Thanksgiving and Service

2 Cor 9:6-15

 

1. Now, we are at the end of autumn, preparing for winter. We are in the season of harvest and thanksgiving. God gave us 2007 and now we are counting His grace that He has given us in this year. In fact, everything of our life is the gift of God: our life, soul and body, brain and heart, talent and energy, family and friends, nature and environment, possession and housing, most of all, our salvation and eternal life, our joy and hope, faith and love. Even our difficulties and pains were the grace of God to upgrade and sanctify us for the greater capacity and higher quality of life. We are grateful for everything God has given us in 2007.

2. Then, what is our response to the wonderful grace of God? What is the expression of our thanks to the Lord? There are many ways to express our thanks to God, and today we will focus on the material way to express our thanks as explained in 2 Cor 9, the main text for the offering in the New Testament. Offering is not like obligatory tax or membership fee, but free expression of thanksgiving and obedience to God. In the legal system of the Old Testament, offering was obligatory, but Christ freed such legal obligation and encouraged free and cheerful offering of love. Verse 7 says that “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Church may suggest some guideline but any legalistic obligation may not be imposed.

3. Why and how is offering essential to express our thanks to God? First, we give offering to fulfill our salvation in its economic aspect. Economy and sin are closely related, because economic activity was imposed in the Fall: “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life… By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground.”(Gen 3:17-19) Material desires and selfish collection would deepen our sins, and therefore it is one of the hardest areas to achieve our salvation. Because humans are easily tempted to serve the god of mammon, Jesus warned and prohibited such behavior: “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”(Matt 6:24) It is very hard to be both rich and saved: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”(Matt 19:24) It is the most difficult and ultimate test of salvation. Therefore, offering and salvation are closely interrelated. Offering in the Bible does not mean exactly the same thing in the church offering today. Old Testament system of offering was no longer necessary because such temple sacrificial and Levitical system was abolished by the fulfillment of our atonement once for all by the crucifixion of Christ. Now, freedom was given back. However, when the Holy Spirit came and filled them, the early Christians voluntarily gave significant portion of their possession for the poor to obey Jesus’ New Commandment to love the needy neighbors. Later, weekly offering system for the poor was developed. Therefore the offering in the NT was totally the offering for the poor and needy. Also, it does not mean only the offering to the church but also any giving for the poor. In a word, offering is our giving for others, especially the poor and needy in any form. Sinners make money and use only for themselves. To fulfill our salvation economically, we have to use our money for others, not for our benefit but for their benefit.

4. Second, we give offering to make a good investment of our money for the Kingdom of God. Paul said in verse 6: “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” Many people invest their money to increase their possession, but the best way that God recommends is to invest it to the Kingdom of God. When Jesus said that “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,”(Matt 6:19-20) it does not mean to deposit your money to a bank in heaven. When we give offering, the church does not send it to heaven. It is used for the business of the heavenly Kingdom: to develop and expand the Kingdom of God on the earth in the activities such as mission and evangelism, education and benevolence, fellowship and worship. Because the Kingdom of God is the most profitable business of human salvation and eternal happiness not only in this life but also in the next life, our life will be most successful and meaningful if we sow our money for this cause. The nature of modernity is said to be vanity and madness. Modern people use their money for vanity and madness. Then, their life will be failure. If you invest your money for some organization or company, when they collapse, your life will collapse too. But the Kingdom of God is the only organization to survive and prosper eternally. Moreover, when you sow your money wisely for the Kingdom, God promised to supply what to sow continually: “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written, ‘He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.’ Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.”(8-10)

5. Third, we give offering to express, share and multiply our thanksgiving to God: “You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.”(11) Those who express their thanks to God in generous offering will have more happiness and gratitude in their heart and life. In fact, our genuine thanksgiving should accompany our material service for others, because it is the act of confession and recognition that everything came from God. But God does not need our money. God wants to give such offering to our needy people around us. Our generous act of offering for the needy will overflow our joy and happiness in our heart: “This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.”(12) If you want a life of continuous gratitude and happiness, express your thanksgiving and love in material way. Then, your thanksgiving and happiness will be multiplied. Do not ask God more to give, but first share your money with others. Moreover, it will generate praise and gratitude to God by those who are helped by your offering: “Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you.”(13-14) Therefore offering is the great and heavenly way to use our money: “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” In this season of thanksgiving, I wish that all of you really understand this indescribable gift and redeem your way of offering and financial management! Amen.