WHAT SHOULD I GIVE?
2 Chronicles 31: 2-10, Mark 12: 41-44
There are a number of places in the
Bible where we can get our cue about giving back to God. You will perhaps recall from your childhood
learning about the story of Cain and Abel.
Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain a tiller of the ground. They were both farmers with different
responsibilities. All the way back in the fourth chapter of Genesis, before the
benefits of covenants or laws, the children of God, these brothers who squabbled
with each other, knew it was the right thing to do to give back to God. They
knew God gave them everything, and God made everything, and if they wanted it
blessed, they thanked God with a portion of their means. Cain brought an
offering from his crops, and Abel an offering from his livestock. The Bible
says that the Lord had regard for Abel’s offering, but for Cain’s he had no
regard. There is no reason given to
think that an offering of an animal is better than an offering of crops;
indeed, some would rather have crops. So why did God regard one offering and
have no regard for the other? Plenty of
people have pondered that question: looking at the whole of Scripture, some
have said the attitude of the giver makes all the difference. Perhaps you’ve watched
the commercial on television about the mom and the two boys and the last slice
of bread dilemma regarding a peanut butter sandwich. “Mom,” Cody says, “There’s
only one slice.” “Okay then, let’s share.” “His half can’t be bigger than
mine,” Cody protests, pointing to his brother. “Alright,” the wise mom says, “Tell
you what: Jake gets to cut,” “Nice!” says Jake. “But,” continues
mom, “Cody gets to choose!” “NICE!”
says Cody. That could have ended
differently if the negotiator had not been wise! You’ve seen children (or
adults) when things don’t go there way: the Bible says about Cain: “His
countenance fell” which very much disappointed God. Does your countenance ever fall? It means that your face falls, your
expression changes to one of disbelief or anger, and your attitude sours.
There seems to be something about Cain’s attitude. Even before the rejection of
the offering, did the Lord know that it was given out of resentment? Offerings given out of resentment do not
bring joy to anyone. Ten chapters later than the Cain
and Abel story, we already get a recording of Abram giving a tithe (which the Good News Bible rightly
translates as ten percent) to the
great high priest of Jerusalem,
Melchizedek. Already, the faithful one, Abram, shows what is to be given back
to God- in this case through a Jerusalem
priest, in gratitude. Later we come to a book that many skip: Leviticus.
Leviticus is mostly the codes of Godly living prescribed by God through the
priests; in this case, you may recall, that all the sons of Jacob were given
land as part of their inheritance, all except Levi, who was given the job of
building and maintaining the priesthood that would direct how people honored
God. Leviticus is part of their handbook on how to live rightly. In Leviticus
27 we read: “All the tithes (first tenth) are the Lord’s; … they are holy to
the Lord.” This is the way to please and honor God. It was Bruce Wilkerson’s
popular book THE PRAYER OF JABEZ that brought to the masses the idea that God,
like a joy-filled parent, has many blessings in heaven waiting to be bestowed
on loyal children who ask for them. Although that premise has been extrapolated
more than the two verses in 1 Chronicles 4 ever intended, the idea is a worthy
one: for those who honor God with their words and actions (like children who
honor parents with words and actions) the gratitude and generosity of God is
waiting to bless them. One doesn’t give just to get goods or
blessings: God can see right through that. But if one gives generously and
gratefully, there are Biblical accounts, and accounts throughout the ages, of
people getting great blessings from God. So Leviticus is yet another guide for
our giving.
What should I give? Here is another place for us to look for the
answer: Deuteronomy 26. “When you receive what the Lord your God has given you,
you shall take the first fruit which you harvest, put it in a basket, go to
your holy place, and offer it to the priest (paraphrased.) First fruits are
also a gratitude gift of the first of what God has given us. In Joshua we see how the people of Israel
kept the first fruits principle and were blessed for it. As they came from Mount
Nebo across the Jordan River, the
first city they defeated and claimed was Jericho.
