“It is beyond the realm of possibilities that one has the ability to out give God.” – Charles Spurgeon
Can’t Out-Give the Giver
The word “blessing” occurs 496 times in the Bible, which should not surprise us because God is a God Who loves to bless His children. Paul wrote that we should all proclaim, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:3). This blessing includes the fact that “he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love, he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:4-6). Our blessing is in the Beloved and not in material things.
Giving His Life
What more could God give than giving His one and only Son, Who was sinless for those who are sinners by nature? God loved us that much (John 3:16). God gave that much! Even the poorest among us can give something, even if it’s only our time and talent. God gave the most, so no one can ever out-give what God gave at the cross, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t give something back for His glory in serving others.
Reaping More Than Was Sown
Just as “whoever sows injustice will reap calamity” (Proverbs 22:8a), “he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God” (2 Corinthians 9:10-11). The point is, “whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6). This physical reality is also a spiritual reality.
Blessed Is the Giver
Paul quotes Jesus as saying, “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:35), ** but Paul was not talking about money. He was talking about giving of himself, as he said before Acts 20:35 that “you yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me” (Acts 20:34). He had shown them “that by working hard in this way we must help the weak.” We know that Paul was a tentmaker, and he apparently supplied the necessities “to those who were with” him. This “blessed to give” referred to giving of himself for others in the ministry and some of their physical needs. He was blessed more by giving than by receiving because the giver gets the blessing!
Conclusion
Charles Spurgeon is right: No one can out-give God. So why not give of ourselves and bless those who are the weak and poor, even if it’s only your time and your talent?
Full Bible Study: Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles is the only narrative found in the New Testament apart from the Gospels, and it tells the compelling story of how the Lord grew and guided the early Church.
Some have suggested the book should be called the Acts of the Spirit, and truly every book of Scripture could bear that title. Nevertheless, Luke's account is squarely focused on the lives and work of men, who were striving to follow the Lord in the difficult work of establishing the faith. Can there be a more important study for any Christian desiring to follow in the Apostles' footsteps?
“The soul may ask God for anything, and never fail. You may ask God for His presence, or for wisdom, and receive each at His hands.”
Annie Dillard
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