ICS Daily Devotions
Cheerful Giver
Proverbs 19:17 (NKJV) He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, And He will pay back what he has given.
It is never God’s will for anyone to be in lack. There was no lack in the Garden of Eden, no lack for the Israelites in the wilderness, and certainly no lack in the Promised Land.
Truly, we are lending to the Lord when we give to the poor because God’s heart is for them. We must be able to see that we are stewards of God’s money and “good Samaritans” that God has placed on the earth. He would want us to do what Jesus would have done if He was still on earth today.
2 Corinthians 9:7 (NKJV) So, let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
The Greek word for “cheerful” in this Scripture equates to hilarious. Therefore, we should be excited and “hilarious” about the opportunity to give! Giving helps us to experience God and His faithfulness; it is also an avenue that God has given us to partner with Him in ministry. We should be thankful that He has chosen to entrust us with abundance so that we can excel in every good work and increase the fruit of our righteousness. It is an act of righteousness whenever we choose to give to a good cause, whether it is to bless the poor, support missionaries or any other worthy cause that God has placed in our path.
We should also excel in the area of giving when we talk about being an imitator of Christ. Because Christ has given us His life in exchange for our souls, giving is very much a part of God’s nature. Therefore, we should be cheerful whenever we are given an opportunity to give because it helps us to express the nature of God in us.
We have faith in God as citizens of His kingdom, but most importantly, we need to have corresponding work to show forth our faith in Him. It is true that we are saved by grace through faith and not by works, but we are definitely saved to do good works with the finances that He has entrusted to us! We need not be fearful of lack, as we shall reap every time we sow because God will grant us grace so that we will abound in the work of righteousness.
Therefore, let us be good stewards of God’s money regardless of how much He has given us. May we strive to hear the affirmation “Well done, my good and faithful servant!”
Sermon Series: Faithful Stewards
