand one-forth of a shekel of silver, I will give that to the man of God, to tell us our way.'" - 1Sam 9:7-8
If the ministers of God in our day should ever make the mistake of depending on the church congregation for their well-being, many of them may eventually die in penury. It is scriptural to honour God's ministers, God does not overlook such sacrifice, especially when the ministers have a right standing with God.
I consider it a privilege to give unto ministers of God for their personal wellbeing, as this is well pleasing to God. The Levites of the old testament were not suppose to work, and whatever the other tribe of Israel brought in as tithe was used for their welfare, and God was faithful to bless the givers.
Don't forget that your pastor is also human and has responsibility, even though he or she works part-time, you are really not doing anyone any favour in giving to them, they may even appear richer and more comfortable than you - but I am sure it doesn't exclude you from giving unto them. The pastor is God's instrument of watering your life spiritually, and they sure deserve to be watered back.
"He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward." - Matt 10:41
There is a reward for honouring prophets and that widow of Zarephath can bear witness to this, the woman who anointed Jesus' feet knew that she got a special attention from Him. If the calling of God is sure upon a minister's life, that is a good soil to sow seeds and God does not forget such act of giving.
Paul in Philippians chapter four recalled the generosity of the Philippian church towards God's ministry, and of course he said some profound prayers into their lives, God sees this act and we shouldn't become too critical of giving to them. It is also important that you do not wait for them to ask before you give to them.
ACCOUNT FOR THE OFFERING
"Moreover they did not require an account from the men into whose hand they delivered the money to be paid to workmen, for they dealt faithfully." - 2Kings 12:15
If there are faithful ministers of God, the church need not to be too critical of the church fund. Faithful men will be transparent in their dealings and they will even desire to give account when no one request it of them. This is the way it is suppose to be as regards finance in the church.
It is true that we have unfaithful men in the church in our days now, who have become like Judas, they regularly deep their hands into the church offering for personal use, when they are asked to give account, they ask for some weeks in other to 'put their house in order' - this is nothing other than stealing. Maybe you are the one that handles your youth finances, it will be needful for you to become faithful, lest you become a disaster waiting to happen.
I usually wonder what made Judas the candidate to betray Jesus, a scandal in a man's life doesn't just start with that scandal, it usually starts when a man disregards faithfulness in little things such as money, especially when it belongs to God.
"Then Moses was very angry, and said to the LORD, 'Do not respect their offering. I have not taken one donkey from them, nor have I hurt one of them.'" - Numbers 16:15
Samuel boasted about this also during Saul's coronation, Paul too made the same claim and no one could fault him in this regard. When we have men who can subject their love for money well, evil and accusers will be far from them.
Nothing vindicates a leader more than integrity, especially in regard to finance and sexuality, if a man has dealt faithfully in the matter of finance, it will help him against accusers and he can prove his worth with his head raised high, and God honours such.
The minister needs to be careful as it is not all 'offerings' that one receives, there are some that are given to shut the mouth of the minister from saying the truth. A minister will do well to reject this even though the economic situation say otherwise. Balaam couldn't understand this principle, he received gifts from Balak and ended his ministry abruptly.
CONCLUSION:
Giving offerings is God ordained, but we must first be acceptable to God before He accepts our offerings. Give good offering to God and honour His ministers, finally the minister too must have integrity when it comes to God's offering.
God bless you and I love you
Akinsuroju Femi
© The Fundamentals
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