WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.740 Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, whenever and wherever you're watching this online service today. 00:00:08.380 --> 00:00:11.820 I'm going to be continuing our theme today on generosity. 00:00:13.780 --> 00:00:21.359 This past year has seen events that I, and also that of my parents' generation, have never seen in our lifetimes. 00:00:22.280 --> 00:00:27.600 Being locked in our homes, restrictions on our daily lives and who we can meet. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:32.500 I was speaking with my great-grandmother a few months ago. 00:00:33.119 --> 00:00:36.560 She's in her 90s and served in the RAF during the Second World War. 00:00:38.320 --> 00:00:46.719 And she said in her lifetime, she has never seen anything have as big an impact as this pandemic on daily society. 00:00:48.859 --> 00:00:55.640 If I was to name a word that I heard being said pretty much every day of 2020, I would say unprecedented. 00:00:55.640 --> 00:01:02.640 Therefore, I have never known a more important time to be talking about generosity. 00:01:04.159 --> 00:01:10.439 When people we know have been bereaved, who have been crippled financially and battling loneliness. 00:01:11.640 --> 00:01:19.439 And where simple acts such as being a listening ear over the phone or doing shopping for a vulnerable person could have such an enormous impact. 00:01:19.439 --> 00:01:24.859 If you are struggling, we will do whatever we can to support you. 00:01:25.480 --> 00:01:29.120 So please feel free to go to our website to contact us if you need to. 00:01:31.819 --> 00:01:38.000 Before I delve into today's passage, I want to talk about a verse from the previous chapter of 2 Corinthians. 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:40.019 Chapter 8, verse 12. 00:01:40.019 --> 00:01:57.799 When it comes to giving, many people, and myself included at times, feel a sense of inadequacy. 00:01:58.719 --> 00:01:59.859 That we aren't giving enough. 00:02:00.459 --> 00:02:01.819 And many others are giving more. 00:02:02.399 --> 00:02:03.640 And that we should give more. 00:02:03.640 --> 00:02:11.099 But Paul reminds us in this verse, it is not a question of how much we give that makes our gift acceptable. 00:02:12.080 --> 00:02:17.120 It's about sacrificial giving, according to our own personal circumstances. 00:02:19.199 --> 00:02:22.400 In Mark chapter 12, verses 41 to 44. 00:02:23.280 --> 00:02:26.900 When many rich people threw large amounts of money into the temple treasury, 00:02:28.020 --> 00:02:30.259 which to them would have been a pocket change. 00:02:30.259 --> 00:02:37.060 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few pence. 00:02:38.959 --> 00:02:40.079 Jesus said to them, 00:02:40.739 --> 00:02:44.340 This poor widow has put in more into the treasury than all the others. 00:02:45.239 --> 00:02:49.299 They gave out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty, 00:02:50.159 --> 00:02:53.399 putting in everything, all that she had to live on. 00:02:53.400 --> 00:03:00.340 Therefore, the acceptability of the gift to God is according to what you have, 00:03:00.560 --> 00:03:02.200 rather than what you don't have. 00:03:03.280 --> 00:03:06.900 So don't look at other people and think that they're giving so much more, 00:03:07.080 --> 00:03:08.400 and what I'm giving is worthless. 00:03:09.020 --> 00:03:11.060 No, that is not the case. 00:03:11.060 --> 00:03:17.840 Digging into today's passage in chapter 9, 00:03:18.599 --> 00:03:20.120 Paul turns the table slightly, 00:03:21.379 --> 00:03:23.140 talking about the size of the gift, 00:03:23.960 --> 00:03:26.180 but not about it being acceptable to God, 00:03:26.539 --> 00:03:27.599 but a different principle. 00:03:29.300 --> 00:03:31.759 In verse 6, Paul says, 00:03:31.759 --> 00:03:43.280 So Paul is talking about size, 00:03:43.639 --> 00:03:47.219 but the size of the gift will be proportional to what you get back. 00:03:49.219 --> 00:03:51.299 So why are we now talking about receiving, 00:03:51.560 --> 00:03:53.459 when the subject of today is on giving? 