SACRIFICIAL GIVING
MEMORISE: And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 2 Samuel 24:24
READ: Luke 21:1 -4
1 And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.
2 And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites.
3 And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:
4 For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.
MESSAGE
In our Bible text for today, we read about a widow who gave her all and the Lord Jesus was very impressed with her. He said she gave more that others even though what she gave was not as much as theirs.
Many people, when they want to be miserly, will take that story and say, "This is my widow's mite". They are deceiving themselves because l will tell them, firstly you are not a widow. Secondly, you are not giving your all. It is when you have given your all that you can use that example.
When you bring something to God that costs you nothing, it holds little value in His sight. In fact, sometimes, He sees people's offerings and feels insulted. He knows how much He gave to them, yet when they bring an offering, they bring it to Him as though He were a beggar. No wonder God ignores the offerings of many. David's statement in 2 Samuel 24:24 where he said he would never give to God what cost him nothing should be one of our watchwords whenever we want to give to God.
Psalm 126:5-6 says:
They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
When taking your seed to God, check it: can it be described as a 'precious seed'? It is those who go with what amounts to a 'precious seed' who will doubtless come again rejoicing. Proverbs 11:25 says it is the liberal soul that will be made fat, not the miserly one. It is with what measure you sow that your harvest will come. 2 Corinthians 9:6 says:
But this l say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Don't give unto God what will cost you nothing. You can decide the volume of your harvest by the size of what you sow.
KEY POINT
When you bring something to God that costs you nothing, it holds little value in His sight.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Revelations 10-14
HYMN 25: TO GOD BE THE GLORY GREAT THINGS HE HAS DONE
1 To God be the glory, great things He hath done,
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life our redemption to win,
And opened the life-gate that all may go in.
Chorus:
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice;
Oh, come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory; great things He hath done.
2 Oh, perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
3 Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport when Jesus we see.q
