At home in my personal devotion time, I recently finished reading through Matthew chapters 5-7 and paraphrasing it in my own words. These chapters are Jesus’ famous “Sermon on the Mount.” I hope to preach a series of messages soon on Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” because it is full of wisdom we need to hear. I will probably start that message series in about a month. But today I want to preach a different message. Today I want to preach a message I call “The Sermon on the Amount.”
You can probably guess the subject of the message from the title. It's a sermon to answer a question people often ask: “How much money should I give to the church?” Money is a sensitive subject—especially when a preacher is the one talking. But I hope you will listen closely.
Jesus talked about money a lot, because He understood how
people handle money is one of the main things that reveals the inward and
unseen state of their hearts. Since
Jesus cares deeply about us, he cares deeply about how we handle money; and we should too.
In the Old Testament of the Bible, the guideline for giving was called the tithe. A tithe is a tenth of a person’s income. This tradition giving 10% of your income goes all the way back to the patriarch Abraham in Genesis 14. Abraham gave God 10% of all the assets he recovered from a battle with an invading army. Abraham knew God was the one who gave Abraham success in battle. The tithe was a way for Abraham to thank God for the victory.
The tithe became the standard for giving throughout the Old
Testament and was codified as part of Jewish religious law. Leviticus
27:30 – “A tenth of the produce of the land, whether grain or fruit, belongs to
the Lord and must be set apart to
him as holy.” And verse 32 – “The Lord
also owns every tenth animal counted off from your herds and flocks. They are
set apart to him as holy.”
Besides being a way to show gratitude to God, the tithe was also used to support people who had no other means of support—priests, refugees, widows, and orphans (see Deuteronomy 14:28-29). The Bible says the practice of tithing also taught people to trust and revere God (see Deuteronomy 14:23).
Now, I could spend the next 10 minutes trying to convince you why you should give a full tithe to the church; I could quote Bible verses and speak of my own personal experience with tithing and what a blessing it’s been. And it would be very challenging, because most people in the church don’t tithe and it’s not easy to give away 10% of your income. But the truth is, that message wouldn’t be challenging enough. God has a greater challenge than just to demand you start giving 10% of your income in the offering each week. So I want to read to you from the Gospel of Mark 12:41-44.
41 Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts. 42 Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins.
43 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell
you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are
making contributions. 44 For they gave a tiny part
of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live
on.”
In the Temple in Jesus day, the collection boxes kind of looked like a trumpet on top of a box. The “horn” was made of brass. So as you dropped coins into it, the metal coins would rattle against the brass horn as they went into the box (and back then all money was coins; there was no paper money). So as people entered the Temple, it was all designed to show off how much money people gave (and by implication, how wealthy were the people who gave).
You can imagine the scene: Maybe one person drops a small bag of coins into the collection box and you can hear the sound of numerous coins rattling down the horn. And everyone hears it and thinks: “Hmmm…” Then a wealthier person empties a large bag of coins into the box and it really makes a lot of noise. And people think, “Wow!” And the family that dropped that money in can stand a little taller—proud of their wealth and the fact that everyone also knows it. And the Bible says Jesus was sitting there near the collection box watching people drop in their money.
That’s an interesting thought. Jesus was interested in what people did with their money. In our day, we are very private about what we give to the church. We are very careful at Pleasant Grove to keep your financial giving confidential. There’s only 2 people in this whole church that can find out specifically what you give. And we keep that information very confidential. But Jesus also knows what you give. Jesus knows not only what you give, but what you can give and why you do or don’t give. Jesus knows your heart. Just as Jesus watched as the crowds giving their money to the Temple, Jesus watches as people give money in the Church today. And just knows not only what you give, but He knows your heart as you give.
In the story from Mark, Jesus wasn’t impressed by all the rich people giving their money at the Temple. He knew most of them had so much extra that they could give and it didn’t even hurt. It might sound impressive to hear such a loud clanging as a sack full of money rattled down into the collection box, but Jesus knew it was money a rich man would never miss. And Jesus knew their hearts. Maybe Jesus wasn’t impressed because He knew many o the richest givers cared more about what people thought about them than what God thought. Maybe Jesus knew the richest givers really didn’t care about the poor or the needy, they just wanted to be admired. Jesus knew their hearts.