00:03:53.460 --> 00:03:59.140 The reason for this principle is given in Galatians chapter 6, 00:04:00.140 --> 00:04:01.860 a man reaps what he sows. 00:04:03.900 --> 00:04:07.740 The principle behind this verse, when Paul wrote it, was related to sin, 00:04:09.040 --> 00:04:12.400 where if we go through life doing things our way in a destructive manner, 00:04:12.920 --> 00:04:14.060 for our personal gain, 00:04:15.060 --> 00:04:18.240 and thinking that our actions are not going to have an impact on others, 00:04:18.780 --> 00:04:20.259 we will reap destruction, 00:04:20.259 --> 00:04:23.959 because we are claiming the privilege of being a child of God, 00:04:24.599 --> 00:04:25.740 but not living like one. 00:04:28.019 --> 00:04:30.959 Although in this context, Paul was talking about sin, 00:04:31.879 --> 00:04:34.219 this is also true in other contexts, 00:04:34.819 --> 00:04:36.159 kindness, forgiveness. 00:04:37.219 --> 00:04:38.180 If you sow them, 00:04:38.560 --> 00:04:40.579 you can kind of expect to reap those back. 00:04:42.360 --> 00:04:45.120 Also, if you sow anger or impatience, 00:04:45.579 --> 00:04:47.319 you can expect to reap those back too. 00:04:47.319 --> 00:04:51.439 Therefore, there is an aspect to this, 00:04:51.860 --> 00:04:54.139 that inputs affect outputs. 00:04:55.219 --> 00:04:56.319 What you put into, 00:04:56.579 --> 00:04:58.819 or what someone else puts into your life, 00:04:59.719 --> 00:05:02.040 will to some degree dictate an outcome. 00:05:03.680 --> 00:05:05.439 Therefore, what you plant in your garden, 00:05:06.000 --> 00:05:07.579 you will inevitably find growing. 00:05:07.579 --> 00:05:12.379 In verse 10, though, 00:05:13.019 --> 00:05:15.560 Paul starts to talk about a multiplier effect, 00:05:16.560 --> 00:05:19.779 where he who supplies seeds to the sower, 00:05:20.259 --> 00:05:21.339 and bread for food, 00:05:21.620 --> 00:05:24.599 will also supply and increase your store of seeds, 00:05:25.319 --> 00:05:27.959 and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 00:05:27.959 --> 00:05:32.079 You will be enriched in every way, 00:05:32.779 --> 00:05:35.199 so that you can be generous on every occasion. 00:05:36.599 --> 00:05:37.359 And through us, 00:05:37.439 --> 00:05:40.299 your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 00:05:41.979 --> 00:05:43.839 So if I plant an apple seed, 00:05:44.479 --> 00:05:46.539 providing it grows the way it's supposed to, 00:05:46.779 --> 00:05:48.139 and turns into an apple tree, 00:05:48.839 --> 00:05:49.839 which bears fruit, 00:05:50.219 --> 00:05:53.000 you will get exponentially more seeds. 00:05:53.000 --> 00:05:56.959 And this is a factor that comes into play with giving. 00:05:58.819 --> 00:06:00.240 You cannot separate giving, 00:06:00.560 --> 00:06:02.139 from what you get back from the Lord. 00:06:03.480 --> 00:06:04.579 I know some may say, 00:06:04.779 --> 00:06:07.060 it's inappropriate to talk about what you receive when you give, 00:06:07.540 --> 00:06:08.800 but God talks about it. 00:06:10.060 --> 00:06:11.100 But in this passage, 00:06:11.480 --> 00:06:13.980 Paul says you will be enriched in every way. 00:06:15.860 --> 00:06:18.459 Generosity brings wealth of a more holistic kind, 00:06:18.459 --> 00:06:21.539 and this is what it means to be cheerful givers. 00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:24.879 It gives us joy to give stuff away. 00:06:26.639 --> 00:06:28.560 And when generosity unravels quickly, 00:06:29.279 --> 00:06:30.439 it encourages us, 00:06:31.180 --> 00:06:33.620 thus inducing this multiplier effect. 00:06:36.819 --> 00:06:38.839 The final point I want to talk about 00:06:38.839 --> 00:06:41.479 is that God's relentless grace 00:06:41.479 --> 00:06:44.539 provokes an overpowering generosity in us. 00:06:45.740 --> 00:06:47.560 But do we really understand grace? 00:06:47.560 --> 00:06:50.379 And do we really understand God's love for us, 00:06:50.439 --> 00:06:51.800 even if we don't deserve it? 00:06:53.579 --> 00:06:55.879 God is a God who loves us as we are, 00:06:56.300 --> 00:06:58.780 but loves us too much to leave us as we are. 00:07:00.660 --> 00:07:02.639 And if you think that God's blessing 00:07:02.639 --> 00:07:03.779 is to do with earning it, 00:07:03.899 --> 00:07:05.139 you don't understand grace. 00:07:06.720 --> 00:07:08.340 Grace is the end of earning, 00:07:08.840 --> 00:07:10.899 but not the end of effort. 00:07:12.439 --> 00:07:14.560 Do we need to do enough good things 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:15.660 to counteract the bad? 00:07:15.660 --> 00:07:18.540 No, that's not how grace works. 