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GIVING TO GOD In Luke 6:38 Jesus said, "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again." This world is packed full of wicked and selfish people. God expects His people to be different. Anyone can be a TAKER, but it takes self discipline to be a good GIVER. II Corinthians 9:7 says, "...so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver." Just giving isn't enough to please God. He expects us to give cheerfully. There are basically three ways to give to God. You should give of your time, give of your talents, and give of your treasures. Give of Your Time Since you are bought with a price (I Cor. 6:19-20), you really have no time of your own. You have 168 hours per week, and God owns them all. You will give account for every wasted minute, and you will be rewarded for every minute that was well spent. Notice Paul's instruction from Ephesians 5: "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." (Eph. 5:15-17) We are told to REDEEM the time. Make the most of every minute. Someone once said, "You cannot kill time without injuring eternity." Give of Your Talents I Peter 4:11 says, "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen." When I was in grammar school my teachers often conversed with my parents about my progress. I had the idea that I was doing well enough as long as I passed. My teachers would tell my parents, " but he is ABLE to do a lot better." God isn't just monitoring our Christian service: He is also comparing our service to our ABILITY. You may very well be living a much more honorable Christian life than your neighbor, but are you doing your BEST? Are you using all of your God-given talents for His honor and glory? If you have a special talent, start praying that God will show you how to use it for Him. "It's always a sin to do less than your best." Give of Your Treasure A common practice among Christians is tithing. To tithe is to give a tenth. The first occurrence of tithing in the Bible is in Genesis 14:20 where Abraham gives God a tenth of his possessions. Jacob also vows to tithe in Genesis 28:22. Tithing was also a requirement under the Mosaic law (Lev. 27:30-32; Num. 18:21-28; Deu. 14:22). A tenth was to be given over to the Levitical priesthood for their living and for the maintenance of the Lord's service. The blessings of God were promised to those who were obedient to His laws of tithing. Malachi 3:8-10 says, "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it." Today, although we are no longer under the Mosaic law, many Bible-believing Christians still give at least ten percent to local church ministries since tithing was a practice that pleased God during and even before the law of Moses. Most Bible-believing churches consider tithing a minimum gift, which goes into a general fund to finance the basic expenses of the church, while special love offerings and missions offerings are considered separate offerings altogether. However, this is usually done on a volunteer basis with everyone's giving being respected as a private matter. In all giving, the Luke 6:38 principle should be remembered: "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again."