Martin Luther once wrote that "there are three conversions necessary: the conversion of the heart, the conversion of the mind, and the conversion of the purse." Of these three, it may well be that we find the conversion of the purse to be the most difficult. Charles Spurgeon writes, "With some Christians the last part of their nature that ever gets sanctified is their pockets."
There’s the old story about a church that was undertaking a huge building project, where the minister stood up one Sunday and said to the congregation, "I've got some good news and some bad news. The good news is that the church has all the money it needs to complete this project. The bad news is that it's still in your wallets."
Last week at evensong I spoke about giving. The reading suggested we must be generous and cheerful givers financially, practically and spiritually. When I looked at the reading tonight from Paul’s 2nd letter to the Corinthians (Ch.9), he’s at it again ! He’s talking about giving ! Now St Paul may be able to get away with it, but I’m not sure I can risk a sermon about giving 2 weeks in a row.
But in that reading Paul writes, ‘the one who sows sparingly reaps sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver…’
And so this evening I thought we could think about why, as Christians, we can be cheerful givers.
The main reason is of course that we have received the gift of salvation through Jesus. The gift of eternal life, in a paradise existence with God is worth being thankful for, but salvation means so much more than that. Because salvation is for today. Salvation is the recognition that Jesus loves us enough that he would go to the cross for us. Salvation is being sure that life, with all of its joys, but also with all of its problems is worth living.
And this is a reason for joy. As Paul writes, ‘…God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance…’ I regularly wish that I could have a Ferrari, or that Cardiff Blues will win every game of the season, but I can content myself with the knowledge that God may not always give me what I want, but he always give me what I need.
And after giving and giving, God then says, ‘if you give to others you will receive an even greater reward.’ A woman dreamt one day that she walked into a shop and God was serving behind the counter. ‘What do you sell here ?’ she asked.
‘Everything your heart desires’, said God.
Hardly daring to believe what she was hearing, the woman decided to ask for the best things a human being could ever wish for. ‘I want peace of mind and love and happiness and wisdom, and freedom from fear,’ she said, then as an after thought she added, ,Not just for me, but for everyone on earth.’
God smiled and said, ‘I think you’ve got it wrong, we don’t sell fruits here, only seeds.’
God loves a cheerful giver because when we give cheerfully and joyfully we are spreading around his love. And he also loves a cheerful giver who is filled with contentment. This week, as with every week, there have been more than a fair share of tragic stories reported on the news. Perhaps the most prominent this week was the 11 year old boy shot in Liverpool.
This has led to long discussions again about gangs, and about street crime, and one of the things that is highlighted by any such discussion is the need for people to belong. People are often searching to be someone or something. They are always striving for something more.
When we recognise that God supply our needs if we trust in him, then we can be content and confident for today and for the future. As Paul sat in a prison writing letters to Churches, he was content, as Peter waited for execution he was content. And the same is true for millions of people since, who, through all of the dangers of life, all of the misery it may sometimes bring, have remained sure in the strength of God.
So filled with joy and contentment we recognise the many blessings that we receive from God, and we respond to that as givers of blessings to others. The blessings may well be in the form of money, but they could just as well be in talent or in time. I was talking to someone earlier this week who mentioned to me how good a funeral director had been to him. He had lost a child, an only child, and the funeral director had called around to visit him every day between the death and the funeral. And he didn’t stop then – after the funeral he continued to either call or ring, although less frequently.
That funeral director may never know what a blessing he was to that family, and there will be times when we will be a blessing to people and not receive thanks or recognition. As we undeservedly receive the blessings of God, so we are called to give blessings to others. We give because God gives to us abundantly more than we can ever desire or deserve. We give as a thanksgiving for what we have received, and with a desire to share the blessings with others.
And so we must learn how to express our thanksgiving well, not only to God, but to one another. We're perhaps sometimes too much like the boy who, on his return from a birthday party, was asked by his mother, "Bobby, did you thank the lady for the party?"
Bobby replied, "Well, I was going to. But a girl ahead of me said, 'Thank you,' and the lady told her not to mention it. So I didn't."
The greatest Christian witness there can ever be, the greatest display of Jesus for people to see, is Christian people living out the joy and contentment of salvation every day of our lives… We can be cheerful givers, because God has given and continues to give, immeasurably more to us than we can ever give to anyone else. AMEN
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