Missed Blessings

Verse of the day: Malachi 3:10 “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,” Says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.

Giving is such a tough subject to speak about. Sadly, it is the one subject that should be the easiest to teach about amongst Christians. Unfortunately, there have been so many false teachers, and people who have taken advantage of God’s people in the area of giving that many Christians have become very defensive when someone begins to teach or preach about giving to God. The bottom line is that giving is a great test of how much we truly trust the Lord. It is a test of our faith. Some would argue that the verses about giving in the Old Testament do not apply to us in the New Testament; yet, those same people will pull other principles and apply them to the New Testament believer. These same “teachers” will even take promises made specifically to Israel, and apply it to the church. The fact of the matter is that the Bible tells us that ALL Scripture has been given to us by inspiration of God, and ALL Scripture is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16). If this is true, then why would we exclude principle about giving? We can never out-give God. We will never give to God, or others (by God’s leading), without receiving blessings in return. Now please hear me. I did not say that God would bless us monetarily if we give our money to Him. I said that we would receive blessings. The problem is that we have too many people out there teaching that if we give our money to God, He will give us more money in return. Yet, I do not see that anywhere in God’s Word. What I do read is that if we give freely, He will pour out blessings, and provide for us beyond what we can ever imagine (Pro 3:9-10). Luke 6:38 tells us that if we give generously, we will receive generously. However, when God gives, He gives in a way that serves as the greatest blessing to us. We may give our last dime to help someone, and God in return may provide a meal, clothing, or some other need, by using someone else to bring it to us. I have seen this time and time again in my own life, and the life of others. We may give God of our time, and talents, and in return we may lead someone to Christ as a result of that time, and those talents, being invested; which is heavenly reward for us. That is a great blessing! We must freely give of whatever God asks, and not try to manipulate or dictate what type of blessings we will receive in return. We must give in such a way as to not expect anything, as all any of us truly deserve is condemnation. Praise be to God that He is always better to us than we deserve. Why do we hold on so tightly to what belongs to God in the first place? Psalm 50:10-11 reminds us that everything is His. The paycheck we earn, we earn because He gives us health and strength. Therefore, everything we buy, we buy with His money. Nothing we own belongs to us. He allows us to have it and expects us to be good stewards of all that He gives us. In return, as born again believers, He wants us to give back to support his servants and support the work of the Gospel. However, He wants us to do it cheerfully from the heart. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 reads, But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. The bottom line is that God does not need our resources. It all belongs to Him anyway. He desires for us to give freely and cheerfully so that He can pour blessings into our lives in return. He was angry with Israel for robbing Him. Why would that be any different today? How can we think that we are not robbing God by holding back our time, talents, and resources, when they really belong to Him? Let us give to Him freely and cheerfully, and let Him decide in what form the blessings will come. I guarantee that we will never be disappointed.

God has already blessed us beyond what we deserve by giving us His Son. Today, He extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing their sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).