But by Joshua’s instruction from the Lord, they were to leave Jericho to God as
a first fruits offering, and God would bless the rest of the land they were
given. Joshua 6 includes a warning not to build there; one who did later,
according to First Kings 16, did so at the terrible price of the life of his
first born and his last born sons. Faithful people please God, and faithful
people cause God’s heart to overflow with a desire to bless them. God could
have blessings right now for you and me.
In our Old Testament text today from
2 Chronicles, we heard that the tithe and first fruits requests were prescribed
and followed: Hezekiah, a King who the Bible says “Did what was good in the
sight of the Lord,” put reforms into place in the city that had been corrupted
before. He re-established the old customs, including the call for tithes and
first fruits. And God’s kingdom, under Hezekiah’s reign, was richly blessed.
Here is the passage again: “As soon as the word spread, the people of Israel
gave in abundance the first fruits of grain, wine, oil, honey and of all the produce
of the field; and they brought in abundance the tithe of everything. The people
of Israel and Judah who lived in the cities of Judah also brought in the tithe
of cattle and sheep, and the tithe of dedicated things that had been
consecrated to the Lord their God, and laid them in heaps.” If we were all
farmers, we might bring an offering to God today that would begin to look like
the contents of Noah’s Ark!
Since most of us do not trade with agricultural commodities but with our means,
we do not bring cattle or corn for God as often as we bring time, talents, and
treasure. Traditionally, offerings helped the orphans, the widows, the
travelers, the missionaries, and portions needed for worship. Now tithes,
offerings, and alms continue to lift up and support those in need.
Finally the scene shifts to a time
twelve hundred years later. The same principles were in place. Jesus was at the
Temple in Jerusalem
with his disciples. There was a place where people could drop in Temple coins—Shekels—as a
tithe. In an era without Medicare or Medicaid or pensions, a widow was among
the poorest adults in a community. She would often have no money with which to
buy food if the husband who used to till the soil, craft the products, or raise
the livestock had died. She could perhaps sew or clean, but no income of
substance came to her. So it is in this context that Jesus draws attention to
her offering in Mark 12. She not only put in one “mite” which was the least of
the coins, she also put in another: “two cents” we might say today. But if you had nothing but two cents, it is
a fortune. A woman I know who lives
in this area once pushed her broken mini-van onto the north parking lot of our
property. It was a hot day and she had two children in the van. When I spotted
her, she was crying and digging in the seat cushions, under the seats, and on
the stained carpet for change. You see, she was looking for pennies; and
nickels, and dimes. When I walked out to her she was overwhelmed with frustration.
“Please,” she cried, “I just spent my money on buying this used van and its
junk! It has stalled many times, the last time out in front of your church; I
pushed it around here.” She then poured coins into my hand; “Please,” she said,
“can I buy a soda or get some water from you? We are so thirsty.” I brought her
and her children into our kitchen, and gave them what snacks and beverages we
had. She insisted that her children share one instead of each having one.
Unlike the boys in the peanut butter commercial, they agreed gladly. Since then I and others in the church have helped
this young mother get back on her feet with occasional help and some gifts at
Christmas. She is among the many we have helped.
That is the story of our work as
Christians. That is some of the best use of our funds. But we would not have
funds if people, through either the principle of a tithe or their own
calculation, did not give back as a thank offering to God. We can do so much
with tithes brought and blessed!
In a moment as we sing “Bringing in
the Sheaves,” I want you to imagine the offerings brought forward in
Deuteronomy 26. They might have held corn or fruit or other gifts. Today we
will bring our own first fruits offerings forward of our talent sheet
commitments and our estimate of giving cards, at the end of the service.
Prayerfully consider what you might
want to do to help missionaries, children, widows, and those who are
hungry. And God sees the “countenance”
with which we give. “When the Apostle Paul said “God loves a cheerful giver,”
perhaps he was working to make our attitude toward the Lord be less like Cain’s
and more like Abels.
Jeffrey A. Sumner November 8, 2009