And then a poor widow came to the collection box. She dropped in two small coins—what we might
think of as a few pennies. Yet Jesus
admired her because He knew it was all she had to live on.
Jesus said: “This poor widow has given more than everyone else. They
only gave a tiny part of their great income; but she gave everything she had to
live on, even though she is very poor.” The
law only required 10%, but the widow gave everything she had.
Psalm 24:1 says, “The
earth is the Lord’s, and
everything in it. The world and all its
people belong to him.” God already
owns everything. He’s the only person
in existence of whom you can truthfully say, “He’s independently wealthy.” He doesn’t need your money or my money
or anyone’s money.
And He certainly doesn’t need a poor widow’s 2 cents. But the widow’s gift is remarkable because it shows she is content with her life the way it is and she figures she can live just fine without those 2 pennies. She believes God will take care of her. She had incredible faith. She trusted in God rather than her money. And so she already gave God what He wanted most of all—her heart.
It is far better to give someone your heart than your money. How much better off would we all be if everyone understood this principle? It is better to give your heart than your money. How many marriages have deteriorated into emptiness because the husbands do not hear the silent yearnings of their wife when she says, ‘I don’t want your money. I want you.’? How many parents have lost their children because they failed to interpret the signs, ‘I don’t want your presents, [Mom and Dad]. I want you.’? [i] Too often we try to buy people off—but no amount of money can substitute for our heart.
The biblical standard for financial giving is 10%. 10% is the minimum, not the goal (and et so few do the minimum). According to a national survey by the Barna Group, Christians in America only give, on average, 2.2% of their income to the church.[ii] Why do you have so little faith? Do you not trust God enough to give what He asks?
Others may feel very proud they do give a full tithe on their income. They are true tithers. They’re giving at least 8% more than most other Christians. They may feel like they’ve done their duty and they aren’t challenged to do more. “Why, look at me! I’m a tither!”
Whether you do or don’t tithe, don’t miss the heart of Christ’s Gospel. In Jesus Christ, God says, “I don’t want what you have; I want you.”[iii]
What is it that John 3:16 says? “For
God so loved the world that he gave his only son, so that whoever believes in
him will not perish but… give Him 10%
of their income… No! That’s not what it says. What does it say? So that whoever believes in him would
not perish but have eternal life.”
And where would this eternal life be? With God, forever. God didn’t send His son to die on the cross of Calvary so that He could just have 10% of our income. He did it because He wants you—every part of you. And God doesn’t just want you 10% of the time; He wants you all of the time and for all eternity. You see God doesn’t want your money. He wants you! And where your heart is, there your treasure will be also.[iv]
What’s more, Jesus didn’t just come to save you; he came to save the whole world. And He appointed the Church as His Body to carry out His mission. He said, “Go and make disciples of all the nations…”[v] We are nothing less than the Body of Christ. His mission has become our mission. His passion has become our passion. What an awesome responsibility; what an incredible honor—to spend ourselves and all we have for the souls of our brothers and sisters here in Whitfield County and even to the ends of the earth.
The Apostle Paul understood the full ramifications of this. He said in all sincerity, “I will gladly
spend myself and all I have for your spiritual good…” That is the attitude I pray we will have. How far are we willing to go for the spiritual good of the person sitting next
to us today? Are we willing to expend
ourselves and all we have for the people in our community?
You see, the real question is not: “What amount of money should I give to the church?” In light of our purpose as Christians and the tremendous need around the world, the question is: “How much dare I spend on myself?” The question is not: “Can I afford to give 10% of my income to the church?” The question is, “Can I justify to Jesus the lifestyle that consumes 90% of my income?”
We live in one of the most prosperous nations in the world, and a lot of good has come of it, but is it enough? Have we done all we could do with the vast wealth God has given us? Have I done all the good I can do with the wealth God has given me?
A lot of people would say the problem with the church today is that only 2% of Christians actually tithe.
I disagree. The problem isn’t whether or not we tithe. The problem is we haven’t followed the example of the widow. We haven’t given everything to
God.
