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Stewardship
Biblical Advice
for Cheerful Givers
We've been told
this since our days in Sunday school: We want to give and we need to give
gladly. A spirit of generosity isn't enough to guide us
in our decisions. What else does Scripture have to say on the subject?
Three kinds of
financial giving are mentioned in the
Bible: offerings, tithes and alms.
Understanding what they mean helps us achieve a thoughtful, balanced plan for
our cheerful giving.
Offerings and Tithing
On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside
and save whatever extra
you earn, so that collections need not be taken when I come (1 Corinthians 16:2).
The faith practice of making a
regular financial offering to your congregation
is grounded in a "first fruits" philosophy.
We might think of this giving as
"business as usual." You pay the rent, you buy groceries and you
contribute regularly to help carry out God's mission in the world. Your generosity isn’t an afterthought; it's part of your dayin-and-day-out joyful response as a child of God.
These offerings first help to
support local ministries, outreach and more. Your congregation then shares a
portion of your offering-mission support-with
your synod and the churchwide expression. Stories of Faith in Action is filled
with examples of how mission support
enables us to do God's work with our hands.
Many
Christians talk about their regular contribution as a tithe. This helps them to
differentiate between their financial commitment to their congregation and the
special offerings they designate to specific causes. Such causes may include
ELCA World Hunger, a program of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, your congregation's building fund or a
pan-Lutheran organization such as
Lutheran World Relief.
We encourage your designated support
of these worthy causes. But we also recommend that these offerings are given
above and beyond, and never in place of, your commitment to your regular
congregational offering.
Alms
Sell your
possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out,
an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near
and no moth destroys (Luke 12:33).
Alms are our compassionate, heartfelt response to the people Jesus
mentioned in Matthew 25: those “least” of
our sisters
and brothers who are "less" than we in circumstance only and always our equal in their
humanity.
This is our most personal and spontaneous kind of
giving in response to people in need. Think about the homeless man you see
everyday by the bus stop or the family in your congregation whose home was lost during a
fire. Your outreach makes God's love for them feel very
real and very immediate;
your kindness reveals Christ's presence within them as well.
Time and Talent
It's also important to remember that when we focus
exclusively on giving in terms of money alone, we lose sight of the bigger
picture. God calls us to be generous in all areas our lives and invites us to
explore the opportunities and talent.
When we ground our giving in a biblical context, our financial generosity
becomes an expression of our love for God, for our neighbor and for ourselves.
We are new people in Christ: compassionate and eager to share.
We give cheerfully because God has
given us so much.
Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, for God
loves a cheerful giver.
(2 Corinthians 9:7)
Preaching & Picnicking at the Park
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