00:07:20.060 --> 00:07:22.340 Our sins separate us from God, 00:07:22.820 --> 00:07:25.900 but there is a way to get back on course, 00:07:26.439 --> 00:07:28.580 and that is through repentance and faith, 00:07:29.540 --> 00:07:32.960 and through Jesus Christ who died on the cross for us, 00:07:33.540 --> 00:07:36.060 and that the burdens of our sins are laid. 00:07:36.060 --> 00:07:39.980 Through repentance and saying, 00:07:40.060 --> 00:07:41.420 God, I turn to you, 00:07:41.800 --> 00:07:42.579 we are forgiven. 00:07:44.220 --> 00:07:46.040 It is not about what we do, 00:07:46.879 --> 00:07:48.480 it is about what God, 00:07:48.660 --> 00:07:49.560 through Jesus Christ, 00:07:49.639 --> 00:07:50.180 has done. 00:07:51.620 --> 00:07:53.399 So what does this mean for generosity? 00:07:55.399 --> 00:07:56.879 If we get grace, 00:07:58.019 --> 00:08:00.240 and that God would forgive sinners like us, 00:08:00.240 --> 00:08:03.319 to turn around and be mean-spirited, 00:08:03.439 --> 00:08:04.439 it just doesn't seem right. 00:08:07.019 --> 00:08:09.600 It's not all about being generous with our money either. 00:08:10.740 --> 00:08:12.780 It's about being generous with our time, 00:08:12.920 --> 00:08:13.660 and our attitudes. 00:08:15.120 --> 00:08:16.300 We, as Christians, 00:08:16.500 --> 00:08:18.100 are called to be cheerful givers. 00:08:18.100 --> 00:08:24.140 I want to conclude by asking you this question. 00:08:25.500 --> 00:08:28.020 What does it mean to you to sow generously? 00:08:30.120 --> 00:08:31.340 The fact is, 00:08:31.520 --> 00:08:33.540 is that God has been generous to us, 00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:35.860 forgiving our sins, 00:08:36.200 --> 00:08:38.980 and allowing us to enter into a relationship with him. 00:08:38.980 --> 00:08:43.899 Since I decided to go both feet in with Jesus, 00:08:44.680 --> 00:08:48.340 I have experienced more and more what grace means. 00:08:49.899 --> 00:08:52.039 It is by grace, through faith, 00:08:52.300 --> 00:08:53.139 we are saved. 00:08:54.259 --> 00:08:55.639 And the least we can do, 00:08:55.960 --> 00:08:57.159 is to sow generously, 00:08:58.159 --> 00:09:01.539 as God has sow generously into our lives. 00:09:02.960 --> 00:09:04.420 And not just with our money, 00:09:05.180 --> 00:09:06.980 but with our time and our attitudes. 00:09:06.980 --> 00:09:10.600 And that generosity should not be fuelled 00:09:10.600 --> 00:09:12.700 by a sense of compulsion or duty, 00:09:13.300 --> 00:09:16.000 but through the impact that God's grace 00:09:16.000 --> 00:09:18.000 has had on us in our lives. 00:09:19.240 --> 00:09:22.080 We will have to come back to the power of God's grace 00:09:22.080 --> 00:09:24.700 time and time again throughout our lives. 00:09:26.379 --> 00:09:27.580 And when that happens, 00:09:27.800 --> 00:09:30.600 you may find something that will be unlocked inside you. 00:09:33.320 --> 00:09:34.060 Let's pray. 00:09:34.059 --> 00:09:37.439 Father God, 00:09:37.519 --> 00:09:38.919 we thank you for your grace 00:09:38.919 --> 00:09:39.899 and for your forgiveness, 00:09:40.679 --> 00:09:42.899 and that you have saved generously 00:09:42.899 --> 00:09:44.259 into our lives. 00:09:45.379 --> 00:09:47.099 Through our Lord Jesus Christ, 00:09:47.219 --> 00:09:48.799 who died for us on the cross. 00:09:50.699 --> 00:09:51.659 Help us, Lord, 00:09:51.699 --> 00:09:53.159 to live up to that generosity, 00:09:54.519 --> 00:09:55.739 to sow generously, 00:09:56.139 --> 00:09:57.379 and to be cheerful givers. 00:09:57.379 --> 00:09:59.700 For Jesus Christ, 00:09:59.799 --> 00:10:00.279 our Lord. 00:10:00.820 --> 00:10:01.159 Amen. 00:10:03.919 --> 00:10:05.820 And as we go out into the world, 00:10:06.539 --> 00:10:08.620 may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, 00:10:09.220 --> 00:10:10.200 the love of God, 00:10:10.320 --> 00:10:12.019 and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit 00:10:12.019 --> 00:10:13.799 be with us all evermore. 00:10:14.659 --> 00:10:15.000 Amen. 00:10:15.379 --> 00:10:17.440 Thank you. 00:10:17.519 --> 00:10:17.919 Amen. 00:10:18.360 --> 00:10:18.919 Amen. 00:10:30.500 --> 00:10:31.000 Amen. 00:10:43.340 --> 00:10:43.820 Amen. 00:10:43.820 --> 00:10:44.000 Amen.